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And my 2018 review: 2018 Alaska Cruise

My bum knee is still a bummer, but worse than that, the OTHER knee finally gave out in the Fall and I ended up getting a total knee replacement for it....which hasn't gone as planned at all (i.e. infection, back in hospital for 4 days, picc line with outpatient antibiotics for 6 weeks, and currently at almost 5 month out knee feels worse than before the surgery) - so here I sit with my original bum knee and the surgical knee even worse! Ugh. It was, however, fun to re-read my cruise post! I don't think I'll be cruising again any time soon, but we'll see!

Here is my 2023 review: Koningsdam Alaska - 2023

We booked all of the excursions through Hal in 2018 (and most in 2023). HAL will let you book if there isn't enough overlap, BUT what I found this past year is the helicopter time slots initially showed only earlier in the day, but they progressively added more and when the later afternoon slots opened up I booked them. So for 2023, I grabbed the tracy arm slot early, and then got the helicopter slot a month or so later. I did not book the "backup" Skagway slot ahead of time in 2018...just rolled the dice and it worked out. Same for our June 2023 cruise (note: that review is on here as well). In 2023, I was less concerned about cancelation just because I had done it once already so figured I would be less bummed. As an aside, my brother and his wife did have their Juneau helicopter flight canceled this past Summer (with no Skagway backup)...you just never know!! Finally, we canceled Tracy Arm this year once we were on board (my knee gave out the day we left Dallas)...but had to do it by 5 pm the day we boarded in order to get a refund. Not sure a pre-booked "Skagway backup" would have helped there if both days had been good weather...I might have ended up paying for two copter rides!

I think our helicopter was around 4 or 5pm so we definitely had time for both. Heck, we were going to do the same thing this past June, but my knee centered right before the trip and we had to skip Tracy Arm this time around (total bummer as I watched the boat pull up alongside us from our balcony).

A few items: 1. The itinerary (i.e. route and port stops) - Your FIRST decision is whether you are doing a round trip (i.e. Seattle to Seattle or Vancouver to Vancouver). In your case, you are doing roundtrip. In general, a roundtrip from Vancouver is my preference as you get to do more of the true inside passage (between Vancouver Island and the coast) vs. open sea. For HAL they usually have certain ships sailing EITHER Vancouver OR Seattle, but not both...except at the very beginning or end of the season so that will automatically restrict you to some of the ships. The Vancouver cruises are generally more expensive as is flying into Vancouver. Beyond that, some of the ships appear to do roundtrips primarily, while others are used for the one way trips (North or Southbound). Once you decide on your route, the ship selection whittles down pretty quick. 2. Age/Size of Ships - I think the newest and largest ship HAL has in Alaska is the Pinnacle class Koningsdam (built in 2016). The next newest ships are the somewhat smaller Signature class ships - the Eurodam (2008) and Nieuw Amsterdam (2010). We have done two roundtrip cruises - both were from Vancouver. The first, in 2018, was on the Nieuw Amsterdam and the second, in 2023, was on the Koningsdam. I would not hesitate to do either ship again. As other have noted, the real star is Alaska itself. As such, you should (IMO) prioritize the route first and excursions you want to do. The latter, in particular, can take your Alaskan cruise from nice to awesome - though the impact to your wallet can be, um, substantial. However, if you really want to SEE Alaska, you need to take excursions (or rent cars, etc.) that get you out of the ports to where you can actually see stuff. If you care more about amenities on the ships, then generally, newer is better. I do, however, appreciate the more open rear lido deck and full size promenade deck on the Nieuw Amsterdam/Eurodam over the newer Koningsdam (for exterior sightseeing).

Like others we were summarily unimpressed with our bland tea on the Koningsdam this year. Having said that, it was still a better value than the overrated tea we had at the Empress in Victoria. While the sandwiches and deserts had actual flavor at the Empress, the whole experience was underwhelming....especially for the price.

Totally safe. It is basically a freeway with a bunch of pullouts. The tour busses and vans take the same route. Heck, some cruisetour passengers who do land first and a "4 day" cruise after can come from Whitehorse to Skagway this same way.

