First Time on Holland America Line: Pros, Cons & Advice from a Millennial Aged Cruiser

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Күн бұрын

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@Tom-pw2ni 6 ай бұрын

You nailed the today HAL experience. Back in the 90's they called it comfortable elegance, and for me the current HAL experience is a calm, comfortable and pleasant experience.

@daradventures 6 ай бұрын

Calm, comfortable and pleasant. That’s exactly it. That’s why I liked it. I want to have fun on vacation of course, but I do like my fun a bit more calmer these days. 😊

@chrismckinney2555 5 ай бұрын

Seemed a very fair and even-handed review. Very informative. First HAL cruise in two weeks. Very young 67yo's. Hope they listened to your music concerns.

@daradventures 5 ай бұрын

I hope you have a great time! The music really is very enjoyable, just wished for the variety, but I also understand they are going to cater to their primary demographic. Happy cruising and thanks for watching the video!

@TheDennisTodd 3 ай бұрын

@@daradventures Being 67, you will love your Holland cruise.

@FraserAtSea 5 ай бұрын

Enjoyed this! I cruised with HAL recently (as a 32 year old) and was really impressed. I was also onboard Rotterdam, and found her to be absolutely beautiful! The average age was MUCH higher than the cruises I'm used to, but I also genuinely believe that age is just a number - it really didn't bother me in the slightest!

@daradventures 5 ай бұрын

Glad you enjoyed the video and had a great experience with the Rotterdam too! She is a beautiful ship, and I really do appreciate all the history that HAL has behind it. And agreed, age is indeed just a number 😊. HAL is for specific type of cruiser, but I do believe that if you like what the line offers than go for it regardless of your age!

6 ай бұрын

Nice review, but let's be honest -- you are far more intelligent, and sophisticated than the typical ("me, me, me") Millennial. Well done. Honest, and very perceptive.

@daradventures 6 ай бұрын

Well thanks for the compliments! Glad to hear I came off as reasonably intelligent sounding in this one 🙂

@dyrectory_com 3 ай бұрын

I was on Zaandam this summer. The live band music, re: for dancing was for, in my opinion, the 65+ crowd. I couldn't dance to those beats. I focused on the food, exercising and putting myself out there to socialize. It was my first cruise and I enjoyed myself thoroughly. We had a full week of sun for an Alaskan cruise, a rarity from what I was told. Everything you said was on point.

@daradventures 3 ай бұрын

Glad you had a good first experience! Yeah the music for dancing is definitely geared to the older crowd. I wish they would mix it up a bit more! No bad weather in Alaska for a full week does seem like pretty solid luck 👍🏻

@norayancey4282 6 ай бұрын

We took our first HAL cruise when we were in our 30’s/40’s with our 16/17 yr olds. Had an absolute blast and have continued to sail with them since.

@daradventures 6 ай бұрын

That’s awesome! It’s so nice finding a cruise line that works for you. Like having an old friend always waiting on standby whenever you’re ready for some fun time at sea.

@JeffreyEdwards 5 ай бұрын

@DarAdventures, thanks so much for this video! It seemed to address so many questions I had. We are in the same age range as you and yours, so it was the perfect fit. I'm excited to check out the tour after seeing this one.

@daradventures 5 ай бұрын

I'm glad it was helpful to you! This was first time doing a "talking head" style video, but there wasn't much content out there about Holland America coming from people in my age demographic, so I'm really happy to hear people are finding it helpful when figuring out what will work best for their vacations. Thanks for the comment, and if you do sail with HAL I hope you have a great time :-)

@briannickerson6858 2 ай бұрын

We started taking HAL cruises when we were in our mid fifties, after taking our first cruises on Princess. Early in our HAL experience, we were in the younger demographic. Now, we are on the other side. And we love the three week cruises for the past twenty years. It’s certainly not for the party crowd or the amusement park people. That is certainly a plus for us it was when we first boarded our first HAL ship.

