Oosterdam, Alaska

[attagirl1490]

I am looking to take my 7 year old granddaughter (and her mom) to Alaska and would like to leave from Seattle ... the Oosterdam fits that part....I my granddaughter has been on 3 weekend cruises, one RCCL, two Carnival...she lives to cruise! My question is would Holland America be a good fit for a 7 year old and her thirty something mom? 

[canadianbear]

HAL is nothing like Carnival or RCLL.  I’d be worried they’d be bored.  The cruise is beautiful but depends on what your daughter/granddaughter are interested in.  Maybe check with HAL about the kids club on board too.  Just my opinion.

[rj42]

You'll be bored and she will be too. You should look at the Norwegian Joy and Bliss, both which have a go-kart track, virtual reality arcade, laser tag, mini golf, Cavern Club/Beatles cover band, real Broadway shows ("Footloose" and "Jersey Boys"), a comedy club with adult and family-friendly shows, two big water slides and a dedicated kid's pool/splash area, a robust kid's program, and a much younger demographic so both mother and daughter will find plenty of others of the same age.  You'd also find it easier to dine, with a huge buffet and three non-pay dining restaurants, plus a pub-style restaurant that's also free, with no formal, set dining time. 

 

I passed 100 cruise days for HAL on the Oosterdam, and I'm bored with the sameness and blandness of the corporatized entertainment and activities. The dancers and singers of the Oosterdam were replaced with a couple of dance shows, and the rest is filled with third-rate Vegas-style entertainers. On the Joy in Alaska last May I had "Footloose", an impressive Cirque-du-Soleil type magic show, Beatles mainstage and Cavern Club shows, 4 or so other bands rotating around the ship, two comedians doing 6 or so different shows, and both the Bliss and Joy are new ships, so all the artwork and design and furniture is modern and pleasant, even down to a real glass shower door in the bathrooms, versus a flimsy shower curtain on the Oosterdam. I also found the outside Waterfront walk on deck 8 ideal for watching glaciers and whales, with outside bar and restaurant seating as well. Plus one night the buffet had a unlimited king crab legs and little treats that impress big kids like me (peanut brittle and gummi bears, for example). I've always loved the Crow's Nest on HAL ships, but the huge wrap-around observation lounges at the front of the Bliss and Joy put it to shame, with comfortable furniture, self-serve food stations, and huge windows at the very front of the ship. In Seattle, Norwegian has its own terminal on the downtown waterfront, so you'll only have passengers with one ship there to deal with, but Smith Cove terminal where HAL boards is outside downtown and might have 3 or more ships in port trying to process passengers. 

 

The Oosterdam has better dining room food, but a 7-year-old isn't going to be impressed by that. The Oosterdam also goes to the huge Hubbard Glacier, but the Bliss goes into Glacier Bay and the Joy visits a narrow fjord and spins around in front of the Dawes Glacier. The Joy also visits Icy Straight Point, which has the world's biggest zipline, also a big thrill for a kid. Of course, all the special stuff on the Norwegian ships will cost you, but I actually felt joy on the Joy, whereas on the Oosterdam in December I just felt bored. Norwegian will be expanding even more in Alaska next summer, with the new Norwegian Encore going there.