comparing Vista class with older ships

[Thoth]

I just returned from a week on the Vista class Oosterdam in Alaska. When I first read about HAL's new Vista class ships, I thought Oh no they are selling out to the mega ship trend and will lose much of the Holland America ambience. I was afraid that these Vista would be more Carnival party ship than HAL in an attempt to attract more "young" people.

It would seem that I was wrong to assume too much. The Oosterdam is a fine ship and still very true to her HAL roots. She is elegant and classy!

When they say they wish to attract more "young" people, they seem to have meant familys not party animals. There were noticably more families and youth activities than on the Maasdam or Statendam. Unlike some ships out there the shows were all G-rated. No smut! Overall the ship feels big but except for embarkation it didn't feel crowded and as a matter of fact I wondered where did 2,000 people go? The O-dam is an easy ship to make friends on (suprisingly) becouse I kept meeting my new friends repeatedly. It was like the same people showed up for the same activities as I did.The Nothern Lights Disco is a nice addition to HAL giving folks a choice between the Crow's Nest oldies and the Disco's more contemporary sounds.

The Queen's lounge is a bit small for some of the activities it is used for. People were standing for Kareoke. The Vista show lounge is an improvement over the older ships with what appears to be staduim seating. I had the late seating(8:15) dinner and still could find a seat on the front row for the 10:15 show.The stage, lights, and props all highlight what must some of the best shows out there. The shows on the Oosterdam are high tech and a notch above what I saw on the S-class ships.

Also I saw improvement in the Lido restaurant over the Maasdam and Statendam. The O-dam has food stations which seem to break up the long lines. Traffic flewed well. There was no wait for pizza or pasta. The main dining room was on par with the others, but I don't think they cook flambe' like Banana Foster or Cherry Jubilee like in the past. I did have the Cherrys over the baked Alaska. The Hydo pool seemed to a waste of space, with a charge there and 5 "free" hot tubs I didn't see many in the Hydo pool area. The pay extra coffee bar looked nice, but "free" coffee is always available on the Lido.

The cruise director and his staff were the best of 5 cruises. Very nice compared to some others ships that I have been on, including HAL.

Last but not least, the bath robes, thick towels, improved sheets are part of the so called "signature of Excellence" on HAL. The Oosterdam is a great ship!!

[grannynurse]

Thanks for the great info on the Oosterdam. I was glad to read your impressions on the Vista class ships after so many negative comments.

GN

[doone]

Great review, thanks for posting. I agree with Grannynurse, its nice to hear positives about the Vista Style ships. I have been turned off by them, but will give the Zuiderdam a try in March. Friends of mine booked the Westerdam for March as well, their first cruise. The Westerdam looks elegant and classy as well.

[Tvisitor]

I’m looking forward to my Mexico cruise on the Oosterdam in January. It is nice to see positive reviews like yours.

 

Thanks for posting.

[anjan]

I will be sailing on the Oosterdam Panama Canal Cruise 9/29. It was nice to hear some positives about the Vista Class ships. I'll be sure to post a review after my sailing. :p

[anngie]

I have sailed on both the Zuiderdam and the Oosterdam and have very positive experiences on both. Since we are booked on the Westerdam for December the 5th I have been reading every review that I can find on that ship. From what I have read the decor goes back to more of the Zuiderdam. Some people even describe it as garish. I have also read that the dining room staff has a hard time keeping up and the first seating was just leaving as the 2nd seating arrives in some cases. Waiters are overworked.

Hopefully by the time the ship comes to Ft. Lauderdale in December things will be running more smoothly.

[jhannah]

We sailed the Zuiderdam early on, in the midst of all the "they haven't finished building the ship and it looks horrendous" hoopla. We loved it. Most all the early glitches were fixed, and while the decor is more art deco in appearance that the traditional HAL fittings, we found it lovely and lively. Seemed perfect for the Caribbean. We also found the passenger space ratio to be great. Lots of people, but there was never the feeling to us that we were lost in a big city.

I'm sure you'll enjoy the vista class experience. It's different ... but it's still HAL. We're anxious to sail the Prinsendam next month to experience the other end of the spectrum (fewer than 800 pax.)

[woodburykt]

We have sailed both the Zuiderdam and the Oosterdam and had wonderful vacations. Its sad to read so many nit picky, whiny, moaning comments from people that I can only guess wouldn't be happy with anything. No ship or cruise is absolutely, totally perfect, but as I have read from another post, its much better to be on a cruise than be in the office!

 

The O'dam and the Z'dam have so much to offer....from just relaxing on a nice comfy deck chair to really fun trivia contests to Half Moon Cay, HAL is the line for us!

 

We've just booked our Suites on the Westerdam for the Feb 13, 2005 sailing of the Western Carribean....even though its six months away, we can't wait to go!!

