Our First Dam Ship: Amsterdam to Alaska Trip Review

[Steppy08]

:eek: Dinner??? Did you tell him that you have a following and we are waiting for more??? Tell him to go to the Lido and grab a bite.....oh, that is right....you are home now.....sorry. Are you adjusting okay??? :confused:

 

No... we are not adjusting okay. We suffer from PCW - Post Cruise Withdrawal, and the only cure is to book another cruise. We don't have a definite next cruise planned yet (well, we have an obligatory 4 day cruise with my mother-in-law in planning stages for January, but I don't count that because it's with my mother-in-law. :rolleyes:

[Steppy08]

The Suite life part deux (Thermal, that is...)

Sometime after sailing under the bridge and before dinner I decided to check out the Thermal Suite. I had never done a Thermal Suite before, but several CC friends raved about them and I figured this cruise was all about new experiences. I asked for a tour from one of the Greenhouse Spa staff and she was more than willing to oblige. I got a tour of the women's locker room (tiny but adequate), sauna (which is in the locker room for all your nude sauna-ing needs ;)), the relaxation room, and the thermal suite. I wasn't sure about it, but we went into the suite and the Spa staff said "Here, lay on the ceramic heated bed...." My backside barely touched the warm, comforting ceramic tiles and I was sold. She then talked about the thermal pool being body temperature (which it was NOT) and the steam rooms etc. But I knew after laying in the bed I had found me a home.

 

The dilemma: Do I sign up just myself ($99) or go for the couple's pass ($149) and make Steve endure the Thermal Suite too? Then came the hard sell- "Well, we only have a certain number of passes for each cruise, and right now we only have 6 left."

 

Now. I have sold many things in my life. Cutco knives, expensive pianos, Girl Scout cookies... I am fully aware that urgency is a sales tactic utilized by great salespeople. And it worked. At that point I really didn't care what Steve thought, I had found this oasis in the front of the ship, with wonderful heated ceramic beds, and a hot tub that is practically private and free from small children and teenagers. SOLD. I got the couple's pass. Steve would deal with it.

 

( He dealt with it pretty well, actually. One sit on the ceramic loungers and view of the hot tub and he congratulated me on my fine purchase. That's him in the picture, lounging away...)

 

 

The hot tub: As I understand it, the larger HAL ships have a real thermal pool, which is kept at body temperature. The lady giving me the tour claimed that this was a thermal pool, but it was much hotter. Good for us - Steve and I have a hot tub at home and love it (when it's working). Not so good for people with health conditions. So, just and FYI for your future trips and planning. The tub was consistently quite hot, probably at 103-104. We don't even keep ours at home that warm. But, the very best thing about it - besides the fact that it was child-free, was that it is in the front center of the ship. Great views of the bow through the condensation-lined windows.

 

[KansCocoa]

LOVING IT!!!

 

And wow - what a room! I LOVE the suite! It's amazing!

 

Dang - I wish I had crashed THIS cruise of yours; I would have loved to hang out on that balcony! :)

[Steppy08]

First dinner

After making my decision on the Thermal Suite, and breaking the news to Steve... it was time for dinner. We had made standing reservations for 7:45 with the MDR maitre 'd. We headed down to deck 4 and were greeted with two lines. One claimed it was for people with reservations, and one welcomed those without reservations. As the cruise went on the lines became indistinguishable, as people with reservations jumped lines so they didn't have to wait. We actually didn't wait too long the first night. Hardy (the maitre 'd) punched our cabin number into this computer and we were off to table 134, a table for two on the port side close enough to the windows to see most of the scenery. This would end up being our table for all but one evening in the MDR. Our waiter was Made Edy, he told us to call him Edy. He was great, not overly chatty or friendly, but definitely knew what he was doing with service. The dinner was good, I honestly don't remember what I ate, it wasn't that memorable but it was good food.

 

After dinner I suggested we try the thermal suite, so Steve would stop grumbling about the fact that I signed him up against his will. Well, really, without him knowing... The problem was, the thermal suite closed at 10pm and we just finished dinner at 9:00. It was going to be a quick first visit. Suggestion to HAL - keep the Thermal Suite open to 11pm!!! That way late diners can enjoy it after dinner! We were in the suite for about 20 minutes - long enough for Steve to realize my excellent judgment in getting us the passes - before they were closing up. The last thing we did was step out on the thermal suite balcony that overlooks the starboard side and the front of the ship.

 

First of all, we were REALLY close to land. All the maps of the inside passage show the route as darting in between these islands and penninsulas, but up close and in person it was really cool. Secondly, the landscape was shrouded in pink mist and blue fog up ahead. It was very ethereal and reminded me of the musical Brigadoon, which rises out of the mist...

