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Difference between Holland America and Princess


JOHN 57
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Just like everybody else, we are waiting for a vaccine for the virus, and hoping to travel sometime in 2022.   So we have planned for Princess Sapphire out of Los Angelos April 2022.  This will be my first time aboard Princess, but I have been on Holland America, Royal Carribean, Carnival, Celebrity, and MSC

Can anyone tell me, what is better about Princess.  Thank you.

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37 minutes ago, JOHN 57 said:

Just like everybody else, we are waiting for a vaccine for the virus, and hoping to travel sometime in 2022.   So we have planned for Princess Sapphire out of Los Angelos April 2022.  This will be my first time aboard Princess, but I have been on Holland America, Royal Carribean, Carnival, Celebrity, and MSC

Can anyone tell me, what is better about Princess.  Thank you.

First question I have is what type of cabin did you book? The reason I ask is because from what I hear there is only one desk chair in regular balcony cabins and lower on most of the Princess ships. We usually book mini-suites and there is usually a sofa as well as a couple of chairs in the cabin, so there is plenty of places to sit.

 

We have a lot of fun on sea days and in the evening onboard as there are a variety of things to do since there are usually between 4-6 assistant cruise directors to keep you entertained. They also usually have guest speakers on most cruises 10 days or longer. On the HAL cruises we've been on the past few years, except on the Maasdam, entertainment is their weak link as they usually only have one assistant CD unless you like sitting in lounges listening to music.

 

But, everyone's taste is different.

Edited by Ken the cruiser
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Princess is similar to Celebrity.  We sailed on Holland America and didn't like the experience, no enough to do.  Found the service to be lacking in the main dining room.  Also not enough shade on board the ship.  In addition, Holland also books their ships out for large groups and we did have a convention on board the ship. 

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See if you can spring for a balcony. Outdoor space might be really important.in the future.  we have been on Princess  a lot ( our favorite) and  on Celebrity  and RCCL. NCL , Regent and Oceania. Princess is the most like Celebrity as are the passengers. Princess treats their trivia and games ( wonderful asst. CDs) more seriously and the nighttime and at sea entertainment is more varied and more fun. Of course nothing compares to RCCL’s big shows . But often Princess will have really great comedians. The food is similar to Celebrity too but I think Princess is just friendlier all around.

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We have cruised on 9 different lines over the past 38 years, including Holland, Celebrity, Cunard, NCL, Royal, RCCL and Princess.  

We are elite on Princess going on 30 cruises, probably about 5, 2-star on HAL.   One of the things I like most about HAL, is many of the ships have a nice lounge/bar over the bow of the ship.  I wish Princess had that, it doesn't.   We also liked that all HAL cabins had bath tubs, new HAL ships I hear don't, only in suites.   We always book a mini suite on Princess because the cabin is larger and does have a bath tub.   The main difference between HAL and Princess  was 24 hr buffet, HAL did not do this, who knows what anyone will do after the virus?   We found Princess really catered to passengers regarding menu preferences and would allow passengers to order off menu and the meals delivered were consistently good even if ordered off menu (more so than any other line we have been on).   HAL allows passengers to order a full breakfast from Room Service and allows one to do so on the last morning of the cruise.  Princess has a limited Room Service menu and no breakfast served on the last morning from Room Service.  Entertainment about the same on both HAL and Princess, we do not stay up late but for those who do on Princess more activities are available.  

 

Cabins, crew/staff and overall service on Princess and HAL similar. 

 

These are some of the highlights that come to mind.  If you have any specific question let me know. 

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Sapphire Princess is an older ship but with a very nice layout. Here is some information regarding Princess:

Dining: Evening dining is either traditional fixed seating, same table, same waiters, or anytime dining. With anytime dining you show up when you wish to dine and are seated, something like a restaurant. Certain times are more crowded, for example times between 5:00pm and 6:00pm. If you show up around 6 you will probably have to wait. The Sapphire has 5 MDR's all serving the same menu. The International DR is used for fixed seating. One of the other mid ship DR's will also be used for early fixed seating and Club Class Dining. Other mid ship DR's are used for anytime. On most voyages you can make a reservation for anytime by calling the dine line in the morning. One DR is open for breakfast each day and lunch on sea days. Breakfast & lunch is walk in. The buffet is open from around 5am until 11pm, serving breakfast, lunch, dinner and other snack items. It never closes. Alfredo's, no charge, serves individual pizzas, waiter served, open 11am until mid evening every day. The International Cafe is open 24/7. No charge for food items. Specialty coffees and teas have a charge. 

