Ryndam cruise to Alaska Sept 2

[Cleopatra58]

Hello

My husband and I have booked the Ryndam NB from Vancouver, well before I even knew of this website. We are virgins to cruises. Reading info on HAL's website, all the reviews on the Ryndam and some of the threads, I still have some questions.
I read that for the Pinnacle Restaurant one has to pay for dinner. I thought all dinners, wherever one took them, were included? Why pay for the Pinnacle, is it that outstanding?
I read that the food on the Ryndam isn't all that spectacular, i.e. rather mediocre. Is that true?
I read that HAL has problems with its plumbing on board of its ships. Some have awful stories. How serious should I take that.
There don't seem to be any non-smoking cabins, which sounds quite odd to me (we're booked in a Verandah suite). My husband will turn around as soon as he detects a whiff of smoke in the cabin!
What clothes should we take (sailing early September)?
Do we need insect repellant?

We are very independent people, but decided to take a cruise because my husband doesn't want to drive around all the time any longer. Alaska is our destination because we love beautiful surroundings/nature.

Grateful for any replies!

[photodoodle]

I recently cruised to Alaska on the same itinerary on the Statendam, the Ryndam's sister ship. I had some of the same concerns, so I understand where you are coming from. You can read the complete review of my cruise here:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=604604 (http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=604604)

I did not see or smell any major plumbing problems. I didn't hear anyone else complaining of plumbing problems, either. However, I did catch a faint whiff of what might have been a small plumbing problem somewhere on our deck or the deck above. I explored the halls for a few minutes and it didn't get any worse as I sniffed around. After reading the posts here, and googling for a while, I came to the impression that when plumbing problems happen, if they do happen, happen most often on the lower two decks. I didn't get the impression that problems happened frequently, but that if they did happen, it was a huge downer for anyone remotely nearby. Because we were booked on A Deck, the lowest passenger deck, I remained a little nervous. Luckily, everything was fine. Because you are on a higher deck, I think it is very unlikely that you will encounter any plumbing difficulties. But I do understand your concern.

Regarding food, I'm no expert, but I was really happy with it. My mom is more of a foodie, and she was very happy, too.

Some people think it's better not to think about what might go wrong, some people prefer to be mentally prepared for difficulties. Count me in that second group. I was aware of the occaisional issue on past cruises, so when everything went smoothly for us, I was even more grateful.

Most of all, you will be completely enchanted by our incredible 49th state. That I promise.