lynn2002

Is there a shop at the port where you can buy bottles of water and cans of soda to take on board the ship?

Do they show movies in the indoor theatre?  I too have difficulty listening to a film on the big outdoor screen and prefer watching the film in an indoor theatre of cinema room.

We returned from a 14 night cruise and our cabin was aft on main deck. Very quiet. I never felt crowded outside and there was always somewhere on deck to watch the scenery go past. I also asked for tables of 2 and only once had to wait for a table for about five minutes. I loved the Amsterdam as there were no queues anywhere. I had sailed the Eurodam and Nieuw Amsterdam before and wasn't quite sure how I would find the older ship, but the space I felt on the Amsterdam well made up for it needing the odd bit of paintwork here and there. Would love to do the 14 night cruise again one day, but unfortunately my daughter wants a beach holiday next year.

On the MS Amsterdam there was one blackjack table with a minimum of 6 dollars bet.

We also were on the same cruise and agree it was an excellent cruise. Considering how old the ship is, it was in better shape than I was expecting. The cabin could definitely do with a makeover - patched up paint in the bathroom, mould etc and the actual cabin walls needed a wash or repaint but nothing too great to spoil our holiday.

Third time on HAL, having been on the Nieuw Amsterdam and the Eurodam, and this was my favourite ship. No queues, so much that I didn't mind lunching in the lido. Always something to eat at lunch-time, although the food didn't suit my tastes in the evening. Normally I would have breakfast in the MDR, however, with no queues I was happy to have breakfast in the lido.

When I booked it I thought it would be a once in a lifetime holiday, however, having been I definitely want to return to see all the other things that I did not have time for.

When I booked the 14 night cruise from Seattle, I read that they are laying on special on board festivities to commemorate the anniversary.

I'm cruising on the Amsterdam and curious to know what these festivities are. Anyone been on MS Amsterdam this season and noticed the "festivities"?

The Eurodam had already been upgraded with the large flat screen televisions on the wall. Hoping that the Amsterdam has invested in a few new dvds.

Has anyone who sailed recently on the Amsterdam noticed whether the DVD library is regularly updated. The films on the HAL FACTS website are quite old and I wondered if any newer titles have been added.

My teenage daughter likes to watch a film before bed, or on a sea day when there isn't much on, and it was great on the Eurodam as there were a mixture of older and new films available.

We live in the UK and our dvds are formatted differently to those in the US, otherwise I would have brought a selection with me.

Have a great cruise. We're on the one after you so looking forward to reading your reports.

I received an e-mail that because I'm on main deck I arrive at 2.00 p.m. Did you receive the same e-mail and did it make any difference arriving earlier? I really don't want to arrive so late.

Sorry if this is a silly question. I have bought two pairs of binoculars - do I pack them in the hold luggage or should I carry them in my hand luggage?

Thank you for your advice. We will be sightseeing locally so I'll pack it away in my main luggage for Alaska. Wherever I travel I always check about mosquitos as my body has a terrible reaction to bites. I always need it when travelling in the med, During the day I am normally fine but it is the evenings when they come out.

Thinking of how to pack. Two nights in Seattle hotel prior to boarding the ship so thinking of packing enough for two nights in our carry-on bags so that we don't have to open the big suitcases until we're on ship.

Do I need to pack in my carry-on mosquito repellent? I'm travelling at the end of July and staying in the Maxwell hotel.

Hi

Can anyone recommend somewhere to eat lunch in Ketchikan and Juneau, bearing in mind we do not eat seafood or fish. All recommendations I've read seem to be for seafood.

How much time to allow for the walk that leads to the river or the walk to the beach? I am booked with Glacier Wind for whalewatching and then I have around one and a half hours spare before I need board the ship.

I purchase casino credit.

What did you think of the tours you booked. I have also booked with Coastal Helicopters.

Thank you for the review. Doing the same cruise next month - first time in Alaska.

I have booked the Sitka Otter Quest but not the tour that includes the Fortress of the Bears. Did you feel it was worth going to the Fortress of the Bear or should we use the time saved to explore Sitka?

In Icy Straight Point we're doing a whale watching trip which should return to the ship around 11.30 a.m., leaving a couple of hours before sailing. Would we have time to do the zip wire?

On sea days were there any organised activities? Were there on cookery classes? Were the pools heated? Was the casino busy? Were the films shown recent releases? Were the televisions in the cabins flat screens with dvd players (my 13 year old daughter likes to watch a film before going to sleep)?

What time were you allowed on the ship in Seattle? On my papers it says 1.00 p.m., but we normally board earlier than that.

Thanks for any help

I am on board the Amsterdam now. I would say the ship is in good shape. The only mechanical problems we have experienced are with the Thermal Suite. Something seems to break in there regularly

Hi, are you doing a 7 night or 14 night cruise on the Amsterdam? We are on the 14 night cruise at the end of July, first time in Alaska and the Amsterdam. Daughter is very nervous that she'll feel sea-sick in Alaska if the seas are rough. How did you find it?

I booked with Coastal Helicopters early December for my cruise at the beginning of August and they had spaces (I booked for two). I found booking with them cheaper than going through HAL, with the added bonus of an extra stop on the glacier for a short look around. They pick you up from the port and return you back after about three and a half hours.

We have booked a dog sledding trip with Coastal Helicopters that also stops a second time for a short while to see the glacier. This takes place in the morning and then we have all afternoon and evening in Juneau. I would like to book a ziplining in Juneau in the afternoon but wary to do this just yet because

(1) if the weather is not good enough to set off for the glacier at the scheduled time, we may set off later and not be able to go ziplining

(2) if after the morning we feel tired, we may not fancy another tiring excursion.

Has anyone seen at the dock excursion companies selling ziplining for that day, especially in the afternoon? I would ideally like to see what happens with the helicopter trip before booking the ziplining.

We are in Alaska this summer on the MS Amsterdam and have booked two excursions with outside companies, one on a helicopter and one on a small plane. If the conditions are poor, do HAL accept shore excursion bookings on the day of the excursion?

on a 14 night Alaska cruise on MS Amsterdam in late July/August.

What do people wear in the evening for dinner? Are they more relaxed with the dress code so that jeans are allowed in the dining room?

Are the gala nights dressy?

Just not sure what to pack.

We are in Alaska on a 14 night cruise at the beginning of August. I presume we still take layers with us for outdoors but what do you wear whilst on the ship? I have previously only done Mediterranean cruises in the summer, so during the day/evenings I wear summer clothes with sandals, and dress up for gala nights.

What sort of clothes should I take for the Alaska trip in August for on board the ship?

We are in Seattle on 29/30/31 July. What is the weather normally like in Seattle at that time - is it t-shirt weather?

If you are giving a 13-year-old permission to be with others around the ship, away from you (and I'm not questioning that decision), she should have the responsibility of notifying you where she is. If that means she has to pick up a house phone and leave a voice mail on your cabin phone or return to the cabin to leave you a note with an update, so be it.

 

That's what people used to do before texting. That some lines offer an app doesn't mean that the other ways of communicating have become non-existent.

Are you saying that she could pick up a phone around the ship, leave a message on the cabin phone, and I can call the cabin phone and retrieve that message from another area in the ship? If so that would be a way around it, but I hadn't realised I could pick up the messages on my cabin phone from another part of the ship. If not, her leaving a message on the cabin phone when, say, we're in another part of the ship (and this is a large ship) would mean me having to push the wheelchair across the ship to check on the phone in the cabin and then return to whatever we were doing before.

I was not being critical of HAL, like I said I'm sailing with HAL again in July, but sometimes technology is not such a bad thing and in fact is very helpful to some people.