Average age of HAL passengers

[dougemt123]

Hi,

My wife and I are thinking about taking a cruise with Holland America but have heard it is a cruiseline that caters mostly to seniors. Is this a reasonable statement? We are in our late 30's and while we are not real party animals we don't want to be the only ones on the ship not getting a pension. We have sailed twice before on Carnival and have enjoyed the experience although a slightly quieter ship would be nice. We are thinking of the Canada/ New England cruise and would like to be assured that there are activities onboard that would suit our age group. Cruises are great for meeting new people and it would be nice if some of those new people were close to our age. If you've sailed Holland, what's your assessment? :confused:

[Navy_Chief]

This question comes up now and again. I've sailed both lines in this case and like HAL better (as we're going again). My wife and I are in our 40's and I find there is plenty to do on "sea days". Of course, being "retired" from the navy, I just like being at sea and any given "sea day", you'll find me up on the forward observation deck above the Bridge in the morning with a cup of coffee in hand just taking it in (my wife is a late sleeper when we're at sea). The rest of the day, we found any number of things that we enjoyed (sometimes, my wife just likes to take a book on deck and read, after all, we're there to relax yet have a good time). Now more to your point, it really depends on the itinerary and the number of days cruising as to the make up of passenger age. We did a 16 day Med cruise for our first experiance with HAL. This lent itself to a slightly older group but there were plenty of people from the late 30 to 50 range on the ship. On average I think the average age for that cruise was late 50 to 65. With that said, I met some great folks on that trip and we both really enjoyed it. I can't speak directly for the Canada/New England itinerary here, I bow to our other more "seasoned" CC'rs for that. Even with not knowing what your "Likes" and "Dislikes" are, I'm sure you would enjoy your cruise no matter what.

[PrincessYoga]

I am 30. I really enjoyed my holiday. I am already planning my next HAL trip.

[C 2 C]

When I cruised HAL regularly (up to 4 years ago) I liked cruising HAL because the passengers made me feel young. Now I am retired and make other pax feel young.:cool:

 

I only cruise on longer voyages. 7 day trips have a younger crowd.

[CCCM]

I am mid 30s, DH is early 40s. We enjoyed HAL so much last year, we are going back. We did Carribean itineraries. There was definitely alot for us to do. Similar to Navy_Chief, not sure about New England/Canada (a great itinerary).

[rubrrick]

On the 7 day cruises we find many different age groups, and in chatting with them, they all seem to enjoy HAL.:)

 

Rick

[newmexicoNita]

the shorter the cruise the younger the passengers. No matter what, yes, HAL does have the oldest age group but this doesn't mean you can't have fun. One of my clients, several years ago who was in his early 30s thought HAL was the best line he had cruised. Of course he reported back the passengers were 2 or more times his age, but the service and food made up for the lack of 20 and 30 somethings on the ship. If the itinerary and price are what you want, give it a try. You need to experience different ships; this is a good way to get started. NMNita

[~Roses~]

Dh and I are in our early 30's and started cruising HAL in our late 20's and we love, love, love them! We are not the partying type either. Have only tried one other cruiseline, Norweigen, and hated them,. We will only cruise HAL from now on! You should try them. THey also have smaller ships than carnival, and the indonesion guys are sooo nice. GL!

[kryos]

Hi,

My wife and I are thinking about taking a cruise with Holland America but have heard it is a cruiseline that caters mostly to seniors. Is this a reasonable statement? We are in our late 30's and while we are not real party animals we don't want to be the only ones on the ship not getting a pension.

Again, depends on the ship, itinerary and length of sailing. If you go on a Vista ship ... standard seven-day sailing to places like Caribbean and Alaska, you're gonna get a younger passenger base. Lots of families ... couples and if school is out, lots of kids too. You'll find HAL to be pretty much the same age range as many other lines. But if you take longer cruises on smaller ships, yeah ... you'll get primarily much older people ... 70s, 80s and above. After all, they're the ones who have the money and the time to take those longer, more exotic cruises.

 

When I sailed the Zuiderdam back in summer 2004, there were loads of younger folks on the boat. There were tons of kids too. This was a seven-day Caribbean cruise. But then when I sailed the Amsterdam this past January ... a 30-day cruise ... I think the average passenger age was somewhere in the late 70s. After all, there aren't too many young folks who can take that kind of time off from work. I'm 50, and have been with the same employer for 27 years ... and I had to beg.

 

So, pick your ship and your itinerary carefully and you'll have no problem finding loads of people your own age onboard.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[TedC]

When I cruised HAL regularly (up to 4 years ago) I liked cruising HAL because the passengers made me feel young. Now I am retired and make other pax feel young.:cool:

 

I only cruise on longer voyages. 7 day trips have a younger crowd.

