Here’s everything you need to know about cruising Alaska with Holland America’s Koningsdam, including the itinerary, cabins, dining and what it’s really like onboard.
My friend Susan, known as The Warrington Wanderer on Instagram, spent a week exploring Alaska on Holland America’s Koningsdam and has shared exactly what it was like. From Glacier Bay to whale watching, here’s her review of what it’s really like to cruise Alaska with Holland America
Over to Susan…
Holland America Alaska cruise review
I recently embarked on a seven night Alaska cruise on Koningsdam.
This was my first time cruising with Holland America and I was very much looking forward to sailing with them as I had heard many good things about them. Most of all though I was looking forward to seeing Alaska!
A little bit about Koningsdam
One of Holland America’s newer ships, Koningsdam came into service in 2016 and was the first ship in the pinnacle class.
One of the larger ships in the Holland America fleet, she can carry around 2,650 passengers. She has five specialty dining venues and all of Holland America’s famous entertainment venues.
When not sailing around Alaska, Koningsdam visits the Mexican Riviera and Hawaii.
Alaska cruise itinerary and ports of call
The itinerary I booked was a seven day Alaskan Inside Passage cruise. We departed from Vancouver and the ports of call were
- Juneau
- Skagway
- Glacier Bay
- Ketchikan
We also sailed along Alaska’s inside passage. A network of passages that is said to be one of the world’s best cruising routes thanks to its spectacular scenery.
Holland America is one of the few cruise lines that has a permit to visit Glacier Bay so that was one of the reasons I chose Holland America to cruise Alaska with.
Embarkation in Vancouver
While I am not new to cruises, this was my first cruise outside of Europe. So I was a little unsure what to expect.
It took around two hours to check in and go through US customs at the Vancouver Cruise Terminal before being able to board Koningsdam. Once in my cabin I watched the safety video and headed to my muster station.
First impressions of Koningsdam
After checking out my cabin – more on that later – I headed for some food and to explore the ship a little.
The decor felt quite traditional. Although the cabin seemed to be more modern than some I’ve had in the past.
While trying to get some food I realised how busy the ship was, there wasn’t a seat to be found in the buffet! So, I decided to try out Dive-In. There was a little wait but I managed to find myself a table by the indoor lido pool, not too far from where Dive-In is located.
The burger and fries from here were good – although to be honest I was pretty hungry by that point so would have ate anything! That said, I went back a few times during the cruise and judging by the queue that was often there, I don’t think I was the only one that thought the burgers were pretty good!
My cabin
I booked an inside cabin as I knew I’d be out and about enjoying all Koningsdam had to offer, not to mention enjoying the scenic views of Alaska. So, I didn’t think I’d be in my cabin much!
I was allocated cabin 8179. This was at the aft of the ship on deck 8. This was a double occupancy cabin and I was pleasantly surprised at the size of it. I was traveling solo so there was plenty of space for me. However, if you were with a partner or friend, it would still be spacious.
The only downside is that you could feel a lot of movement in this location. It was quite rocky at times and I felt like I was on a power plate all night! The first night, I couldn’t sleep so around 5am I decided to go to guest services to see if I could change my cabin.
Here I was told that they couldn’t do anything as the ship was sailing at full capacity but they would add me to a wait list in case anything did come up. Thankfully, later that day I received a note to say there was a possibility of a cabin change and would I like to view it.
This cabin was located midship on deck 7 so I took it and it was miles better for me! It was a lesson learned through, and I will now only ever book a midship cabin now just in case.
My new cabin was 7074. It was the same as my original one, just laid out in reverse.
It had everything you would expect, including a comfortable bed, plenty of storage and a good size bathroom. With a shower screen and not a curtain thankfully. There was also a large flat screen TV, safe and fridge.
In both cabins, the cabin stewards were lovely and couldn’t do enough for you.
Read more | Koningsdam Inside Cabin Review
Dining on Koningsdam
There is a great selection of places to eat onboard Koningsdam, from the main dining room to specialty restaurants.
The main dining room serves breakfast, lunch, afternoon and dinner with a different menu each day. For more casual eating, the buffet (the Lido Market) was open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Snacks were also available throughout the day.
There was also the option of Dive-In for Burgers (open 11.30 am-6.00 pm), and the New York Deli Pizza which served breakfast (7.30 am – 10.30 am), then served freshly made pizza and bagels all day (from 11.30 am -11.30 pm).
You can even request them to make your own pizza using a selection of toppings!
There are also five specialty restaurants serving a variety of cuisines.
While there was a wide range of dining venues, their opening times were not great and it was sometimes hard to find something to eat. For example the Lido Market (buffet) shut at 8 pm and the main dining room shut at 9 pm.
This seems quite early for a cruise that has evening excursions in some ports. One day we were docked until 9.30 pm so those people who had evening excursions only had the option of the New York Deli Pizza place or room service when they returned.
Luckily I ate before I went on my excursion and had my own snacks to eat later on but I heard it was carnage trying to get some food when everyone returned!
Drinks package
Deciding whether to buy a beverage package can sometimes be a difficult decision. You have to weigh up whether you will get your money’s worth out of it.
