Transatlantic Voyages on HAL Rotterdam vs. Princess Royal Class Ships

[syymisc]

My wife and I have cruised several Transatlantic voyages with Princess and Celebrity previously. We are looking at some interesting itineraries from HAL particular with their Rotterdam ship. At a tonnage of about 99k, Rotterdam is quite a bit smaller than some of the Princess ships that we've been on such as Royal, Regal, and Sky (all at tonnages of around 144k), so we are wondering:

1. Is Rotterdam going to be more rocky doing a transatlantic voyage vs. those Royal Class ships from Princess?

2. How do the balcony cabins on Rotterdam compare to those on the Royal Class ships from Princess?

3. Any other comparisons that might be worth knowing?

 

Thanks!

[CruiserBruce]

The size of the ship doesn't actually affect how the ship handles seas...it a design issue. A more technically savvy person will have to explain the issue.

[oakridger]

I love the showers in the veranda cabins on Rotterdam!  They are very large compared to other cruise ships I've sailed on.  The water pressure was very good.

The cabins are pretty standard size, but the balcony appears to be a bit larger than pictures (no firsthand experience) I've seen on Princess. There is a good amount of storage also. Have a look at Halfacts.com to see pictures from real cruisers.

6203 – Rotterdam | HAL Cruiser Information (halfacts.com

 

~Nancy

 

[albingirl]

I have no problem on transatlantic cruises on HAL. Rotterdam is larger than Maasdam and Veendam and we sailed across with them, so I would expect a fine sailing with Rotterdam. And the itinerary! 

 

 

 

[*Miss G*]

I did a TransAtlantic on the Sky Princess in March and a TransAtlantic on the Koningsdam, which is the sister ship to the Rotterdam.  By FAR, the four of us preferred the Koningsdam over the Sky.  These are my observations.

 

- There was no wraparound prom on the Sky and what there was of it was very narrow and the view blocked by lifeboats.  You could walk about 2/3 of the way but there was no stern or forward access.  One went inside to get from port to starboard, and vice versa.  I did like the 5 or 6 lounge chairs they had in the only open area but it was difficult to find one available.

- There was no forward-viewing area on the Sky, either inside or outside.  If you wanted to see what was in front of you, you had to tune to the bow cam on your TV.  There was a private outdoor area forward on the Sky but you had to pay for access.

- The Sky was very inward-focused while the HAL ships are very outward-focused.  I like to know I’m at sea when I’m at sea.

- The Lido deck on the Sky did not have a retractable roof so if it was cold or raining it was unusable.

- The beds on the Sky were amazing!

- Both class ships handle the seas well.

- We had to move up to a mini suite in order to get a seating area which is included in the HAL verandah rooms.  We found the Sky balcony smaller than HAL.

- The bathrooms on the HAL pinnacle-class are fantastic, hands down.  I expected a nice bathroom with our Princess mini suite but we were really disappointed with the size and the plastic tub/shower combo which you can find on HAL’s older ships.

- There were a lot of activities on the Princess ship but they were not really to our taste.  Our focus is on the ports and the sea.

- The Grand Dutch Cafe on HAL has much better offerings than the International Cafe on Princess.

- We really enjoyed the included pizza restaurant on the Sky and much prefer it to HAL’s pizza.

 

I could go on but I think you know my preferred ship.  Enjoy your cruise!

[CT D&N]

I have cruised on the Rotterdam twice and many Princess Royal Class ships. The reply from "Miss G" is excellent and covers it.  100% would chose the Rotterdam. 

[Destiny0315]

Holland America has been crossing the Atlantic both ways for 150 years, the original Rotterdam at 1.684k did it in 1873! The first Princess transatlantic was in 1968 on the 12k Princess Italia. 

