Princess vs HAL

[usafvet88]

Planning a trip spring 2016 leaving from Ft Lauderdale on one of the many cruises to Caribbean and I'm trying to decide which line is the most preferable from past cruisers reviews. So far there hasn't been a straight answer on this sites review section. Too much nit picking about small things seem to overwhelm those reviews., So I am reaching out to the forum to try to get a more definitive answer. I know everyone has their preferences about food, entertainment, cabins etc. Just trying to make a good decision with as much info as possible because the choices of cruises available are making my head spin. :confused:

[Shmoo here]

Planning a trip spring 2016 leaving from Ft Lauderdale on one of the many cruises to Caribbean and I'm trying to decide which line is the most preferable from past cruisers reviews. So far there hasn't been a straight answer on this sites review section. Too much nit picking about small things seem to overwhelm those reviews., So I am reaching out to the forum to try to get a more definitive answer. I know everyone has their preferences about food, entertainment, cabins etc. Just trying to make a good decision with as much info as possible because the choices of cruises available are making my head spin. :confused:

 

Sadly, none of us here can really direct you. What do you want in a ship? HAL decor is more sedate, dark and activities onboard will be less "active". Princess tends to have a "younger" demographic.

 

We've been on both HAL & Princess. I was less impressed with the Princess room. But, we enjoyed both lines. Generally, IMO, the mass market cruise lines are more alike than not.

[cb at sea]

You haven't gotten a straight answer, because there is none! All of the major cruise lines are in business because they are all "fun" and successful! Different people like different things.

 

 

How old are you?

Are you go, go, go, or sit and read and nap?

Early morning, or late night?

Fancy or laid-back?

 

The Caribbean will be the same no matter which ship gets you there!

Edited August 19, 2015 by cb at sea

[Mary Ellen]

Princess tends to have a "younger" demographic.

 

The facts don't back up this opinion. We sail on both cruise lines and haven't noticed any appreciable age difference ourselves.

For the past 8 consecutive years, the average age of a Princess passenger, fleetwide, year round has been 58.

 

For the past 8 consecutive years, the average age of a HAL passenger, fleetwide, year round has been 57.

Somethings we like better on HAL. Somethings we like better on Princess. I'd have to know more about what type of cabin the OP would like to give an opinion on those. I'd also want to know more about what they want to do in general.

[OCruisers]

Planning a trip spring 2016 leaving from Ft Lauderdale on one of the many cruises to Caribbean and I'm trying to decide which line is the most preferable from past cruisers reviews. So far there hasn't been a straight answer on this sites review section. Too much nit picking about small things seem to overwhelm those reviews., So I am reaching out to the forum to try to get a more definitive answer. I know everyone has their preferences about food, entertainment, cabins etc. Just trying to make a good decision with as much info as possible because the choices of cruises available are making my head spin. :confused:

 

But food, entertainment, cabin, service, etc. is normally why people like one cruise line over the other. :)

 

LuLu

[Floridiana]

Pick the itinerary you like better.

 

HAL has a lot of long cruises which attract retired passengers, hence its reputation of an older client base. I did not see any age difference between the 2 lines on my 2 week cruises, but I saw a lot of young passengers coming from a Princess ship that did a 7 day cruise in the Caribbean.

 

The cabin and the beds were better on the HAL ships. They had fresh flowers. I liked the painting class on our Princess cruise. The food had a slight edge on the Princess ship because they had a genuine pizza oven which gave variety for lunch. Both buffets were not to my taste at all. The service was equal. This assessment is based on 2 months each on the 2 cruise lines.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Sure there is a difference in those cruise lines.

But we need to know what you are really interested in. The ship? The itinerary? What do you plan to do at the ports? What kind of activities do you expect on the ship?

So many questions you need to answer for us to help you.

[antmaril]

I have cruised on both Princess and HAL. Had fun both times. HAL cabin was much nicer and larger than the Princess cabin. I found food to be about equal. Entertainment on Princess was better. Princess had a younger demographic. It just depends on what you are looking for.

[SuiteTraveler]

usafvet88, I looked at your public profile and thought you might get a bang out of this theme cruise:

http://www.texasrenfestcruise.com

 

The Breeze is Carnival's newest ship. It is lovely. Carnival corporation owns Princess btw., so the overall experience is similar, but with your hobbies, I would think that this type of theme cruise would be right up your alley!

[Putterdude]

I am not sure that that there is a bad cruise line, there is a cruise line for everyone. People who love Princess sail Princess and those who love HAL cruise HAL. We had the worst cruise experience we have ever had on the Oosterdam and have avoided HAL since. However, there is no way that HAL could deliver such a poor product consistently and stay in business, we are just not hurrying back. I would be more inclined to look at itinerary, access what you want out of the cruise and make your decision accordingly.

