🚢 A Taste of Life on Board: The Koningsdam

Step aboard Holland America Line’s Koningsdam - our home for the 7-day Sea & Self Sanctuary - and you’ll quickly discover that the ship is so much more than simply a way to get from one Alaskan destination to the next.

Because while Koningsdam has beautiful restaurants, lounges, live music, entertainment and plenty of places to settle in with a coffee or a drink, some of the best entertainment on an Alaskan Cruise may simply be happening outside the window.

You might find yourself sitting in the Crow’s Nest with a coffee watching snow-covered mountains drift past, spotting something moving in the water and wondering if it’s a whale, or abandoning whatever you were about to do because the view outside suddenly became far more interesting.

We’ll have dinners together, find our favourite places around the ship, enjoy the entertainment when we feel like it and make plenty of time for those conversations that somehow continue far longer than anyone planned.

But we’re not coming all this way because we need to experience everything Koningsdam has to offer.

We’re coming to experience Alaska from Koningsdam.

And sometimes, the best seat in the house might simply be the one in front of a window.

🏔️ Alaska Is Waiting Outside

This is a cruise where almost every day brings something completely different. 

We’ll sail through the Inside Passage, cruise into the spectacular Tracy Arm, explore Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan, and spend an unforgettable day scenic cruising through Glacier Bay National Park.

Tracy Arm: a spectacular glacial fjord we'll sail through on our way to Juneau, where some of the day's most extraordinary moments may happen before we've even reached our destination.

Juneau: glaciers, mountains, wildlife and the kind of scenery that makes you understand very quickly why people dream about Alaska. 

Skagway: a fascinating Gold Rush town surrounded by mountains, with the famous White Pass railway climbing through some spectacular country.

Glacier Bay: one of the main reasons I chose this particular cruise. A full scenic-cruising experience where glaciers, mountains and wilderness become the day's main event.

Ketchikan: colourful, character-filled and surrounded by temperate rainforest, with rich Indigenous culture, history and plenty to explore.

Some days you might choose an excursion and head off exploring with some of the other women. Other days you might choose something completely different. There’ll also be places where the experience comes to us - because some of Alaska’s most extraordinary scenery will unfold while we’re still onboard.

Before we sail, I’ll share excursion ideas and options so you have plenty of time to decide what you’d love to experience and book ahead where needed.

There’s no pressure for everyone to do everything together. This is your Alaska adventure too.

However you choose to spend your days, we’ll come back together with stories to swap over dinner - and probably a few “YOU WILL NOT BELIEVE WHAT I SAW!” moments. 😂

💫 Why Koningsdam Works So Beautifully for Alaska

For this Sea & Self Sanctuary, I wanted a ship that didn’t compete with the destination. 

Koningsdam gives us exactly that.

There are beautiful indoor spaces with expansive views, comfortable places to sit and watch the scenery, restaurants and lounges for our long dinners and conversations, entertainment when we want it, and plenty of quieter spaces when you simply want to disappear with a coffee and watch Alaska go by.

Our two Inside Passage days also give us natural breathing space for our Sanctuary Conversations - without pulling you away from the places we've travelled all this way to experience.

Some days we’ll come together. Some days Alaska gets our entire attention.

There’s room for both.

🛏️ Cabin Choices & Why Booking Early Matters

Onboard Koningsdam, there are six main cabin styles to consider, depending on your budget and how you'd like to experience Alaska. 

Interior cabins are the most budget-friendly option and can be a great choice if you plan to spend most of your waking hours exploring the ship and watching Alaska from the public areas.

Ocean View cabins give you natural light and your own window to the scenery outside.

Verandah cabins give you your own private outdoor space - particularly special in Alaska when you can step outside and see what’s passing by without even leaving your cabin.

Then there are three suite categories - Vista, Signature and Neptune - offering progressively more space, comfort and additional features for those wanting to make the experience that little bit more special.

Why booking earlier matters

Alaska is one of those cruises where your cabin choice can really become part of the experience. 

Holland America continues selling cabins every day, so the longer you wait, the cabin type, location or verandah you’d really love may no longer be available.

Booking earlier also gives you more time to plan, save and pay off your cruise before we sail.

You don’t need to have the entire holiday paid for today.

You simply need to secure your place while you still have the best choice available.

 💡 Approximate twin-share fares (per person)

(These vary with season, availability, and upgrades. Use as a rough guideline.)

*Current indicative AUD pricing based on the fares available when this page was prepared. Cruise fares can change at any time depending on availability, promotions and cabin selection. Zoe, our Travel Partner, will confirm current pricing and available cabin options when you’re ready to book. She will work closely with you to find a cabin that suits your desires.

💗 Thinking of bringing someone with you?

Sharing a cabin with a friend, sister, mum or someone else you already know can significantly reduce the cost per person compared with travelling solo. 

It can also make the experience even more special - you get to share the adventure with someone you love, while still becoming part of our little Sea & Self Sanctuary group. Although some of our ladies on previous cruises agree that the extra cabin fee is totally worth it to have the space all to yourself. 😂

Just a little note: I don't pair women together as roommates, so if you'd like to take advantage of twin-share pricing, you'll need to bring your own cabin buddy.

