Has the demographic on HAL changed in recent years?

[FloridaGram]

We sailed on HAL about 10 years ago. We went on the Zuiderdam and Westerdam when they were newish. At that time it seemed everyone was a lot older than us and we were in our 50's. Several times my husband had to pull scooters away from the wall because elderly people would get stuck.

 

We would be going in the Carribean and at off peak season. Does anyone know if there are more younger people sailing on HAL now? Like 50's or 60's vs 80's.

[jtl513]

Yes, it seems like every year there are more and more people younger than me. :D But seriously, I haven't noticed a big change one way or the other. I do think the longer the cruise is the more it skews older.

Edited August 19, 2016 by jtl513

[SageGuy]

We sailed on HAL about 10 years ago. We went on the Zuiderdam and Westerdam when they were newish. At that time it seemed everyone was a lot older than us and we were in our 50's. Several times my husband had to pull scooters away from the wall because elderly people would get stuck.

 

We would be going in the Carribean and at off peak season. Does anyone know if there are more younger people sailing on HAL now? Like 50's or 60's vs 80's.

We've cruised with HAL since 1985 when we were in our 30's. We did a Canada/New England with them and a cruise around Great Britain in the last 2 years. My experience is that it is really ship and cruise itinerary dependent. For example, generally the Prinsendam and some of the older ships have a more senior demographic. Our last two cruises on the Eurodam had a broad spectrum of ages from babes in arms, tweens, teens, millenials and of course seniors.

 

The scooters, wheel chairs, and canes will be found on most cruise lines and these days, that demographic is age agnostic .

 

Sent from my SM-T813 using Tapatalk

[Old As Dirt Mom]

We sailed on HAL about 10 years ago. We went on the Zuiderdam and Westerdam when they were newish. At that time it seemed everyone was a lot older than us and we were in our 50's. Several times my husband had to pull scooters away from the wall because elderly people would get stuck.

 

We would be going in the Carribean and at off peak season. Does anyone know if there are more younger people sailing on HAL now? Like 50's or 60's vs 80's.

 

Has the demographic changed? Yes, we have all gotten older:D I was a spry young thing of 45 when I started cruising with HAL, and now I find I am an old bat of 57:eek: How that happened to me can only be ascribed to "tempus fugit":D As jtl513 says above, "More and more people are getting younger than me" :)

[jhsocal]

During school vacation times you will see couples in their 30's and 40's with children. longer cruises and during school year, the demographic will lean toward 60 and older. Reading reviews on the new "K" ship, it would appear HAL is trying to appeal to a younger group.

[DFD1]

To the O.P......Be careful what you wish for. We just returned from a long weekend cruise, spur of the moment, on a Carnival ship.

 

It was like a visit to the nether-world.

 

NEVER AGAIN !!!! LOL !!!

[Homosassa]

Definitely older. On on the first HAL cruise for each of us, my husband was eight (now 69), I was 27 (now 65) and my daughter was two (now 33).

[Alberta Quilter]

Yes, it seems like every year there are more and more people younger than me. :D But seriously, I haven't noticed a big change one way or the other. I do think the longer the cruise is the more it skews older.

 

I agree completely. My last cruise was an 18 day cruise to Hawaii and I would have to say it had many older and mobility challenged pax than I have seen on my other cruises (and I to try to take minimum two week cruises). I started cruising the HAL at age 42 and am now 53.

 

Has the demographic changed? Yes, we have all gotten older:D I was a spry young thing of 45 when I started cruising with HAL, and now I find I am an old bat of 57:eek: How that happened to me can only be ascribed to "tempus fugit":D As jtl513 says above, "More and more people are getting younger than me" :)

 

Just want to say that 57 is NOT "old as dirt"!!:D Well, it might be to one's kids but not to me!!

Edited August 19, 2016 by Alberta Quilter

[sail7seas]

eaI am raelly curious howmany here care how old gheir fdellow cruisers are on any gienv den c cruise? Age is a num ber. Of all thed thing I observe abougt nw people I am meeting, age is no high onmy lisf Unless fthey are impedingb/impagtfting otrhers b ecaused of an infirmity,t, I don' c are their age. what does it mater seeing you won'tl have personal interaction withmost?

Edited August 19, 2016 by sail7seas

[Ken the cruiser]

My DW and I are in our early 60's and still feel like we're the kids on a HAL cruise, except when we were on a recent cruise on the Koningsdam. There were a lot of young European families on that 14 day cruise to Norway. But then again that was in July when school was out. We weren't tripping over them, but there were definitely more than the usual handful. I would think it would be the same way on an Alaska cruise in the summer. However, on a Panama Canal cruise on the Veendam this past January, you could count the number of children on one hand, which is more of the norm on the HAL cruises we've been on in recent years.

[Wendy-Europe]

Depends on the itinerary. On our Transatlantic guests were much older and very few under 60 -maybe 30, including the few kids onboard... which doesn't bother me, because we met fantastic people.

 

On our Baltic Sea cruise guests were slightly younger and also very nice and interesting.

[Ken the cruiser]

eaI am raelly curious howmany here care how old gheir fdellow cruisers are on any gienv den c cruise? Age is a num ber. Of all thed thing I observe abougt nw people I am meeting, age is no high onmy lisf Unless fthey are impedingb/impagtfting otrhers b ecaused of an infirmity,t, I don' c are their age. what does it mater seeing you won'tl have personal interaction withmost?

 

Not to be too straightforward, but we care. We enjoy going on HAL cruises because they seem to cater more to older adults rather than families with children. I know it seems harsh, but we are in our 60's and enjoy being the kids on the cruise. We enjoy shows that more target our age and older rather than focusing on keeping the children happy. We enjoy playing ping pong, tennis or other outdoor sports rather than walking by them because the children have consumed the courts. We enjoy going to game shows where they get a little more crazy rather than being subdued because children might be in the audience. If we wanted that, we would go on a Carnival, Norwegian, Princess, Disney or RCL cruise to name a few. In fact we saw some of that on our recent Koningsdam cruise and didn't really care for it all that much. In fact we're booked on another K'dam cruise next February, only because we booked it early last year and got such a great deal, and if they are still pushing to have young families with children cruise on their new ship, then that will probably be the last time we book a cruise on the K'dam. And that's fine, we like HAL's smaller ships rather than their new larger ships away.

[OlsSalt]

Rather than concentrating on how old your fellow passengers are; concentrate instead how young you are in comparison. This will be a splendid opportunity that will soon slip through your own fingers ...year by year by year. :cool:

[FredT]

To the OP's original question.... Our first cruise on HAL was about 12 years ago. We had also heard about the "masses" of scooters, walkers etc. On that cruise (2 week Antarctica) we saw a total of FIVE on board...) On our 4 cruises on HAL since then, the numbers have been similar.

 

So maybe your experience was an abnormality?

[just_cruising_along]

It really depends upon the time of year (school's out or not) and the length of the cruise. (retired folks don't have to get back to work.)

 

We were on the Panama cruise from Florida to Seattle last year.

 

When we first boarded, the demographic was heavily older (and we felt younger).

 

However, when about 800 people left the ship in San Diego, 800 mostly younger folks boarded. It was night and day.

 

These folks were either sailing 4 days to Seattle or going on to Alaska. It was funny to see the vibe kind of change, not better, not worse, just different.

 

So on our single cruise we experienced all age groups.

 

On a side note, a few years back, we had the pleasure of eating with one of the last WWII vets who was a spry 85 (at the time.)

 

He and his wife stayed up late every night dancing and enjoying the shows, casino and piano bar.

 

We had 40 years on them, and went to bed way earlier then they did :)

[dakrewser]

Demographics means a lot more than age. In fact, age is only a small part of that social science. We prefer to be on a ship full of experienced travelers (of any age) than a bunch of parochial "ugly Americans" (or Germans, or Russians, etc.). In other words, we don't want to travel with people "just like us" except in one regard - a passion for exploring the world.

