Help - Sun Princess or HAL Volendam?

[cmm80124]

Hi all,

 

We are planning to book our next cruise soon, and I am looking for OBJECTIVE differences between Princess (sailed on once) and HAL (never been on). :)

 

Here are the choices:

 

10/21/06 Sun Princess - 3 sea days mixed in with Antique, St. Lucia, Grenada, Martinique, St. Thomas & Princess Cays

 

10/24/06 HAL Volendam - 4 sea days mixed in with Aruba, Curacao, Dominica, St. Thomas & Half Moon Cay

 

We like sea days as much as port days AS LONG AS there is a wide variety of options onboard, which leads me to my questions:

 

1. The Volendam holds approx. 1,450 pax - since I felt comfortable with the size of the Coral, will this be too small for me?

 

2. Are there less or more daytime activities offered on HAL than Princess? Are the activities similar or more low-key?

 

3. Since it looks like HAL only has one large lounge, will there be considerably less nighttime shows on the Volendam? What time do things start to close up?

 

4. Is the age demographic similar on both lines? Although we are in our early twenties, we enjoy the company of all age groups, as long as there isn't a "stuffy" atmosphere on the ship.

 

5. Any other advice you would be willing to share to help us make the decision?

 

All other things equal, we can get a better, larger stateroom on HAL for about the price of a standard outside on Princess. However, my main concern is whether there will be enough offered on HAL for us to keep busy. Thanks in advance for your help!

 

P.S. Will also post this on the HAL board so as to get more input

[Arubalisa]

Seeing you are in your 20's I am going to STRONGLY urge you to choose Princess. Overall, HAL & Princess are about equal in quality. However, you are going to find the demographic to be much older on the smaller HAL ships such as the VOLENDAM. Although the company is trying to change their "image", HAL has been a long time favorite of an older clientele. You will see more tuxs, more walkers, more wheelchairs. For a Christmas cruise we still had many "older couples" aboard who resented the children, who IMHO, were amongst the most well behaved I have seen on a ship.

 

I haven't looked to see your replies on the HAL board, but be forewarned that there are some real diehard HAL fans there. LOL, I have seen them try to discourage people with families from cruising HAL, telling them it is not a line for families. Well our family of 11 ranging in age from 11 to 93 (4 kids below the age of 16) made out just fine.

 

My 93 year old grandmother likes HAL because the buffet attendants will carry her tray of food to the table for her. HAL has your typical cruiseship activities BUT they are all done in a more lowkey atmosphere. The only exception and the only announcements (other than daily report from the bridge) on HAL were for Bingo. My parents transatlantic cruise on the Westerdam was a longer cruise yes, but in their 60's, they were among the youngest folks aboard.

 

My brother and his wife closed the "disco" on the Zaandam a couple of nights around 1 or 2 am, but there were only a handful of people and this was a Christmas cruise with a lot of families aboard. There was of course the nightly show as well as "entertainment" in the different lounges. There were even "pool games" geared towards the younger people. If cabin and size were important to you, I guess you would need to weigh the importance of this one aspect. Overall, I just have the feeling you would be more comfortable on Princess.

[cmm80124]

Hi Lisa,

 

Thanks so much for your observations! I really appreciate it when someone takes the time to write more than "Princess is better. Period."

 

I think we are leaning more towards the Sun Princess now, although it's still a toss-up. Our favorite daily activities are things like the art auctions, pool games, and bingo. If HAL has more low-key things like trivia and bridge, I'm not sure we would participate as much.

 

Thanks again - we're hoping to make our final decision next week!

[TorontoTL]

I haven't been on HAL but I'm sure it's a great cruiseline from what friends have told me about them. I have been on the Sun and in fact it was for our second Princess cruise. Prior to that I was on the Golden. I thought the Golden was such a fabulous ship that I was really concerned that I'd find the Sun to be too small and have nothing to do. In fact I was really pleasantly surprised at how nice the Sun Princess was and that it really didn't feel small whatsoever. The one difference is that there is less late night life. The Grand class ships have the Skywalkers lounge/club that has dancing into the wee hours of the night. The Sun also has a night club but I don't think it gets that busy late at night. Otherwise the nightlife is still great on the Sun, with so many lounges and shows you won't be bored at all. From what my friends have told me there is less to do on the HAL ships in the evenings compared with Princess. Try the Sun I don't think you'll be disappointed.:)

[Arubalisa]

I totally forgot to mention that I have all 11 days/10 nights worth of "Daily Programs" from the Zaandam starting at http://www.arubabound.com/image/lg/us/zaandam/zaan_prog1218.htm

 

Forgot too, that if you prefer a more flexible dining schedule and do not want to eat at the buffet, Princess wins hands down. HAL had delicious buffets with a huge variety. In the buffet restaurant you were even able to have a casual dinner with linen tableclothes and waiters serving your main course.

