We joined the Noordam in Seward for one way to Vancouver after doing the land portion to Denali. We had a signature suite on deck 6 which was quite spacious with plenty of closet and storage space. The bathroom had double sinks and a separate tub and shower. All in all the suite was extremely nice. Our room stewards Dada and Zulu were exceptional and responded to every request promptly. They were always pleasant and wanted to make certain we had what we needed or wanted.

The captain of the Noordam is the most communicative of any captain we have ever had prior, either on HAL or the other cruise lines we have sailed. He pointed out special points of interest, informed us of where we were, where we were going and where to look for wild life. He always ended his dialogue with "Wash your hands", which became humorous but was much appreciated as there did not appear to be any illness on the ship. The food in the dining room was very good and they even made certain that my peanut allergy was noted and that I did not get any items which might contain any peanuts. (THANKS for that). The ports we visited, Haines, Juneau and Ketchikan, were interesting with new things to see and do even though we had been there before. The excursions were very interesting, some of my favorites this time were the animal rescue and rehab, the Cristal gardens (a do not miss excursion) and the Totem Village. Disembarkation in Vancouver was the quickest and easiest I have ever experienced.

We did the land portion of this cruise and land package first and I would highly recommend this as getting onto the cruise ship after the land portion allows some time to rest from all the land portion activities. We were booked into the Hilton in Anchorage (an absolutely gorgeous city) and actually arrived a day early as it is a long flight from Nashville to Anchorage. This gave us a free day in Anchorage and we took in the sights there. We did the trolley trip (1 hr) in the morning and I would highly recommend it as an oversight of Anchorage. The Hilton is basically one block from the trolley stop and an easy walk. We had a very knowledgeable tour guide and learned a lot about Anchorage. We saw Earthquake park and even saw some moose along the highway. Very interesting. That afternoon we did the Seward Highway Turnagin tour with Salmon Berry tours. This tour is OUTSTANDING and John H. was an exceptional guide. We traveled one of the most scenic highways in America, saw Dall sheep and the high tides, we rode a tram to the top of Aleska (?) mountain, which afforded gorgeous views. Lunch was provided and consisted of delicious tomato basil soup, homemade sourdough bread and the yummiest cinnamon rolls ever. John even served our lunch and cleared our tables. Next we went to an animal rescue area and saw moose, bears, caribou, wolves, foxes and even Peggy the porcupine. It was very informative and entertaining. All in all a wonderful tour. Thanks John, you made our day in Anchorage. Read more