When we cruised Alaska in 2018, I researched the heck out of everything - see my attached cruise doc. I would have liked to do a land + cruise option, but it was an extended family trip (my parents and siblings) and not everyone could afford that much time away (and wasn't sure how my elderly dad would handle it) so we did a roundtrip. Your ports preference should be driven by what you want to do. I quickly decided I wanted to leave from Vancouver for the "true" inside passage experience and also decided I was all about the glaciers. So, to maximize the glacier experience I chose one of the Holland America routes that, on the way to Juneau, stops at the mouth of the Tracy Arm Fjord and you can hop off onto an excursion boat that heads into the Fjord (you see Sawyer glacier at the end of it) - the small boat then meets back up with the cruise ship in Juneau. Once in Juneau, I knew I wanted to see Mendenhall glacier...and no better way to do that than by helicopter! Since helicopter excursions are often canceled due to weather (like my brother's was TODAY - he is on a cruise as I type this), I had the next port (Skagway) as my backup helicopter plan. Finally, our ship also went into Glacier Bay on this trip - so we effectively had THREE glacier days on this simple roundtrip. Research the ports and decide what you want to see and do and budget for excur$ion$...they can exceed the cost of the cruise itself! Example ($270 for Tracy arm, $350-$600 for helicopter ride to glacier, $210 for Bering Sea Crab tour, etc. - all prices are per person). Whatever you do, don't just hang out in the port towns...you need to get into the interior somewhat to really see Alaska best. As to time of year, we did July in 2018 and then did a month earlier in June this year. We had a mix of sun and rain on both trips, but overall our June trip was a bit better weather when it mattered most to us - on Glacier Bay day and on our Skagway day (note: we drove to Emerald Lake - spectacular views on that drive). Unfortunately, you don't get to pick the weather as much as you would like. I did like seeing a bit more snow on mountaintops this time around...conversely, it was cooler on our balcony and we used it less than our July trip...pick your poison! Alaskan Cruise - v7 - de-identified.docx

Great review - loved your writing style and the pics - really told a story!

This is really a duplicate post, but since we did several excursions with pics...so figured I would post a link here for ya'll: June 10-17 Alaskan Cruise

On our recent trip on the Koningsdam it was a mixed bag however, we did have some winners: We both loved the Sushi at Nami Sushi (all of it...and we ate a lot) - get it on the first night, it won't get any fresher as the cruise goes on. The Dive-In fries were good on the first day, BUT by day 5 or 6 we went and they had switched to regular fries (like you would find in the Lido) - big disappointment so just be aware. Veal Scallopini at Canaletto was surprisingly good Gelato was pretty darn good at the standalone gelato stand AND as the "Gelato" dessert (sampler of 3 diff kinds) also at Canaletto. I guess that's not just one item!

On the Koningsdam last month we bought the plan for "one device" and basically flipped back and forth between devices. I would login with my phone, check some messages, do some surfing, etc...my wife would ask if she could have it and it prompts her with "do you want to disconnect the other device?" and it would disconnect me and she would do her stuff. It was a little inconvenient, but no big deal. If I was trying to WORK on the cruise, I would have wanted a multi-device plan.

What can I say....I'm a "car guy"!

I'll try to answer your questions as best I can, but others are more knowledgeable (or there are dedicated posts on some of these topics: 1. Customs/Immigration - When you leave out of Vancouver (i.e. Canada) you then head to Alaska. Instead of going through U.S. Customs at your first Alaskan port, you actually go through at the cruise port (aka Canada Place) there in Vancouver. If you leave from Seattle, you don't do that...BUT you do generally go to Victoria, BC for Seattle cruises so I'm not sure how CANADIAN customs are handled for that. 2. Club Orange - There are lots of posts here on the board just for Club Orange. Essentially though it is a group of perks that HAL lets you buy at the time of booking (I think you can even get it post-booking). It includes things like priority board, a tote bag, special line at guest services maybe, etc. However, the two "big" benefits are that you can get a cabin upgrade to the next class (when available) - like a VB balcony to a VA, etc. - AND you get access to the special "Club Orange" dining room on the boat (Pinnacle class ships only) or Club Orange "only" dinner selections in the main dining room. Unfortunately, we never took advantage of any of it! We already had a Neptune suite so no cabin upgrade (often considered the biggest benefit) for us. In the future, I would try the dining room as others have reported good things about it. 3. Rental Car - I have ZERO reservations about the rental car. It was a piece of cake. Many of the official excursions do the same trip (train/bus combo or van up/back, etc.). It is about 140 miles round trip and we were back at the ship in PLENTY of time. I think we left the rental place around 10:15 or so. We were at Emerald Lake by 3:00 or 3:30 and that was after we stopped for Lunch in Carcross (note: we stopped a ton along the way, did the suspension bridge, etc.). Back before 6:00 PM if I recall correctly.