 

 

C to C, did something happen that made you stop sailing HAL regularly? I don't want to pry, I'm just curious. Just ignore the question if you don't want to share the reason, I'll understand (after a brief period of pouting).

[RuthC]

Keep in mind that both the 7- and 10-day NE/Canada itineraries are port intensive, so there will be fewer daytime activities than on a cruise with more sea days.

And since there's another port tomorrow people won't stay up as late as they would with several sea days in a row.

The passengers on HAL may be older than on other lines, but you will also find that they are an interested, interesting, and active group of people. They tend to be well-travelled, and can keep you entertained with their stories.

[C 2 C]

C to C, did something happen that made you stop sailing HAL regularly? I don't want to pry, I'm just curious. Just ignore the question if you don't want to share the reason, I'll understand (after a brief period of pouting).

I don't really know. I think it started with a very trivial matter. I enjoy trivia and HAL always had those morning library trivias where a (very trivial) prize was awarded for someone achieving the highest score with the earliest time. After a few cruises a pattern emerged that someone would have an impossibly early return time (what I thought was a nice tough trivia) requiring research from their excellent library. I then noticed that certain individuals had cruised often enough to keep an answer copy for themselves and re-doing the same trivia to get the prize. HAL was not producing new trivias and used the same ones over and over.

I had booked a different itinerary on a Celebrity special and was introduced to live trivias with different questions being asked. After a while Celebrity also uses the same trivias but if you ask, the staff will change the questions. Over the last five years I have now cruised twice as often on Celebrity as on HAL and I still like the frequency of these activities better on Celebrity. I cruised on Veendam in January 2005 (norwalk outbreak) and got right on Zenith a similar-sized and aged ship. Both were 14 day cruises. Veendam is a nicer ship than Zenith, food and service was similar.

I liked Celebrities onboard activities better and HAL gave me a real hard time about dinner timing. I had booked my cruise at least a year in advance and specified early dining. When I got onboard I was assigned late dining and no amount of arguing and showing my booking info helped.

It seems that HAL changed its definition of main dining from early to late in that year, going to four different times and I got lost in the shuffle. Only those people who had signed medical letters stating need for early dining got their wish...

I guess that says something about the age of passengers as well, when medical needs specifies who eats when...

Then there is the matter of the Passport to Fitness books. The previous year we were on a 14 day Noordam sailing out of Tampa. We participated in all the activities got 5 books filled with stamps. The redemption line was so long that the desired jackets and track suits were all in the wrong sizes by the time I got to the front of the line. I was told to hold on to the books for my next sailing rather than going for the shirts and stuff. Well the program was cancelled and I now have a nice souvenir passport book.

 

I think that the minor touches that characterizes each cruiseline creates an impact much larger than the cruiselines anticipate. Getting snarky answers from the dancers in the library who don't realize that certain passengers like a challenging trivia, getting snarky excuses from a maitre'd about why you can't get the dinner times that you thought were promised, or getting shrugs from front desk staff about "passports" no longer being exchanged... these are all minor pushes towards the competition.

Some will say that minor things won't spoil their cruise experience. But until Celebrity pushes me back, there is nothing in the HAL experience that is superior to the overall experience I find elswhere.

I will be on some DAM ship in the future ( I am actively looking and have a credit from the plague ship) but I'm still enjoying life elsewhere.

No cruiseline is perfect. All of them offer something that their loyal pax love... but HAL offers no perks at all to those who cruise often.. and we cruise often.

[newmexicoNita]

I don't really know. I think it started with a very trivial matter. I enjoy trivia and HAL always had those morning library trivias where a (very trivial) prize was awarded for someone achieving the highest score with the earliest time. After a few cruises a pattern emerged that someone would have an impossibly early return time (what I thought was a nice tough trivia) requiring research from their excellent library. I then noticed that certain individuals had cruised often enough to keep an answer copy for themselves and re-doing the same trivia to get the prize. HAL was not producing new trivias and used the same ones over and over.

I had booked a different itinerary on a Celebrity special and was introduced to live trivias with different questions being asked. After a while Celebrity also uses the same trivias but if you ask, the staff will change the questions. Over the last five years I have now cruised twice as often on Celebrity as on HAL and I still like the frequency of these activities better on Celebrity. I cruised on Veendam in January 2005 (norwalk outbreak) and got right on Zenith a similar-sized and aged ship. Both were 14 day cruises. Veendam is a nicer ship than Zenith, food and service was similar.

I liked Celebrities onboard activities better and HAL gave me a real hard time about dinner timing. I had booked my cruise at least a year in advance and specified early dining. When I got onboard I was assigned late dining and no amount of arguing and showing my booking info helped.

