Review of HAL Cruise from Skagway to Vancouver

After our land tour (see From Anchorage to Skagway elsewhere on the Alaska board) we boarded the Noordam.

Our Four Day Cruise on the Noordam

Boarding for this cruise was a little different in that the doctor came onboard the coach to check our health questionnaires and another employee checked our passports. After the usual photos we went to our rooms. Exploring the ship, lunch and the emergency drill filled the rest of the afternoon. Those with excursions did their emergency drill around 7pm.

Glacier Bay

Our day started out very overcast but the ranger who had come aboard said it was going to be an amazing day. And it was!

We were out on the front deck (I also checked out the back deck) and although the ranger was commenting you could really only hear her if you were next to a speaker. She did come down from the Crow's Nest to answer questions. There were presentations by the Rangers throughout the day.

We were very fortunate to see the glacier calving several times. The captain did turn the ship around at the 2 glaciers so everyone had a chance to see the glaciers from their balcony, if they so desired. The scenery was breathtaking. Be sure your camera battery is fully charged and that there is space on you memory card for all the photos you will be taking.

Ketchikan

Four ships were docked and one more was at anchor so Ketchikan was very busy. We had a floatplane excursion with Island Wings at 1pm so I wanted to make sure I knew where the meeting place was. We wandered over to Creek Street and around the town. This is another place with lots of shopping opportunities.

The floatplane flight was absolutely fantastic. Although slightly overcast, we could still see the beautiful scenery below. We (6 passengers + the pilot) landed on a lake (didn't even know we were down) and Michelle taxied to shore where we all got out for photos. We spent about 30 minutes on shore before heading back.

Inside Passage

It was nice to have a day with nothing planned. We sat on the balcony admiring the scenery. The shopping area on the Noordam is quite small compared to other ships we have been on but we did buy 2 watches, something I had planned to get.

For our last meal on board, we went to the Pinnacle with new friends from the trip. One couple was celebrating the 25th Anniversary and had renewed their vows in a lovely ceremony conducted by the Captain. The Pinnacle server brought out a special anniversary cake and explained it was the appetizer for the dessert.

Disembarkation

Although I tried for a hour to print our boarding passes for our flight home, I was not successful. It was most frustrating since I had to buy 2 Internet packages, 30 minutes each. On another cruise on the Eurodam, I had no difficulty and it only cost me $7.

I had not realized that our transfer to the airport was included and only when I went to the Front Desk on another matter did I learn this. We were in the first group, after those who were self-disembarking. I was anxious to get to the airport but we waited in a line to board the shuttle and then waited for the bus to fill. From the time we left the ship to our arrival at the airport was just over an hour. In hindsight, we might have been wiser to have taken a taxi.

Overall Summary

We chose this particular cruise-tour because HAL is the only one that goes to Dawson City and Whitehorse. We were very happy that we did the land tour before the cruise. The cruise provided some very necessary relaxation time. When selecting the time for your cruise-tour consider special events (Summer Solstice, July 4th celebrations, salmon and bear season). Some excursions were not available early in the season and some of the staff at the hotels, restaurants and even the tour guides had just finished their training. We had a simply amazing trip to Alaska and the Yukon, full of wonderful memories and new friendships.

Thank you for your review. So happy to hear you had a wonderful time.

Thanks for taking the time to post your review.

It's wonderful to be able to be out on the bow while viewing the glaciers.

Glad you had a good cruise.

Thanks for posting your review! These always get me excited for our cruise in September. :)

Sounds like you had an excellent trip, and an especially good passing through Glacier Bay!

I enjoyed reading your review.

Keith

Thanks for both the land and sea reviews.

I was wishfully thinking I could take a bus trip on the day of boarding!

Sounds like maybe not:-(

Already have steam train up and back on the full day between arrival and boarding. Skagway prio

Going on the Volendam in a few weeks doing the same itinerary. We have a lanai room. Hoping for good weather. Thanks for your review.

Thanks for both the land and sea reviews.

 

I was wishfully thinking I could take a bus trip on the day of boarding!

Sounds like maybe not:-(

 

Already have steam train up and back on the full day between arrival and boarding. Skagway prio

If you are doing Y2L you will already take the White Pass railroad down to Skagway. Are you sure you want to take the train again? If so, take the train up and bus back to Skagway. If you want to do an excursion on the day you board the ship in Skagway, just let your journey host know and they will arrange for you to board the ship later.

Thank you very much for your brief but wonderful review of the Noordam cruise you did. May I ask a question about the internet on the Noordam? I am looking forward to doing a Noordam northbound Alaska cruise in 2016 and will be in need of internet service on board to stay in touch with people at home. I noticed that it took you quite some dollars to purchase the internet package but still without success in printing the documents you wanted. Was the internet speed very slow on board Noordam? Did Noordam have any solution to this problem? Many thanks for any kind advice that you may give!