Cruise review - HAL Westerdam in Alaska with kids, July 19-26

[fenstersuzy]

I posted this on the Alaska forum, but thought it might be good to put it here, too.

 

We are a 40ish couple with DS, 7 and DD, 5. This was our 4th cruise, 1st time with the kids. This was our first cruise to Alaska. We cruised with a group of my relatives, all in the 60+ age group. Most of them were first time cruisers. All together, there were 10 in our group. One of our previous cruises was with HAL, and we thought it was a great fit for us and for our entire group.

 

As we planned for our cruise, I didn’t find much info out there that fit our family (especially about the kids club and kids on HAL), so hopefully my review can help others who are in a similar situation.

 

We had a great time and would do it again in a minute! In fact, the kids are already planning our next cruise.

 

Our cruise was on HAL’s Westerdam. We sailed from Seattle and visited Glacier Bay, Juneau, Sitka, Ketchikan, and Victoria Canada. We spent the day before and the day after the cruise in Seattle.

 

I will try to organize my review in sections to make it easier to read.

 

Seattle

 

We were lucky enough to get a “free” night at the Fairmont hotel thru HAL. Actually, the first 2 people were free and we paid $183 for the other 2. We figured it worked out pretty well considering the wonderful hotel and location, and the fact that it also included transfers from the airport to the hotel and then from the hotel to the pier. In Seattle, we didn’t do as much as I had planned because DS came down with an ear infection and wasn’t really up to it. We spent some time finding a doc-in-a-box for him instead of sightseeing. He felt much better by the next day and was fine throughout the cruise. We did make it to Pike Place and a lot of the shops around there, and also took the monorail to the Space Needle. I felt like the Space Needle was overpriced for what we got, but that is to be expected.

 

Embarkation

 

The transfer bus picked us up at the hotel at noon. They had taken our luggage earlier in the morning, & it was nice not to have to bother with it at the pier. The bus dropped us off at the pier and we made our way through the line. It was a long line, but it moved along pretty quickly and check-in was smooth. We were on board and eating lunch in the Lido by 2:00.

 

Our cabin

 

We had originally booked a verandah quad cabin to accommodate the 4 of us. But we watched for sales, hoping to get our price reduced. That never happened, but the suites did go on sale, enough that we only had to pay an additional $100 to upgrade to a Superior Suite. We were in room #8053. It had a lot more room than a verandah, but it was not a quad. We had a king bed plus a sofa bed. When we made the change, I thought the 2 kids would fit on the sofa bed. Not so. The sofa bed does not expand or fold out, the seat just flips over to expose a mattress on the other side. So the sofa bed is the same size as the sofa. We had the kids take turns sleeping in the bed with us, and it worked out fine, but I would have liked to know that ahead of time. We really enjoyed the verandah in Glacier Bay, but the other days we didn’t use it at all. It wasn’t warm enough to sit out there & relax like I have done on Caribbean cruises.

 

We had plenty of storage space. Even with 4 people, we had several unused storage spots. The larger bathroom was really nice, especially the separate bathtub and the large counter space and 2 sinks. It really helped when several people were getting ready at the same time. 2 kids could take a shower at once! Another nice thing with the room was having 2 “desk” areas. DH had his area and I had mine. I think we got spoiled with this room! One thing that bugged me slightly was having the hair dryer in the vanity out by the bed. I was often up before the kids and showered, etc. but couldn’t dry my hair without waking them up.

 

Dining

 

Our group had early seating for dinner. This worked out nicely for us—it was a chance for the whole group to get together and talk about what we had done that day. The timing was great—we could eat, then drop the kids off at Club HAL and go to the show…and then still have time to relax or wander around before picking up the kids by 10. I had expected the kids to not enjoy the long dinners, but they did. They were perfect angels. I really don’t know why or how, but I’m not complaining! I think they enjoyed the adult conversation and were probably shy/intimidated by the strangers in the group (they had never met any of them besides Grandma before the cruise.) The kids could order from the kids menu (chicken nuggets, spaghetti, PB&J, etc.) or the regular menu, generally they got an appetizer or soup from the regular menu and a kids entrée. DS had chicken nuggets every night and said they were top quality. They especially enjoyed the rolls and chilled fruit soups and of course the desserts. I thought the food in the main dining room was outstanding. Several of the dishes were the best I’ve ever had, including the “turf” part of the Surf & Turf and also the Crème Brulee. Most of the food on the menu was fancier than what I would normally order, but not so wacky or unusual that it didn’t appeal to me. You could usually figure out what the items were, although one halibut dish I got was a surprise.

