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I’ve cruised a ton and one of my all-time favorite ships is the Holland America Koningsdam. In fact, I’ve sailed on her twice and do hate repeating trips! A few years ago, I sailed round trip out of San Diego to the Mexican Riviera. This is a great itinerary especially if you have been there, done that with the Caribbean. A year and a half later, I sailed Holland America’s Koningsdam from Vancouver to Alaska and it was just as good as I remembered. Whether you are looking for a tropical vacation or an Alaska cruise, keep readying for my Holland America Koningsdam review.
Holland America Koningsdam Review
Sailing on the Holland America Koningsdam was my third and fourth Holland America cruise. Previously, I sailed on the ms Veendam with my family and I was on the Nieuw Amsterdam for a travel agent trip. I really fell in love with the brand and the Koningsdam is one of their bigger ships.
On the Holland America Koningsdam, for the Mexican Riviera, we sailed a seven-night round trip cruise to Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan, and Puerto Vallarta with three sea days.
For Alaska, the Koningsdam sails round trip out of Vancouver, cruising Glacier Bay, and stopping in Juneau, Ketchikan and Skagway.
Both of my Holland America Koningsdam sailings were seminars at sea where the cruise line hosts the agents and during the sea days we participate in classroom training on the brand and destination.
The HAL Koningsdam is a great ship if you are looking to do some corporate trainings, seminars, and industry events. Our classroom trainings were in the Hudson Room down on deck 1 and during port days we were able to explore the beautiful ports.
The vibe on the Holland America Koningsdam is great – there is really an emphasis on fine dining and amazing music – I was surprised at what a fun vibe there was on board, especially at night.
The crowd on this cruise line is definitely older, but you will find sophisticated adults who like to have a good time. In the off seasons, you will find only a few kids on board, but during the summer season to Alaska and during school breaks, you will find plenty of families.
Holland America is known for their longer (21+ day itineraries) and on those sailings you will find more retires and folks who have time to sail around the world. Literally! Holland America even offers world cruises!
Holland America Koningsdam Deck Plan
I always think the best way to get to know a ship is to look at its deck plan. Holland America’s Koningsdam is a Pinnacle class ship, their biggest, holding around 2600 passengers. There are 14 decks, so it’s not terribly large. Being on board, the Koningsdam feels intimate and is easy to navigate.
Deck 1 is where the conference rooms are. There are some staterooms down here, and the shore excursion desk.
Deck 2 is where most of the fun stuff is at! At the aft of the ship you have the main dining room, then the Club Orange dining room, and some of your specialty dining (Rudi’s and Pinnacle Grill), Blend (wine creation bar), and then some of the bars and entertainment (BB Kings, the Rolling Stone Stage and Billboard Piano Bar). At the front of the ship you will find the world stage, the larger theater on board.
On Deck 3, you will find the second floor of the main dining room (this Is where you will dine if you have set dining), the casino (which I did not like because it was very smoky in this area) and a bunch of really nice shops. BB King’s has balcony seating, as does the World Stage.
Decks 4- 8 are staterooms.
Deck 9 has the gym, spa, pool, Dive-in, several bars, the buffet, Canaletto, and a second pool on the aft of the ship.
Deck 10 offers more lounge seating around both pools. If you want sun, head to the back of the ship, there are plenty of loungers. On our Alaska cruise, we also spent a bunch of time here in the hot tubs! Above the pool on Deck 10 you can find a nice bar and the New York Pizza take out.
On Deck 11, you will find Tamarind and Nami sushi (in the way aft), and if you walk across, hit up the basketball and tennis courts.
Lastly on deck 12, in the front of the ship is the very popular Crows Nest. This is a great observation lounge with a coffee shop and bar.
Holland America Koningsdam is a small, but well-appointed ship with something for everyone!
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Cabins on the Holland America Koningsdam
There are several stateroom options on the Holland America Koningsdam, I’ve stayed in both a verandah cabin and a Vista Suite.
These staterooms have a bathroom with a stand up shower (it was pretty small but did the job), a nice closet with places to hang clothes and some drawer space. There is a safe, a refrigerator (its stocked with mini bar items but there were places to leave our waters)
There is a nice couch, a TV and a desk area. We loved sitting out on the balcony! On our Alaska cruise we had an aft facing balcony – highly recommend.
The Holland America Koningsdam has lots of great room options – interior cabins, ocean view rooms, and beautiful suites. My clients loved the vista suite on their Alaska cruise and we got to tour a Neptune Suite. For the ultimate in indulgence, book a Pinnacle Suite!
If they are available that is there are only two on the ship.
On board, I did the get the inside tip as to what is the best cabin type to book into for your Alaska cruise – so definitely reach out if you are looking to book the Holland America Koningsdam.
Food on the Holland America Koningsdam
Holland America really prides themselves on their culinary partnerships and food and wine options on board. And let me tell you, the food on Holland America Line is really fantastic.
