Would HAL swap the Zaandam for a larger ship for the world cruise???

[oofroggie]

I have done a world cruise on the Queen Victoria with it's  many segments. There were only about 400 full world cruisers and segments as low as 2 days. Also guests were allowed to disembark any time including not official segments. Long story short it was like a hop on hop off bus with people coming and going all the time and some only staying overnight. Never again that is not my idea of a world cruise. Btw I have done 6 world cruises on HAL. Getting off the ship in tender ports was a long wait and some people got off with only a couple of hours before they had to return.

[Tampa Girl]

20 hours ago, KirkNC said:

Yea I could find the info, Amsterdam 1,390 passengers and Zaandam 1,432 passengers.  Us landlubbers talk in passengers not tonnage 😉

 

42 passengers does not make a "larger ship."  Having been on both ships, I think the additional passengers on the Zaandam may come from the fact that the Neptune Lounge's deck (can't remember if it was Deck 7 or not) has turned one half of it into Veranda cabins, which are about half the size of the Neptunes and therefore account for more passengers.  The Amsterdam's Neptune Suite deck had all Neptune Suites except for the 2 (?) Pinnacle Suites and the interior cabins.

[Tampa Girl]

20 hours ago, Copper10-8 said:

 

 

No need to correct 😉 Amsterdam had 36 Neptune suites while Zaandam has 28

 

 How many Neptunes does the Volendam have?

[KirkNC]

34 minutes ago, Tampa Girl said:

 

42 passengers does not make a "larger ship."  Having been on both ships, I think the additional passengers on the Zaandam may come from the fact that the Neptune Lounge's deck (can't remember if it was Deck 7 or not) has turned one half of it into Veranda cabins, which are about half the size of the Neptunes and therefore account for more passengers.  The Amsterdam's Neptune Suite deck had all Neptune Suites except for the 2 (?) Pinnacle Suites and the interior cabins.

Ok, my point has gotten way off track as so many have focused on one sentence in a paragraph.  Now we have discussions on tonnage versus passenger count versus room type versus who knows what.  Let me try to put it to bed.  My point was that the Zaandam has slightly more passengers then the Amsterdam.  I don’t care what rooms they are in, they are potentially somewhere on board.  In the past, the full segments of the world cruise did not sell out.  2020 was the closest they ever gotten.  This was on a ship that held less passengers then the current ship.  This makes it highly unlikely that HAL would go to an even bigger ship (based on # of passengers) for the WC.  That’s all folks.

[kazu]

41 minutes ago, Tampa Girl said:

 How many Neptunes does the Volendam have?

 

Same as the Zaandam.  It’s a sister ship to the Zaandam with the same deck layout.

[Indianadaytripper]

Capacity is I believe means full to capacity. If that is the case none of the world cruises I’ve been on is close to capacity. Think of all the singles and cabins meant for up to four. The rooms left for entertainers and special speakers. Passengers  leaving for all types of reasons. 100 less than full capacity would be easy for me to believe is normal, but I could be wrong.

[rkacruiser]

19 hours ago, cletamoreau said:

I heard (from other passengers when we were bobbing in the pool) that HAL was THRILLED that over 400 passengers were first time World Cruisers on WC2020. They were also pretty happy that the expensive, Over Land/Over Night, excursions sold out very quickly, probably due to new passengers.

 

Thanks for your observation.  The future of HAL's world cruises does not belong to the patronage of those of us "who have been there and done that".  

 

Not a pleasant thought, in a way, for me, as a 5 Star Mariner with 61 HAL cruises under my keel.  But, it's reality.  

[kochleffel]

6 hours ago, Indianadaytripper said:

Capacity is I believe means full to capacity. If that is the case none of the world cruises I’ve been on is close to capacity. Think of all the singles and cabins meant for up to four. The rooms left for entertainers and special speakers. Passengers  leaving for all types of reasons. 100 less than full capacity would be easy for me to believe is normal, but I could be wrong.

 It seems to me that capacity is limited by the lifeboat capacity: lifeboat seats - crew count = maximum allowed number of passengers. If a ship has many cabins that could sleep 4, it's likely that not all of those berths can be used in the same sailing.

