I was really thinking I wouldn’t like this ship because it’s older and not a pinnacle class, but this has really changed my mind. Thank you for the great content 😊
It is a very good ship with a lot to offer. I enjoy the Pinnacle Class a bit more just due to the dual level pool areas and the dedicated music walk venues but other than that, they are pretty much the same. Pinnacle might have a slightly better theater and more dedicated spaces. One big difference is that Pinnacle Class does NOT have a wide outside promenade like the Signature Class has. Thanks for sharing!
I first sailed this ship in 2018, only 3 nights before a Yukon cruise tour. I missed the ship, especially when the first couple hotels were a little rough. We have since done a 5 night coastal, and 14 night Alaska, 3/3 all on the same ship with HAL.
That is wonderful to hear! This ship was our first experience on Holland America and have since sailed Eurodam in the Panama Canal and recently on the Rotterdam. I really enjoyed the Rotterdam and find it a slightly better design than the Signature Class. With HAL recently announcing new shows in the Main Stage theater, I think that this will correct some of the holes in the entertainment on HAL that I have struggled with. Thanks so much for sharing and for watching!
Hi Doug! Thank you for another informative cruise video. With you being able to go, travel, and experience all the ship's amenities; you can give us a fair & honest assessment of the facilities, food, crew, etc. I'm just trying to decide which ship to take first, what destination to go on, etc. Thanks for sharing. I've subscribed. 🏝🚢🌅🌍
I do have a Eurodam and Rotterdam review and ship score on the channel so check those out. In general, Holland America Line has excellent service levels and the crew is always friendly and very attentive. The main dining room food is normally very good but you will have hit or miss nights. If this ever happens order something else that looks better and they will replace it immediately. The Lido Market buffet is normally very fresh but I find the selection somewhat limited. I normally go to the eggs benedict station every morning for freshly made eggs or the salad and deli sections for lunch. Dive in burgers are very good and on the Pinnacle Class ships, the NY Pizza and Deli has great pizza and amazing deli sandwiches made to order - both hot and cold. If I were looking at HAL for a cruise, after choosing the itinerary, I would see if the newer larger Pinnacle Class like the Rotterdam or Konningsdam. They offer more venues and options than the smaller ships like Nieuw Amsterdam and Eurodam. Thanks so much for sharing and for subscribing!
Subscribed! What an excellent ship tour 🛳🛳 really did change my mind about this ship, very nicely updated and thanks for showing all of the room categories 👍
Hello , we're contemplating our first HAL cruise (28 night Westerdam) Asia) but are concerned about the lack of good entertainment and perhaps the lack of sparkle around the ship. Am I worried about nothing? I'm generally a Celebrity Cruises fan . Is the jump too wide? Cheers Steve
The jump is not that wide at all. Westerdam is an older ship and the entertainment aspect might be an issue but with HAL adding production shows back to the theater, you should be OK. We are on Celebrity right now and it is a brand new cast and crew. They took about 3 or 4 days to get their stuff together but it is still a wonderful cruise. We have had small ensembles as entertainment and single headliners most of the 11 Nights so HAL will keep you entertained with probably better food than Celebrity these days.
1st time on the Nieuw Amsterdam was this Spring (2024) From Ft. Lauderdale to Vancouver. Enjoyed what the ship had to offer. Did like deck 3 promenade for walking. Food and service was good to excellent. Shows in the main theatre were disappointing, but maybe because this was a repositioning cruise?
HAL has struggled over the last few years with the main theater entertainment. They are slowly bringing back singers and dancers to supplement the dance company who I find very boring. The minimal staging and lack of live music / orchestra is completely subpar. The music walk is great but can be repetitive. Ever since they removed Lincoln Center Stage from the ships, the live music in the theater stopped and the full replacement of singers and dancers with the Step Once Dance company has the theater shows lacking. I am very glad that you enjoyed the rest of your cruise. NA is a great ship - it was the first HAL ship we sailed. Thanks for sharing and for watching!
I was on the Koningsdam two years ago. I loved the music walk. I would sit at the piano bar, and stay there when the rock and roll venue took their turn across the way. This kept the volume for both venues exactly to my liking. But Lincoln centre stage was an enormous highlight for me. I never missed a performance at that venue and I'm awfully sorry to see it go.
I actually prefer the larger Pinnacle Class ships with the separate Billboard and the Rolling Stone Rock Room. It is very smart for them to alternate sets and then have the two level BB Kings is great. We first experienced Lincoln Center Stage on our first sailing on the Nieuw Amsterdam. Like you, we never missed a performance and was just blown away. I also enjoyed them on the main stage during the BBC Earth presentations. I was completely caught off guard that during the recent retrofit, HAL left this room empty and did not attempt to change it into something. HAL states that Lincoln Center will be on select ships as a main stage performance but I have yet to hear of a sailing where that is the case. Thanks for sharing and for watching as always!