Really, across all the options from casual dining, the buffet, to the incredible specialty restaurants, the food on Holland America line truly shines.
So where can you find all this amazing food? Here are all the eateries on the Holland America Koningsdam:
- The buffet – open for breakfast, lunch, dinner and late night snacks. The food is served to you and the variety is top notch.
- Main Dining –the main dining room is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Multiple courses, and food across every type of cuisine you can imagine. On each Holland America sailing, the menus do try to reflect cuisine highlighting the destinations – so our menus to Mexico had tacos and quesadillas, while our Alaska sailing featured salmon and Alaskan crabs
- New York Pizza – this is a quick service eatery on deck 10. I loved that this was open late night and you could customize your pizza. From 930-11pm, you can order movie snacks, and be sure to try an order of bambalone (fried dough balls).
- Dive In – this is my favorite eatery on Holland America Line! The Dive In is poolside and serves burgers, hot dogs and fries. Its only open until 6pm, but be sure to get some extra dive in sauce and remember to mobile order from your Holland America app (pizza too!).
- Specialty dining – Canaletto (Italian – amazing), Pinnacle Grill (steak and seafood), Rudi’s (seafood), Tamarind (Asian) and Nami (Sushi).
- Room Service – room service is included all day. For a small upcharge you can even order room service from the Dive-in, Tamarind, or Pinnacle Grill.
- Be sure to check out the culinary council events on board!
Things to do on Holland America’s Koningsdam
I think Holland America Line gets a reputation as an old people cruise, where everyone goes to bed at 7pm – and trust me that is not the case!
Now if you are looking for nightclubs and hot body contests, Holland America Line is not for you. But if you like a variety of great entertainment and interesting things to do – Holland America Line does not disappoint.
Holland America Line really caters to the modern explorer.
On the Holland America Koningsdam, there are multiple music and show venues. From orchestra music at the Lincoln Center stage, to the rock band at the Rolling Stone Stage, its endless evening musical performances.
Most nights there were comedy shows, and a dance troupe that performed in the World Stage.
I really loved Planet Earth – and that is a show not to be missed. A tie in with the BBC, this show puts incredible nature footage to live orchestra music. An amazing production.
During the day, Holland America Line offers lots of fun activities – trivia is especially popular, as is some of their wine/alcohol tastings. In fact you can even curate your own wine at Blend.
And if you just want a place to chill and relax, Crows Next is the spot to hang during the day.
If your Holland America Koningsdam sailing offers the bar crawl, be sure to sign up – this was super fun!
Tips for Sailing On Holland America’s Koningsdam
I love sailing on Holland America Line, and they do make it very easy to enjoy your sailing. Here are some extra tips to make your time on board the Koningsdam even easier!
- Book the Have It All package – that will give you some really nice upgrades including the drink package, specialty dining, Wi-Fi, and a shore excursion credit.
- The drink package includes ALL drinks that retail for $11 or less – which does include soft drinks, specialty coffees, and cans of water. If you are looking for a drink that retails for more, you just pay the price difference (i.e. that $14 glass of wine will only cost you a $3 upcharge). You are limited to 15 drinks a day
- The spa is amazing. On day one they offered a really fantastic treatment + week long thermal suite package. Be on the lookout for those deals and definitely consider purchasing a pass for the thermal suite (especially on an Alaska cruise)
- If you book a Neptune or Pinnacle Suite, you have access to the Neptune Lounge and Club Orange restaurant
- If you book a regular stateroom, you can add club orange at the time of booking. This gives you a room upgrade, access to the club orange dining room with an expanded menu, priority boarding and debarkation, and priority tenders.
- The Koningsdam is a great ship for a wedding, or vow renewal at sea.
- Be sure to book your next cruise while you are on board – reduced deposits and extra on board credit. Plus you can keep working with your fabulous travel agent (hopefully me!)
- Look out for a Collectors Voyage, where you combine two back to back cruises on the same ship. You get a 10% discount and can really extend your vacation in an easy way.
- Add the unlimited laundry package for a small fee. On our recent Alaska cruise we paid $60 for unlimited laundry service.
- Pack your orange outfit for Holland America’s Orange Night.
Holland America Koningsdam Review
I travel, and cruise often, so I am VERY hesitant to repeat experiences, but I loved sailing Holland America’s Koningsdam twice, I just love this ship so much. To me, the size is perfect – not crowded, easy to navigate but has all the bells and whistles you need.
The food on the Koningsdam is really outstanding. Both the quality and variety. Exceptional staff, great rooms, and I love that the ship feels like a cruise ship (like the Love Boat!) but is updated and well kept.
If you are interested in sailing on Holland America’s Koningsdam, or any ship be sure to reach out. You should always book your cruise with a travel agent, and I know all the ships, all the cruise lines and can help you find the perfect cruise for you. CLICK HERE to get started!
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