Our first cruise, Volendam July 2-9, Inside Passage

[Fog123]

Hi All,

 

You were all so helpful to me while planning the trip that I thought I would post some general thoughts.

 

We are in our 50s, and avid road trippers, independent travelers, scenery lovers, and generally don't like crowds. We had always said that if someone were to force us to take a cruise that it would have to be Alaska.

 

Turned out it was a good choice and we have no regrets for having gone on a cruise. I can't say that it's turned us into dedicated cruisers, but if a cruise is the best way to see what we want to see, then we'll definitely consider it.

 

And we would absolutely consider both the Volendam and HAL as frontrunners for choices.

 

Some of the observations are just those. They didn't impact the trip either way, but are based on those questions that were asked before or were interesting to me.

 

Just as a note before the flames start on us possibly being picky and hard to satisfy, some of our experience and lack of enthusiasm may have been coloured by us leaving a very sick cat at home. She succumbed while we were gone. [emoji27]

 

I'll break it into sections so I can post some pictures.

[Fog123]

The food

 

 

 

We primarily ate in the Lido because I like tasting a huge variety. Food was OK, but very few dishes made me want to go back for seconds. Others have commented that it often looked better than it tasted, and I would be inclined to agree with that. I am a dessert person and found them for the most part OK.

 

 

 

Having said that, I do think they do a good job with the Eggs Benedict. I just wish the Hollandaise sauce were warm in the Lido. I loved their meringue cookies, perfectly done. I did go back for seconds on their Alaska brownies, and I should have done so for their flourless chocolate cake, which was advertised as having a molten centre, but didn't, but was probably one of the best desserts I had. Once I tried the sticky buns at breakfast they also became a staple. Chocolate croissants were also an everyday item consumed regularly.

 

 

The only way to get Creme Brulee was to eat at the Pinnacle Grill for the Le Cirque night (I asked several times). DH is not a fancy eater, and it seemed like an overkill to just get Creme Brulee.

 

 

 

We ate at the MDR the two formal nights and one other night and enjoyed ourselves getting to know new people.

 

All of the staff were wonderful, cheerful, and made dining anywhere a pleasant experience.

 

I did a couple of times find the music annoying at breakfast where I would have appreciated silence or something other than pop music, but I didn't notice it every day and the days it did bother me I just ate less, which wasn't a bad thing ☺.

 

The food did not make or break the cruise.

[Fog123]

 

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Edited July 10, 2014 by Fog123

[Fog123]

The room

 

 

 

We were in 7088, an aft wrap handicapped balcony room. We would take this room again. We spent a lot of time on the balcony. For those interested in the smoking perspective, we would get the occasional waft of smoke, but this was from a Neptune Suite about 10 rooms down. There were a few other times when I thought I could detect smoke, but it was very faint. The only thing that actually drove me away from our balcony was during Glacier Bay when a large loud family congregated in the balcony below us and disturbed my peaceful contemplation. We went elsewhere and no real harm done.

 

 

 

 

We had no problems with plumbing, and I liked the shower better than my own at home. We didn't get towel animals the first couple of nights but that was because we retired too early. Once the room steward figured out our schedule we started to get animals.

 

 

 

Our room stewards were pleasant and we had no complaints. Anything we asked for was provided for quickly.

 

 

 

Lots of storage, and two hair dryers in the room. The old fashioned ugly kind in the bathroom and one in a bag in a drawer in the desk that plugged into the European socket.

 

 

 

 

 

One thing we did note is that we had to be creative in finding out where the various rattles were coming from which seemed to depend on a while host of random factors. Usually a good push against a drawer or door would be sufficient. We did wrap the TV in a towel once.

 

 

 

Deck chair sounds above us occurred around 6:00 am but were over quickly and didn't bother us. The last day was beautiful weather and we noticed they noise a lot more through out the day as people constantly adjusted the chairs to meet the sun. I don't know that I would choose that cabin location for a warm climate cruise.

 

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[brookeinmn]

Looking forward to hearing more. So very sorry about the loss of your kitty.

[kenevenpar]

Thanks for taking the time to share.

 

Food Porn is always welcome; keep it coming. The pie looks good!

[solocanadian]

Hi All,

 

You were all so helpful to me while planning the trip that I thought I would post some general thoughts.

 

We are in our 50s, and avid road trippers, independent travelers, scenery lovers, and generally don't like crowds. We had always said that if someone were to force us to take a cruise that it would have to be Alaska.

 

Turned out it was a good choice and we have no regrets for having gone on a cruise. I can't say that it's turned us into dedicated cruisers, but if a cruise is the best way to see what we want to see, then we'll definitely consider it.

 

And we would absolutely consider both the Volendam and HAL as frontrunners for choices.

 

Some of the observations are just those. They didn't impact the trip either way, but are based on those questions that were asked before or were interesting to me.

 

Just as a note before the flames start on us possibly being picky and hard to satisfy, some of our experience and lack of enthusiasm may have been coloured by us leaving a very sick cat at home. She succumbed while we were gone. [emoji27]

 

I'll break it into sections so I can post some pictures.

 

So sorry to hear about your kitty.

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the report, sorry to hear about your cat.

[Fog123]

The Excursions

 

We booked through Holland for three of the excursions. We did Tracy Arm, DH did the Tatoosh kayaking, and I snorkeled.

