Onboard clientel?

[hippyman]

I am in the process of selecting between one of two full caribbean cruises.  One of them is on a Holland America ship and I have never sailed with them before.  I was doing some research and came across an article that said HAL catered mostly to the "baby-boomer crowd".  Is this true?  I am in my thirties and do not want to feel "out of place".

[newbe4]

The crowd is mainly older. 50+ however there are always a few young people and children depending on the time of year. Holidays, spring break and summer more multigenerational families.  The ships are quiet. We love Holland America and started cruising with them in our 40’s with children and my Dad.

 

if you are looking for a lot of night life beyond a late night dance party this might not be for you. 

[POA1]

We started cruising on Holland America when we were in our late 20s. We will soon enter the down slope of my 50s, and HAL is still our favorite line. The 7 day Caribbean cruises will be a younger crowd. Once you start getting into the 10+ days, the demographics trend toward retirees. "Younger" is a relative term with respect to cruises.  Carnival, Royal Caribbean and Norwegian will run younger. HAL, Princess & Celebrity will tend to be older. They also offer a more traditional cruise experience. It really depends on what you're looking for in a cruise.

[hippyman]

I wouldn't say I'm looking for a lot of night life.  Just as long as they have a bar onboard.  Also, somehow I ended up on a guided trip once with a group of 50+ people and it almost ruined the trip for me.  I think it was that anyway.

[hippyman]

My last cruise was trans-panama via celebrity, and I had a fabulous time. 

[DaveOKC]

1 hour ago, hippyman said:

I am in the process of selecting between one of two full caribbean cruises.  One of them is on a Holland America ship and I have never sailed with them before.  I was doing some research and came across an article that said HAL catered mostly to the "baby-boomer crowd".  Is this true?  I am in my thirties and do not want to feel "out of place".

The "crowd" on HAL is a bit older than Carnival, NCL or Royal Caribbean.  However, the average age varies alot, depending on the length of cruise, where you are going and when you are traveling.

 

If you are on a 7 day Caribbean cruise, during Spring break, you will find a younger crowd and families.  A 15 day cruise through the Panama Canal will be an older crowd (mostly retirees).

[OlsSalt]

A lot depends on which ship you are looking at - the newer, larger HAL ships tend to be like many other mass market brands catering to all age ranges. The smaller older HAL ships are preferred by those who put travel and ports visited ahead of built in onboard liveliness.  

 

Depends on what you cruise for - a party atmosphere or quiet travel to new destinations. One advantage all HAL ships have for Caribbean cruises is their private island stop at Half Moon Cay - very lovely and apparently the best of the other cruise line's private islands.

 

We like the size and layout of of the cabins, the lovely main room evening dining, the quality of food and room service, the exceptional courtesies of the staffers, the value pricing and the unique variety of destinations HAL always seems to offer over other competitive brands. But it is primarily the quiet, low-key on board ambiance that keeps us coming back. 

 

Hard to tell if this will click with you or not. Especially not knowing which HAL ship you are considering. What other lines are you considering?

[OlsSalt]

1 hour ago, hippyman said:

My last cruise was trans-panama via celebrity, and I had a fabulous time. 

 

We have sailed HAL nearly  exclusively for 10 years and all our cruises have been fabulous too. Lucky us. 

[hippyman]

Right now it is between a full Caribbean cruise on Princess, full Caribbean with Cuba on HAL Veeldam, or possibly coming back with a return discount on Celebrity. I can't seem to find a full Caribbean cruise with Celebrity however.

[OlsSalt]

1 minute ago, hippyman said:

Right now it is between a full Caribbean cruise on Princess, full Caribbean with Cuba on HAL Veeldam, or possibly coming back with a return discount on Celebrity. I can't seem to find a full Caribbean cruise with Celebrity however.

 

Cuba is totally unique and is currently attracting a full range of passenger demographics for this HAL cruise (I did it dec 2017) - The  HAL Veendam is a delightful smaller, but older,  ship. That is what sets HAL apart - the itineraries one gets for  the price among the mainline cruise ships. Best thing about sailing on the smaller  HAL ships is brining fewer passengers to port along with you.

 

Sailing the Veendam to Cuba will be a very different experience than any of the other larger ship general Caribbean options.  But with the limitations  onboard that come built in by being a much smaller ship. But if going to Cuba matters more than what this ship offers on board, that can be a very good pick.

[Aquahound]

2 hours ago, hippyman said:

I am in the process of selecting between one of two full caribbean cruises.  One of them is on a Holland America ship and I have never sailed with them before.  I was doing some research and came across an article that said HAL catered mostly to the "baby-boomer crowd".  Is this true?  I am in my thirties and do not want to feel "out of place".

 

I'll give you the straight answer.  Yes, HAL is an older crowd and HAL ships do tend to become ghost towns earlier in the evening than other lines.  I've sailed HAL in Alaska, Mediterranean and Caribbean, and on their newest ship and it made no difference.  It is what it is.  If you're looking for a little more lively of a ship, HAL is not what I would recommend....especially Veendam.    

 

Celebrity might have a similar crowd on board, but they also offer better nightlife, like the martini bar.  The chic atmosphere of that venue does not exist on HAL.  

Edited March 15, 2019 by Aquahound

[opa&oma]

HAL on an older ship is definitely not for thirty year olds.