(By the way, at this point the Welcome show was going on in the theater. We have little interest in any of the "big" shows on most ships, the exception being our cruise on the Allure. So, sorry to report, we did not see a second of any of the shows on the Amsterdam. And we were okay with that. What we saw on the first night is WAY better than any theater show.)

 

Back to our cabin we went to see more of this amazing scenery. We were not disappointed. Out the port side the land wasn't as close, to allow for passing ships. Up ahead we saw more of the Brigadoon-like mist and fog, and what appeared to be a flat-bottomed ferry boat of some sort coming out of the mist.

Sorry for the picture quality, it was really zoomed in at that point. Plus it was foggy.

 

And right about here is where the Amsterdam started with her fog horn. It was the creepiest and coolest thing I had ever experienced at sea. It was comforting though, knowing that this little ship was sounding her fog horn too and wouldn't run into us.... Wait... her fog horn is REALLY loud, like ours...um, that's not a little ship....

Like a ghost ship coming out of the fog, here is the very large Sapphire Princess...

 

It was a huge cruise ship, the Sapphire Princess! Her entire hull was hidden by fog. We also passed the Zuiderdam a short time later. So between the fog horns and the amazing mist/fog and sunset, we had a quite a show outside our balcony that night. Eventually the fog got so bad that we couldn't see the water from our balcony.

 

So, mere hours into our Alaskan adventure, and already this was NOT your typical cruise. And I was thrilled about that.

[Rowsby]

A fantastic review.....love it....!!

[lizzies_mom]

Amy, thanks for your review. Our very first cruise was to Alaska on the Amsterdam. Although not in a suite, our impressions were positive, and we have returned to Holland America each year, always finding itineraries that delight.

[Steppy08]

Breakfast with strangers

We slept quite soundly in our lovely king sized bed, armed with enough pillows for me to put up a small defensive wall between myself and Steve. Very important. Still on East Coast time, I was wide awake at 6am. Steve was snoaring soundly and showed no imminent signs of consciousness. We had breakfast plans with a few people from our tiny but interesting Roll Call at 8am, but I would have to entertain myself before then.

 

I got up the motivation to go work out in the fitness center. I had actually been pretty set in a gym routine at home for the last 6 months and managed to lose about 30 pounds since January, so I figured this would atone for the food sins I had committed the prior evening. The fitness center is nice, with most of the treadmills and ellipticals facing over the bow with a great view of the ocean. Every cruise ship gym should have views, I can work out looking at other people's sweaty bodies at home... I came on vacation to work out with a view! They only had two elliptical machines, though.... considering the popularity of this piece of equipment they should buy a few more. After the elliptical I did a few weight machines and then hung around for the Early Morning Stretch class.

 

Sherri, this is your fault. On our Allure cruise in January, Sherri (KansCocoa) convinced me to do the morning stretch. Prior to that I had never done a cruise ship fitness class, so it was new to me. Armed with confidence, I walked over to the class area. The instructor was great, it was less strenuous than the class on the Allure had been (or I was in better shape... probably the latter). But it was packed! I almost got smacked in the face by a very tall and surprisingly limber Canadian gentleman. Still I felt good afterwards, and made a mental note to come back the next morning. (um...yeah, my subconscious brain forgot about that mental note as it slept soundly through the class the next morning).

 

Back to the cabin, I found Steve just waking up. We dressed and went down to Deck 5 to meet our Roll Call. I have only been on a blind date twice in my life, and meeting people in person that you've met online always feels like a blind date. What if they're weird? What if they think WE'RE weird? Will they like us? Will we have enough in common to talk about?

 

We had attempted to eat in the upper part of the MDR, which is reserved only for suite guests. About half of expected party was in suites, so we thought that would suffice. Nope. Down we went to the deck 4. Which was fine, as we were early enough to avoid standing in line.

 

Six of us met that morning, and we had a fantastic breakfast. We met Debby and Tom (Shining Clem) as well as Cindi and Roger (cereo). We spent the better part of one and a half hours discussing past cruises and travel. Pretty much all of us had been on a cruise that another couple at the table was interested in pursuing in the future, so we did have a lot to talk about. Sadly, I don't think we got a picture of the group. I'm glad we got to meet them in person after sending messages on the Roll Call for almost 6 months. So thanks, Cruise Critic! :D

[grsnovi]

Wait, that's all?

 

This is a fantastic review!!!

 

We are leaving on Sunday for Alaska on the O (our third time on the Oosterdam) but your review makes me want to book one of the smaller HAL ships!

