Need2TravelMuchMore

Thanks everyone for all the great suggestions and insight.  My family landed on the following:

• Ketchikan – Going to the Lumberjack show, then lunch at Burger Queen, then walk around town and/or take the bus out to the totem poles. Gold rush cemetery too.
• Juneau – dogsled experience
• Skagway – renting a jeep for the day and driving into the Yukon with a self-guided tour
• Victoria – playing it by ear since we are only there in the evening. Probably just walking around or maybe a trolley tour. TBD.  We may be all excursioned out by then.

Just 2 more weeks and we can’t wait!

Thanks for all the great suggestions.  We'll definitely be splurging in at least one port so it's great to see what other cruisers have to say about their experiences .

We're taking the plunge and giving Princess a try in Alaska. My kids (8 year-old twin girls) are excited about the age-specific kids clubs and the pool that can be glassed in to make it usable at cooler temperatures.  I just can't wait to be out at sea again.

We sail on the Star Princess out of Seattle at the end of May. Can't wait.

I don't have an exact budget in mind other than that dropping $500-700 in every port isn't an option.  I'm hoping to get thoughts on what is worth splurging on vs. what I can do at a lower price without truly missing out on the Alaskan experience.  

I've wanted to see Alaska for as long as I can remember, but I also can't break the bank once I'm there so I'm hoping to find a happy medium.

Looking for advice from seasoned Alaska cruisers.  My wife and I along with my twin 8 ½ year-old girls will be sailing on the Star Princess at the end of May round trip out of Seattle.  Our ports are Ketchikan, Juneau (afternoon), Skagway and Victoria BC (evening).

We're traveling a long way (Ohio) and we can’t wait. We’re treating this very much like a once in a lifetime trip, so we’re not trying to be cheap… but we also don’t have the budget to drop $600-$700 or more in every single port.

So what do you recommend?  What is worth splurging on? What can I book myself to save a few bucks vs. what should I book through Princess? What can I absolutely not miss? Really looking for advice on where to spend the budget and where to pull back a bit.

Thanks.

If nothing else, get off the ship and go have lunch at Cuzzins. Just thinking about the Caribbean ribs and chicken with fried plantains and mac n cheese - with conch fritter appetizers is making me hungry right now!

Thanks for all the feedback. My girls are 6 1/2 (twins) at the time of this writing (and our last sailing on DCL). I'd love to make DCL a regular thing, but it's just not in the budget. That said I don't want to stay landlocked either!

We've been to St. Thomas several times now by ship and have followed the same itinerary each time in port... cab to Megan's Bay early in the day and relax on the beach. A tip for Megan's Bay, don't drop your stuff right where the cabs drop you off. Facing the water, turn left and walk down the beach. Go past the rentals and the snack bar and keep walking just a little bit and you'll have the beach basically to yourself. We were there a few weeks ago on a crowded day and still had our own stretch of beach just by walking a little.

When we were done at Megan's Bay we took a cab into town for lunch (the food at Megan's Bay isn't very good for the price). We like to eat at Cuzzin's on Back Street which is one street behind the main shopping on Main Street - every cab will know where it is. Cuzzins is good authentic Caribbean cooking - I recommend the ribs and chicken platter with fried plantains. We also always get the conch fritter appetizer too - best fritters I've ever had and I now order conch fritters anywhere I see them on the menu hoping they are half as good. From Cuzzins the shopping is an easy 1-2 block walk and when you are done there, it's a $4 cab ride back to the ship.

Have fun! St. Thomas is one of our favorite stops.

We really enjoyed a visit to Brewer's Bay. It's an isolated beach with few amenities - not developed at all. Being off the beaten path the crowds are much smaller too. We were there the first week of June and there were maybe 20-30 people at the beach. There is a little restaurant/bar at one end with a bathroom, but that is it. We loved it. There also was decent snorkeling along the rocks.

Breakfast on the Fantasy is not served in the Enchanted Garden. It has been served in the Royal Court from 8:30 - 10:00 for years. Cabanas is open for full breakfast 7:30- 11:30.

Not entirely correct. We just got off the Fantasy and breakfast was served in Enchanted Garden several days (though not every day). Enchanted Garden offered a combination of table service with buffet that had fewer options. We only ate here once as we ended up preferring the larger buffet spread of Cabanas.