That is an interesting observation. I have never felt that there was any safety issue with the railings on Nieuw Amsterdam or Eurodam. I have sailed on them both - they are basically identical. Equinox also has no added plexi on each side of the pool deck - Only on the upper outside decks along the lawn club & forward kids club and Basketball court.
@@seemoreseascruises3791 correct. Equinox don’t have plexiglass on every railing. But it does have in most of those that goes outside of the ship on the upper deck or floor. I guess as another protection against the winds. I felt very safe walking on that upper deck, I have never been on Holland.
@@StrivingMen I completely agree about the wind protection. That is very nice on the Solstice Class ships from Celebrity. We are going to be on the Eclipse in two weeks up in Canada so that should be very helpful! Thanks for sharing and for watching!
@@StrivingMen I do think that they are very comparable with service levels, safety, quality of product and food. In my opinion, the main dining rooms are very similar in quality and service but Celebrity has the edge in buffet. Both the quality and the design of the buffet is better on Celebrity Equinox. HAL has the Carnival Corp buffet style with lines for each small station and it is mostly a serve it to me concept making it much slower service. I think the quality of the buffet food is also better. Both cruise lines have decreased it's offerings and quality a bit on each of the buffets in my opinion over the last several years. Entertainment is a big difference where HAL has the Music Walk which is great live music but that gets very repetitive over a 7-10 day cruise. They do.not have live music in the main theater like Celebrity does, and though HAL is brining back song and dance casts, they have been relying on a boring dance company that does performances a few nights during the cruise to recorded music with limited staging. Celebrity's main theater shows are much better. You will normally pay more for Celebrity than HAL and HAL has much more affordable all inclusive options than Celebrity. I have a full comparison of both lines on my channel.
I was really thinking I wouldn’t like this ship because it’s older and not a pinnacle class, but this has really changed my mind. Thank you for the great content 😊
It is a very good ship with a lot to offer. I enjoy the Pinnacle Class a bit more just due to the dual level pool areas and the dedicated music walk venues but other than that, they are pretty much the same. Pinnacle might have a slightly better theater and more dedicated spaces. One big difference is that Pinnacle Class does NOT have a wide outside promenade like the Signature Class has. Thanks for sharing!
I first sailed this ship in 2018, only 3 nights before a Yukon cruise tour. I missed the ship, especially when the first couple hotels were a little rough. We have since done a 5 night coastal, and 14 night Alaska, 3/3 all on the same ship with HAL.
That is wonderful to hear! This ship was our first experience on Holland America and have since sailed Eurodam in the Panama Canal and recently on the Rotterdam. I really enjoyed the Rotterdam and find it a slightly better design than the Signature Class. With HAL recently announcing new shows in the Main Stage theater, I think that this will correct some of the holes in the entertainment on HAL that I have struggled with. Thanks so much for sharing and for watching!
Hi Doug! Thank you for another informative cruise video. With you being able to go, travel, and experience all the ship's amenities; you can give us a fair & honest assessment of the facilities, food, crew, etc. I'm just trying to decide which ship to take first, what destination to go on, etc. Thanks for sharing. I've subscribed. 🏝🚢🌅🌍
I do have a Eurodam and Rotterdam review and ship score on the channel so check those out. In general, Holland America Line has excellent service levels and the crew is always friendly and very attentive. The main dining room food is normally very good but you will have hit or miss nights. If this ever happens order something else that looks better and they will replace it immediately. The Lido Market buffet is normally very fresh but I find the selection somewhat limited. I normally go to the eggs benedict station every morning for freshly made eggs or the salad and deli sections for lunch. Dive in burgers are very good and on the Pinnacle Class ships, the NY Pizza and Deli has great pizza and amazing deli sandwiches made to order - both hot and cold. If I were looking at HAL for a cruise, after choosing the itinerary, I would see if the newer larger Pinnacle Class like the Rotterdam or Konningsdam. They offer more venues and options than the smaller ships like Nieuw Amsterdam and Eurodam. Thanks so much for sharing and for subscribing!
Subscribed! What an excellent ship tour 🛳🛳 really did change my mind about this ship, very nicely updated and thanks for showing all of the room categories 👍
Very glad that you found it helpful! Thanks for watching and for subscribing!
