cruisingwithcarrie

I was on this sailing. We prayed for the man who went overboard and we agreed wholeheartedly that we should have gone back to look for him.

Communication, however, was not good and the lack of communication made the last evening onboard very stressful. There was a 4 hour wait for a phone, 2 hour wait for a computer. There was talk that they'd open the wifi up so we could use personal computers, but I couldn't get mine to work the whole evening and then we heard the next morning that they decided not to open it up. Others had been told there would be a small fee, others were told it would be the regular price. One officer in the atrium area told us we wouldn't be able to use the phone that night and another said it was a 4 hour wait (which later proved to be true). It just seemed that in cases like this, the higher-ups were not organized. I felt bad that the front desk staff had to deal with it all and they were definitely overwhelmed and doing the best that they could, given the situation. We finally managed to change our flights and book a hotel and for 7 people, after waiting a couple of hours for a computer, it was well over $5000. Insurance or no, that's cash out of pocket that I'm sure would be difficult for some. Just something to think about it. I will certainly make it a point to have a good cushion in case we need it, because even with insurance, you need to front the money.

Here's the amazing thing. The morning of debarkation, we waited another 2 hours to use the phone (we used a computer the night before and had issues with 2 family members' points when booking) and called the airline back (the one where you pick your own seats...not sure if I can say the name). We spoke to a very helpful person and she put us on hold for a long time and came back and told us the points issue was fixed AND the airline would refund our money! They did NOT have to do that. So, kudos to them! We were shocked, to say the least. We stayed at the same hotel as we did before the cruise for a very fair price and had an amazing dinner at a local pub.

It was my first experience on NCL. I will eventually vlog about it.

Thank you for this review! We are headed out on this same cruise in a couple of weeks. I wonder if they've ordered straws yet? :)

So, if you bid up, once you have your cabin, can you request a different open cabin in the same category if it's available?

Also, can you still ask for an upgrade at checkin?

Thank you!

Hi all, just curious if you know where muster station B is on the Inspiration. Thanks!

It will be more expensive but I would contact Larry’s Limos. They will be able to accommodate any specific needs you have, have reasonable rates, clean and modern vehicles, and knowledgeable drivers. Ask them for a quote before using a shuttle service.

Thanks, but a limo service doesn't work for us. We've tried in the past, but it just doesn't work for us. Limos are low to the ground, which is often more difficult for the ones who have knee issues. Thanks, though.

We are considering a shuttle from a FLL hotel to POM and the return, but we have 2 people who have knees that just don't bend. One uses a cane, the other doesn't. Has anyone had any experience with SAS or something similar in this situation? Is it difficult to get into/out of the shuttles? Do they provide a step stool? We are trying to find transport for 7 people and this seems the best option, but we have 2 folks with mobility limitations that make things tricky. Thanks!

There is an excursion in Haines (a ferry ride from Skagway) that is offered on a lot of ships that is a mild river rafting cruise through an eagle preserve, but we've seen eagles any time we're near the water - including on the tie down ropes for the cruise ship!

I've gone whale watching in both ISP and Juneau and found whales in both places, but had a much better experience in ISP, so much so that we're going whale watching in ISP again this summer. In Juneau we've seen a few humpbacks and seals. In ISP we saw humpbacks and orca, seals and a ton of otters. If I wasn't going to ISP, I'd go whale watching in Juneau, but if we ever stop in ISP, whale watching is #1 on my list there. I have photos on my blog (I think in my signature) and soon, I should have video on my vlog which is my username at you tube. My goal is to get it done before we go again in June!

We are affected, too. What makes me frustrated is we went from 3 ports to 4. On this ship I wanted 3 sea days to use the ship features and will now only have 2. Also hate the new itinerary. May cancel, depends on what family wants. So disappointed since we got a great deal and now those awesome deals aren't there since we booked so early.

We stayed on the Queen Mary 2 years ago. Won't do it again. It was so dusty. Loved visiting the ship, but my allergies severely paid for it that night. It just felt grimy. I am now seeking a hotel for our cruise this summer. Thanks to those for the advise to stay away from LAX.

We did a tour, but after the tour we were dropped off near Creek Street and walked around. There's a free (as of 2016, anyway) bus that has regular bus stops. The driver even stopped at the Totem Pole museum long enough for us to get out for photos. Locals take the bus, too. It stops at a couple of the cruise docks.

We did the Wildlife Tour and Crabfeast excursion before being dropped off near Creek Street. It was interesting. I have a full blog about it (in my signature). I know I was on RCL, but the excursions are pretty much the same. I was looking for info on our NCL cruise next summer but always love to chat Alaska!!

I hope you have a great time!

Ship - Radiance of the Seas

Deck - 7

Stateroom # - 7654

Stateroom Category – E1

Starboard or Port Side - Starboard

Quiet Stateroom? (With comments on problems) – Very quiet.

Was stateroom a connecting stateroom? - No.

Balcony View - Give comments on view, noting if location of any obstructions was an issue. – This is a balcony stateroom that is towards the aft of the ship. It has a small window washing platform just in front, when you look down from the balcony railing, but it didn't cause us any issues.

Balcony Size? Normal or oversized for class? - Oversized balcony, by quite a bit. See photos below.

Was wind a problem? - No.

If an aft cabin, was soot a problem? - N/A

Any specific problems with this cabin? - No, we thoroughly enjoyed it. The ship is showing her age and they were working on sealing the balcony railings while we were there and they didn't get to ours, so the railings weren't in the best shape (see second photo), but other than that it was a great cabin. I would book it again.

Any other comments? - While it didn't bother me, the movement did bother my mom since we were towards the back of the ship. Might be something to consider if you're prone to motion sickness.

View looking towards the bow:

View looking towards the aft:

I asked at our first port if I could bring on diet 7up, since the ship did not carry a caffeine free, diet soda. They said sure, no problem.

Day 7:

Hard to believe this was the last day of the cruise. Time just flew by. I woke early and went out on deck for about an hour. No one was out on the 5th deck on our approach to Hubbard Glacier. I made my way out to the helicopter pad on the bow of the ship and there were quite a few people out there. I then made my way back to our cabin and watched the approach from our cabin with my family. Hubbard gave us a good show, with several calvings. We then went to breakfast at the Windjammer. I spent part of my day packing while my daughter played at the kids' club. We then took her swimming and she did the rock wall again. We made our final photo purchases and I had to re-purchase one photo after finding I'd lost it the day before.

My daughter cried throughout the last dinner in the main dining room. She didn't want to leave! We caught just a bit of the final show, too.

Day 6:

We took our time in the morning and had breakfast in the main dining room. It was pretty much the same menu as before, but a few items had chocolate in them. The fun thing was that our evening assistant waiter was our head waiter for breakfast and it was his first time as a head waiter (his assistant waiter told us and was so excited for him – it was cute). We really enjoyed him and his service throughout the cruise and he did a great job that morning. We got a kick out of being his first head waiter table and I think he did, too. His name was Kavin, from India.

We did not have a tour planned for Skagway. This was my 4th trip to Skagway. The first time we took the train up and back. The second time my mom and I did a white water rafting trip through the eagle preserve in Haines (we took a ferry to get there) and we did a gold panning/sled dog/50 below chamber tour on our third trip. This time, we planned to walk around town.

We left for port after breakfast and paid the $5 fee to use the hop on/hop off shuttle all day (otherwise, it was $2 each way). We got off at the City of Skagway Museum. I really enjoyed this museum. It is filled with original artifacts and there is a lot of information on notable people from the gold rush who lived in Skagway. They even had a scavenger hunt for kids to do and they were given an Alaskan flag upon completion. There was a small fee to enter.

We spent a lot of time looking at all of the various shops and I purchased an orca print at an art shop. I had it mailed to me and it arrived on time and in good condition. We bought popcorn at a popcorn shop and I bought candied pecans (they were icky), and then we made our way down the main road to the Red Onion Saloon. We had lunch there: turkey sandwiches and chips, and my brother-in-law had clam chowder. My sister, my brother-in-law, and I did the tour while my mom and daughter waited in the restaurant (we had ordered food). I was impressed with all of the information given and the presentation was filled with double entendres and our guide acted the coy part. While the restaurant downstairs is filled with bed pans and provocative images of women on the walls, the upstairs looks like it’s been left the way it was after the gold rush. There are up to 18 layers of wallpaper, as each new girl was allowed to decorate her walls however she wished. There were items left under the floorboards that were discovered and are now sit in glass display cases. There was a stainless steel dress, and the beds in the girls’ rooms had ¾ length twin beds. The madam’s room was larger than the girls’ rooms. And in each room, there was a hole on the floor where the girls would drop the fee they collected. All of the notoriety of this establishment was the result of just 2 years.

After the Red Onion Saloon, we watched a video on the gold rush era in a building near the trains on display. We also saw some beautiful flowers throughout Skagway. We shopped a bit more and then we returned to the ship.

My daughter spent the afternoon at the kids’ club and we just relaxed around the ship. It was formal night, so we dressed up, took a family photo, and went to the main dining room. Dinner was good. One member of our group ordered 2 lobster tails and they happily obliged. My daughter tried lobster and the soufflé for dessert was amazing. My only gripe with dinner was that the snow crab salad (my favorite kind of crab) said it came with thousand island. It was served with ranch. I’m not a ranch fan. But the lobster was wonderful and the service was great, too.

As a treat, and for the first and only time during the cruise, we paid the extra $7 an hour for my daughter to go to the kids’ club in the evening (she loved it). We spent time up in the Starquest Lounge. They didn’t have any diet coke, so I ran down to the champagne bar, bought a can, and ran back up to Starquest. We snagged a table by the windows and enjoyed the music and watching the water for a long time. We then went to the casino. I put my card into a slot machine, played maybe 2 rounds, and all of a sudden I heard my name on the loud speaker – I’d won $10 in playing money! We stayed a while and I walked out with $16! I’ll take it!

We picked up my daughter at midnight (she was the last one left and they called us!) and took one last photo of the water before going to bed.

Did you use just the video file name when you created the posting here on CC?

HcOeuYoM_1w

 

If you use the YouTube feature and use the whole link it will not work.

 

I thoughtI did. I don't know and I can't edit.

Love the pictures! Great review so far!

Thank you!