Question about NE Maasdam cruise

[lkmamom]

Okay, I know I am taking a chance here that I will be told to go to the port section but.......I am going to give it a try:o

 

The ship ports in Newport RI from 7am-2pm, which is kind of an odd span of time. We would like to visit the cliff walk of course, but also having a son that plays tennis 24/7, of course he would like to visit the Tennis Hall of Fame too. So, I am trying to accomodate everyone's wishes and would love your advice.

 

Has anyone that has cruised onboard the Maasdam been on the HAL shore excursion Newport Cliffwalk and the Breakers? The tour just opened and I have 72 hrs to decide :eek: . It seems like it would work because it starts at 8am and is over in 3 hours, then we could visit the Tennis HOF.

 

Thanks for your help!

Linda

[innlady1]

Okay, I know I am taking a chance here that I will be told to go to the port section but.......I am going to give it a try:o

 

The ship ports in Newport RI from 7am-2pm, which is kind of an odd span of time. We would like to visit the cliff walk of course, but also having a son that plays tennis 24/7, of course he would like to visit the Tennis Hall of Fame too. So, I am trying to accomodate everyone's wishes and would love your advice.

 

Has anyone that has cruised onboard the Maasdam been on the HAL shore excursion Newport Cliffwalk and the Breakers? The tour just opened and I have 72 hrs to decide :eek: . It seems like it would work because it starts at 8am and is over in 3 hours, then we could visit the Tennis HOF.

 

Thanks for your help!

Linda

 

I'm from MA so we visit Newport every once in a while...the Tennis Hall of Fame is relatively close to the Breakers, so it would be easily manageable.

[Sea King]

I got tired just reading your plans for the day:D

 

Maasdam could float to Newport without any engines

 

the reason why it leaves so early is that the next port is usually St. John, quite a distance away

 

tender service is very punctual (it has to be with limited time) but re-boarding is usually slow since everyone wants to be on the last tender:)

 

agree that you can do everything you've got planned

 

and don't forget: the burger/taco bar is open til 5:eek:

[lkmamom]

Sea King, I know.....I have been walking extra miles everyday to get ready for this port:D I am the one that really wanted to go on this cruise DH and DS were not as enthused so I guess I am trying to please all here.

 

Thanks for the advice about why the port schedule is as it is. I thought that it was different because most of the attractions do not even open until after nine, so that only gives 5 hours to see it all:eek:

 

So what you are saying here in reality is that we had better polish up our Nikes and the extra miles that I have been walking are going to come in useful;) Thanks for your help everyone!

Linda

[brightonguys]

We just did the NE/Canada cruise on the MAASDAM over the July 4th holiday week and had a great time! We went to the Tennis Hall of Fame around noon and spent about 1 1/2 hours there. We really enjoyed the place and took our time going through the museum portion, and I still think 1 1/2 hours is plenty of time. We did find out that they will rent playing time on the grass courts there, which I definitely want to try next visit -- you might not want to tell your son about that, though, or he may want to be there all day. :D

[sail7seas]

Newport Harbor is a 'no wake' zone now. The tenders have to go quite slowly and everyone wants to be on the last tender back to the ship. :) Of course, not everyone can be on the last tender (as the Captain, with good humor, advised us).

 

Be sure you are back at the Tender Dock at 1:30 (or whatever time you are told that day) in order to be on the 'last tender'.

 

We left Newport a little late until they could get everyone back on the ship.

We loved both of our stops at Newport. It had been years since we had been there and we look forward to returning first chance.

 

Enjoy. It's a wonderful port.

 

[Jade13]

We just did the NE/Canada cruise on the MAASDAM over the July 4th holiday week and had a great time! We went to the Tennis Hall of Fame around noon and spent about 1 1/2 hours there. We really enjoyed the place and took our time going through the museum portion, and I still think 1 1/2 hours is plenty of time. We did find out that they will rent playing time on the grass courts there, which I definitely want to try next visit -- you might not want to tell your son about that, though, or he may want to be there all day. :D

 

How did the cruise compare to Princess?