Hello , we're contemplating our first HAL cruise (28 night Westerdam) Asia) but are concerned about the lack of good entertainment and perhaps the lack of sparkle around the ship. Am I worried about nothing? I'm generally a Celebrity Cruises fan . Is the jump too wide? Cheers Steve
The jump is not that wide at all. Westerdam is an older ship and the entertainment aspect might be an issue but with HAL adding production shows back to the theater, you should be OK. We are on Celebrity right now and it is a brand new cast and crew. They took about 3 or 4 days to get their stuff together but it is still a wonderful cruise. We have had small ensembles as entertainment and single headliners most of the 11 Nights so HAL will keep you entertained with probably better food than Celebrity these days.
1st time on the Nieuw Amsterdam was this Spring (2024) From Ft. Lauderdale to Vancouver. Enjoyed what the ship had to offer. Did like deck 3 promenade for walking. Food and service was good to excellent. Shows in the main theatre were disappointing, but maybe because this was a repositioning cruise?
HAL has struggled over the last few years with the main theater entertainment. They are slowly bringing back singers and dancers to supplement the dance company who I find very boring. The minimal staging and lack of live music / orchestra is completely subpar. The music walk is great but can be repetitive. Ever since they removed Lincoln Center Stage from the ships, the live music in the theater stopped and the full replacement of singers and dancers with the Step Once Dance company has the theater shows lacking. I am very glad that you enjoyed the rest of your cruise. NA is a great ship - it was the first HAL ship we sailed. Thanks for sharing and for watching!
I was on the Koningsdam two years ago. I loved the music walk. I would sit at the piano bar, and stay there when the rock and roll venue took their turn across the way. This kept the volume for both venues exactly to my liking. But Lincoln centre stage was an enormous highlight for me. I never missed a performance at that venue and I'm awfully sorry to see it go.
I actually prefer the larger Pinnacle Class ships with the separate Billboard and the Rolling Stone Rock Room. It is very smart for them to alternate sets and then have the two level BB Kings is great. We first experienced Lincoln Center Stage on our first sailing on the Nieuw Amsterdam. Like you, we never missed a performance and was just blown away. I also enjoyed them on the main stage during the BBC Earth presentations. I was completely caught off guard that during the recent retrofit, HAL left this room empty and did not attempt to change it into something. HAL states that Lincoln Center will be on select ships as a main stage performance but I have yet to hear of a sailing where that is the case. Thanks for sharing and for watching as always!
There's a smoking section?
Yes - it is at the aft (back) of the ship beside the adults only pool. Depending on the wind, it make the entire deck smokey.
Wow, that’s unfortunate. I’m taking my family on The NA to Alaska in May.
Thank you for the response. @@seemoreseascruises3791
I noticing the rails to be low. Celebrity Equinox has plexiglass in addition to the rails that makes it safer.
That is an interesting observation. I have never felt that there was any safety issue with the railings on Nieuw Amsterdam or Eurodam. I have sailed on them both - they are basically identical. Equinox also has no added plexi on each side of the pool deck - Only on the upper outside decks along the lawn club & forward kids club and Basketball court.
@@seemoreseascruises3791 correct. Equinox don’t have plexiglass on every railing. But it does have in most of those that goes outside of the ship on the upper deck or floor. I guess as another protection against the winds. I felt very safe walking on that upper deck, I have never been on Holland.
@@StrivingMen I completely agree about the wind protection. That is very nice on the Solstice Class ships from Celebrity. We are going to be on the Eclipse in two weeks up in Canada so that should be very helpful! Thanks for sharing and for watching!
@@seemoreseascruises3791 you are welcome. Would you say that the Niew Amsterdam is comparable to the Celebrity Equinox ? In safety, quality and food ?
@@StrivingMen I do think that they are very comparable with service levels, safety, quality of product and food. In my opinion, the main dining rooms are very similar in quality and service but Celebrity has the edge in buffet. Both the quality and the design of the buffet is better on Celebrity Equinox. HAL has the Carnival Corp buffet style with lines for each small station and it is mostly a serve it to me concept making it much slower service. I think the quality of the buffet food is also better. Both cruise lines have decreased it's offerings and quality a bit on each of the buffets in my opinion over the last several years. Entertainment is a big difference where HAL has the Music Walk which is great live music but that gets very repetitive over a 7-10 day cruise. They do.not have live music in the main theater like Celebrity does, and though HAL is brining back song and dance casts, they have been relying on a boring dance company that does performances a few nights during the cruise to recorded music with limited staging. Celebrity's main theater shows are much better. You will normally pay more for Celebrity than HAL and HAL has much more affordable all inclusive options than Celebrity. I have a full comparison of both lines on my channel.