Holland or Princess for an Australian Trip with Children?

[cjsegninir]

Hello everyone,

 

We are planning for a cruise with our small daughters (3 and 1 yo) to Australia/New Zealand, but we are unsure about which ship to take. We are debating between Noordam and Ruby Princess.

 

We loved our only HAL cruise on the Zaandam and didn't like too much our only Princess on the Diamond.  However, both were a bit affected by the itineraries, so we are a bit biased to HAL.

 

Providing they are similar itineraries and prices, which one would you choose?

 

Cheers

[Expatcat]

We recently faced this dilemma although our children are a bit older. We decided to go with Noordam...we don’t sail until January next year though! The itinerary was a winner for us.

[cjsegninir]

Thanks Expatcat,

normally itinerary is the most deciding factor for us. 

In this case both are quite similar, each one with its own pros and cons.

That's why I'm not sure which one to choose hehe

[crystalspin]

I think HAL's staterooms are better equipped than Princess's. I don't know the Ruby Princess personally, but Princess has recently removed the second chair from all or most ships in Balcony, Oceanview, and Insides. Just for example. If you're in a MiniSuite or larger, you will have a sofa AND two chairs so don't need to worry. 

 

We sailed a TransAtlantic on Noordam's sister Zuiderdam, and really liked the layout of the ship. Can't speak of having young children along though!

[kira5]

My main concern with some HAL ships (Nieuw Amsterdam, for example). is the open railings.   No plexiglass behind them on the promenade decks.   A small child (say under 4) might climb them or slip between them.  You have to watch them all the time.   I don't know the situation on Princess ships.   

 

Compared to MSC or Royal Caribbean there are not a lot of child centred activities on HAL.   My son raved about MSC recently for his children, 7 - 13.   I don't think it goes to Australia.   I think some HAL ships, for example, upcoming Maasdam Japan cruise has no programs for children.

[kazu]

1 hour ago, kira5 said:

I think some HAL ships, for example, upcoming Maasdam Japan cruise has no programs for children.

 

Maasdam with it’s EXEC cruises is the only ship not offering Club HAL to the best of my knowledge. OP’s 3 year old is old enough for Club HAL. (Minimum age).

 

 

[cjsegninir]

Yeah, I checked and the Noordam has the kids club from 3 years old, so she will be fine. Might be the only one there though haha

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

It depends on the itinerary?

I would go with Holland. 

[vicd1969]

Room size: HAL ( esp the J class interior)

Food:  HAL ( better burgers and ice cream in terms of kid foods, but also better buffet and MDR)

Swimming Pool for kids: Princess

Daytime Activities: Princess 

Service: Push, slight nod to HAL

Ship layout: HAL Noordam

If you are Catholic: HAL has onboard priest

 

Not sure if you will be able to participate in night-time events with kids so young, if so Princess will have more offerings. So the choice depends on what cruise feature you deem more important.

 

 

[RuthC]

1 hour ago, vicd1969 said:

Room size: HAL ( esp the J class interior)

Only the J- (and K-) categories on Main Deck, though. It's important to point out that distinction.

[Ken the cruiser]

On 7/31/2019 at 10:26 PM, cjsegninir said:

Hello everyone,

 

We are planning for a cruise with our small daughters (3 and 1 yo) to Australia/New Zealand, but we are unsure about which ship to take. We are debating between Noordam and Ruby Princess.

 

We loved our only HAL cruise on the Zaandam and didn't like too much our only Princess on the Diamond.  However, both were a bit affected by the itineraries, so we are a bit biased to HAL.

 

Providing they are similar itineraries and prices, which one would you choose?

 

Cheers

We just finished a family cruise with our 3 year old grandson on another cruise line and one question you may want to ask is whether or not HAL or Princess has babysitting services and/or children programs for those that are NOT potty trained. And if they have babysitting services, do you have to take them somewhere or will they come to your room? 

[iancal]

We did a Princess cruise from Sydney and then a few weeks later a last minute Aus/NZ cruise from Sydney.  We enjoyed both.

 

One difference was the on board currency.  Our Sun Princess cruise had AUD as the on board currency.  RCI used USD as the on board currency.   We really noticed the difference-net 30-40 percent delta for most things.

Edited August 4, 2019 by iancal

[iancal]

One other thing...we saved a considerable percentage, adjusted for currency, over what our on line NA TA quoted us ( net of OBCs) by calling RCI in Sydney and booking directly with them.  Just over 30 percent on a cruise booked 3-4 weeks out.    Not certain what the Princess or HAL policy is on booking outside your country of residence.

[cjsegninir]

Decided to bite it and chose the one we felt more inclined, Holland.

Hopefully it will be fine with the little ones.

Thanks all for your comments