 

BTW, we also loved the Golden :) it was before we adopted our daughter and appreciated the "adults only" swimming pool. I am going to convince dh to take us on the Caribbean next June. Keep your fingers crossed!

[cmm80124]

Thank you, thank you for the daily programs! That's exactly what I was looking for!

 

I am interested in the Cruise Craft activities that were offered on some days - they sound interesting, but is what you make nice or (ahem...) tacky?

[alley524]

I'd say go for Princess.

 

We may have just had bad a room steward, bad waiters, etc...but our last cruise was on the Oosterdam for Alaskan cruise and I had it marked last on our list of favorite cruises halfway through.

 

The people on the HAL boards have their line so hyped up that it was a real let down for me. Don't let them fool you. It's not that they were that bad but they aren't superrior to other lines as they'd like you to believe either.

 

We ended up with previous pax's dirty socks under desk and also inside the still locked safe. Dinner took us a full two hours with only four of us at our table. No little canvas shopping tote that was promised. (yes, I started getting picky.) The room steward cleaned our room and didn't replace the wash clothes. That happened a couple times. I started collecting extras from the public restrooms just in case...LOL

Like I said....could have been just plain bad luck when it came to the HAL people assigned to us. :o

 

Also the ship itself, not that I can compare it to the other ships in their fleet, was boring. There wasn't any "Awe" when I walked on board.

 

Good luck with which ever line you go for.

[c-cruise]

We are also in our 20's (barely) and were also deciding between those two ships for our upcoming Nov. 28th cruise. We have sailed both lines many times and decided on the Sun Princess for this trip even though we found the Volendam itinerary to be superior due to the stop in Aruba, more time in Curaco and Half Moon Cay being much nicer than Princess Cays (IMHO).

 

That said, we chose the Sun Princess because we wanted Personal Choice dinning and a more casual cruise experience. That and the free internet access for Platinum members :)

[Arubalisa]

Thank you, thank you for the daily programs! That's exactly what I was looking for!

 

I am interested in the Cruise Craft activities that were offered on some days - they sound interesting, but is what you make nice or (ahem...) tacky?

Sorry don't know, didn't attend...

[Arubalisa]

There wasn't any "Awe" when I walked on board.

 

Good luck with which ever line you go for.

That is freaky! My mom said the EXACT same thing about the Zaandam. She was very pleased by the Westerdam though.

 

I went back and re-read my cruise review at http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=8944 and it reminded me of many of the problems our family had with our 4 cabins.

 

Among them, the dirty socks alley524 had remind me of our first evening, "First night prior to leaving for dinner we left a note for the cabin steward: from the previous cruise which had disembarked that morning, we were left with: a bathroom wastebasket which had not been emptied, a desk full of crumbs and a shelf full of receipts from the previous cabin occupants. 3 of 4 cabins had 3, not 4 occupants. Each of the four cabins only had two bath towels! They were not offered outright, each cabin had to request the 3rd bath towel for the 3rd occupant individually. Sorry but is that not just common sense?"

[Times Prince]

Things change - and I hope they have for HAL. Our one HAL cruise was the only cruise where I did not feel it was vacation money well spent.

I have read the HAL board and I see many of the same issues I had with the cruise.

 

Our 21 year old daughter was with us and was the ONLY passenger within 10 years of her age. Some of the crew were closer to her age, but were not allowed to hold a conversation with her, even on nights when she was the only passenger in the disco.

 

She enjoyed her later cruise on Princess after we finally talked her into trying cruising again.

[turquoisesea]

I have to agree with Times Prince. We sailed on the Zeiderdam in August 2003 and just did the Caribbean Princess in August 2005. My 22 year old daughter was 1/3 of the age of all of our table mates along with the rest of the passengers. The Zeiderdam food and service was not good, with many plates being sent back to the kitchen each night. The food in the buffet/food court was very good. The one highlight was their private island - it is by far the best of all the cruise lines. That being said, I will never choose an HAL cruise again. I am now a Princess girl!

[iancal]

Have not been on HAL yet, but were on the Sun last Feb. for a similar 10 itinerary. We really did like the ports of call (did independent tours which were VERY good) The ship was in excellent condition-notwithstanding some of the posts we read about it falling to bits with dirty carpets (I cannot understand post like this unless of course there is another Sun Princess on the high seas) Our cabin was fine as was the cabin service. We found a much higher percentage of retired people on the cruise and we were subsequently told that this is the case on most 10 day cruises. We were happy that we did not bring our teenage daughter with as as she would have been bored to tears as we saw no others in that age group. Our tablemates said that they were busy all day long...art auctions, guessing games of some sort and they very much enjoyed those activities. We found the entertainment on the Sun just so so.-but very comparable to what we have seen on RCI and Celebrity. Nothing great-we skipped out of 2 shows because we did not care for them. There was a male lounge singer who could not seem to hit a note-people were snickering about that during the cruisel Seating for the shows is NOT great, very crowded so get there early. Too many busy bodies trying to reserve 12 or so seats at a time. A number of fellow passengers 'closed' this down and just sat in those seats. Food was ok (dining room), and got better as the 10 days progressed. We liked the Italian restaurant. Buffet was similar in quality and variety to what we have seen on other ships/lines. We are thinking about a10 day on the Sun's other Caribbean itinerary. One thing we did learn is that we will take our little coffee drip if we go on Sun again-the coffee on our trip was awfull.

