Best Alaska itinerary
Noordam Cruise Review to Alaska - Gulf of Alaska
Contributor Level:
Purser
Cruises: 7+ cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 69
Review summary
Alaska is a fantastic itinerary -- not to be missed. Holland America has excellent excursions and shore relationships that, I think, make it the standout choice. You'll find the crowd on board about what you'd find at a theme park or Vegas -- anxious to relax, not interested in dressing up, and traveling with the entire family in tow.Embarkation
Lines were sometimes long, sometimes not. We were lucky to only have about a twenty minute wait.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
Food was excellent, service cheerful, but very slow in main dining room. Was much more efficient when tables were pre-assigned for the cruise. Kudos to Andrew in the Pinnacle Dining Room who helped us navigate a table on a regular basis. Lido food was fine. Only disappointment -- and for us, a big one -- was room service. It took very, very long for calls to be answered, and there was at least a ONE HOUR wait for delivery of an order. We gave up trying after the third day.
Onboard Activities
Schedule looked good; we're not "activities" people. Pools were well-maintained and popular.
Entertainment
Enjoyed the magician and especially the BBC Earth Alaska show, where live musicians played the score to stunning projected footage of Alaska wildlife.
Children's Programs
Did not travel with children
Service and Staff
This was our fourth Holland America cruise over 40 years and we have always found the staff to be among the most friendly and attentive in the industry.
Ship Quality
Where the trend is to make ships glitzy amusement parks at sea, the Noordam is a refuge. Ample room to simply sit with a book, a drink, or friends and enjoy the astonishing scenery. The Explorations Cafe in particular is welcoming and always uncrowded.
Cabin / Stateroom
Cabin was fine, storage space ample. Nice bath. Well maintained.
Ship tip
Spend time on Deck 10 -- not crowded, and the views are splendid.
Thumbs up
0
Ports of call
This was our embarkation point. Enjoyed the bus ride from Anchorage -- scenery and commentary were excellent.
Quaint gold rush town. River rafting through the bald eagle preserve was a thrilling excursion.
Quayside shopping is handy, but the best feature are the seafood restaurants. Best crab and salmon I've had. The cable car is expensive and a bit of a letdown. BEST experience was the dog-sled excursion on Mendenhall Glacier. Highlight of our cruise.
If Disney opened an "Alaska Gold Rush Town" attraction, this would be it. Most of the town was built after 1954, and it's kitschy. Good food everywhere, though. The Lumberjack show is silly fun for the tourists (we enjoyed it). We booked the crab feast, which was excellent.
Vancouver (Canada Place), British Columbia
Disembarkation
Abysmal disembarkation process. One of the worst. Fumbling organization in the lounge, long -- LONG -- waits after being hurried from one spot to another. We were left standing on the gangway for over 30 minutes for the airport bus to arrive (the agent kindly offered chairs at the 30-minute point; but they'd been there all along -- what took so long?). Vancouver is an efficient port -- this needs work on the Holland America side.