Binocular on the Westerdam

[TITISSA]

Can somebody who has been on a SA cabin on the Westerdam tell me what type of binoculars HAL offers? We are doing Alaska in August and I was wondering if I should bring my own? Thanks.

[bepsf]

I dunno what brand, etc - but they're not the cheezy little ones - they're big...

[CruisinGrams]

I remember as we were walking toward the gangway in Seattle to the Westerdam there was a stand set up selling binoculars for $50.00. Sorry I didn't really look at them but they seemed substantial not just opera glasses.

[5 in OK]

We were on the W'dam May 21 sailing. There were two pair in each of our cabins (SA 7071 & 7073) - pretty good quality. My husband brought his own "Bass Pro Shop" pair and we really couldn't tell any difference from the HAL ones and his. So, if you're tight on packing - you will probably be content with the free ones in the cabin.

 

They have cozy blankets too - perfect for those hot chocolates on the Verandah!!! :)

[Vampire Parrot]

On an Alaskan cruise, you will end up spending quite a lot of time looking through binoculars if you have some!

 

The binoculars on the Zuiderdam were OK... about the same standard as Bass pro shop and other inexpensive binoculars (such as Tasco or Bushnell).

 

Personally I usually bring my own binoculars (which are signifcantly better than Tasco), and for something like an Alaskan or Blatic cruise I would definitely bring my own.

 

James

[mozart1999]

They are Bushnell´s 7 x 50, very good if You dont have a better one. I personally take my 16 x 50, also Bushnell, to last week trip to Alaska, but my family use the ship´s a lot and enjoy them.

[TITISSA]

Thank you all so much. What would I do without this board!

[Vampire Parrot]

A tip for anyone buying binoculars :

 

Always look through the pair you are going to buy. Don't take a quick look, take a looooong (30 seconds or more) look. The two light-paths that make up binoculars should be exactly aligned.

 

If they aren't, then if they are badly out of alignment you'll see two seperate images.

 

If they are slightly out of alignment, your eyes will feel strained as they work to merge the two images, and prolongued use will give you a headache.

 

Binoculars are fairly delicate because of this - quite easy to knock out of alignment or indeed, not to be properly aligned when manufactured.

 

You can get inexpensive bincoulars that are properly aligned, although you might have to look through several pairs first.

 

Another tip : always use the neckstrap - some people try and look "cool" by not doing so but it only takes a moment's inattention to render them useless... plus, the coolest person on the ship is the Captain, and you'll always see him use the neckstrap :cool: