We originally chose this cruise because of the shore excursions. The excursions, for the most part were very good, although the timing of getting to and from them was certainly not done for customer convenience. In one instance we had two shuttles returning to the boat. they would not let us get on the first one which left half full. the second now was stuffed with not space to move, and no air ...
We chose this cruise because we didn't feel up to going to Europe this year. Never having been to Alaska, we felt that the three-hour flight to Seattle wouldn't be too taxing and then a leisurely, relaxing cruise of seven days with no jet lag would be just the ticket. We opted for Holland America to assign our rooms and when, the week before, we were assigned Room we were at first happy. Back of ...
We chose this cruise to use up a cruise credit from a previously cancelled cruise and based on our previous Hal cruise which was fantastic in all respects.
Unfortunately this cruise did not live up to our expectations even when compared to our cruises on the lesser rated lines. first of all we arrived at the terminal in Vancouver at our assigned time 10:20 am only to pass through customs ...
We spent a lot of time, choosing this cruise and the reputation of Holland America was a major factor. It was a bucket list item, a once in a lifetime, “let’s go see Alaska”, and we took our adult handicapped nephew with us. We are his guardians and could not have been more clear with Holland America regarding our nephews limitations and the necessity for adjoining rooms, even calling several ...
Weather as expected, cool & rainy, but it was great weather for reading a book and watching the scenery go by. We did this cruise the first time in 2014 and thought it would be fun to do again...and it was. Biggest change is Canada has now restricted speed to 10 knots an hour to protect whales in area. We thought this was a great change although it did cut time in port by an hour to several in ...
Friends invited us to join them on a cruise to Alaska. I've never been on a cruise before and was really nervous about being on the water. It was perfect weather for t shirts and shorts the entire trip. We went to Juneau, Sitka, etc. We saw whales, black bears, sea otters, seals, eagles and lots of seagulls. There were very few vegan or plant based options. Only almond milk as a non dairy ...
I'll break this into pros and cons.
PROS. The ship is a perfect size with a good layout. It is generally clean. Very little vibration and mostly at the back. Seemed to be in good repair. I found the beds a little hard but my wife liked them.
THE FOOD. Generally good and better than many other lines. Buffet selections varied from day to day with some common themes like Asian, Carving ...
I was desperate to cruise again after 3 years of Covid restrictions. The price was right, the itinerary was familiar, and I had not previously sailed on Koningsdam. I achieved 4 Star Mariner status on this cruise so I believe I had reasonable expectations based on 195 Holland America days at the start of the cruise. The ship is very nice but has a starkness about it. The staff, as usual, were ...
This was our first Holland America cruise. This was our second trip to Alaska. The first trip to Alaska was on Celebrity and we did the land plus cruise experience. This trip was cruise only. Initially, the reason we selected Holland America was the fact that they are one of very few lines that can cruise Glacier Bay. (Celebrity does not). When it is simply my wife and I we have tended to ...
This was our 6th HAL cruise. Our interest in this crossing was sparked by the interesting ports (Cork, Waterford, Torquay, and Dover) in Ireland and the UK. Our cabin stewards (Rio and Ewan) were phenomenal and kept the cabin in perfect shape. They are assigned approximately 35 cabins to take care of by HAL which is an unreasonable workload. We had great dinner and lunch in the Pinnacle Grill with ...