Nieuw Statendam - Promenade Deck?

[jules815]

My husband and I will be doing the April TA on Nieuw Statendam. We just came off of a cruise on another line (this will be our first with HAL) and the one thing we missed on this ship was an outside promenade that went all the way around the ship. Do the HAL ships have that? 

[CruiserBruce]

Yes. However, the newer ships its not very wide, and the lifeboats block some views. But you can walk around just fine. Discussed here frequently.

[RuthC]

The non-Pinnacle class ships (Nieuw Statendam is one of the three Pinnacle class ships) have lovely, wide promenade decks (some are on the Promenade Deck, others on the Lower Promenade) where you can walk to your heart's delight. 
You can also sit out there, close to the sea, under cover, and just relax. 

Those decks are wonderful! 

[Can't Wait to Board]

Yes! I’ve cruised on Nieuw Statendam twice and walked the promenade deck every morning. Beautiful views.

 

[dockman]

A wide promenade deck only feet from the ocean with nice teak chairs where one can sit and watch and hear and "feel" the ocean next to you as well as walk lap after lap in relative peace and quiet to me is probably the single most enjoyable part of a cruise.  Having a "walking deck" on the top levels unprotected from the weather and trying to look down 15 or so floors through often dirty plexiglass and 15 or so laps to the mile is a totally different and not all that pleasant experience.

 

How many hours have i spent sitting on the promenade decks and walking laps?  A LOT. 

 

Sadly these wonderful wide decks are being removed by the bean counters who apparently have prevalied in efforts  that the deck space be enclosed to open more shops selling a bunch of stuff that i have zero interest in buying.  It's not like there are not plenty of shops already as well as a zillion malls back in hometowns where one can shop til they drop.

 

To each his own but i do often feel sad for people who go on cruises and hardly if ever experience the joy of just sitting outside and being close to the ocean as they are too busy playing bingo etc.

[crystalspin]

1 hour ago, jules815 said:

My husband and I will be doing the April TA on Nieuw Statendam. We just came off of a cruise on another line (this will be our first with HAL) and the one thing we missed on this ship was an outside promenade that went all the way around the ship. Do the HAL ships have that? 

Yes, the Promenade Deck on the Nieuw Statendam is a full walk-around. It is narrow where it flanks the main stage (forward) and the MDR (aft), both port and starboard. There are no lounge chairs as Ruth indicated. The views at most of the wider areas are where the tenders and lifeboats (and other emergency equipment) hangs. But you can walk the entire perimeter -- and bop inside at the Grand Dutch Cafe!

 

Confession, we did not do this on our recent B2B on the Koningsdam, but we promise to do so on our next cruise!

 

https://halfacts.com/pinnacle-class/nieuw-statendam-promenade-deck/

[Crew News]

Here are pictures of the Nieuw Statendam Promenade Deck that show the narrowing corners and widening ends:

 

 

 

 

 

Edited September 28, 2023 by Crew News

[TiogaCruiser]

As opposed to a REAL promenade deck like this:

 

 

[albingirl]

Like many of you, I always loved the wide promenade decks with the napping lounge chairs.  Oh,, they are wonderful to lounge around and view the ocean and read, but ultimately they are the best kept secret for a fine mid-day nap. 

[Heartgrove]

A popular misconception is that the cruise line "bean counters" have eliminated or curtailed the size of the Promenade Decks. It is actually adherence to The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea" (SOLAS) changes after the Costa Concordia disaster. Lifeboats need to be able to function in an emergency.

[Banditswife]

Love all the photos, thanks for sharing. 

[jules815]

Thanks for the info and photos. This is exactly the type of promenade we missed so much on our last couple of cruises. Particularly the one we just disembarked from last week. It was an MSC ship and we did a B2B. Ship had a confusing layout and no real walk around promenade. It took me until the second week to finally know my way around. We still had a great time, but always miss being able to take a proper stroll around the outside without having to dodge tables with people eating their breakfast and loungers on a pool deck. 

 

[dockman]

12 hours ago, Heartgrove said:

A popular misconception is that the cruise line "bean counters" have eliminated or curtailed the size of the Promenade Decks. It is actually adherence to The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea" (SOLAS) changes after the Costa Concordia disaster. Lifeboats need to be able to function in an emergency.

Can you please provide a link that shows what lifeboat changes have impacted the ability to have a wide promenade deck after concordia.  I have looked and see all kinds of information but nothing regarding how a wide promenade comes into play.  Thanks.

 

https://www.shmgroup.com/blog/everything-you-need-to-know-about-lifeboats/#:~:text=SOLAS Requirements for Lifeboats&text=The number of lifeboats and,the port and the starboard.

 

[Heartgrove]

10 hours ago, dockman said:

Can you please provide a link that shows what lifeboat changes have impacted the ability to have a wide promenade deck after concordia.  I have looked and see all kinds of information but nothing regarding how a wide promenade comes into play.  Thanks.

 

https://www.shmgroup.com/blog/everything-you-need-to-know-about-lifeboats/#:~:text=SOLAS Requirements for Lifeboats&text=The number of lifeboats and,the port and the starboard.

 

 

The design for space of a cruise ship is not infinite. There won't be a reference regarding the size or design of a Promenade Deck per say. Marine engineers have needed to reduce the walkable size of the Promenade Deck on the Pinnacle-class to accomodate the improved design davits that will function in an emergency. Previously lifeboats were stowed above the Promeande Decks as the related mechanical equipment for lowering them was a different design.

 

 Only three lifeboats were able to be deployed in the Costa Concordia disaster. That is out of 69 lifeboats and inflatable life rafts. Evacuation took six hours with the loss of 32 lives.

 

Regarding the narrowing of the Pinnacle-class Promenade Deck at the stern, it is do to the increased size of the Galley to feed the greater number of passengers carried.

 

 

Edited September 29, 2023 by Heartgrove

[dockman]

OK thanks.  I was hoping to actually read the rules that changed designs after the concordia event.

 

Just seems hard to believe that a wide promenade cannot be designed by marine architects that would not mess up the lifeboat deployment when it seems they are able to design such massive new ships.

 

If the extra space for a wide prom deck comes from the "inside portion" of the ship i don't understand how that would impact the life boats that are hanging out closer to the water?  In other words how does a more narrow prom deck impact the lifeboats?  Of course i am no engineer or architect but just curious.

[Lucieman]

On 9/29/2023 at 9:18 PM, dockman said:

OK thanks.  I was hoping to actually read the rules that changed designs after the concordia event.

 

Just seems hard to believe that a wide promenade cannot be designed by marine architects that would not mess up the lifeboat deployment when it seems they are able to design such massive new ships.

 

If the extra space for a wide prom deck comes from the "inside portion" of the ship i don't understand how that would impact the life boats that are hanging out closer to the water?  In other words how does a more narrow prom deck impact the lifeboats?  Of course i am no engineer or architect but just curious.

 

[horseymike]

My wife and I always enjoy walking around the promenade deck when on a cruise 🚢.

It is a simple pleasure that is quietly disappearing on many ships.

[jules815]

3 hours ago, horseymike said:

My wife and I always enjoy walking around the promenade deck when on a cruise 🚢.

It is a simple pleasure that is quietly disappearing on many ships.

I'm the OP. Even when we could find an open area on another deck (besides our balcony), they had glass panels attached to the railing that were probably about 6 feet high. (This was on MSC Seascape).