Just got off 14 day Great Alaskan Explorer - Ask me anything!

[Loreto]

Thank you for your review and comments! We did this itinerary twice on the Amsterdam, and it was great. Third time was on the Statendam...not so great. We also enjoyed the Sea Otter Quest/Fortress of the Bears in Sitka. The absence of Diamonds International made Icy Straight Point really special.

 

We are just doing a 7 day Alaska next month but you made me wish it was the 14 day again....thanks for the memories!

 

Karen

[JimAOk1945]

Welcome home and thanks for the wonderful review. This is really a fantastic itinerary. We had the pleasure of doing it last August on the Maasdam when we celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary. Your review brought back many happy memories. Happy sailing to you in the future!

[frankc98376]

We know Mei in PG from Zuiderdam and Amsterdam- she is GREAT!!!!

[lynn2002]

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

[infinitiandbeyond]

First, thanks for taking the time to write this review. I'm doing this cruise later this summer and I'm pleased to read about the variety of music.

 

Second, did you use the ship's tour to Butchart Gardens? I've read reviews that said the time was too short. What was your experience?

 

Hmmm, now that you mention it we did think the time went fast fast. We did the tour titled Butchart Gardens and Short City Tour which gave us a drive through downtown which interested us as scouting for a future Victoria trip. We live close enough to come back for a 3 day weekend. At the garden we had 2 hours to view which was enough to see it all, but kept a quick pace. No time for a meal or shopping (there is a shop with artwork and interesting high end items) I think I remember the ship offering 2 or 3 different tours to Butchart. Maybe another has more time in the garden.

[TxMamacitaII]

Thanks for sharing this helpful info!! We will be on this cruise on July 17th and are really excited about it!! I'm also interested in what time you were allowed to board the ship in Seattle. Could you also share some info on the movies currently showing in the theater? Thanks again!

[infinitiandbeyond]

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

 

This is a good one! Apologies if I get too wordy ;)

 

Otter Quest was amazing, the Fortress of the Bear is worth it if you do not plan on seeing bears in any other port. The combo tour with Otter Quest and Bears gave us 20 minutes at the Fortress for only a few $ more. This is enough time as there are only two habitats side by side. They are doing good work there and the bears were fun to watch but frankly it is a little like your local zoo. Hands down, I think the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center outside Anchorage is a better viewing experience. There is a ship tour combo with the nearby Portage Glacier (also Great!) or its an easy scenic drive if you want to go it alone. We did, the ship tour was sold out. Not only bears, there are moose, reindeer, buffalo, elk, wolves, and more. The facility itself is more natural, with larger open habitats (you can walk or drive around the property, which is surrounded by tall mountains and the open water of Turnagain Arm. I really "felt" like I was in Alaska!

 

Icy Straight Point is fun and easy. Recently built, Its compact and organized and the zipline ends at the dock but it is a 45 minute bus ride to the top. If you don't have time for that after whales, there is a nice nature trail along the beach that starts right where you walk off the ship.

 

Both Lido and aft pool were heated. When the Lido glass roof is closed the enclosed space is warm too.

 

Sea days offered cooking classes, informational talks about port activities and nature, computer classes, trivia contests, fitness seminars, poker and slot tournaments, a polar bear plunge in the pool, the spa ran specials, etc.

 

Casino had a good crowd most of the time but take note smoking is allowed here if that is a concern. Sometimes it was not really noticeable, other times it was. They have slots, scratch off style lottery tickets, black jack, roulette...

 

Stateroom TVs were smaller flat screens with a DVD player. Front desk had a catalog of 100's DVDs you can borrow. Pretty current, I saw movies offered that were out in the last year or so plus many old favorites.

 

Movie theater, different film daily. I didn't recognize most of them, but I'm not a huge movie buff so maybe I cant say how current they were.

 

Amsterdam has a hang out space for kids set up like a mini dance club and an area with Xboxes connected to bigger flat screens.

 

Enjoy, you will love it! ~marc

[infinitiandbeyond]

We know Mei in PG from Zuiderdam and Amsterdam- she is GREAT!!!!

 

My husband and I planned on eating in PG once, and Mei's service brought us back for 3 meals!

 

Marc & Art

[infinitiandbeyond]

Thanks for sharing this helpful info!! We will be on this cruise on July 17th and are really excited about it!! I'm also interested in what time you were allowed to board the ship in Seattle. Could you also share some info on the movies currently showing in the theater? Thanks again!

