tigger_ag

When we were in Alaska we wanted to make sure that everything we purchased was locally or native made.  When looking at Ulu's we found many made that weren't made in Alaska but did find a few sets that we were able to purchase that we really enjoy as well as provide some as gifts.  

Outside of our Ulu's we bought a hand carved bear in each port we went to.  The carvings are done in a variety of styles and product - different stones, antler, etc.  

Not entirely related but when we went to Glacier Bay I woke up super early to watch the approach.  We were able to catch the rangers boarding the boat.  I always enjoy watching someone board the ship from another ship.  If you are a morning person might be something to catch.

We used Harv and Marv in Juneau they were great and dropped us off at Mendenhall Glacier on the way back to town.  I believe most of the tour operators will do this if you ask. 

We went in September and it was great.  There were still lots of whales and we also got the opportunity to see orcas as well.  Our guide at the time made a joke we got a 2 for 1 deal :).  We were also lucky to see lots of bears.  We got to see a bear at Mendenhall Glacier and took a flight seeing tour just to see bears.  We finished the trip off with our own personal land tour in Denali.  The forecast for the northern lights was high.  Of course we went to bed about 2 am and 2:15 apparently there was an amazing show.  Just missed it.

It was mentioned before but ditto on Moose's Tooth.  Another item we enjoyed that I didn't see mentioned was the Anchorage Market.  This is an outdoor market that had lots of vendors and it was nice to walk through.  They are open on Saturdays and Sundays.

When we went to Alaska we started by viewing all the ships excursions.  It was the easiest way for us to get an idea of what we might be interested in.  We both came up with a list of things we would love to do and then compared them.  This helped us decide what was the most important for us to try and accomplish.  We only booked one tour through the ship as we couldn't book anything similar independently.  Everything else we booked on our own and as some people mentioned it made it so we were in smaller groups which is what we prefer.  Then when we figured out what we were looking for we started to search these boards.  It helped us really zone in.  It seems there are many great tour operators in Alaska!

You asked about what tour operator someone used for whale watching.  We used Harv and Marv it was great and  they dropped us at Mendenhall Glacier at the end of the tour so we could explore the glacier.  Taking the city bus back to the port was easy!

Other excursions we did included float plane to see bears, salmon fishing, glass blowing (this was the ship excursion).  All were great and we had a good time. 

The Sun was our our delayed honeymoon and our first cruise.  So you know where my vote is!  But as other people have said the itinerary on the Sun is more Alaska heavy and will give more port time. 

10 hours ago, CynCyn said:

Has anyone booked Jewell Gardens in Skagway independently? They have a statement on their site that cruise passenger should book through the ship but it’s about $100 more and VERY EARLY! I’d like to visit and make a globe but not for $200.

During our cruise to Alaska the only way to do the Jewell Gardens was to book through the cruise ship.  They didn't have the ability to be able to book anything directly through them.  I believe at that time offering of tours was something new to them and they started off with the cruise ships.  We truly enjoyed the experience, the garden and the gift shop.  I also had the best rhubarb i have ever had in my entire life there.

My guess is that they suggest you book through the ship as their isn't transportation to and from the gardens.  If i remember correctly a couple miles at most?? Anyways, you could probably find transportation on your own.  I would reach out to them and let them know that the cruise ship times don't work for you and you would prefer to book on your own.  I can't imagine they wouldn't allow it.

1 hour ago, Jimbo said:

Just to confirm, so one-way to Wonder Lake is about 6 hours? or is it longer?

If you are taking just the transit bus then yes you will be just over 6 hours.  The tour seemed longer out and shorter back but I could be wrong.  It has been a couple of years.

I asked my SO and she said be careful about the mosquitoes.  I didn't think about this because we went later in the season and they were mostly gone at that time.

When we did Alaska last we did almost all of our tours on our own.  While I haven't done a price comparison for excursions for our upcoming cruise many of the bigger excursions you don't really save any money by going private (Whale Watching, Float Plane, etc) but you tend to get a much more private and unique experience.  As some said 6-8 people on a whale watching excursion versus 200 on a cruise tour.  This is the way we would go for most of our bookings. 

In our cruise experience we have only really booked excursions that are unique through the ship that we can't book somewhere else.  This has allowed us to design our experience and many times allow for extra time while in port to do other things as we have been able to book times that worked best for this.

For the person who asked there are lots of great tour operators in Alaska. We started by looking at the cruise line excursions and picking some top ones in each port that we were interested in.  We then would search this forum for options and reviews.  If you can't find something or need to clarify just ask everyone on this board has always been very helpful.