@daradventures 2 ай бұрын

Three weeks at sea does seem pretty nice 😊. Finding the right cruise line is such an important factor for enjoying the experience. Thanks for the comment!

@ajshacannon7235 3 ай бұрын

Great video and overview of the line. Helps me to make my decision.

@daradventures 3 ай бұрын

Glad to hear the video was helpful! Thanks for the comment.

@jhollie8196 6 ай бұрын

Truly enjoy HAL ships. Been on 5 so far and we found all great except 1. We did not care for the Zaandam. Did 14 days on her in Feb 2023. The ship is old, the mid ship organ did not work, very few,shops (singular), food was so-so, and entertainment was horrible. The only thing we did enjoy was the crew. Pinnacle Grill, Neptune Lounge and our room stewards were awesome. We did a midship Neptune Suite. Not enough USB and outlets. Tv stopped working every 4 days and had to have the system reset. Thanks for sharing and safe sailings

@daradventures 6 ай бұрын

Oh that sounds frustrating. Unfortunately longer sailings tend to be on the older ships, which of course come with more problems. Surprised to hear the entertainment and food was subpar, would have thought that was something they’d keep consistent across the line. Glad to hear you’ve had mostly positive experiences though!

@doreenfriel7039 4 ай бұрын

Great video! Very well-thought-out and accurate. You had me on the floor with your gold bar comment! 🤣🤣🤣 Pro tip for sailing around the holidays: To avoid the kids during the day, book a private cabana in The Retreat. It’s peaceful and relaxing and they don’t allow small children there.

@daradventures 4 ай бұрын

Thank you for the compliment! That’s excellent advice for the private cabana. It didn’t have a separate pool, but it did have its own hot tub and peace and quiet, which definitely would have been appreciated during some of those louder moments at the Lido pool. Thanks for commenting!

@heathergetzingerwestphal7450 5 ай бұрын

Great video! 🤩 One thing I will say about the music, though, is that my friend and I are young Gen Xers who sailed on board Holland America’s Koningsdam this past November, and the musicians at B.B. King’s Blues Club performed both Tracy Chapman’s “Give Me One Reason” (1995) and Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” (2013) (with “radio edit” lyrics, LOL). So, we definitely heard some more recent hit songs than it seems you did during your experience. 🎶🛳️🎶

@daradventures 5 ай бұрын

Ah that’s good to hear! Hopefully they are starting to branch out a bit into more recent decades, of course it is possible that I randomly missed the more modern songs on my sailing too 🙃. Thanks for watching the video, glad you liked it!

@richardlo4867 2 ай бұрын

Very fair observations. I feel Holland America has a target market issue. On the one hand it wants to attract (somewhat) younger cruisers running 3rd and 4th passenger free campaigns, OTOH it added light jazz trios as another music option - that's country club music from the black and white movie days!

@daradventures 2 ай бұрын

that’s actually a good point - maybe a bit of conflicting ideas on their end on how they should move forward to appeal to newer and younger passengers. I do wish the music had more variety. I can enjoy a nice jazz trio, but would also appreciate some music that I grew up with! Thanks for taking the time to comment.

@davidhurwitz2291 4 ай бұрын

Very comprehensive review. We have sailed on 50+ cruises on 7 different lines, but never on Holland America. We are planning on taking a Caribbean cruise on the Nieux Statendam next winter. Looking forward to a different cruise experience after 27 Celebrity cruises. We have also sailed on Viking cruises. We started cruising when we were 40 years old and are now in our 70’s. The lectures and art projects appeal to me. Also looking to play Mah Jong on board. The ships with 6000 passengers and slides and climbing walls are not for us. Old fashioned cruising is what we have always enjoyed.

@daradventures 4 ай бұрын

Thanks for the compliment! I have not yet tried Celebrity, I’m really keen on giving them a shot. Hoping to try out one of their newer ships sometime soon. I hope you’ll like Holland America! If you like small to mid size ships and the more traditional cruise experience then I think you’ll have a good experience with them. Happy cruising!

