So the ship is older and a little dated: why does this bother people?

[constructiondude]

Unless a ship is on its maiden voyage it is going to show signs of use. And there is only so much that can be repaired while at sea. Judging from some of the posts I've read today: loose carpet threads, scratches on elevator doors, falling ceiling tiles, rust on the hull....has left me to conclude that on every ship there are people crawling around on their hands/knees with a magnifying glass looking for God knows what....get over it folks....stay home if it gives you indigestion. Did it ever occur to you that 5 minutes before you noticed the loose carpet thread a crew member could have checked it and it was fine? Its possible in that little window of time someone came along and maybe tripped or got their heel caught and out came another thread. The hallways and public rooms of any ship have high traffic volumes. We all pay a lot of money for our vacations and when it comes to our hard earned money we expect a lot. I understand that. But give em a break, as hard as the crews work, not every problem can be rectified on the spot. I work in construction and it seems like we spend a good deal of time waiting for some kind of part to arrive or a person that specializes in a particular area of expertise. And they come in and look at it, claim they need another tool or part and we wait some more. Things take time.

[Old As Dirt Mom]

Doesn't bother me, those are things I wouldn't notice, anyway.....you should see the condition of my house after one of my youngest daughter's birthday parties, talk about a mess.......:eek:

[hammybee]

So many of us are a little older and dated and we don't seem to be bothered by it so let's cut the ladies of the sea, a little slack. She wears her miles well.

[Islandbuoy]

Would you buy a brand new 1990 chevy today??

If you are going to pay money for a new car , I doubt that you would.

[jtl513]

Since the site name is Cruise Critic, some people think that means they have to criticize something. :)

[caviargal]

Sorry, dude, but I do not agree. There is normal wear and tear, which is expected and understoof, then there is negligence.

 

I am quite certain you are referring to the comments on Mercury and Galaxy. A roof that has been stuck in one place and not repaired since 2003 is not the same as loose threads in a carpet, nor are fogged in windows, cracked bathroom sinks, loose tiles in the T pool.

 

I LOVE older ships. RCI does a wonderful job maintaining ships. I was on Vision a few years ago and she has not had a major refurb, just normal dry docks and she was beautiful! She is far older than Mercury but you would never know it as she has been very well maintained. The decor is not the most modern nor does she have the latest amenities but she is a classic.

 

There is a difference between normal wear and tear and neglect.

[hammybee]

Would you buy a brand new 1990 chevy today??

If you are going to pay money for a new car , I doubt that you would.

 

I might buy a 1967 Mercedes Spider. It's a classic and certainly not inexpensive.

[mountainmare]

I was just going to say what caviargal said. We just returned from the Galaxy which I picked because it was am older, more classic ship--and we could not book a time, or cabin on the Maasdam. Over on the Celebrity board I wanted to start a "Save the Galaxy" group--I would love HAL to buy her and treat her right. Bottom line is that we are returning to HAL because of the older more classic ships that are maintained well and give you the feeling that you are following a long oceangoing tradition. I am now looking at doing my best to return to the Maasdam next year.

[noblepa]

I agree. Ships are subject to normal wear and tear, which, given the way some people act, can be considerable. I've occasionally noticed threadbare carpet or scratches in the elevators, but sometimes it wasn't there on the first day of the cruise. That means that someone did it very recently.

 

Some things can only be rectified during a drydock. However, I have seen crew members removing, scraping and revarnishing sections of deck railing on board, while underway. Last April, on the Oosterdam, one of the elevator lobbies on deck seven, I believe, was partially blocked for a day and a half, while they replaced the carpet in that area.

 

Some of the complaints I've read from people regarding older ships has more to do with the lack of "modern" amenities. "The is no slide on the pool and no miniature golf on the Lido deck". That lack doesn't bother me in the least. In fact, I avoid ships that have those things. When I go on a cruise, I want to be on a SHIP, not an amusement park.

 

Maybe I'm just getting old (I'm 55). I don't think that those things would ever have attracted me to a ship, even when I was younger. I enjoy those things, but, to me, they seem wrong on a ship. Its like hearing a cat bark. It just doesn't fit.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

I cannot post from personal experience here because I have not been on the Mercury but I will say that a good friend of was ours went on the Mercury this past fall and stated it was very run down and the beds were the worst. But one thing that was stated that they felt that with the ship being run down and not cared for that was basically the same attitude the crew had. They had the attitude that they did not care. Now these people are not complainers as a matter of fact they still had a good time because they partied the whole 3 days. They have taken several other X cruises and said this was just sad. Hopefully after she comes out of Dry Dock with a clean new feel it will give a boost to the crew and they will then have a pride of ownership feeling which it sounds like they lack right now.

