Amsterdam Review May 22-29

We had an amazing trip! It was everything I could have hoped for and more. We sailed out of Seattle.

We typically sail on larger newer ships in the Caribbean so this was a different experience. We sailed as a family of four with two children ages 5 & 7 and were traveling with my SIL and BIL.

Embarkation was relatively smooth. There were no porters at drop off which was different then we are used to. We had to carry our luggage into the terminal.

The ship was fine overall. We were staying in an oceanview cabin on Main deck cabin 2696. The room was clean. Room stewards were friendly and did a good job. We were traveling with 2 large suitcases, a large duffle bag a garment bag and a medium suitcase. We were able to store all but 1 bag which we kept out. There was plenty of shelf space and hooks which were convenient for hanging carry on etc.

The public areas of the ship were maintained in good condition. It was smaller than we are used to and easy to navigate. We had dinner in the steakhouse two nights, one regular menu and one le cirque menu. Both were enjoyable dinners. I had asked beforehand if children would be charged cover charges in specialty restaurant if ordering from a kids menu and was told yes. However that was not the case. Children were in fact free and my account was credited. The pool area was very nice. They had a really great salad bar in buffet area that we all loved. We also all enjoyed the hand scooped ice cream available at the buffet.

On board activities were limited but I had known that going in. I had gotten the spa pass for the week which was on special for $149 for 2ppl. I was able to share with my sister and the charge was split between 2 cabins. I never had an issue getting a tile lounger on my visits to the spa. We attended one culinary show during the week, something different. Night time activities included piano player in lounge which unfortunately I didn't find to be too good, and we only saw 1 show in the theater which was average. Again didn't have too high of expectations.

My children attended camp which they both enjoyed. This can be hit or miss and with not too many children sailing especially in the 5 and under range my girls had a good experience with the camps.

Seas were rough on first sea day and to Victoria and back to Seattle. We had brought along some Dramamine which helped.

I found shopping and prices for souvenirs to be best in Juneau our first stop, would I have realized I probably would have shopped more there.

The best part of our trip was being in Alaska! Here is a breakdown of how we spent out time there:

Juneau: Coastal Dog Sledding Helicopter Tour/ Mendenhall Glacier Park/Tracy's Dinner

When we woke up that morning I was so excited to see beautiful snow capped mountains as we were sailing towards Juneau. Our cabin allowed close access to the rear deck area found on Main deck and beautiful pictures of the ships wake with blue skies and mountains in the background. We pre booked helicopter directly through Coastal. In order to make the most of our time we rented a car from AVIS so we could go directly to the Glacier Park from the airport. This worked out great for us. The dog sledding experience was AMAZING and I would highly recommend to anyone! Following our trip we drove to the Glacier Park. I know they recently implemented fees however when self parking we experienced no fees. We hiked the nugget falls trail and back. We did not stop at the visitor center. We returned our rental car and had dinner at Tracy's crab shack which was super delicious. A day full of adventure and excitement.

Hubbard Glacier: We were really lucky with weather and conditions and had amazing views of the Glacier. The ship was able to get very close. My family participated in the polar plunge which the kids loved. The water was heated but it was cold when you came out... brrr. We had been on the aft part of the ship by the outdoor pool for the approach to the Glacier. At some point my sister and I visited the spa as we were near the glacier. There is a small balcony area accessible from the spa which afforded nice views and pictures. There is no place like a heated tile lounger to view such beauty!! Highly recommend!