[Freelancer]

I recommend the Sun Princess itinerary. We have been on the HAL Zaandam, sister ship of the Volendam, and the Dawn Princess, sister ship of the Sun Princess.

 

In fact, we enjoyed our Dawn cruise so much in April, that we are on the Sun in three weeks.

 

Each cruise line has pros and cons and no two are the same in the services they offer. For example, some ships have better food, better wait staff or better entertainment. Even within the same line, this can vary from ship to ship.

 

The Sun is 15,000 tons larger and 100 feet longer than the Volendam. It also caters to a more varied demographic than HAL. On our Zaandam cruise more than 90 percent of the passengers were 70 and older with many over 75. The casino was dead after 10 p.m. as was the disco.

 

On our Dawn Princess cruise, the median age was 35-55; seniors were not the dominant group.

 

As for service, I don't like the Princess buffet concept and usually have most of my meals in the dining room. Here again, Princess is better than Hal. The dining room hours are longer for breakfast and lunch and the menu has more choices. In fact, I think Princess's dining room menu for these meals is better than Celebrity. HAL has a great buffet with consistently good food and helpful service for the elderly or disabled with trays and beverages.

 

The plus to Princess is that their buffet never closes. So if you return at 3 p.m. from a day in port and are hungry, you aren't stuck eating a hot dog or pizza. You can find a hot meal in the buffet or enjoy a soup and salad. Late night snackers can also find a bedtime repast in the buffet at 2 a.m. if they want.

 

Would I sail HAL again? Yes, if it one of their newer and larger ships. My husband and I prefer Celebrity and Princess and are happy with both lines.

 

Whatever you choose you will enjoy.

[jwitt2]

I am interested in the Cruise Craft activities that were offered on some days - they sound interesting, but is what you make nice or (ahem...) tacky?

 

I have been on several HAL cruises, including the Volendam and go to craft sessions. As I remember, HAL didn't want to charge anything for these sessions, so the projects were pretty basic. The instructor provided the supplies. I have done such things as needlepoint glasses cases, ribbon roses, necklaces made out of fabric, scarves with beads hanging from them, decopage plaques, hand sewn coin purse. The best thing I ever did was a beading class on the QE2. The instructor provided beautiful beads for necklaces and ear rings. I love the beads I got to work with and love to wear the necklace. This is all I can think of at the moment. If they were making something I didn't like, I just left. Have fun!

[Stevesan]

Gee, what a surprise: The Consensus on the HAL board is sail Volendam and the Princess board is sail Sun.

Whoda thunk it.

[Arubalisa]

The people on the HAL boards have their line so hyped up that it was a real let down for me. Don't let them fool you. It's not that they were that bad but they aren't superrior to other lines as they'd like you to believe either.

Yeah, so strange dontcha think? :D

[cmm80124]

Thanks to everyone!

 

Although I did expect a response similar to what Stevesan observed, I really appreciate everyone taking the time to mention their objective experiences while onboard.

 

While both sides seem to agree that HAL's buffet is superior, my husband and I really enjoyed the Anytime Dining we had on Princess, where we usually ended up eating anywhere between 7:00 and 7:30. 6:00 and 8:00 just aren't natural eating times for us in the dining room.

 

Also, many people have mentioned that HAL has an older demographic than Princess. Although being one of the youngest didn't bother us on the Coral, we would not want to be THE youngest, as Times Prince mentioned regarding their daughter. Also, I had enough run-in's with motorized scooters on the Coral to last me a lifetime. :)

 

So, after much deliberation, we have decided to book the Sun Princess. Thanks again to everyone for their advice!

 

Carla

[Arubalisa]

Also, I had enough run-in's with motorized scooters on the Coral to last me a lifetime. :)

You wouldn't have to turn around twice to find this on HAL :D

 

Have a fantastic trip!

[sea_breaze]

Having sailed the Sun (last February) and HAL(Maasdam-2002) I think you made the right choice. Enjoy your cruise. Make sure you don't miss "Isalnd Night"

[jnc411]

HI, we have family and friends that sail only HAL, and other that like only Princess. I would say the deciding factor would be your age group. It is well known that the HAL cruises are predominately older age group. YOu would probably be more comfortable on Princess or RCI cruise, more activities for you , a younger crowd of passangers. I hope you find a cruise that suits your needs and that you have a great time.

Cori