Great Alaska Cruise

Item: Nieuw Amsterdam
Rating: 3.5
Author: Bogert

Nieuw Amsterdam Cruise Review to Alaska - Inside Passage

Bogert

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 6

Overall rating:

3.5 out of 5

7 Night Glacier Discovery Northbound (Vancouver To Whittier)

Sail date: June 18, 2023

Ship: Nieuw Amsterdam

Cabin number: 6048

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 1 year ago

Review summary

Booking through RCI provided some advantage with smaller shore excursions, though less efficiently organized. Also, we didn't have travel through Holland America, which caused difficulty traveling to and from the ship (embarkation and disembarkation). Things could have gone smoother had we booked directly with the cruise line, though I probably won't ever book with Holland America again. Viking is much better though expensive.

Embarkation

2 out of 5

Three ships embarking ~7500 people at once was a zoo I will never repeat.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

4 out of 5

Lido buffet was always crowded; main dining rooms were better. Canaletto and Pinnacle Grill were excellent but overpriced.

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

A couple lectures were good; other activities were mostly not of interest to us. Trivia activities were too crowded so we didn't participate.

Entertainment

3 out of 5

The piano duo was excellent but the mainstage singing and dancing were aimed at a younger demographic. Talented performers but most music was unfamliar to us.

Service and Staff

4 out of 5

Only complaint is room service was not timely.

Ship Quality

4 out of 5

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5

Ship tip

Be prepared to spend lots of extra money!

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Vancouver (Canada Place), British Columbia

1 out of 5

See comment about embarkation.

Thumbs Up 0

Cruise Inside Passage, Alaska

4 out of 5

Ketchikan, Alaska

4 out of 5

Juneau, Alaska

5 out of 5

Skagway, Alaska

5 out of 5

Cruise Glacier Bay

5 out of 5

Cruise College Fjord, Alaska

2 out of 5

Overcast all day.

Thumbs Up 0

Whittier (Anchorage), Alaska

1 out of 5

Cold, rainy, and very windy.

Thumbs Up 0

Disembarkation

2 out of 5

Long bus ride into Anchorage. I'd sooner have skipped the last day of cruising entirely.

6 Comments

Ladyjunecliff 1 year ago

So sorry it did not fulfill your needs. We sailed Princess Discovery to Alaska in May and had a wonderful experience with Medallion setup. So much so we are going back in a couple months to do it again to see more wildlife.

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Gwbigdog 1 year ago

Thanks for sharing

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BeeKimball 1 year ago

Sorry you were let down by your experience.

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javawoody 1 year ago

Thanks for sharing

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AuntPinkie 1 year ago

Appreciate your feedback. Sorry you were disappointed.

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RetiredRay 1 year ago

RCI? Holland is part of Carnival.

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