[AWED23]

I might buy a 1967 Mercedes Spider. It's a classic and certainly not inexpensive.

Sounds like a great description of the Prinsendam....My personal, all time, most favorite ship !!!!!:D

[Atomica]

Sometimes, as mentioned above re: Mercury and Galaxy, if the ship is older and not maintaned as well, that could be a problem.

 

The thing that always gets me though is when people either let it ruin their trip or go looking for it. So the carpets were frayed at the top of the stairs - are you going to let it ruin your cruise? It kills me when people say things like "I found gum under the sink and a kleenex under the bed". WHY did you go looking there?! If you look hard enough, on any ship, I am sure there are things that slip through the cracks.

[Nancyquilts]

Yes, Rob, Prinsendam is the best. We've loved it through Royal Viking Sun and Seabourn Sun into its present incarnation. I'd much rather have a lovely classical ship with less than 800 passengers than the new megaships they are designing now - won't it be fun to get off in ports with 3500-4500 other passengers! Nancy

[RuthC]

Would you buy a brand new 1990 chevy today??

The life expectancy of a ship is a lot longer than that of a car. A 10-year old car is old; a 10-year old ship is practically fresh out of the box.

I was on the final cruise of the ss Rotterdam. How old was she then? 38 years, I believe? True, she needed some work done, but had the SOLAS rules not changed I'll bet HAL would have kept her at least for a little while longer. She was long in the tooth, to be sure, but she was like a beloved old aunt. You just don't throw your beloved elders away.

The problem is rooted in this "throw-away" society. Something's broken? Get a new one---instead of fixing it. Have a perfectly fine "whatever"? But there's a newer version out with more bells and whistles, so you have to get the "new and improved". :rolleyes:

I was brought up with the idea "use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without".

And I'm fine with the age of HAL's fleet.

[Islandbuoy]

A lot of people swoon over the Prinsendam . I did not. The Celebrity Connie sails rings around it. HAL charges extra for the P-dam. It isn't worth it(IMHO).

 

I'll give you an example--compare the stage in older vs newer ships--fond memories of the cast having to change in the hall of the old Noordam.

 

Newer ship doesn't have to mean poorer service.

 

Remeber "Hunky Dory"?

[HeatherInFlorida]

A lot of people swoon over the Prinsendam . I did not. The Celebrity Connie sails rings around it. HAL charges extra for the P-dam. It isn't worth it(IMHO).

 

...........

 

Huh? You're comparing the Constellation with the Prinsendam? Could they be any different? Constellation is an M class ship which is on a par with the HAL Vista class.

 

Prinsendam, one of the most grand and glorious vessels on the high seas IMO, dates back years to her days travelling the globe as the proud Royal Viking Sun. You can't seriously compare these 2 ships.

 

HAL charges extra for its Holiday cruise on Prinsendam, but no more for its normal runs. We paid the same for 10 days in an "A" cabin that we would pay in CC class on Constellation.

 

ConstructionDude, I'm with you. I have no problem with a little wear and tear ... even quite a bit of wear and tear as long as the ship is solid and able to sail the ocean blue! People sometimes forget that they're on a ship, after all, with thousands of people wandering all over her for days on end doing heaven knows what. And the sea itself is brutal on a ship.

 

I think they do a remarkable job keeping things looking pretty spiffy and I never notice any of the threads missing that other people seem to.

[Islandbuoy]

Your right the P-dam and the Connie are different, that's the point.

 

Compare the price for a 10 day cruise on the Maasdam , to the 10 day we all took and you'll see a considerable price premium.

[Islandbuoy]

I do know how to spell you're--but my fingers don't

[Islandbuoy]

I must be getting old (like the Carnival Celebration):

 

I forgot to mention the lack of stabalizers on the Prinsendam. The 1/2 of the passengers that were feeling nauseous, would have preferred not to be on an old ship when the weather got rough!!

[HeatherInFlorida]

Where's Stephen Card when we need him? Or Doug? Prinsendam was built as an ocean going vessel. As was explained to us onboard, in the horrendous seas we were in we were far better off on Prinsendam than one of the Vista class.

 

I talked to people on the Zuiderdam and they had unbelievable horror stories about how sick everyone was. Some people get sick in rough seas ... it's an ocean. You can't compare going out on a calm sea to going out on a rough sea.

