Does the Koningsdam feel crowded as opposed to the Niew Amsterdam?

[Sun&Sand52]

Considering a future cruise on the Koningsdam but am concerned that it might “feel” more crowded as opposed to the slightly smaller NA.  Sailed on the NA 1.5 years ago and did enjoy the cruise.  Relaxing and never felt crowded.  Sailed on several Celebrity ships and sometimes the ships felt VERY crowded.  I know this is really a very subjective questions as feeling crowded can be a very personal thing.  But any comments would be welcomed.  Trying to decide to sail the K or just go back to the NA for a cruise.  BTW, the time of the cruise would be wither October or December.  And I would **think** that those times of years would not be incredibly crowded, but who knows!

[CruiserBruce]

"Crowded" is a subjective perception.

 

Having sailed on both, I didn't think either felt "crowded". I would sail either again, no problem. In fact, have the N. Amsterdam booked for next May.

[Sun&Sand52]

Thanks!  Good to hear.  I enjoyed the NA and that was our first HAL cruise and we really enjoyed it.  LOVED the therapy pool.  Only problem we experienced on that NA cruise was we had anytime dining and we ALWAYS had to wait for a table in the MDR.  We only wanted a table for 2 and no matter what time we went between 6 and 7 there was a wait with a beeper.  ☹️  

[doone]

I have sailed both as well and I did not feel any more or less crowded on either ship.....loved them both and would sail either one in a minute.  

[baggal]

I've sailed on both and IMO, the Lido "Marketplace" was ALWAYS crowded during the day. People come for breakfast and "set-up" for the morning with books,cards, games, knitting, etc. Then there is the lunch rush, and those people are still there!  After the lunch rush, there are still people using the that venue for socializing, cards, etc.  It was difficult finding a table even as late as 3 p.m.  This happened on both ships.  

 

 

[FlaMariner]

We've sailed on both the Kdam and NS and never found either of them crowded.  In fact, we don't know how they do it but lines were never an issue for us.

 

They are now our preferred HAL ships.

[canadarocks]

We sailed on both, one right after the other, and we MUCH preferred the Nieuw Amsterdam. While the Koningsdam has some lovely indoor venues, we found the outside areas very "claustrophobic". 😞

 

[Nymich]

They definitely are two different ships but I didn't feel crowded on either.  Count me as a yes to doing them again!

[suzannecruisecritic]

8 hours ago, margar said:

Considering a future cruise on the Koningsdam but am concerned that it might “feel” more crowded as opposed to the slightly smaller NA.  Sailed on the NA 1.5 years ago and did enjoy the cruise.  Relaxing and never felt crowded.  Sailed on several Celebrity ships and sometimes the ships felt VERY crowded.  I know this is really a very subjective questions as feeling crowded can be a very personal thing.  But any comments would be welcomed.  Trying to decide to sail the K or just go back to the NA for a cruise.  BTW, the time of the cruise would be wither October or December.  And I would **think** that those times of years would not be incredibly crowded, but who knows!

We’ve sailed both. K in Europe and NA in Alaska. Both during July. We found the NA felt much less crowded. For example, there were typically few loungers available at the family pool on the K and there were often dozens of people with pagers waiting for tables at the MDR on the K. The spa on the K was also typically much more crowded. And the theater on the K often had no seats available a few minutes before showtimes. Our experience may have had more to do with the itinerary than the ship. Our Alaska sailing had many more seniors and couples on board while our Europe cruise had an huge number of kids and teens on board (with 3-4 people staying in more of the staterooms than our NA cruise). That being said, I would still enthusiastically recommend the K because I really enjoyed the extra live entertainment venues and restaurants not available on the NA. If you cruise in October when the ship might not be at capacity I suspect it would feel way less crowded than it did in July in Europe. Also, if you cruise off-peak maybe you can get a deal on a Neptune Suite on the K and you would be able to have dinner anytime without a wait at Club Orange. 

[Daisyloo]

We have sailed on both and loved them both.  

[CruiserBruce]

57 minutes ago, suzannecruisecritic said:

We’ve sailed both. K in Europe and NA in Alaska. Both during July. We found the NA felt much less crowded. For example, there were typically few loungers available at the family pool on the K and there were often dozens of people with pagers waiting for tables at the MDR on the K. The spa on the K was also typically much more crowded. And the theater on the K often had no seats available a few minutes before showtimes. Our experience may have had more to do with the itinerary than the ship. Our Alaska sailing had many more seniors and couples on board while our Europe cruise had an huge number of kids and teens on board (with 3-4 people staying in more of the staterooms than our NA cruise). That being said, I would still enthusiastically recommend the K because I really enjoyed the extra live entertainment venues and restaurants not available on the NA. If you cruise in October when the ship might not be at capacity I suspect it would feel way less crowded than it did in July in Europe. Also, if you cruise off-peak maybe you can get a deal on a Neptune Suite on the K and you would be able to have dinner anytime without a wait at Club Orange. 

The ship will be at, or so close, to capacity, you can't tell the difference, every time it sails.

[Sun&Sand52]

Thanks so much for everyone’s opinion.  Still trying to decide between NA and Kdam.  Reading the Cruise Critic reviews of Kdam, they seem to be a mixed bag.  It looks like a beautiful ship.  (But I think I would miss the full promenade like the NA, as I think that is missing on the Kdam).  I guess more people probably complain when writing reviews as opposed to people who had a good cruise and just choose not to review it.  😉

[Sailnsurf]

We completed a 21 day Norwegian Fjords cruise on  the Nieuw Statendam, which is virtually identical to the KDam, in June this year. Prior to this we had cruised on smaller HAL ships, Eurodam, Noordam and Volendam.

 

We had a fantastic cruise on NS but we definitely felt more crowded than on the smaller ships. But there was also a subtle change - a sense of some loss of the illusion of exclusivity which HAL somehow manages to create. We found the Lido pool area, which we had previously been a pleasant place to relax and watch the world go by had become so noisy due to the playing of documentaries during the day, that it was an under utilised area, causing people who would have used it to go elsewhere. This no doubt caused unnecessary crowding in those areas. It was very difficult to get a seat at any time in the Grand Dutch Café.

 

The conclusion we came to was that in future we would only be interested in cruises on HAL's smaller ships (we have a booking for the Zuiderdam). But everyone is different and obviously HAL has done the numbers and concluded that there will be more people who like their larger ship offerings than not.  For our review of the Nieuw Statendam see the review section and our heading " The Nieuw Statendam - a beautiful ship but not necessarily better". I am sure with all the information provided  by all who have responded that you will be able to make a decision which will be best for you. Good luck and enjoy your cruise.

[Ichiban Nekko]

We avoided the K'dam for years, despite many friends' rave reviews. Well, the 'right' itinerary came up and we finally spent 22 glorious days on this ship in April (Transatlantic B2B Adriatic). Some events were very popular (Lincoln Center performances come to mind) and could be termed 'crowded.' Even with many sea days, we found the ship to be light-filled and lively. We had such a great experience that we have booked the K'dam for a 10-day Caribbean in January and look forward to all the entertainment & dining options on board.