I would skip Playa Mia. It gets expensive really quickly. It's been two years since we were there, but as I recall it's an expensive cab ride from the port and expensive to get in. The beach is nice, but you are constantly hassled to buy hair braiding, or crafts or any number of other things. It wasn't a bad day at the beach, but it costs us $175-$200 for a family of four when you factor in the transportation, tips, food, entry fees, etc. We have friends that swear by Mr. Sanchos but I don't know anything about the costs there.

For dinner at Remy and Palo men are required to have a button down shirt (no golf shirts) as a member of our party found out when he was sent back to the stateroom to change. He wasn't happy as this was not spelled out in the dress code and he thought he was in compliance.

It's the only time I saw dress code enforced anywhere on the ship.

My family has been on two Disney cruises - courtesy of two sets of very generous grandparents. We're just back from a Caribbean cruise on the Fantasy, so cruising in on our minds. We have absolutely loved the Disney experience and may splurge for a third Disney cruise some day, but it's simply not in the budget to do on our own on a regular basis. In the meantime, I'm interested in which line DCL fans have found to be second best when cruising with children. Thanks.

I didn't really notice mosquitoes in any of the ports. We went to Brewer's Bay in Tortola and Megan's Bay in St. Thomas, and of course Castaway Cay.

Yes he was!

There must be something to the "Only one of a particular character on board" theory. When we went through the Frozen princesses line there was no Olaf, but some of the timed groups ahead of us seemed to be taking longer, so I wonder if Olaf needed a break and was cut from our time slot.

Thanks. I wasn't looking for any specific piece of advice... just anything that more seasoned DCL cruisers may have picked up on that I wouldn't have in my one cruise on a different ship.

I've recommended the DCL app to multiple people myself. It was invaluable when we traveled with three families on the Magic last May... I still have it on my phone and look at it longingly from time to time.

We also learned the lesson the hard way that kids club will offer food to your kids buy won't make them eat. After my daughters begged to eat at kids club one night one of them forgot to stop playing super heroes long enough to eat. That's how she got introduced to room service... lesson learned.

I'm intrigued by the simulators that someone mentioned, and my wife and mother-in-law are talking about getting day passes to the spa.

I'll confess that what makes me nervous about the Fantasy is the crowds... several people on the Magic told us that all the DCL ships are great, but the Fantasy and Dream essentially have the same features as the Magic and Wonder, but with 1,000+ more people to share them with. Thad said, I can't wait and the whole family is counting down!

My family and I, along with grandparents and my brother's family cruised on the Disney Magic in May 2016. It was the best vacation I've ever been on.

We recently found out my inlaws will be taking us on a cruise on the Disney Fantasy next year (June 2017).

Do any of the seasoned Disney cruisers on this board have any advice specific to the Disney Fantasy? Our party will consist of my family with twin 6-year-old girls, my father-in-law and mother-in-law, and my brother-in-law's family which includes him, his wife and 3 kids - boys who will be 11 and 9 and a 4-year-old girl.

Thanks in advance! Can't wait for my next Disney cruise.

Age 4-5 is really the sweet spot. We sailed on the Magic in May 2016 with my 5 1/2 year-old twin girls. They loved it. Everything was still magic to them.

I really appreciated the lengths Disney went to in order to maintain the illusion too. At one point we were in line to meet Pirate Mickey and the line got cut off right behind us. My dad said to the cast member "That makes sense, the costume must really get hot" and the cast member replied without missing a beat "Yes sir, Mickey's jacket does get quite warm." Even in a private conversation with an adult, it's not a person in a Mickey costume, it's Mickey Mouse.

My girls were really into the characters. Their 7-year-old cousin humored her parents but some of the magic was gone.

I'm so glad my kids got to go on the cruise while it was all still "real"

We went on a stingray adventure in May in Grand Cayman with two 5-year-olds. We booked independently through Acquarius Sea Tours and had a great experience even with reluctant kids.

It helped that this operator does the tour in "reverse" to skip the crowds and get people comfortable in the water. We went to Starfish Beach first where my kids touched starfish in the water. Next we made a snorkeling stop - which was a little rough because of wind, but again, it got everyone comfortable in the water with the crew. Last stop was Stingray City. We pulled in just as a lot of operators were pulling out. With a little coaxing my kids posed for a photo with the rays even though they didn't touch one - crew was very understanding and helpful to make sure my kids had fun without being scared. I think the cost was $50 per person which I think was less than a lot of operators charge just for the the Stingray City trip.

I'd say if you really want to do the stingray adventure (like I did) go for it, your kids may surprise you. That said, my brother and his kids went to the turtle farm and had an equally great time.