Oosterdam to Alaska, Questions

[Rosie W, Austin, TX]

Hi, all--Our cruise won't be until next September, but I truly enjoy the planning stage and I take great pleasure in reading travel boards for interesting comments, travel tips, and answers to questions :D. Many of you on this board seem extremely helpful.....I count on you.

 

A friend and I have joined two other friends (all senior females) in reserving and sharing a Cat. S cabin on the Oosterdam. Two of us have cruised several times, but never on HAL. We are looking forward to the experience. I am sure that I'll be asking your help periodically. Here are some questions to start my 10-month planning session:

 

--None of us--three from Texas, one from NM--will use HAL's flight-cruise program and consequently won't have transfers to/from the Port of Seattle. I know that we can buy HAL transfers from the airport to the port and vice versa, but how much do they cost? Does HAL take charge of our luggage at the airport? (I've checked HAL's web site, but they do not list the price of transfers, nor do they mention luggage handling for those not using their flight arrangements.)

 

--In the Cat. S suite, two of us will be using the sofa-bed. Is the sofa-bedding comfortable? (Please say yes.)

 

--We enjoy pre-dinner cocktails, such as Scotch/rocks and rum and Coke, and prefer to drink them in our suite. The HAL web site lists the availability of liquor purchased by the bottle, but then makes a confusing statement that seems to say that we can't open the liquor while on board:confused: . Can anyone clarify this for me?

 

--September is very late in the season for Alaska (we're joining a larger group of cruisers that had already determined date and port of departure). Will we have any chance at all of seeing humpback whales on an excursion? If so, will our chances be better at Juneau or at Sitka? We're all very interested in viewing wildlife......any suggestions for tours at Juneau, Sitka, and Ketchican?

 

Many thanks to all who respond.--Rosie in Texas

[RuthC]

Hi, Rosie. Welcome to the HAL board. I can't answer all your questions, but I'll take a stab at a couple of them.

 

Liquor: HAL rules prohibit bringing your own on board. If you attempt to bring liquor on the ship HAL may confiscate it and return it to you on the last night.

You may purchase liquor for on-board consumption from Ship's Services in advance, or from room service while on board. That may clarify the seeming confusion on that topic.

Whales: the last time I cruised to Alaska was the first week of September ('96). I took the wildlife quest tour in Sitka and saw everything I could hope to see. There was a pair of bald eagles, sea otters, and tons (no pun intended) of whales up close and personal.

My experience may not be your experience, but there is at least a chance for you.

Hope this helps.

[BJane]

My first trip to Alaska was in 1990 during the first week of September. We did not take any wildlife tours, but on the way back down to Vancouver we saw several pods of orcas. The Captain slowed the ship waaaaaay down so we could enjoy them. This was an Inside Passage cruise as opposed to the route that the Oosterdam will be taking and I don't remember just where we saw all the whales.

 

Have you considered taking a cab from the airport to the pier? This is what we did when we flew into Seatac to sail from Seattle. It worked out really well and we actually prefer to use cabs instead of ship transportation.

 

It will most likely be cooler that it might be during the summer months but as long as you're prepared you'll be fine. It was certainly the coldest of any of our trips up there. Have a great trip.

[SEATTLE CRUISER]

Pack your liquor in your check on luggage. The federal inspectors don't care if you are taking alcohol aboard. All they are watching for is something, that will go "BOOM." I boarded a ship in Seattle in October, and had no problem getting it aboard. I know for a fact, that many others also did so. It is just nice to have a drink in your room prior to dinner, even though we often went to a bar instead.

[kruzkeen]

-None of us--three from Texas, one from NM--will use HAL's flight-cruise program and consequently won't have transfers to/from the Port of Seattle. I know that we can buy HAL transfers from the airport to the port and vice versa, but how much do they cost? Does HAL take charge of our luggage at the airport? (I've checked HAL's web site, but they do not list the price of transfers, nor do they mention luggage handling for those not using their flight arrangements.)

 

 

First things first. Getting to Seattle. Unless there are good reasons why you cannot, you should go to Seattle the day before. It is a beautiful city. I think that the Alaska cruise experience should include time spent in either Seattle or Vancouver.

 

For an informative thread on Seattle hotels, sight seeing etc. go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=64361&highlight=seattle+hotels

 

If this is not possible get a flight that lands at SEATAC airport no later than 1PM, the sooner the better. I would try for noon. Since you have not bought your air through HAL, there will be no red jacket person looking for you on arrival, advising on luggage pickup and where the bus is etc.

[Krazy Kruizers]

If you but HAL's transfers they will make certain that your luggage is taken care of. You will claim your own luggage in Seattle and then is will be set aside to go in a truck with others who have flown into Seattle - if there are a lot of flights arriving at the same time. Otherwise, your luggage will go right on the bus with you to the pier - about 30 - 45 minute drive depending on traffic and day of week.

If you use HAL transfer at end of cruise, your luggage will definitely go with you on the bus you are assigned to go to the airport.

 

[Krazy Kruizers]

Sofa Bed - never had to use it in the suite - but from hearing from others - not comfortable - but heck - it is only a 7 day cruise. It is barely a queen size bed. In some of the cabins - aft - they only open to hold one person. Hope you are midships.

Liquor - you can buy various bottles of alcohol once on board - around $25 - $27 a bottle plus 15% gratuity - and you can drink it in your suite. We love to have cocktails on our verandah - even in Alaska - so much beautiful scenery!

[Thoth]

Since I did the Oosterdam Alaska trip last year, I'll throw in my 2 cents worth. Transfers were $20 and they picked up the bags at the airport and were delivered to my stateroom. To book transfers I went through my travel agent. It was VERY easy! While it might be nice to arrive a day early, I didn't do it that way myself. I got up at 5 am,left my local airport at 6:30am and was in Seattle at 11:30 am, with the ship leaving at 5pm. I personally had no problems flying in and out the same day.

