What is the Best Holland America Ship You Cruisedc to what Destination/s

[mcrcruiser]

 When replying   please list   the year  of the cruise &why you  liked that one above all others 

 

  Ours is the Koningsdam Hawaii because of the many winderful ports  & things to see . The ship has many Hawaiian themes on board on the passage toward the Hawaiian island chain  . It is imo a perfect vessel to sail to  Hawaii 

[shandryl]

30 minutes ago, mcrcruiser said:

 When replying   please list   the year  of the cruise &why you  liked that one above all others 

 

  Ours is the Koningsdam Hawaii because of the many winderful ports  & things to see . The ship has many Hawaiian themes on board on the passage toward the Hawaiian island chain  . It is imo a perfect vessel to sail to  Hawaii 

Noordam❤️👍 eastern/southern Caribbean 21 days March 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013.IMO one of the best ships!

[mcrcruiser]

3 hours ago, shandryl said:

Noordam❤️👍 eastern/southern Caribbean 21 days March 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013.IMO one of the best ships!

We cruised on Noordam form San Diego to Sydney Australis in 2015 & yes a excellent ship to sail on 

[Banditswife]

My favorite cruise is the one I am on or planning to be on next.  I am at home now, wishing I had a cruise booked sooner than Oct, but I also enjoy the planning of each cruise.  I haven't found a ship I totally disliked nor a true favorite.  Our next Holland cruise is the Koningsdam for a 10 day MX.  I have not sailed this ship yet, but have sailed the N Statendam, which we enjoyed.  In my opinion, if someone else is doing the cooking & cleaning, it is all good.  The bonus is that we get to visit a few foreign cities & meet new friends,

[mcrcruiser]

15 minutes ago, Banditswife said:

My favorite cruise is the one I am on or planning to be on next.  I am at home now, wishing I had a cruise booked sooner than Oct, but I also enjoy the planning of each cruise.  I haven't found a ship I totally disliked nor a true favorite.  Our next Holland cruise is the Koningsdam for a 10 day MX.  I have not sailed this ship yet, but have sailed the N Statendam, which we enjoyed.  In my opinion, if someone else is doing the cooking & cleaning, it is all good.  The bonus is that we get to visWekkit a few foreign cities & meet new friends,

 Welll Said . Cruising is a true vacation for my DW

[Susanmaz]

My favorite was a 10 day Eastern Caribbean on the Maasdam in 2013. Loved the beautiful Maasdam and new to us islands.

[Vic The Parrot]

ss Rotterdam V to Hawaii, round trip from L.A.* ... 

 

It was my 1st visit to the islands, and absolutely fell in love with the Aloha State. I definitely hope to return.

 

* Even tho it was a 17 day from CA, I hopped on board in Vancouver for an extra 3 days at a deal I couldn't refuse. 

[coachmouchet]

Being a teacher, I am limited to the length of cruise I can take. (I teach summer school too)  With that said, my favorite all-time cruise was a 10-day Panama Canal cruise on the Volendam.  I've been on six HAL ships and she is my favorite!!

[RuthC]

Best HAL ship is a neck and neck race between Rotterdam V and Prinsendam II. Elegant, traditional style ships that were small enough to get around easily, yet large enough to offer plenty to do. 

First cruise on Prinsendam was my first excursion into Arctic waters, when the ship sailed into the Polar Ice Cap. What a thrill! An officer hung over the bow, watching the ice while two crew members hung on tightly to his legs, so if the ship rolled the officer wouldn't fall off. 
I sailed to so many places on the Rotterdam that I couldn't name them all! That included my second cruise into Antarctic waters. Even sailed on her final cruise. What a thrill that was. 

[arzz]

Prinsendam Grand South America and Antarctica 2007. 
 

Beautiful ship. We really loved her. That was a Grand Cruise that was Grand in ways that subsequent Grand Cruises that we took never really matched. 
 

Itinerary was spectacular as Antarctica is - and getting there, for us, was the cruise experience of a lifetime. 

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

Prinsendam Holiday cruise 14-day Caribbean December 2018. Only time I was ever on the Prinsendam II during her last year, and it was absolutely wonderful. 

 

My first HAL cruise was on the Prinsendam I in 1978 (before she sank) Alaska RT from Vancouver.

[dockman]

Prinsendam...can't remember year...somewhere in Med.

 

Maasdam...first ever 35 day r/t boston voyage of the vikings..it was not sold out and they gave some nice discounts to fill it up....now i believe it is one of HAL most popular and likely expensive cruises on other HAL ships.

[sevigny]

The Prinsendam’s second to last cruise before she was sold.  We were on for almost a month, from Ft. Lauderdale, ending up in Southampton.  We visited Morocco, the Azores, ports in Spain, Italy, and France.  It was during the Semana Santa, Holy Week in Europe, and we were able to see some of the processions with the flower covered icons. The best and saddest cruise we ever were on, the cruise itself was fantastic, but we were so sad that we would never be able to travel on the Prinsendam again.  Such a mistake for HAL to sell her.  She had an absolutely devoted following.

[mcrcruiser]

16 hours ago, Susanmaz said:

My favorite was a 10 day Eastern Caribbean on the Maasdam in 2013. Loved the beautiful Maasdam and new to us islands.

Yes yjr Masdam was out first HAL sailing .Beautiful small ship with great entertainment

[mcrcruiser]

13 hours ago, RuthC said:

Best HAL ship is a neck and neck race between Rotterdam V and Prinsendam II. Elegant, traditional style ships that were small enough to get around easily, yet large enough to offer plenty to do. 

