It was nice not to feel compelled to write a detailed analysis of our week on the Nieuw Amsterdam, but I feel I should, at a minimum, share a few thoughts about our experience, especially as it compares to Princess. This is another one of those posts that will only interest fellow cruisers, so you might want to just keep moving if you're an avowed land lubber.
Good things
We love having a retractable glass roof over the main pool area. On days when the weather has been bad all day (the non-Half Moon Cay day) or frequently changeable (the next day), the roof is opened and closed as required. This provides a large top deck area for people to be, and doesn't force them down to the interior areas of the ship.
The pool and hot tub areas are never crowded. We could always find a deck chair mid sea day (though not always by a pool). In fact, nothing on this ship seems crowded.
The elevators are the best. They almost always arrive empty and quickly, we like the four panorama elevators that run up the outer sides of the ship. Let's put it this way: you never hear anyone talking about the elevators on the Nieuw Amsterdam. They're a non-issue. Just the way elevators should be.
Our balcony was nicely sized and fully covered. Except for when there was a blowing rain, I was able to enjoy many hours out there. The cushioned wicker furniture and ottoman were classy and in perfect condition. However, we were reminded Friday afternoon about why we don't often opt for a balcony cabin when one of our neighbors chose to dock their iPhone in some speakers and blare music for two hours that entertained (?) our entire side of the ship. No, balcony cabins are far less private and quiet than insides, and, though nice to have on occasion, are not mandatory for us.
The bathroom...OMG the bathroom. The bathtub was fully flat on the bottom, and lots of grab bars made getting in and out to shower easy and safe. The water was hot, the flow strong, and the hand held shower head a nice bonus. Also nice- one of us could be standing at the sink doing ablutions while the other was standing behind them toweling off post shower (a trick not do-able in a standard Princess bathroom). I disliked the faucet at the sink (separate hot and cold handles with the hot one hard to reach), but I could live with that one fault. The bath towels are amazing...almost bath sheets, but not so thick as to be unusable. All in all, an A+.
There's also a full fledged movie theater on board that shows a different movie all day, every day. I'm not one to sit in a dark theater and watch a movie, but if I was, that would be great. There are also a lot of different card and game rooms available, if that's your thing.
The Crows Nest is like Skywalkers on Princess ships, but at the front of the ship instead of the back. Along the front, glassed windows are leather recliners that provide divine views off the bow of the ship. Lots of sleeping in there all day long, I'm sure. On the Nieuw Amsterdam, the impressive library (it's huge), Internet cafe and coffee bar called the Explorations Cafe has been moved from a lower deck to share the Crows Nest space. I love this, and always intend to spend some time up there reading one of the many current magazines, but on this cruise, especially with our own balcony, I just didn't make it.
The fitness center is small but totally adequate. The wide Promenade Deck provides a lot of room for walkers (and cushioned teak loungers). However, we do have a difference of opinion on the value of a wide promenade (see below).
There are many more free activities to choose from that Princess would charge extra for (or has abandoned altogether) such as computer classes sponsored by Microsoft, cooking classes in the ship's Culinary Arts Center and serious craft classes. Port lectures focus more on what to see and do vs. what to buy, and that's nice too.
There was nothing really bad about the Nieuw Amsterdam, but there were a few areas where we prefer how Princess does things.
HAL still allows smoking on stateroom balconies. With no where else to go as more and more cruise lines outlaw smoking in passenger cabins or on balconies, more smokers have been forced onto HAL. 'Nuff said.
I actually preferred our Royal Princess mattress and bed linens to those on the Nieuw Amsterdam. Princess has finally got this one right. HAL still uses sheets and blankets on the beds. We like the Princess way of simply using just a duvet as a topper that we've started doing that at home too. I woke every morning on the Nieuw Amsterdam tangled in sheets and laying on the mattress pad. Yuck.