 

We found the Lido buffet to be a hassle with kids. Get a plate for a kid, find a table, then go back and get a drink. Get your own plate, and before you can take a bite, one of the kids wants something else…so we tried to go to the main dining room for breakfast and lunch when we had time. It was pretty much the same food and so much more relaxing. You do have to go to the Lido for the fresh squeezed OJ, which is worth the trip. We didn’t try the Pinnacle Grill.

 

 

Club HAL

 

Club HAL was wonderful! My kids were both in the 3-7 age group, so I really can’t say what it was like for the older groups. DD loved every minute, and begged to go to the kids club. DS enjoyed it but he’s not as social and would have been just as happy if we had let him sit in our cabin & watch Scooby Doo dvds. On sea days, they had activities from 9:00 – 11:30 am, then 1:00 – 4:00, and then 7:00 – 10:00. Generally during the morning and afternoon, the activity changed every half hour. For example, on Monday morning the schedule was 9:00 Free Play, 9:30 Story Telling, 10:00 Alaska Volcano Creation, 10:30 Puppet Friends, 11:00 Land, Air, Sea. So the kids knew that even if what they were doing right now wasn’t their favorite, pretty soon they would do something else. When the ship was in port, there were no scheduled activities, but Club HAL was “open”. You could call to page a counselor and they would be there within 15 minutes, which we did on the Ketchikan day. In the evenings, they had one activity that lasted from 8:00-10:00, such as a movie night, a pirate night, etc. Each night was different. One night they took the kids to the Showtime show, which DD really loved. On Friday night, they had a talent show, which really is a must-see! They worked on a few group songs during the week, so they were all involved in that way. Plus, any kid could go up and perform any talent they wanted. A couple kids did karate moves, another boy break danced, a little girl stood on one hand and one foot, a boy balanced a spoon on his nose. Really, anything goes, and it was soooo funny! The counselor that was MC treated each act with respect & had fun with them.

 

The counselors seemed to be having fun with the kids and enjoying their job. They were good at coaxing unexcited kids to come & join in. The activities were varied and fun. There were enough kids so that there were others to play with, but not so many that it seemed crowded.

 

Onboard activities and Entertainment

 

We have always enjoyed doing the daily trivia contests, and generally have pretty good luck. However, on this cruise, there was a LOT more competition than we have seen in the past. It was still fun, just not so easy to win. J Other activities have so few people turn out that you wonder what happened to everybody. I guess another way to say that is the ship never seems crowded. There are so many places on the ship to hang out and several choices of activities that everyone can find something to do. There were several times that we wanted to do 2 things that were scheduled at the same time.

 

The evening entertainment was ok. We went to most of the shows. The standout was Joel Mason. We aren’t drinkers, so the bars weren’t really that enticing to us. Generally we would pick the kids up from Club HAL and get them to bed (and me too), and DH would go find a place to plug in his laptop and check email.

 

Weather

 

I checked the forecasts for each port before we left home, and they were accurate. We had highs of about 60 in each of the Alaskan ports, with some light mist & rain pretty much every day, but not all day. The only place I was cold was in Glacier Bay, but a jacket and gloves were sufficient there. The cool, wet weather was wonderful for us—we were escaping from Texas heat. The rain was never heavy enough to really discourage us from exploring.

 

Shore Excursions

 

Because we had our kids with us, we didn’t want to overschedule and try to do more than would be fun. So for the most part, we didn’t book any excursions ahead of time. I did do a lot of research here and elsewhere, so I had a list for each port of things that I thought would be fun, and the times, prices, etc. so we could schedule our time as we went along.

 

Glacier Bay

 

I really didn’t know what to expect here, having never seen a glacier before. What an amazing sight! I think if you are cruising to Alaska, it would be a mistake not to choose an itinerary going to Glacier Bay. It was just so awesome. Pictures can’t do it justice, and neither can written descriptions.