[AtlantaCruiser72]

For Clarification:

 

Amsterdam had: 2 Pinnacle Suites and 50 Neptune Suites on Deck 7 (Navigation) and 120 Vista Suites on Deck 6 (Verandah) - total 172 Suites

 

Volendam and Zaandam each have : 1 Pinnacle Suite, 28 Neptune Suites and 48 Vista Suites on Deck 7 (Navigation) and 120 Vista Suites on Deck 6 (Verandah) - 197 in total.

 

Amsterdam had 690 TOTAL Cabins and Suites onboard, Volendam have 716 TOTAL Cabins and Suites onboard.  This is a net increase of 26 Cabins/Suites or 52 guests more at double occupancy on Volendam/Zaandam,  due to the reduction in Pinnacle/Neptune Suites and increase of Vista suites (25 Suites more in total) and the addition of 1 interior room on Deck 7 next to the Neptune lounge (that Amsterdam did not have). 

 

Other than that the three ships were essentially Triplets (in layout/size with differing decor schemes) as originally built, though there have been some changes to each vessel over the years as venues were rearranged/resized and repurposed.  Amsterdam also had Azipod Propulsion while I believe Zaandam/Volendam have standard Propeller and Rudder Propulsion.

[AtlantaCruiser72]

1 hour ago, rkacruiser said:

 

Thanks for your observation.  The future of HAL's world cruises does not belong to the patronage of those of us "who have been there and done that".  

 

Not a pleasant thought, in a way, for me, as a 5 Star Mariner with 61 HAL cruises under my keel.  But, it's reality.  

 

I feel that HAL's World Cruise & Grand Voyage itineraries usually are superior to others in their category (Princess/Cunard/P&O UK) and sometimes even better than those of more Ultra Premium/Luxury Lines.  They do try and mix it up year over year with a blend of "tried and true"/"marquee" ports and more boutique ports.  Hopefully once they move to a larger vessel, which is almost inevitable, they will be able to retain most of this delicate balance. 

 

I'd love to see Carnival Corp build a fleet 8 of 50-60K tonne, 12-1300 passenger ships off the same base hull/engineering design and customize 2 each for HAL, Princess, Cunard and P&O UK to cater to the Mainstream/Premium market who are looking for longer more exotic voyages that larger vessels cannot reach.  Doubtful it will ever happen, but one can wish!

[mame42]

On 5/15/2021 at 9:24 AM, FRANKIEDNYC said:

My guess is no.  The world cruise is not that big of a moneymaker for them, as us old timers don't spend that much on board. Also we tend to gravitate towards private tours.  By 10pm the ship is deserted.  They do much better with the younger crowds on the shorter cruise s who party half the night and take lots of ship rxcursions

I confess to early rising and early to bed, keeping farmer's hours, or military for that matter, has been a life long habit.  However, as a solo cruiser of a certain age, I take many HAL excursions, and I would put my bar and specialty dining bill up against any couple!

[chisoxfan]

I plan to retire mid 2022 and a world cruise was certainly on our radar. I have to confess that as I looked seriously at these (2022/2023) I found some things less appealing. One specific to this post is the relatively smaller sizes of ships. On the surface I like the 'old school' feel of smaller ships but when I think of spending 70-120 nights on board I am concerned about the limited venues (dining, entertainment) compared to mid size and large ships. I was also struck by the unavoidable longer days at sea- this ties into my concerns about less to do on smaller vessels. I get it..... sitting all day on a beach or reading a book on my balcony is all good but not sure I will be able to do this for months on end.

 

In the end we booked a 28 day HAL summer of 2022 on Nieuw Statendam and I trust this will serve as a primer on how we can survive on board for a month on a newer and larger ship. As much as we love cruising my gut tells me we will be ready to get off in 28 days but we are excited at the prospect of a longer cruise and secretly hope it will push us towards some more extended itineraries.

[KirkNC]

1 hour ago, chisoxfan said:

I plan to retire mid 2022 and a world cruise was certainly on our radar. I have to confess that as I looked seriously at these (2022/2023) I found some things less appealing. One specific to this post is the relatively smaller sizes of ships. On the surface I like the 'old school' feel of smaller ships but when I think of spending 70-120 nights on board I am concerned about the limited venues (dining, entertainment) compared to mid size and large ships. I was also struck by the unavoidable longer days at sea- this ties into my concerns about less to do on smaller vessels. I get it..... sitting all day on a beach or reading a book on my balcony is all good but not sure I will be able to do this for months on end.