The storage in our inside cabin on Princess (not just the Royal Princess; the Emerald Princess too) is way better than in our balcony cabin on the Nieuw Amsterdam. I don't like closet doors on a cruise ship; give me an open closet and cubbies. I don't want to close up my Teva sandals after a day on a beach behind closed doors with my formal outfits. You don't want me to either. ;-)
Mostly, we miss the welcoming presence that the Captains Circle host has on Princess ships, and thê Elite benefits we enjoy on Princess. We miss the free minibar setup, the free Internet, the free laundry. We miss that, on Princess, we feel special, but on Holland America we're one of the crowd. We're quickly moving up their loyalty ranks and will soon be 3 Star Mariners, and I don't mind at all paying my dues, but 3 Star Mariner status on HAL still won't get us much. No, Princess (and Celebrity and Royal Caribbean) do a much better job of incenting return business.
Good things
This cruise will be forever known in our minds as the food cruise; the food has been wonderful. Dining room, buffet, sweet potato fries (decadently delicious!). I have chosen something from nearly every course, simply to try a bit of as many things as possible. The presentation, the variety, the taste, the quality of ingredients...it's all been wonderful. I don't think HAL does seafood as well as Princess, but they do chicken, pork, beef, veal so much better that there are plenty of other things to choose from.
The service in the dining room has been a step up from anything we've experienced in the past on a Holland America ship. We've had the HAL version of Princess' Anytime Dining, which means we've had a different wait staff every night we've gone to the Manhattan Dining Room, so the service has not been highly personalized, but it's always been fairly professional. We like how our table number and names are printed on a receipt and handed to the person who directs us to our table. It's a nice touch to be addressed by name ("How was your day, Mrs. X?") while walking to our table.
HAL has the best coffee I've ever had on a cruise ship. Far and away. I drank more coffee in one week than I'd drank in four months in Princess. It's that good.
The breakfast choices in the Lido buffet are so numerous and so good that we never went to the dining room for lunch. The 8 different kinds of eggs Benedict made to order, the crepes and toppings, the waffles made fresh, the omelet station, the pastries (OMG the pastries have been the BEST!)...yes, HAL has Princess beat when it comes to food.
Cabin stewards (we have two, the primary one has an assistant) do not have housekeeping carts lining the hallway for 6 hours a day. This is wonderful. The stewards unobtrusively carry just what they need to service a cabin, and return to the housekeeping lockers located along the hallways to re-stock. Our cabin steward was polite and efficient, but a bit more reserved than those we've encountered on Princess. On the other hand, when we told him our bathroom sink was draining slowly, he thanked us for bringing it to his attention. He didn't grunt or sigh or argue with us that it wasn't draining that slowly, as our Steward Nazi on the Emerald Princess last year would have done. So it's all good.
Cabin stewards (we have two, the primary one has an assistant) do not have housekeeping carts lining the hallway for 6 hours a day. This is wonderful. The stewards unobtrusively carry just what they need to service a cabin, and return to the housekeeping lockers located along the hallways to re-stock. Our cabin steward was polite and efficient, but a bit more reserved than those we've encountered on Princess. On the other hand, when we told him our bathroom sink was draining slowly, he thanked us for bringing it to his attention. He didn't grunt or sigh or argue with us that it wasn't draining that slowly, as our Steward Nazi on the Emerald Princess last year would have done. So it's all good.
We love having a retractable glass roof over the main pool area. On days when the weather has been bad all day (the non-Half Moon Cay day) or frequently changeable (the next day), the roof is opened and closed as required. This provides a large top deck area for people to be, and doesn't force them down to the interior areas of the ship.
The pool and hot tub areas are never crowded. We could always find a deck chair mid sea day (though not always by a pool). In fact, nothing on this ship seems crowded.
There is a dedicated movie theater that shows a movie several times throughout the day and evening. Some people never miss it.
All HAL cruises have a Catholic priest on board who offers Mass every day. That's pretty rare on a cruise ship these days; in fact, I think HAL is the only remaining cruise line that does that.
The elevators are the best. They almost always arrive empty and quickly, we like the four panorama elevators that run up the outer sides of the ship. Let's put it this way: you never hear anyone talking about the elevators on the Nieuw Amsterdam. They're a non-issue. Just the way elevators should be.