@davidhurwitz2291 4 ай бұрын

@@daradventures We love Celebrity’s Edge class ships (3200 passengers). We will sail on the Celebrity Apex in January, get off the ship and take a cab to the Holland America ship in the same port (different dock). It will be interesting to compare the two ships.

@daradventures 4 ай бұрын

@@davidhurwitz2291 fun! I did a back to back on two lines a couple of years ago - it was cool to compare experiences that way. I hope you have an awesome time!

@conniehom6798 4 ай бұрын

I was curious what you Might say about Holland America. My daughter is 37 and Holland America is the only cruise line she would consider sailing on again. BTW The service at the LIDO buffet has been that way for years. It has nothing to do with COVID. Regular HAL cruisers appreciate the extra steps they take in sanitation avoiding cross contamination. The sneeze guards are perfect. Holland America has one of the highest health and sanitation records in the industry. That is why five generations of our family love Holland America so much. Sorry the children took over the pool and hot tub. There is another pool in the back of each ship that the children usually don't visit. During school holidays HAL often allows children 17 or under cruise free. This is most likely why you saw so many children on your second leg. Thank you for covering the info on the back to back cruises. We took a recent two week cruise but it was continuous. Your information was helpful in the event we take two separate legs of a cruise. I learned something from you even though we have cruised with HAL for decades. Thank you.

@daradventures 4 ай бұрын

Yes, a couple of other cruisers mentioned that the Lido buffet has been that way since pre-covid times, it was an incorrect assumption on my part! It is nice that they have been taking extra steps on sanitization since before the pandemic, I definitely appreciate that, since cruises can be such hotspots for diseases spreading on board - I do still think there is room for improvement with the slowness of getting food though. I didn't know they had one of the best records in the industry for health and sanitation - that is a HUGE selling point, they should talk about that more often! I've come across more than one person who doesn't want to try cruising because of the concern over diseases spreading. We did spend some time at the back pool, which had considerably fewer kids, but the back pool on the Rotterdam was also home to the smoking section, and we didn't like having to be so close to all the smoke. But no cruise or setup is perfect! Thanks for taking the time to write out such a lengthy comment, I appreciate having the dialogue! And I'm really happy to hear that even though you're a well seasoned HAL traveler, you learned something new from my video. Such a great compliment! Glad I am contributing in my own small way :-)

@diannebrideson2368 4 ай бұрын

My first HAL cruise will be in November on Amsterdam. Thanks for the video.

@daradventures 4 ай бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it, and thanks for commenting! I hope you have a wonderful cruise.

@AdamK3l 5 ай бұрын

Thank you for the review! very informative! :)

@daradventures 5 ай бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

@markweaver2188 2 ай бұрын

Wow. Another great review and commentary.

@daradventures 2 ай бұрын

Thank you kindly!

@Juliehomevideo 5 ай бұрын

We're loyal Holland America cruisers. My husband and I are GenXers. This seems to be the demographic they are trying to entice right now because the boomers are getting older. I've noticed more people in our generation love HAL. We're not partiers and want a quiet vacation. We also came of age in the 80s so music is important to us. We're taking our millennial daughter on soon, so we'll see if she likes it. Also, you can update the beverage package to the elite package and it covers more if you want the more expensive beverages. Beverages that are fully covered don't show up on your bill.

@daradventures 5 ай бұрын

Yes, it makes sense that they would start trying to appeal to the Gen X demographic. We did consider upgrading the beverage package, just to eliminate the annoyance of all the tiny charges, but in the end it wasn’t anywhere near worth it for us, as we don’t order enough drinks per day to make up the cost difference. It is good to note that this is an option though! Curious how your millennial aged daughter will enjoy the experience - I hope your family has a lovely vacation!

