Do you pick Holland America because of smaller ship sizes?

[OCruisers]

When we book a HAL cruise, it is for the itinerary. The size of the ship is not important to us.

[Shih-tzu]

Partly size, partly because they don't seem as "loud" (guess that would be best description?) As the bigger ones. At my age, rock walls and zip lines and some of the things the mega ships have aren't something I need... when it's relaxation I want, HAL is 1st choice. I had a friend who was on a mega ship and she said it wasn't a great experience with the extra charges and having to preplan things down to small details before she left home due to reservations that had to be pre-made, etc. I have never had bad service on the few cruises I've been on, but HAL seemed better. Hope upcoming HAL cruise is up to same standard!!

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

Itinerary is always the #1 factor for me in choosing a cruise. Although I do prefer the smaller ships of HAL I do not hesitate to branch out to other lines when I like the itinerary and the timing. However, 3000 passengers is my maximum size. I have no desire to go on one of RCCL's or NCL's mega ships.

[sworksjr]

DW and I cruised on the Oasis of the Seas recently, and as a result we will not book on a mega ship again. The service, while adequate was not personal. How could it be with 5000 passengers. I like that on the HAL ships the staff greet me with my name and quickly learn my preferences.

I don't need water parks, ice skating rinks, etc. I can do them better at home. We pick our cruises based on the itinerary and in general the smaller ships seem to have more interesting destinations. Our next cruise will be on the Prinsendam, and we are looking forward to it.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

No we pick them because they have the best crew.

[navybankerteacher]

Just booked RC Grandeur sailing from Baltimore in January. Still miss those wonderful Noordam winter sailings from New York - which market is now dominated by RC's Hippopotamus of the Ocean from Bayonne and NCL's clown ships from Manhattan. Baltimore is now the only acceptable non-flying option for a New Englander seeking respite from winter.

[dockman]

I spend enough time in the mega malls without trying to cruise on one of them.

 

Bigger is not always better in fact it is frequently worse in the things I find attractive about a cruise ship.

[albingirl]

We usually stick with HAL, particularly for the smaller ships and great itineraries, but this past year we sailed with NCL. Friends of ours wanted to go, and we did. Huge ship, the Epic, and although there was never a problem with lines or getting off the ship, we found it rather impersonal. Staff was fine, restaurants were great, but we just found we prefer Holland America overall.

[ArtsyCraftsy]

Size was definitely one of the factors that let me to HAL in the first place (just took my first ever cruise last month on the Amsterdam to Alaska). I just can't see myself enjoying being crammed in with 4000-6000 other folks on a floating hotel/megamall/etc. The Amsterdam was perfect for a first cruise. Impeccable service, great food, and just "easy" to get around.

 

The other major factor for me was itinerary -- HAL just has great itineraries. I'm now booked on two more HAL cruises (one in 2018 on the Rotterdam, similar to the Amsterdam in size; and another in 2019 on the Eurodam -- larger, but not *too* large).

[jmspls72]

We’ve almost exclusively sailed on HAL because of itinerary and ship size, but we’re going to sail on RC’s Harmony of the Seas to get a different perspective. I’ll report back in a month.

 

 

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I did harmony of the seas last year in Europe It was not for me way too many people. The public areas were very crowded

 

Even worse the elevators were crowed and take forever since so many people using them

 

I would say that most times we waited at least 5 Minutes and more unless it was early in the morning or late night

 

I use a scooter so take my advice with a grain of salt I will say that the elevators were crowded regardless if u use a scooter

 

While staff were great The food was average to fair tasting the specialty restaurant had better food

 

I don’t know if food quality was ship specific or because of the declining quality of cruise industry

 

It has turned me off on mega ships I’m glad HAL ship are smaller I look forward to cruise HAL soon

 

That’s my observations I hope it helps

 

 

 

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[cruisemom42]

Size is important to me because itinerary is important to me. The smaller ships go to better/more unusual places.

 

After our experience on Royal Princess, I don't think I'll ever return to a ship of that size.

 

It's not so much the "crowd management" (although it was rather poor on that holiday cruise) but I like seeing the same people frequently enough to strike up conversations.

 

I also like that you don't face tendering issues on small ships, or line-ups getting off at port or getting back on. To be fair, when I say "small" I really mean it -- my preferred ship is about 350 pax. Prinsendam is, for me, starting to push the limit of how big I want to go....

[Dancing Shoes]

I am a new to HAL. Picked the Volendam for an upcoming cruise to Alaska because of size and the itinerary.