We booked an EV (Electric Vehicle) from these fine folks: https://www.klondikecars.com/ - Around $235 (worth every penny, especially in relation to the cost of other Alaska excursions). However, there is also an Avis in town if Klondike is out of cars (as of today, they only have 3 EVs). A few pics of our ride...

It was actually Putu and Sunu - both great! Putu kept me in ice for my knee...a Godsend! I think he was headed home on the day we disembarked.

Here are a couple of pics that sort of illustrate what I described about the Aft of the Lido deck on the Koningsdam (Sunset pic) vs. Nieuw Amsterdam (sunny day pic). Pics were not taken from the exact same angle, but close enough.

So I'll start by saying they are more similar than different. The key items in the Nieuw Amsterdam's favor (IMO of course) are: 1. Promenade Deck - Both ships have a Promenade deck, but The Nieuw Amsterdam's is much wider for most of it AND the view is unobstructed by lifeboats. The promenade deck was, quite simply, "inviting" on the NA whereas it was more of a simple path around the ship on the Koningsdam (one blocked by lifeboats for a large part of it). 2. Aft Lido deck - As I described in my review, the aft Lido deck of the Koningsdam just seemed crowded/cluttered with very little in the way of "open space" for whale watching, lounging, etc. There was more covered seating on the Koningsdam if that is your thing, but I didn't find it that inviting...oddly, the benefit of being covered is that it was sheltered from the elements, but it was still cold enough to not be a great place to hang out. I even went back and looked at my old NA pics to confirm the delta. For Glacier Bay we spent most of our time on the bow on the Koningsdam, but did the aft Lido on the Nieuw Amsterdam. 3. Signature Suites - We had a signature suite on the Nieuw Amsterdam. I like the layout of the Signature suite on that ship MUCH better than the "two deep room" layout on the Koningsdam. The Sig suites on the NA are set up similar to Neptune suites AND have the wide AND DEEP balconies like Neptune suites do...really an ideal suite for less $$$ than a Neptune. The Sig suites on the Koningsdam are, IMO, really for 3 or 4 person occupancy setups where the 3rd/4th person could use a murphy bed in a middle room...we just wanted MORE room and a big balcony. We loved everything about our Neptune suite (well, maybe not the magic fingers vibration when the ship was at 20+ knots), but you typically have to pay $$ for it. 4. Atrium - This is purely an aesthetic thing, but it was so unmemorable on the Koningsdam that I almost walked by it. No "wow" factor. I don't think the NA is much better, but liked the NYC chandelier more than, um, weird metal swirls! It also felt more crowded around this area on the Koningsdam. Beyond this, the ships are almost identical, BUT the Koningsdam has the edge with a dedicated club orange, Grand Dutch Cafe, and the Rolling Stone Rock Room (although that may be coming to the NA if it hasn't already). It is also 6 years newer and more updated which is also nice. "Picking" between them would be tough. I might lean toward the Koningsdam (or any Pinnacle class ship) as there are enough advantages, but I wouldn't be crying if I was on the Nieuw Amsterdam...particularly if I was spending more time outside. Crazily, there continue to be areas I "never make it to" on these ships. I never made it to the Crow's nest area on the Koningsdam as an example - I blame that on my knee!

My wife went there the first night and I saw the tail end of a performance one night. Although I did not catch a full set, I was not quite as impressed with the band on the Koningsdam as compared to the one on the Nieuw Amsterdam, but didn't really give them a fair shot. This does bring up one other item, despite being a much larger venue on the Koningsdam it was standing room only every night if you didn't get there early (which is one f the things that limited my watching time). If HAL is going to make it all about the music, they really need a more space in these venues. I would steal it from Billboard on Board (the least exciting of the three in my opinion).

