Northern Aurora

Have you checked with various garage/car repair stations? In small Alaskan communities sometimes they have used cars for day rentals. My favorite vendor for Kenai Fjords National Park tours is Major Marine. We also have done a number of day excursions using Stan Stephens. Since the pandemic we haven't visited either Seward or Valdez. Both Major Marine and Stan Stephens' Charters have various sizes of vessels. Both are quality companies with long standing excellent reputations. Both have live narrated tours. On the vessels used by both companies there is more than adequate space to alternate between spending time inside and outside. Both have food options. I would suggest that folks book the longest trip they can depending on the length of their port stop. It is always something of the luck of the draw as to what wild life you will see on a particular trip, but we've always seen otters, whales, puffins and such on the trips with the occasional bear.

It is clear that I have been to Valdez many more times than GTJ has visited. And part of the charm, at least for those of us who don't need to be in highly populated urban areas, is the fact that it is not "touristy." I don't understand the comment that your visit "was the end of the pipeline. Tourists went elsewhere." As someone who lived in Alaska during the pipeline construction era I don't recall tourists being drawn to the construction. And Valdez rarely took cruise ships.

When we were on the Solstice B2B in June the Luminae maitre'd turnover occurred between the first and second leg. Mr. Bruno became the Luminae maitre'd on the second leg of that June B2B. So we have had him on three legs, and I quite simply didn't have any issues with him. I felt he hustled.

Several years ago on a different cruise line we did a B2B. It was seven nights from Seward to Vancouver and then seven nights from Vancouver back to Seward. We had the same stateroom for both legs of the B2B. I am not sure port versus starboard sides made much difference. It is more important to be out and moving through the ship instead of just looking out of your stateroom window.

Valdez is an interesting port stop. The community is not nearly as touristy as so many of the SE ports frequented by cruise ships and is one of the seaside communities where Alaskans go for recreation in our own state. The community itself has an odd feel to it -- at least to me -- of being "over planned." After the 1964 earthquake demolished it the community was moved to the present location. After the quake a planner who had just received a master's degree in urban planning was hired to essentially design the community. In the residential communities you will see strips of land which look like undeveloped playgrounds which are actually snow dumps. In any event we have taken a number of Stan Stephens day excursions through the years and they have been consistently excellent. With 11 hours take the longest you can. But the idea of renting a vehicle is also great. Thompson pass is gorgeous even on a foggy day. And you can walk out to Worthington Glacier.

jelayne: While we have never met I find your posts accurate with no hidden agenda. Thanks for the up-to-date information. P.S.: I am trying to envision how the Retreat Lounge ceiling would collapse.....

@3girlsmom: I saw the post you quoted when it was first posted and considered responding, but instead "let sleeping dogs lay." We were on both the September 16th and September 24th Solstice cruises, and were in a Suite for both legs. We had absolutely no issues with Mr. Bruno on either leg. He always checked on us, we saw him actively working to turnaround tables, was very pleasant with both his wait staff and passengers. On both of those legs we had a high number of early diners to the degree that I suspect some would have wanted to be seated for dinner at 4:30 PM. Luminae was very busy when it first opened, and we tend to dine later. We also had several "divas" who exhibited their diva behavior both in Luminae and Michael's Club. Just my perspective.

I saw our OP's post earlier today and wondered if anyone who actually had been on a Princess land tour this past summer would respond. Just a few comments from someone who actually lives in Alaska ---- The distance referenced by "GTJ" between the McKinley View Princess Lodge and Talkeetna is certainly "beyond reasonable walking distance to Talkeetna itself." Assuming no road construction delays it is a 45 minute to an hour drive. I've always thought that visitors to Denali National Park who do not go into the park as far as Eielson Visitor's Center (mile 66) have cheated themselves from so much of the Denali experience. The sloughing land issues, which have closed the road, are at mile 42-ish. We haven't had much in terms of news updates regarding the project to bridge the problematic area so I am unclear when a realistic date will be released for the completion of the project. But even when the issues at the Pretty Rocks area are addressed the fact remains that the road was closed at Pretty Rocks in August 2021 and there has been no road maintenance on the road past that area since the closure. And remember that this single road in to DNP is a road in the Alaska Range, a major mountain range. At times on this forum folks have praised Princess for owning their own lodges, but the situation in Denali shows the problems of ownership -- they can't efficiently or quickly alter their long-standing land tour routes. Alternatives to consider for interesting pre-cruise land travel include time on the Seward Peninsula. Depending on the length of time for a pre-cruise land trip also research the Wrangell -- St. Elias National Park and Preserve.