[freestyling]

I believe HAL is trying to attract various people. I first sailed HAL as a child (8 years old) and still remember how "cool" it was. As young adults (30's) we started cruising again and fell in love with HAL. The stately ships, excellent crew and wonderful passengers keep us coming back. As a new retiree, DW and I are now enjoying longer cruises where the demographics do skew to an older traveler but varied in country residence. This makes for great interactions in my opinion.

Edited August 19, 2016 by freestyling

[freestyling]

Demographics means a lot more than age. In fact, age is only a small part of that social science. We prefer to be on a ship full of experienced travelers (of any age) than a bunch of parochial "ugly Americans" (or Germans, or Russians, etc.). In other words, we don't want to travel with people "just like us" except in one regard - a passion for exploring the world.

 

I couldn't agree more !!!!

[sail7seas]

O

Demographics means a lot more than age. In fact, age is only a small part of that social science. We prefer to be on a ship full of experienced travelers (of any age) than a bunch of parochial "ugly Americans" (or Germans, or Russians, etc.). In other words, we don't want to travel with people "just like us" except in one regard - a passion for exploring the world.

once again, Dave, Well said. :)

[navybankerteacher]

Not too many full-time employed can invest limited vacation time on cruises of much longer than two or three weeks -- of course the population will skew heavily to the over 60 demographic. Regardless, on cruises of comparable lengths, HAL, Celebrity, Princess, Cunard and, to just a slightly lesser extent, Carnival and NCL, attract fairly comparable demographics.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

Navybankerteacher said it perfect.

[dogo88]

On our last three HAL cruises we notices much less walkers and scooters.

 

Dan

[lcand1923]

Demographics means a lot more than age. In fact, age is only a small part of that social science. We prefer to be on a ship full of experienced travelers (of any age) than a bunch of parochial "ugly Americans" (or Germans, or Russians, etc.). In other words, we don't want to travel with people "just like us" except in one regard - a passion for exploring the world.

 

Hear! Hear! Thank you for saying it so well.

 

ps. I am in the process of moving to a Continuing Care Retirement Community. I asked someone, "What is the average age of your resident?'' She said, "Isn't it remarkable when the age of a group becomes important? We go through life without ever questioning age. We just see if the group is friendly, active, interesting, pleasant, etc. The only time we question age is when we are going on a trip, moving to a new community or attending a church service. I'll answer your question to the best of my ability, but don't let the answer influence you. Look at the people you see as you walk around and visit."

[Sequim88]

Regardless, on cruises of comparable lengths, HAL, Celebrity, Princess, Cunard and, to just a slightly lesser extent, Carnival and NCL, attract fairly comparable demographics.

 

Totally agree. Our RCCL 12 and 15 day TAs had a much older demographic than the 7 night S. Caribbean cruise. The youngest people were all Europeans with lots of holiday time. A couple employers ago I was up to 4 weeks of vacation per year (after 16 years) so could take the longer cruises but that much time off is sort of rare since people move around more during the working years. But 7 or so years from now when I retire at 68 (the plan anyway) it will all be vacation. :D :cool:

[sprockie]

I would say yes, the average age is getting younger. I believe HAL is actively pursuing the younger demographic because the shows on our cruise last winter had music no earlier than the 60's and 70's. Previously, we had become tired of the big band, show tune themes for the 70+ crowd. They have also changed their shows to include far less feather boas and big headpieces and include more modest backdrops and modern costumes.

I believe the Explore 4 promo is also a good idea for HAL to attract the younger demographic. My husband and I are in our late 40's/early 50's and we aren't big drinkers, but sure enjoy the beverage package on vacation - whereas I am not sure the older demographic would feel it was worthwhile.

I like the direction they are moving and it will reinforce that HAL is our cruiseline of choice for years to come.