Westerdam July 17-25. Semi-live?

[oakridger]

 

@rubytueWow on your picture above with the flowers in the foreground!  All your pictures are wonderful, and I am enjoying "traveling" along with you.  I agree, Sitka in the mist is otherworldly.  I love it!

 

Thanks,

~Nancy

[rubytue]

@oakridger - thank you! That, and every picture so far is just an iPhone picture. I took the same composition on my good camera - I hope it comes out even better (hard to tell til I get it on a big screen). 
 

We are making our way into Ketchikan, following NCL (the Bliss?). This is a tight channel for this size ship. I was looking at the bouying and had “red right returning” in my head, while thinking “there ain’t no room there” 😂

 

our adventure for the day is Eagle Island kayaking. We had the other one booked, which was a bit more remote. But it required a bus and a boat to get to the spot. And apparently the boat broke down yesterday. So they moved us to this other trip and it’s cheaper. So small win. 

 

for these early ports, the Lido is opening at 6:30am. Yay! But, I’m still trying to stay east coast-adjacent. Because I do have to work next week. So, once again I’m hanging in the crows nest (as it will always be) waiting on coffee before 6am. I’m pretty much alone today, which hasn’t been the case most of the week. 

[rubytue]

No coffee yet - my brain just connected that I’m wasn’t crazy, we weren’t going to fit to the right of the bouy, and it’s clearly off port. Oh! We must not be retuning. 😂  so the port is downstream of wherever returning is. 

[BetsyS.]

2 minutes ago, rubytue said:

No coffee yet - my brain just connected that I’m wasn’t crazy, we weren’t going to fit to the right of the bouy, and it’s clearly off port. Oh! We must not be retuning. 😂  so the port is downstream of wherever returning is. 

RubyTues - Happy Birthday and best wishes for the year ahead!! 🎂 Enjoy 

your day and your birthday dinner at Pinnacle Grill!  Thanks for your great 

reporting and beautiful pictures!

[rubytue]

Just to defend my pre-coffee brain. We boat the Chesapeake Bay.  Almost every town is upstream from the bay 😂

 

thank you @BetsyS.!

 

the most exciting thing of the trip just happened. They raised the shades on the lido 4 minutes early!!

[Cruise Suzy]

Taking it easy today - nothing scheduled. Did get up early though to make a reservation with SEA-TAC's TSA SpotSaver. Since we haven't flown since 2008, PreCheck or Clear makes no sense for us to have. But Seattle is running a test program so others can reserve a spot to go thru security. Takes a bit of pressure off when to arrive for our 7AM departure on Monday.

https://www.portseattle.org/SEAspotsaver

 

 

[TotallyCruzin]

Thanks again for the great report on the Westerdam.  I know you are on an AFT cabin however if you could have chosen either a port or starboard balcony which would you choose.  We're planning this cruise in Sept...thanks again.  Asking you and anyone else who've been on this cruise itinerary.

[rubytue]

1 hour ago, TotallyCruzin said:

Thanks again for the great report on the Westerdam.  I know you are on an AFT cabin however if you could have chosen either a port or starboard balcony which would you choose.  We're planning this cruise in Sept...thanks again.  Asking you and anyone else who've been on this cruise itinerary.

Yes, we are aft. It’s out second aft, and confirmed we prefer sides. To each their own. I this Id pick starboard. But, most of the cruise is off shore. We did take the scenic route into Ketchikan, but that was 3-6am. We saw whales on the way into Juneau, and those were off starboard. I know that is just the coin flip of the day. But it’s about all I have. Docking has been on the port side each time. 🤷‍♀️

[rubytue]

For the creamed questions. I took a picture of the coffee station at the lido this morning. No flavored creamers. 2% and cream are in the canisters to the left. 

[rubytue]

We did eagle island kayaking today. Most of our group was scheduled for the Yay posh Island kayak trip, but we were told the boat broke down. The guide, however, said the boat was fine but the trip was overbooked with 32 people on it. So maybe the second boat was broken down? Or it was oversold. Anyway, we ended up in a group of 8 and everyone seems to either know how to kayak or picked it up quickly. I’ve been on some group tours where half the boats are just splashing around. H and I own kayaks and go out a lot. So doing a group kayak trip is usually not the way we roll. But this is was good. Not great, but still good to get out for a paddle. And, we had a sea lion pop up feet from the boat!  

[rubytue]

The Noordam was docked beside us. Made for a great “goodbye Alaska” sail away. Also note, there is a large ball of fire in the sky and the sky is this color we haven’t seen all week. I think it’s called blue. 
 

Lido pool canopy is open!

[PACD_JG]

Sorry, didn't read every line of the thread, but have you ever sailed on any of the Pinnacle Class ships?  If so, I'm trying to get an idea how much I would enjoy an older ship like the Westerdam (thinking of another Alaska cruise in July 2023), since I thought the Koningsdam was just my style.  Thanks.

[rubytue]

28 minutes ago, PACD_JG said:

Sorry, didn't read every line of the thread, but have you ever sailed on any of the Pinnacle Class ships?  If so, I'm trying to get an idea how much I would enjoy an older ship like the Westerdam (thinking of another Alaska cruise in July 2023), since I thought the Koningsdam was just my style.  Thanks.

Fair question. I just can’t keep the classes of ships straight. We’ve done the Maasdam and Vaandam (small ships, in the 2000s). The Eurodam and this one. Honestly, I don’t feel I notice a big difference in ship size on any HAL ship. Plus, we are at 70% occupancy. We are loving Dive In. On the Eurodam, we did enjoy the made to order pizza place (not on this ship). We aren’t really doing BB King club or anything this trip. Mostly for Covid reasons, and also east coast bodies and it’s not really our thing anyway. 
 

The Christmas, we are sailing one of the newest ships (Its in my sig block, I forgot which one). I booked it for the Rolling Stone club, and the itinerary. Or really, vise versa. But I am looking forward to that. I feel HAL is trying to appeal to us Gen-Xers now. 😁 

 

My two most previous cruises have bee. the Rock Boat sixthman charters. Those are one NCL Jewel class. I keep mentally comparing, this ship seems far less crowded. But, the charter is so different. You will have 2/3 of the ship in one place and one time. And everyone is at the buffet between sets. So, it’s apples and oranges. The only time I’ve felt crowded here was disembarking in Juneau. 

Edited July 22, 2022 by rubytue

[PACD_JG]

4 minutes ago, rubytue said:

Fair question. I just can’t keep the classes of ships straight. We’ve done the Maasdam and Vaandam (small ships, in the 2000s). The Eurodam and this one. Honestly, I don’t feel I notice a big difference in ship size on any HAL ship. Plus, we are at 70% occupancy. We are loving Dive In. On the Eurodam, we did enjoy the made to order pizza place (not on this ship). We aren’t really doing BB King club or anything this trip. Mostly for Covid reasons, and also east coast bodies and it’s not really our thing anyway. 
 

The Christmas, we are sailing one of the newest ships (Its in my sig block, I forgot which one). I booked it for the Rolling Stone club, and the itinerary. Or really, vise versa. But I am looking forward to that. I feel HAL is trying to appeal to us Gen-Xers now. 😁 

 

Thanks.  I won't lie, I've been watching way too much YouTube, and the older ships (even the Eurodam) don't look as nice, stylish, or fun as the Koningsdam, Rotterdam, and the Nieuw Statendam do.  So I've been hesitant to book an Alaska cruise out of Seattle for that reason - signed, another Gen-Xer with two spoiled teen daughters.

[wdw1972]

41 minutes ago, PACD_JG said:

 

Thanks.  I won't lie, I've been watching way too much YouTube, and the older ships (even the Eurodam) don't look as nice, stylish, or fun as the Koningsdam, Rotterdam, and the Nieuw Statendam do.  So I've been hesitant to book an Alaska cruise out of Seattle for that reason - signed, another Gen-Xer with two spoiled teen daughters.

I was on the Rotterdam in December and Nieuw Amsterdam in February, and although there are differences between them overall I thought they were equally great.  The Nieuw Amsterdam looked every bit at nice & stylish as the nearly new Rotterdam (which is beautiful).  Where the Nieuw Amsterdam excelled was the larger Retreat cabanas, wide promenade deck with a view, nicer Pinnacle Bar.  Where the Rotterdam excelled was Rudi's Sel de Mer & Grand Dutch Cafe, BB Kings AND Rolling Stone (BB King's venue is bigger/nicer on this ship), and the music themed art was fun to look at.  Overall though, I wouldn't consider either of them to be inferior to the other - just different in a few ways.

 

Sue/WDW1972

[Cruise Suzy]

1 hour ago, PACD_JG said:

have you ever sailed on any of the Pinnacle Class ships?  If so, I'm trying to get an idea how much I would enjoy an older ship like the Westerdam (thinking of another Alaska cruise in July 2023), since I thought the Koningsdam was just my style.  Thanks.

 

I must admit I prefer the Pinnacle ships (Koningsdam, Nieuw Statendam and Rotterdam) if sailing in a verandah because they have showers that are easier to get into and out of than tubs. I also love the Grand Dutch Cafe and the NY Deli & Pizza. I have enjoyed sailing on Signature ships (Eurodam and Niew Amsterdam) which have a pizza venue but no Durch Cafe and have tub/shower combinations in verandah staterooms. For our upcoming partial Panama Canal cruise on Eurodam, we splurged and got a Signature Suite to have a separate shower. (Knees aren't getting any younger.)

 

That said, we have thoroughly enjoyed being on the Westerdam this week. Distances aren't as great from room to elevators or from elevators to dining or gangways. Since we're traveling with other family members, we did get a Signature Suite (with separate shower) so all can comfortably gather.

 

If we want a particular itinerary, we will go on whichever HAL ship is assigned to it - but perhaps upgrade our cabin. We have no complaints about the Westerdam in general. Would gladly sail her again.

[rubytue]

1 hour ago, Cruise Suzy said:

We have no complaints about the Westerdam in general. Would gladly sail her again.