 

Great review! Thanks for sharing!

Edited July 12, 2013 by grsnovi

[Steppy08]

Sea Day

I love sea days. I could watch the endless ocean forever. Somehow though, on this sea day I didn't get the chance to sit around and do nothing as much as I would have liked.

 

After breakfast we wandered around a bit and went through the shops on board. (Steve kept a close eye near the jewelry cases). We went through the On Location and Steve said "I think I'd like to do the golf chipping Contest at 11:30" Wait. What? My husband usually has no desire for the "forced fun" and contests that have been a part of our normal cruising experiences until this point. He wants to participate in something?! I was shocked.

 

I guess this is the point... we are not party hard, drinking all night, Belly Flop and Hairy Chest contest type of people. But Golf Chipping, Long Putt, and Champagne Ring toss contests? Yes, please. So in this respect, we were really delighted in the difference between the HAL experience and the other cruise lines. The games and activites seemed a bit classier, and less "we're forcing you to make a fool out of yourself so everyone is entertained!"

 

So the Chipping contest was fun. Steve got an "ooooh!" from the crowd with a decent shot that landed about 3 inches from the net. I did not try at all... I love golfing with Steve, but you had to chip it over the lip of the pool and I was not at all confident that I wouldn't bounce it off the lip and take out a spectator.

 

Afterwards we headed up to the Crow's Nest for the Captain's cocktail welcome for suite guests. I fell in love with the Crow's Nest... It offered spectacular views and really comfy chairs, plus information about the ship's coordinates and other fun nautical maps about our route. We greeted Capt. Eversen and Hotel Director Hoekstra (hand shaking forbidden!) and settled in a comfy spot on the port side near the window. Cindi and Roger (from CC and breakfast) joined us and we sat talking for another hour. They wanted more information on our Europe cruise of last summer and we just found them incredibly interesting to talk to. It turns out that Cindi is just as much of an OCD vacation planner as Steve and has custom-made booklets for each day of vacation with port information, maps, schedules, and tour info all in a small booklet designed to fit her travel purse.

 

We had such a great conversation that we didn't realize until an hour later that the captain and staff had gone, along with the free cocktails. It was weird, I would have thought that someone would have addressed us and welcomed us or something.

 

Afterwards we went to get lunch (I honestly don't remember where) and then back to our cabin to chill for a bit. We also stopped briefly in the casino to lose some money. The casino was smaller than I was expecting but it had enough slots and table games for the crowd that was in there. We typically play penny slots and blackjack. The blackjack tables were all $5 minimum, which was awesome. It's hard to find that in larger casinos and in Vegas. I didn't like the cash out option for the slots had to be on your card on not a ticket, but it really made no difference (unless you forgot to cash out your card before the end of the cruise, in which case HAL keeps your money. It doesn't go back on your account)

 

I think we made a trip to the Thermal Suite as well before we came to get ready for dinner.

 

Formal Night (is THAT what you're wearing?)

Steve's suit came back pressed and neat from the ship's laundry just in time for formal night. We made excellent use of the free laundry perk for suites. I sat in my Tuffet and made myself beautiful without interference from my husband. We went out and had a quick cocktail in the Ocean Bar before dinner, and got our pictures taken by the formal photographers. (It's not often Steve agrees to wear a suit... I want photographic evidence!)

 

For the most part, everyone dressed the part on formal night. Very few tuxedos, mostly suits for the men. Women, well, we can get away with much more informal clothes. There were floor length gowns, but lots of cocktail dresses and sundresses. On the second formal night we did see an older couple in jeans and sweatshirts in the MDR. It didn't ruin our cruise though.

 

Dinner tonight was in the Pinnacle, and it was an excellent meal. The steak was amazing (I got the filet with bearnaise sauce). The potatoes and side dishes were just okay, nothing special. Dessert was excellent, complete with what else but Baked Alaska...

[Steppy08]

Pre-Glacier Bay...

One thing that many people forget to mention about Alaska... Sunrise is at 4am.

 

If you're like me and you're sleeping in a room with windows, you naturally wake up when it starts getting light outside. So I woke up on Sunday, it was light out already, and got the shock of my life when I realized it was 4:30am! Note to self: wear eye mask to bed. (I had brought my eye mask for the flight home and didn't even think it would be useful during the cruise.)

 

Eye mask was on, and I fell right back asleep, and slept right through the morning stretch class I had promised myself I would attend. Oh well. I'm on vacation. Steve and I both woke up about 8am and wandered up to the Lido for breakfast. We hadn't eaten a meal here yet. We soon found out that we weren't missing much.