Pools & lounging - There are 4 pools. The Terrace pool & Lap pool are adults only. There is also an indoor pool. The Sanctuary is a special lounging area where you have a reserved lounge. There is a charge, $20/half day, $40 full day, $30/day is you reserve for the entire cruise.

Entertainment. All shows in the theater are walk in. No reservations. For popular productions shows arrive at least 30 to 45 minutes early. There will most likely be some other entertainers, for example comics, in the Explorer's Lounge. Princess has a cruise director staff of about 5 to 6. They run both daytime and evening activities. If you are looking to play organized cards Princess does not have this. They set aside a locations for passenger to organize their own games.

OBC. OBC on Princess is stackable. If you are a veteran you can receive the military benefit. If you own Carnival Corp. stock you can get the Shareholders benefit. Sometimes there is OBC as part of a promo or provided by a T.A. These can all be stacked together.

Gratuities: For an outside cabin Princess currently charges $13.50/pp/day. Note it is per person, so two in a cabin you will be charged $27 each day, 3 in a cabin the charge is $40.50. This covers all the waiters, cabin steward, and other crew you may never see. No further tipping is required. Some passengers do provide additional cash tips to their cabin stewards and waiters if they have traditional dining if they provided exceptional service. An 18% gratuity is provided to all beverage purchases.

Wine: Each adult may carry on 1 x 750ml bottle of wine for use in your cabin. If this wine is brought to a public area you are subject to a $15 corkage fee. Additional bottles may be brought on board. A $15 corkage will be charged on boarding. Bottles will be marked and can be used anywhere on the ship.

Non-Alcoholic beverage. You can carry on as much non alcoholic beverage as you wish. No limit.   

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50 minutes ago, pris993 said:

.... The main difference between HAL and Princess  was 24 hr buffet, HAL did not do this, who knows what anyone will do after the virus?  ...

 

Princess has not had a 24 hr buffet for many many years.

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4 minutes ago, beg3yrs said:

 

Princess has not had a 24 hr buffet for many many years.

 

But princess DOES have the International Cafe, on most ships, which is open 24hrs.  Some people might associate this with a buffet. 

 

That said I DO remember when the Horizon court had at least one section open 24hrs a day.  Went there several nights after leaving Skywalkers to indulge in a Prime Rib pre-bedtime snack (around 2-230 am) on my very first Princess cruise which was on the Golden back in 2001!

Edited by AtlantaCruiser72
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12 minutes ago, JOHN 57 said:

I like the idea of 24 hour buffet

I would not consider the International cafe a buffet, but it is open 24 hours and has something to eat sweet or savory all day/night long. It's all behind a glass counter and you need to be served. We often go for a late night snack if we are up, or an early morning snack with coffee.

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11 minutes ago, JOHN 57 said:

sometimes I have late night hunger.

The buffets on Princess ships have been closing at 11pm, but you would find something to relieve the hunger pangs at the International Cafe.

Edited by Aus Traveller
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3 hours ago, AtlantaCruiser72 said:

 

But princess DOES have the International Cafe, on most ships, which is open 24hrs.  Some people might associate this with a buffet. 

 

That said I DO remember when the Horizon court had at least one section open 24hrs a day.  Went there several nights after leaving Skywalkers to indulge in a Prime Rib pre-bedtime snack (around 2-230 am) on my very first Princess cruise which was on the Golden back in 2001!

I do believe the very last station at the back of buffet stays open all night, because ship officers work around the clock and go there.  Passengers can use as well.  The international Cafe would be another option.  To be honest I am never up after midnight or looking for something to eat at that time.  I made reference to this in connection with HAL, as far I know, there is no such options on HAL ships, which related to OP's question.    This may have changed on the newer HAL ships which I have not been on.   Hope this clarification is helpful.  What happens and is done in the future after the virus remains to be seen.  

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5 hours ago, victory2020 said:

Princess does not have a love seat in the ocean view rooms. Loved that feature on HAL

This is an important point about Princess.  Not only do you not get a love seat, you only get a single chair for the desk; nor do you get a coffee table even for a normal balcony cabin.  That means that if you order room service breakfast you either sit on the floor or sit on the bed to eat it.  This is one of the recent "improvements" to Princess cabins.

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To add to the buffet differences (of course these are pre-covid-19):

a) Holland America had most items served to passengers while Princess had most items put on the plates by passengers.

b) Princess has at least one part of the buffet open with food from 6 AM until 11 PM. HAL closes the buffet between main meals.

c) HAL has a late evening (around 10:30) 2nd dinner buffet. Princess does not.

 

Entertainment:

Princess still has production shows with singers and dancers with a live band at least half the time. HAL has a dance troupe with recorded music.

 

HAL, at least on the newer ships has a big emphasis on music in a number of genres, mainly in the evening but also in the afternoon. Princess has music, mainly in the evening, but not with the variety of genres that HAL has.

 

Dining room:

HAL has one multilevel dining room. Princess has multiple single level dining rooms (same menu in each).

 

Internet: The Princess Internet Cafe manager is there with scheduled hours to assist people. The HAL Internet Manager is mainly there to sell Internet packages and is usually unable to help with any Internet problem you may have.

 

Chocolates on the pillow in the evening: Both Princess and HAL do this.

 

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See if you can spring for a balcony. Outdoor space might be really important.in the future.  we have been on Princess  a lot ( our favorite) and  on Celebrity  and RCCL. NCL , Regent and Oceania. Princess is the most like Celebrity as are the passengers. Princess treats their trivia and games ( wonderful asst. CDs) more seriously and the nighttime and at sea entertainment is more varied and more fun. Of course nothing compares to RCCL’s big shows . But often Princess will have really great comedians. The food is similar to Celebrity too but I think Princess is just friendlier all around. I forgot how great the Princess internet people are. They will spend as much time with you as you need and print boarding passes from your phone if you want. I remember a surly Royal Caribbean lady that almost brought me to tears in comparison

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To clear up the Sapphire Princess buffet the Horizon Ct. does not stay open over night. The overnight option was eliminated at least 10 years ago, maybe longer than that. It's open from 5am until 11pm. It never closes during that time.  At 5am they serve some pastry items. At 6am they put out breakfast items. In the past there was a made to order omelet station. The Horizon Ct. serves breakfast items until around 11am. Certain sections of the buffet close earlier to switch to lunch items. In mid afternoon they place out some afternoon snack items. Around 5pm they switch to dinner selections. In the past the self serve coffee, prepared from a liquid concentrate on the Sapphire, and the hot water for tea was accessible over night. Post COVID no one knows.

The International Cafe is open 24/7. On our last cruise the International Cafe bar and specialty coffee bar were also open 24/7. There is also 24 hour room service. There is no charge for room service, but some items do have a charge, for example a full pizza is $3. Room service does have a limited menu unless you are in a full suite.

The poolside venues, grill, pizza, soft ice cream are open from 11am until mid evening each day.

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It's my opinion that HAL and Princess are quite similar with a few exceptions.  I actually put Celebrity a step up from both of these lines.  

 

HAL usually has an older demographic.  Princess is more geared to families, however, on any sailing over 10 days, you see less of a difference in the passenger mix.  

 

I've found the dining room service on HAL to be a just a step above and as far as the food, I think it is comparable. 

 

The cabins on Princess are smaller than most lines on which I've sailed.  If you are just using the room as a place to sleep, you'd probably be fine on Princess.  Their closet design is superior and their beds are ooooh soooo comfy on Princess.  Their older ships aren't very soundproof from hallway noise, though.  Something to maybe consider.  

 

The entertainment on Princess is anywhere from ok to very good.  The problem is that the venues in which they schedule the shows are way too small for the potential audiences.  So, you have to go early to save yourself a seat and sit and wait or get skunked out of seeing a good show.  

 

I don't know what experiment Princess was conducting with their dining schedules but, it's created a mess.  The traditional dining, which used to be set at around 6:00 PM and 8:15 PM has been moved to 5:00 PM and 7:15 PM.  This causes people to use the Anytime Dining room, even though they are assigned to traditional dining and those assigned to Anytime Dining have to wait in long lines for a table.  Why???  Everything is moved up, including the shows.  It seems to created more problems than it solved IMO.  

 

MUTS (Movies Under the Stars) is a nice feature on Princess.  The outdoor grill even has a different menu (a really good one at that) during the nighttime movie.  We usually skip a night in the MDR when the grill is serving something we really like.  

 

 

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