Category Archives: Holland America

Ushuaia Cruise Ship Port

Ushuaia, Argentina Though people seemed to have slightly different pronunciation for Ushuaia from one another, most of the locals seemed to say something like ooo-shy-uh, only all ran together smoothly rather than obviously separate sounds and the ooo part rhymes … Continue reading

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Panama Canal Transit

Our Holland America Nieuw Amsterdam cruise transited the Panama Canal on Easter Sunday. There wasn’t much Easter stuff on board. A few decorations, some Easter food options, and a couple church services scheduled. Since we spent the day going through … Continue reading

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Nuku’alofa Tonga Island Tour

Approaching the port in Nuku’alofa on the island of Tongatapu in Tonga on Holland America Noordam, we saw a pilot boat keeping pace with us for awhile. Whether the same boat had dropped off our pilot or not I don’t … Continue reading

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Hike at Magellan’s Strait Park

In Holland America Oosterdam’s shore excursion descriptions the hike at Magellan’s Strait Park is billed as a visit to a national monument at Fort Bulnes and a walk through a native forest and coastal shores. Fort Bulnes is the first … Continue reading

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Things To Do On Holland America Nieuw Amsterdam

There’s always a variety of things to do on a cruise ship. Some ships have more things to do on your own and others more scheduled activities, but they all have some of each. Standard on every cruise ship are … Continue reading

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Nuku’alofa Tonga Cruise Port

The Kingdom of Tonga is a Polynesian country in the south Pacific. It is made up of over 170 islands, of which about 45 have human populations. It is the only monarchy in the south Pacific and the only country … Continue reading

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Punta Arenas, Chile Cruise Port

Punta Arenas, Chile Punta Arenas lies on the Strait of Magellan near the tip of southern Patagonian Chile. It’s often a starting point for those heading to Antarctica. It has a population of over 145,000 and is the coldest coastal … Continue reading

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Cartegena Cruise Port

Cartagena, Columbia Cartagena’s tourist draws include the 16th century walled old town and its beaches. Temperatures in Cartagena generally stay with lows in the mid to high 70’s F to highs in the high 80’s to low 90’s year-round. Annual … Continue reading

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Nuku Island and Swallow’s Cave Snorkel Excursion

I was happy to see that Holland America’s information on our transpacific cruise on the Noordam for this excursion from Vava’u, Tonga specified reef-safe sunscreen and that there was no mention of insect repellent. So many snorkel excursion instructions say … Continue reading

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Hits and Misses on Holland America Zaandam

Hits Holland America Zaandam had lots of random seating near windows. Well maybe not so random as it’s mostly actually in bars or other venues, but still plenty of places to sit and watch the scenery go by. The Crows … Continue reading

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