Our balcony was nicely sized and fully covered. Except for when there was a blowing rain, I was able to enjoy many hours out there. The cushioned wicker furniture and ottoman were classy and in perfect condition. However, we were reminded Friday afternoon about why we don't often opt for a balcony cabin when one of our neighbors chose to dock their iPhone in some speakers and blare music for two hours that entertained (?) our entire side of the ship. No, balcony cabins are far less private and quiet than insides, and, though nice to have on occasion, are not mandatory for us.
The bathroom...OMG the bathroom. The bathtub was fully flat on the bottom, and lots of grab bars made getting in and out to shower easy and safe. The water was hot, the flow strong, and the hand held shower head a nice bonus. Also nice- one of us could be standing at the sink doing ablutions while the other was standing behind them toweling off post shower (a trick not do-able in a standard Princess bathroom). I disliked the faucet at the sink (separate hot and cold handles with the hot one hard to reach), but I could live with that one fault. The bath towels are amazing...almost bath sheets, but not so thick as to be unusable. All in all, an A+.
Towel animals. What can I say? Like pillow chocolates at night, they're not necessary but they're nice. And they turned us in to kids each night when we returned to our cabin for the evening.
Our standard balcony cabin had a love seat, separate chair, hassock for the vanity and large coffee table. It was the equivalent of the new Deluxe Balcony cabins on the Royal Princess...with a much better bathroom, balcony and balcony furniture. The Royal Princess really fails its balcony passengers; luckily, we generally aren't two of them.
Our standard balcony cabin had a love seat, separate chair, hassock for the vanity and large coffee table. It was the equivalent of the new Deluxe Balcony cabins on the Royal Princess...with a much better bathroom, balcony and balcony furniture. The Royal Princess really fails its balcony passengers; luckily, we generally aren't two of them.
Room service is significantly better on HAL than on Princess. We can order anything from the dining room breakfast, lunch or dinner menus at the appropriate times to be delivered to our cabin. And a lot of people do; the crew dedicated to room service on this ship must be huge. Besides the dining room menus, there is a 24-hour room service menu to order from too, including breakfast on disembarkation morning. Did we ever order room service? No, you know that eating in our cabin just isn't our style. But if it was...it would have been great.
We love the ability to check out DVDs free of charge. Every cabin is equipped with a DVD player built into the side of the flat panel TV. Pick up the phone, place an order, and it's delivered a few minutes later. We spent a lot of sea day hours early in the cruise rotating between a video on TV and the sitting on the balcony watching the water go by.
We love the ability to check out DVDs free of charge. Every cabin is equipped with a DVD player built into the side of the flat panel TV. Pick up the phone, place an order, and it's delivered a few minutes later. We spent a lot of sea day hours early in the cruise rotating between a video on TV and the sitting on the balcony watching the water go by.
There's also a full fledged movie theater on board that shows a different movie all day, every day. I'm not one to sit in a dark theater and watch a movie, but if I was, that would be great. There are also a lot of different card and game rooms available, if that's your thing.
The Crows Nest is like Skywalkers on Princess ships, but at the front of the ship instead of the back. Along the front, glassed windows are leather recliners that provide divine views off the bow of the ship. Lots of sleeping in there all day long, I'm sure. On the Nieuw Amsterdam, the impressive library (it's huge), Internet cafe and coffee bar called the Explorations Cafe has been moved from a lower deck to share the Crows Nest space. I love this, and always intend to spend some time up there reading one of the many current magazines, but on this cruise, especially with our own balcony, I just didn't make it.
The fitness center is small but totally adequate. The wide Promenade Deck provides a lot of room for walkers (and cushioned teak loungers). However, we do have a difference of opinion on the value of a wide promenade (see below).
Loved the daily newspaper highlights that are printed and available around the ship. For those desiring more, the online edition of the NYTimes is available for free.
Disembarkation is so civilized. We were allowed to wait in the comfort of our cabin until our disembarkation color was called. And our cabin was still ready when we boarded on embarkation day at noon. It's magic (and a lot of hard work behind the scenes).