[brightonguys]

Hmm, well, despite the fact that the Diamond Princess was more than twice the size of the Maasdam, I actually didn't feel that this was much of a plus or minus (much to my surprise, as I expected to feel that a small ship would feel crowded and not have enough to do). The service we encountered was about the same on both ships (fine, but nothing special, unlike our experience on Freedom of the Seas). The dining room food was better on Princess (actually the best of the cruises we've been on), but the Princess buffet was disappointing and did not compare favorably with Maasdam's. The gym was better on Maasdam, I thought. The library area on Maasdam was a really nice place to spend time reading, relaxing, watching the sea, having coffee (and cupcakes!). I didn't find a similarly inviting place on the Diamond, perhaps because it felt so much more crowded than the Maasdam. I guess when I think about it, that really was the main difference to us - the feeling of space and lack of crowds on Maasdam. We really enjoyed both ships, however, and would sail either again in a heartbeat if the price was right (and there was not an equivalently priced RCI ship). :)

 

Hope this helps somewhat.

[lkmamom]

Thanks "guys"! Yep you are so right, Our son already knows about the grass courts and he would LOVE to play on them. I thought about letting him take a lesson but we may never get out of there if you know what I mean. I am actually really anxious to see the THOF as well, especially with the new induction of Pete Sampras.

 

I also appreciated your comparisons of the Diamond Princess. We have always sailed on Grand class ships and the Maasdam will be the first smaller class ship. It will be a new experiance. We loved the Sapphire (Diamond's sister), and I also agree with you, Princess has a nicer evening meal as compared with our first HAL cruise but HAL has Princess beat all around for the other meals. My husband and son can hardly wait to hit the waffle area in the morning.;) I am not really that concerned about how the food is. As busy as our lives are at this house, it is just so nice to be together! Thanks for the help:)

Linda

[Jade13]

Hmm, well, despite the fact that the Diamond Princess was more than twice the size of the Maasdam, The service we encountered was about the same on both ships (fine, but nothing special, unlike our experience on Freedom of the Seas). The dining room food was better on Princess (actually the best of the cruises we've been on), but the Princess buffet was disappointing and did not compare favorably with Maasdam's. :)

 

Hope this helps somewhat.

 

Interesting. A group we met on the Westerdam (who are Princess Elite - over 16 cruises) and also received a medal on Hal for over 100 days said the food on Princess is much better..(and the Westerdam was very good. Soups Excellant)

[sail7seas]

Food is SO subjective. What one person thinks is great, another person doesn't care for. When it comes to food, IMO, one must judge for themselves or at least gauge by a consistent, well known comparison.

 

[brightonguys]

Oh yeah, the waffles!! :) BTW, if you and your guys are up for an additional musuem, we really enjoyed the maritime museum in Halifax, too. Great models of all kinds of seagoing ships throughout history (at least the history of the North Atlantic). Again, as interesting as it was, you would really only need to give it an hour or so, I think.

 

And you're so right about cruises and family time -- they really do provide a great opportunity for spending time together which few other vacations can match. Have a great time!

[lkmamom]

Thanks "guys" for the tip about Halifax, we will definately visit the museum.

 

Sail, you are so very right about the food issue. I think that is one of the problems when people write about their reviews of a ship. Food tastes vary with everyone and can vary from one ship's sail to another. As a matter of fact, it even happens in our small immediate family of three ( I thought that "my boys" would love the new recipe that I tried last night:( ). As I said, for me (and I should preface, only me because it is important to our growing teen!:eek: Food and exercise equipment are the most important to him on a cruise!) the cruise experiance is not about the food. I do realize that it is an important part for some people. It is always best to keep an open mind when someone describes their opinions about food. We had always enjoyed our meals on Princess and have only had one experiance with HAL (last summer). I am really looking forward to this next experiance with HAL.

 

Thanks everyone, and in only two more weeks now, at this time we will be walking around in Boston! As crazy as it sounds, I have already started packing some things. Just a little excited:rolleyes: so if you see three people with goofy smiles walking around next Friday, it may be us.

Linda

[sail7seas]

I'm very excited for you, Linda. I'm so sure you are going to have a great cruise.

 

Your son should be satisified with Maasdam's gym. Considering she is not a mega ship, she has a pretty decent gym..... all the basics.

 

As to the food for your son...... I'll be very surprised if he doesn't find lots he'll enjoy. Cetainly one wouldn't expect anyone to love everything that is offered, but I think he'll find more than enough choices to please a growing teen boy. And I know that requires A GREAT AMOUNT of food. :D Where do they put it all? :) :D