nw gardener

Gin and tonic , shrimp cocktail, rack of lamb and the pinot noir with my main, flour less chocolate cake. Somehow my Costco rotisserie chicken tonight is not going to measure up.😂

I assume you mean Quick Shuttle. Used them this past June and Bay 11 was near the end of the line of bays for the busses. Fairly well marked and helpful port staff pointing the way if you have questions.

One, or two Cosmos...Ceasar salad, Peruvian chicken, lemon torte. Thank you for this thread!

Had aft cabin 8188 on the Koningsdam this summer, loved the easy access to the Lido and Seaview bar. No problems with smoke, only noise was arranging the chairs about 0630 by the pool. We are early risers so not an issue for us. Booked another deck 8 aft for next summer! Deck 8 is fully covered by the overhang so people can't look down on you and you can still enjoy the aft views in the rain.

Also highly recommend to leave comments on the Navigator app. We did after our first day of dining in CO on the Koningsdam in June and the manager (Dani), thanked us so much for doing that. Those comments go a long way! We also tipped our servers $20 each at the end of the cruise.

Maasdam June 2016, 2 week Alaska RT with good friends, and perfect weather. Wonderful crew, loved the size, and ended up booking the same cruise in 2020, but covid happened and she was sadly sold. 😥

The fries 🍟 at the Dive in...DH calls them crack fries , rather addictive 😋

Yes the MDR was open on embarkation day June 3 at noon but only for an hour if memory serves me correctly. For some unknown reason, I've found on every ship/line I've cruised on...people go to the Lido on the first day like they haven't eaten in a week, even with other venues open.

I cruised the week of June 3rd. We ate all our dinners in CO but used the elevators by the MDR to and from CO dining. We ate around 5:30 and normal meals took about an hour. We did not see any lines of longer than a dozen people or so at the anytime podium before or after our dining times. So it appeared much better than experiences of 6 months ago, but I have no first hand knowledge.

Yes, it was 2 weeks ago when dropped off by cab.

I was surprised that I got a discount frankly, but the deck 8 aft balconies aren't quite at the top verandah category. Thanks to CC research, I'll book differently in the future to take full advantage. Certainly glad that I tried CO.

I added club orange through my TA (big box) 2 months before sailing but didn't want a cabin upgrade, and I don't believe there were much to upgrade to at that point so HAL discounted the cost by $100. Next time I book I'll try to do better taking advantage of the upgrade with CO. You will enjoy the aft view, close to Lido and Seaview bar, but you will get your steps in if you enjoy the Crows Nest. I needed the exercise though after I discovered the Bossche Bol.

You will love CO and maybe you will have the same manager Dani who was attentive and so nice. I only tried one of the added entrees which was a lemon shrimp fettuccine, very good. I have no complaints about the menu without the added entree as I always found something that I wanted to try. My own personal gripe is wanting a few more veggies included with the entrees in general.

Sorry but no other pics of the balcony. Deck 8 balconies are fully covered, 2 chairs with foot stools and a small round table. We were next to the corner Neptune suite. No smoke or soot issues. Only noise was chairs being set up above us by the Seaview pool in the morning. I don't know what the square footage was, but it was very comfortable and would get that cabin again.

A few people and staff wearing masks. Did not hear of any covid cases. Covid will be with us for awhile, we try to stay clear of packed elevators etc, but we felt comfortable. I didn't make it to the new library on deck 2 but assume that is a quiet spot. The Tamarind bar doesn't serve until 5 but you can sit there and probably have it to yourself before opening. We sat there for part of the day in Glacier Bay.

-Temps inside were comfortable in most areas but not t-shirt for me, like a long sleeve light weight top. -A few people went all out, but the majority were dressy top and nice pants or dress, men in nice pants and shirt. Did see one get turned away at Tamarind for showing up in sandals, shorts and t-shirt. I gave the maitre de a thumbs up for that.

Sunset on the last night heading back to Vancouver. Yes the colors are true, it was spectacular.

View from window seat in Tamarind

Entrance to CO

Lovely flowers by the entrance to the MDR

Totem Bight park

Koningsdam in Ketchikan

Let's see if I can wrap this up...and I will try to answer any questions. Ship- We enjoyed the ship. I prefer the promenade on the older ships but still quite walkable. DH did joke after our 3rd trip in a day from our aft cabin to the Crows Nest "yes, this ship is larger". You could feel it was full on sea days but once you figure out the flow, we dodged lines and crowds successfully. Crows Nest was busy, but quiet in the early morning and later evening. Lido was jammed at opening times for meals, but ok an hour later. Tamarind bar was a quiet hidden spot. Dutch cafe was busy, but we found quiet times to go. Using the Navigator app to order for the Dive in and NY pizza saved us from lines. We would book a pinnacle class ship again for more choices, but itinerary comes first. Service- As always with HAL, the crew we encountered on our cruise were always quick with a smile and hello. Disembarking- walked off with luggage after our last relaxing breakfast in CO. Quick, under 10 to the curb. The changes we noticed since Covid shutdown- There has been A LOT written on CC for all the cruise lines we have sailed about all the changes to the industry. Hard to come up with a business that was hit harder by Covid than cruising. All the cruise lines are struggling to shrink their debt and changes had to be made. We noticed the smaller food portions and menu changes, staff stretched a little thin, no evening turn down unless requested, chocolates only on gala nights, supply issues, etc. But I also encountered HAL stepping up their game for AK cruise enrichment with more EXC talks and a wildlife spotter. Entertainment options were good on the Koningsdam and I hope HAL has listened about adding more varied shows and talks. Staffing appeared to be better for the MDR as I saw no long lines for dinner. However I believe cruising saw an exit of older and experienced front line staff and some service issues are lack of experience, training, and the rush to get back up to speed. If HAL continues marketing HIA, they do need to add bar tenders and servers because that was slow at times, especially sea days at most bars. The positives of this cruise far outweighed the changes for us. We are looking forward to our cruise next year on the NA , 14 days to AK. Love that itinerary!

It appears to have a very smooth ride with the modified catamaran design, fast, and shiny new!

Sunset after passing Hoonah and leaving Glacier Bay