Ditto! The complaints we have are super minor and would seem nit picky if I listed them. And, less complaints, but more things we noticed. On the order of the rail of our balcony could use a light sand and a coat of varnish. And things that can’t be helped (the times for food and good coffee). Oh, and a “me” thing - but really, I do not need to be greeted every time I pass crew. Especially pre coffee 😂 

 

And, please laugh with me that my initial boredom post claiming a “semi-live” accounting turned into a fairly real time live trip. This unlimited internet is the chefs kiss!  

[wdw1972]

2 hours ago, Cruise Suzy said:

 For our upcoming partial Panama Canal cruise on Eurodam, we splurged and got a Signature Suite to have a separate shower. (Knees aren't getting any younger.)

My next cruise is also Eurodam, splurged on Signature Suite since DH will be with me.  We're doing the 10-day 11/30/22.

 

To the OP - your not exactly semi-live report has been wonderful - very enjoyable!  Thanks to you and the other person onboard for sharing your cruise on this forum!

 

Sue

[Hobby3333]

I have sailed new ships on MSC and Carnival.   We chose the Westerdam because I like more classic ships.  We are going to Alaska to see the scenery more than going on a ship with all the new bells and whistles.  Service, food and relaxation is what we are looking for in September.  Having said that, if we do Europe I would prefer a newer ship.   By the way, the review on the Westerdam was great to follow.

[rubytue]

Oh oh oh! I have a complaint now. We had dinner in pinnacle and:

1) our appetizer wines came out 5 minutes apart (this was actually a bit annoying, we thought they forgot one)

2) the horseradish is super weak!  The beef tenderloin is supposed to have a horseradish sauce. It seemed to lack zip, so I asked for additional horseradish. They brought out a dish. And, to show my H how weak it was, I scoped up a forkful and ate it. No chaser. 
 

This is literally it so far for the week. Well, that and we have to pack tomorrow. 
 

also, I mentioned I’d comment on Covid things, but honestly, other than crowded gangways, I dont have much to say. H and I have been testing daily and are still negative.  Not that we’ve talked to many people, but I haven’t heard of quarrentine. Also, there are cold medicines in the shop (NyQuil, etc). I read they’d been removed from some ships. And they caught my eye tonight while passing through. 

[rubytue]

@TotallyCruzin I revise my opinion. Port. We docked port each time, and today the scenery off port is better. Probably tomorrow, too. But, this was probably the starboard view on Monday. 

[Cruise Suzy]

We also had dinner in Pinnacle Grill tonight. I had tried the beef tenderloin with lobster dumplings earlier in the week - I have always had the small filet mignon. Tonight, both DH and I had the tenderloin. Since I don't care for horseradish, I didn't mind that the sauce was not strong. Food is so very subjective, so I'm sorry it wasn't strong enough for others. Had it been too strong for me, I would have just scraped it off. 

 

But I did have one complaint - and I'm sure I'm not talking about @rubytue. When the hostess led us to our table, it was near a very obnoxiously loud group of four. They obviously had spent too much time at a bar. We thought we were on a party boat rather than a HAL ship! We asked to have a more quiet table and were accommodated. The hostess was shaking her head in disbelieving agreement! I didn't notice any one seated near the offending group.

[rubytue]

10 hours ago, Cruise Suzy said:

and I'm sure I'm not talking about @rubytue.

Nope! We were just a table for 2. And pretty early, too. I’m glad the horseradish was good for you 😁 FWIW, I grow my own horseradish. I do like it.

 

I slept in this morning. 8am! Woo! Internet is pretty terrible what with it a sea day and everyone is up. It’s been great all those times at 5am. So, I’m not even going to try including a picture this morning. 
 

I have a glorious sea day of nothingness planned. I don’t this we are going to be bothered getting off the boat in Victoria tonight. We will be packing up this mess of a cabin. We kept it pretty tidy for 5 days, but today it looks like a teenager lives here. 

[rubytue]

@Cruise Suzy I noticed we have a $19/pp refund for port fees and taxes. We made all the ports. Do you have any idea what this might be? 
 

speaking of ports. They changed the time in Ketchikan again. It was originally 1pm. Then about 3 weeks ago, they backed it up to noon, for all all board of 11:30. And then, the day of, all aboard was noon. The only announcement was cruise director saying we were cleared and to be back “mid day.” He didn’t say noon, he didn’t say “you have an extra half hour.” The folks on our excursion told us, but being a verify before trust, a couldn’t find anything confirming until right after they scanned the cards to get back on (at 11:25) and I saw a sign the said passenger all aboard was noon. 11:25 was stressing me enough.

 

[jpnr]

On 7/21/2022 at 4:22 PM, rubytue said:

I have not seen that. I’ve been getting coffee from the explorers club coffee bar. I will check the lido in the morning. 

Is the explorations café the only place we can get Lattés? The line up must be long if it is the only place. Just spent 18 nights on the Koningsdam in April and we loved having the Grand Dutch Café for coffee and snacks as the Explorations café was very limited.