 

In the end we booked a 28 day HAL summer of 2022 on Nieuw Statendam and I trust this will serve as a primer on how we can survive on board for a month on a newer and larger ship. As much as we love cruising my gut tells me we will be ready to get off in 28 days but we are excited at the prospect of a longer cruise and secretly hope it will push us towards some more extended itineraries.

What we have found on world cruises is you get into a routine for sea days.  There are activities, speakers, special theme nights etc to keep you busy.  Some participate in things like Project Linus (make blankets for terminally ill children), mahjong, bridge, dance classes, exercise classes etc.  We actually find it almost too busy.  You will have stretch’s of sea days, after all that’s how the ship gets around the world 😎.  Usually the longest stretch is six or seven days but if you miss a stop for weather (like Easter Island), it can be even longer.  

[iancal]

The most we have done is 21 days and we were very happy to get off the ship.  Wonderful cruise but we got very tired of the food.  It all started to taste the same after two weeks.   We also got tired of our balcony cabin. 

 

We one TA that was very good.  We did not however like having five or six sea days.  Three days is our absolute max.   Our friends wanted us to join them on a world cruise.  Much as we like to travel it was not for us.

[T8NCruise]

Longest I have done is 30 days and I loved it.  But must admit I was ready to go home and eat simple foods by the time we disembarked.

[kazu]

Longest we have done is 33 days with stays pre and post cruise.

We were NOT anxious to get off the ship and could have stayed on for another segment or two, easily 😉.  Alas, we have dogs that can’t be left too long even though they do love their vacation home.

 

Sea days were lots of fun with a great roll call and great companions 🙂 

[Copper10-8]

Sea days are great! Can't beat them! Having said that, to each their own! Your mileage might vary 😉 

[KirkNC]

I will say on the WC they do a good job of changing up the food in the MDR.  They have multiple theme nights as well.  They are very conscious that many are on for the long haul.  This is different from a regular cruise which is usually a few week rotating menu.  Also both Lido and Pinnacle have themed nights as well.  I can honestly say we have never been bored by the food.

 

one item some have mentioned and is completely valid is the “I am just tired of being on a ship mode”.  If that is a concern, you may experience that on a WC.

[weeislayman]

6 hours ago, chisoxfan said:

I plan to retire mid 2022 and a world cruise was certainly on our radar. I have to confess that as I looked seriously at these (2022/2023) I found some things less appealing. One specific to this post is the relatively smaller sizes of ships. On the surface I like the 'old school' feel of smaller ships but when I think of spending 70-120 nights on board I am concerned about the limited venues (dining, entertainment) compared to mid size and large ships. I was also struck by the unavoidable longer days at sea- this ties into my concerns about less to do on smaller vessels. I get it..... sitting all day on a beach or reading a book on my balcony is all good but not sure I will be able to do this for months on end.

 

In the end we booked a 28 day HAL summer of 2022 on Nieuw Statendam and I trust this will serve as a primer on how we can survive on board for a month on a newer and larger ship. As much as we love cruising my gut tells me we will be ready to get off in 28 days but we are excited at the prospect of a longer cruise and secretly hope it will push us towards some more extended itineraries.

We retired in 2015.  We had cruised a bit during our working life, the longest had been a 14 day Panama Canal cruise.

In 2015 we did a transatlantic, which we enjoyed.  The next year it was a transpacific.  Then a big chunk of a Grand South America.  Buenos Aires, round the Horn, and up to the Panama canal to FL.  Each one of these cruises being longer than the previous one.  Then we did a big segment of the 2019 WC.  Sydney to Amsterdam.  Loved it.  I was happy with each of these cruises, but not planning on doing anything longer.  But here we are...booked on the 2023 WC.  The whole thing.  I'm sure that it will be a one-off.  But who knows...

Point is, when we retire we have so much more time than we have ever had.  Just take the cruies step by step.  You'll find your own limit.  Just enjoy the ride.....:)

 

[chisoxfan]

It was interesting to read the comments about extended cruising and appreciate the thoughtful comments.  We do love sea days but these have been on Caribbean routes where we have been to most ports and like to hang out at the pool. I am thinking that sea days across Atlantic will not be so pool friendly but who can tell. 

