Veendam aft vista suite question

[sapper1]

Hi, thank you for addressing the issue about noise from above from the deck chairs in that area of 089. We are in an aft cabin on the Navigation deck, and someone told us the noise will be horrible because we have a public space above us and not cabins. That made us worry a little, but if you have experienced staying in one of the aft cabins and you say it's not bad, I choose to believe you, an educated opinion is always better than an uneducated one lol :D This will be our first HAL cruise and not having a frame of reference yet of what the Veendam and HAL are like, we are going into it blind. Luckily the majority of people who post are people who love their HAL cruises, so we feel a little more confident every day that HAL will be a good fit for us.

 

Lorie

We were directly under the pool deck and really heard no noise at all. The only noise is from the wake and that is very relaxing.

We only had one problem with the pool deck and that was at sailaway and because our balcony protruded out beyond the upper deck. While we stood at the rail there was a couple smoking directly above us at the rail and we were worried about a live ember hitting us as they flicked their ashes. I believe I mentioned that in my review at the time. That was the only time during the whole voyage that was an issue so I would consider it an isolated problem.

 

The balcony only protruded a little bit so privacy was not an issue.

[honey-bunny]

We were in Veendam 095 last February for the Panama Canal and in Ryndam 120 in December. The cabins were the same size, plenty of storage for two weeks for us, but we are moderate packers. We loved the aft wrap balcony for its panoramic view. The stern curves outward a bit so the middle balconies are a little deeper than what we had, just not so wide. The view of the wake is mesmerizing and I was amazed how often fishing boats fished the edge of our wake. We did have a bit of glug glug noises from the sink, but I don't recall it keeping us awake. There were also some loud noises coming from below when we backed up, but they never lasted long. The side door to the outside stairway, while heavy, was very convenient for going to and from the Lido on the deck above us. Enjoy your cruise!

we are plan to book corner aft cabin particularly 095 on veendam from San Diego - panama canal to Fll cruise for 15 days we love aft and been aft on hal other larger ship my question do u have space or a 2 loungers or only one lounger ? is there a table for having meal on the veranda is there any photos u could share of the 095 would greatly appreciate any advice , it will be our first time on veendam

[trident one]

we are plan to book corner aft cabin particularly 095 on veendam from San Diego - panama canal to Fll cruise for 15 days we love aft and been aft on hal other larger ship my question do u have space or a 2 loungers or only one lounger ? is there a table for having meal on the veranda is there any photos u could share of the 095 would greatly appreciate any advice , it will be our first time on veendam

 

We had cabin 095 for our New England/Canada cruise in July. The balcony is quite spacious, considering that the Veendam is one of the smallest ships in the fleet. There is one lounger, two chairs and very small round table. Table will hold coffee pot and two cups comfortably, nothing else. We are balcony people and now realize just how special the views are from a corner aft.

 

You will be traveling from west to east while transiting the canal and sun could be a small problem, but your view will be fantastic, especially of the locks and the cut. I am not sure, but you might have more shade one deck down (Veranda) in cabin 223 or 232 if available. Shade is definitely your friend anytime of the year when going through the canal.

 

There is a site we can no longer mention, but if you search hal and add facts.com you can see the balcony of 095 and 232.

 

Enjoy you transit of the canal, IMHO it is a very special cruise.

[honey-bunny]

We had cabin 095 for our New England/Canada cruise in July. The balcony is quite spacious, considering that the Veendam is one of the smallest ships in the fleet. There is one lounger, two chairs and very small round table. Table will hold coffee pot and two cups comfortably, nothing else. We are balcony people and now realize just how special the views are from a corner aft.

 

You will be traveling from west to east while transiting the canal and sun could be a small problem, but your view will be fantastic, especially of the locks and the cut. I am not sure, but you might have more shade one deck down (Veranda) in cabin 223 or 232 if available. Shade is definitely your friend anytime of the year when going through the canal.

 

There is a site we can no longer mention, but if you search hal and add facts.com you can see the balcony of 095 and 232.

 

Enjoy you transit of the canal, IMHO it is a very special cruise.

thanks for your reply :) it reassures us that we made the right decision on choosing aft veranda :) we been before in SC and SB cabins on hal other larger ships and we loved the view and serenity of the cabin location we used to spend our morning and sea days on the veranda and before dinner time it was our favorites place to view the sunsets , is the cabin layout similar to sc ? small couch opposite the bed ? or is the couch position on same side is the bed ?