[Krazy Kruizers]

:)

 

When the Zuiderdam came out, there were a lot of negative reviews. We said "no way we would sail the Vista ships". But after a few months we booked the Oosterdam and were on her last Feb/Mar - enjoyed our back-to-back cruises very much.

So much that we are booked back-to-back cruises on the Westerdam for January.

:)

[TedC]

We've been on all three Vista ships and enjoyed each one. They're almost identical except for decor.

 

Because we sailed the O and W in the Med we liked those cruises better. We also prefer the decor of those ships. And on the W there are artworks in the usually bland, boring hallways, which was very pleasing to us

[sail7seas]

Thanks for your review.

 

We cruised Zuiderdam four cruises last year and recently booked to return to her.

 

Happy you enjoyed the new Vista ship. We did not expect to like them but we were aboard Zuiderdam for a very short time when we decided we liked her very much.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Great review, I could not agree with you more. We too have been on both the Zuirderdam and the Oosterdam and looking forward to the Westerdam next March. Like Vegas Jim we also sailed the Zuirderdam in the midst of everyone complaining about her. We actually found no problems with her and loved our cruise. But....I actually enjoyed the Oosterdam more. Not sure if it was because we were in Alaska, or it was the Captain and his crew. We enjoyed the Oosterdam so much that we booked her again for Oct 2005, Plus we got a great deal:p ) When we sail the Ryndam this November we will finally be able to do a fair comparison between Vista Class and a S Class ship.

[bombero]

We're going on the Big "O" Oct 10th and were glad for all the positive comments on her.. We've been on many cruise lines, but haven't been on HAL in a couple years.. Glad to hear they are still the same... Thanks for all the good vibes... Bombero

[wild_rose]

Woodburykt,

 

We're also on the Westerdam on February 13, 2005 - as well as

February 6, B2B.

 

We're so looking forward to it. Hope to see you!

[MandyGirl]

Thank you for sharing, Thoth! We have only sailed HAL's Maasdam and REALLY enjoyed her. We're trying the Zuiderdam later this year and it was good to read your comparison, as we had also read the many negatives about the Vista class ships. When you can only cruise once every 1-2 years, you spend LOTS of time really looking forward to the next one! :D Thanks again for sharing!

[kruzkeen]

The Oosterdam is certainly an elegant ship and there are plenty of balconys.

I agree that the Lido works very well with the various stations.

 

Having said that, I miss the Wajang Theatre. Going to the movies might not be a big deal for some, but after too much sun I enjoy a movie in the late afternoon. The Queens Lounge is not a good venue. For films it has poor sight lines and uncomfortable seating.

 

Does anyone else think that the tables in the dining room are smaller and closer together than on other HAL ships? Even for lunch I found the noise level higher than on the older ships.

[Lois R]

Well, this will be my first time on HAL...and it will be on the Zuiderdam...the only thing I will have to compare...will be my 3 Celebrity cruises.....and I was on smaller ships~this will definitely be a new experience for me......and hopefully a good one too:)

[mountainmare]

As with some others, I was avoiding the Vista ships, but the Jan 9 cruise through the Panama canal sounded too good to pass up. We sailed the Rotterdam into the canal last Feb and really wanted a full transit. Thank you all for some positive feedback. When I hear big ship all I can think of is our trip on the Destiny several years ago. No cruise can be considered a bad time, after all you're not shoveling snow and breaking out ice in the horse's water buckets, but I really wouldn't sign up for something that big (or that young) again.

[luv2cruise450]

Thanks Thoth for taking the time to write about the O...we've enjoyed all our cruises...but HAL is our favorite line and it's true that much of what has been written about the Vista class ships were not all praise. I feel that if it's an HAL ship...it will be enjoyable. But my take is that you can't please everybody...and there will be those that will not be happy no matter what. I feel very fortunate that I have the opportunity to cruise and see a bit of the world. It's great that you had such a great time and I am very much looking forward to sailing with her in November.

Happy sailing!

[Thoth]

It is great that my review of the Oosterdam is so well received! Thanks everybody for reading and responding! To be honest I too don't understand the Vista bashing out there. Perhaps the moral of the story is that we should attempt to judge a ship/cruiseline for ourselves and don't go on hype like I did at one time.

[richkat]

We're booked on the Zuiderdam in November and cannot wait. Our first experience on HAL was on the previous Westerdam and it was probably our best cruise ever. Next we were on the Volendam and the ship layout was ever better. We're really expecting to love the Zuiderdam. We've heard that the decor views better in person than in pictures and we've found that certain rooms have a better ambiance at night. It seems that there is a lot of grumbling when a new class comes out. It was the same when the Volendam first appeared. Somehow we missed the "S" class but it's hard to go back once you fall in love with the latest stuff. :)

 

-- R&K