I know many departure mornings after a week long cruise we looked at each other and said wistfully that it would  be nice to stay on board another week. We intended to satisfy this wish on a Jan 21 back to back on Nieuw Statendam that was cancelled.

 

It will be fun to do the 28 day and I am secretly hoping it will drive an interest in longer cruises for us.

Happy sailing

 

 

[KirkNC]

1 hour ago, chisoxfan said:

It was interesting to read the comments about extended cruising and appreciate the thoughtful comments.  We do love sea days but these have been on Caribbean routes where we have been to most ports and like to hang out at the pool. I am thinking that sea days across Atlantic will not be so pool friendly but who can tell. 

I know many departure mornings after a week long cruise we looked at each other and said wistfully that it would  be nice to stay on board another week. We intended to satisfy this wish on a Jan 21 back to back on Nieuw Statendam that was cancelled.

 

It will be fun to do the 28 day and I am secretly hoping it will drive an interest in longer cruises for us.

Happy sailing

 

 

How inviting sea days are for pool activities is dependent on where you are in the world and the time of year you are there.  Also remember many (all?) ships can close the roof.   I will say you can enjoy some non conventional pool activities as well.  I remember fondly floating in one of the aft hot tubes on the Prinsendam while she was anchored in a small town in Iceland (can’t remember which port).  The scenery was terrific and the tub inviting as it was fairly cold out.

[mame42]

22 hours ago, KirkNC said:

I will say on the WC they do a good job of changing up the food in the MDR.  They have multiple theme nights as well.  They are very conscious that many are on for the long haul.  This is different from a regular cruise which is usually a few week rotating menu.  Also both Lido and Pinnacle have themed nights as well.  I can honestly say we have never been bored by the food.

 

one item some have mentioned and is completely valid is the “I am just tired of being on a ship mode”.  If that is a concern, you may experience that on a WC.

Along with the ever changing menus, the big surprises for me on the 2020 GWV were the many transformations of the MDR and Pinnacle into almost completely different venues with decor, lighting, staff uniforms, and tabletop accessories.  Of particular note was the eerie effect of centerpieces and lighting in the MDR for the Easter Island dinner.

[KirkNC]

1 minute ago, mame42 said:

Along with the ever changing menus, the big surprises for me on the 2020 GWV were the many transformations of the MDR and Pinnacle into almost completely different venues with decor, lighting, staff uniforms, and tabletop accessories.  Of particular note was the eerie effect of centerpieces and lighting in the MDR for the Easter Island dinner.

They really do a good job.  Also I forgot to mention the Sunday brunch in the MDR.

[Horizon chaser 1957]

On 5/17/2021 at 8:01 AM, chisoxfan said:

I plan to retire mid 2022 and a world cruise was certainly on our radar. I have to confess that as I looked seriously at these (2022/2023) I found some things less appealing. One specific to this post is the relatively smaller sizes of ships. On the surface I like the 'old school' feel of smaller ships but when I think of spending 70-120 nights on board I am concerned about the limited venues (dining, entertainment) compared to mid size and large ships. I was also struck by the unavoidable longer days at sea- this ties into my concerns about less to do on smaller vessels. I get it..... sitting all day on a beach or reading a book on my balcony is all good but not sure I will be able to do this for months on end.

 

I was a little concerned about the same on the 2020 World Cruise. It was never an issue. It is basically a community with ongoing groups and activities. You find your own groups and routines fairly quickly. The real problem was never how to ‘fill’ all those sea days, it was how to free up an hour to sit on deck if I wanted to. And that was with that highly unusual loooong stretch of sea days sailing around Australia in March 2020 forbidden to set foot on shore.

Although we had to leave after only 80 days, 128 days would have been no problem at all.

Edited May 19, 2021 by Horizon chaser 1957

[kazu]

On 5/18/2021 at 10:03 AM, chisoxfan said:

I am thinking that sea days across Atlantic will not be so pool friendly but who can tell. 

 

I have crossed the Atlantic a number of times going East and West and other than a day or two, the sea days were pool friendly overall.

 

No one can guarantee weather or King Neptune but overall, our weather was good and lots of people were taking advantage of the pool.  Same thing on our South Pacific cruises.