(!) NEW to Holland America Line

[Stoffel1982]

Hi everybody!

 

This will be our first cruise with HAL! We already sailed with MSC, Norwegian and Celebrity (Reflection).

 

We will sail on the Ms Koningsdam, their newest ship.

 

Just wondering how the food and entertainment is compared to the other lines? What is included and how much are the beverage packages? I looked on their website, but didn't find much information.

 

Thanks for any input!

 

Chris

[Jacqueline]

Chris, the website leaves a lot to be desired. I was trying to get a sense of the same as I am going on a class of ship that I have not yet sailed on, and it's been many years since I have last traveled on HAL.

All this is my opinion and my not be your experience, or that of others.

 

From voyage to voyage and ship to ship and depending on itineraries, there are always differences. So what your experience is depends on a lot of factors. I was once on Royal Carribean and the whole entertainment staff quit the day before our sailing! So you can imagine.

What I will say, is having been on Princess and Celebrity, the overall experiences are not dramatically different. NCL and RCL speak to a different demographic, with ships and activities that reflect this.

 

I really like the HAL product, and have only done European and longer cruises, although I am now booked for the Caribbean.

In general, the newest ships offer, if nothing else fresh fittings and furnishings. I was just on the QM2 with remastered cabins and it DOES make a difference.

The stereotypes hold, to some extent. HAL is quieter, lower energy and is not known for its nightlife.

I love the staff and the fact that they are all from a similar culture. It creates a lot more comradery with fewer communication issues. Being of Eastern Europe descent, I can say without prejudice, that we are not quite as happy and jolly as a culture and don't make the best front end staff.

I think you will love your experience! I am not a HAL cheerleader as I go by itinerary but I am happy that I am booked to sail with them again.

[jtl513]

Have you read the 247 reviews HERE? Average Dining rating 3.5, average Entertainment 3. Overall 138 say it is Excellent or Very Good.

.

Edited February 2, 2017 by jtl513

[Jacqueline]

I do read reviews. Often, the discussion is on the itinerary or one incident or another that occurred on board that they need to complain about, Or they are new to cruising and love everything. I prefer flat out information, which I can find more readily in the boards...and of course, it is quickly corrected if wrong, and covers a more thoughtful discussion.

For example, a carnival ship may have a 100% rating, but the product is the wrong one for me.

The OP asked about the beverage package, and this is the perfect place to enquire.

 

I just took a Silversea trip to the Galapagos and the reviews on CC were pretty BAD.

One of them gave the ship a ding because the food wasn't that good for $7000. Well, meat and dairy all has to be sourced locally. And the food overal is better (according to people who have done more than the trip once) than the competition. And I had free wifi, which wasn't noted anywhere, until I got on. And many of the cabins have balconies, while say, Nat Geo has none. So the reviews were entirely misleading.

 

But your point is well taken, as if you read a lot of them, one might find a theme.

[Sea and Me]

I'm glad I came upon this post! I am considering booking a cruise on the Koningsdam for Oct. We have cruised on Princess, RCL, Celebrity and Norwegian. We are "seniors" and are seasoned cruises. When choosing a cruise I choose by the itinerary. I like the itinerary for the Oct. 18 '17 cruise so this may be a first time for us on HAL. We like the smaller ships and don't need "glitz".

 

Any thoughts for me??

Thank you.

[jtl513]

I do read reviews.

Okay .... but I was asking Chris if s/he had done any homework yet. I agree that those reviews do often tend to the extremes of Super or Terrible, and don't leave any opportunity for questions or rebuttal. For more of a discussion, s/he should look for board threads with Koningsdam and "review" in the title, such as

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2446055&highlight=koningsdam

or

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2426001&highlight=koningsdam

or

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2385629&highlight=koningsdam

etc

Edited February 2, 2017 by jtl513