It seems that HAL changed its definition of main dining from early to late in that year, going to four different times and I got lost in the shuffle. Only those people who had signed medical letters stating need for early dining got their wish...

I guess that says something about the age of passengers as well, when medical needs specifies who eats when...

Then there is the matter of the Passport to Fitness books. The previous year we were on a 14 day Noordam sailing out of Tampa. We participated in all the activities got 5 books filled with stamps. The redemption line was so long that the desired jackets and track suits were all in the wrong sizes by the time I got to the front of the line. I was told to hold on to the books for my next sailing rather than going for the shirts and stuff. Well the program was cancelled and I now have a nice souvenir passport book.

 

I think that the minor touches that characterizes each cruiseline creates an impact much larger than the cruiselines anticipate. Getting snarky answers from the dancers in the library who don't realize that certain passengers like a challenging trivia, getting snarky excuses from a maitre'd about why you can't get the dinner times that you thought were promised, or getting shrugs from front desk staff about "passports" no longer being exchanged... these are all minor pushes towards the competition.

Some will say that minor things won't spoil their cruise experience. But until Celebrity pushes me back, there is nothing in the HAL experience that is superior to the overall experience I find elswhere.

I will be on some DAM ship in the future ( I am actively looking and have a credit from the plague ship) but I'm still enjoying life elsewhere.

No cruiseline is perfect. All of them offer something that their loyal pax love... but HAL offers no perks at all to those who cruise often.. and we cruise often.

I certainly agree many small things can add up to big ones. I know when I try to review various lines I often think of the little things that I like or don't like and mostly they are trivial. My discription of Carnival for instance: I can't begin to say anything really bad, but there is just nothing good to say either: they are just there. I happen to feel the same about RCI. We have had a couple of bad experiences with them, nothing that even warrented comments, but enough to keep us away. A few things happened on our last Celebrity cruise that left us cold: little things like, a 5 day cruise our waiter forgot to give my husnbanc a menu twice; one night they forgot our coffee, we had CC service and the treats would come each afternoon which was wonderful, but the person bringing them would knock lightly once and then martch in: Thank goodness he never popped in at the wrong time. None of these things would keep us from sailing a line, nor did they ruin our cruise, but they do stick in our minds. NMNita

[AlohaPride]

I'm 23 and my DH is 24 and we will be on the Christmas Noordam cruise. So I guess there is a large age difference. I'm sure you have nothing to worry about. My TA says that HAL is trying to widen their age demographic by catering to all. If you want, you can decide to join us on the Dec. 16-27 cruise. :D Again, neither of us likes to party. We would much rather watch a movie or listen to some jazz or blues (I'm really looking forward to the Piano Bar) than go to a club and get drunk. I guess it's not really the ages on the cruise, but the lifestyles you'll find. We chose HAL for our first cruise because of these reasons.

[VABeach]

Keep in mind that both the 7- and 10-day NE/Canada itineraries are port intensive, so there will be fewer daytime activities than on a cruise with more sea days.

And since there's another port tomorrow people won't stay up as late as they would with several sea days in a row.

 

The passengers on HAL may be older than on other lines, but you will also find that they are an interested, interesting, and active group of people. They tend to be well-travelled, and can keep you entertained with their stories.

 

I'm 36 and couldn't have said it better.

 

Yes, the croud is older than me, but I really enjoyed their company and their stories.

 

My next cruise will be on HAL. 13 day Southern Caribbean and I just really can't wait.

 

To answer your question a little more directly as someone who has sailed on CCL, RCCL, and HAL; CCL is the most active, HAL is the most relaxing, and RCCL is the most in between.

 

Enjoy. :)

[Copper10-8]

On a Canada-New England cruise (great itinerary, btw), you will find a nice mix of passengers when it comes to age levels. The majority of the pax will more than likely still be the sixty-five plussers and up but there will not be a lack of nightlife. The cruise staff will schedule activities for "all ages" including theme nights that will include dancing (country, disco, 50-60ties, etc.) associated games, etc. What you won't find will be pool games including belly flop contests, passing objects via your bathing suit to your teammates, the hairiest guy contest, and other assorted activities to spend your leisure time with;)

HAL has been cruising Canada-New England early the last couple of years (as opposed to just in the fall) so mom & dad with kids of all ages can enjoy the beautiful scenery while school's out adding to a "younger crowd". I could be wrong but I don't believe the Vista's have made this itinirary yet. This year it's the Maasdam and Amsterdam. Whatever you choose, have a great time !

[RevNeal]

Being one who enjoys trivial issues ...

C 2 C, given your above post don't you think you should update your location? Rather than given your land location, it states:

 

ON Celebrity RCL or some Dam ship

 

From what you posted, I gather that you won't be on a Dam ship anytime soon. So ...