 

 

Juneau

 

First thing off the ship, we tried to go to the public library for the free internet, but they don’t open until 11:00, which didn’t work for our schedule. We walked around a bit and shopped, then went back to the ship for a quick lunch. Then went on our tour—Alaska Gastineau Mill & Gold Mine tour, which I booked through HAL. They took us to an old gold mine which operated from 1915 to 1921. It was really interesting and fun, I would say it was the best shore excursion we’ve ever gone on. We got to put on hard hats and go inside the mine, with a real miner showing us how the work is done. The guides told lots of the history of the mine and also explained the process. We saw what is left of the part of the mill where they crushed the rock to bits so they could pan out the gold, and then we got to pan for gold ourselves. We each came home with a little vial of gold flakes. The gold panning was a trip highlight for the kids, although some teens & adults might say it was a bit hokey.

 

Sitka

 

It was a little misty outside when we got off the ship, but it cleared up soon after and was nice the rest of the day. We got off the ship and walked to the Sitka National Historical Park & Visitors Center. The park is a forest, with trails to walk around and see lots of totem poles. They have signs to explain what the totems are about. It was a really nice walk. It took us past a river, where there were lots of bald eagles flying around. That was really neat. The kids really enjoyed the walk in the woods—said it was just like camping. Then we walked over to the Alaska Raptor Center, where they rehabilitate wounded birds. They have a bunch that won’t ever be able to go back to the wild, so we got to see them. I really enjoyed the part when a handler brought out an eagle and talked about him. By the time we got done there, nobody was up to walking all the way back to the ship, so we took a bus.

 

Ketchikan

 

This was the one port where I really didn’t have much planned. We did not want to take the kids to Dolly’s or any of the Creek Street stuff. We did go to the Lumberjack show, which was very fun. We loved the audience participation part and the kids were amazed by the stunts. DH had heard about the Ketchikandy candy shop, so we found that and indulged in some taffy and chocolate-covered mint Oreos. Yum!

 

Victoria

 

We were not in port until 6 pm, so we really didn’t have much time here, which is really too bad. It is a beautiful city with a lot to offer. I went on the Butchart Gardens tour, booked through HAL because of the short time in port. The kids stayed on board with Daddy. First, the bus ride to the garden was very nice. The driver was knowledgeable and interesting. It was good to know the history of Butchart Gardens before going there. The actual garden experience was a big disappointment, though. By the time we got there, we had less than an hour of daylight to see it, which might be sufficient if we were the only visitors. However, the place was overrun with fellow cruisers, making it difficult to see much of anything. Then when it got dark, it was hopeless. Lighting is poor, signage is worse, making it easy to get lost. They do have a fireworks show, but since we were in pouring rain, that was not very enjoyable. Our group just went back to the bus to wait it out. I would not recommend this tour to anyone with just an evening port call in Victoria unless you are more interested in fireworks than flowers. In the daytime, it would be lovely.

 

Disembarkation

 

The hardest part was facing the fact that the cruise was ending. Oh, and the packing part. Besides that, it was a breeze. Since our flight wasn’t until the next day, we had one of the later times—9:45. We ate breakfast in the very, very crowded Lido (room service would have been a better idea). Then we enjoyed a mostly empty ship. Played chess on the Lido deck, walked around to revisit our favorite parts of the ship. When it was time, we headed off the ship, gathered up our luggage, went through the customs line, and found our transfer bus. Since our hotel was near the airport, we got the airport transfer and then got the hotel shuttle. A word to the wise: we paid HAL $28 per person for the transfer from the pier to airport, but you can get it for $24 if you wait until you get off the ship. A guy is standing between the ship and the terminal selling tickets.

 

Overall Summary

 

We had a great cruise! Everyone from the kids to Grandma had a good time, enjoyed the ship, the ports, and the time together. The food and service were fantastic. Although we were younger than many on the ship, we didn’t feel a bit out of place. There were lots of multi-generational groups around, and we also saw lots of grandparents with young children. I would not hesitate to bring our kids on another HAL cruise.

 

I would like to thank everyone who has posted info on these boards. They helped tremendously in our planning. If anyone has specific questions about our experience, I would be happy to answer them.

[Jewel99]

Thanks so much for the great review. This makes me even more excited about our upcoming cruise on the Eurodam with our son. While I know that Holland America isn't known for being a huge "family" cruiseline, but they do seem to be making lots of changes to cater to a wide range of cruisers. As our son is an only child and a bit on the shy side, having a smaller kids program and a more low-key atmosphere will work well for him.

 

Is it October 17 yet???? :rolleyes: