This cruise was our 5th and we are loving it more every time we get out on the water! Our trip this time was a second trip to Alaska, (since we enjoyed it so much the first time!) and we choose Holland America since we have not sailed with this line before. Our previous cruise lines have been Crystal Harmony to Alaska, (the first is the best), Dawn Princess to Mexico twice, & Celebrity Constellation for fall colors out of New Jersey. We were thrilled with the trip! Hotel—We stayed at the Alexis Hotel in Seattle the night prior to embarkation. This is a small boutique hotel located downtown and a very nice alternative to the big hotels. The room was huge! We later found out that one part of the hotel previously were condo's. The hotel had exceptional service! We would stay there again. Dinner on Saturday night was a wonderful experience at the Waterfront Seafood Grill located on Pier 70. Be sure to make reservations early. Food was outstanding and service first class. It really set the mood for the rest of the trip. Embarkation—After a short ride to the pier, we arrived at 12:30 and were surprised that the lines were not longer. The entire process took about twenty minutes. It was ultra smooth. Upon entering the ship we were expertly directed to the Lido dining area for lunch. This was quite good with many made to order choices. The luggage arrived to the cabin at 1:30 pm and this gave us plenty of time to unpack and get organized. Our suite was very similar to one we had last year on Celebrity's Constellation, except the veranda was deeper with two wicker chairs, two ottomans, with a small table between. There was also a small round table with two chairs which was perfect for outdoor dining. Ship Information—The design of the interior of the ship is slightly different then we have experienced before. The "grand" foyer is there but much smaller in size. Many of the corridors have just one passage way for guests moving either forward or aft. The only time this seemed a problem was the deck area that had all the shops. Otherwise, the ship did not seem crowded to us at all. Even the elevators were a snap to show up. Service—We are big on service! And this ship did not disappoint us one bit. Our cabin steward was very polite and the cabin was cleaned twice each day. By accident we tried the free style dining on the second night out and found that we really liked it. We had wondered if not have the same wait staff would make a difference in the service, but it certainly did not. Everything worked so smoothly and everyone was very friendly and accommodating. Shore Excursions—We were very impressed with the quality of shore excursions. Sitka & Juneau were outstanding. The whale watching in Sitka was past our expectations. We were lucky enough to see humpback whales doing "bubble netting" which is how they feed. Wow, the pictures are keepers! Food—Overall the food was very good! The Lido cafe was the best of any ship; the dining room was equal to Celebrity in every way and room service was always prompt. Only one small complaint was the one night we dined at the speciality restaurant. My husband's rib eye steak was very tough! The staff was not wanting to change it out, so he just endured it. Entertainment—We did not see every show but we would say that the entertainment was only average at best. The broadway show we saw was just "more of the same" that we have seen on other ships. We are not hard of hearing, but the music was just to loud! Disembarkation—HAL has hit the mark in this area!! It was so smooth it stunned us! There were no lines, no fighting to get on the elevators, no looking for a place to sit. What made it so easy was that passengers were allowed to stay in their cabins until their disembarkation color/number was called. Since we had a late flight, we went to the Lido Cafe for breakfast and then back to the room. We were called at 10:30 am and off the ship we went. Shore side, the luggage was extremely well organized, & lots of help on where to go.

Summary—Would we sail with HAL again??? And that would be a resounding "yes"! The captain runs a tight ship and it shows! We look forward to cruising with them again!!