nanlaur Posted May 21, 2014 #1 Share Posted May 21, 2014 We are about to book our second HAL cruise (woo-hoo!), and I'm going into super-anticipation-planner mode. We will likely request late, fixed dining. Does anyone know if the second level MDR on the Nieuw Amsterdam is quieter at the edges near the windows or in the middle near the open stairway? We both wear hearing aids and would like to find a table where we are getting less background noise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare POA1 Posted May 21, 2014 #2 Share Posted May 21, 2014 I think the edges would be quieter. Less noise filtering up from below. Of course your neighbors will be the wild card. As long as they're not too loud, you will be fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nanlaur Posted May 21, 2014 Author #3 Share Posted May 21, 2014 I think the edges would be quieter. Less noise filtering up from below. Of course your neighbors will be the wild card. As long as they're not too loud, you will be fine. Definitely have had some noisy dining neighbors at times! I was wondering how much sound bounced off the walls and windows. Though I imagine the drapes would absorb some of that at night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare POA1 Posted May 21, 2014 #4 Share Posted May 21, 2014 Definitely have had some noisy dining neighbors at times! I was wondering how much sound bounced off the walls and windows. Though I imagine the drapes would absorb some of that at night. Drapes are generally drawn for dinner, especially second seating. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelleherdl Posted May 21, 2014 #5 Share Posted May 21, 2014 We generally have a 6-top for late-fixed on the aft windows. It is quieter there. Most evenings the drapes were NOT drawn, so you will have the evening deck walkers, particularly with calm seas. Another quiet area on the NA are the tables in the staircase area. We had a very nice set of dinners on the Eurodam at one of these tables. Dennis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare POA1 Posted May 21, 2014 #6 Share Posted May 21, 2014 Drapes are generally drawn for dinner, especially second seating. Clarification: Since draw can mean either open or close with respect to curtains, I should have just said "open." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catl331 Posted May 22, 2014 #7 Share Posted May 22, 2014 Do not sit near the large round tables. Gets noisy after they all get seated Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nanlaur Posted May 22, 2014 Author #8 Share Posted May 22, 2014 We generally have a 6-top for late-fixed on the aft windows. It is quieter there. Most evenings the drapes were NOT drawn, so you will have the evening deck walkers, particularly with calm seas. Another quiet area on the NA are the tables in the staircase area. We had a very nice set of dinners on the Eurodam at one of these tables. Dennis Thanks, Dennis, that's very helpful. We were thinking of the aft 6-tops and I'm glad to hear it's quieter back there. We can wave at the walkers if we get bored :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nanlaur Posted May 22, 2014 Author #9 Share Posted May 22, 2014 Do not sit near the large round tables. Gets noisy after they all get seated We've noticed that, too, Carol. I think it's because people have to raise their voices to be heard across the table. Though we've been near some family groups that got pretty rowdy at the big tables, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare POA1 Posted May 22, 2014 #10 Share Posted May 22, 2014 Here is the dining room layout courtesy of HALFacts.com. You might want to see if you can put a table request on your reservation notes. I'm not sure if it will work, but it doesn't hurt to try. http://halfacts.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/NADM.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nanlaur Posted May 22, 2014 Author #11 Share Posted May 22, 2014 Here is the dining room layout courtesy of HALFacts.com. You might want to see if you can put a table request on your reservation notes. I'm not sure if it will work, but it doesn't hurt to try. http://halfacts.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/NADM.pdf Exactly what we had in mind! This will be the first time using a PCC at HAL. We'll see how great the service really is ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare POA1 Posted May 22, 2014 #12 Share Posted May 22, 2014 Exactly what we had in mind! This will be the first time using a PCC at HAL. We'll see how great the service really is ;) Let us know how it works out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelleherdl Posted May 22, 2014 #13 Share Posted May 22, 2014 If you are booked in a Neptune suite you will get your choice. Dennis Sent from my VS950 4G using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nanlaur Posted May 23, 2014 Author #14 Share Posted May 23, 2014 If you are booked in a Neptune suite you will get your choice.Dennis Sent from my VS950 4G using Tapatalk We aren't. But it doesn't cost anything to try ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare POA1 Posted May 23, 2014 #15 Share Posted May 23, 2014 We aren't. But it doesn't cost anything to try ;) We've been in NS/PS and were never given a choice of where to sit. We always eat late fixed. That said, we're never had a problem with our table. Print out the dining room map from the link in my earlier post and highlight or circle all the tables you think would work for you. The biggest challenge for you is that a lot of the deuces are near the center of the room by the balcony that overlooks the first floor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nanlaur Posted May 27, 2014 Author #16 Share Posted May 27, 2014 Well, late dining is waitlisted, so we couldn't pick a table. We are only number 7 on the list, so we should clear by February, though. Our PCC did take our preferences. But...who really cares...WE ARE BOOKED! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare kazu Posted May 27, 2014 #17 Share Posted May 27, 2014 For the OP - we were on the Nieuw Amsterdam and had a table that I thought should have been a good one - it was aft - next to the windows not quite centre but a bit towards the left. We heard every word one people at a table were saying due to the acoustics in the MDR so I don't think the aft portion is a solution. They weren't loud - they were probably 3 tables away, but somehow we heard everything. It was disconcerting to say the least. We were on about 6 months after she launched so with luck that issue has been resolved - but I did want to share in case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nanlaur Posted May 28, 2014 Author #18 Share Posted May 28, 2014 Thanks, Jacqui. That's good to keep in mind. It's kind of a weird acoustical design for a dining room. We aren't going to stress about location. It's pretty minor in the whole scope of things, but if we can't hear, we can always change on the second leg of the B2B I imagine. Unfortunately, on our last cruise the people we were eating with made us "that" noisy table. Blegh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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