lucky cal

I wish I would stumble upon one of those great TAs who deeply discount and then provide other perks besides, but I haven't been that lucky over the years. Our current TA does provide fairly generous OBC, but no discounts or other perks.

We're not loyal to any one cruise line, so maybe that's part of the problem?

This was the info I was looking for. We always would put our alarm clock on the shelf in front of the TV and could see it when we woke up in the middle of the night. Thanks for the photo of the desk. One question about a hotel room in London - will we need an adapter for battery charger, hair dryer, etc.???

Last year in Italy, we used a European plug adapter for our hotel room's desk outlet. We then plugged a US 4-plug power strip into the adapter and were able to charge our electronics and use our hair appliances. Our hair appliances were dual voltage so we didn't need a voltage converter. And the hotel had a hairdryer so we just used the European outlet in the bathroom for that.

You will need a different adapter for the UK than the one we used in Italy. Amazon.com has many choices/price ranges and Magellan's is also a great resource for adapters.

We are taking our first Alaska cruise in July. Seeing Glacier Bay is a big priority for us and while I loved Celebrity in the Mediterranean last summer, I ruled it out for Alaska because they do not have permits to visit Glacier Bay. Princess and Holland America have the most sailings visiting Glacier Bay and both lines have a strong presence in Alaska. Of the two, I felt Princess would work best for us. Perhaps incorrectly, I perceive Holland America to be a bit stuffy.

I echo the sentiment that you need to continue your research and determine what you want to do and see in Alaska before selecting an itinerary and ship. You want to make sure your port schedule allows you enough time for your desired activities.

Have fun with your planning!

I'm interested in hearing about this, too. We're on Coral southbound in July.

We are celebrating our 25th anniversary on the July 29 southbound sailing of Coral Princess. We are spending a week prior to the cruise on a DIY land tour to include Seward, Denali, Talkeetna and Anchorage, and then a day post-cruise in Vancouver. I've been planning since November and can hardly wait! First time to Alaska for both of us.

Ugh! I was afraid that might be the case. Even the wall-mounted ones in hotels don't work well on my thick hair. But most hotels, at least, are moving to the freestanding dryers and those are generally more powerful.

Guess I may need to consider taking my own, but I hate to do so for 2 weeks of travel in Alaska.

Can anyone who has been on the Coral Princess recently let me know what type of hair dryers they have? Are they the tiny wall-mounted type or freestanding units? Are they decent or really bad?

I am hoping I can make due and not have to bring my own.

Thanks.

I'm looking for a map that shows where tenders come ashore at Ketchikan. Any experience?

Cruise Line Agencies of Alaska has a great web site that shows the cruise call schedule for each port and includes where each ship is scheduled to dock (or tender). Once you have that info you can go to the various port web sites to view maps that can help you understand distances. The CLA site is also handy for seeing how many ships will be in port on a given day.

Here's a link:

http://claalaska.com

paulajj, jezz086, lucky cal, MilliesMom and RaiderCruiser - really glad you enjoyed my review and glad that it helped with your upcoming trips.

 

I am busily researching again (as I was for Alaska last year) as Bill and I are off this year on a Norwegian cruise and then a TA which takes in the Faroe Islands, Iceland and Novia Scotia. Can't wait!

Planning is half the fun, isn't it?

Sounds like a wonderful trip. I hope you'll post a review of that one, too.

Have a great time!

Dawn

I am trying to complete my reservation and see there are 2 AVIS locations, one is on Sixth Ave. and also lists as Sgt Preston's lodge and the other one that comes up with "car rentals dot com is listed as 3rd ave and Spring Street. Does anyone know which anything about either? Not sure which one to reserve with. Thanks.

Somewhere on the Avis web site i noticed that it shows the Sgt. Preston address as their winter location and the other address as their summer site. I think 3rd and Spring is the summer location, which is closer to the Railway dock.

There are 11 reviews on Trip Advisor:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g60877-d6219324-Reviews-Never_Monday_Charters-Skagway_Alaska.html

I'm wondering if The Sanctuary would be a good idea for the scenic cruising days in Alaska? Based on the few Sanctuary photos I've seen, it looks like the views of glaciers and wildlife might be better elsewhere on board.

Can anyone comment?

I booked flights for our July Alaska cruise in November. Since then there has been a change to our Chicago to Anchorage flight number and its departure time changed by a few minutes.