My walking is sort of a "X steps at a time and I'm done" type of thing. So, as an example, on our travel day to Vancouver it was the long walk to the gate that did me in. Once I ice, the cycle starts over again. So for the glacier, it was really a lot of standing around and marveling vs. a real trek of any kind. Indeed, we took a different copter to a glacier in 2018 and that one had one stop and you walked around in full gear with cramp-ons, etc. (and it was the mild "walkabout" version). I knew I probably couldn't do that one this time so the "two flights followed by a short time on the glacier after each one" worked out better. I'm only 56 so the thought of being in a wheelchair or on a scooter is a little over-the-top for me (I believe I am defining textbook "vanity" here), and being on the ship meant I was able to get back to my room to ice easily enough. I'm actually incredulous (and bummed) that I'm having to deal with this! The Ice certainly wasn't limited to the glaciers...it was frequently found in airports, airplanes, cabins and balconies! 🙂

Great feedback. I do think we would endeavor to try it in the future!

A few reasons actually: 1.) We enjoyed the "grandeur" and ambiance of the MDR over the smaller "Used to be the America's Test Kitchen" space of Club Orange 2.) The MDR experience the first time we ate there didn't show any of the issues others had reported (perhaps because we were eating at the less popular "late" seating?) so we didn't encounter the need for a "service" advantage that CO might have offered. 3.) We already had multiple specialty restaurants on our agenda (Nami, Tamarind, Pinnacle and Canaletto) 4.) The menu was largely the same as the MDR so didn't have that much extra to offer selection-wise. We had intended to eat their for breakfast, but alas Room Service was perpetually too convenient. I have seen where others wished Club Orange was open for lunch and now I see what they mean. It would have been a nice alternative to the Lido...but perhaps that's the problem (it isn't that big and perhaps couldn't handle the volume...on sea days in particular???). In retrospect, I might have skipped one of the specialty restaurants and tried it!

OK, this is already way too long and boring! Sorry! I'll wrap it up by saying despite a few issues we had a great time aboard the Koningsdam. The suite was great, the food, while hit or miss had enough winners we were happy and the Rolling Stone Rock Room band was great. The service aboard the ship was actually exemplary. Our room attendants, the Neptune concierge, and vast majority of the wait staff were just so darn good - truly felt like a luxury experience. Alaska is, of course, the real star of an Alaskan cruise and did not disappoint! Still, the cruise + Alaska experience is unique and one we really appreciated and one I think HAL does right. I already miss it! God Bless you if you read this far!

Day 6 Ketchikan Bering Sea Crab Tour - This was our only really "bad weather" day. It rained and was cold for the almost the entire time in port. We did the Bering Sea Crab tour which we had done in 2018. It is a winner tour, but a repeat for us and the cold/rain made it a little less exciting. However, it is still WORTH DOING if you have not done it before. The guys tell some good stories and show you a few of the ropes. The eagles are, of course, awesome (they feed them and a dozen plus swoop down to feed. Recommended. Dinner and Fun Encounter - So we opted for Caneletto for dinner this evening and were pretty happy with that meal. Yes, its a "segregated" section of the Lido deck, but that gave it a bit more energy and, frankly, it is hard to beat the Lido deck window views! My wife and I enjoyed our meal here well enough that we opted for round 2 on Friday night - I recommend the Veal Scaloppini and gelato trio for dessert. As a fun aside, we ran into the Rolling Stone Rock Room band having dinner there (it was there off night) and we took a second to say hello and thank them for their great performances. They were VERY gracious and willingly engaged with us....nice moment (at least for us!). Day 7 was mostly uneventful, at least for us. There was, unfortunately, a medical emergency on board and the ship had to pull near Port Hardy at the Northern end of Vancouver island for a couple of hours to evacuate some folks (Tender boat took them to an ambulance on shore). I pray whoever fell ill was OK. IMG_0689.HEIC IMG_0762.HEIC