Help me choose a ship please

[dontpanik]

I have done my research and really want to take HAL next year. I love everything I've heard about them and love, love, love the size of the ships. I was pretty sold on the Westerdam on the Eastern itinerary but noticed the Nieuw Amsterdam and Eurodam do the same itinerary. They are certainly larger but not off-putting as I love the Disney Magic/Wonder and they aren't a lot bigger than those. Anyway, which ship would you prefer?

 

BTW, I know it's subjective, I just want to know why you prefer one over the other. Thank you!

[sail7seas]

The sister ships, Eurodam and Nieuw Amsterdam, have two venues that Westerdam (and her sisters) do not.

 

They have a lounge called Silk Den that many of us think very lovely and different than others on the HAL ships and they have Tamarind Restaurant. That is Pan-Asian and was very carefully designed and fitted. The setting is lovely, the service very refined and calming, the food delicious and it was a very pleasant evening to dine there. Some of us like it enough we sometimes choose one of those two ships over the others just for those venues. In a seven day cruise, most people (if they go at all) would not go more than once or twice (with some exceptions, of course) and it might not be worth it to you to choose a ship just for one restaurant and one lounge. :)

 

My preference for some undefined reason is Eurodam over Nieuw Amsterdam. We sailed Eurodam 5 cruises and really enjoyed them and 2 cruises on Nieuw Amsterdam and they were fine, too, but somehow Eurodam 'spoke' to us more strongly. Whatever in the world that means........ :D :D

 

Westerdam is a fine ship, she is beautiful, she provides a fine cruise and no reason to suggest not sailing her. We sailed her 3 cruises and had no complaints. :)

 

[Krazy Kruizers]

We have sailed on the ships that you have mentioned.

Besides the Silk Den and the Tamarind restaurants on the Eurodam and the Nieuw Amsterdam, those ships have Lido Cabanas and Retreat cabanas that you can rent. Both ships also have a screening room where there are about 30 seats for viewing movies. The Westerdam doesn't have these features.

We like the Nieuw Amsterdam much better than the Eurodam. JMO but she seems classier than Eurodam.

[serendipity1499]

That's hard for someone else to choose, not knowing much about you..

 

We've never been on the Eurodam..

 

However we enjoy smaller ships (Prinsendam is our favorite) so our first choice would be Westerdam, only because it's smaller than the NA, but the NA is also newer.. We've been on both & loved them both..The NA also has the Tamarind Rest. which we enjoyed.. When we were on the Westerdam it did not have the Tamarind Rest. or the silk den..Service on both ships was excellent..

 

BTW, we book outside rooms preferably mid ship & take the longer cruises..

 

You won't go wrong, whichever ship you choose.. Enjoy HAL

Edited September 1, 2014 by serendipity1499

[dontpanik]

Sorry about not giving any info on us. I'm 41 (DH is 35) and we'll be traveling with my parents (in their mid/late 60s). We have no kids and travel during the 'down times' usually fall. I love smaller ships. Very much. We had fun on our Dream cruise, at least when we stayed in our room, but it was just packed and crammed full of people and the venues were no larger than that of a ship half her size. The service just wasn't there and it was more like being in a hotel than a cruise (which I hate!). I used to work for DCL and fell hard for the Magic/Wonder. Loved the size and service.

 

Our ideal sea day is waking up to hot breakfast, hitting the fitness center/spa, walking around the ship exploring, taking a cooking class or attending a seminar, sitting on our verandah reading or watching the sea, taking a nap, afternoon tea, walking around some more, an elegant dinner, maybe a little dancing and strolling the deck under the stars, late night snack either in a venue or off room service, lounging on our veranda and then bed time. We don't usually do alternate, pay venues but I have done Palo's on DCL. I DO NOT enjoy a party atmosphere. We love the feeling of being on a ship. We don't drink and we could take or leave a casino. Is this helping at all, lol?

[zookiebird]

After several cruses on the Noordam and Zuiderdam (sisters to the Westerdam) we took our first cruise on the Eurodam this past February. I was a bit skeptical at first because of her larger size but found her to be a great ship and certainly not overly crowded. Although I haven't been on her I think you'd find the NA equally nice. As others have said the Silk Den and Tamarind are wonderful. On a 7-day cruise one dinner in the Pinnacle Grille and another in Tamarind would suit me just fine. BTW, I love that HAL Eastern Caribbean itinerary.

[serendipity1499]

Sorry about not giving any info on us. I'm 41 (DH is 35) and we'll be traveling with my parents (in their mid/late 60s). We have no kids and travel during the 'down times' usually fall. I love smaller ships. Very much. We had fun on our Dream cruise, at least when we stayed in our room, but it was just packed and crammed full of people and the venues were no larger than that of a ship half her size. The service just wasn't there and it was more like being in a hotel than a cruise (which I hate!). I used to work for DCL and fell hard for the Magic/Wonder. Loved the size and service.

 

Our ideal sea day is waking up to hot breakfast, hitting the fitness center/spa, walking around the ship exploring, taking a cooking class or attending a seminar, sitting on our verandah reading or watching the sea, taking a nap, afternoon tea, walking around some more, an elegant dinner, maybe a little dancing and strolling the deck under the stars, late night snack either in a venue or off room service, lounging on our veranda and then bed time. We don't usually do alternate, pay venues but I have done Palo's on DCL. I DO NOT enjoy a party atmosphere. We love the feeling of being on a ship. We don't drink and we could take or leave a casino. Is this helping at all, lol?

