Live from Alaska onboard the MS Oosterdam!Live from Alaska onboard the MS Oosterdam!

We started our Alaska vacation a week ago in Fairbanks and were on our own for the first 7 days. Highlights of the first week included: Fairbanks, Denali, Healy, Barrow, Anchorage, Wasilla, Talkeetna, Seward and many points in between. The weather was perfect and we were able to see Mt McKinley several times from various cities.

We rented a Hertz car, one way, from Anchorage to Seward. It was expensive at $266 for one day. Since we are traveling with another couple the price per person was comparable to a bus transfer with the added benefit of being able to stop along the Seward Highway and visit the Portage Glacier and Exit Glacier. Hertz is the only company that rents one way between the cities. The Hertz office in Seward offers shuttle service to the Cruise Ship Terminal or you could walk (about 1 mile).

Arriving at the Cruise Ship Terminal about noon, we were pleased to see the line to check in was only about 50 people. However, HAL only staffed 4 check in positions, so it still took us about 45 minutes to get our cruise cards and head off to the ship.

There were more positions available and I sure they used them all when the masses started to arrive later in the day.

We enjoy taking the embarkation photo, so that is never an issue for us, but I did notice it was very easy for those not wanting a photo to bypass the line and were not forced to walk thru the photo gauntlet.

After settling into our cabin, we ventured out to explore the ship.

While this is our 6th HAL cruise, it is the first on the Vista Class. Our previous cruises have been on R and S Class ships (Ryndam, Rotterdam and Veendam)

Our first reaction to the Vista Class – Wow!

We love the Vista Class! The Oosterdam is a beautiful ship and while similar to the R class ships, has many features we immediately liked, while still being a relatively small ship.

Some of the changes that we enjoyed:

• The Screening room: Nothing like this on the R/S class ships. This room is small, but gorgeous, and I feel compelled to take in one of the movies just to try it out. They have very comfy reclining theater chairs.

• The Crow’s Nest: Onthe R/S class this is one large venue, but here it has been divided in two, with the Crow’s Nest on the port side and the Explorations Café/library on the starboard side. We liked this arrangement as it provides a better use for some of this prime real estate.

• The Culinary Arts Center, aka Queen’s Lounge: Very open and beautiful. In addition to the normal culinary presentations, the lounge is used for the Dancing with the Stars competition and is transformed into the BB King’s Blues Club in the evening.

As we walked thru the Casino, we observed them holding training on the Craps table. Some instructors had the table set up with chips everywhere and were walking thru some new dealers on the ins and outs of the game. I assume this was refresher training or a skill test because learning to deal craps would take some time as it is a very complex and fast game to manage.

I will comment on other public spaces as we use them over the next week.

After touring the ship for a couple of hours (and grabbing a bite to eat in the LIDO) we returned to our cabin where we met our Cabin Steward and started to unpack the rest of our luggage.

We have a Verandah Stateroom on deck 4. The cabin is very nice with a good sized verandah that should come in handy while we cruise Glacier Bay. There is a fully stocked mini bar, with plenty of room left over to add our own items. Unlike some other ships, the refrigerator is keeping everything nice and cold instead of only cool.

The bathroom has a nice built in cabinet and very practical soap dishes. The shower/tub is a nice size with the thermostatically controlled water valve keeping the temperature constant.

Lifeboat Drill

This is an area when Princess has a much better process. On HAL, you muster underneath your lifeboat, without your lifejacket, and then proceed to have the crewmember in charge of your station spend 15 minutes calling out cabin numbers. After everyone is accounted for, the Captain and Cruise Director provide useful information over the public address system. You observe a crewmember don the life jacket and then you are on your way.

On Princess, you muster in a public area, for example the showroom or a lounge. They scan your cruise card when you enter, so there isn’t any need to waste time calling our names. Once everyone is present, they show a short video and then ask you to put on your life jacket (which unlike HAL, you do carry with you to the drill.) Princess explains that in a real emergency they prefer to have the guests inside, out of the heat/cold/weather and in a place where everyone can sit down. It is quieter inside so communications is easier. If you have to proceed to a lifeboat, they can direct you to the most appropriate boats in an orderly manner, since in an actual emergency, the ships list may preclude many boats from being used at all.

The Captain mentioned that one of the lifeboats was missing – it was being overhauled in Juneau. He said that they still had one extra lifeboat above the required number and that everyone in the affected muster station received a personal letter explaining the situation. Apparently they drop off a life boat in Juneau and then switch it out later and by the end of the season, all the lifeboats have been overhauled.

We have late seating, so the 7:30 drill, led right into our time for the 8PM seating.

The dining room was fabulous and we were seated promptly. We have a table for 8 and everyone was seated by 5 minutes after. The MDR staff was incredible. The waiter and his assistant introduced themselves and were quite efficient. This was probably the best service I have experienced on any of my HAL ships to date. We had the prime rib, which was delicious and cooked to our liking. The pacing of the service was perfect.

