Which ship to Alaska?

[rollnoles2]

We are planning a summer Alaska cruise. It will be a multigenerational cruise with grandparents and two boys, ages 9 and 11. Which ship do you recommend? We have never travelled with HAL before, but we have heard that it is terrific for Alaska.

Thank you for your input!

[Fblack]

It's an easy call. Oosterdam out of Seattle. Not only is Seattle an easier and cheaper port to fly in and out of, but the newer ship was planned with kids in mind and has some special areas not available in the older HAL ships.

[Old As Dirt Mom]

We are planning a summer Alaska cruise. It will be a multigenerational cruise with grandparents and two boys, ages 9 and 11. Which ship do you recommend? We have never travelled with HAL before, but we have heard that it is terrific for Alaska.

Thank you for your input!

 

 

Hi!

 

Which year are you planning to cruise, 2007 or 2008? Where are you from? HAL leaves from both Seattle and Vancouver. In 2007, HAL has seven ships doing Alaska itineraries. I happen to think Fblack's recommendation is a good one, but it might not work for you. Oosterdam is doing Seattle round trips to Alaska this summer, 2007. So is Noordam, which might be another good choice.

[hammybee]

And the Amsterdam is also sailing R/T Seattle in 2007.

[twinkletoes4445]

It's an easy call. Oosterdam out of Seattle. Not only is Seattle an easier and cheaper port to fly in and out of, but the newer ship was planned with kids in mind and has some special areas not available in the older HAL ships.

 

Thank you for this information. We want to do an Alaskan cruise in the future, so I'll file this away until the time arrives. :)

[jtl513]

We are planning a summer Alaska cruise. It will be a multigenerational cruise with grandparents and two boys, ages 9 and 11. Which ship do you recommend?

 

Thank you for this information. We want to do an Alaskan cruise in the future, so I'll file this away until the time arrives. :)

I agree that the Vistas are better when traveling with kids, but much prefer the Amsterdam in AK when no kids are along.

[dougnewmanatsea]

I would go with the AMSTERDAM.

 

I'm not sure why the Vistas are supposed to better with kids? The R-class ships have been updated with the latest Club HAL facilities... (In fact I don't even think the Vistas have them yet, except maybe NOORDAM...) And I think they are better than the Vistas in every other way.

[hammybee]

The Amsterdam is my personal favorite HAL ship. The only reason to choose a Vista Class ship over this would be intinerary and/ or price and that there are more balcony cabins on Vista Class ships which means they are usually less costly. But for pure classic elegance, nothing beats the Amsterdam in my book.

[PathfinderEss]

I'll make it four--for the Amsterdam. Love that ship with all its beautiful art work. It's such a classy ship.

[Mary Ellen]

I'll chime in. We've done the Alaskan cruises on HAL 5x.

 

BIG vote for Vancouver rather than Seattle. I grew up in the Seattle area and it is a WONDERFUL city, but the scenery was SO much better on our Vancouver cruises than the Seattle one. It can also be much 'bumpier' out of Seattle. It is possible to fly into Seattle and easily connect to Vancouver (train, rental car, shuttle services (cruise line or a private company). We usually fly into Vancouver, but I have taken both types of shuttle.

 

I do NOT reccommend the 'Vista' class (i.e. Oosterdam) ships - particularly if travelling with grandparents. In one port a Vista was docked near us. When my step-mother (in her 60s) saw the size, she was SO glad that we weren't on a ship that large. Way too much walking for her. The Vistas also do not have a passenger laundry, so if you have anything that you don't trust to the ships laundry (delicates or something the kids/you have spilled on that needs to be checked before going into the hot dryer) - you are stuck having to hand wash in your sink. NOT my idea of a good vacation.

[bepsf]

I disagree:

 

Canada can make entering their country difficult for some of us - so R/T from Seattle is so much simpler/easier for us Americans.

 

While I love Amsterdam and her staff & crew, a Vista can be much more comfortable in heavy seas, plus one needn't loose sight of the amazing scenery while riding the elevator from Lido to Promenade Deck in the glass elevators, and their Pinnacle's have windows: perfect for viewing the inside passage while enjoying a quiet & elegant post-glacier lunch.

 

Oosterdam also stops at Hubbard Glacier instead of Glacier Bay - a much more impressive sight for that once-in-a-lifetime trip to Alaska, IMO.

[twinkletoes4445]

I agree that the Vistas are better when traveling with kids, but much prefer the Amsterdam in AK when no kids are along.

 

 

Thanks! We'll be without kids. That's good to know. :)

[TheHappyWanderer]

What is folks' opinions about the Ryndam out of Vancouver?

[OldCodger73]

I agree with Mary Ellen's post #10 100%. The big difference is that Vancouver departing ships sail up the scenic Inland Passage on the east side of Vancouver Island while Seattle departures go up the west side in the open ocean, which can give a rougher ride. We live in the Seattle area and when we did our HAL Alaska cruise last summer chose the Volendam out of Vancouver for those reasons. We also chose the R class ship because it was smaller, with less passengers and easier to get around, which is something that might be meaningful for your grandparents.

 

bepst also has a good point, avoid Canada if you have a DUI on your record. And before one gets judgmental about someone having a DUI, think how many times that could have been you when you had that one extra drink.

[Old As Dirt Mom]

Poor Rollnoles, the original poster of this thread. We have strayed a little from the topic at hand.......that's never happened here before....;)

 

Rollnoles, Holland America's website has an entire page of interactive digital brochures, among them the Alaska 2007 brochure. You may like to browse through it to get some information on the ships and itineraries available through HAL. There are almost too many choices for an Alaskan cruise, and I have found it really helps to do some reading and research. A good book to start with is Frommer's Alaska Cruises and Ports of Call 2007. I was able to find a copy at my local public library.

 

Karin

[Lvteks]

We sail the Zaandam to Alaska mid-September...and would like to consider returning home from Vancouver on a Canadian Rockies rail trip..I wondered at what point East would we have seen most of the views and could then cross to U.S. and fly back to D.C. area. Any comments would be appreciated.

 

Blessings,

 

Gail

[dougnewmanatsea]

Could we please try to keep this on topic?

 

Thanks :) !

[RuthC]

What is folks' opinions about the Ryndam out of Vancouver?

Excellent choice! The S-class is my favorite due to it's compact size. Everything you want, and it's right there. In Alaska this means fewer people sharing that deck space to view all that scenery.

Vancouver is my preferred (dis-)embarkation port. Whether it's round-trip or a one-way (or even better-a back-to-back!:D ) this route has spectacular views and a great city to spend some time in.

But the thing with Alaska is that there really is no bad choice. It's one of those cruises that is good no matter what.

[Host Walt]

The subject of Immigration and Customs processes is not the topic of this thread. That process can be difficult anywhere just by random chance so let's not focus on entry/exit issues but on the original topic.

[rollnoles2]

Once again, thanks for all the good advice! We still haven't decided, but it's good to get everyone's input. Isn't it wonderful to have such a difficult decision?

[sanfracruz]

Hello cruzers. Just a quick question about HAL. Wondering if anyone knows where ship (Ryndam) docks? Canada Place or Ballentyne. On the southbound 5/20/07 cruise. Thanks to anyone who knows.

[Mary Ellen]

I've only known of HAL to dock at Canada Place (IMHO much better than Ballentyne).