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Opinions, please- Maasdam or Noordam?

cruiseapril

By cruiseapril,
in Holland America Line

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cruiseapril

cruiseapril

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Hi- We have been on the Noordam Wayfarer and are considering the Seafarer for 2015. (We enjoyed the Noordam very much.) The itinerary is:

Half Moon Cay, Grand Turk, Samana, Bonaire, Curacao, & Aruba. We have been to all ports by ship except for Samana and Bonaire.

 

However, the Maasdam has a very appealing itinerary also:

St. Thomas, St. Barts, St. Lucia, Barbados, Grenada, Bonaire, Curacao,

and Half Moon Cay. We have been to all by ship except St. Barts, Grenada, and Bonaire.

 

The big question for us is the age of the Maasdam, as compared to the Noordam and whether that matters? We are HAL fans, so either will be fine- but which is better in your opinion? Thanks.

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innlady1

innlady1

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Hi- We have been on the Noordam Wayfarer and are considering the Seafarer for 2015. (We enjoyed the Noordam very much.) The itinerary is:

Half Moon Cay, Grand Turk, Samana, Bonaire, Curacao, & Aruba. We have been to all ports by ship except for Samana and Bonaire.

 

However, the Maasdam has a very appealing itinerary also:

St. Thomas, St. Barts, St. Lucia, Barbados, Grenada, Bonaire, Curacao,

and Half Moon Cay. We have been to all by ship except St. Barts, Grenada, and Bonaire.

 

The big question for us is the age of the Maasdam, as compared to the Noordam and whether that matters? We are HAL fans, so either will be fine- but which is better in your opinion? Thanks.

 

We've been on the Noordam numerous times in the Caribbean...and also on Maasdam with a very similar itinerary. I would absolutely go for the Maasdam itinerary....hands down. That's a winner!

We love both ships...in fact, this winter, we are doing back to backs with both ships instead of one or the other. Maasdam for 11 days and then going to the Noordam for the next 10.

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RuthC

RuthC

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I don't think the age of the ships matters so much as the difference in size, and to a lesser extent, the amenities. I was on the Maasdam last June, and she was in fine shape.

 

The Maasdam is at the smaller end of the HAL fleet, while the Noordam is one of the larger ships. They both have many public rooms in common, but the Noordam has a dedicated nightclub, and the extra venue of the Queen's Lounge.

Other than that, the food, service, and atmosphere are very similar. Cabins on the Maasdam are larger than Noordam in the same category.

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mamaofami

mamaofami

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We've done lots of cruising on Maasdam and I love her size and crew. I think she's perfect.

 

That said, this year we're doing 21 days on Noordam. We've sailed her twice and I love her too, even though she's a bigger ship.

 

We've been to all the above mentioned islands and usually don't do sightseeing any more. We grab a taxi and head for the beach.

 

You can't go wrong with either ship, so pick the itinerary that appeals to you, or do what Innlady is doing and sail them both.:)

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jtl513

jtl513

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I like both ships and both itineraries. I suggest you try the Maasdam simply to see if you like the smaller size better. My DW prefer the smaller ships better while I lean toward the larger. :)

Edited by jtl513
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bobpell

bobpell

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Having been on both I tend to lean towards the Noordam. One reason is her floor to rail glass panels both on the balconies and the perimeter of the upper decks. Maasdam has solid steel extending from the deck upwards for approximately 16-18 inches giving a more claustrophobic feel while relaxing on your veranda or up on an open deck.

Any passages with seas larger than 6-8 feet will produce some challenging walks on board the Maasdam and we found an eye opening amount (while sleeping) of scraping and groaning in the ceiling of our cabin during such an event.

Because the Noordam was our first experience with HAL many moons ago I, if given a choice, would choose her in a heart beat over HAL's smaller and older ships.

Just got off the Nieuw Amsterdam which did a leg on an outside run from Fort Lauderdale to San Juan where the seas were closer to 10-12 ft. and we had a quartering wind of 50-60 knots for a day and a night. What a ride. Shows were cancelled, promenade deck was cordoned off and high heels were relegated to back of the closet

Bobpell

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Candiaccruiser

Candiaccruiser

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We have sailed on both the Maasdam and the Nordam twice and are currently booked on a Collector's cruise on the Noordam for February. We love both these ships and happily sail on either of them. The Maasdam, being smaller, feels a tad friendlier and cozier. Choosing the itinerary that you most prefer sounds like a good way to go!

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

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mamaofami

mamaofami

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Looking at the itinerary again, I see one of the ports on Noordam is Samana. That port is also on my upcoming Noordam cruise, and on my roll call, many people are talking about staying on the ship because the island is dirty. Has anyone been there recently?

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Candiaccruiser

Candiaccruiser

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Mamaofami, I saw that too and have been wondering whether it was worth actually leaving the ship in Samana or not. This is the only port on our cruise that we haven't visited before, so it was a bit disappointing to read what people had to say.

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

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innlady1

innlady1

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Looking at the itinerary again, I see one of the ports on Noordam is Samana. That port is also on my upcoming Noordam cruise, and on my roll call, many people are talking about staying on the ship because the island is dirty. Has anyone been there recently?

 

We went to Samana on the Noordam in '10. We stayed on the ship as that was just prior to my hip surgery and it's a tender port...I didn't want to deal with that.

Several people we met got off the ship...and came back almost immediately. From their reports, the people hanging out at the docks selling stuff were just way too pushy.

So, I doubt we'll get off this time...unless I find an interesting ship excursion to do.

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GlennG

GlennG

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Having sailed on both of these ships, I have found both the Massdam and Noordam to be more than satisfactory. For me, finances play and important part in my decision making. Generally speaking, a smaller ship, like the Massdam, will be more expensive. I've also learned that the larger ships, like the Noordam, are more family friendly. In making your decision, it really depends on your personal circumstances.

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retdon

retdon

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Just off the Noordam for the second time and we love the ship BUT......

I booked on the Maasdam for 4/2015 based on the ports (see ticker below). It is going places we have never been.

 

I was concerned about sailing on a ship that old but after checking it out sure seems like a lot of folks love the ship.

 

QUESTION: Those of you who have sail on Maasdam what are the cabins like under the Lido, noisy, I booked BB038?????? I am also concerned that this is call a Veranda Suite but diagram does not look like a suite....

 

My advise to poster, you will love the Noordam.

 

Samana: we did not get off the ship and those that did said they had never seen such a dirty place. We have never seen so much trash in the water. Seems like all the garbage is swept into the gutters and then rain washes it into the bay. We anchored so far out we could not even see where the tenders were docking. I think HAL continues to go there for the whale watching in Jan. , Feb. and March.

Linda

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'The Bear'

'The Bear'

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We have sailed 84 days on the Noordam and an equal or greater amount of time on the Maasdam ---- they are our two favourite ships!! Like the others, I would choose based on the itinerary. Both ships have a friendly, hard working staff --- you will have no problem with either ship!!

 

As an aside, on our trips to Samana we simply went to Caya Leventado, not a great beach, but the property is neat and the vendors are not aggressive; but I concur with the others that no one that I met was satisfied with the town of Samana, for all the previously mentioned reasons .

 

Have a great cruise, no matter which you choose!!!

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