Aquahound

Just now, clo said:

Nope. I'd grab street food if pressed for time. It's my fave food place - including my own home 🙂

 

Great for you, but that still wasn't my point.  

40 minutes ago, clo said:

Scream bloody murder!!!!!!!!!! In my favorite food city in the world I would never, ever eat fast food in Barcelona. Talk about "to each their own.' LOL.

I think you missed the point of my post.  😉

5 hours ago, ilikeanswers said:

 

It might not be your thing but it is definitely a phenomenon. There are travellers who make it their mission to try McDonalds at least once in every country they visit. Funnily I have heard the same critiques levelled at cruise ship food😂. 

After an exhaustive 14-day cruise across the Mediterranean, preceded by 4 days in Venice, where we did all we could and ate locally as much as humanly possible, we hit a McD's in our final stop of Barcelona.  Honestly, it was heavenly.  🙂

7 hours ago, njhorseman said:

And now the test format is gone . 👍

4 hours ago, ontheweb said:

And a great majority of the regular posters are applauding.

Totally agree!  Thank goodness it's back to normal and the test failed.  

If you're a Carnival fan with high priority being on-board activities, and you simply want to get a taste of Alaska, Luminosa is probably your best option of the few Carnival ships that sail Alaska.  

jsglow made some really good points but I'll whole heartedly disagree with one of them.  Personally....and I totally understand this is personal choice.....I could not imagine sailing such a scenic cruise without a balcony, unless you book a panoramic view room.  Waking up to that scenery and then taking it in while it's still light before going to bed is magical.    

The Florida comment made me laugh.  I always joke that you always know when someone is from Florida because it's the first thing they tell you.  And I say that as a former Floridian.  See, I just did it too.  😁

If you're looking to do some walking with window shopping and dining, downtown is better.  The downtown Hilton is in a good spot.  I recommend walking across the street to 49th State for lunch or dinner.  The chowder and the elk burger are amazing, as is the beer selection.  

The midtown area is far more spread out and walking isn't as easy.  I usually stay at the Embassy Suites in midtown, which is a great hotel, but that suits me for business travel.  

2 hours ago, Tropical77 said:

Any inputs on Holland America? Never used them but seems to have better reviews than Norwegian. 

 

If Celebrity is your preferred line, I recommend looking at Princess first.  They will be most similar.  Holland America is a very nice line but if you want some decent fun time while on the ship, they fail miserably.  You can mitigate that a little by booking Koningsdam but anything older is very sleepy.  

Not sure how your first question would work with a casino giveaway.

Regarding your second question, why not?  Personally, I think RCI is an overall better line than NCL, but that doesn't mean you'll agree.  Give them a try and see for yourself.  What better way than with a free cruise.

I've cruised the largest ships sailing Alaska and there were zero delays getting on and off the ship.  No issues there at all.

For lively onboard activities, I don't think you can beat the RCI Quantum Class ships like Quantum and Ovation or the NCL Breakaway+ (or whatever they're called) Class ships like Encore and Bliss.  Princess Royal Class, like Discovery, is also worth looking at.  

Celebrity Edge is sailing AK now too.  I haven't been on that class yet, but it looks amazing and some friends of mine can't stop raving about it.  

Thing is, none of them can sail the Canadian Inside Passage, so you sail outside Vancouver Island in what is often rough seas.  

I recommend not even looking at HAL.  HAL is a nice cruise line but activities and entertainment are horrible.  

On 1/13/2024 at 7:05 AM, MississippiMom said:

 

I would love to hear from the cruisers who saw Alaska on NCL, RCCL, Carnival or Celebrity?

My last 4 AK cruises have been on RCI.  Frankly, it's because I live near Seattle and boarding in Seattle is easy for me.  Plus, the wife and I love the Quantum Class ships and always have a fantastic time on them. Got another one coming up in May.  🙂

Granted, this is because I've done other AK cruises in the past.  I've been to Glacier Bay twice on HAL.  In total, I've done 7 AK cruises, and my clear favorite was a southbound on Celebrity from Seward to Vancouver.  If not for having already experienced all this, and if AK was a one-time bucket list item, Seattle itineraries would not be my first choice.  

To correct something that was said above, all 4 of these cruises on RCI did have enrichment programs and lectures on numerous topics.  

The whole Princess/HAL Alaska thing is a little exaggerated in my opinion. Yeah, I said that.  😉

I second wolfie's opinion of the bridge.  I too found it underwhelming.  

On 9/20/2023 at 11:27 PM, Mainer3 said:

One of them told us the only bears were on the other side of the island and could not be reached in the time we had in port.  

Wow.  As you learned, that couldn't be farther from the truth. Sheesh.

