Zaandam Review
Rating by category
Additional details
2018 Alaska Cruise Log
May 19 Saturday- We flew out of Green Bay to Seattle, with a layover in Minneapolis. No delays. We arrived in Seattle on schedule and so did our luggage. A quick call on the courtesy phone and the shuttle was here to take us to La Quinta, our preferred motel. Nice room with a view of pine trees.
May 21 Monday- To the ship! Starting our 14 day cruise on HAL Zaandam, round trip to Alaska. We had a 1:00 embarkation time, but the car to take us to the pier arrived early, so we were at the port by 11:45, all checked in by 12:15 and in our cabin by 12:30 (They weren’t supposed to be ready until 1:00. Outstanding! Weather, sunny and in the 70s.
Cabin Review
Verandah Suite
Stateroom
• The cabin is small, but very well organized
• The curtains are nice and dark, which is good because the sun stays out late. There is also a curtain between the bed and the balcony for added darkness. Finally there is also a curtain between the bed and the hallway. The shuttle to downtown costs $12 round trip, so it is not within walking distance from the pier.
• Lots of storage! Room for the luggage under the bed.
• We had a tub/Jacuzzi and a shower. We never used the tub, but the shower was nice.
• There are dispensers of body soap, shampoo and conditioner by the shower, which will probably be just fine for most of the guys but not so much for the ladies.
• Our cabin came with a pair of Bushnell binoculars, which really came in handy for the glaciers.
• We still had the small tv and DVD player, which didn’t matter since we only had it on for announcements and weather.
• We also had a robe and slippers provided.
• 1 week in dry dock is not a lot of time to make upgrades. There are still only 2 120 outlets and they added a lamp with a USB port. We brought a small extension with 3 outlets and 2 usb ports.
• There is a small ice bucket, which they will keep filled if you request it.
• Bring your own night light as they are not provided.
• If the people in the cabin next to you happen to be a little bit hard of hearing and like to leave their TV on, you will be able to hear it too.
• We were in cabin 7055, which is just below the Lido Marketplace. Very noisy late at night and early in the morning. Deck 6 would probably be a better choice. There are only two balcony decks
Port Reviews
Ketchikan
We just walked around here.
Juneau
We were docked on a Friday and there was a free organ recital at the State Building. We had been here a couple of times previously. Mendehall Glacier and the Botanical Gardens are definitely worth seeing
Homer
Kind of a cold and rainy day, but our Best of Bay tour was really good.
Kodiak
We took the shuttle in to town and just walked around.