Stateroom Tours Series: What The (Smallest) Solo Oceanview Cabin Aboard Holland America’s Nieuw Statendam Is Really Like And See What I Ultimately Rank It

Starting with this one because I did an absolute rubbish job of getting pictures of my cabin! But I did get some videos so you can catch a quick peek of the room plus see what it was like sailing on the North Sea! Warning there is a little salty language so those who will be offended by an F-bomb should skip the second YouTube video.

SHIP SPECS

• CRUISE LINE – SHIP: Holland America Line (HAL) – Nieuw Statendam Class: HAL Pinnacle Class 
• YEARS OF SERVICE INFO: Built: 2018 Last Refurbished: November 2023
• SHIP STATS: The Nieuw Statendam is a 975 ft long, 100K ton cruise ship with 1,339 cabins and suites (including 30 accessible). Max capacity of 2,692 passengers with a crew of 1,025 people.  13 decks with 12 that are passenger accessible and 8 that have cabins
• Want to see more of the Nieuw Statendam? Read this for my review on the entire ship

HAL NIEUW STATENDAM OCEANVIEW CABIN TOUR

STATEROOM SIZE / CONFIGURATION

As you can see by the fire escape plan that 1001 is the smallest cabin on the Nieuw Statendam and as it is intended for a solo traveler, there is a single bed (vs double for the standard Oceanview) topped with a plush mattress topper and is only 127 square feet (11.8 square meters)

There are two drawers in the nightstand and three more by the desk. An overhead cabinet (above the sofa if you have one) contains lifejackets and extra blankets. There is sufficient room under the bed to store suitcases.

Rooms come with a safe, mini-bar, a hair dryer and makeup mirror and a writing desk/vanity with chair. The nightstand has its own reading light along with an impressive amount of outlets: a USB port and U.S.-style socket on either side of the bed. Additional outlets (three U.S., two European sockets and another USB) can be found on the desk.

Rooms are energy-efficient and require keycards to turn on the overhead and bathroom lights.

The flat screen TV was well used on this trip from watching Euro24 matches to being able to stream some of the Port Overviews directly in my cabin. Note that you are required to view a safety video before you’re able to navigate to any other channels on the television.

BATHROOM SIZE / CONFIGURATION

Bathrooms are glossy with tan marblesque tile, glass shelving and lit mirrors, and they are all about the same standard size until you move up to premium suites. Showers have massaging showerheads, frameless glass doors and a footrest for shaving legs.

BATHROOM AMENITIES/PRODUCTS

By FAR, the best bathroom amenities from any cruise line I have sailed with as there are dispensers of Elemis-branded bath gel, shampoo and conditioner. First I love that you get shampoo and conditioner which isn’t common as many line will provide a shampoo/conditioner combo product. And secondly there is lotion which also isn’t commonly provided with mainstream cruise lines. For those that aren’t into beauty products, Elemis is a premium, luxury brand (as in this is what I encountered in the British Airways Galleries First Class Lounge bathrooms!)

STATEROOM LOCATION

This cabin was at the very front of the ship on the lowest passenger occupied deck which meant it was a particularly noisy room with there being loud booms when the ship would slam down or hit ways. In addition, this is at the end of a hallway with an entry point for crew to access their quarters. Which means that you might hear them at all hours of the day: with the access door being slammed shut or many times with the conversation between crew members.

COMPARISON VS OTHER OCEANVIEWS ON NIEUW STATENDAM

This is the smallest cabin on the Nieuw Statendam at only 127 square feet.

There are 12 other solo oceanview cabins on this ship and can reach up to 172 square feet vs the standard (that can fit two to four people) cabins ranging from 175 square feet to 228 square feet. While most rooms offer picture windows, some offer floor-to-ceiling windows. Some solo oceanview rooms come with two twin beds that can be converted into a queen (mine was a single twin bed), and all come with a plush mattress topper.

The oceanview is not technically obstructed but the location of the cabin does mean that there’s a big metal bar and thick glass panels as waves can reach this deck.

OVERALL RATING OF STATEROOM

My overall rating for this stateroom is a 7.1 with the caveat that the lower rating is based strictly on location and for this specific sailing but I cannot ignore the fact that I couldn’t sleep on the cruise due to noise and crashing into the waves. Just for context, if I had been on a smoother sailing and the stateroom location wasn’t a factor at all, the ranking would have been significantly higher – probably in the high 7s maybe even low 8s!

I can understand the allure for those who are paying cash and traveling solo on how this cabin would make a lot of sense financially. But be aware especially if you are sensitive to noise or motion as my YouTube video shows the reality of what sailing on the North Sea can be like in this stateroom! Full disclosure, this was a casino comp cruise but haha you can see that even with having the cruise fare waived and only having to pay the taxes and fee portion for the sailing didn’t impact my rating. Furthermore this was technically a complimentary upgrade as I was booked into an interior room but in truth, I would have rather opted to stay an interior room due to the location of the cabin if given the choice!

And I will also add this caveat to these reviews, there is an element that makes it a little difficult for me to include ratings as I struggle with whether giving this type of assessment is the right thing to do. Maybe I should just do a tour? But I strive to be honest with you so you can decide if this is the right fit for you – and perhaps it’s a case of going in with realistic expectations or booking it for an itinerary that is likelier to be smooth sailing?

Lastly, I do want to note a few things: surprising this sailing made me really like Holland America (they’re my second favorite line to cruise with!) due to how the (devastating) itinerary change was handled. A lot of that was due to the incredible cruise and travel director, Clare! (read her remarkable tale here) but there’s a lot that Holland America as a cruise line does well. Most importantly, the cruise and the trip were absolutely incredible and even if I didn’t get very much sleep, I am so happy that I decided to board the ship in the end.

For more on that trip, you can check out my overview (anchor post): HAL Nieuw Statendam Nordics that has links to the full ship review, what I really paid for the trip and all of the itinerary info and much more!