 

After several cruses on the Noordam and Zuiderdam (sisters to the Westerdam) we took our first cruise on the Eurodam this past February. I was a bit skeptical at first because of her larger size but found her to be a great ship and certainly not overly crowded. Although I haven't been on her I think you'd find the NA equally nice. As others have said the Silk Den and Tamarind are wonderful. On a 7-day cruise one dinner in the Pinnacle Grille and another in Tamarind would suit me just fine. BTW, I love that HAL Eastern Caribbean itinerary.

 

You & your parents are young enough to not be bothered by the NA size & I agree with zookiebird..Depending on the number of days, at least one dinner in Pinnacle & one in Tamarind (per week LOL) would be great for you all..Service in both venue's is outstanding, but make your reservations early..

 

Since my hip operation, several years ago, it's been easier for me on the smaller ships, only because I refuse to use my cane, even when DH & Friends nag me to use it..;).LOL.. I know I'm being vain about it:eek:!

 

We also love HAL's promenade deck & spend our days out on it..:)

Edited September 1, 2014 by serendipity1499

[lazey1]

Sorry about not giving any info on us. I'm 41 (DH is 35) and we'll be traveling with my parents (in their mid/late 60s). We have no kids and travel during the 'down times' usually fall. I love smaller ships. Very much. We had fun on our Dream cruise, at least when we stayed in our room, but it was just packed and crammed full of people and the venues were no larger than that of a ship half her size. The service just wasn't there and it was more like being in a hotel than a cruise (which I hate!). I used to work for DCL and fell hard for the Magic/Wonder. Loved the size and service.

 

Our ideal sea day is waking up to hot breakfast, hitting the fitness center/spa, walking around the ship exploring, taking a cooking class or attending a seminar, sitting on our verandah reading or watching the sea, taking a nap, afternoon tea, walking around some more, an elegant dinner, maybe a little dancing and strolling the deck under the stars, late night snack either in a venue or off room service, lounging on our veranda and then bed time. We don't usually do alternate, pay venues but I have done Palo's on DCL. I DO NOT enjoy a party atmosphere. We love the feeling of being on a ship. We don't drink and we could take or leave a casino. Is this helping at all, lol?

 

It sounds like you will love Holland America which ever ship you choose. We have cruised on all three of these ships and loved all of them. Make sure to attend the Indonesian tea. The waiters dress up in their native formal attire and the table cloths are from Indonesia. This is normally done once a cruise.

The Westerdam is an older ship and we don't remember if she has the large thermal suite and pool or the small one that is more of a hot tub.

Other than the decor Eurodam and Nieuw Amsterdam are the same. Even if you don't eat or have a drink there please do explore the Tamarind and the Silk Den. They are drop dead gorgeous. Of the three you are considering our favorite would be the Eurodam. Why, we loved, loved, loved her decor. :cool:

[kjw869]

We've been on all the ships you mentioned and chose the Westerdam (fourth time on this ship) for our Eastern Caribbean next January because of the itinerary. We like St. Maarten more than St. Thomas.

 

I think you can't go wrong on any of these ships.

[cruz chic]

The sister ships, Eurodam and Nieuw Amsterdam, have two venues that Westerdam (and her sisters) do not.

 

They have a lounge called Silk Den that many of us think very lovely and different than others on the HAL ships and they have Tamarind Restaurant. That is Pan-Asian and was very carefully designed and fitted. The setting is lovely, the service very refined and calming, the food delicious and it was a very pleasant evening to dine there. Some of us like it enough we sometimes choose one of those two ships over the others just for those venues. In a seven day cruise, most people (if they go at all) would not go more than once or twice (with some exceptions, of course) and it might not be worth it to you to choose a ship just for one restaurant and one lounge. :)

 

My preference for some undefined reason is Eurodam over Nieuw Amsterdam. We sailed Eurodam 5 cruises and really enjoyed them and 2 cruises on Nieuw Amsterdam and they were fine, too, but somehow Eurodam 'spoke' to us more strongly. Whatever in the world that means........ :D :D

 

Westerdam is a fine ship, she is beautiful, she provides a fine cruise and no reason to suggest not sailing her. We sailed her 3 cruises and had no complaints. :)

 

I prefer the Eurodam over the NA, but the NA has a better itinerary for my cruise. I don't like the Westy at all. I've had 2 cruises on that ship,that were less than stellar so I wouldn't pick that one. It does seem to have its fans.

[Typhoon1]

Either of the two Signatures would be a good choice. They are essentially the same except for the décor.

[cbr663]

We have sailed on the NA and the Eurodam. We had a much better cruise on the NA. As a matter of fact, it was one of the very best cruises we have ever had. We love the ship, the service was superb and we loved the Tamarind. I will gladly sail on the NA again.

 

Our cruise on the Eurodam was unfortunately one of our worst cruises ever and I have vowed to never sail on the ship again. I am convinced that the ship is plagued with systemic service problems. I have since heard that the Eurodam has developed a reputation for being plagued with poor service. You can read our review of this cruise under Member Reviews on this site.

 

The NA, the Eurodam and the Westerdam are all the same length and beam. The most glaring difference between the NA/Eurodam and the Westerdam is the addition of an extra deck on the NA/Eurodam. The Westerdam recently had a fire onboard on an Alaskan cruise. The ship was given the all clear to sail.

 

If the itineraries are the same, I would sail on the NA. She is a newer ship with a crew that provides outstanding service.