There are many more free activities to choose from that Princess would charge extra for (or has abandoned altogether) such as computer classes sponsored by Microsoft, cooking classes in the ship's Culinary Arts Center and serious craft classes. Port lectures focus more on what to see and do vs. what to buy, and that's nice too.
We love being entertained by talented performers. HAL has many and varied musical venues to choose from each evening. Princess seems to believe that we want to watch the Game Show Network or American Idol at sea. No, not all of us do.
We disagree on
The Nieuw Amsterdam (and all HAL ships) has a wide promenade deck, dotted with full length, padded teak loungers. I loved walking on the promenade; G prefers what has been done on the Royal Princess, where the promenade has been eliminated in favor of some outdoor seating areas. He dislikes the multiple uses of a promenade, with some walkers, some runners, some people simply standing by the rail and viewing the water. I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on this point.
The not-so-good
The Nieuw Amsterdam (and all HAL ships) has a wide promenade deck, dotted with full length, padded teak loungers. I loved walking on the promenade; G prefers what has been done on the Royal Princess, where the promenade has been eliminated in favor of some outdoor seating areas. He dislikes the multiple uses of a promenade, with some walkers, some runners, some people simply standing by the rail and viewing the water. I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on this point.
The not-so-good
There was nothing really bad about the Nieuw Amsterdam, but there were a few areas where we prefer how Princess does things.
HAL still allows smoking on stateroom balconies. With no where else to go as more and more cruise lines outlaw smoking in passenger cabins or on balconies, more smokers have been forced onto HAL. 'Nuff said.
There have been far too many announcements by the cruise director for our taste. We did not find this to be the case on our previous HAL cruises, and I think that, as on Princess, this depends on the cruise director. Really, there's no need to re-hash the Explorer (HAL's daily activities list, like the Princess Patter) over the PA four times a day.
The cruise directors on HAL always give th appearance of being the president of the local Young Republicans club. They whole atmosphere on board is a little stuff, a little formal, and a lot of that comes from the cruise directors.
Ship temperature in general, and our cabin temperature specifically seemed to run hot...except when it was freezing cold. It was hard to regulate, so much so that the climate control we never noticed on the Royal Princess because it was always perfect was constantly being commented on on the Nieuw Amsterdam.
The dining room is so loud that, sitting across from each other at a table for two, we couldn't carry on a conversation. This was not a dining room with ambiance. Service areas for the waitstaff are open and loud and absolutely distract from the dining experience.
Service in the Lido buffet is almost non-existant. We get our own coffee, water and drinks. Stewards seem most concerned with removing dishes...before we've even finished with them. But the Indonesian wait staff seems a little more laid back on the Nieuw Amsterdam than we we experienced on the Maasdam and Noordam. That's a welcome change.
I actually preferred our Royal Princess mattress and bed linens to those on the Nieuw Amsterdam. Princess has finally got this one right. HAL still uses sheets and blankets on the beds. We like the Princess way of simply using just a duvet as a topper that we've started doing that at home too. I woke every morning on the Nieuw Amsterdam tangled in sheets and laying on the mattress pad. Yuck.
The storage in our inside cabin on Princess (not just the Royal Princess; the Emerald Princess too) is way better than in our balcony cabin on the Nieuw Amsterdam. I don't like closet doors on a cruise ship; give me an open closet and cubbies. I don't want to close up my Teva sandals after a day on a beach behind closed doors with my formal outfits. You don't want me to either. ;-)
There is a nice makeup mirror on the desk, and adequate lighting in the bathroom, but the lighting in the bedroom is not the best. Or else the dark colors just absorb all the light. Either way, our cabin didn't seem as bright as a balcony cabin should seem.
The two drawers in each night stand are so shallow as to be almost useless. Pill bottles that can stand upright on Princess barely fit lying down in these drawers. And HAL passengers definitely need room for their pill bottles!
The short desk in the cabin is cluttered the moment we entered our cabin...brochures, informational binder-type things, the ice bucket and glasses, a metal basket for fruit we don't want. This clutter makes me itch, especially when G sees that as an invitation to pile on more stuff.
