Koningsdam Review May 28- June 4

[QuattroRomeo]

We just returned from our Alaska Inside Passage cruise, May 28- June 4, on the Koningsdam. We are regular cruisers but haven’t cruised on HAL since 2011, nor had we used the Vancouver cruise port before so we thought we would do a short cruise just to see what sailing is like these days.

We are both vaccinated, boosted and mask-wearers.

 

We had an early flight and had booked the HAL transfer to the ship. There was only one transfer kiosk set up in the airport just past the luggage carousel area. Finally found it. We were informed that no bus would be boarding until after 10 am, so a couple of hours' wait. In retrospect, wouldn’t do that again. Anyway we finally left on the full bus ( all cruise lines together). Took half an hour to get to the terminal.

 

It was about 11:30 when we got there. The lineups weren’t terrible; I had completed Verifly before and that seemed to help- the shortest line – and all they checked for was the “green” message ( Ready to Sail) and we moved on to the next checkpoint. Things got much slower then… The HAL rep told me my photo wasn’t in the system ( I loaded both of our photos in Navigator at home); she took at least 3 photos of me before it seemed to load. We moved on to whatever the next pit stop was; it went on and on; US customs lineup was slow as they had passengers do their own passport scanning, many needed help. Then some pit stop checking ArriveCan and some young  guy looking all concerned and  mumbled something unintelligible. I had entered everything beforehand so we just kept moving. Finally got to a seating area where we waited 10 minutes for our row to board. This all took at least an hour. Once we got to the embarkation kiosk on the ship, the crew lady told me my photo wasn’t there.. surprise,  surprise! And that I would need to go to the Guest Services desk. Oh goody- Guest Services on Embarkation Day! I waited until the next day when there was a shorter line. Asked them why the photo didn’t “take” earlier; “Oh just some sort of glitch” is all that I got from them.

The room keycards were waiting by the cabin door. We watched the safety video while unpacking (no TV services available until after you play the video), then went to our muster station to have our cards scanned. Finally done!

 

We had an obstructed sideways balcony cabin on deck 4 forward. The room was a pretty good size, as was the balcony. Bath robes were there. I had pre-ordered mineral water, flowers and a ship mug. The water was there and the flowers, which were beautiful and fresh- lasted all week. This was our Astrid bouquet:

[dvanwa]

We are on the June 18th sailing. A few questions for you - when are the Formal nights? Did you test for covid virtually on the ship the day before dis-embarking? We need a test before flying home to the US. Curious whether anyone had trouble with the Wi-Fi. Thank you!

 

[Dreamer115]

Following along, thanks for the review.  Question:  Do they have a seperate line up for people who use scooters or walkers?  

 

[QuattroRomeo]

Just now, dvanwa said:

We are on the June 18th sailing. A few questions for you - when are the Formal nights? Did you test for covid virtually on the ship the day before dis-embarking? We need a test before flying home to the US. Curious whether anyone had trouble with the Wi-Fi. Thank you!

 

Sunday and Wednesday were  "Dressy Attire" nights. We did not have to test before flying home as it was a domestic flight for us. Although many people did manage it virtually onboard. 

[QuattroRomeo]

Just now, Dreamer115 said:

Following along, thanks for the review.  Question:  Do they have a seperate line up for people who use scooters or walkers?  

 

Hmm, I don't recall any special line. Hopefully someone here will know!

To be fair, some folks we met later had a smoother embarkation; just depends on timing, who is working, etc.

[HappyInVan]

1 hour ago, Dreamer115 said:

Following along, thanks for the review.  Question:  Do they have a seperate line up for people who use scooters or walkers?  

 

 

I boarded in April, and they did allow the handicap to cut through the queue. Ditto for Verify and suite pax. There were a number of attendants calling out for priority pax.

Edited June 7, 2022 by HappyInVan

[PACD_JG]

Please tell us what happened at Tracy Arm Fjord - does the ship merely stop at the mouth to let folks disembark for the excursion and then head straight for Juneau, or does the ship actually go into the Fjord?

[Xenni]

Thank you for the review, it is definitely a good read to prepare for our cruise in late July (same ship)!

 

I also have couple questions -

How full was the ship?

Also, when was your boarding time? I was just slotted to a 12:40 boarding time (Group C), so I'm not sure if it's the last group to board.

[PACD_JG]

3 minutes ago, Xenni said:

Also, when was your boarding time? I was just slotted to a 12:40 boarding time (Group C), so I'm not sure if it's the last group to board.

I'm on the 25 June ship - as far as I know I don't have a boarding time.  Where do you access this?

[SilvertoGold]

13 minutes ago, PACD_JG said:

Please tell us what happened at Tracy Arm Fjord - does the ship merely stop at the mouth to let folks disembark for the excursion and then head straight for Juneau, or does the ship actually go into the Fjord?

 

Just a stop to load pax onto the Shorex boat.  Beautiful scenery in the area and worth seeing even if you don't get to see farther.