🏔 About Me

I'm Sandra - a freedom seeker, traveller, conversation lover and a big believer that life is meant to be lived, not endlessly put off until “someday.”

And trust me... I know a thing or two about waiting.

I didn't leave Australia until I was 45.

For years there was always a reason. I was waiting for someone to come with me. Waiting for the right time. Waiting until I had more money. Waiting until it felt easier.

Then eventually I realised that if I kept waiting for everything to line up perfectly, I might spend my whole life watching other people have the experiences I wanted to have.

So I started saying yes.

I've since travelled solo across Canada for three months, returned more than once to a country I once wondered if I'd ever be brave enough to visit alone, ticked things off my bucket list I once only dreamed about, hosted my first group of women at sea... and discovered just how much life can open up when you're willing to give something a go.

But as much as I love the travel and adventure, I've discovered there's something I love even more.

Watching another woman start saying yes to herself.

I saw it over and over again on our first Sea & Self Sanctuary.

I watched smiles get bigger as the week went on. I watched women try things they weren't sure they could do, then come back absolutely beaming. I heard “Oh, this is the BEST thing ever!” more times than I can count.

I watched confidence return. I watched women realise they were braver and more capable than they'd given themselves credit for. And I watched friendships form between women who may never have crossed paths in ordinary life.

But some of my favourite moments were much quieter.

Walking down a hallway together when someone would suddenly turn to me and say, “Thank you, Sandra.”

No big speech. No dramatic moment. Just a few words that told me this week had meant something to her.

Those moments get me every time.

Because I know what it takes to finally choose yourself. To spend the money. Take the time. Book the ticket. Leave the responsibilities at home and say, I'm doing this for me.

And when I see a woman somewhere she may never have imagined herself, laughing with new friends, trying something she never thought she'd do, or simply looking happier and lighter than she did a few days earlier... I'm ridiculously proud of her.

Maybe that's why I love creating these experiences so much.

I know what my own life looked like when I was still waiting. And I know how much has happened since I stopped.

I don't want to spend my life waiting anymore. And I really love watching other women stop waiting too.

📷 Picture: Me doing the hairy-scary thing and traveling solo across and around Canada.
Top image is of course, Christmas in the Rockies, the top of my bucket list since I was 8yrs old. Bottom image is the Cabot Trail in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. I saw this in a meditation 5 years prior...booked it without realising it was the same place 😉

Who This Experience Is For

Sea & Self Sanctuary might be calling your name if...

💗 You love the idea of travelling, but don't necessarily want to do it alone.

💗 You're ready to have something exciting on the calendar that's just for you.

💗 You'd love to meet other women, have meaningful conversations, laugh a lot and see what friendships might unfold.

💗 You've spent a lot of your life looking after everyone else and you're ready to give yourself some time too.

💗 Alaska has been sitting on your bucket list for years, and you're ready to stop saying “one day” and actually experience it.

💗 You want more than simply ticking destinations off a list - you want to stand in places that make you stop, look around and think, I can't believe I'm actually here.

💗 You're craving a little adventure - glaciers, mountains, wildlife and places you've never seen before - but still want the freedom to slow down, disappear for some alone time or do your own thing when you feel like it.

💗 Maybe you've been waiting for a friend, partner or someone else to travel with... and you're starting to wonder whether it's time to stop waiting.

💗 Or maybe life is actually pretty good and you simply want to get out there and live more of it.

You don't need to arrive wanting to change your life.
You don't need to be going through something.
And you certainly don't need to have everything figured out.

You just need to be willing to say yes to seven days that might give you far more than you expected.

❄️ One Final Note

When I planned the first Sea & Self Sanctuary, I had plenty of ideas about what I hoped the women would take away from the week.

But the truth is, some of the best parts were things I never could have planned.

The friendships.
The conversations that started over dinner and kept going long after we'd finished eating.
The woman who tried something she'd been afraid to do.
The laughter. The tears. The quiet little “Thank you, Sandra” moments when I knew the week had meant far more to someone than just a holiday.
And the women who arrived not really knowing each other... but didn't leave that way.

That's what I'm excited to create again.

I can't promise you what your favourite moment will be.

Maybe it'll happen while you're standing somewhere in Alaska, surrounded by scenery so pristine and breathtaking that all you can think is, I can't believe I'm actually here. Maybe it'll be watching a glacier from the ship, spotting wildlife when you least expect it, or doing something on shore you never imagined yourself doing.

Maybe it'll be something someone says during one of our conversations. Maybe it'll be laughing around a dinner table, sitting with a coffee while mountains drift past the window, or one of those completely unplanned moments none of us could have predicted.

Maybe it'll simply be the feeling of waking up each morning knowing the whole day ahead belongs to you.

That's the beautiful thing about a week like this.

You don't know which moments are going to become the memories you carry home.

You just have to be there to make them.

So if there's a little part of you reading this and thinking... God, I'd love to do this.

Maybe it's time to listen to her.

Come do something wonderful with us.

You might make friends. You might learn something about yourself.
But you're definitely going to make some bloody good memories. 💗