Up until this cruise my wife and I had always hopped on a plane and went...well...all over. Friends who have cruised told us about the convenience, the food and the general fun they had getting on a ship; so we thought we'd try it.
Holland America's cruise from Montreal up though the St. Lawrence Seaway with stops in Quebec City, Prince Edward Island (PEI), Nova Scotia (Halifax), Bar Harbor, and terminating in Boston was far more fun than I had expected. Best of all it was relaxing. Were it not for the fact that the elevators had the day of the week printed on the carpets, we would not have known the day of the week. Except for one day that we spent at sea, each morning we arrived at a new port. We had been to both Montreal and Quebec City, but all of the other stops were new and unique. We didn't take advantage of any of the land tours, but we spent all the time we wanted at each port--some with real surprises like Charlottetown on PEI had the only knitting machine for making woolen sweaters, blankets and other woolen goods in North America. The only place the incredible woolens were available besides Charlottetown was NYC. Plus, the people in everywhere we stopped were wonderful. Canadians are terrific people to be around.
Our cabin was more on the thrifty side with an unobstructed sea view only one deck above the crew's. However, it was comfortable and was everything we needed for the little time we spent there--sleeping and showers. (We've decided to go up a few decks to the veranda staterooms in the future.)
The cabin was fine. Nice bed and enough closet space for what we brought with us. The tub-shower was ok and the built-in shampoo, soap, and conditioner dispensers made it easy to avoid dropping a bar. The crew assigned to our cabin was attentive and efficient. We did need a power bar for the electrical devices (phones, computer and other gizmos), and one of the crew brought it. Reading chair and couch was enough for us both, and the vanity for my wife was sufficient.
We walked around both the lower town right next to where the ship docked and took one-car cable car to the upper town near the castle-like hotel where we had once stayed.
Beautiful little town and fabulous people. The woolen shop was a highlight.
We walked along the waterfront and looked at the giant fiddle, but not much else.
Before we landed they gave a lecture on the Halifax explosion during WWI and how the survivors (and those less fortunate) of the Titanic were brought to Halifax. There is a great marintine museum there and some historic restaurants with great seafood.
We had to ride in on "water taxis" to get to Bar Harbor that turned out to be some of the ship's life boats. Very friendly people (Americans) and a rustic atmosphere on the main street.