Westerdam 7/5/14 - an overview

[Mytime2014]

I am hoping to do a "real" review in the near future....

Vacation started on 7/3/14 with an anticipated flight from San Antonio to Seattle via Phoenix - 3 airports, 2 planes. Leave SAT at 8:30m CST, arrive Seattle 1155 PST. Instead due to a dust storm in Phoenix - it was SAT to Las Vegas to Phoenix - oops, missed that connection apparently the flight we were supposed to be on was able to land and take off in spite of the storm. However, the next flight available would leave Phoenix at 1 p.m. on 7/4. So - while a gaggle of young twinkies were cursing at the gate agent, we very kindly asked for assistance, were able to walk on a flight to LAX where we spent a few hours in a very private but not quiet SWA gate and confirmed on a 7 a.m. flight to Seattle via Salt Lake City arriving at 1'ish PST. Our 6 hour trip had turned into an 18 hour trip.

 

Seattle - would have been great if we had not been dog-tired, but WTH, a 2 hour nap, a stroll through Pike Place, along the waterfront, and a water taxi to West Seattle and dinner at Salty's. Yum! Back to hotel via recommended path by taxi captain which turned out to be a very fast walk through homeless people under the bridge. Thank you captain....a stop at Target and Walgreens to grab drinks [and some of the same wine you can get for almost 5x as much on board ship].

 

Westerdam - can I say awesome enough times? I was not blown away by the decor, the carpet made me more seasick than the boat. The art was cool, the bars were comfortable and attractive and attentive staff. Our steward was friendly, helpful and not in our face the whole time. We didn't get quite the ice service we asked for but it was okay. Our aft balcony was amazing. It was my favorite place on the ship. I spent many hours there - saw whales playing in the wake on the approach to Juneau.

 

Food - MDR good to oh my [scallop appetizer the 1st night], several dishes I would have had again given an opportunity.

Lido - meh, average that you would expect in a cafeteria.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Welcome Home

Sorry you had such a rough start just getting to Seattle.

Looking forward to your "real" review.

[sail7seas]

Really sorry to hear your flight problems. Happy you were able to work it out and get to Seattle.

 

Happy you found much to like on Westerdam.

Looking forward to your review.

 

[Mytime2014]

Vacation started on 7/3/14 with an anticipated flight from San Antonio to Seattle via Phoenix - 3 airports, 2 planes. Leave SAT at 8:30 pm CST, arrive Seattle 11:55 PST. Instead due to a dust storm in Phoenix - it was SAT to Las Vegas to Phoenix - oops, missed that connection apparently the flight we were supposed to be on was able to land and take off in spite of the storm. The next flight available would leave Phoenix at 1 p.m. on 7/4. So - while a gaggle of young twinkies were cursing at the gate agent, we very kindly asked for assistance, were able to walk on a flight to LAX where we spent a few hours in a very private but not quiet SWA gate confirmed on a 7 a.m. flight to Seattle via Salt Lake City arriving at 1'ish PST. Our 6 hour trip turned into an 18 hour trip. It was NOT going to ruin the trip tho, in fact, I don't know when I've laughed so much - when you are that tired, everything is hysterical or horrible. We decided to make it hysterical.

Seattle - would have been great if we had not been dog-tired, but WTH, a 2 hour nap, a stroll through Pike Place, along the waterfront, and a water taxi to West Seattle and dinner at Salty's. Yum! ....a stop at Target and Walgreens to grab drinks and wine. Back in our room - too tired to consider trying to get to fireworks - there they were outside out 23rd story window!

 

Ms. Westerdam - can I say awesome enough times? The art was cool, the bars were comfortable and attractive and attentive staff. Our steward was friendly, helpful and not in our face the whole time - he got the job done. Our aft balcony was amazing. It was my favorite place on the ship. I spent many hours there, sleeping, reading and watching whales playing in the wake on the approach to Juneau. I was not blown away by the decor, the carpet made me more seasick than the boat.

 

Food - MDR good to oh my [scallop appetizer the 1st night], several dishes I would have had again given an opportunity. I asked almost every night for creme brulee and was told it was not available.

Lido - average that you would expect in a cafeteria. Some things were good, others - meh. The ice cream was good but I didn't care for bread pudding. It was frustrating to have to search from place to place for a single item to complete your meal - by the time you find toast, your poached eggs are cold.... But, I usually slept too late to get to the MDR, so my fault there. I thought of CC when I heard a woman say - they NEVER have what I want here. Really? The selection looked pretty good to me.

Pinnacle - OH MY! It was really good and they let me use the two dinner indulgence for both of us, so a tiny discount. The food and service was really good - except they overcooked my steak. Mary ordered hers medium well [gag, I know] and I ordered mine medium rare. They were very quick to get my steak to me. We shared shoestring fries with truffle aioli - not a lot of truffle IMO, grilled asparagus and mushrooms. 3 people apologized for the steak. And then there was dessert.....ordered the 3 flavor creme brulee and since we were the last table seated - they were out. The manager apologized and offered us the one they make for La Cirque - le sigh. Oh it was good and creamy with double brown sugar caramelized topping [and I have the recipe!]

 

Excursions - Best of Juneau - we saw the Mendenhall, okay nice - not enough time to walk to the falls and Mary couldn't walk that far anyway. Salmon Bake at Orca Point - okay.