[Hlitner]

We are 5 Star Mariners, so obviously enjoy cruising on HAL. But no way do we choose HAL for their ships, many of which seem to be in need of maintenance. We enjoy all ship sizes and have cruises on boats and ships from 20 passenger to over 3000. But our primary reason for cruising on HAL is the itinerary. If HAL offers an itinerary for which we have an interest, we book. If other cruise lines offer the same itinerary we would have to weigh the cost and quality. Accordingly, we have cruised on 14 different cruise lines :). We currently have 4 long cruises under booking...or which only 1 is with HAL. The other 3 are with MSC, Princess and Celebrity.

 

Hank

[iancal]

We are interested in smaller ships. But certainly not any of HAL's older, smaller ships. Most especially the ones that are on the selling block..

 

We are not willing to pay top dollar for a cruise on small ship unless we are certain that it is well maintained and that our cabin will function as expected. Lots of other product out there so we are simply not willing to put our money on HAL. We are hearing the same sorts of comments from the occasional TA that we speak with.

 

No issues with HAL's newer ships though.

[innlady1]

I choose our cruises based on itinerary. We like S class, Vista, and Signature - pros on all of them...no cons that I can think of.

 

 

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[ChaCr]

Definitely the size and level of service.

 

Charles

[Jolokia]

We pick our cruises based on the itinerary, then check to see if HAL is doing the itinerary. Yes, we like the smaller ships, the service provided, less crowed on board, and ease of getting on & off. We tend to select ships that are 90k tons and smaller, the HAL ships fit that requirement just fine. In addition, HAL has a daily Catholic mass, which is important to us as well.

[Aurora95]

I like the smaller ships, the unique itinerary, and the friendly staff.

 

 

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[mcrcruiser]

We booked the Feb 25,2018 Mexican Riviera 7 night cruise on Oosterdam & have sailed her & other HAL ships previously including a 31 night San Diego to Sydney Australia cruise on Nordam in October 2015 . HAL has nice ships & good crews ;but ,we did have a problem in the dining room on that 21 day cruise with service which started in the kitchen .

 

Not all cruise lines are perfect & we have sailed many of them .We just finished the August 31,2017 New England /Canada cruise on Royal Carribeans Anthem of the Seas .she was built in 2015 & being a new ship has great amenities that the much smaller & older ships do not have . she is 169000 gross tons & normal carry is 4400 passengers .In some areas we felt the crowds ;but generally all things were efficient & moving .

 

We love to experience new things & next December 2nd & 9th we are going for the first time on RCCL's Oasis of the Seas which is over 220000 gross tons with 7 neighborhoods .

 

I feel that variety is the spice in life & we are only on any ship for most weeks our of a year

 

Our sole purpose of cruising is the love of the oceans & love of cruising :D:D:D

[ellieanne]

The small ships are definitely part of the reason we cruise with HAL. But the quiet ships and the service are the real reason we pick them. I do not want a lot of noise on the ship or non-stop activities. The quiet decor and calm atmosphere are perfect for me. The service is another factor -- there is enough to keep my drink filled but not so much that I feel I have to hibernate in my cabin to avoid people all the time.

[zitsky]

The small ships are definitely part of the reason we cruise with HAL. But the quiet ships and the service are the real reason we pick them. I do not want a lot of noise on the ship or non-stop activities. The quiet decor and calm atmosphere are perfect for me. The service is another factor -- there is enough to keep my drink filled but not so much that I feel I have to hibernate in my cabin to avoid people all the time.

 

Interesting. I sometimes feel the same way. Wondering how it will be going from a ship of 200 to 1400.

[RRFan]

The passenger demographic on HAL is very different than most cruise lines. Generally, there are fewer children (especially during school months). As Elite on Princess, we have sailed on HAL 10 weeks this year and will do a 14-day on Crown Princess in a couple of weeks. We miss our free wifi on PCL, but food, service, lack of crowds, etc make up for it. Also unique itineraries are a definite plus for HAL too. Will get a good comparison with this Crown cruise!

 

 

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[Sue from Canada]

We have sailed with many different cruise lines for over 33 years, and we prefer to sail HAL. I like the smaller ships, the cabins, and the service and friendliness of the crew.

 

My thoughts exactly. My favourite ship is the Prinsendam followed by the S & R ships.

[genegri]

In short, yes.

 

I am partial to R ships and S ships. Well designed layouts with a strong connection to the sea, and just the right size to be able to access interesting ports, thus nice itineraries.

[Rickster50]

We have only cruised on HAL ships previously the Oosterdam and the Maasdam. We are booked on another HAL ship in 2018 namely the Koningsdam primarily because of where the cruise line takes us. We are not worried about the number of people on that larger ship. Compared to others it's not that big.

 

Cheers

Paul