Amsterdam ..Alaska ..june 05.. Tell me about Amsterdam

[Getty]

Sveral couples in our 60s, taking Amsterdam to Alaska . Any comments about Amsterdam appreciated. Service ,food,

[doone]

I sailed the Amsterdam back in 2001 to the Baltics. I found the Amsterdam to be my favorite ship. She's well appointed, her color scheme is very nice. Her crew, at the time I sailed her, was top notch, the food was fabulous, we just thoroughly enjoyed the Amsterdam as I am sure you will as well when you sail her.

I am sure there are others here on the boards who have sailed her more recently than I did, but she is my favorite HAL ship.

Enjoy your cruise.

[mick70]

Sailed on The Amsterdam May of 2003 in an "S" cabin near the Neptune -Lounge, We had a wonderful time the food was just great. You must try out the Pinnacle Grill.:)

[garydm]

Have done Amsterdam to Alaska twice. Probably our least favorite HAL ship. I really don't want to pile on the negatives, but if you are taking Amsterdam to Alaska it would appear you are on a Seattle departure and therefore not on an inside passage cruise. This means you will be out to see for a good part of your trip. IMHO a better option is a RT Vancouver inside passage cruise where you will see some really beautiful sights. But, Seattle is convenient and only you can weigh the benefits.

Gary

[SeaCruiser_1]

First let me say I have done BOTH the inside passage and the Alaskan Explorer out of Seattle. Both were great cruises. I wrote an in depth review

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=6013

I think you and your party will thoroughly enjoy this cruise!!

[anniecat]

I took my Mom for her 80th birthday, we shared a outside view cabin...very spacious, lots of storage, clean, functional and a fine sized bathroom. Room service was great, Mom still talks about having those pillow chocolates! The ship was in great repair, clean, ungoing maintenance everywhere (deck painting etc), and beautifully designed and decorated. not much "glitz ala vegas", but elegance and fresh flowers and REAL art (except for the art auctions), the food was generally good with some items (soups, steaks, fish) being excellent. Friendly and not pushy staff everywhere. My complaints are few: bar server who just couldn't get my drink order right, salads at dinner not worth bothering with, a little hoky at times (overhead bingo calls, silly shows, and the every present photo guys) (but because of those photo guys I did get a wonderful once in a lifetime photo of me and Mom). Yes, the cruise doesn't go on the inside passage...but there were spouting whales anyway. a magnificant day at Glacier Bay...but we missed the pea soup. can't say much about Juneau or Ketchikan...tourist towns, but if you can walk around off the main streets there's some great little sites. Sitka was delightful in all respects...go to the Raptor center..we walked. We really had a good time, and since there was no border crossing the airport was easy also (spent the day in Seattle..arrived a day early (less stress)) Would I go on this route again?...no probably not but only because there's so many other places to go

[bepsf]

I agree w/ Annie - Amsterdam is in rather nice condition, however the resonant vibrations can get pretty bad at times - esp in aft cabins and in the dining room...

Don't remember the name of the captain off the top of my head, but dont expect to have your photo taken w/ him - he doesn't do that. The Staff was wonderful, but who knows exactly how it will be for you because most of the staff changes every few months

Enjoyed all the Alaskan ports w/out going on excursions - as Annie said, walk a bit outside the tourist areas. Also in Juneau, take the local busses to Mendenhal for $10/pp instead of the ship's excursion for $25...

Didn't mind the sea days - very relaxing w/ plenty of time to see everything on the way down.

However, the stop in Victoria was just a waste and a pain. We arrived much too late to go see anything and even if you don't disembark in Canada, the entire ship has to go through immigration anyway - plus they reduce the dining room dinner service to a single open seating in the upper dining room, so your real last night is the second formal night out of Ketchikan.