Zaandam Review
Rating by category
Additional details
2018 Alaska Cruise Log
May 19 Saturday- We flew out of Green Bay to Seattle, with a layover in Minneapolis. No delays. We arrived in Seattle on schedule and so did our luggage. A quick call on the courtesy phone and the shuttle was here to take us to La Quinta, our preferred motel. Nice room with a view of pine trees.
May 21 Monday- To the ship! Starting our 14 day cruise on HAL Zaandam, round trip to Alaska. We had a 1:00 embarkation time, but the car to take us to the pier arrived early, so we were at the port by 11:45, all checked in by 12:15 and in our cabin by 12:30 (They weren’t supposed to be ready until 1:00. Outstanding! Weather, sunny and in the 70s.
Cabin Review
Verandah Suite
Stateroom
• The cabin is small, but very well organized
• The curtains are nice and dark, which is good because the sun stays out late. There is also a curtain between the bed and the balcony for added darkness. Finally there is also a curtain between the bed and the hallway. The shuttle to downtown costs $12 round trip, so it is not within walking distance from the pier.
• Lots of storage! Room for the luggage under the bed.
• We had a tub/Jacuzzi and a shower. We never used the tub, but the shower was nice.
• There are dispensers of body soap, shampoo and conditioner by the shower, which will probably be just fine for most of the guys but not so much for the ladies.
• Our cabin came with a pair of Bushnell binoculars, which really came in handy for the glaciers.
• We still had the small tv and DVD player, which didn’t matter since we only had it on for announcements and weather.
• We also had a robe and slippers provided.
• 1 week in dry dock is not a lot of time to make upgrades. There are still only 2 120 outlets and they added a lamp with a USB port. We brought a small extension with 3 outlets and 2 usb ports.
• There is a small ice bucket, which they will keep filled if you request it.
• Bring your own night light as they are not provided.
• If the people in the cabin next to you happen to be a little bit hard of hearing and like to leave their TV on, you will be able to hear it too.
• We were in cabin 7055, which is just below the Lido Marketplace. Very noisy late at night and early in the morning. Deck 6 would probably be a better choice. There are only two balcony decks
Port Reviews
Seattle
Embarkation was a breeze
Vancouver
We did not dock here.
Ketchikan
We just walked around here.
Juneau
We were docked on a Friday and there was a free organ recital at the State Building. We had been here a couple of times previously. Mendehall Glacier and the Botanical Gardens are definitely worth seeing
Homer
Kind of a cold and rainy day, but our Best of Bay tour was really good.
Kodiak
We took the shuttle in to town and just walked around.
Sitka
We didn't go into town because we were sharing the shuttles with NCL Jewel, and the lines just to get on the bus were ridiculously long.
Victoria
We got in port late, but did not do any excursions.