First cruise on Prinsendam was my first excursion into Arctic waters, when the ship sailed into the Polar Ice Cap. What a thrill! An officer hung over the bow, watching the ice while two crew members hung on tightly to his legs, so if the ship rolled the officer wouldn't fall off. 
I sailed to so many places on the Rotterdam that I couldn't name them all! That included my second cruise into Antarctic waters. Even sailed on her final cruise. What a thrill that was. 

We never had the opportunity to sail pn the Prisendam  & wu=ish she was still aroungg do we could try her . We have sailed on the Rotterdam just before the new Pinnacle Class Rotterdam was brought out .A very nice & smaller vessel . 

[POA1]

1994. Old Noordam out of New Orleans with a jazz cruise theme. It had the Benny Goodman & Duke Ellington bands. (Not with Benny & Sir Duke obviously.) You really can't cruise down the Mississippi today, but it's spectacular.

 

DW picked this trip because I was adamantly opposed to cruising. She sweetened the pot with the Preservation Jazz Hall, breakfast at Brennan's & brunch at Commander's Palace. Reluctantly, boarded the ship. (It made the Prinsendam look huge.)

 

There were three couples under 30 on this sailing, and we were seated together in the MDR. (No open seating back in ancient days.) The husband in one of the couples with whom we were seated was the AAA travel reviewer for New York and New England. He helped us to understand the basics of doing your own excursions and said that he was glad to be picked to review HAL. Apparently it was a plum assignment.

 

So...

 

To keep a long story long - Fast forward almost 30 years and here we are. We appreciate the ambience, the elegance, and the company of seasoned travelers. We started out as the youngest people on the ship and have now aged our way into the demographic.

 

Takeaway: While I was absolutely certain that I would hate the whole cruising thing, I was dead wrong. Score 1 for DW.

[MISTER 67]

We now only cruise in the Caribbean and our favorite HAL ships are the Signature Class sisters Eurodam and Nieuw Amsterdam. Classy perfect sized ships with the traditional promenade deck. 
Best cruises in the past were the 3 Mediterranean cruises we took back in 1999, 2001 and 2007.

We also enjoyed cruises through the Panama Canal and to Bermuda.

Edited July 22, 2023 by MISTER 67

[RuthC]

2 hours ago, mcrcruiser said:

We have sailed on the Rotterdam just before the new Pinnacle Class Rotterdam was brought out

Had a lot of days on her, too. Can't remember if I had more on her, or Rotterdam V, but between the two of them, it has to be around 300 days. 

The only reason I would ever want to sail on the Pinnacle Class Rotterdam VII is to have sailed on three Rotterdams! That class of ship is just too 'dam' big. 

[mcrcruiser]

4 minutes ago, RuthC said:

Had a lot of days on her, too. Can't remember if I had more on her, or Rotterdam V, but between the two of them, it has to be around 300 days. 

The only reason I would ever want to sail on the Pinnacle Class Rotterdam VII is to have sailed on three Rotterdams! That class of ship is just too 'dam' big. 

Just maybe HAL will get one od the smaller ships from   the German line should that rumor actually  happen 

[mcrcruiser]

11 hours ago, sevigny said:

The Prinsendam’s second to last cruise before she was sold.  We were on for almost a month, from Ft. Lauderdale, ending up in Southampton.  We visited Morocco, the Azores, ports in Spain, Italy, and France.  It was during the Semana Santa, Holy Week in Europe, and we were able to see some of the processions with the flower covered icons. The best and saddest cruise we ever were on, the cruise itself was fantastic, but we were so sad that we would never be able to travel on the Prinsendam again.  Such a mistake for HAL to sell her.  She had an absolutely devoted following.

We wish we were sailing on HAL ships at the time  that ship was in service ,Read so much about her & saw pictures posted of her interiors .Agree HAL should have lepy her . My guess is was more Carnival decision . 

[CurlerRob]

2015 Ijmuiden - Norway - Svalbard - Iceland - Ijmuiden aboard Prinsendam. How many people ever get to within 700 miles of the North Pole? We greatly miss that somewhat quirky ship! 🍺🥌

 

[PROCRUISE]

Eurodam - 6/12/09 - 6/22/09 - Baltic Sea with two day private tour in St. Petersburg!

[ottahand7]

This year, Grand South America on the Volendam.  Never had been on a Grand voyage before this so I never could compare it to another. Our Spanish chef, the wonderful South American ports and to experience the remoteness and grandeur of Antarctica.   We loved the Volendam too.  We missed the Falklands and we didn't go to Igauzu Falls and I didn't sign up soon enough to go to Torres del Paine.  First time they offer it in January we are repeating.  

[Essiesmom]

The Prinsendam is still around, only now she is called Amera and sails for Phoenix Reisen.  EM

[jeh10641]

My first ever cruise was the 1938 version of Nieuw Amsterdam (late June, NY to Rotterdam) in 1959. I became a HAL believer 7 years later when I did 14 nights on the same ship to the Caribbean over Christmas/New Year's.  My next HAL cruise was in 2012 on Westerdam from Ft. Lauderdale to Seattle (17 or 18 nights?). Oosterdam in 2016 (17 nights Rome to FL). Finally, the best one was 2021 on Rotterdam VII from FL to the Caribbean in December with cousins from NC. I am more port conscious than price or ship. This rang all three bells - price, ports and ship. The size is perfect for us.

Jim