Oosterdam compared to Veendam

[Kerry&LuAnn]

We have been on the Veendam. If we were to sail on the Oosterdam, what differences might we notice?

[The-Inside-Cabin]

We have been on the Veendam. If we were to sail on the Oosterdam, what differences might we notice?

 

The Oosterdam is a beautiful ship and while similar to the Veendam it has many different features:

 

• The Screening room: Nothing like this on the Veendam. This room is small, but gorgeous, and I feel compelled to take in one of the movies just to try it out. They have very comfy reclining theater chairs. Veendam uses the culinary center to show movies

• The Crow’s Nest: On the Veendam this is one large venue, but here it has been divided in two, with the Crow’s Nest on the port side and the Explorations Café/library on the starboard side. We liked this arrangement as it provides a better use for some of this prime real estate.

• The Culinary Arts Center, aka Queen’s Lounge: Very open and beautiful. In addition to the normal culinary presentations, the lounge is used for the Dancing with the Stars competition and is transformed into the BB King’s Blues Club in the evening.

 

Casino is bigger - they have a crap table

 

Showroom is bigger and they have more dancers in the productions

 

Go to HAL site and look at each floor plan.

 

I have sailed both....I liked the Oosterdam a lot.

[ellieanne]

I know mine is not a popular opinion, but it is my experience.

 

I find the public spaces, particularly the bars and lounges tight, confining and not well laid out on the Oosterdam.

 

The rooms seem to be long and narrow on the Oosterdam, while they are more open on the Veendam.

 

I actively avoid the Vista class ships because I find the layout of the public spaces to be quite poor.

 

The Oosterdam is longer than the Veendam. There is a center bank of elevators and you can walk forward to aft on every floor (which is not the case on the Veendam).

 

The cabins are much of a muchness on each ship, though I can only speak to categories FF (ocean view) and BA/VE (standard balcony).

[janmcn]

Cabin size is important to us...if you are in a "Verandah cabin" on the Veendam it is larger than the plain Verandah Cabin on the Oosterdam. On the Oosterdam the "sofa" will be only about the size of a small loveseat.

 

On the other hand, the larger ships like the O have a "middle class" of verandahs that are the Signature Suites...much larger than normal verandahs but not quite a large or full of perks as the Neptunes...

 

That's why we like the larger ships...if we can get a Signature Suite. Not sure about sizes of the Ocean Views....the insides on the larger ships have J cabins that are huge that I don't believe are found on the Veendam class ship.

 

Love the O as well as the V.

[janmcn]

Cabin size is important to us...if you are in a "Verandah cabin" on the Veendam it is larger than the plain Verandah Cabin on the Oosterdam. On the Oosterdam the "sofa" will be only about the size of a small loveseat.

 

On the other hand, the larger ships like the O have a "middle class" of verandahs that are the Signature Suites...much larger than normal verandahs but not quite a large or full of perks as the Neptunes...

 

That's why we like the larger ships...if we can get a Signature Suite. Not sure about sizes of the Ocean Views....the insides on the larger ships have J cabins that are huge that I don't believe are found on the Veendam class ship.

 

Love the O as well as the V.

[WeLoveCruising]

Besides the Ooosterdam being overall larger and newer, here are some differences I can think of, off the top of my head:

 

-Smaller staterooms on Oosterdam overall, especially some of the standard insides.

 

-An additonal class of stateroom on O, the Signature Suite, which is a large room, a step between a verandah and Neptune Suite

 

-Extra elevators in the middle of the ship on the O, glass with a view

 

-The spa is different, there is a thermal pool on O, which is an actual pool vs a hot tub on the Veendam

 

-O's Pinnacle Grill is larger, and situated in the atrium vs off to the side.

 

-O's Crow's Nest is much more of a multi-purpose room, combining the library and Explorations cafe up top. Entertainment is more a single singer, when they have one. Night time music and dancing is in other venues, unlike on the Veendam class of ship which tends to be most active in the Crow's Nest at night.

 

-Veendam has the "Mix" area which is a combination of different areas for wine, champagne, etc.