I think that's a great endeavor, and on 2 really nice ships.  Just, pray your Silhouette cruise does not get delayed during crossing.  It most likely won't, but a 1-day buffer between cruises would make me feel better.  

On 1/16/2024 at 3:30 PM, mncbabu_yahoo said:

How is HAL's Nieuw Amsterdam for Alaska? Is it recommended as well?

Yes!  I have cruised that ship and I loved it.  It's a slightly larger version of Noordam with a few extra amenities, like the Tamarind specialty restaurant.  It's a beautiful ship.

But I see you went with Princess.  Enjoy your cruise.

I have been on sister ships to both and I would choose Noordam.  I am not a fan of the NCL Jewel Class ships for many reasons.  The only reason I would recommend Jewel over Noordam is if you said you valued entertainment over everything else.  Otherwise, I think HAL is a much nicer experience.  

6 minutes ago, SoloAlaska said:

It’s reasonable to not assume something is strictly prohibited vs prohibited ish since they are all on the same list but treated very differently in real life. That’s why I asked here for anyone with real life experience with bear spray and cruise lines. 

I am Coast Guard and I work very closely with cruise line security.  There is no wiggle room here.  You can't take it on board.  Period.  That is your answer.

17 hours ago, SoloAlaska said:

So are drones yet they are allowed on and kept with security.

Regardless, nothing changes the fact that spray is strictly prohibited, and you will not be allowed to take it on board.  Cruise lines are very strict about this.  Just trying to be helpful here, and that is the answer.  

No, sorry, you will not be allowed to take the spray on to the ship.  It is strictly prohibited.  

I've cruised the Caribbean and a sister ship to Emerald (Ruby).  Frankly, if itineraries are equal, I couldn't imagine picking either of those over a Celebrity Edge Class ship.

In Kodiak, the ship moors at a commercial dock near downtown but frankly, even if you walked it, downtown Kodiak isn't really a tourist attraction.  You'll need to taxi to the airport, which isn't far, but it's worth it to get a rental car.  Kodiak is a place you need to get out and explore.  It's a beautiful destination.

I wish I could remember the name of the place, but one block off the main road, there is a fried fish joint with picnic tables.  I think it was a food truck that you order from.  Sorry I'm not more helpful.  Whatever that place is, I thought it was much better than fighting the crowds at the brewery.  

4 hours ago, tintin2k2 said:

Hi All, 

 

Hello from Calgary. Thanks for this wonderful knowledge base and forum on cruising - I was amazed by the content and discussions in the forums. Saying that I would like to ask for 2 directed questions if anyone can help. We did a RC cruise last year in the Caribbean for 7 days last year and we were simply blown away by the things one can do on a cruise. So many mental blocks and myths were dispelled from the day 1 of cruising. We want to do our next few holidays on cruises and see how it goes. 

- We are a family of 4 (2 adults and 2 kids (less than 14 years)) and are planning for two cruises one in 2024 and maybe one in 2025 or 2026.

- We are looking for a Greek Isles Cruise (Budget and also good in terms of ship, dining and onshore excursions). What would be a few options for us to look at ?

- Also, for a Alaska cruise in 2025 or 2026 - we are considering Holland American Line seeing the reviews and reading the details and experiences of cruisers on the forums. What would be the best time to book this trip? please help. 

 

Based on how much you loved your RCI cruise, it sounds like onboard activities are something that is high on your wants list.  While Mediterranean and Alaska cruises certainly should be about the itinerary first, I think the second priority is being on a line/ship that you enjoy.  

For your Alaskan cruise, consider Princess or NCL.  Both lines hit Glacier Bay and both lines are more family friendly and offer more activities and better entertainment than Holland America.  HAL is a very nice cruise line but with the youngsters, I recommend the other 2.  

For the Greek Isles, I recommend either sticking with RCI or giving Celebrity a try.  Princess also isn't a terrible choice.  

It's a good thing that you found out both itineraries have Glacier Bay, because I would have totally disagreed with the others.  IMO, one-way cruises are far better than RT Seattle cruises and I do not think GB on the RT cruise would have been better than the one-way.  I'm assuming the one-way itinerary is out of Vancouver, which means sailing the Canadian Inside Passage, and not having the obligatory stop in Victoria.  

Icy Strait Point is one of my favorite AK stops because it has not yet been ruined by the building of a Diamonds International, Cariloha, and other tacky cruise garbage stores.    

On 12/23/2023 at 1:39 AM, Crestawave said:

Is there other things that might give us away ?

Honestly, don't even worry about it.  When I spot first-time cruisers and see the awe they are in, I actually get somewhat jealous, and I remember that feeling I had on my first cruise.