[SteveH2508]

What are your major issues?

 

If you hate smoking then HAL is probably not for you (they allow smoking on balconies) - if you book inside cabins then it is not an issue.

 

Otherwise, there is some excellent advice posted on this thread.

 

It all depends on what floats (or sinks) your boat.

[Hlitner]

Planning a trip spring 2016 leaving from Ft Lauderdale on one of the many cruises to Caribbean and I'm trying to decide which line is the most preferable from past cruisers reviews. So far there hasn't been a straight answer on this sites review section. Too much nit picking about small things seem to overwhelm those reviews., So I am reaching out to the forum to try to get a more definitive answer. I know everyone has their preferences about food, entertainment, cabins etc. Just trying to make a good decision with as much info as possible because the choices of cruises available are making my head spin. :confused:

 

I will be honest. Each of those lines has their pros and cons..and they do vary by specific ship. I would suggest you carefully look at the itineraries and the actual time in each port (every hour is important if you go ashore). As to your questions on food, entertainment, cabins, etc. although we would give the slight edge to Princess, there is not enough to make that a decision maker

 

Hank

[usafvet88]

Thanks for the input ya'll. Just going to have to make a decision with my gut on this. A big thank you to SuiteTraveler for the heads up on the Pirate cruise. Looks like it would be a lot of fun and something to mull over since it falls into my vacation window. Have to see how it fits into our schedule. :)

[Keith1010]

In the end, you'll never know.

 

This is what I do as part of my research.

 

I study the ship using the ships web sites and brochures and I study the lines the same way.

 

I read member reviews but use the 80/20 rule. If most people like something or don't I accept that as fact until I experience it myself.

 

I get a book which you can get from Amazon that is updated annually and is written by Douglas Ward and Published by Berlitz on Ocean Cruising and has excellent write ups on each ship.

 

Again, as much research as you do in the end the only opinion that mattes is your own and you won't have an opinion until you try it out yourself.

 

Keith

[GUT2407]

Not sure anyone can answer this one for you, but you, by trying both.

[Aquahound]

Planning a trip spring 2016 leaving from Ft Lauderdale on one of the many cruises to Caribbean and I'm trying to decide which line is the most preferable from past cruisers reviews. So far there hasn't been a straight answer on this sites review section. Too much nit picking about small things seem to overwhelm those reviews., So I am reaching out to the forum to try to get a more definitive answer. I know everyone has their preferences about food, entertainment, cabins etc. Just trying to make a good decision with as much info as possible because the choices of cruises available are making my head spin. :confused:

 

Been on both. Here's my take:

 

Staterooms - HAL is a clear winner. Standard Princess rooms are very cramped, don't have a couch, and have smaller balconies. Also, Princess decor is very 80s.

 

Entertainment - Princess is the clear winner here. Entertainmnet on Princess ships is very similar to what you would see on lines like NCL or RCI. HAL is much more sleepy and the ship seems to shut down much earlier.

 

Balconies - Draw. I say this because HAL has larger and much nicer balconies, but HAL still allows people to smoke on balconies.

 

Ship - I like Princess ships better, but they also feel much more crowded than HAL ships. If you don't like crowds, I would lean toward HAL.

 

Free Food - Exactly the same.

 

Specialty Restaurants - Again, exactly the same. However, if the HAL ship is Eurodam or Nieuw Amsterdam, my nod would go to HAL because of Tamarind.

[SuiteTraveler]

You can also find other theme cruises here:

http://themecruisefinder.com

[Hlitner]

Ahhh, but if talking about cabins one needs to look at options. For example, Princess has many "mini suites" on their Grand Class ships (we love those vessels) that are often less costly then a standard balcony cabin on many HAL ships. Not only are the mini-suites large (258 sq feet plus the balcony) but they also come with a balcony. Personally, we do not usually book a mini since DW and I are content in a regular balcony cabin (on Princess). But we have been upgraded to mini's and the size is great for those that care.

 

Hank

[usafvet88]

Wow, you guys are great, what a community we have here. Thanks for all the advice, its alot to take in. Basically we are looking for the all inclusive theme vacation similar to when we had our timeshare. So thats why we figured cruising is the best bang for the buck, but still with so many choices it gets frustrating trying to make the "right" decision investing $$. So looks like I have a little homework to do for 2016. Hopefully NCL Breakaway this Sept will be a good choice that we made. Thanks again guys. :)