 

I book all our cruises based on price and always pay pretty much the same per diem in the same class cabin. Doesn't matter if it's Prinsendam, Oosterdam or Summit ... all the same within a couple of hundred dollars based on when I'm cruising.

[Islandbuoy]

to us poor peons , a couple of hundred dollars isn't even close!

[dougnewmanatsea]

I forgot to mention the lack of stabalizers on the Prinsendam. The 1/2 of the passengers that were feeling nauseous, would have preferred not to be on an old ship when the weather got rough!!

She definitely has stabilizers.

 

An old ship is not necessarily bad when the weather gets rough... It depends on the ship!

 

Where's Stephen Card when we need him? Or Doug? Prinsendam was built as an ocean going vessel.

I'm here!

 

Of course PRINSENDAM was built as an "ocean going vessel" but then so were all the other HAL ships. Do they look like riverboats to you ;) ?

 

In all seriousness, it is very true that PRINSENDAM was designed for "worldwide cruising" so theoretically she should be a little better in heavy seas than the run-of-the-mill cruise ships. Is she? I don't know... The truth of the matter is, if you are in bad enough weather, just about any ship will move around quite a bit! But some are definitely better than others.

 

As for the original question... Some people want all the latest "frills". Others (like me) don't really care. I tend to prefer older ships which are smaller and have "character". But there is no excuse for poor maintenance. Some people here have been talking about GALAXY and MERCURY... These are not old ships (under ten years old!) and there is absolutely no excuse for them to be in poor condition. The only explanation is that they have not been doing the maintenance they should be doing to keep the ship in good condition. I experienced this myself on ZENITH last year - admittedly a few years older, but still, not in as good condition as she should have been. Obviously things that should be routinely done like replacing carpets were simply not done. This has nothing to do with the ship being old - it is just a matter of the cruise line being too cheap to pay for routine maintenance. For example, the carpet on a cruise ship is meant to last about five years. If they leave the carpet there for ten years does this mean the ship is "old"? No... It just means they were too cheap to buy new carpet when they needed to!

 

By and large, HAL does a good job keeping their ships in good condition. Celebrity, I'm afraid, does not seem to be doing so well on this front, or at least for a while they didn't. The massive refit of CENTURY recently was certainly a welcome step, but frankly, there is no reason a ship built in 1995 should have needed such a huge refit! Hopefully GALAXY and MERCURY will get similar refits soon and from now on they will spend the money to keep the ships in good condition so in five years they are not looking at another huge refit.

[Ine]

<<<By and large, HAL does a good job keeping their ships in good condition. Celebrity, I'm afraid, does not seem to be doing so well on this front, or at least for a while they didn't. The massive refit of CENTURY recently was certainly a welcome step, but frankly, there is no reason a ship built in 1995 should have needed such a huge refit! Hopefully GALAXY and MERCURY will get similar refits soon and from now on they will spend the money to keep the ships in good condition so in five years they are not looking at another huge refit.>>

 

More or less agree with what you wrote, although on the Celebrity board you will find good reports about Mercury of passengers who just returned.

 

The massive refit of Century wasnot just updating carpets etc., but mostly because many outside cabins were turned into cabins WITH balcony. Also Aft cabins got balconies etc. So it was a lot more then just updating!!!

[JDRMYS]

I must be getting old (like the Carnival Celebration):

 

I forgot to mention the lack of stabalizers on the Prinsendam. The 1/2 of the passengers that were feeling nauseous, would have preferred not to be on an old ship when the weather got rough!!

 

When the Prinsendam was the Seabourn Sun we took a transatlantic cruise on her. The ocean was as smooth as glass and we had the smoothest ride that we have ever had crossing an ocean.

 

In contrast, last month, on the practically brand new Noordam we ran into very rough seas and she rocked, rolled and jumped like a bucking bronco. This did not ruin our trip because we know that whenever one gets on any ship, one has to accept the possibility that sea conditions might produce a rough ride. There has never been any ship built that will not rock and pitch in high seas. The age of the ship has little to do with it. After all, it is a ship, not a land-locked hotel.

 

If you're sea-sick and nauseous, take some Bonine or go see the ship's doctor for an injection. In most cases, it really does work.

[Islandbuoy]

Ok , if the absence of stabilizers isn't a problem,

 

I refer you to the # and size of elevators. The P-dam sucks in that regard.

 

I did like the walk in closet and sliding bathroom doors.