This ship is not pretty. I wouldn't consider any HAL ship we've been on to be pretty. Dark colors, narrow hallways, an inward focus, an unimpressive atrium all combine to give the appearance of a nursing home. The photos in the passenger deck hallway are fun (they depict the glory days of transatlantic ship travel), but the art work in the main areas is beyond our ability to appreciate. Whereas Princess ships are highly elegant (especially the Royal Princess), there's no elegance here. IMO, of course. Also, beige is my second favorite color, and I get a lot of it on Princess (which some people describe as too vanilla). No beige on the Nieuw Amsterdam; lots of navy and deep red and gold instead.
The crew is far less diverse than on Princess, and I think that diminishes the cruise experience a bit. Dining room and cabin stewards are Indonesian; the spa, bar staff and cooks are Philippino. How boring (though we did learn to say "thank you" in additional Indonesian dialects). The crew's ability to communicate in English is not quite at Princess standards, and, overall, service seemed a little stiffer and more formal on the Nieuw Amsterdam.
The two drawers in each night stand are so shallow as to be almost useless. Pill bottles that can stand upright on Princess barely fit lying down in these drawers. And HAL passengers definitely need room for their pill bottles!
The short desk in the cabin is cluttered the moment we entered our cabin...brochures, informational binder-type things, the ice bucket and glasses, a metal basket for fruit we don't want. This clutter makes me itch, especially when G sees that as an invitation to pile on more stuff.
This ship is not pretty. I wouldn't consider any HAL ship we've been on to be pretty. Dark colors, narrow hallways, an inward focus, an unimpressive atrium all combine to give the appearance of a nursing home. The photos in the passenger deck hallway are fun (they depict the glory days of transatlantic ship travel), but the art work in the main areas is beyond our ability to appreciate. Whereas Princess ships are highly elegant (especially the Royal Princess), there's no elegance here. IMO, of course. Also, beige is my second favorite color, and I get a lot of it on Princess (which some people describe as too vanilla). No beige on the Nieuw Amsterdam; lots of navy and deep red and gold instead.
The crew is far less diverse than on Princess, and I think that diminishes the cruise experience a bit. Dining room and cabin stewards are Indonesian; the spa, bar staff and cooks are Philippino. How boring (though we did learn to say "thank you" in additional Indonesian dialects). The crew's ability to communicate in English is not quite at Princess standards, and, overall, service seemed a little stiffer and more formal on the Nieuw Amsterdam.
HAL celebrated its 140 year anniversary last year, and I believe some of our fellow passengers were on that maiden voyage. Yes, HAL's demographic is pretty geriatric. I believe that this 7-night cruise had passengers that seemed less feeble than on our 10-night Noordam cruise last December, but we figured the average male passenger to be mid- to late-70s and the average female passenger to be even older. This was not a ship for young people.
Mostly, we miss the welcoming presence that the Captains Circle host has on Princess ships, and thê Elite benefits we enjoy on Princess. We miss the free minibar setup, the free Internet, the free laundry. We miss that, on Princess, we feel special, but on Holland America we're one of the crowd. We're quickly moving up their loyalty ranks and will soon be 3 Star Mariners, and I don't mind at all paying my dues, but 3 Star Mariner status on HAL still won't get us much. No, Princess (and Celebrity and Royal Caribbean) do a much better job of incenting return business.
Since we've started cruising, I've wished we could combine our favorite parts of several cruise lines into one perfect one...for us. Of course, no ship and no cruise line is perfect. We work hard at not dismissing either just because it's not what we're used to. There was a point where we moved from Royal Caribbean to Celebrity, and G moaned because he would actually be hungry with no place open to eat when we returned to the ship from a day in port. Then we moved to Princess (with it's then-24 hour buffet) and food availability stopped being an issue but service became one (this has been much improved). HAL offers Itineraries that are much better than Princess' good ones and wonderful mid-sized ships, but at a price of our Princess Elite benefits and beautiful ships. I guess we're lucky we've found a home on Princess but still possess the ability to enjoy what other cruise lines offer.
Variety is the spice of life, and life is good!