@scottlenyo8579 5 ай бұрын

We have sailed on a couple of HAL cruises and do like the line as a matter fact we’re going to be on the Rotterdam in September. I was born in the 1960s and even I think that the typical passenger skews much older than me. I do wish they would play some music genres not from so far in the past, that being said we really do like, HAL

@daradventures 5 ай бұрын

The Rotterdam is lovely, you’ll have a nice experience. Yeah I’m curious to experience the line outside of school holiday time. I didn’t feel out of place on our sailing, but I’m curious of my opinion would change we had sailed at a different time of year.

@T-SS78 6 ай бұрын

Great video. Thanks. The footage of the docks at Cozumel seemed too familiar. Then I realized we were there the same day sailing on Sky Princess. While looking at the Rotterdam we both agreed what a pretty ship she is.

@daradventures 6 ай бұрын

Small world! I too very much like the aesthetic of the Holland America ships…feels a bit like a step back in time. I haven’t tried Princess yet, they do sail out of my home port so hoping to give them a try at some point soon! Thanks for watching the video and glad you enjoyed!

@rogerward801 4 ай бұрын

@@daradventuresBoth are part of the Carnival Cruise group

@jlawrence0181 5 ай бұрын

We have done the Konigsdam and the Eurodam. We like the food, the great service, and the entertainment. Like Celebrity, staff ALWAYS greets you when you get on and off the ship and always has a cold beverage to greet you with. I think that the only thing that I do not like is that if you get seated with certain longtime HAL cruisers, you have to listen to the "nothing is like it was 30 years ago" lectures. The only thing we do not like about the ship is the pandemonium in the MDR on the first night on every cruise. We learned that the first night's menu is less impressive than the rest of the cruise so we head up to the buffet that night. Personally, the Dive In hamburgers are the best I have had on a cruise ship. Also, we like that the Promenade Deck allows you to walk around the entire ship somewhat covered from the elements. As for children, both of our cruises have been during school times (1st week of December, 1st week of January) and there have been 15-20 children on board and their presence was barely noticed. I do NOT like the served buffet as I like to try a very small quantity of many dishes. Instead, I would get full portions of small dishes which led to more waste (and more waist) Your video was quite good.

@daradventures 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for the compliment and thoughtful comment! I haven't tried Celebrity yet, they are next on my list of new lines to try. I've heard really good and really bad things, but I think I'll enjoy their new ships so excited to sail with them when I can fit it into my schedule. Oh that's interesting feedback on the MDR for the first night... we usually end up at the buffet too, mostly just with all the travel and jet lag we often aren't in the mood to dress up and have a sit down meal. And YES on wrap around Promenade decks!!! A lot of newer ships don't have these, and I hate that they are falling out of favor. To me it's an essential classic feature, to be able to stroll around the ship. Yeah I'm the same with the buffet, I like being able to put like a tablespoon of 15 different things on my plate if I want to, but with this style of buffet that's really just not feasible. I imagine those 15-20 kids were probably quite bored :-/ Taking kids on HAL during the school year is probably not the best recipe to create lifelong fans of cruising.

@jlawrence0181 5 ай бұрын

@@daradventures If we weren't such budget travelers (our target is under $100 pppd fare+fees+grats-OBC), we would be on a Windstar for yacht with less than 300 people on a cruise with no sea days. However, instead we are doing b2b2b cruises looking for deals on the Vacations to Go website. If you liked HAL, you will probably like the M-class and S- class ships on Celebrity and Princess. They have more similarities than differences

@jonellegressman6475 6 ай бұрын

Thanks for the information! Cruising 1st time on HA in 2025. We are in our 50s, but I know I would like some generational music variety as you mentioned.

@daradventures 6 ай бұрын

exciting! I hope you have a great first sailing - what ship are you on? I think you’ll enjoy the music regardless, it may not skew much into the more recent decades but the musicians truly are top notch.