After dinner we had to rush off to the show, which was a fantastic production where all the entertainers, from the singers and dancers, the pianist and string ensembles and the other musical acts that will be performing throughout the ship during the cruise showcase their talent with a short performance. All the entertainers were great for their short numbers with a lot of energy and enthusiasm. The Cruise Director did a great job introducing the various acts and keeping everything moving. Lots of energy and talent in this group. Can’t wait to see them perform in their normal venues.

Looking forward to a wonderful sea day tomorrow.

Looking forward to your reports!

We got off the oosterdam last sunday. We were in 4077.

Check out the piano bar. Jimmy is so much fun.

And tell April in the casino i said hi. I love a lively craps dealer!

Thank you for writing a "Live from" review of your Oosterdam cruise.

Enjoy the remainder of your voyage.

"And don't forget to wash your hands"

We'll be aboard her in 3 weeks and I can hardly contain myself. Keep 'em coming!

Wonderful Live report.

Thanks for the report. I'm on the Oosterdam departing northbound on August 16. I can't wait!!

Day 2 – At Sea

Smooth Seas with overcast skies greeted us on our first sea day. We have a verandah cabin this cruise, but normally we get an oceanview since we have learned that more often than not, the verandah gets little use during the cruise. But for Alaska, we hope to make good use of the Verandah as we cruise Glacier Bay tomorrow and the inside passage later in the week.

Our day started with the Behind the Scenes Kitchen Tour. Everyone lined up in front of the door to the Vista Dining room. The line was long, but moved quickly. They moved people into the kitchen in groups of 15 or so and gave you a 4 page description of how the kitchen works and what you will be seeing at the various stations. The groups tended to merge together during the tour and it was difficult to hear your groups escort, but most of the stations were self-explanatory or accompanied by signs. It is always interesting to see the large machines and processes they use to deliver such great food on such a massive scale. They really do have this figured out. At the end we had an opportunity to take a photo with the Executive Chef and buy one of the HAL cookbooks.

We had lunch in the Lido. Very nice as usual. My wife grabbed the drinks and found a table – full but you could find a table with a little looking. I went thru the line and filled up a large plate for the both of us to share. The pizza is way better than I recall on previous ships.

We had to try out the screening room. There was a 30 minute film about Native Alaskans in Ketchican that was showing at 3 different times. Knowing that the room was small, we arrived 30 minutes before show time. They was already 4 people inside. With 15 minutes to go, every seat was filled. Lesson here – if you want to see a particular show at a particular time – go early. They don’t allow you to bring in extra chairs from nearby rooms. The movie was just OK, but the picture and sound were wonderful and the seats were fantastic. Halfway thru the screening, a waiter came by delivering bags of hot popcorn to every guest. I didn’t check back to see if subsequent showings filled up so quickly. I imagine it will become less crowded as time goes by.

We checked out the shops in the early afternoon. The shops are larger and have more to sell on the Vista Class as compared to the R/S class ships, but generally it was more of the same type of stuff. A little more variety but about the same as you would expect on any cruise ship.

While walking down the corridor near the Photo Gallery, I couldn’t help but hear a few sentences of a couple already examining their onboard account statement….”They are charging us twice for the Hotel Service charge..” I didn’t linger to hear the rest of the discussion, but I can only imagine the patience necessary to work the front desk of a cruise ship.

I always take in at least one Bingo game. I look forward to creative number calling. Some hosts have a clever name for every call. “The most beautiful legs in Bingo – B11” This caller was about average. I was on a Princess ship where the caller had a clever name for every number. Impressive and hard to match. The game was crowded so the games were quick. Not sure if the standing when you have one number left is another dying tradition as the winners in two games cried Bingo! while firmly seated. The last game paid out over $500. Not bad for the first day.

I didn’t realize it at the time, but when I bought a drink during Bingo, I was given back someone else’s cruise card. I never looked the card and simply put it back in my top pocket with the crumpled receipt. Well, several hours later, while getting ready to leave for dinner, I grabbed my cruise card and noticed the error. I was halfway thru my story at the front desk when the person on duty reached down and produced my card in exchange for the other persons. He assured me that the charges were checked and nothing was charged incorrectly to either card. He reviewed my last transactions and they were all mine. I guess I will at least glance at my card when the waiter returns it going forward.

The Captains welcome toast was at 7:45 on this “Gala” evening in the Vista Showroom (formerly known as formal night – but more on that later). We arrived 25 minutes early, just as they were opening the doors as we expected this to be SRO quickly. I was surprised to see many empty seats still available when the Cruise Director kicked off the event about 3 minutes late. The Captain introduced his team in less than five minutes and then the toast and we were done with six minutes to spare before second seating.

