Kitty Ellas Mom

Wow, thank you MartinCath!  That's really useful info.  My hotel (at the moment, but I'll probably keep it) is the Pan Pacific so I'll probably do the steam clock and the garden that is the closest (I think that was the Chinese one).  The rose garden at Stanley Park sounds great as well.  Of course, this depends on weather too, b/c if it's pouring I'd just go to the two museums you mentioned instead of choosing one.  Everything sounds really fun!  I've only ever been on the Pacific coast to go to LA so everything in Vancouver and Alaska will be completely new to me.  I really don't know yet when I'll arrive but it could easily be around 5 pm or even later, so it might be more like a 1.2 days in Vancouver instead of 1.5.  I will probably not try to do anything the morning of my cruise but it  depends on how comfortable I feel about the area and the process.  It's my first cruise so the embarkation process is pretty foreign to me too.

If you watch you tube videos about going to Nugget Falls you can see the walk.  It isn't really a "hike" per se.  It looks doable by most people, just long.  Of course, disclaimer again, I haven't been there yet.  But I'm not that physically fit and the idea of a "hike" scares me.

I'm similar in that I'll have about 1.5 days in Vancouver pre cruise, and it's just me.  I also thought about Buchart but discarded the idea due to time.  Things that I'm thinking about right how:  Gastown mostly to see the clock, Granville Island, Capilano suspension bridge, art museum (b/c I'm a museum curator).  I might try to find a tour that would knock out some of those without my having to get transport.  Of course I know I should probably see some of Stanley Park as well.  The size of that seems a bit overwhelming--I'd probably only see a small part.  I might do at least one of the gardens in Vancouver but they don't wow me as much as Buchart. 

I've wondered exactly what you said:  should I bother seeing Mendenhall?  But, to me, the Nugget Falls is the main attraction there.  I think I'd enjoy standing next to the waterfall with Mendenhall in the background.  My cruise is also doing Glacier Bay.  My plan for Juneau is to take it easy b/c it's my middle day of 3 ports in a row.  I booked a sled dog (on land) excursion around 1 pm.  I might do Mendenhall before or after that on my own.  It seems relatively simple to get transport from the port to Mendenhall visitor center.  If I feel like doing a lot of stuff I'll also do the tram, also on my own, since it's right next to the port.  Juneau seems to me like a place where you can do a lot on your own easily (although my disclaimer is that this is my first cruise).

Not a dumb question.  Exactly what this forum is for.

I've read some trip reports on this forum of people who traveled with similar aged kids.  They spent a lot of time in the kids clubs. I will link one if I can find it.

I know there's a lot of talk about what to do in Anchorage but I am wondering what you would do if you had only a half day.  My cruise disembarks in Whittier and then I have to have the transfer to Anchorage. I haven't booked flights yet but was eyeing one that leaves at 6 am the next morning (I have a long ways to go to get back to the east coast).   I've made a tentative reservation at the Hotel Captain Cook but would be open to changing to a different hotel.  I am unsure if I want to do a simple transfer that gets me to Anchorage or if I want to do one of the tours, but I'm leaning towards just getting there ASAP so I can wander around as I want.  I chose the Captain Cook b/c I wanted a big hotel with lots of dining options around it but also something I can't get back where I live.  I lean towards museums and historic houses etc. but am open to any suggestions.  I've thought about the tour (trolley? I think) that goes through earthquake park.  I like to stay up late but as I'll probably have to get up really early this might not be a good idea.  I know it will be light out very late then, as the solstice celebration is that next day when I will be flying.  Renting a car or going very far from the hotel isn't in the cards.  I will probably do a museum or two but please let me know if there's anything that is a "do not miss" in that short length of time.  Thank you!

I was unable to find the trip report that talked of this but it was definitely in the 2018 or 19 group.

I was just reading a trip report where someone talked about this at length.  I'll try to find it and link it.  Her advice was to get the stamp as soon as you see them b/c the rangers closed up shop early that day due to weather and she almost didn't get it.

RE: less time in Ketchican, we're supposed to be there on our first port day from 6:30 am to 3 pm.  I have booked a ship's shore excursion to Totem Bight plus the Lumberjack show that goes from 7 am to noon.  I definitely want time to just walk around by myself however.  What happens if we have less time there?  Do the excursions get cancelled?  It's my 1st cruise so I don't know how these things go.  I would rather cancel the tours and just walk around if time were less.

Someone pointed out to me that they did change the map of the cruise recently.  See how it says "Royal Princess route" and shows it going a different direction at first?  I think that means it's not going into the Inside Passage but I'm not 100% sure of what I'm seeing:

https://www.princess.com/cruise-search/details?voyageCode=A017

Sorry I see I was unclear:  we start in Vancouver and end in Anchorage (Whittier).

Do all ships have restrictions on wind speed and direction or just this one?  

I apologize that it seems that I posted this twice and I can't figure out how to delete the duplicate, which is this one.