@chuckleavitt4309 4 ай бұрын

Thanks. The paperwork with drinks and signing seems to be a big problem with many reviews and reviewers!!

@daradventures 4 ай бұрын

It was annoying. Not enough to ruin the trip or to not recommend the line, just a frustrating little thing to have to do all the time.

@CatherineCarrasco-b2t 4 ай бұрын

What selfie stick and camera do you use for your videos? Great review! I really got the gist of Holland America

@daradventures 4 ай бұрын

Glad you found it helpful! I use a variety of cameras, depending on the situation. The talking head shots along with lot of the deck by deck tour footage of the Rotterdam were filmed on a Sony A7 IV. I film a lot on my iphone as well, which is only a 12, although I do hope to upgrade that to the newest model at the end of the year - the footage quality is much better with the newer phones. For stabilization for the iphone I use a DJI OM 5 gimbal. I also mix in some shots from my Insta360 X3.

@lindamurray5503 Ай бұрын

We have been on carnival cruise, and we didn't care for the music because it was too 90's for us, so we like Holland America for their music, 60's and 70's classic rock. We are the baby boomers. We liked other things too. I guess there should be a bit of both on all Carnival Cruise Ships.

@daradventures Ай бұрын

Each line goes after a different target audience, but I think a little bit of variety is nice to have, regardless of the line.

@user73958 6 ай бұрын

The staff served you in the buffet even before Covid, most other lines are fully self serve for the food in the buffet.

@daradventures 6 ай бұрын

Yes, I learned that recently - good to know! I made an incorrect assumption on their strategy.

@charlesrichard8601 5 ай бұрын

Would suggest 45yrs old & up, the only problem I have personally had with HAL is it seems the alcohol beverages are very week & only like 4.2% beer. Get a drink package you are going to need it.

@daradventures 5 ай бұрын

That’s certainly a fair assessment. I can’t imagine going on any cruise without the drink package 🙃

@lindamurray5503 Ай бұрын

Your videos are very good 👍

@daradventures Ай бұрын

Thanks for the compliment! Glad you enjoyed watching 🙂

@HughSteckel 3 ай бұрын

I like the demographics of HAL. Your video was spot on!

@daradventures 3 ай бұрын

Thank you! Appreciate the kind words.

@noelreynolds4861 4 ай бұрын

The customs requirements for b2b cruises are readily available before hand. Being surprised by them is a shortcoming of planning, not of the cruise line. JS

@daradventures 4 ай бұрын

Yes, but they could have definitely been made clearer, and as I said in the video, we were not faultless in this either 😃. Thanks for the comment!

@noelreynolds4861 4 ай бұрын

@@daradventures Could have been made more clear. Nice, when did society drop to the least common denominator mentality? Maybe, and I'm just postulating a bit, people should rise to the occasion, not expect the bar to be lowered.

@stevepaton2093 Ай бұрын

My recent HAL cruise was full of old people.

@daradventures Ай бұрын

Yes, it tends to skew older - especially for longer itineraries and when school is in session.

@steveee2511 6 ай бұрын

i first cruised hal with 37, now going again with 38

@bonniebaird4240 4 ай бұрын

Having to pay for drinks on Half Moon, is that because of Bahamian law?

@daradventures 4 ай бұрын

@@bonniebaird4240 that’s an interesting suggestion as to why we have to pay. I’ll have to look into that, unless anyone else scanning the comments happens to know the answer? 😀

@paulj4228 5 ай бұрын

The best thing is they don't have six to 7,000 people on the ship biggest ship has only around 2800 to 3,000

@daradventures 5 ай бұрын

Yes, their ships are in that sweet spot - not too big too be overwhelming but large enough to have lots going on.

@TheDennisTodd 3 ай бұрын

Don't take this wrong, but you are stating the obvious. Holland's ships are built and designed for the 55+ crowd, and they have done a fantastic job executing this. You are correct...the food is delicious.