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

Being a post baby boomer myself, if I were your age, I would try to find a Celebrity Caribbean cruise since you had good times with them. Princess does attract some younger people but I have been on some of their cruises where, we older folks were the majority. I assume since you indicated "full Caribbean cruise", it is 14 days or longer and IMO on any line you are likely to find the older crowd for that length  cruise. Hoping you choose one you will really enjoy.

[DaveOKC]

22 minutes ago, hippyman said:

Right now it is between a full Caribbean cruise on Princess, full Caribbean with Cuba on HAL Veeldam, or possibly coming back with a return discount on Celebrity. I can't seem to find a full Caribbean cruise with Celebrity however.

My brother just did the Veendam Cuba cruise.  They liked the Cuba ports but really disliked the ship (they have been on 5 HAL cruises).  I want to do the Cuba cruise, but am waiting until HAL puts a better ship on this route.

[newbe4]

The crowd is mainly older. 50+ however there are always a few young people and children depending on the time of year. Holidays, spring break and summer more multigenerational families.  The ships are quiet. We love Holland America and started cruising with them in our 40’s with children and my Dad.

 

if you are looking for a lot of night life beyond a late night dance party this might not be for you.

 

There are great bars on board and the live music venues are excellent.

[Hawaiidan]

3 hours ago, hippyman said:

I am in the process of selecting between one of two full caribbean cruises.  One of them is on a Holland America ship and I have never sailed with them before.  I was doing some research and came across an article that said HAL catered mostly to the "baby-boomer crowd".  Is this true?  I am in my thirties and do not want to feel "out of place".

Yes you might  not be as happy.  and at 30 feel  less so..     I would suggest that the line that is hungry for you business in Celebrity..  they are targeting  you

[OVgirl]

We just did a multiple b2b2b cruise and found the average age on the eastern caribbean was about 15 years younger than the western caribbean. Somewhere in mid 40s.

[twodjs]

I see 10, 11 and 12 night cruises this summer on Celebrity in the Southern Caribbean. What do you mean by full Caribbean?

[hippyman]

By full Caribbean, I mean combining the eastern and western Caribbean. I'm not sure about the southern Caribbean.

Edited March 15, 2019 by hippyman

[twodjs]

Then simply do what is called a back-to-back with Eastern and Western Caribbean. Equinox does them almost all summer. Love the S class ships! I recommend Celebrity over HAL for your situation.

 

[OlsSalt]

26 minutes ago, hippyman said:

By full Caribbean, I mean combining the eastern and western Caribbean. I'm not sure about the southern Caribbean.

 

We liked the Southern Caribbean best of all, excluding the Cuba cruise which by default did include some Western Caribbean - most  not so great. Personally I would narrow your choice down to either Cuba or Southern Caribbean.  The other routes are either over-impacted by the mega-ships or simply artificial "resort"  destinations today, unless you want to flirt with the endemic Caribbean crime scene as a DIY port visitor.. 

Edited March 15, 2019 by OlsSalt

[twodjs]

We have cruised on many Holland America and Celebrity ships. We looked around the theater on our last 7 day Mexican cruise on Holland. We are in our mid 60s - definitely on the low end of the age range on that ship! Certainly were some active guests on board, but If you had a bad experience in a group of 50 somethings, please choose Celebrity over Holland America. 

[cruzngal]

Yes, the clientele is older than some other cruise lines.  It is quieter, and there are not wave pools, ice skating rinks, carnival rides, or water slides.  But as with any cruise ship, there are plenty of bars.  On the larger ships, there is a nice music vibe, with the BB King Blues band, dueling pianos, and late night dance party.  There's a health club, spa, generally a couple of pools and plenty of deck space.

 

We have always liked environments where we can do what we want, away from the crowds.  We started taking our kids on HAL when we were in our thirties.  We have always liked it BECAUSE it didn't have all the stuff I mentioned above.  

 

If you do decide to go on HAL, and you want to take a tour, look at the ones with an activity level of moderate or strenuous.  That will mean that you'll have a more active group regardless of age.  

 

Pick what works for you, and you will enjoy.

 

 

[twodjs]

Cruzngal - be fair now...No Celebrity ship has wave pools, ice skating rinks, carnival rides or water slides. Their ships are for adults just like HAL. The newest HAL ships also have another live music venue - Billboard's Rock Room. Certainly a livlier vibe than on the older HAL ships. Your call...

[RMLincoln]

Veendam is one of the oldest ships in the HAL fleet.  They took out the aft pool and put in some hot tubs that may or may not work, so if pools or hot tubs are of interest to you, I can't recommend Veendam.  She does have a lot of deck space for sunning.  We were on her for Atlantic Adventurer for 7 weeks and that was too long on her for me.  I am 64, am 4 star on HAL, Platinum on Princess and Carnival (or equivalent) and have Celebrity experience too.   I would not cruise on Veendam again. Anywhere... terrible air conditioning, horrible elevators, lack of pool space, and poor hot tub reliability.  It's not a clientele age issue, it's a ship age issue.  We recently did a Back to Back Caribbean cruise on Koningsdam, 21 nights, south and east; loved the ship, the music offerings and the entertainment, but now I hear they are doing away with the World Stage production shows, alas one of that ship's strengths in their high-tech LED-paneled surround stage.  

 

 I would steer to any other choice for your cruise.  Celebrity has a nice vibe, fun bars, excellent entertainment.  Princess has similar strengths but less comfortable rooms for me, poor sitting area in the cabins unless one upgrades to mini-suite level, or has one of their latest ships.... if in-cabin sitting area matters to you.   

Hope you find a good match, happy planning.  m--