poohbear8

Thank you! I am not the OP, but am also booked for Sept 2025 and want to do a DIY before the cruise. Your experience helps!

I ran into this last year also. I had booked with an online TA for Celebrity Vancouver to Hawaii. After doing some research, I decided I might as well see Alaska since I was on that side of the country. I found the Celebrity Seaward to Vancouver the week before which would have been perfect. The TA told me I could, despite my saying I didn't think it was allowed. I called Celebrity and they too said it was ok. People here said it would not be allowed, and then I found copies of letters shared from others who had their trips changed or cancelled by the cruise line for for this B2B itinerary. I called I called Celebrity again and that rep went to a supervisor who said I could not do the B2B. (I later found out it was flagged in red on the computers after I called, so they didn't have it set up to tell passengers yet) I eventually got a new TA who also had to do a ton of research to confirm I would be ok with a Royal Seaward to Vancouver, then a Celebrity Vancouver to Hawaii, which seems fine, but same parent company, she wanted to be 100% sure. She had to get a supervisors on both lines to get the confirmation it would be ok, cause the regular reps didn't know. So I agree, not all reps fully understand the issue. I was very grateful for this board and those who helped break it down for me!

Thank you everyone! When researching, everything said the cabin and balcony were the same size as a regular veranda, despite the plans showing the larger balcony. I wanted others opinions since I am still kinda new to cruising.

Thank you! That is what I was starting to think.

I am switching my cruise to Summit for 2025. Everything I have seen says the Deluxe Veranda is the same size as the Veranda (171 Sq Ft and 38. Sq Ft balcony). Has that changed? I have a hold expiring tomorrow, but want to be sure the DV is going to give me more since it costs more. I am looking at #8161.

Thank you everyone! This does help and gives us some options and clears up some questions.

@Glaciers Figuring out the car rental return in Seattle when I need to be in Vancouver is a good point. Royal does seem to be doing a good job taking care of the passengers. I have been planning for 6 months and am a planner and the small chance they might cancel is stressful, so I am looking at options instead of waiting to see if they cancel. My airfare to anchorage is changeable, so I could start somewhere else to explore Alaska, but still have to make my way back to Vancouver.

Could we make this a road trip over the 8 days before I leave Vancouver? Hubby looked and thinks we can, but I feel like it not as simple as drive, explore, spend the night and repeat.

Due to Royal's Radiance mechanical issues, I am looking to see if there are other options to get me from Anchorage to Vancouver while seeing Alaska. I have a S2S booked. I arrive Sept 13th in Anchorage. I have the train booked from Anchorage to Seaward on the morning of the 15th. If Royal cancels, I would still need to get to Vancouver by the 22nd to board another ship. Can anyone suggest ways to get to Vancouver (other than flying) to do this when not on a ship? Ideally, I would love to stop and explore / spend a few nights along the way. I am flying Alaska Air and can change the flight, so I could consider a new starting point. I have spent months researching the cruises, but don't know enough to replan the Alaska part quickly.

I have Select Dining on Solstice. (I had no choice when I booked) Awhile back I realized I could make reservations, so I did for every day at 5:45. If I don't show up, is there a penalty? Do they bill me? I am looking at excursions and wondering if some days we should cancel since we might not want to rush back for dinner. If I don't have a reservation time, do I just show up and wait for a table like a regular restaurant or go to the buffet? I looked at my paperwork and didn't see anything about a no show charge, but I thought I read it somewhere much of my research.

Was all of this within walking distance, so you didn't need a car or Taxi?

Celebrity has changed our time to 2 nights at Kona due to the fires on Maui. Are there any bike tours or companies that rent bikes on Kona? I am looked but have not found any.

I did more research and understand the differences now between the rollarboard and spinners. Both have mixed reviews and both can break after the first use. I have no idea how to make a decision. (I overthink things like this, so the struggle is real)

Thank you! Both of these look like they have the features I like. Is there any particular reason you went with the Travel Pro over the Delsey hard case? My last suitcase was softsided and with the exception of grease which I washed off and broken zipper pull it has held up for 10 years...so much so, my daughter took it to college and I have none now.

I have been looking and so many pieces of luggage that claim to be "carry on" are bigger than the 22" x 14" x 9" (45" linear max) that Alaska Airlines and others want. Has anyone recently purchase a new piece that either fits that size or is a tad bigger and used it on Alaska? For the cruise I am flying First Class, so checking it won't be the end of the world on this time, but other trips it could be the only suitcase I use.

I am also looking for luggage. My two cents from my research: Be sure to read reviews on multiple websites on the brand/style you think you like. DO NOT trust the tags for the size, measure when you get it. (and be sure you can return it) Some reviewers have said that the bigger bags are coming in at 64" and they are too big for airlines. I have also seen that many carry on bags, called "carry on" are too big for the airlines. Samsonite has a chart of all of the airlines and their carry on sizes. I am looking for one that will work for this trip and possible future trips with other airlines I might use.

What company did you find through Costco? Are they picking you up at the pier or are you taking a taxi to the airport?

@martincath thank you for spelling it all out for me! This is exactly what I was hoping for! I hadn't considered exploring because I didn't know it was an option. Definitely, need to do some research!

I will arrive in Vancouver at the end of my Alaska trip (Royal Caribbean / Seward - Vancouver) and will be getting on another ship (Celebrity / Vancouver - Honolulu) the same day. I have never been to the Vancouver port. Will I need to go to another port or are all ships at the same area? Should I take my luggage off the Royal ship myself or will it be so early, I might as well take my time since I probably can't get on Celebrity until late morning? Any hints on how to make this a smooth transition?

I stumbled on this looking for discounted GC for Celebrity and Royal. I didn't see it mentioned here, but if you plan to buy them from anywhere, be sure to read all of the fine print. I am finding limits on how many can be used (Celebrity $500 each /$1,000 max per cabin) and Royal requires a new reservation. On a side note, if you need Princess GCs now, I found them through a rewards program that starts with "my". (not sure if can share it here) They offer points for surveys, reading emails, and purchases and the points can be cashed out for GC, though not cruise GC. Currently, they are offer 5% back in points on Princess. They also have Celebrity and Royal, but again read the fine print of those.

I will be on the same cruise. I might have reconsidered had I known, but it is what it is now. This explains why the cruise appears to be sold out also. This will be part of a 2 cruise anniversary trip, so I am not too worried.

@Kathscof Thank you! This was in line with what I was thinking. I didn't want to sleep on the train, but a hotel for a few hours didn't make sense either. We researched every possible option and found flights that will arrive Wednesday around dinner time.

@Kathscof Did you fly from Georgia when you arrived on a Wednesday, Train / Tour on Thursday, then got on the ship on Friday? I am flying from Washington DC and I am worried I will be exhausted on Thursday. Flight arrivals (the more affordable ones) on Wednesday might be as late at 1:59 am. (more expensive could get us there from 8pm - 11:59pm) I am not sure getting a hotel even makes sense of we take the cheaper flight. Any thoughts or suggestions based on your experience? Does staying at the airport until the train leaves make sense? I worry we would be too tired to enjoy it, but arriving on Tuesday and getting a hotel isn't an option.

Prior to Covid, I flew with United and would pay for the extra leg room. I am 5’8” and the few extra inches allowed me to stretch out my knee and foot which both get stiff due to injuries. I use the website seatguru dot com. You can input your flight and check which plane she see the measurements for the seats and see the leg room. I am using it as I plan a cross country US flight.