 

Mondays are a single ship day in Seattle. We arrived at pier 91 about 11AM. Dropped bags with porter, parked car, took shuttle back and processed thru check in by 11:30. Boarding began about 11:50 I think. Only took a few minutes to get to our stateroom.

 

Easy disembarkation on return too. Our time was 8:30, no crowd in stairs, no crowd in terminal, picked up bags and cleared customs without stopping for any line up along the way.

 

I have the daily ship activity lists at home and will post a list of the movies shown later tonight.

 

~Marc

[Augie's mom]

Just returned home from our first cruise, the June 5-19 Great Alaskan Explorer on Amsterdam in a vista suite. We had open seating for MDR (flexibility is the way to go on this itinerary). Did 3 dinners in Pinnacle Grill including Le Cirque, all superb. 1 night in Canneletto was a nice diversion from MDR too. Amsterdam is showing her age in style and design but is well maintained and I found her to be very comfortable. The crew clearly has one goal - to make sure you have a great time on board. Our CD Jorge, stateroom stewards Deden and Putu, location guide Ryan, Mei in Pinnacle, Ferdi in MDR, Elvira in the photo studio, all excellent!

 

Here are some notes, ask any questions you have!

 

Amsterdam- loved this smaller ship. You can be anywhere in minutes and even though it was sold out it never seemed to be crowded.

 

Vista Suite- more like a balcony stateroom then an actual suite but to me it was worth it to have a floor to ceiling wall of windows to take in the never ending Alaska scenery and we enjoyed having a private SHELTERED (from wind and rain) outdoor space to enjoy it. On glacier viewing we did the approach on the crowded bow and then retreated to our balcony for quiet up close viewing.

 

Ports -

 

Ketchican, walked around Creek Street. Quaint, almost looks like Disney built an Alaskan town.

 

Tracy Arm, iced in. Diverted to Endicott Arm and Dawes Glacier. Excellent. We were able to get very close and saw seals on the icebergs.

 

Juneau. We prebooked HAL tour Taku Glacier by Air, Water, and Ice. This includes helicopter, air boat, and a hike on the glacier but all helicopters were grounded due to low clouds/visibility. Saved a lot of money but was really looking forward to this excursion.

 

Icy Straight Point, loved this port. ZIPLINE! Don't worry about getting scared just do it. Worth every penny. Also very nice trails along beach and in the forest. No tanzanite in the gift shop :cool:

 

Anchorage, we rented a car and drove up scenic Turnagain Arm to the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center. Bears, moose, raindeer, elk, buffalo. Then on to portage bay glacier and up close viewing on the M/V Patarmigan.

 

Homer - walked the spit and enjoyed a very sunny day on the beach.

 

Kodiak, walked cannery row to the Russian Orthodox Church and the Alutiq Museum.

 

Hubbard Glacier. Stunning! The conditions were good and the captain got us up close to see the glacier calve new icebergs.

 

Sitka, took the HAL tour Sea Otter Quest and Fortress of the Bear. A quick bus ride through town and then a stop at the Fortress to watch the bears play. Then onto a boat to see otters, humpbacks lunge feeding, and lots of eagles. The waterways around Sitka are full of small forested rocky islands, very scenic. Advice - bring rain gear. It is WET in Sitka. No joke, I say this as an Oregonian, i got SOAKED, but had a great time!

 

Victoria, obligatory Butchart Gardens. On the way back our tour bus driver offred to drop us downtown rather than return to ship. Explored and then took a $5 tourist shuttle back to the ship.

 

Questions about the ship, itinerary, or anything else? Fire away!

Thanks for the great review , I am doing this cruise July 17,and now even more excited .

Thanks

Terri

[echoshipmate]

I also want to thank you for the very helpful review. We did this itinerary last summer on the Maasdam, and are returning for a b2b starting July 17 and ending on August 14. Amsterdam is prob our fav HAL ship spending 45 days on her in the south pacific. Your review has me so very excited can hardly wait for 28 days in the cool Alaska summer. Beats the heat here in Texas. Do you recall who is playing in the piano bar? I don't know the CD you mentioned and maybe I missed it , but who is the Captain? We had Fred E. before and was great. Is Mei the hostess/ manager in the PG ? Thanks for helping if you can.

[rkacruiser]

I appreciate your review. Thank you.