 

We had rented a car with the expectation of getting to Emerald Lake, but the road had washed out the day before so we could only go as far as the Canadian border.

 

 

 

I loved Tracy Arm, more so than Glacier Bay. The boat wasn't crowded by any means and we got very close to the second glacier. DH wasn't as impressed and liked Glacier Bay better. We had more photogenic bergy bits in Tracy Arm and the colours of everything were more spectacular to me. I spent most of my time on the outside deck, warmly dressed in rain pants, gloves, down jacket and Goretex coat.

 

 

Snorkeling was good, but if you've snorkeled in California you've probably seen most of it. I was enthralled with the tiny jellyfish. DH said kayaking was so-so, but we're avid canoeists and he was paired with a lily dipper.

The one thing that I really noticed for port was how much pressure I was under to be constantly checking my watch just to make sure we weren't going to be late for all aboard. Our excursions ended early enough so that wasn't the problem. That may be something we get used to later on, but I did not like that aspect as much.

 

 

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[Fog123]

The Ship

 

We were very happy with our choice of the Volendam and would sail with her again. We LOVED the promenade deck and walked daily. I have a Fitbit and we averaged 15,000 steps a day. We only took the elevators a couple of times.

 

 

 

We only participated in a couple of activities so can't comment on those. Most of the time we were in bed by 9:00.

 

 

The ship only occasionally felt crowded, but it was always possible to find something quieter. The pool area was well used and there were dozens of kids on the ship. We didn't feel like the crowd was overly old and we would say we were average for demographic.

 

Other

We had rolling swells the first day, enough that both DH and I went to front desk to get Bonine. It was a popular item but really knocked us out. Other more experienced travelers said they were also feeling it. I think that might be a reason we would choose land over sea, we didn't like losing a day that way and DH thinks it was part of why he wasn't so keen on Tracy Arm, he was still a little drugged up.

 

We went to the Spa the first day and took the complementary tour with the free chance to enter up to $500 of services. You had to be there for the draw and then it turned out that before the draw we had to listen to sales pitches. That was our first experience with the sales pressure that seemed somewhat prevalent on the ship. DH went to a "How to Boost your Metabolism" talk and it was a "we can tell you so much more if you only sign up for these one of two services". We learned and if we didn't from like being pressured, and weren't sure of the subject, we didn't go. No harm done.

 

Our pleasant surprise

We allowed the photographers to take our picture whenever they wanted. We both normally hate our photos being taken. Much to my surprise, we loved the photos and ended up buying several of them. We started off with $400 of OBC and a significant chunk went to that. No regrets there.

 

Our essential packed items

Binoculars and a camera were number one and two. I bought a waterproof Nikon AW110 for the trip and it was really perfect for me. No worries about water and it took great photos.

 

Prices are quite reasonable for outerwear on the ship, so if you need anything like gloves, hats, and coats, you'll be fine for waiting.

 

 

 

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Edited July 10, 2014 by Fog123

[Fog123]

Some random ship photos,

 

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[PathfinderEss]

Nice review and beautiful photo's. Sorry to hear about your cat.

[Lizzie68]

Love your photos and the review. I've cruised on the Volendam too, and I must say I like that size of ship.

[Krazy Kruizers]

I loved your review and pictures.

Thank you for taking the time to write your report.

I am so sorry to read about your cat.

[puppycanducruise]

Thank you for taking the time to post your review and pictures.

We loved our Alaska cruise on the Volendam, thanks for the memories.

 

[cbr663]

Thanks for your review. I am so sorry for the loss of your cat. A loss of a cherished pet is very difficult.

 

We completed the Volendam Alaskan inside cruise in late April, early May and I am glad to read that you had a good time. Your pictures are bringing back some great memories.

[Vict0riann]

So sorry about the loss of your cat. It's hard to leave when you have a sick pet.

 

We have enjoyed the Volendam, too, especially the walk-around promenade deck! Sounds like you had a great cruise.

[Typhoon1]

Thanks for sharing details of your cruise along with the pics.

[POA1]

Thanks for your review. Sorry about your kitty.

[nana51]

I am sorry for your loss. Especially being away, causes a bit of guilt I'm sure.

 

Don't give up on cruising. Take the Mexican Rivera cruise and you will have no sea sickness, very calm. Sound like overall you had a good cruise. I never attend the seminars, they are just sharks.

[freestyling]

I have yet to experience the Volendam bit May give it a go after your nice review. I to love the creme brûlée and actually asked the pinnacle if I could just purchase a few. Too my surprise they asked for my cabin number and I had two waiting in cabin later that night. Just love when that happens ( no charge on folio but I did leave a tip envelope with pinnacle steward). I'm sorry to hear about your cat as well.

[freestyling]

Guess that May be on the Volendam is now will be on it..2015. Looking forward to that cruise

[dateacher]

Thanks for posting. We will be on that same cruise in 20 days and I am very excited after reading your report. We are doing the Tracy Arm excursion and have rented a car also.

 

Sorry about your cat, I'm sure that made part of the trip difficult.

[shrimp56]

First our condolences on the loss of your furry friend. They do worm their way into our lives.

 

Volendam was our first 'dam ship and we were hooked. You made a good first choice.

[erewhon]

Thank you for taking time to review your Volendam cruise.

 

Very sorry to read about your cat.