What Does HOLLAND AMERICA Do Different To Other Cruise Lines ?

What does Holland America Line do Better Or Worse Than Other premium Cruise Lines? I explore the 5 things that Holland America Line does differently and the 5 things they do the same as other premium cruise lines they compete with like Princess Cruises, Celebrity Cruises, Cunard and P&O Cruises. I look at things like the on-board experience, facilities, dining, entertainment, fares and cabins.

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Gary Bembridge's Tips For Travellers aims to help you make more of your precious travel time and money on land and when cruising the oceans or rivers of the world. To help you, in every video I draw on my first-hand tips and advice from travelling every month for over 20 years and 77 cruises at time of making this video.

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00:00 Start
00:47 Destinations
01:19 Music
02:55 Excursions
04:43 Partners
06:00 Fares
07:24 Cruise Experience
09:01 Passenger Types
10:08 Dining

[chaselewis]

I work for HAL as a musician from time to time and they are by FAR the best company to work for.

[noreenhewson]

Their smaller ships are great. The whole family surprised our mom, and took her on an 80th birthday cruise. We were the only ship that could dock in downtown Hamilton, Bermuda. The Behemoths were stuck docking clear on the other side of the island. She passed 2 years ago. Great memories were made during that trip❤️.

[nicholaspascal]

My wife and I love HAL.Cannot wait until we can cruise again, Been on twenty HAL cruises and I can add one thing, About 90% of passengers are older hence no parties in the corridors and no mischief throughout the cruise.If you are looking for parties go elsewhere.

[sharondelagarza]

Traveled to Alaska two years ago on a Holland America cruise, and would definitely take another cruise. I've done Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian in the past, and while I enjoyed all of those, the HAL cruise had the BEST customer service I've ever experienced (and I've stayed in the penthouse on Celebrity and the Haven on Norwegian - and the HAL customer service for a standard balcony was BETTER!). The bars and entertainment were great, educational programs fantastic, food was awesome, excursions were great and there was definitely an older crowd which I actually enjoyed because it felt much more like an "adult" experience.

[playanira]

HAL = Excelence🤩 so I want to add, HAL also is one of the best places to work thats why the excelence of the service😉

[jonathanhankins]

I'm 33, and have been sailing with HAL for the last 7-8 years. I would say that comparing Royal Carribean or Norwiegian to HAL, is like comparing Disney Land to a Sandals beach resort. It's not the same kind of loud "fun"... but the richness of the experiences are unparalleled. I would much rather take in the sight of a towering wall of ice in Glacier Bay with 2-3 of the most important people in my life - than ride on a brightly colored water slide...

[TheRichsaxman]

I love their high teas in the afternoon (best pastries on any cruise lien by

[kays]

We took our first HAL trip on Oosterdam right before the big shut down. I am itching to go back. I loved Dive-in, the burgers. I loved being served in the buffet line. I loved the room service menu. I loved our balcony cabin with its little couch and table that converted from coffee table height to dining height. I loved the views from the top deck lounge. My husband loved Lincoln Center (where you had to go early to get a seat) and the non-smoking casino. We are seasoned Carnival and Princess cruisers, but we decided to try something new and loved it.

[roberthicks]

What I found with HAL is that there has been a far more diverse collection of destinations than some other cruise lines. This might be changing as smaller ships are phased out. Docking in downtown Shanghai, the San Blas Islands, St Malo, Portimão, Trapani, and Guernsey are some of my special memories with HAL.

[wcgolfpro]

Been on all the lines and found HAL (6 cruises) was very nice for a quieter venue .

[ellendial]

HAL fan here. Smaller ships. Quiet elegance. Great service. Not too many kids. Not gimmicky. Old world cruising.

Had an Alaska cruise booked on Oosterdam in May. Cancelled. Rebooking for this time next year.

[jwillis]

Used to play on these cruises with the Glenn Miller Orchestra quite often back in 1998 - 2000. They are a bit more classy than others. The passengers are usually a bit older, more mature, and the overall experience feels more relaxed. If you're looking for parties go elsewhere. Not the best for kids either although you can bring kids without any trouble. Great cruise line!

[nicolesamazingvacations]

Man the music walk is what I can’t wait to see for sure!

[kathrynmueller]

My husband and I LOVE your Tips for Travelers. You are articulate and interesting. Thank you for sharing your extensive knowledge.

[thierryvt]

I took a week-long cruise with HAL this past June to the Norwegian Fjords, it was my first cruise ever. And as first impressions go HAL was amazing. The staff, the food, the excursions. Everything was top-notch. We somehow lucked out and got a bunch of extras for free when we booked: the wifi, a drinks package (for all drinks sub 11 usd, max 15 a day I believe but we never hit that limit), a credit for specialty dining, a 100usd credit to be used at our convenience on anything except the shops and the casino.
I've always been hesitent to go on a cruise because most of them look so 'loud'. Loud parties, water slides, massive casinos, ... More a floating themepark really. And I was very happy that HAL couldn't be farther from that if they tried. Much more classy and aimed at experiences than partying which I absolutely loved.

Everything was kept meticulously clean as well, to an honestly impressive and borderline obessive degree.

The fact their ships aren't that huge is a big plus as well, we could sail through all the tiny fjords and just dock at the pier. Didn't need to use a boat once to get to land.

I literally only have one minor gripe and that's about the included sit-in dining experience. The food wasn't bad in any way, it was just very average compared to the specialty restaurants. Like most of the food was cooked in massive batches and just reheated as opposed to cooked on demand. Which makes sense given the volume they got each day.
The buffet and all the specialty restaurants though? Top notch, so we opted to eat at the specialty ones every evening except for 2 nights. One just to give the included restaurant a try and the second because it was the last evening and they were all fully booked! Ate some amazing foods and had an overall amazing time.

4.5 stars easy, honestly closer to 4.9. I'll gladly recommend anyone to take a cruise with them.

[jlawrence]

I have never cruised with Holland America and honestly, have not even looked at the line much. The quality of the information that they have provided during the recent pandemic (HAL at Home) has been so impressive that they have earned their way to the top of the list. I also like the fact that their buffet is served eliminating some of the concerns about sanitation.

[jamesbainton]

Don't forget - they offer a number of longer cruises. They have several in the 30+ day range which you do not see nearly as often on the other lines.

[heristravelvlog]

I am so proud, i been experienced and working for that cruise line company for 2 years, come on in everyone, reserve your ticket, go travel and see the world

[maggiebee]

Our first HAL cruise was to Alaska in 2015. Loved it so much that since then, we have taken HAL to the Med, the Baltic, Norway and the Caribbean. Our cruise-of-a-lifetime to Australia/NZ/Pacific islands was cancelled this year, so we have rebooked it for 2021. We love Lincoln Centre Stage, and the ambience of the ships.

[MrJimmy-oxfq]

We've sailed with HAL many, many times (as well as Carnival, NCL and Celebrity)...our opinion is that the main selling point of HAL (for us) has been their superior service level. We've never had a bad experience on HAL ever.