As for shore excursions, if you book a whale-watching tour you will whales or your money back. The cruiseline offers 4 choices for whale watching in Juneau.

A 5 hour whales+ glacier tour= $129, 6 hour Whales, Glacier, + salmon bake= $149 , Whale Watching and Wildlife Quest(4 hours)=$109, Evening Whale Quest(3.5 hours)=$129

Here are the shore tours that I have done and enjoyed: Juneau= Mendenhall Glacier and city tour, Guide's choice nature hike, Mt Roberts Tramway.

Victoria= High Tea and city tour including the "castle". Ketchikan= Misty fjords National Monument boat+ plane, a walk down Creek Street on my own.

Sitka= City tour with Russian Dancers & Raptor Center(eagles!). Also I did my own walking tour of this lovely town and saw as much or more than on the tour bus.

You can go to Holland America's website and read up on their shore tours.

Good luck and have fun!

[Stevesan]

Rosie, you'll probably see lots of whales, Dalls Porpoises, sea lions and otters, too.

It is extremely easy to book your Alaska excursions with independent operators. Our best was in Juneau with Captain Larry.

Capt Larry’s boat is custom built and seats a maximum of thirty-two passengers; however, he normally books only twenty-four, leaving extra wiggle room. The “Awesome Orca” is a forty-two foot water-jet propulsion craft with an enclosed lower deck. There is a roomy and comfortable exposed viewing deck on the aft end. The top deck is totally open for SRO viewing. Up-top limit is eight at a time, so we all periodically rotate. The trip through Auke Bay to the viewing area is at high speed, but the waters are calm throughout. The still waters in the bay combine with the smoother jet engines for a far smoother ride than our Sitka experience. We saw a number of whales, one of whom breeched directly in front of our bow. Two humpbacks were deep diving in tandem as a ballet duo, showing their flukes with each dive. Sea Lions and Dall’s Porpoises were abundant. Alas, no seals or orcas appeared today. Orca Enterprises is a truly first class operation. Capt. Larry provides the narration and finds the wildlife. His web site is: http://www.alaskawhalewatching.com/. You need to book this tour about one month in advance. Orca Enterprises also booked us for a helicopter glacier landing with Coastal Helicopters. The shuttle dropped us off at the airport right after the boat trip.

A don’t miss is the Raptor Center in Sitka. You don’t need to book a tour. The Center provides frequent guided tours through their site. Each tour finishes with a video and a talk by one of the Naturalists. A Metro shuttle bus stops at the dock, runs through town out to The Raptor Center and circles back every half hour. The shuttle fare is $7.00, good all day. The Raptor center’s web site is at: http://www.alaskaraptor.org/. There are great photo ops here.

 

Ketchikan has a shed on the dock with about twenty different tour desks lined up waiting for you. If you’re after a flight seeing or glacier landing type tour, you should advance book. Nearly all the tour operators have web sites. These are easy to find by going to each community’s web page where you’ll usually find links to the tours. Most of the Saxman Village, Gold Panning or Hiking type tours can wait till the last minute. Our best ship’s tours was with Allen Marine in Sitka. The Sea Otter Quest, a three-hour trip, was most notable. Although Allen Marine employs large boats, the narration and amenities are excellent. Their boats can take up to 150 passengers. Ours was not that large. I didn’t make a head count, but I’d estimate we had about ninety souls on board. The boat has a totally enclosed lower deck and a partially enclosed upper. I’d urge you to take an upper deck seat where there is a protective ‘U’ shaped wraparound glass windscreen that is open in the rear allowing air circulation throughout. Because the lower deck is totally enclosed, there is little airflow. The atmosphere inside becomes extremely close, inducing seasickness. The ride out to the viewing areas is quite rough and at high speed. It’s a lot of fun, but when the boat slowed down and became still for wildlife viewing, every below deck youngster, including ours, became ill. I took Philip upstairs and some kind folks let us sit with them until he recovered.

Those who stayed below remained semi-comatose for the rest of the tour. Along the way we saw one humpback whale, and rafts of sea otters. On the return southbound leg we took the Silver Bay Cruise. This cruise is in an enclosed bay, so it was a much smoother ride. It culminates in a visit to a salmon hatchery.

If you can, I strongly recommend a couple of days in Seattle. It's a beautiful city and great for visitors.

[Rosie W, Austin, TX]

Thanks so much to all of you for your excellent suggestions. I'm coming to you for help again.

 

Through another thread on this board, I learned yesterday that we will be sailing along with a group known as "C.G.S. Ministries," which chartered the cruise through Inspiration Cruises, a religion-oriented cruise company. I would appreciate hearing any experiences y'all might have had with sharing a ship with a large group charter. Though I don't know the size of this group, I suspect it's at least a few hundred. I'm wondering how this might affect our onboard experience. Also, heaven knows, I'm as religious as the next person, but I don't go on a cruise to be "sermonized." Of course, I may have an entirely wrong impression about what might await us, so I would like to hear what y'all have to say.:confused:

[dakrewser]

Rosie, there are two other threads currently running on this topic - suggest you check them first before starting a third one.

 

 

see

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=108923

and

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=108831

 

-dave

[Budget Queen]

For clairfication- a cab is easy from Seatac, $25+++ so your best bargain for 3. Humpbacks are 100% sighted from tours in Juneau, my clear preferred vender is Orca Enterprises. You will NOT be going the above route mentioned about the orcas- that is INSIDE Vancouver Island, this ship sails outside. There will be no opportunity for evening whale watching- it gets dusk by 7pm mid- Sept. so plan all tours with this in mind. Sorry- but since you ask- the sofa beds are terrible.