Medium size cruise ships

[navybankerteacher]

5 minutes ago, crystalspin said:

Holland America: 

Zaandam & Volendam = 1400-1700

Noordam, Oosterdam, Zuiderdam, Westerdam = 2000-2400 

Eurodam & Nieuw Amsterdam = 2100-2500

 

Even their largest ships may be tolerable depending on occupancy:

Koningdam, Nieuw Statendam, Rotterdam = 2600-3200

 

I realize I did not answer your question of how to search for smaller ships. I guess my suggestion is to limit search to lines that are (mostly) within your limits.

These are good suggestions -- while HAL has retired my favorite (Prinsendan 600 or so passengers) from their fleet, they continue to provide great traditional service on ships which are not mob scenes.

[Charles4515]

10 minutes ago, crystalspin said:

Zaandam & Volendam = 1400-1700

Noordam, Oosterdam, Zuiderdam, Westerdam = 2000-2400 

Eurodam & Nieuw Amsterdam = 2100-2500

 

I did not realize Zaandam & Volendam were still in service. Kind of a shock to me that they made it past the covid restart. I have been on Volendam and really liked it. I think it does fit into OPs desired size. They could fit into some smaller harbors too. I would call them small to medium. I have been on Westerdam and New Amsterdam. Those would not have any size advantage as far as harbors. They call at the typical large ship ports. 

[crystalspin]

36 minutes ago, Charles4515 said:

 

I understand that Zuiderdam is being allowed to call at Bora Bora this October. (I had to cancel the cruise. sad-face) The limit there is passengers and not actually ship-size, as larger ships have called in the past.

[Ride-The-Waves]

Agree with OP's thesis regarding ship size.  Restarted cruising some 20-plus years ago ("cruised" on ocean liners in the 1950s) on Celebrity Millennium class and RCI's Radiance ships, both around 2,000 pax.  Good ships and near perfect size to really enjoy the sea and ports.  Have also tried the behemoths (Oasis class) and have no intention of ever embarking on one again.  Too big, too crowded and too impersonal.  Have edged up to Celebrity Solstice class and last cruise on Reflection (3,000 pax) was excellent and far better than Princess Royal class (3,500 pax) and a significant improvement over their earlier offerings of ships built in the 2000s which feel very cramped.  We have also cruised many times on Azamara's R-class ships and find them very comfortable.

 

Much of the cruising experience comes from the crews.  Last Princess experience on Sky Princess was horrible and can be directly attributed to crew management on leadership, both corporate and on board.  Last Celebrity experience on Reflection was wonderful, and again, some of that was the ship design itself but mostly relatable to crew.  Cruising with Azamara before they were sold off from RCCL, was like "coming home" again.  Smaller ships and attentive crews.  

 

In selecting a ship I take past experiences (never again on Princess), ship size and passenger/volume ratios.  Thus, a ship like Reflection can feel spacious and uncrowded and similar to an R-class, while Oasis can feel stuffed and oppressive.  

[jocap]

Fred Olsen's Balmoral has 1325 pax; their 2 ex-HAL ships have around 1360 pax and were Amsterdam and Rotterdam under HAL. All ages allowed, but often older passengers.

P&O's Aurora takes 1878, and Arcadia 1968 pax. Both are adult only.

Saga ships have around 987 pax;  people must be 50+ years old.

All sail mainly from the UK, with mostly British /Irish passengers.

[iancal]

We like Celebrity Solstice (favorite) and Millennium class ships on Celebrity  as well as Carnival Corp Spirit class ships on HAL, Carnival, and Princess.

[Allograft]

On 8/5/2022 at 7:27 AM, Heidi13 said:

Note - many ships have 3rd, even 4th berths in many cabins, so the total pax could be higher.

There are even a few with a 5th berth in a cabin. My wife and I managed to squeeze us and three kids in one room, ha! Haven't found a 5 berth cabin with a balcony though, yet.

[jolinda]

18 hours ago, Allograft said:

There are even a few with a 5th berth in a cabin. My wife and I managed to squeeze us and three kids in one room, ha! Haven't found a 5 berth cabin with a balcony though, yet.

Family verandas on Celebrity Solstice class ships can sleep 5.

Edited August 8, 2022 by jolinda

[Allograft]

26 minutes ago, jolinda said:

Family verandas on Celebrity Solstice class ships can sleep 5.

Well, there you have it!