I'm booked on the Royal from Vancouver to Whittier in June 2020.  I did this b/c I wanted to be part of a group that is going then so the ship and itinerary were not my choice if I wanted to go with the group.  My question is this:  I've read a lot about how the Royal is too big to dock at Juneau sometimes b/c of winds, when smaller ships are able to dock.  Also, this was an Inside Passage cruise when I booked it but now it seems the Royal is not going to do that because of size?  I read a comment on here somewhere about how they were barred from doing the Passage but I couldn't verify that elsewhere.  I see a little bit here and there about this but never an in depth discussion except for several articles that came out last spring about how pilots thought the Royal might not be a good fit for Alaska.  I would appreciate anyone's thoughts about this.  I read several trip reports from people who were unhappy that the Royal missed Juneau but I couldn't tell if that was a chronic problem or just one sailing.  I will not be changing to a different ship but I want to have a clear idea of what to expect.  I've planned my excursions so that I have some redundancy in what I'm going to do in Juneau---e.g. dog sledding (on land) in Juneau but also a tour in Skagway that includes the dog sled place in case I miss it in Juneau. This will be my first cruise so I don't think I'll know what I'm missing re: the Inside Passage.  I'm also a little worried about getting seasick when the ship departs Vancouver and goes around the island out to sea instead of inside.  Thank you for any advice.  

I'm booked on the Royal from Vancouver to Whittier in June 2020.  I did this b/c I wanted to be part of a group that is going then so the ship and itinerary were not my choice if I wanted to go with the group.  My question is this:  I've read a lot about how the Royal is too big to dock at Juneau sometimes b/c of winds, when smaller ships are able to dock.  Also, this was an Inside Passage cruise when I booked it but now it seems the Royal is not going to do that because of size?  I read a comment on here somewhere about how they were barred from doing the Passage but I couldn't verify that elsewhere.  I see a little bit here and there about this but never an in depth discussion except for several articles that came out last spring about how pilots thought the Royal might not be a good fit for Alaska.  I would appreciate anyone's thoughts about this.  I read several trip reports from people who were unhappy that the Royal missed Juneau but I couldn't tell if that was a chronic problem or just one sailing.  I will not be changing to a different ship but I want to have a clear idea of what to expect.  I've planned my excursions so that I have some redundancy in what I'm going to do in Juneau---e.g. dog sledding (on land) in Juneau but also a tour in Skagway that includes the dog sled place in case I miss it in Juneau. This will be my first cruise so I don't think I'll know what I'm missing re: the Inside Passage.  I'm also a little worried about getting seasick when the ship departs Vancouver and goes around the island out to sea instead of inside.  Thank you for any advice.  

Correct CruiserBruce, I will not go to Denali, only Ketchican, Juneau and Skagway.  Ports are Vancouver and Anchorage.

I've not cruised yet but will share my thought processes as I chose my first cruise, and also to cruise solo.  I was looking at many itineraries that included Nassau but was worried about the safety of that port alone.  So, I decided to table that idea for now and probably consider it as a cruise with my family later.  I chose Alaska b/c it was on my bucket list but also b/c I felt like I'd be safe in those ports.  

I will also be solo on Princess soon to Alaska.  It's my first cruise.  I'll be almost 45.  I chose Princess to be part of a group cruise but also I liked that it's elegant and will not be a party ship (that I've heard).  The main thing I"m worried about is that it could be awkward at dining but I'm hoping that being part of the group cruise will help with that.  

Do float planes and / or helicopters for excursion to glaciers and other flightseeing go up high enough to cause the pain in the ears that some people get on regular airplane flights?

I went with Chilkoot Charters b/c they included the train tickets and I didn't want to buy them myself.  But now I see so many votes for Dyea Dave that I wonder if I made a mistake.  Can anyone compare the two?  Thank you all so much for your advice.

I haven't been on my trip yet but my plan is to do the cruise (a NB from Vancouver to Whittier) and pad it with one day in each direction.  I'm going to have one full day in Vancouver and maybe a 2/3 of a day in Anchorage (disembarkation, travel to Anchorage then one hotel night).  For me it's the timing b/c I can't be away any longer than that.  I feel like I'm going to see so many new things that it's worth it even without a long time on land.  I'm looking forward to exploring Vancouver and Anchorage on my own almost more than the ports!  

I will be disembarking from Princess in late June and then staying one night in Anchorage before my flights.  I need to figure out transfer from Whittier to Anchorage.  Thank you for any advice--I could not find anything about this when I searched.  I'm open to any sort of transfer:  ones with tours attached, ones that just take you to Anchorage, ones that are private and ones that are "bus."  I just want to get an idea of what the options are that people trust.  Thank you!

Hi Anita, 

I loved your trip report!  It took me several days to read it all.  🙂  Because I was carefully reading it all.  I've had an Alaskan NB from Vancouver to Whittier for June 2020 booked for awhile now but just started working on my excursions.  I'm going to go with the much easier typical guided tour stuff b/c I'm not a hiker etc. but I still was interested in what you were saying about places I'm going to go to.  You've made me rethink the helicopter stuff b/c I had ruled that out.

I've been wondering the same thing b/c I have an afternoon / evening in Anchorage after my Princess cruise lets off in Whittier in the AM.  I decided to get a hotel for the night so that I will not have to do 2 long flights to the east coast right after the debarkation and travel from Whittier.  I wondered about the trolley and seeing earthquake park.  Is that worth seeing?  I'm probably going to end up at a museum however b/c I'm a museum professional.  I'd be interested in what museum(s) are the most interesting for someone with very limited time.