We just booked our second Alaskan cruise.  We are cruising NCL 1 way - Northbound.  This includes Glacier Bay and has some longer port times.  If you can add time on the back end you can do Denali - either on your own or a cruise tour.  When booking our cruise again this was part of our choice was the time we would have in each port and what we wanted to do.

If you have the opportunity to see Denali I think it is totally worth the extra time as well.  The 1st cruise we had a port side balcony.  This allowed us as a few people have mentioned to enjoy the 1st half Glacier Bay from our Balcony and then when the crowds died off we went up to view from the viewing deck.

I think that Wonder Lake is completely worth the trip if you have the time.  Although, it is a very very long time on a bus.  When we went we did the Kantishna Experience tour.  It wasn't as expensive as it is now but definitely a nice trip.  Our narrator was great but it could be a very long day if your narrator wasn't as good as ours.  A note if you do take a tour - show up early.  Do not sit on a wheel well.  It gets very uncomfortable. 

The rest of the days we were in Denali we went on guided hikes, signed up at the visitor center.  Visited the sled dogs. Also, used the hop on hop off bus (transit)  one day.  This would be a great way to do it if you don't want the narration - save you lots of money.  My general suggestion if you go all the way to Wonder Lake I would suggest that you go all the way out there first.  Then you could take your time coming back. 

No matter enjoy your trip!

Yes timing works out perfectly for us.  I had already read the reviews on Trip Advisor but was curious if anyone here had worked with the group.  We did already book but was still curious if anyone had any good feedback.  We are really looking forward to the trip. 

So probably not the most helpful but we flew from the states and landed in Dusseldorf and then flew into Copenhagen.  We landed in Copenhagen to lost luggage.  After dealing with the lost luggage and everything it only took us about an hour to get from the airport to the cruise terminal and we took public transportation all the way - train and then a bus. 

The transit system had a really good timeline to verify schedules as well.

Hope this helps a little bit.

Wondering if anyone has ever booked with Red Rock Adventures/Bay of Fundy Adventures for their Sea Caves Kayak tour.  I have searched around the board in a few different ways but have been unable to find anything Kayak related for Bay of Fundy.  If someone has gone on one of these I would be curious what you thought!  Here is the link for the tour we were looking at https://bayoffundyadventures.com/kayak-the-sea-caves.

Thanks in advance!

I did some searching but wasn't able to come up with anything.  Has anyone booked a kayak tour with Red Rock Adventures - might also be known as Bay of Fundy Adventures based on their web address?  We thought the Sea Caves Kayak tour would be interesting for our day in port but were looking for some thoughts on the tour if anyone has experienced it.

Thanks in advance,

Josh and Kelly

In regards to your questions:

1) My flights were all American Airline flights with American Airline flight numbers. American does not fly into Copenhagen so the flight was code shared with Air Berlin (no option here, American's choice - I paid American Airlines and no one else, so my contract of carriage was with American). Luggage was checked through to final destination, so we never had to worry until Copenhagen. Also 50 minutes is generally more than enough time to traverse Dusseldorf (I even verified the minimum time needed in Dusseldorf prior to booking), but leaving late to be given way less than that is not enough. Dusseldorf is relatively small compared to airports such as London Heathrow, Amsterdam, or even Frankfurt, hence why 50 minutes is plenty of time here.

2) It's now day 18 without my luggage. American has traced my luggage to Dusseldorf. They also can't get a response from Air Berlin in trying to locate my luggage. Resorting to Facebook was a last ditch effort as Air Berlin responds to nothing. We've called and emailed. In fact the first phone call that was finally answered by Air Berlin was two days ago. On this call, we were immediately told unless we speak German, they won't speak with us and hung up!

3) Interline agreements are between airlines detailing out the arrangement between the airlines if one airlines' customers are needing to be put on another airline for whatever reason the airline needs to move them. American and Delta no longer have an agreement effective September 15, 2015. We were never Air Berlin customers (always American Airline customers), therefore, we could not be put on a Delta flight because there is no agreement between American and Delta for transferring passengers. Because of interline agreements in place for American, we should have been moved to British Airways. (American is dealing with the issue of us being moved to Delta). The "good effort" of trying to get me home, could have actually cost me thousands of dollars for flights we knew we shouldn't have been booked on (and informed the airline we knew we shouldn't have been on them) due to the lack of an interline agreement.