 

I sail on July 3rd and will be meeting relatives in Anchorage that day we are in port. Where does the shuttle drop one off and pick one up to return to the ship?

[puppycanducruise]

Thank you for taking the time to post your review.

Glad you had a good cruise.

Looks like a good itinerary - we'll keep it in mind.

[3kidsplayingball]

Thank you for this review with so much information! My husband and I are doing this same cruise (our first!) in August with his sister and brother-in-law. We are excited!

[PoppyandNana]

Mondays are a single ship day in Seattle. We arrived at pier 91 about 11AM. Dropped bags with porter, parked car, took shuttle back and processed thru check in by 11:30. Boarding began about 11:50 I think. Only took a few minutes to get to our stateroom.

 

Easy disembarkation on return too. Our time was 8:30, no crowd in stairs, no crowd in terminal, picked up bags and cleared customs without stopping for any line up along the way.

 

I have the daily ship activity lists at home and will post a list of the movies shown later tonight.

 

~Marc

 

Normally cruise lines today do not allow passengers access to their cabins until,a set time, usually 1pm. You're saying you had access to your cabin at 11:50?

[infinitiandbeyond]

Thanks for sharing this helpful info!! We will be on this cruise on July 17th and are really excited about it!! I'm also interested in what time you were allowed to board the ship in Seattle. Could you also share some info on the movies currently showing in the theater? Thanks again!

 

Here are the movies shown in the Wajang Theater. (Not the same as the very long list of movies on DVD you can check out from the front desk. Staterooms have a DVD player)

 

The Book of Love

A Dog's Purpose

The Sense of the Ending

Split

Biography: Florence Foster Jenkins

DisneyNature: Bears

Beauty & The Beast

Documentary: Behind the scenes of The BBC Earth series

Boss Baby

The Last Word

The Founder

Rules Don't Apply

[infinitiandbeyond]

I also want to thank you for the very helpful review. We did this itinerary last summer on the Maasdam, and are returning for a b2b starting July 17 and ending on August 14. Amsterdam is prob our fav HAL ship spending 45 days on her in the south pacific. Your review has me so very excited can hardly wait for 28 days in the cool Alaska summer. Beats the heat here in Texas. Do you recall who is playing in the piano bar? I don't know the CD you mentioned and maybe I missed it , but who is the Captain? We had Fred E. before and was great. Is Mei the hostess/ manager in the PG ? Thanks for helping if you can.

 

You are welcome, glad to help! I can see why you love Amsterdam. After two days we called her "home". Saw some complain she's out of date, sure a bit. But clean and tip top maintenance. I thought the furnishings and interior design were still elegant yet comfortable.

 

Fred Eversen is still the Captain.

 

Mei is the waiter we had in the PG. Ask for her, she's great. Excellent service that similar to the ship was gracious and comforting.

 

Piano Bar: David Anthony. A different program each night but especially enjoyed his homage to the Beatles!

 

~marc

[infinitiandbeyond]

I appreciate your review. Thank you.

 

I sail on July 3rd and will be meeting relatives in Anchorage that day we are in port. Where does the shuttle drop one off and pick one up to return to the ship?

 

We were dropped off at the West Mark Hotel at 5th and G Street downtown. The shuttle stop is on G between 5th and 6th (apparently, until recently is was actually on 5th)

 

Enjoy!

 

Marc

[infinitiandbeyond]

Normally cruise lines today do not allow passengers access to their cabins until,a set time, usually 1pm. You're saying you had access to your cabin at 11:50?

 

Hi PoppyandNana, yes our cabin was ready as soon as we boarded at 11:50, no instructions to wait until later,they had even already delivered the wine and bottled water we ordered in advance. My first cruise, but from reading other posts here, I *think* this is somewhat normal on HAL. Maybe one of the cruisers here can help confirm?

 

My sister cruised Carnival and said her cabin wasnt ready before early afternoon UNLESS you pay extra :eek: Faster to the Fun they call it. Sounds more like Faster to the Cash (in your Wallet)!

 

~marc

[frankc98376]

HAL normally starts boarding at 11:30 and unless there are circumstances beyond their control all cabins are ready

[tkwbear]

One of my friends on the 7/3 cruise received an email from HAL describing a later boarding schedule, which indicated the Dolphin deck should begin at 2:30 (other decks were sooner). I booked through a TA and did not receive one. I did call my TA to ask and they were told by HAL that noon is the target time.

