oaktreerb

The line will probably start alongside the building by the drop off area. We dropped our luggage with the luggage handlers and got in line. It moves inside the building. Have your boarding pass that says “priority” and show it when someone is telling you where to go. The line snaked through the inside area until we saw a “cut off” for priority boarding. There are a lot of people with priority boarding. You will take the cut off and go through security and check in and be directed to the “seating area for priority boarding”. This was in January/February and the ship didn’t start embarking until close to noon. President’s Club were boarded first and then the rest of us in priority boarding.

If you have paid for Club Orange or if you are in a Neptune Suite on a ship that does not have a CO dining room you will have a separate priority entry line to the main dining room. I don’t know if you will get a special CO menu (you should) but if you don’t see the CO entree listed, just ask your server what the CO entree is. Even when eating in a CO dining room on the Koningsdam the servers sometimes had to tell us what the special was.

Neptune Suites also receive Club Orange dining perks. When boarding the ship with priority status you sometimes have to politely remind port staff that you have priority boarding. If you print your boarding pass you can easily show the “priority” designation when you ask if you are in the correct line.

yes

It gives me hope for some EXC experiences on our June Westerdam Alaska adventure!

If you don’t get fixed dining assigned prior to boarding you can go to the maitre ‘d onboard and ask to be assigned to a specific table at a specific time for the length of the cruise. You will be assigned to a table in the open dining level of the MDR. No problem.

Which ship?

It’s intimidating because there are a lot of choices. The first time we went to Alaska we did a 10-11 day cruise tour. i wanted to see Glacier Bay, Denali, and the Matanuska Valley. Our TA chose a great HAL short cruise tour for us that took us from Fairbanks to Denali to Anchorage to the ship in Seward at that time. We have been back many times over the years!

Holland America has the D5L which begins with an overnight in Fairbanks and a bus ride to Denali, two nights in Denali with the Tundra wilderness Tour, scenic train to Anchorage overnight, scenic train to Whittier to join the ship. If you start in Anchorage and go to Denali you have to return to Anchorage to join the ship in Whittier. The bus ride from Fairbanks to Denali is maybe 4 hours, between Denali and Anchorage whether bus or train is a full day. I think this itinerary would be the best use of your 3-4 days. @MtnSeaGirl

How many days do you have for precruise? Do you want to do a cruise tour or plan your own land tour? If you look at Holland America offerings for 2025, the itineraries will probably be the same for 2026. You will want 2-3 nights in Denali, Fairbanks is optional but included in some tours. Alyeska would be a nice place to stay if you do your own tour and have a car. You want to cruise on a ship that sails through the inside passage to Vancouver. Glacier Bay is amazing and a national park, Skagway is Gold Rush history with national park exhibits. Sitka is beautiful with Russian history and is very scenic. Most ships stop at Ketchikan and Juneau. Hope that helps you get started on your research!

Those with interior cabins will have to go out of the cabin but most ships have indoor windows for viewing like from the Lido or the Crow’s Nest. Some ships open the bow of the ship so people can see the glaciers and visit with one of the rangers. Your ship may have a promenade deck for outside glacier viewing. A balcony is nice but many people prefer to be able to move around the outside decks for a closer panoramic view. The rangers will set up a table inside with merchandise for purchase.

If you are viewing a glacier you will need layers to keep you warm. You may need a warm knit hat to keep your ears warm and gloves if you plan to be outside during viewing. Otherwise, in port it’s just basic layering and rain gear or jacket. No winter coat. A waterproof jacket will protect you from rain and wind if necessary. May and June are generally pretty nice weatherwise in Alaska.

Holland America is going through a transition in the entertainment offerings. Princess would be a good choice for a ship that can access Glacier Bay and also provide entertainment in the evenings. Holland is generally a good choice for seniors and will probably have fewer children, we’re not sure what the entertainment style will be and it may differ from ship to ship.

Glacier Bay is cold and you may have rain. The ship will sit in view of the glacier and turn port to starboard so everyone can see. The ship will stop near Gustavus to disembark the pilots on the way out. I sit out on the balcony in Glacier Bay with gloves, hat, and a cozy blanket. I can’t imagine dining out there. Is there a romantic restaurant onboard that offers scenic window seating? Glacier Bay in summer is nothing like the Norwegian Fjords temperature wise. It’s like sitting in an icebox. OK, I see you @Acorn27 are from Minnesota. Your perspective will differ from mine! Enjoy your amazing Alaska cruise!

I was especially surprised to see a service dog on our Hawaii cruise. In the past Hawaii has been especially strict about dogs coming to the island even with a military family (dogs had to quarantine for several weeks). (Vietnam wartime ear) I asked the handler if the dog could get off the ship. Yes, she said she had to fill out a lot pf paperwork (I didn’t carry the conversation further). On the next cruise to Hawaii there were the two companion dogs. I wonder if they were allowed off the ship in Hawaii. Do cruise lines require medical records showing that the dog has received the proper immunizations required for a dog license in many states, like California? What if the dog bites someone or has fleas? This is not a simple issue.

I think it’s new.

HAL has a series of Mexican Riviera, Pacific Coast, and Hawaii/South Pacific cruising out of San Diego primarily on the Koningsdam in the late Fall through the Winter before repositioning to Alaska. The other cruise lines may stop in SD but very few cruise-line itineraries begin and end in SD.

@LastCallForCoffee I think HAL shows the category SC because it is the lowest NS category. Another issue is that people who take a paid upsell to a NS can choose their stateroom. You have saved $2000 which you can spend on experiences in Alaska. We once had a stateroom in Alaska with a forward facing window. The forward views out that window were amazing. Alaska may be cold and rainy. You may not spend much time on that balcony, anyway! Enjoy the adventure!

I was thinking about Captain Albert yesterday. I really miss his blog to find out who’ll be the Captain of the Westerdam in June. I’m glad Holland America is promoting his book! I hope to purchase it onboard with OBC. Thanks for posting.

I booked our June 2024 28 day Ultimate Alaska itinerary when I first saw it on December 9, 2022. We will be the first group for this itinerary and I hope HAL will offer it again in 2026. It sold out pretty quickly, some people moved to the 2025 sailing, others changed their mind, but it looks like it is sold out again today. The higher level categories sold out quickly.

Traffic is an issue on Oahu. Honolulu is a big city with big city traffic. The bus system is great.

I’ve taken several Holland America Alaska/Yukon land tours and have seen very few children on the land portion. Families are more likely to rent a car for the land trip. There will be children on the ship but they are generally well behaved. Early August is a good time to travel in Alaska and I definitely suggest doing the land tour first.

@rwethereyet1969When you return to Juneau you can walk around town. If it is a clear day you could purchase tickets at the entrance and take the Mt. Roberts Tram up the mountain for the views, shops, exhibits, and/or hiking.

Club Orange priority tendering is available for going ashore in tender ports. Returning to the ship has always been one line for everyone. A lot of people other than Club Orange also have priority tendering. If there was a priority line, it would have been very long, and many more people would have been upset.

Another source of information for Alaska Cruisers: “Alaska by Cruise Ship” by Anne Vipond