GALA night. Or Formal Night (RIP)

Formal night is over. Any pretense of this being a formal evening is gone. The name has been changed and so with it, the last hope for any return to the grandeur of old on Holland America. They may as well eliminate the dress code for any night since the hodge podge they have created now satisfies no one. All of the different dining options have created a continuous flow of diners to and from the various venues and lounges, with everyone honoring a different dress code at different times. It’s a mess and there is no way out. Time to give “Gala” night the boot and have the same dress standards every-night.

I saw a total of 10 tuxedos (including me) from 7pm till midnight. Now there was probably a few more at first sitting that I missed, but formal night is officially over on HAL – or at least on this cruise. Many folks in jacket only with no tie and about 10% in suits. The rest in Sport Jackets and tie.

Notwithstanding the dress code concerns, the dinner was fabulous. We had a very nice sized shrimp cocktail, Escargot, Beef Tenderloin and a Chocolate Soufflé for desert. Service remains outstanding, and is truly exceeding expectations. All courses are time perfectly, very little waiting for anything, and the details carefully monitored.

The evening’s entertainment was a comedian, Lee Bayless, who specializes in a family friendly routine. He presented a well-executed routine of established themes – cruise ship humor etc. He is not to going to be on the Tonight Show anytime soon, but everyone had a good time.

After the show I toured the lounges to check on the activity: Piano lounge – only a few empty seats and Jimmy had the enthusiastic crowd eating out of his hand. Lots of fun in here.

The Northern lights disco had a full dance floor of young people actually dancing and having a great time. Good to see this venue was not completely dead.

The BB King’s Blues club was about 75% full and playing a nice selection of blues, Motown and Jazz hits

And finally, a trip to the Crows Nest and Explorations Café around 11pm – Ghost town. A few people working a jigsaw puzzle.

Tomorrow we will be in Glacier Bay!

Thanks for continuing your review.

Interesting comments re gala night.

Enjoying your live review.

I enjoyed your review of the Oosterdam. I was on the ship a few weeks ago. Is Pieter Bos still the Captain. I love to sail Alaskan waters with him. He always gives a great cruise and the crew and staff love working for that man.

Thank you for take the time and internet minutes to keep up your reports. I am really enjoying them.:)

I am really loving your "live from" report! The Vista ships are my favorites and I my first Alaska cruise was on Oosterdam in 2005 - such fond memories!! (my most recent Alaska cruise was on Oosterdam as well :)) So glad you are enjoying your cruise! Hope you'll be able to keep the report coming.

Awesome! Thanks for the live reports.

I am doing my first ever cruise on the Oosterdam in 46 days (not like I'm counting or anything) :)

I am enjoying your review and your comments on the demise of formal night. We are on the Amsterdam in September and I am wondering about how it will be then.

This is awesome as I will be on Oosterdam for my 1st HAL cruise this fall.

A question please? Can you post or discuss the internet packages, or whether there is the flat rate available as it is on Westerdam I believe?

Just curious! Thanks....

Thanks for your observations. We're looking forward to our first sail on Oosterdam over Christmas this year - great to hear postive things about her.

I enjoyed your review of the Oosterdam. I was on the ship a few weeks ago. Is Pieter Bos still the Captain. I love to sail Alaskan waters with him. He always gives a great cruise and the crew and staff love working for that man.

Peter Bos is still the Captain and is doing a fine job keeping the passengers informed.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

This is awesome as I will be on Oosterdam for my 1st HAL cruise this fall.

 

 

 

A question please? Can you post or discuss the internet packages, or whether there is the flat rate available as it is on Westerdam I believe?

 

 

 

Just curious! Thanks....

I believe the pricing is the same for all ships. Here is the price for Oosterdam which was the same as the Veendam

75 cents per minute - pay as you go

$250 for 1000 minutes

$175 for 500 minutes

$100 for 250 minutes

$55 for 100 minutes

Speed is slow but ok for email or light surfing. Forget streaming video

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I believe the pricing is the same for all ships. Here is the price for Oosterdam which was the same as the Veendam

75 cents per minute - pay as you go

$250 for 1000 minutes

$175 for 500 minutes

$100 for 250 minutes

$55 for 100 minutes

 

Speed is slow but ok for email or light surfing. Forget streaming video

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks!

I will be sailing on the Oosterdam in Sept for my first HAL cruise. I am enjoying your review and looking forward to reading the rest of it.

I enjoyed your review of the Oosterdam. I was on the ship a few weeks ago. Is Pieter Bos still the Captain. I love to sail Alaskan waters with him. He always gives a great cruise and the crew and staff love working for that man.

Agree completely with your assessment of Captain Bos!!

Of the 16 or so Alaska cruise we have done his was the best! He goes out of his way to get to Grenville Channel and personally announces wildlife sightings and gives a good idea of when there will be whales!

Really the best!

Do you know by chance who the Cruise Director is?

Thanks

Love reading the report. We will be boarding the Oosterdam on Aug 30, and can hardly wait! Do you know if Jimmy the piano man will still be on board then?

Thanks