 

It was news to me that HAL has a policy of no self-service at the Lido for the first 48 hours of a cruise. I get it. Germs and contagious diseases, etc. But my oh my, what chaos. People were randomly standing in lines everywhere, and while some of the staff were trying to direct them others were telling them to wait in other lines.

 

I usually like to get small tastes of everything at buffets. Well, with this method of serving that could prove extremely time consuming. I did not like waiting in line for 5 minutes for a small piece of melon or a dinner roll. I chalked it up to the "no self-service" rule and gave HAL the benefit of the doubt. Steve and I sat next to a elderly couple from Ohio that were very forgiving of my husband's Michigan sweatshirt.

 

After breakfast we went up on deck to see whales. Steve really wanted to see whales (he hadn't seen any on his previous Alaska cruise). I tortured him a bit by randomly shouting out "Whale!" and pointing to nothing. I only tease him because I love him. :D

 

It was a bit cold on deck, so we bundled up in our sweatshirts and went outside. The announcement had been made earlier in the morning that, weather permitting, they would open up the bow for Glacier Bay. Actually finding the entrance to the bow was like a scavenger hunt. They put signs on Deck 3 indicating "Bow Access this Way", which took you the promenade deck. There were official looking double doors in the front which Steve and I noticed in our previous (and unsuccessful) attempt to find the bow, but no other signing existed. Finally, Steve bravely pulled open one of the foreboding doors and found a staircase and a sign. Finally, we had found the bow!

 

I wonder what the officers on the bridge think when we descend en masse on the bow?

 

Anyway, weather permitting ended up being spectacular sunshine and brilliant blue skies for the entire day. If we had one day to have great weather, and as it turns out we did only have one day of great weather, I'm glad this was it. The scenery even as we entered Glacier Bay was phenomenal.

 

It got moderately crowded fairly quickly up there, once people figured out the super secret access point, so Steve and retreated back to our balcony to see the sights.

 

All that teasing about whales was about to come back in my face, as pretty soon we were in the protected whale feeding area at the entrance to Glacier Bay. I was the one shouting excitedly "Whale!" and pointing frantically to the sea. But you really didn't have to look too far or hard to see them. They were everywhere. They would surface and blow air through their blowholes, then dive down and give you a little tail action if you were lucky. Most of them were about 20 meters away from the ship, until one scared me and surfaced right below our balcony, about 20 feet away from the hull.

Why yes, that IS a rainbow behind his tail...

So, all of this whale watching was hard work, and we got hungry. We decided, a few days earlier, that the best way to make use of our enormous balcony would be to camp out on it and eat lunch while enjoying our free bottle of wine, compliments of the Captain and Hotel Director. Steve put in a call to Room Service, and I kept watching the splendid scenery go by...

[Steppy08]

Well folks, it's 11pm here and that's it for now.

 

The bad news: I have jury duty tomorrow (ugh) so I can't post anything until that's over. Sorry, civic duty and all...

 

The good news: I have some spectacular pictures of Glacier Bay and a whole rambling dialogue to go with it!

 

Hope you're enjoying it so far. It's fun to re-live it while writing this!:D

[nutensteve]

Great review and pics ..... Can't wait for more !!

[Overtime4me2]

Enjoying your review! Beautiful pics! Thanks for sharing :)

[Rockfan2]

We left our blissfull cocoon of Neptune suites and Neptune Lounges that is Deck 7 and wandered upstairs to Deck 8.

 

Honestly, we spent very little time at the pool and hot tubs that surround it. We never went in. The movable glass ceiling kept it all a very comfy temperature (sometimes a bit too warm!). The bears in the pool were our first bear sighting of the trip.

 

The aft pool looked nice as well, though heated it was not covered and usually there was no one in it. There is also a Teen Area on Deck 9 Aft - it's decorated like a jungle and has a lot of tables and chairs to hang out in. As Steve and I are well past our teen years, we did not hang out here!

 

Inside, we found the Amsterdam to be one of our favorite ships. It was cozy and warm feeling. The art that surrounds the ship is truly magnificent. We would be walking somewhere and I would stop cold and start reading the plaques next to the art or picture (sorry if you were behind me!).

 

The corridors leading to the cabins were filled with pictures of the old Dutch ships being built. This was fascinating to me. I seriously did stop on Deck 2 or 3 to get a closer look at a picture and was almost rear-ended by a very busy cabin steward!

