We’ve always heard how beautiful Alaska is, but we’re really not interested in RVing there so we decided to take a cruise! Spending the summer in NW Washington made for easy access to cruises leaving from Vancouver, which is about a 4 hour drive from here.

We went on Holland America’s Vollendam and, although we had a great time, we wouldn’t choose Holland America again. The time we spent in ports was fun, but the ship itself had a dull vibe. The shows were mediocre and the bars were sort of boring. One show we loved was the dance troupe, which had a techno dance vibe. We also laughingly appreciated that the elevator mat told us what day of the week it was!

Mike surprised Candi with beautiful roses for her birthday and we had dinner at one of the specialty restaurants onboard the ship to celebrate.

Our first stop was Juneau, including the Tracey Arm Inlet which was incredible! Next up was Skagway and the Yukon, which was beautiful and fun to explore. Click on the links above to see separate posts.

Then we spent a day cruising Glacier Bay National Park.

The last port was Ketchikan, which has the third highest rainfall in the US. It lived up to its reputation, raining the entire day. We did go out and walk around the town a little, but spent most of the day on the ship.