4) According to the Montreal Convention of 1999, lost baggage is to be reported within 7 days (it was reported on day 1) and the airline is to reimburse the passenger. I have yet to receive any reimbursement including for necessary items purchased during my trip. Yes I had trip insurance and we have filed the required paperwork. Obviously Air Berlin knows they are supposed to reimburse me and yet they are playing an avoidance game. It's now going to be up to the insurance company to try and seek reimbursement from Air Berlin for the amount the will have to pay me for amounts I am rightfully owed.

5) In regards to claim numbers, yes I have them. There were 35 of us without luggage on my cruise. Those of us on Air Berlin never received updates because the website is not updated regularly. Point in case, I checked again earlier and it still says that delivery has been initiated on my husband's bag. That status didn't even appear until after we received the bag!

Refusing to fly two airlines out of hundreds is not a big deal in reality. My reasons for not doing business with United has not been problematic at all and there are plenty of other options in Europe that don't include Air Berlin, all of whom I'm sure would appreciate my business.

If anything we definitely learned (and are still learning) to avoid Air Berlin at all costs! (will be posting separately about the nightmare we are enduring with them and why to avoid).

We leave on an Airberlin flight in two weeks. I am very interested in the problems you experienced.

Just posted our experience actually! I warn you it's a little long, but it's posted in the Cruise Air section with the title "Never Again with Air Berlin"

Kelly

I will preface this with the fact that we booked our flights for our cruise with American and our flights from Dusseldorf to Copenhagen (and the return portion from Copenhagen to Dusseldorf) were code-shared to Air Berlin. Never again though will I book a flight that is code-shared with Air Berlin or on Air Berlin. Don't let the chocolate at the end of the flight fool you!

What happened to make me say this? First off my luggage. We checked two bags, one each for my husband and I, all the way through to Copenhagen. Due to issues with our plane in Chicago, we knew that our connection in Dusseldorf would be tighter than the original 50 minutes originally scheduled by the airlines, but that there was a chance some time would be made up in the air. This in fact did happen and the plane was informed that several of us had tight connections and to please let us off first. There were approximately ten of us all heading for the same flight nonetheless. We actually made it through passport control and to our gate with no problems, before boarding even began actually, and all proceeded to the bus that would take us out on the tarmac for the plane. Upon arriving at the plane, there were gentlemen to take carry on luggage that was too big for the overhead compartments and we all boarded the plane. The cargo hold of the plane was open and visible and I noticed that the plane was full of luggage. I gave no second thought to this. The flight to Copenhagen was a little over an hour long, so I had no worries with making our cruise on time (yes, we broke the cardinal rule of cruising, but unfortunately had no other options) as it was an early morning flight. Upon landing in Copenhagen, the nightmare ensues.

I will readily admit that we took our time in the Copenhagen airport making our way to baggage claim. We had been traveling all night and had yet to get money from the ATM, so we quickly took care of this then headed down to baggage claim. While looking on the boards for the baggage carousel for our baggage, it struck us as odd that there were no baggage carousels notated for our flight. We weren't so late that it would have already been changed to a different flight. We are talking the amount of time needed for bags to already start appearing on the carousel. I recognized some other people from our flight near one carousel and we asked an airport employee regarding the carousel as well to ensure we were at the right place. There were approximately five bags on the carousel and the airport employee had informed us that most everyone from the flight was standing in this long line we noticed, i.e. the lost luggage line, to file a claim! We quickly recognized that the few bags on the carousel were not ours (not even close as they were the wrong color, bag type, etc.), so off we were to stand in this line.

All the paperwork was filed at the airport in regards to our now lost luggage and our itinerary with all our cruise ports was filed (mind you there were lots of cruise passengers in this line from our cruise, NCL, as well as the Holland America ship leaving the next day). As we really had no other options and no one had any clue where any of the luggage that was supposed to be on the flight was, we had no choice but to head to the cruise ship. Come to find out 35 people on our cruise ship had no luggage. We know for sure that there were several others on our flight that were on our cruise with no luggage. A few people received theirs at our first port, most received at the second port (day 3 as day 2 was a sea day), and my husband received his on day 7 (of our 9 day cruise). We checked the website we were provided with and called the phone numbers we were provided with everyday to no avail. On top of this we had guest services and another employee we happened to know from the cruise line checking online and calling everyday. No one ever answers the phone! Day 7 we finally get a request for an inventory of the items in my bag. A cruise line employee takes care of this for me, by informing them I had clothing, toiletries, etc. in my bag (nothing specific mind you, as I know they were trying to help). In the meantime we are still calling and checking everyday to never get a response.

