A quick trip report - Zaandam 5/23 - 5/30

[jmelnick]

Hi all. We got back yesterday from our cruise on the Zaandam. There were a few issues on board, but I'm not going to get into that here.

 

First off I wanted to let people know that you might not be able to use US Direct. It wasn't running on the 23rd. They said that there weren't enough peope to make it worth while. We had to wait on the huge Canadian Customs line, it took about 45 minutes to an hour. At least we didn't have to claim our luggage. The Holland-America airport staff and transfers were fine.

 

Also, on the way back we couldn't use US Direct because Holland-America doesn't have an agreement with Air Canada. So be aware of that.

 

Our excursions were excellent. First up was whale watching with Orca Enterpises. There were a total of 4 of us on board with Capt. Larry and Capt. Sean. What a wonderful experience. There was a light drizzle, but there was no wind and the water was like glass. We had the rare opportunity to see humpback whales bubble feeding. It was also quite humorus when the cruise's excursion came along and they were packed like a can of sardines and there were only 4 people on ours.

 

In Skagway we did the Train and Yukon tour with Chilkoot Tours. It turned out to be just the 2 of us, so it was a private tour. Most excellent. A big thanks to Larry of Chlkoot Tours. He even pointed out Murray's place in Carcross! Later in the day we took the ship's Ghosts and Goodtime Girls tour. It was very enjoyable and I'd reccommend it. The tour leader was dressed in period clothing and had plenty of information, both the good side and the bad side (very balanced), and jokes.

 

In Ketchican we took a float plane trip with Island Wings. The first good day we had weather wise. Another excellent excursion. Smooth flight, good information, lovely views. I really liked the opportunity to get off onto a little island (glorified rock) in the middle of a remote lake. Much better than standing on one of the plane's pontoons.

 

Scenic cruisng of Glacier Bay was nice, but the weather was dreary. Cold, rainy and windy. Defninitly not good for photography.

 

Jeff