New to Holland America

[debut]

Will be on Maasdam in Feb. 2017, and have a few questions,

Taking soda on board, should it be in the carry on or checked luggage?

Regarding laundry, do we tell the steward that we would like the daily laundry deal? Which would be better this or the special bag of laundry that sometimes is available during the cruise, it is a long cruise,if the special bag deal, how many times does the ship run the special? Will be on a month.

Is the library nice with lots of books?

We are elite with Princess, they do not have a top sheet on the bed, does Maasdam have one or do I need to tell the steward when I meet him or her?Got to have a top sheet!

The little fridge, does it stay cold?

If you think of anything else that maybe I need to know I would be thankful, looking forward to our cruise,absolutely love Princess, but Holland has some great itenaries that we would like to try. Thanks everyone

Debbie

[jtl513]

HAL says all beverages brought on must be in your hand-carried bags, but many people have reported putting bag tags on cases of soda and water and having them delivered to the room. If you put it in checked bags you will likely be called down to open them for inspection.

 

On the laundry slip where you itemize what you are sending you check off either "unlimited" (figure about $7/day) or a single bag price ... around $20 to $25 depending on ship and itinerary. I don't know anything about laundry specials.

 

The library was good when we were on the Maasdam, but that was almost 5 years ago. I don't know now.

 

There is a top sheet under the duvet.

 

The mini-bar (which on the Maasdam are only in suites) will chill items to about 25 degrees below whatever temp you keep the room set to. If you are in an OV or inside you can rent a cooler for $3/day. Call Ship Services to reserve one.

.

Edited December 31, 2016 by jtl513

[knittinggirl]

We paid for the daily laundry service, and loved it!

 

We sent laundry out daily, and got it back usually the next day.

[erewhon]

We disembarked from 42 days on Maasdam, 2nd December.

Maasdam has a good library, including a book exchange cupboard.

Edited December 31, 2016 by erewhon

[daisybertie]

The Maasdam had a great Library when we sailed in September. A nice place to sit, and plenty of books to choose from. The Librarian was very helpful, she spent a lot of time patiently helping people with their WiFi. I did read somewhere that the Librarian position had been axed on the Maasdam from November this year. I hope they don't ruin the Library before our next cruise in 2017. And if there is no Librarian, who will help us technically challenged folk?

[RuthC]

Which would be better this or the special bag of laundry that sometimes is available during the cruise, it is a long cruise,if the special bag deal, how many times does the ship run the special? Will be on a month.

The "stuff the laundry bag with as much as you can for one price" deal is every day, with the exception of the last couple of days of the cruise. The workers need time to get it done, and back to you in time to pack.

[OlsSalt]

Welcome to HAL, my guess is this will be a somewhat different experience from Princess on several levels - from decor, layout and amenities. There are several threads to search here where passengers on both lines discuss the differences they have found.

 

Might be good to read these upfront to take the edge off any prior expectations, one way or another if you think this might be an issue. Maybe not.

 

We like the much smaller size of the older Maasdam, but this comes with some compromises one does not find on the newer and larger ships if these are the Princess ships you are more used to. Food service seems to be different as well - more limited hours on HAL ships, but perhaps with better variety in HAL 24 hour room service.

 

You hit on one aspect that keeps us coming back to HAL - some very good and unique itineraries along with longer total cruise packages that explore more area than the larger ships typically offer. However we just learned about a great Princess trans-atlantic so each line does its best to keep cruise interest high.

 

HAL typically has smaller and older ships than Princess, but not like the small Princess has - Island Princess (?) which sounds more like the HAL Prinsendam. So this can make a bit of a difference in the type of ports and offerings available.

 

I hope you have a wonderful time. And go into this with eyes wide open what might be different or unexpected when you compared to your well loved prior Princess experiences. Most report they are equally happy with both, but they are different.

[debut]

Thanks everyone, I am sure that we will love the Maasdam, we like small ships, have been on the Sea and Pacific Princess that may be smaller than Maasdam. Think I would like the everyday laundry, seems to be a good deal to me.

Change is good, keep us from getting in the same rut, that's what is so great about cruising and seeking new adventures.

[avian777]

Welcome to HAL!

If you have not already done so, I'd recommend spending an hour or so reading the HAL "Know Before You Go" pamphlet - IMO it provides lots of good info, especially for HAL newbies.

For your convenience, I am attaching a copy of the KBYG pamphlet.

Smooth sailing ...

KnowBeforeYouGo.pdf

[OlsSalt]

What itinerary did you pick for your first Maasdam cruise?

 

She was our first HAL ship so it was our own introduction to HAL too - 350 HAL cruise days ago -- so you can see she clicked with us. She gets some of the more interesting itineraries and is a favorite for those that have sailed her in the past.

[iflyrc5]

The Maasdam had a great Library when we sailed in September. A nice place to sit, and plenty of books to choose from. The Librarian was very helpful, she spent a lot of time patiently helping people with their WiFi. I did read somewhere that the Librarian position had been axed on the Maasdam from November this year. I hope they don't ruin the Library before our next cruise in 2017. And if there is no Librarian, who will help us technically challenged folk?

 

We were on the Maasdam from Sept 29 - Dec 2. On our turnaround day in Sydney in late Nov the Librarian position was removed and within 4 days it was difficult to find books since the person(s) putting them back on the shelves did not use any order and just stuffed them in an open spot. I would hope that this has been corrected by the time you cruise.

 

The ship was great and the crew is outstanding so I am sure you will have a great time.

[debut]

Hadn't read it but going to right now, thanks everyone for the info!

Debbie

[debut]

Our first cruise is Feb.22 till March 26, from San Diego back to San Diego cruising to Lima and back. I hope to love the ship because I believe they'd have about the best itenaries around now. We are elite with Princess and have cruised several times each with RCCL and Celibrity and once with Norwegian.

I love the smaller ports and Holland has some of the best I have seen for Europe. Thanks again

Debbie

[OlsSalt]

You picked a nice lazy meander up and down Central America the Inca lands of South America.

 

When we did this trip ( parts of it several times now) the more we learned about Central and South American history the more fascinating this part of the world became.

 

The Great Courses series of CD lectures has some excellent series on both Central and South American history but I assume also due to the length and nature of this cruise there will be some good onboard enrichment talks as well.

 

Happy travels. The trip from Lima and around the horn up to Buenos Aires is one of our most favorite, so keep that in mind for the future if you find HAL works for you. We like the smaller Zaandam, who often makes this route just as much as the older Maasdam.

Edited December 31, 2016 by OlsSalt