Edited October 26, 2015 by honey-bunny

[trident one]

thanks for your reply :) it reassures us that we made the right decision on choosing aft veranda :) we been before in SC and SB cabins on hal other larger ships and we loved the view and serenity of the cabin location we used to spend our morning and sea days on the veranda and before dinner time it was our favorites place to view the sunsets , is the cabin layout similar to sc ? small couch opposite the bed ? or is the couch position on same side is the bed ?

 

No the cabin layout is not like the SB or SC Cabins.

 

095 is a vista cabin and about half the width of the cabins you are use to.

When you enter there will be three closets on your left bathroom on your right with a step up to enter it. Bed is on the right with two night tables and couch and mini bar are also on the bed side of the cabin. Across from the couch is the desk which contains nine drawers for storage.

 

As I said the balcony is large for the size ship but not as large as the SB or SC cabin aft balconys you are use to on the larger ships.

 

This was the smallest cabin we have ever sailed in and found it quite comfortable for 14 days.

 

I would book this cabin again or cabins 232& 223 one deck below for the aft views on this ship. May prefer the two corner afts one deck below. because I think they may have more overhang to shade the balcony and you can never have to much shade when transiting the canal. If I can figure out how to do it I will try to post a picture of the balcony and cabin.

[trident one]

thanks for your reply :) it reassures us that we made the right decision on choosing aft veranda :) we been before in SC and SB cabins on hal other larger ships and we loved the view and serenity of the cabin location we used to spend our morning and sea days on the veranda and before dinner time it was our favorites place to view the sunsets , is the cabin layout similar to sc ? small couch opposite the bed ? or is the couch position on same side is the bed ?

 

http://halfacts.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/1-vndm095201402002.jpg

http://halfacts.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/06-IMG_1237.jpg

 

Hopefully, if you click on the above sites you should have picture of cabin and balcony

[honey-bunny]

http://halfacts.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/1-vndm095201402002.jpg

http://halfacts.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/06-IMG_1237.jpg

 

Hopefully, if you click on the above sites you should have picture of cabin and balcony

thank so very much for the links and the info , the verandah looks nice :) it is true it is much smaller then SC and SB we are used to but this will be only 2 of us in the cabin we usually travel with our daughter ,now she will begin college it will be just 2 people sharing a room :) but glad the aft view still have a tiny wrap around ,the best place to be on a lazy sea day or early morning is on the aft balcony watching the waves . we will have 15 days on panama canal full crossing from Sand Diego to FLL , so glad to have some info . thank you gain .

[trident one]

thank so very much for the links and the info , the verandah looks nice :) it is true it is much smaller then SC and SB we are used to but this will be only 2 of us in the cabin we usually travel with our daughter ,now she will begin college it will be just 2 people sharing a room :) but glad the aft view still have a tiny wrap around ,the best place to be on a lazy sea day or early morning is on the aft balcony watching the waves . we will have 15 days on panama canal full crossing from Sand Diego to FLL , so glad to have some info . thank you gain .

 

So glad I could have been of help to you.

 

We did the reverse of your cruise about 12 years ago and if we had realized what great views and serenity there was on the aft of the ship that is where we would have been. You should have fantastic views of the lock doors closing.

 

You will do find in the cabin. We have always had very large suites, but we realized on our last cruise that what we need is plenty of balcony space, as that is where we spend most of our time. As an aside we found the mattress to be the most comfortable one so far.

[Marigold252]

Sorry to be late replying to this thread. I see Trident one has posted the link to my photo of the 095 balcony, and yes, you are so right about the views of the locks from the balcony. I traveled all over the ship taking pictures from every vantage point. In the bow there were times the crowd was 4 deep...not so on our balcony! Here is a picture of the lock behind us drawn down. You can see our balcony railing in the foreground.

[honey-bunny]

Thanks for the photo ! Great view from veranda ! Did u hear much noise from the Retreat above ? How far was the staircase from your cabin to acess the retreat?

Edited October 27, 2015 by honey-bunny

[janmcn]

Here's the location of 232 on the Veendam which we were on for 35 days on the Voyage of the Vikings this year. LOVED it and would book it again in a heartbeat. No wind, it had 2 chairs and 2 lounges on it (we stacked them since we wanted to move around with tripods for photography) and did not have any bad motion (or soot) that we noticed.

