HAL Noordam Alaska info

[ssetcetera]

Excitement twice over

1. Cruise just scheduled yesterday for our first Alaska cruise

This will be our fourth cruise. Our previous ones have been with Carnival--Caribbean, 2000; Mexican Riviera, 2002 and Panama Canal, 2004.

2. Introducing my dad and stepmom to cruising, also!

I'm working on info for them and would love info from fellow cruisers that have sailed the Noordam Alaska Seattle roundtrip itinerary. TIA.

[Joanandjoe]

We can help you regarding the ship, which we took to the Caribbean last year, but not with the itinerary, which is new to this ship. Our only Alaska cruise was on the Noordam - the old one - in 1998. The itinerary was very different from the Seattle round trip: leave from Seward, go to Haines, Sitka, Juneau, Ketchikan and Hubbard Glacier, end in Vancouver.

[KeithnRita]

Susan & Mike,

You will love Alaska! We cruised inside passage on the Statendam a few years ago. Our itinerary was similar to Joanandjoe, except we started in Vancouver and ended in Seward. We then took the Alaska railroad to Anchorage.

[rogue]

We were in Alaska last month on the Oosterdam with almost the same itinerary. We did Hubbard Glacier instead of Glacier Bay. Alaska is an amazing place. It is an experience of a lifetime, especially for us who live on the East Coast. The towns all have their own personalities, and Glacier Bay is a true National Treasure (we were there a few years ago). There is more than one person on this board who has said that Alaska was theeir favorite place to cruise. If you have specific questions, please ask.

[sailingrose]

Can't help with the ship but I can try to help you with Alaska. I've been 3 times and am trying to plan a 4th trip. I never seem to run out of things to see there, truly a rare gem in the US. If you give me the itinerary I can make some recommendations. You'll love it!

[ssetcetera]

The Inside Passage itinerary for the ms Noordam is Glacier Bay, Juneau, Sitka, Ketchikan (only till 1 pm) and evening at Victoria.

After perusing the excursions online, husband Mike and I have drawn up some preferences. We've signed up for the Juneau Photo Safari By Land & Sea (limited to 14 participants) for the two of us and the Ketchikan Rain Forest Canopy/Zipline Expedition for him. I'm likely to do the Ketchikan Totem Bight and Lumberjack Show.

Additionally, we're considering . . .

Sitka: Captain's Choice Wildlife Quest & Beach Trek; Historic Russian America, Raptor Ctr & Russian Dancers; Sitka Highlights & Russian Dancers

Victoria: Enchanting Butchart Gardens (evening); Victoria by Horse-Drawn Trolley

Has anyone any knowledge of the excursions on this Holland America itinerary?

I noticed the "Thermal Suite" on the Noordam. Has anyone tried this . . . what is it, how much does it cost?

TIA

[Joanandjoe]

The thermal suite has different costs for differebnt packages, On our 11 day Noordam cruise, the cost for two people was something like $300, which was well worth it for a cruise with 2 1/2 sea days at each end. It certainly added to our feeling of luxury. Check out the cost early in the cruise.

We did not feel we needed excursions in Ketchikan or Sitka. In Ketchikan, we wandered around the town and went to see the spawning salmon. Fascinating, paticularly the people dressed in 19th century clothing as miners and women of the night! What's avialable now may be different from what we did in 1998, so check your guidebooks.

In Sitka, we wandered over to the tourist office, which gave us a map that enabled us to see the totem pole park and the raptor center on our own. The Russina folklore show was sold out, mainly because of the shore excursions; but, instead, we saw a wonderful native American folk dance and folk tale performance that was of great interest to the two of us. (We're big fans of Northwest native art, whether Kwakiutal, Simishan, or other.) Much lower cost than the shore excursion, and more interesting for our tastes. In Sitka, we even had time to mail excess packages home from the post office

Beware of shopping in Sitka: you may get hooked. Joan bought two Russian nesting dolls in Sitka in 1998. Now she has aabout 100. (I've just counted 99, but maybe I missed a few.) There's a lot of native and Russian stuff to buy, but shore excursions will eat into your free time.

Do your homework, then do a mix of excursions and on your own.

In Victoria, you ordinarily wouldn't need an excursion; but because of the crazy evening timing, one m,ight be helpful. Again, do some research, then decide.

[rogue]

We did the Juneau Photo Safari By Land & Sea this past May. It is a small group, but there isn't very much more to it than a whale watch and a trip to Mendenhall Glacier. The tour guide does give you some pointers on how to use your camera, but not too much else. We were on the Whale watch and Mendenhall the first time we were in Alaska, and the tour was no better, but it was lots cheeper.