Nieuw Statendam/Pinnacle Class

[amandas friend]

We have booked a cruise on this ship. I wonder if people believe this class of ship is crowded. We recently were on the Nieuw Amsterdam and didn’t find it crowded. Opinions? 
Thank you 

[EtaC]

Did the maiden voyage on NS back in 2018. It was fairly full and IMO did not feel crowded. There was plenty of room on the dance floors in BB's and the RS room. Times may have changed some things, but the larger size of the ship allows for more venues as well as more staterooms. Cruise tracker has its passengers to space ratio as 31. For comparison the Vistas are 34 and are just a bit more crowded. Frankly I find the size about right. Big, but not too big.

[Sea42]

I found it a bit crowed on a cold weather cruise. When people aren't spending as much time around the pools and outdoors it did seem that the indoor areas were more crowed than the smaller ships.

[AKJonesy]

As you may know, HAL is really pushing the 3 and 4 person room capacity.  You now have to be careful what stateroom you are booking so as not to get bumped.  What we are all finding out is that if we book a verandah stateroom for example, but it has that bunk bed in the ceiling drop down, HAL can bump two people from that stateroom to accommodate a family.  Some of the ships will feel crowded especially in the main pool area when many children are on board.  On the Pinnacle class ships; Rotterdam, Koningsdam and Nieuw Statendam the Dive In and Gelato station are there and it can be very crowded.  It really depends on WHEN you are sailing.  If you are doing a repositioning cruise vs a holiday cruise, the repositioning cruise will not seem crowded.  But, on some of our holiday cruises; especially 7 day cruises, the ships are pretty full which is when people can bring their children.  Outside of that, I have not felt the ships are necessarily crowded.  You didn't mention your itinerary.  

[amandas friend]

It’s a Caribbean cruise in late November. 

[WriterOnDeck]

7 minutes ago, amandas friend said:

It’s a Caribbean cruise in late November. 

Late November meaning Thanksgiving week?

[amandas friend]

No after

 

[vicd1969]

I sailed on the Nieuw Statendam on a Caribbean cruise the week before Thanksgiving, so somewhat similar to sailing the week after. The pool and buffet didn't seem super-crowded, always was able to find a sitting area for my family group of 5. But anytime dining was a disaster, so I would recommend getting the Club Orange option if still available, or getting fixed dining. There were probably less than a dozen kids onboard as well, which helped it feel less like a zoo. However, compared to the Nieuw Amsterdam, you will notice more crowds, albeit still manageable most of the times.

[*Miss G*]

I can’t ever remember feeling “crowded” on a Holland America ship, including the Nieuw Statendam.  (On the Sky Princess… YES.  Big time.)  I guess if you visit the Lido Market during rush hour, that might feel crowded.  I like to avoid rush hour, so that might be why I don’t notice the crowds.

[elmac40]

I’ve been on 12 cruises with HAL over 9 years. In April this year I did a Norwegian cruise on the Rotterdam. This was my first time on a Pinnacle class ship and unlike previous cruises found it very busy in all areas. Usually on HAL ships you can enjoy quiet areas but not on that one. I would be reluctant to do another cruise on a Pinnacle class ship. Most of my cruises have been on the Vista class ships which I enjoyed. 

[DE Solo]

8 hours ago, amandas friend said:

No after

 

This year American Thanksgiving falls on November 28. Aren't very many additional days remaining in that month. 

[FlaMariner]

9 hours ago, amandas friend said:

It’s a Caribbean cruise in late November. 

 

We were on the NS for Thanksgiving week a couple of years ago. 

 

The ship was full and there were all ages onboard.  We got along fine considering it was Thanksgiving week and it was not the usual HAL vibe...obviously....we stayed on the next week (B2B) and even though the ship was full the next week, it did seem calmer because we left the kids and their parents behind.

 

We've never felt crowded on the Pinacle class ships (Nieuw Statendam, Koningsdam, Rotterdam).  Things are very well spread out....And the retractable roof keeps allows folks to use the lido pool area even in inclement/cool weather.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

It's a great ship plenty of quiet places during the day.

[gizmodog]

So are ships leaving the day after Thanksgiving considered a holiday cruise?

[Sea42]

42 minutes ago, gizmodog said:

So are ships leaving the day after Thanksgiving considered a holiday cruise?

I would think so because it would cover the weekend following the holiday.

[kirkc]

We sailed the day after Thanksgiving in 2023 on the Rotterdam and there were very few kids on board. Enjoyed a very comfortable and non-crowded feeling cruise. We’ll be doing the same dates this year.

[gizmodog]

Happy to hear that, hope it’s not a holiday cruise.

[albingirl]

Love the ship.  We've had several sailings with her. I'd be there now, if I could.

[wdw1972]

2 hours ago, gizmodog said:

Happy to hear that, hope it’s not a holiday cruise.

It's definitely not.  In fact, cruises leaving the day after Thanksgiving tend to be the lowest fare of the season due to lower demand. Next year I'll be doing my November cruise as the 9-day leaving the day after Thanksgiving and it'll be one of the cheapest cruises in years! There should be few to no kids, which makes it even better.

 

Sue/WDW1972

[Cruisegoer]

On 8/21/2024 at 10:58 AM, gizmodog said:

So are ships leaving the day after Thanksgiving considered a holiday cruise?

No, though many companies selling group space market it as a "Post-Thanksgiving cruise" realizing that many people like to be home with family for the holidays and this occurs immediately after.  Overall I don't think I've ever noticed even a Thanksgiving week cruise to really be labeled as a Holiday cruise as it's very particular to Americans only and since these are international sailings many may not be aware.  Christmas and New Year's is different for obvious reasons.

[kirkc]

Definitely not a holiday cruise. About half way through the 9 days we got to watch them putting up holiday decorations.