Beautiful Alaska Land and Sea
Noordam Cruise Review to Alaska
Contributor Level:
Purser
Cruises: 7+ cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 25
Review summary
Seeing Alaska has been on our bucket list for decades. Thankfully we finally made it happen! Doing a combination Inner Passage and land cruise was the perfect vehicle. Denali National Park was the undeniable highlight and seeing Denali (AKA McKinley) mountain was the cherry on top. The weather was incredible . . . blue skies, moderate temperatures. Don’t miss the husky training demonstration! Our only disappointment was the lack of guidance by HAL during the land portion of our tour. There were some wonderful, well-informed and entertaining coach drivers and many locals who were very accommodating but, after arriving in Alyeska, there was no representative of the cruise line who introduced him/herself or made him/herself available for assistance. We and our fellow travelers felt abandoned. Ideally, there would be one person assigned to each group. Our understanding is that this is the case with other companies but, since this was our first land “cruise”, we cannot attest to that and can only recommend it. Despite this flaw, the trip was awesome. We highly recommend the Riverboat tour in Fairbanks. It wasn’t Disney because it was “real”. Yup!Embarkation
Shuttle from airport to the ship was smooth; staterooms were ready when we arrived.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
The main dining room and specialty restaurants (only two) were lovely and the food (and its presentation) were very good. Service was inconsistent. It appeared that some servers were new and not entirely comfortable. Since our cruise was one of the first of the season, it may be that some on-the-job-training is in order. Clearly, everyone was trying hard to please but we witnessed some people being overlooked.
Onboard Activities
There were some outstanding presentations. Magician/Comedian, Scott Pepper and "The Step One Dance Company: Humanity" provided entertainment as good as any (and better than most) we have experienced on a cruise. There were no Broadway-style performances but there were three venues that provided a variety of musical genres, opportunities to listen to mellow jazz, dance to oldie/goldies or request favorites at a double-piano, two-musician/vocalists bar. Several days were spent observing fjords and glaciers while listening to experts narrate the history of the area. This activity could take place on deck or in a 180-degree glass observatory on the 10th level. One of two coffee bars was located on this level so one can imagine the joy of watching frozen "rivers" while sipping hot coffee, tea or hot chocolate. On one occasion, crew served hot soup during the viewings. Some people took advantage of the two pools, hot tubs, spas and exercise facilities but the vast majority were fascinated by the views which were spectacular.
Entertainment
I went into some detail of the entertainment under "Onboard Activities" so I won't repeat myself.
Children's Programs
We were just two old folk and didn't have any occasion to see the children's facilities. Every evening there were notices of activities for kids of all ages, singles, LGBTQ+ groups. Something for everyone.
Service and Staff
Everyone was very friendly and service-oriented. I commented, earlier, on the need for additional training for some of the food servers. Stateroom servers in our area were very professional and well-managed.
Ship Quality
The critical thing that sets this cruise apart from others is the remarkable observation deck. Putting a coffee bar behind the seats was inspired. Other bars were easy to access but didn’t seem to be as in-your-face as some on other ships. All promo activities (casino, photography and art sales) had appropriate spaces assigned. They were easily accessible but not intrusive. All common areas were kept very clean.
Cabin / Stateroom
Our original cabin (1120) was located directly under the galley. On the first night, between 1AM and 3AM, it sounded like someone was moving heavy machinery above our heads. Staff quickly arranged for our relocation (to 4036) by the next afternoon. Our new cabin had a veranda. We had specifically chosen NOT to have a balcony because we didn’t envision spending time outside in (brrrr) Alaska. As it turned out, it was wonderful to be able to step out in the morning and test the air. It was also wonderful to have a large picture "window" with a fabulous view. Our sleepless first night lead to a happy ending. We do hope that HAL will make 1120 a storage room. Other observations: there was plenty of closet and shelf space (same in both cabins) and enough room under the bed (where there were two gigantic, built-in drawers) to put two very large and one carry-on suitcase. Like many cruise ships, HAL had a personal safe just small enough NOT to accommodate a laptop. Sigh.
Ship tip
Do a thorough tour of the entire ship ASAP. There are many little gems and hide-aways you might miss if you don't.
Thumbs up
0
Ports of call
We took a motor coach from the ship to Alyeska so Whittier was a no-show and Anchorage was a 2-hour lunch stop. That said, we were able to go to the new Anchorage Museum and recommend it highly. There is an area dedicated to the various indigenous peoples that was a collaborative effort with the Smithsonian Institution. Superb! Our cruise on Portage Lake was cancelled and replaced by an extra hour in the Wildlife Conservation Center. I question the choices and, of course, regret that the Portage Lake cruise had to be canceled. A longer time in Anchorage or even an earlier arrival at Alyeska would have been preferable IMHO.
Disembarkation
Disembarkations at ports of call were handled very efficiently. We never worried about getting off the ship in time for excursions or having to wait too long if we didn't have a specific excursion reserved. There was, however, a long wait between abandoning our cabin on the final day and exiting the ship for the last time. We finally got called at 1:00PM. Bars had closed at 10AM (no coffee) and the Lido didn’t reopen until 11:30AM. It was not a perfect ending to the cruise component.