[hammybee]

We often cruise with other people, so which cruiseline and intinerary is negotiated. We have had a devil of a time getting others to overcome their perception that everyone on HAL is on life support. I think by the time I convince them, we will all be on life support.

 

I would much rather be a part of a dining table with people 20-30 years older than I, who remain curious, than a table full of (God forbid) self-absorbed 20 somethings still nursing, "you know, like" last night's hangover. People who are interested tend to be more interesting, regardless of age.

 

You will not be the youngest or the oldset, on any HAL sailing.

[RevNeal]

I've been cruising HAL since I was in my 30s. True, for much of this time I have usually (but not always) been the youngest person at my table ... but I have never been bored, have always had a good time, and have enjoyed many cruises with the "older set."

 

That being said, I must say that over the last 6 or so years it would appear that the average age of HAL passengers has begun to decline thanks, in large part, to the introduction of the Vista class vessels. Perhaps I'm getting colder, but at least in my experience and opinion it would appear that there are more and more younger people aboard.

 

I say, if you're in your 30s and like a somewhat quieter ship than Carnival, HAL might be worth a try.

[C 2 C]

Being one who enjoys trivial issues ...

C 2 C, given your above post don't you think you should update your location? Rather than given your land location, it states:

 

 

 

From what you posted, I gather that you won't be on a Dam ship anytime soon. So ...

 

We normally cruise 8 times a year.... January and February are still open.. I'm looking at Tampa for my HAL holiday in Jan and/or Feb.. It's a great time to be away from ON (Ontario) and on X or HAL:D

[jhannah]

... would like to be assured that there are activities onboard that would suit our age group.

And what activities might those be? It will help to know what you're thinking so a specific answer can be given.

[TedC]

C to C, thank you very much for the very comprehensive and understandable explanation.

 

I'm always interested in threads that compare different cruise lines and why people choose one over the other.

 

At one time X was our favorite. We tried HAL because of an itinerary and liked it but weren't captivated by the experience. We booked X for a Med cruise but then cancelled it and returned to HAL after an enjoyable Prinsendam cruise.

 

Since then we've cruised almost exclusively on HAL - but that could change, depending on our experiences. As someone stated, little things can add up to big things.

[skandls]

Hi dougemt -

We did the 10 night montreal to new york on the rotterdam in Sep/Oct 2003. We are in our 50's we felt like the young ones. I am guessing the average age of the passengers was about 73. Maybe 5% of the passengers were under 40.

As this was a very port intensive cruise there was not a lot of activities. The casino was empty by midnight and maybe 50 people showed up to the theme nights. This may be too quiet a cruise for you.

On the plus side - the regular rooms are very well sized - we had a standard outside and still had a tub/shower combo. The food is quite good and the service is outstanding.

[Rabbitlady]

We have cruised HAL(3 times), Celebrity(2 times), and most recently we decided to give Royal Caribbean a try since it wouldn't cost us plane fare. We are in our mid 30s and early 40s. We have enjoyed all of our cruises. Yes,HAL has an older crowd but we still had fun. If you want a relaxing, classy ship then HAL might be a good choice. For the summer and since we had been to the Caribbean a lot and wanted to avoid plane fare as mentioned above , we decided to go for an active ship on Royal Caribbean. We really enjoyed it as well.

 

Think about what is most important to you and make your decision from there. While I still would sail HAL again, we booked Royal Caribbean for our New England/Canada trip since it has 2 extra days for the same price and we received $200 onboard credit.

There are many loyal HAL fans on this board and they can provide you with valuable info.

Rabbitlady:)

[michmike]

Age is such a relative thing. We have friends in their 40s who are bumps on a log, whereas one of the most memorable and enjoyable couples we've met while crusing were in the early 90s.

 

Only frame of reference we have other than HAL is Celebrity and HAL's demographic is a bit older than X. A lot depends on the length of the trip. Haven't looked at the New England itineraries but if they are longer than 7 days then the age will skew older.

 

If you're a nite owl then you may be a bit disappointed in HAL as things do get pretty quiet by midnite. But during the day you can stay busy w/ Trivia, Pictionary, Catch Phrase etc and those activities tend to bring out a fun loving crowd, regardless of age.

 

We've been on 5 HAL cruises now and have never experienced anything other than warm, welcoming folks, who like us, are simply looking to get away, relax and do it w/o the frenetic pace and the beer belly contests that seem to characterize the view of many re Carnival.

 

I'd give it a try. Think you'd more likely come away impressed than disappointed.

 

We're late 50s btw, but hopelessly committed to not acting our age. (witness the screaming, flying monkeys and the rubber chicken in a tux on our last trip.. *S*)