We finally end our cruise and have two days in Copenhagen, still with no luggage for me. Our last evening in Copenhagen, I inform my husband that I would like to run over to the airport terminal (we were staying at the Hilton Copenhagen Airport) and ensure we know exactly where we are going the next morning as we have to check in at 4:00 am. We figure out all our details and head off to eat and turn in for the night. At midnight, I am awoken by my cell phone ringing. I didn't answer as we only had international data plans. Then my husbands phone rings from the same number. I quickly wake him while googling the phone number to determine it's American Airlines. While he is calling American Airlines (before the voice mail message alert has even gone off), I find that our flight on Air Berlin has been canceled. No reason why is provided, besides I know we will get the standard party line of mechanical issues. The agent for American he is on the phone with tells him that the flights been canceled, but it looks like we've been rebooked by Air Berlin on British Airways through London. Not a problem for us, except that then he says it appears someone is in the process of changing our flights yet again while he is trying to confirm us! Now we are being put on KLM through Amsterdam to Chicago and then on United home. Big problems! First I don't fly United, no ifs and or buts about it due to previous issues with them and their inability to refund flights accordingly with their carriage of contract and lying to avoid issuing refunds in accordance with the contract. Second, when informed of the now new connection time in Chicago, being seasoned travelers through Chicago O'Hare, we knew that there was not enough time being allowed to deboard the plane, clear customs, obtain our luggage, obtain boarding passes, recheck luggage, transit terminals, clear TSA security, and make it to our gate on time. We informed American of this, but were then told this was our only option (obviously the acceptable British Airways flight had now been removed as an option) and that the flight was now assigned to United. American had nothing to do with our rebooking as someone from Air Berlin did all of the rebooking of my flight, American just happened now to be my contact since I purchased the flights through them and now Air Berlin unilaterally moved us to other airlines. As an aside, American did have an issue with us being booked on KLM though, as two days prior the interline agreement between Delta and American had been canceled. Now we are booked basically on two Delta flights that American has no interline agreement with!

Bet you can't guess what happens next! The flight from Amsterdam to Chicago first needs extra time to board cargo. Then of all things, the entire plane loses ground power! An hour and 45 minutes later, past our original departure time, we are finally in the air, knowing full well we have no chance of making the connection. Upon landing in Chicago, we don't even bother with United (the flight had obviously been missed). We head straight to American who now tries to send me to United. Though demand is a strong word to use, we basically demanded that American take our flight back from United at this point and put us on American Airline flights home, as I paid American for our flights and not United. They ended up getting us on the next flight.

As for my luggage - no clue where it is. Air Berlin won't respond to calls, emails, or Facebook, yet they continually send emails for an updated inventory (yes, I have sent in a detailed inventory and requested a reply that it's been received and processed to no avail). The baggage handling service for lost luggage doesn't respond either to phone calls or email. Yesterday, American provided us with a new number to call (actually the reservations number) to which my husband called and after finding it was for reservations asked to speak with a supervisor. The Air Berlin representative had the gaul to tell my husband that if he didn't speak German, he couldn't speak with a supervisor and hung up on him!

I know people will say we need to deal with American. Been there. American sends us to Air Berlin saying it's an Air Berlin issue. Air Berlin doesn't deal with anyone apparently because they don't answer the phone, respond to emails, or respond to Facebook posts, so back to American we go. It's a never ending loop, but American is trying to help us out as much as possible especially since Air Berlin screwed up by putting us with KLM/Delta and apparently doesn't know how to answer the phone, email, or Facebook.

Quick note that after we returned home, September 17th, I googled "Air Berlin lost luggage." Granted many of the posts are from 2013, but if I'd have read the posts prior to booking my flights, I'd have booked totally different flights not involving Air Berlin.

Kelly

I've seen a couple people post on here about having their passports held by the ship for Baltic cruises so wanted to post our experience. We just returned last week from a Baltics cruise on NCL and the ship never took possession of our passports. We did have to present our passports to customs and immigration in St. Petersburg as did every other cruiser. Pretty sure the cruise line didn't hold on to anyone's passport as there were many different countries represented passport wise while waiting in the lines to go through customs including Chile, China, Japan, and the U.S.

I've done two cruises, one without insurance and one with. The first was without to Alaska. We canceled the insurance mainly because we were staying in the U.S., had medical insurance that would cover us if needed medically (obviously not in the case of being life flighted), and if something was to go wrong prior to getting on the cruise, such as lost luggage, I had the ability to get clothes to remedy the situation.