 

-Oosterdam has Queens Lounge, an extra venue for entertainment at night and activities during the day.

 

-No Lanai cabins on Oosterdam

 

-To the dismay of many, the Veendam had the aft pool replaced with an area called the "Retreat". It is more of a water concept relaxation area.

Edited November 3, 2015 by WeLoveCruising

[TraelorMex]

We have been on both. The 'O' is larger than the 'V'.

 

We did not care for the 'O'. Hard to put into words. We did enjoy the 'V'.

 

We did not like the decor of the 'O'. Seemed harsh...the 'V' had a more understated 'elegance'. if you will..more homey.

[InTheWASide]

OP, when are you thinking about traveling?

 

After April's drydock when O starts her Europe season she will have some of the newest amenities in the entire fleet. Some items added from Koningsdam (launches a week or so before O's drydock ends), the suite upgrades and many more things.

 

I love the Vista class and would pick O in a heartbeat, but that would be even more so the case if you are planning after this drydock

[DaveOKC]

I would pick the Oosterdam over the Veendam, for all of the reasons already discussed.

 

Did want to add a couple of things:

 

Veendam does not have a mid-ship elevator, which is handy on the other ships to avoid long walks to get from point A to B, especially if you cabin is near mid-ship.

 

Also, on Veendam the Promenade deck (inside) does not run all the way to the MDR in the aft of the ship. This can be a pain at times (but not a huge deal).

[cruz chic]

I'd pick the Oosterdam over the Veendam any day. The previous posters have done a great job of explaining the differences.

[SilvertoGold]

I'd pick the Oosterdam over the Veendam any day. The previous posters have done a great job of explaining the differences.

 

Agree.

 

I would add that HAL really does seem to be "upgrading" the Vista ships over the S and R class ones.

 

Over the past few years we have had consistently better food (quality, presentation) and better cabin quality and upkeep. The Vista ships seems to have more or more timely overall maintenance, too. Presumably HAL is allocating more resources (money) on the Vista ships

 

We used to be die-hard S and R class fans, but now will sail Vista exclusively if it works for us.

[cruz chic]

Agree.

 

I would add that HAL really does seem to be "upgrading" the Vista ships over the S and R class ones.

 

Over the past few years we have had consistently better food (quality, presentation) and better cabin quality and upkeep. The Vista ships seems to have more or more timely overall maintenance, too. Presumably HAL is allocating more resources (money) on the Vista ships

 

We used to be die-hard S and R class fans, but now will sail Vista exclusively if it works for us.

 

I really hope they will start allocating more resources to the newer ships. I was surprised at the many issues on the eurodam. That ship is too new to have so many issues. The Noordam seemed to be on better shape in April when I was on it.

Edited November 3, 2015 by cruz chic

[Steirisch]

OP, when are you thinking about traveling?

 

After April's drydock when O starts her Europe season she will have some of the newest amenities in the entire fleet. Some items added from Koningsdam (launches a week or so before O's drydock ends), the suite upgrades and many more things.

 

I love the Vista class and would pick O in a heartbeat, but that would be even more so the case if you are planning after this drydock

 

We are looking at the Transatlantic at the end of March, arriving in Civitavecchia on April 3. I suppose this is Before dry dock?

[FloridaTourist]

We are looking at the Transatlantic at the end of March, arriving in Civitavecchia on April 3. I suppose this is Before dry dock?

 

 

That's the last sail before dry dock. It sails again April 18th for the Adriatic.

[Airnocker]

I'll not be sailing the Veendam again.

The lack of a midship elevator creates crowds in the elevator bays during popular times such as dinner.

The veranda cabin we had on the Veendam was smaller than the same class of cabin we had just a couple of months earlier on the Volendam.

The balcony seating in the showroom is virtually unusable, creating crowds for the main deck showroom seating. For a mobility impaired person the layout of the main deck showroom is awful. Chairs added to accommodate the crowding make access very difficult. This coupled with the lack of a midship elevator made attending a show nearly a three hour event.