Sitka: For our time in Sitka I had arranged a private boat tour for 6 with Paul Gallant of Gallant Adventures. We had the most amazing time spending the day with Paul. He met us as soon as we got off the bus with no issues. We were able to use the public bathrooms located downtown before heading out. Paul was very friendly and provided educational commentary throughout our tour. We were able to see a mama bear and her cub on the shoreline from a distance, sea otters, seals, and WHALES! We were right next to a pod of Orcas. It was an amazing experience! We were lucky and in nature nothing can be guaranteed. Paul was amazing with the kids. He showed us the sea kelp that the otters wrap themselves in and even encouraged my kids to try it! I had known that seas might be a little rough especially as you head out further to sea to see the Humpback whales so we all dosed up before hand with seasick medicine. The best thing about the tour is the personalized experience and the ability to get much closer to the whales and the action as compared to the larger sightseeing tours. For example we would look for signs of the whale surfacing in the distance and Paul would be able to get us to the area quickly. After the tour we headed towards the Sitka Sound Science Center area to try some locally made clam chowder which was delicious. We walked to the fire station as my husband is a fire fighter and likes to visit when we are traveling. They gave us a tour and were very friendly. Next we walked to McDonalds. My BIL wanted to try the Denali burger special to Alaska. Slightly crazy and a long walk especially with two kids. Wouldn't recommend lol We did call a taxi to bring us back to buses in downtown area.

Ketchikan: We had pre booked Aleutian Ballard tour online. My sister waited to book and while it wasn't available directly she was able to book as a shore excursion. Something to keep in mind. The trip was the most touristy thing we did in Alaska. The boat was very comfortable, they had overhead heaters, stadium seating, small café with free coffee/hot chocolate. It was similar to visiting a floating aquarium. They had various things you could hold etc. Kids loved it. They have the eagle feeding which did provide some amazing photos of bald eagles. My favorite part was the views. Loved the views in Alaska. Overall a good experience but a touristy one.

Victoria: We hadn't planned anything for our time here. We got off the boat and navigated our way to the downtown area. (We did need to ask for some direction from locals along the way). We walked north along Government Street several blocks and ended up at Earl's. It was a good sit down restaurant and they had wifi. There were plenty of taxi's lined up along Government Street in front of the Empress to bring us back to the ship.

Debarkation was easy enough. We had a later flight so we weren't in a hurry to get off the boat. There were porters available who assisted with luggage and clearing customs was 1,2, 3. We were in a taxi on the way to the airport in no time.

I will attempt to learn how to add pictures and update! Thanks for reading!

Seattle

Sailing towards Juneau

Juneau

Our Ice Boots for Helicopter Tour

Dog Sledding!

View of Mendenhall from the helicopter

Glacier Park

Dinner at Tracy's Crab Shack

Hubbard Glacier

Thanks for sharing - sounds wonderful!

Sitka boat tour with Paul Gallant of Gallant Adventures!

Aleutian Ballard Boat Tour

Lovely pictures. Glad you enjoyed Alaska and the Amsterdam, my favorite ship.

Thank you for taking the time to write your review -- wonderful.

I don't understand why there weren't any porters to help with luggage at Pier 91. There is no way we could handle 4 large pieces of luggage, 2 carry-ons and me in a wheelchair. We have sailed out of Pier 91 several times and there were always porters pre and post cruise.

Your pictures are wonderful.

We love Hubbard glacier.

Awesome pics! Thanks!

Thanks for sharing. Great pictures! Loved the one of the whale and the flying eagle!!!

Great photos! Thanks for your review.

Thank you for your review and sharing your photos.

Fantastic photos! Glad you and your family had such a good time. Thanks for writing the review.

We had to wait for a porter to become available at Pier 91, but they were certainly there.

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Nice photos, thanks!

thanks for the great review and pics. Our first HAL cruise was on Amsterdam in July. We sailed in fog and rain. We did get a little clear sky for the glacier but visually couldn't see much of Sitka. We have been to Juneau twice in the rain!! So, really do appreciate your pics!

Thanks for your review. .

Thanks for posting your review. I'm thinking of booking the same itinerary for August. I wondered about access to the white area on the Main Deck. Thanks for confirming that we'll be able to use it if our cabin is at the back of the ship.

Thanks for the review! We are going on that same cruise leaving on sunday. I had a question, were there lots of of kiddos on your cruise? I have 4, ages 7-14 and im a little worried they are going to be bored.

very nice review .. thanks for the pics as that really added spice to it.

harry