Welcome to Celebrity. Our experience is that in the specialty restaurants your waiter will welcome you, introduce themselves, and then ask about any allergies or dietary restrictions. You should have no issues.

Our Alaska Department of Fish and Game cancelled the snow crab season in addition the king crab fishery in Bristol Bay. We did the George Inlet Lodge tour through our ship in 2021 when we had an obscene amount of non-refundable OBC to burn. We booked through Celebrity and the dungeness crab was unlimited. In Ketchikan our "go to" restaurant is Annabelles (located in the historic Gilmore Hotel). We have had wonderful fresh dungy there. If you check their website you may not see it listed, but is a common special offering.

Having been on Solstice a number of times, including a pair of B2Bs the year alone, I recommend Murano with no doubt.

There are no self-service laundry facilities on any Celebrity ship.

It is a mystery to me too...

We were on the same cruise with "cruising teacher." I haven't checked my Zenith group photo from that cruise but my recollection is that there were about 17 Zeniths. I actually didn't mind the cocktail party as there were several Zeniths I had not met previously, and we were able to mingle and chat. We stayed onboard for the September 24th cruise. We had 12 Zeniths on onboard. No lunch and no cocktail gathering. I asked the Captain's Club hostess (the same as on the September 16th leg) and was told something to the effect that she would have liked or organize something but didn't receive approval from Miami.

Regarding question #2, while our OP has expressed a preference for excursions which are not private, all of the SE Alaska communities have visitor bureaus. Just use google to find their respective website, which frequently list businesses. We were B2B on the Solstice in June on a pair of Alaska itineraries. While we didn't do a walk off with our luggage it seems to be that the self disembark process started between 7 and 7:30 AM.

I asked a Future Cruise sales rep while on the Solstice in September. We are interested in the fall of 2024, and was told to expect the release in November.

If this is directed to me I am well aware of the size of the M-class Michael's Clubs and have been on the Eclipse several times. And the usage of the Micael's Clubs/Retreat Lounges varies significantly from cruise to cruise.

I agree that it seems more cases are reported on longer cruises, but also suspect that a number of folks test positive after 7 night cruises. We also mask routinely. It has become a habit at home and when traveling. And on ships we wear our KN95 masks in elevators and so forth. We are scheduled to board the Eclipse on March 10 for a B2B2B2B series traveling in Australian, New Zealand and South Pacific waters. We will be the Americans with the supply of masks in our luggage. We will also spend time in Micheal's Club avoiding large crowds.

Please focus on lowering your stress level. Wear KN95 masks in elevators and in other close venues. And since you are in a suite spend time in the Retreat Lounge where you will be able to maintain distance from others.

Be prepared for crab sticker shock next summer in Alaska. This week our Alaska Department of Fish and Game has cancelled the snow crab season in the Bering Sea and the king crab season in Bristol Bay. The cancellation of the king crab fishery in Bristol Bay is for the second year in a row. The decision was made due to significantly decreasing stocks.

Ilhillman: I am not sure that all Celebrity ships are as helpful as the staff on the Eclipse. We were fortunate to be onboard with an excellent Suite Manager. He was very helpful. He had been a waiter in Luminae and remembered us from the Equinox in 2016. Our butler was also one of the best we have ever had.

When my husband caught covid while on the Eclipse we were immediately provided with a letter outlining the refund process. This was on the first sailing of the Eclipse with passengers (AKA the "barnacle" cruise). Identical letters have been posted by other passengers and I suspect is a standard letter created in Miami headquarters which outlines their covid procedures. If our OP hasn't been provided with that letter then specifically ask for it. I no longer have a copy but it will answer a number of questions for our OP.

My husband contracted covid while on the Eclipse in April. Our experience was similar to that experienced by @5:00_Somewhere. We also were in a Suite so had the Suite Manager, our butler and the Luminae maitre'd calling him. He was seen in person daily by medical staff who also issued him a thermometer and pulse oximeter. Given the description by our OP I suggest that they become more pro-active. If Guest Relations isn't answering questions then escalate your questions to the Hotel Director.

Just a quick clarification -- Blu is open for breakfast and also for dinner. It is not open for lunch. It is the assigned MDR for passengers in Aqua Class staterooms. It is a smaller venue than the MDR and has a different menu.

I also like Hubbard. One important factor as to why it can be "trickier" to see is the tidal conditions in Disenchantment Bay. For those who have not been to Hubbard it is located at the very top end of Disenchantment. And it is so massive that part is located in the US Wrangell -- St. Elias National Park Preserve and the other part is located in Canada's Kluane National Park. It is one of the few tide water glaciers accessible by cruise ships. Hubbard is advancing while the glaciers in Glacier Bay are dramatically retreating.