Back to Back Alaska Questions

[pipedreams62]

Hi- We are going on the Veendam in June from vancouver to seward and back. My questions are

 

1. Will we be held up getting OFF the ship in Seward. I want to book an early excursion and don't want to get heldup trying to get off the ship with all of the people that are going home.

 

2. Do you keep the same waiter for 14 days or do you switch after 7

 

3. Do they have a t-pool price for the 14 days?

 

4. Do they make you square up ie cash out after 7 days.

 

5. Do you keep the same cabin?

 

 

Thanks in advance

 

J.M.

[cruisinjudy]

We did this last year. I can answer some of your questions.

 

They did offer some shore excursions for B2B guests. We just walked around town so I don't really know what time B2Bers got off if they didn't have a HAL excursion.

 

You keep your same room if the same room is assigned. We had a guarantee outside and we did get the same room.

 

We kept the same waiter and table.

 

I believe our account went over the whole two weeks.

 

I don't know about the T-pool.

[AlohaPride]

I think all your questions depend on a lot of communication with HAL.

 

T-Pool rates are for 7 days and you'll have to pay again.

 

I think you have to pay up at the end of the 7 days as well.

 

But don't take my word for it, I have yet to do a b2b. I'm planning one in Sept. 09 :)

[Sopwith]

We did B2B on the Volendam last Sept. Based on that:

 

1. Will we be held up getting OFF the ship in Seward. I want to book an early excursion and don't want to get heldup trying to get off the ship with all of the people that are going home. If you book an excursion through the ship you will be given a disembarkation time that coordinates with the excursion. If you're doing your own thing you will be given a form on which you can request a specific disembarkation time.

2. Do you keep the same waiter for 14 days or do you switch after 7? During the first week the steward captain asked us if we wanted to stay at the same table for the second week or if we wished to change. We chose to stay put.

3. Do they have a t-pool price for the 14 days? Not sure what a t-pool price is. If you mean tips, it is the same for all days, all weeks.

4. Do they make you square up ie cash out after 7 days. Yes.

5. Do you keep the same cabin? If you have booked this in advance, yes. By the time we booked we were unable to obtain the same cabin for both weeks, so we had to change. They say the steward will help you move, but we found it more convenient to do it ourselves rather than wait for the steward to get around to us, since it is a very busy day for them.

 

Hope that helps.

[jtl513]

1. Will we be held up getting OFF the ship in Seward. I want to book an early excursion and don't want to get heldup trying to get off the ship with all of the people that are going home.

I would think that you should be able to get an Express disembarkation pass, just as if you were going home on your own schedule.

[Hoyaheel]

Not sure what a t-pool price is.

Thalassotherapy

[Krazy Kruizers]

Hi- We are going on the Veendam in June from vancouver to seward and back. My questions are

 

1. Will we be held up getting OFF the ship in Seward. I want to book an early excursion and don't want to get heldup trying to get off the ship with all of the people that are going home. Breakfast is very early the day you are in Seward. The train for Anchorage leaves around 6:30 AM. Most of the buses pull out at 7 AM. You will have no problem booking an early excursion.

 

2. Do you keep the same waiter for 14 days or do you switch after 7 Sometimes Yes and sometimes No. We have had it both ways.

 

3. Do they have a t-pool price for the 14 days?At one time you could only book the back-to-back Alaskan cruises separately. But starting this year you can book them as one 14 day cruise and you will get a bit of price savings.

 

4. Do they make you square up ie cash out after 7 days. We have found that this varies by ship. One time they closed out our bill at the end of the first cruise even though we indicated that we did not want that done.

 

5. Do you keep the same cabin? We always book far enough in advance that we do not have to change cabins. You mentioned that you want to do an early excursion -- keep in mind that if you do not have the same cabin for both cruises (you should if you book it as a 14 day cruise), you will have to change cabins anytime between 9:30 - 11:30.

 

 

Thanks in advance

 

J.M.

 

Hve done several back-to-back Alaskan cruises. Hope this helps.

[pipedreams62]

Hve done several back-to-back Alaskan cruises. Hope this helps.

 

For all the great info. I really appreciate it.

 

J.M.

[Jemima]

I assume OP has booked a 14 day cruise and that the cruise has a single booking number. We are also on a 14 day Veendam 5/30. We deposited for a single cruise, received a single booking number and shore excursions choices show up as part of a 14 day cruise. Dining choices were for the whole 14 days.

There will be people on these cruises who have booked either the first or second half as a 7 day cruise as well as people on cruise tours who will not be onboard the whole time.