I will try to focus on items that may be of interest to those interested in this cruise. My wife and I went on the 14-day Kiel Canal and Baltic Treasures cruise on the ms Prinsendam (Holland America Line-HAL) in August 2011. We were joined by 3 of our relatives. Overall, the cruise was up to the usual HAL standards.

Last year when deciding on this cruise, my wife and I debated on the Eurodam versus the Prinsendam. I'm glad we decided on the ms Prinsendam. The ship is small enough to fit into the Kiel Canal; the Eurodam could not. Going through the Kiel Canal was one of the early highlights of the cruise. People who lived near the canal packed picnic lunches and came to see our ship pass by. They waved their hands, and we did waved back. Part of the mast of the Prinsendam had to be folded back so that we could fit under some of the bridges over the canal. It was a very relaxing way to spend a day looking at the countryside.

Prior to this cruise, my wife and I had only been on Vista class ships with HAL (1800-2000 or so passengers). The Prinsendam has about 800 passengers. The ship was not too small. It was "just right". You could quickly get to any part of the ship. One advantage was the Showroom at Sea where the Prinsendam Singers and Dancers performed. You were sitting closer to the stage than on a Vista class ship. You felt more connected to the performers. The Prinsendam Singers and Dancers performed on 5 nights, with an intro on the first night (leaving Amsterdam). We thought they were all very good; all the singers had wonderful voices. The showroom was dark on 2 nights, when there were evening tours (Hamburg, St. Petersburg). One disadvantage to a smaller ship is that some things don't stay open late. The soft serve ice cream station stopped serving about 8:30 pm. On the Vista Class ships, I was used to getting hot tea and soft serve ice cream after the evening show. Read more