[Hlitner]

I would take a wild guess that if this same post was on the Princess board the answers would be somewhat different :).  On a TA we would actually prefer Princess for a few reasons.  #1 would be our love of the International Cafe which is our hang-out in the mornings.  This venue is open 24/7, has decent coffee (and coffee/tea drinks) with a rotating food menu.  We also enjoy the piano bar on Princess ships (remember when HAL had that on all their ships?).   But we have never been happy with the lack of a forward view lounge on Princess vessels.  Princess also has a lot more activities and there is always something going on in the atrium.  DW and I once calculated that we both read a lot more books on HAL than on Princess since HAL has few activities other than trivia, trivia and more trivia.  A fellow cruiser once remarked that the only requirement to be a cruise director on HAL is the ability to read trivia questions :).

 

Hank

[syymisc]

Thanks everybody for your answers and input on this topic which are very helpful. I think I would agree with Mr. Hank that the answers might be somewhat different if I post the same topic on the Princess board. I actually might consider doing just that...

[*Miss G*]

3 hours ago, syymisc said:

Thanks everybody for your answers and input on this topic which are very helpful. I think I would agree with Mr. Hank that the answers might be somewhat different if I post the same topic on the Princess board. I actually might consider doing just that...

 

It would definitely be interesting to see the response!  (But my post would be the same there as it is here.)  Keep in mind that @hlitner has never been on a HAL pinnacle-class ship and it’s been many years since he’s been on any HAL ship.  A lot has changed since his last cruise with them.

[kazu]

20 hours ago, *Miss G* said:

I did a TransAtlantic on the Sky Princess in March and a TransAtlantic on the Koningsdam, which is the sister ship to the Rotterdam.  By FAR, the four of us preferred the Koningsdam over the Sky.  These are my observations.

 

- There was no wraparound prom on the Sky and what there was of it was very narrow and the view blocked by lifeboats.  You could walk about 2/3 of the way but there was no stern or forward access.  One went inside to get from port to starboard, and vice versa.  I did like the 5 or 6 lounge chairs they had in the only open area but it was difficult to find one available.

- There was no forward-viewing area on the Sky, either inside or outside.  If you wanted to see what was in front of you, you had to tune to the bow cam on your TV.  There was a private outdoor area forward on the Sky but you had to pay for access.

- The Sky was very inward-focused while the HAL ships are very outward-focused.  I like to know I’m at sea when I’m at sea.

- The Lido deck on the Sky did not have a retractable roof so if it was cold or raining it was unusable.

- The beds on the Sky were amazing!

- Both class ships handle the seas well.

- We had to move up to a mini suite in order to get a seating area which is included in the HAL verandah rooms.  We found the Sky balcony smaller than HAL.

- The bathrooms on the HAL pinnacle-class are fantastic, hands down.  I expected a nice bathroom with our Princess mini suite but we were really disappointed with the size and the plastic tub/shower combo which you can find on HAL’s older ships.

- There were a lot of activities on the Princess ship but they were not really to our taste.  Our focus is on the ports and the sea.

- The Grand Dutch Cafe on HAL has much better offerings than the International Cafe on Princess.

- We really enjoyed the included pizza restaurant on the Sky and much prefer it to HAL’s pizza.

 

I could go on but I think you know my preferred ship.  Enjoy your cruise!

 

 Have to say I agree with you.  Have done Princess - now, admittedly not a TA on a Pinnacle Class - I’m on my first one right now.

 

I found Princess lacking in a number of things.  Heck I lost 7 pounds on that cruise (and I don’t need to lose weight 😉).

 

I’m on board now and hearing this cruise compared to Princess.  The food is much better from the comments I have heard.  I will honestly admit I haven’t been back on Princess for some time due to my past experience - so, each to their own.

[Hlitner]

5 hours ago, *Miss G* said:

 

It would definitely be interesting to see the response!  (But my post would be the same there as it is here.)  Keep in mind that @hlitner has never been on a HAL pinnacle-class ship and it’s been many years since he’s been on any HAL ship.  A lot has changed since his last cruise with them.

The latter is what we fear.  But in a few short months we shall find out for ourselves whether things have improved, stayed about the same, or gone downhill.  We still have no plans on the horizon for a Pinnacle Class ship.