[SilvertoGold]

9 minutes ago, PACD_JG said:

I'm on the 25 June ship - as far as I know I don't have a boarding time.  Where do you access this?

About a week out you will receive a notice from HAL.

[QuattroRomeo]

Just now, Xenni said:

Thank you for the review, it is definitely a good read to prepare for our cruise in late July (same ship)!

 

I also have couple questions -

How full was the ship?

Also, when was your boarding time? I was just slotted to a 12:40 boarding time (Group C), so I'm not sure if it's the last group to board.

Our boarding slot was also 12:40, although it didn't seem to mean anything. Passenger counts coming up!

[Xenni]

19 minutes ago, PACD_JG said:

I'm on the 25 June ship - as far as I know I don't have a boarding time.  Where do you access this?

Oh sorry, I meant "Check-in Time". This should be on your boarding pass. Once you finish the check in process online (filling out contact info etc), it will let you print out your luggage tag and boarding pass.

 

My boarding pass just became available today so you should have yours by now.

[QuattroRomeo]

  The mug was not there. I like to collect mugs with the specific ship name on it. I had to hunt for it onboard, eventually found wrapped in a bag somewhere in behind Guest Services. It turned out to be a generic logo mug. I had to try and find the proper one myself. None of the shops had anything but the generic HAL logo. Finally I found one in Photo Services...and I mean ONE. They would not allow a straight exchange. Had to get a refund for the generic one and then buy the new one. So much for the couple of bucks pre-cruise order discount!

 

There were about 1600 passengers on board, 50/50 Canadian and American. Apparently the week before was busier, with about 1800, 60% Canadian. Makes sense given that it was a long weekend here. The port shopping ambassador told us that during the previous week, the TV area in the Casino Bar was packed with people watching the Flames vs. the Oilers!

[QuattroRomeo]

Given the times, we had sort of expected a higher level of cleaning, maybe for door handles, counter tops and the like, but there was no evidence of anything other than the usual.

 

Masks were required when boarding or leaving the ship. Other than that, nothing. I can recall only one announcement recommending social distancing and wearing masks. There were signs in the hallways that read "Masks Recommended". Some people were good about social distancing. Many were not. Maybe half of the passengers wore masks; crew members always did. Some crew members were double-masked. Don't blame them! Crew are tested weekly. The only other signs I saw were in the Explorations Cafe, Dutch Cafe and Guest Services:

 

[QuattroRomeo]

We did have beautiful weather - in the 20s°C for all but the last day. We brought too many warm clothes, but not complaining! Lots of people enjoyed the outdoor pool and hot tubs on the aft deck/ Seaview lounge area. 

 

[QuattroRomeo]

The last day was at sea, and it was gray, raining and cool. Inside the ship, it was a bit dark in the morning, so they had hallway floorlighting on- first time we have seen that during the daytime:

 

 

[QuattroRomeo]

Our cabin stewards provided twice daily service, with towel animals every night. The chocolates arrived only on the 2 dressy nights. Two voucher cards for a Mariner cocktail came early on ( some wine spritzer thing). The one drink area we thought to ask for one told us it was a specific drink and only at certain bars. Didn't bother after that. One night there were spa vouchers for $70. The ceramic tiles showed up another night. We are 2 star mariners so that was about it. Oh yes- I forgot the one shopping bag... hardly as nice as the canvas ones of old...! I did notice a Mariner reception on deck 2 on the last day. I believe it was for 4&5 star Mariners.

 

 

[QuattroRomeo]

Tile and shopping bag. 

[QuattroRomeo]

Some cabin photos.

 

[QuattroRomeo]

[QuattroRomeo]

The tv offerings were pretty minimal for live shows, but there were several movies and travel shows.

We didn't much like the music channels, no jazz. The onboard account screen didn't always work. Kind of irritating when you no longer get any printouts, not even on the last night.

 

 

Edited June 7, 2022 by QuattroRomeo

[Dreamer115]

55 minutes ago, QuattroRomeo said:

The tv offerings were pretty minimal for live shows, but there were several movies and travel shows.

We didn't much like the music channels, no jazz. The onboard account screen didn't always work. Kind of irritating when you no longer get any printouts, not even on the last night.

 

 

As I am travelling with my adult daughter how would the onboard account work?  Would there be two seperate ones or are we going to have to keep track and sort it out ourselves?  Also would there only be one bag or two or are they only for people who have travelled on HAL before?  

[Xenni]

2 hours ago, QuattroRomeo said:

The tv offerings were pretty minimal for live shows, but there were several movies and travel shows.

We didn't much like the music channels, no jazz. The onboard account screen didn't always work. Kind of irritating when you no longer get any printouts, not even on the last night.

 

 

What kind of movies on demand are available? How much are they (if they cost anything?)

[Florida_gal_50]

6 hours ago, Dreamer115 said:

As I am travelling with my adult daughter how would the onboard account work?  Would there be two seperate ones or are we going to have to keep track and sort it out ourselves?  Also would there only be one bag or two or are they only for people who have travelled on HAL before?  

You will have 2 separate accounts.