 

infinitiandbeyond , what did you think of the food on board? I am a long time HAL customer and I've always enjoyed the food. Last summer it was exceptional on the Zaandam in Alaska, but it was TV dinner quality on the same ship to Hawaii in April. Since both cruises departed from Vancouver, and should have had similar food available I really was surprised. We did have a different chef, but I don't think it was entirely his fault. They had pork belly on the menu a couple of times. I had some in the Lido one night and it was inedible.

Edited June 22, 2017 by tkwbear

[infinitiandbeyond]

One of my friends on the 7/3 cruise received an email from HAL describing a later boarding schedule, which indicated the Dolphin deck should begin at 2:30 (other decks were sooner). I booked through a TA and did not receive one. I did call my TA to ask and they were told by HAL that noon is the target time.

 

infinitiandbeyond , what did you think of the food on board? I am a long time HAL customer and I've always enjoyed the food. Last summer it was exceptional on the Zaandam in Alaska, but it was TV dinner quality on the same ship to Hawaii in April. Since both cruises departed from Vancouver, and should have had similar food available I really was surprised. We did have a different chef, but I don't think it was entirely his fault. They had pork belly on the menu a couple of times. I had some in the Lido one night and it was inedible.

 

Lido - Breakfast & Lunch were ok. We also ran into the inedible pork belly. Loved the salad where you pick the items you want. Didn't eat dinner here. Late Night was good but small selection.

 

Dive In was good. Especially during the afternoon when Lido is partially shut down.

 

Main Dining - We ate here 8-9 nights. The two of us usually shared 2-3 apps (they are small) along with a salad or soup, and an entree each. Some entrees were small too. All were good to great. Good variation in preparations. Service was good even though we had different waiters (anytime dining). We ate late, by ourselves, usually around 8-830 and 1/2 the time we were seated upstairs at empty tables in the fixed dining area.

 

Pinnacle - we planned to eat here once, and ended up coming back two more times, including Le Cirque. PG meals were excellent both food quality and service. Le Cirque the Chateaubriand I had was perfection.

 

Room Service - very limited but omelette, club sandwich, cheese plate were good.

Edited June 22, 2017 by infinitiandbeyond

[Traveler27]

I am on the 7/3 Amsterdam Alaska cruise as well. This is the notification I received for embarkation day from HA.

 

IMPORTANT NOTIFICATION:

 

 

We would like to provide you with important information regarding your sailing.

 

 

To enhance the check-in and boarding experience, we ask that guests arrive at

 

 

the terminal based on the following times. Guests who have booked a transfer or

 

 

hotel package with Holland America will be provided a check-in time at the

 

 

airport or hotel.

 

 

1:00 PM - Deck 6 & Deck 7 (Verandah & Navigation)

 

 

1:30 PM - Deck 3 (Lower Promenade)

 

 

2:00 PM - Deck 2 (Main)

 

 

2:30 PM - Deck 1 (Dolphin)

 

 

We invite our 4 and 5 Star Mariners, Pinnacle and Neptune Suite guests to

 

 

arrive anytime between 12:30 P.M. and 3:00 P.M. Boarding will commence shortly

 

 

after check in. All guests must be onboard 1 hour prior to sailing. We

 

 

appreciate your understanding and cooperation, and look forward to welcoming

 

 

you onboard.

[frankc98376]

Our embarkation day in Vancouver will have 3 ships in port. All of the will be advising the SAME check in times as HAL's email.

 

I say BS- we are checking out of the Pan Pacific and heading downstairs at 10:00 to 10:15 as we always do. I'm not going to get caught in that madhouse in the terminal after noon.

 

The 11:30 boarding with cabins available had for some time been a HUGE selling point for HAL. It's a benefit people appreciate a LOT that doesn't cost HAL a lot of money.

[infinitiandbeyond]

We received that email too, about 2 weeks before sailing. I think I saw in another thread that HAL has been sending it out for some time but so far it is merely a suggestion. If it were enforced no one would board before 12:30 at all. Which was not our experience.

 

For us, the email specified deck 6, 1PM. We arrived shortly after 11:00am, were checked in by 11:30 and nothing was said about waiting. When boarding began about 11:50 everyone in the terminal was boarded without an attempt to hold anyone back by deck or Mariner status.

 

Our cabin was ready and waiting when we got to it. They had even delivered items ordered in advance.

 

~marc