Whale watching......AMAZING. All I wanted was see a whale. We saw one kinda far off. I prayed for it to come up to the boat - wouldn't even look out in the distance...God, I'm just going to look beside this boat because you know that is the only thing I really want to see. Did I mention that I did not specify which side of the boat? the whale surfaced on the other side, so close that by the time I got there, I could see blowholes the size of my head. Ha ha, great sense of humor.

 

Then we saw boats circling and seagulls having a hissy fit, cruised over and saw 10 whales bubble net feeding. 10. Not once, not twice but 7 times. 4 of those times several came ~1/4 to 1/3 out of the water. My heart just about burst it was so beautiful. I saw tails everywhere - a couple of the smaller boats scooted out of the way! It was cold, rainy and grey - but it was amazing. If you have ever seen the video of Blue Hors Matine doing freestyle dressage 2006 - I can only compare the grace and strength of the whales as being the water equivalent of that. Everyone said the bubble net thing is not a regular sight and our boat captain kept saying he had never seen it that many times - really or is that just something they say?

 

Sitka - Hot artist walk - not for me. It was cool to pull a glass cane but the galleries were way over priced for me, so it wasn't like i could even consider [or would want] anything in them. I enjoyed the time we spent wandering the streets on our own more than the excursion. I would plan an excursion here for more wildlife

 

Ketchikan - no excursion, just shopping and strolling Creek Street first, a ride up the funicular is $4 for unlimited all day. We had breakfast at the lodge up there [i will recommend the biscuits and sausage gravy!] and just enjoyed the view - which included a bald eagle sitting in a treetop that was just below our window. Fun downtown and I got the bead/charm bracelet from all the locations. It was great. If I went back, I'd try to do the float plane.

 

Victoria - Butchart Gardens - there was a concert there the same night, so very very crowded, very slow getting there - leaving us 2 hours, so it felt rushed. It was pretty, As a do-over, I would have just done one of the down town tours, or a walking map.

 

It was therapy for me. I slept - for the 1st time in 8 years without assistance. I took naps - I've taken less naps in the past 5 years than on this cruise!! I did not partake in much alcohol, ended up taking the bottles to the table, paying corkage and sharing with Karen and Tom and tried a couple of the daily specials.

 

I met wonderful people - a couple of 90 yr old WWII vets at lunch - loved talking to them; our table mates were great and we had a lot of fun with one of the couples. Just about everyone was nice, no strangers at any of our tables! We avoided some who were grumpy and nasty to staff and dissatisfied. Like the ones in the MDR who on day 5 when we finally had sun demanded that the curtains be closed instead of shifting their seats a little. Sunset on the Alaska cruise - gasp what a terrible horrible no good very bad thing, it must be avoided at all costs.

 

Formal night - not so formal, I saw a couple of tuxes, a few suits - not many women in full on formal dresses. Mostly dressy/wedding/party type outfits. I really did not pay a lot of attention to anyone else [sensory overload] Our table was fun, eclectic and hosted by the chief security officer and his wife on the 1st formal night. He was a blast!

 

Loved it, will probably cruise again but most likely not on HAL because of the flying thing. I hate it, always have and its worse now. Oh and the balcony - we had smokers beside us - it did not ruin the cruise. There were a couple of times the casino was smokey, but there was nothing for me there anyway.

 

I still feel like I"m moving!! and I don't want to go back to work tomorrow!

[Mytime2014]

I don't know why this one posted - my new nails seem to be hitting keys I don't intend to hit!

 

So before anyone asks why there are two posts on the same topic, i'm going to ask that this one be deleted!!!

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the report!

[nana51]

Glad you had a great cruise. Sorry it had to end, but if it didn't leave we wouldn't have the next cruise to look forward to. You do know you can drive to San Diego or Long Beach and cruise out of there?

[Mytime2014]

Glad you had a great cruise. Sorry it had to end, but if it didn't leave we wouldn't have the next cruise to look forward to. You do know you can drive to San Diego or Long Beach and cruise out of there?

 

I live in San Antonio TX - so Houston/Galveston will be my place to cruise from. Or maybe try Amtrak to New Orleans. Unless I play and win the lottery and can fly first class. I've seen cattle trucks less loaded than those airplanes!!!!

[POA1]

Thank you for your review!

[Mytime2014]

...I forgot to say thanks to all the people who were so very helpful giving information to the newbie!

 

I knew what to expect [lifeboats for tenders?!] and kind of where things were, who to ask for assistance and that happy hour did exist - even tho I only managed to get there once...

 

It was good to know ahead of time that things might not be perfect and not to let those very tiny imperfections ruin my trip. There were not many things - one night without a towel animal [gasp] and ice bucket full of water twice.

Edited July 13, 2014 by Mytime2014

[Krazy Kruizers]

Loved your review.

Thank you for taking the time to write.

Flying can be a hassle -- we have no choice but to fly everywhere.

[Typhoon1]

Thanks for the thoughts. Looking forward to the complete version.

[Stratheden]

So happy for you that you loved your 1st cruise so much.

[PathfinderEss]

Thanks for the nice review of your Westerdam cruise. Glad to here it was awesome. Sorry about the flight, I hate flying too!. I do it as little as possible.:(

[erewhon]

Thank you for your review.

Yes, it's a lovely view from up at the lodge in Ketchikan.

 

Sorry about your flights.

[Keith1010]

Thanks for your report.

 

Keith