Now the second cruise, with insurance, was just completed last week. Guess who is in the process of completing insurance paperwork due to delay of luggage for my husband (he didn't receive it until day 7 of our 9 day cruise) and I had no luggage AT ALL! Yes, I made it 12 days total without any luggage and the airline still hasn't found it. Replacing the items we needed while in Europe or on the cruise is expensive and can be downright difficult or impossible. I knew this going in and decided not to chance it and am so glad we kept the insurance now. I may wear a smaller pant size according to American standards, but it was downright difficult to find pants that fit in many European countries and if I needed shoes I was SOL as apparently people in European countries have small feet!

Will I cruise without insurance again? Likely if, and only if the cruise is to one of two places - Alaska and Hawaii. I can find clothes and necessities at a Wal-Mart or similar and I know for a fact that cruises to those locations for us will have extra time built in to the front end to visit family, check out the islands, etc. Anywhere else, not a chance!! After my adventure in Europe with literally the clothes on my back and coming home with my luggage still nowhere to be found, I will make sure I have insurance so that I can at least replace what has been lost!

After our most recent experience (Baltics cruise from September 6 to September 15 - basically last week), I will still for the most part agree about flying in a day early. Unfortunately we had no options this time due to work commitments that could not be changed and we knew our flights included a long haul. We did book our flights to land early enough that we would have some wiggle room if needed.

First flight was fine and we knew we had a close connection but still very doable at Chicago O'Hare. That's when the trouble started. The flight from Chicago to Dusseldorf was delayed an hour and 45 minutes because the pilot's log books weren't up to date. At this point we knew if we didn't make up time in the air we would miss our connection in Dusseldorf (there were approximately 15 of us in this situation, but the airline was aware). Fortunately we made up some time and were able to get through passport control and to our Copenhagen flight in time (three missed the plane because they went to the wrong terminal). What didn't make it was our luggage! Of the entire flight from Dusseldorf to Copenhagen, no one received their checked luggage (approximately 10 of us on NCL and several on the Holland America leaving the next day). It wasn't just our flight though. There were 35 people on our cruise that had no luggage. Some got luggage at the first port and the majority at the second port (day 3). My husband got his on Day 7 and I and at least one other lady never received ours (different flights, we were American codeshared to Air Berlin and she was Delta to Air France to KLM).

If I had to do it all over again, I would have made every effort to have that extra day before the cruise, but at the same time I would have still been in the no luggage situation. All you can do is make lemonade out of the lemons you've been handed and go with it. If anything we definitely learned (and are still learning) to avoid Air Berlin at all costs! (will be posting separately about the nightmare we are enduring with them and why to avoid).

I think I already know the answer but has anyone taken sewing needles and craft scissors on a cruise with Norwegian? Just don't want to take them to get them confiscated.

Kelly

We went to Alaska in September and I must tell you, that you have overpacked. First off keep in mind weight limits for flying. Don't bother with the rain boots. We took tennis shoes, hiking boots, and flip flops and the only reason for the hiking boots is we spent a week hiking in Denali after our cruise otherwise we wouldn't have bothered. If you want to stand out as a tourist, then by all means take the umbrella, otherwise leave it at home! I did the tour with Harv and Marv and wore a t-shirt with a sweatshirt on top and tennis shoes. If you get cold, go inside on the boat. Before we even got back to shore I had ditched the sweatshirt and was thankful I wasn't wearing long sleeves. The best thing about long sleeves though is if you get warm you can pull the sleeves up.

Mind you I live in Nebraska so I have my share of insulated winter jackets. For this trip I had a non-insulated Columbia waterproof jacket. I did wear it for Glacier Bay out on the boat with my hat and gloves (again they were only worn again in Denali), but otherwise I wore it in Denali. It did rain on us in Skagway, but it wasn't horrible to the point of needing a jacket.

Most days I had on jeans or capri pants and still feel I overpacked (we were there two weeks). My lesson learned from Alaska - pack and then take half the crap out as you won't wear it! And even better don't bother bringing a sweatshirt from home - buy one in Juneau and then you have your sweatshirt and a souvenir at the same time.

While I do not know specifically about this hotel I do work in the hotel industry. Most minibars do not maintain a constant temperature and would not be safe to keep medicine in. Minibars will fluctuate temperatures and begin cooling when they reach the higher temp. I would play it safe and contact the hotel ahead of time.