 

https://quiltingjan.smugmug.com/Travel/2015/Voyage-of-the-Vikings/i-wsdBPw5/A

 

We also loved being able to just go outside our cabin, open the door adjacent and had another "window" to view things going on...as well as a "private" stair down to the Promenade Deck.

 

The room itself was the same as all the other balcony rooms...just the balcony was different.

Below is a photo of much of the balcony...I'm standing where the two chairs and table are to take this photo.

Edited October 27, 2015 by janmcn

[honey-bunny]

Wow the photos is worth 1.000 words now I feel more confident that we made the right choice for us by selecting aft corner cabin for our Panama canal 15 day cruise :)

[Marigold252]

As you can see, that balcony is the mirror image of 095. Honey-bunny asked about the door to the outside staircase. It is a few steps to the right after you exit your cabin. The door is very heavy and has a high threshold. This passageway is mostly used by crew. Immediately to the right is another door that leads to the staircase up to the retreat. Cross the retreat and you go into the Lido. Very handy! The only negative was having to pass smokers, some of whom camped out there the entire cruise. We heard very little chair scraping noise from above, but whenever the ship backed up we heard a very loud noise and vibration from below. That never lasted long. I may have mentioned before that sometimes exhaust soot dirtied the balcony railing, but our cabin stewards were great about cleaning it. I seriously doubt I will ever get an upgrade I liked as much as that corner aft balcony for our Panama Canal cruise. We had booked a Vista suite guarantee and when the assignment came I had to check our docs and the deck plan twice before I was sure! Have a fabulous cruise and don't forget the sunscreen! And be sure to indulge in the Panama Buns out on the bow!

[trident one]

Thanks for the photo ! Great view from veranda ! Did u hear much noise from the Retreat above ? How far was the staircase from your cabin to acess the retreat?

 

You have definitely chosen the right cabin. If 232 was available I would switch to it if you could, because I think you would have more shade.

 

You will enjoy 095. We never heard any noise from the retreat in the cabin and maybe only two or three times in fourteen days did we hear what sounded like chairs being moved above while we were on the balcony. We didn't feel any vibration from the thrusters inside, just a tad if out on the balcony when they were in use. Noise, movement and light is never a problem for us and once we are asleep a heard of elephants could stampede in the cabin and we would not be aware of it.

 

We never had any soot on the railing or chairs, maybe because I packed a handi-wipe in case there was a problem. I will tell you to bring your seat cushions in at night, we tucked ours behind the drapes, so they are not damp in the morning. You may not have a problem where you will be cruising, but we had fog roll in late most nights.

 

Will tell you plugging anything in the bathroom is just about impossible, unless the item has a very long cord and you are seven feet tall. The bathroom receptacle is in the light fixture above the mirror and if I recall correctly it will be on your left as you face the mirror. The only other 110 receptacle is at the desk.

 

Hopefully, you have late dinner or anytime dining. We made the mistake of booking early dinner thinking it would be 5:45. Unfortunately, early dinner on the Veendam is 5:15. Fortunately, we were able to get it changed to late 7:45.

As much as we like assigned seating, from now on I will do anytime and hope for the best.

 

When you exit your cabin turn to your right and the door facing you will give you access to small deck and stairs up to the retreat.

 

If you have Ishlah and Jar as cabin attendants, you will be in good hands.

[Marigold252]

The outlet at the desk has a 110 plug and a 220 plug. Behind the TV is another outlet, both 220, for the TV and the DVD player. Most electronics are dual voltage, so you just need two round prong European) adapters to be able to use them. We left the TV plugged in, but unplugged the DVD player. The hair dryer, which will be in a desk drawer or under the seat of the desk stool, has a European plug and is 220 voltage. I have a dual voltage curling iron and an adapter so I can use it in any plug. The base of the outlet is almost flush with the desk surface and the larger 110 slot

[Marigold252]

I hit the "enter" spot by accident...the larger 110 slot is on the left. My hair dryer has a gfi plug so couldn't be used. BTW the outlet in the bathroom is labeled for electric shaver only.

[honey-bunny]

Thank you marigold for the information especially good to know about such early dinner 5:15 it is way too early good thing u told me that now i will be able to request late sitting usually it is always 5:45-6 pm glad to hear that on that ship it is so early I will make sure to book 7:45 for dinner