For this cruise, I decided to purchase the 7 day unlimited Coca Cola package. This package costs $8 per day per guest and you get unlimited fountain soda.
A branded cup is delivered to your stateroom and you use this in the freestyle cola machines. The cup has a special chip in it to allow you to use these machines, without the cup you won’t be able to use them.
Alternatively, you can show your room key which will have a sticker on it at any bar to get a Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite, or water.
I do feel like I got my money’s worth out of this and it was nice to have the freestyle machine with extra choice on it. While I did have the odd alcoholic drink, I don’t feel like I missed out by not buying either the Elite or Signature beverage packages.
Particularly as I met a few people who did have these packages but were sometimes unable to get the drinks they wanted due to supply issues. I also believe that the alcoholic drinks are only included up to a certain amount (I think it’s $12), but you do only pay the difference if you order a drink that goes over that which I think is good!
Gratuities on Holland America
Gratuities are added onto your bill, as a solo it was $16 per day. I think it may be $16pp per cabin for those travelling with more people.
Plus any drinks you buy in the bars also incur a service charge so that is something to be aware of.
Entertainment on Koningsdam
There are lots of entertainment options on Koningsdam. From theatre shows to live music to comedians, it feels like there is something for everyone whatever your taste.
The Music Walk is an area that leads to a number of different venues including Rolling Stone Rock Room, BB Kings Blues Club and Billboard Online.
While the World Stage Theatre hosted a number of different shows throughout the week.
I really enjoyed the dance show performed by The Step One Dance company.
Formal night
There were two formal nights during the week. However they were the least dressy formal nights I’ve experienced on a cruise ship so far.
Sports facilities
There was a gym, and sports court onboard Koningsdam. One morning I went to play a basketball shootout but I was the only one who turned up so I just shot around for a bit.
The main sport seemed to be paddleboard, this was a big thing on the daily activities planner and would be happening multiple times throughout the day.
On deck there was also shuffleboard. And upstairs by the indoor pool there was table tennis.
For people not so sporty there was a large selection of board games and books in the Crows Nest for people to play/read.
Cruising Alaska
Alaska is out of this world in my opinion, it’s like no place I’ve been before and I will 100% be coming back.
It has been an amazing experience. I think Holland America excels in this area. Their knowledge of Alaska is second to none.
We had a wildlife expert on board who talked about what wildlife we could expect to see and shared information about the glaciers. Both talks were very interesting.
Juneau
Juneau is Alaska’s state capital. It is one of the most isolated USA state capitals and is the only one that borders a foreign country.
With the Mendenhall Glacier just down the road, Juneau is one of Alaska’s most visited tourist destinations.
As well as some spectacular glacier viewing, you can also go dog sledding and whale watching. It also has the gondola right near the cruise port which on a clear day would give you some great views.
I did an evening whale watching trip with a small group. For anyone who is thinking of doing whale watching, I recommend picking an excursion where it is a small group rather than a bigger boat. A friend who did an excursion with a bigger group said she missed out on a lot as she couldn’t get to the side of the boat to see the humpback whales.
Skagway
Today, Skagway is the starting point to exploring some of Alaska’s most beautiful scenery. However, it was once the gateway to the gold fields and is renowned for the White Pass Railway.
As I had been on the Rocky Mountaineer train for two days before the cruise, I opted for a helicopter ride to the glacier, which included dog sledding. As it was the start of the season the snow was still so thick and fresh, it really was an amazing experience.
However, I do recommend the White Pass Railway if you can as everyone who I spoke to said it was fantastic.
Cruising Glacier Bay
Glacier Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage site and is home to over 1,000 glaciers. Some of these extend down to the sea making it a highlight of an Alaska cruise.
We had an incredible day here.Rangers from the Glacier Bay National Park spent the day onboard and shared some really interesting commentary.
The scenery and wildlife were incredible to see.
Tip: Cruise lines need a permit to enter Glacier Bay so if you wish to visit, take a close look at the itinerary before you book. Not all cruise lines have permits so you will want to make sure you choose the right cruise line.
Ketchikan
Located at the southern end of the Inside Passage, Ketchikan is known as the salmon capital of the world. It is also surrounded by some beautiful scenery.
Here I opted to go to the Lumberjack show, it was great fun for all the family and they really got the crowd involved. Another popular thing to do here was to take a seaplane to the Misty Fjords.
Overall thoughts
I really enjoyed my cruise around Alaska. It felt like a real once in a lifetime experience. The scenery was spectacular and I had some amazing experiences.
Overall I’m not sure if I’d cruise with Holland America again but if I was lucky enough to come back to Alaska I would consider them as a possibility.
If you are considering an Alaskan cruise, especially in the height of the season, I would really recommend that you book your excursions in advance to save disappointment. There were stalls as you got off the ship to book independently but as there can be multiple ships in port at any one time you could end up missing out. So book in advance if you can.
The last word
Hearing Susan’s experience has given a great insight into what a Holland America Alaska cruise is really like. Koningsdam seems to balance traditional style with plenty of modern touches, making it a great choice for anyone considering an Alaskan cruise with Holland America.