 

We loved the Atrium area. It was understated but elegant. Not too much glitz, only the mirrored stairs that circle it. Steve managed to take a pretty good whack at the mirrors with a golf ball, but that was much later in the cruise. The Astrolabe was interesting and pretty, I wish it actually worked. The carillon bells underneath it were a mystery, either they don't work or we missed it.

 

Probably our favorite thing about the Amsterdam was that you never, ever forgot you were on a ship. Almost every public room has a sea view. There are countless lounges where you can sit back in a comfy chair and watch the ocean go by. This is why we love to cruise. We loved the promenade deck, and all the quiet aft balconies to watch the wake. The Amsterdam is a ship for people who appreciate being on a ship.

 

We were on the Amsterdam last August for 14 days while celebrating our 30th Wedding Anniversary.

 

The Astrolabe actually does work. We would often notice the different positions of the planet that revolves around it. I believe the carillon bells ring at noon on sea days.

 

Rockfan2

T-71 days until we are back to Alaska on the Oosterdam :)

[leonidas]

Thank you for your review, love the pictures. Looking forward to read the rest!:)

 

Kind regards,

Gina

The Netherlands

[Lady Arwen]

Thank you for your review. We are doing the same cruise in 2014 on the Zuiderdam. Can't wait to see more of your amazing pictures!

[Kreuzfahrtneuling]

Amy,

 

Thanks so much for this great review and the wonderful pictures! We're gonna be on the Serenade in 5 days for a 12 day med cruise similar to yours last year. We'll greet the ship from ya:). Can't wait till you go on with the review!

 

Stef

[spacepotatoes]

Great, review! I like your style :) Looking forward to the rest!

[aliaschief]

A superb review evoking wonderful memories of our Alaska cruise.

 

Thanks for sharing your cruise experience.

[musicismylife]

Great review! As a high school teacher I'm with you on the Muster Drill. My DH has to tell me to get out of "teacher mode" because I'm ready to give them the look and shush them. "Not sure of the political undertones involved here, but their sign was well done and spelled correctly. And they were enthusiastic!" This made me laugh!!

 

Looking forward to reading the rest of the review.:)

 

BTW, LOVE Pittsburgh, it's one of our favourite US cities to visit.

[Steppy08]

We were on the Amsterdam last August for 14 days while celebrating our 30th Wedding Anniversary.

 

The Astrolabe actually does work. We would often notice the different positions of the planet that revolves around it. I believe the carillon bells ring at noon on sea days.

 

Rockfan2

T-71 days until we are back to Alaska on the Oosterdam :)

 

Thanks for this info! We'll have to pay closer attention next time we sail on the Amsterdam. I'm sorry we missed the bells.

 

Apparently I am allowed to use my phone during jury duty (at least during the time we're sitting and doing nothing), so I can respond but just not post anything new.

[Steppy08]

Amy,

 

Thanks so much for this great review and the wonderful pictures! We're gonna be on the Serenade in 5 days for a 12 day med cruise similar to yours last year. We'll greet the ship from ya:). Can't wait till you go on with the review!

 

Stef

 

Oh, tell the Serenade we said hi! And have a spectacular time!

 

We saw the Radiance (Serenade's sister) in Juneau and were reminded of how much we loved that ship. Especially the glass elevators overlooking the sea.

[vbmom87]

Apparently I am allowed to use my phone during jury duty (at least during the time we're sitting and doing nothing), so I can respond but just not post anything new.

 

You are lucky. In Detroit we have to leave our phones in our cars when we report for jury duty.

 

I wanted to say that when we were on the Amsterdam in 2011 we had no waits at the Lido lines from day 1. Everything went very smoothly. I am wondering if it is another case of more cutbacks in staff?

 

Your review is great. Thanks for the taking the time to put it together and share it.

[Steppy08]

Great review! As a high school teacher I'm with you on the Muster Drill. My DH has to tell me to get out of "teacher mode" because I'm ready to give them the look and shush them. "Not sure of the political undertones involved here, but their sign was well done and spelled correctly. And they were enthusiastic!" This made me laugh!!

 

Looking forward to reading the rest of the review.:)

 

BTW, LOVE Pittsburgh, it's one of our favourite US cities to visit.

 

It's impossible to turn off "teacher mode!" This is why Steve and I do vacations that typically don't involve lots of kids. I always want to correct their behavior, especially when their parents are oblivious!

 

And correct spelling on signs is important, which HAL apparently doesn't realize... I'll address that later!

[catl331]

Thanks for reviving my memories of our first Alaska/HAL cruise on the Amsterdam. After all my HAL cruises, I still rate this ship #1. We didn't see any whales though. I am thinking those mirrors in your suite might be the kind I like--covers the wrinkles! Thanks