Today, I was reviewing my flights for upcoming business trips and i noticed that the ORD-ANC flight number has changed again. Not only that, but our flight from Vancouver to Chicago is now departing at 9:00am instead of 10:30am, and our flight from Chicago to Washington is leaving a half hour later than originally scheduled.

For us, this means we'll have to get up earlier on our last day in Vancouver and also deal with a longer layover in Chicago, but overall it's not a big deal. Still, it would have been nice to be informed and it makes me wonder what else will change between now and July!

I know i need to wait until onboard to schedule the date and time of an Ultimate Balcony Dinner, but I also read that it's actually possible to book it in advance. However, when I go on my Cruise Personalizer, I can't seem to find where to book it. I see the balcony breakfast listed in the gifts and services book, but not the dinner.

Does anyone know how to do this? I've tried searching, but no one has been specific about how the advance booking works.

Thanks.

We plan to rent a vehicle and do the RT drive to Emerald Lake while in Skagway. Even though it's just two of us I rented an SUV - I like to sit up a little higher than a car allows. Just wondering if there is any advantage to renting a Jeep instead? We don't plan to go off-road.

The road is fully paved so a jeep is not necessary and I imagine it would provide a less comfortable ride than an SUV.

We've done that northbound cruise on the Coral twice and absolutely loved each time in a mini-suite on Dolphin in the 7XX series. They are all covered. It's a great location with almost no foot traffic, close to the laundry room if you need to use it, and there is the public aft deck that very few passengers know about!

So glad to hear that these Dolphin minis are a good choice! We booked D714 for our July southbound cruise on Coral.

Hi guys, got another question.:rolleyes: On the docks in Ketchikan, where can one pick up the downtown loop shuttle? Am interested in knowing, do they pick up hrly, an is it a hop on and hop off? Again, thanks for all the inof in advance.

Here's the 2014 shuttle brochure. Things are likely to be similar in 2015.

Ketchikan 2014 Shuttle Schedule.pdf

Okay, what is close and good to do in FLL with delayed embarkation. DH and I like microbreweries or a good wine bar. Somewhere to sit on the water ? Looks like we will have at least 3 hours before we can report to the terminal with CB being delayed.

Well, the beachfront is pretty incredible and there are a few bars in that area. Or how about taking a stroll up Las Olas Boulevard to window shop, have drinks or a meal? Or maybe a boat tour of the Intracoastal Waterway or Millionaire's Row?

Try http://www.sunny.org for more ideas. Have fun!

"It places the lotion in the basket":eek:

I guess nobody else caught "The Silence of the Lambs" reference? Made me chuckle!

Yvette,

I just found your Alaska review this weekend and wanted to thank you and let you know how much I enjoyed it.

We are doing a 7-day independent land tour followed by a 7-night southbound Princess cruise in July. Although a lot of my planning is complete, we are doing some of the same activities you did and your review has helped to validate those decisions. In addition, you have given me some good ideas for other options.

Thanks for all your time and effort. I hope we are fortunate to have the good luck you did in terms of weather and wildlife viewing!

Dawn

I'm so glad I stumbled upon this review (during a search for backpacks, of all things)!

You included such helpful tips and detail about what to bring as well as great activity information.

Your photos are fantastic. Did you take many of them using your Canon SX50? We are thing of buying that camera to use on our first trip to Alaska (land/cruise) in July 2015.

Thanks for sharing. Your review is one of the most helpful I've read, and the photos were an added bonus.

Google either:

Alaska Packing List or Alaska Cruise Packing List

This will provide you with a number of sites that provide pretty all-inclusive packing lists and recommendations on must-haves for a land or cruise trip in Alaska.

I've found that on some in-demand, high-season cruises, we may pay the Princess price, but our TA rebates a portion of the commission to us as OBC. Depending on cruise cost, it has ranged from $250-$550.

How many shares do you need to own to get OBC? And how much OBC per share?

We are going to book the Island Princess for a cruise next year 2016 to Europe. We will book a Mini Suite but what ones have covered balcony's? Are there any that have a larger balcony? We don't want forward because we will also stay on for the TA part also.

 

I have tried looking at the deck plans but with all the changes on this ship not sure what cabin to book.

 

We have been on most of Princess ships and always book Emerald deck Aft with the covered balacony's. Just not sure what to book on the Island!

 

Thanks for any information you can give us.

 

Betty

This guide is helpful.

http://www.islandpanama.org

It does not, however, address any changes expected during Island's planned refit.