 

Hank

[SusieKIslandGirl]

Just got off the Island Princess from Rome. There were a couple of bumpy days but had the same on HAL's Eurodam last fall. I liked that there was a bit more entertainment on Princess but food variety is much better on HAL. It's always somewhat of a toss-up as to which I would choose. Itinerary will top the list.

[dawei]

Just to add my two cents worth, beyond a TA sea motion comparison based on ships' sizes (and as Bruce mentioned design differences) comes what can prove to be a larger factor--weather. Gulf of Mexico conditions during at least one Carnival pre-Christmas cruise this year is an example.

 

In late November on Nieuw Amsterdam, the sea was in an uproar that was hard to believe, since we were in the Caribbean! 

Outside the Falmouth, Jamaica harbor, the captain consulted with the harbor pilot and then, after repeated attempts to swing in, waited to see if any weather improvement was coming before deciding to give up on that port stop in light of the gale force winds. The sea was worse than it was sailing through the Drake Passage on the Volendam, a smaller ship,  at a time when favorable weather made it "the Drake Lake. "

I also recall a very smooth TA on the Prinsendam, a much smaller ship than any of HAL's current fleet.

 

David

[Bostonjetset]

On 12/23/2022 at 7:07 PM, syymisc said:

My wife and I have cruised several Transatlantic voyages with Princess and Celebrity previously. We are looking at some interesting itineraries from HAL particular with their Rotterdam ship. At a tonnage of about 99k, Rotterdam is quite a bit smaller than some of the Princess ships that we've been on such as Royal, Regal, and Sky (all at tonnages of around 144k), so we are wondering:

1. Is Rotterdam going to be more rocky doing a transatlantic voyage vs. those Royal Class ships from Princess?

2. How do the balcony cabins on Rotterdam compare to those on the Royal Class ships from Princess?

3. Any other comparisons that might be worth knowing?

 

Thanks!

I can't compare on a transatlantic as I've only ever done those trips on Queen Mary 2 [fabulous btw in case that could be a possibility for you] but I would likely chose the Rotterdam over the Princess ships in a general lineup.  She's a beautiful ship and a great size.  We loved the Regal Princess when we sailed her [she's quite beautiful as well] but Rotterdam wowed us more.  The promenade deck is much better on Rotterdam; the balconies are bigger [they were unusually small on Regal]; Lincoln Center Stage is wonderful if you like classical chamber music; Royal Dutch Cafe was delicious; etc etc etc.  I will say Princess wins with the food hours though; International Cafe being 24/7 and their buffet has better ours then HAL in general but those don't matter as much when there are little to no ports to interfere with dining times.

[*Miss G*]

I’d just like to mention that the International Cafe on our sailing closed at midnight and re-opened at 6:00am.  I read where others experienced the same hours on their sailings as well.  No idea if that has changed since April.  The food in IC was sub-par but that is a matter of taste.  (Pun not really intended.)

 

 

Edited December 26, 2022 by *Miss G*

[Hlitner]

49 minutes ago, *Miss G* said:

I’d just like to mention that the International Cafe on our sailing closed at midnight and re-opened at 6:00am.  I read where others experienced the same hours on their sailings as well.  No idea if that has changed since April.  The food in IC was sub-par but that is a matter of taste.  (Pun not really intended.)

 

 

WOW!  That is a bit sad if they have cut-back on the hours.  Our last Princess cruise was in December 2021 (Enchanted Princess) and it was still open 24/7 despite the ship being only about half full.  On that cruise they did close 1 of the MDRs but the Lido and IC were as usual.

 

Hanik

[bmc alabama]

2 hours ago, Hlitner said:

WOW!  That is a bit sad if they have cut-back on the hours.  Our last Princess cruise was in December 2021 (Enchanted Princess) and it was still open 24/7 despite the ship being only about half full.  On that cruise they did close 1 of the MDRs but the Lido and IC were as usual.

 

Hanik

We happen to be on Caribbean Princess currently.  IC is open 24/7.