Long Trip Report - 5 Days DIY land & SB Coral Princess Whittier to Vancouver 7/25-8/1

Day 8 – Glacier Bay (Continued)

We moved around between our balcony, deck 7 and deck 11 aft to always have a good view. The photo below is the scenery in Glacier Bay before Margerie Glacier is in view.

Approaching Margerie Glacier

Deck 7

This photo gives you a good idea of the scale of the glacier. The larger boat is the National Geographic Sea Lion. It is about 150 feet long.

Margerie Glacier is an active glacier and it was obvious today. Calving is frequent and watching it never gets old. I don’t want to leave. Look for the seals, bottom right corner.

The water is very deep. The silt in the water makes it seem like the water is shallow and the propellers are churning up muck. I don't recall the exact depth, but 100 feet of Margerie Glacier is below the water.

To be continued...

Hi,

Thanks for a great report. I'm just starting to research our cruise for next year, so loving all the information!

Your review and ideas are great. We are trying to plan another Alaskan cruise, but want something different from the 2 Celebrity cruises we've already done. I'm hoping to DIY a land tour for all the same reasons you mentioned earlier--less crowds, stop when and how long you want. Looking forward to the rest of your review.

Enjoyed reading your review.

Sent from my SM-T380 using Forums mobile app

Great review and enjoying seeing your photos. But I have one correction (Yea I know one in every...)

Wow! Hubbard Glacier is MASSIVE! It’s the largest tidewater glacier measuring 7 ft wide, about 76 feet long and 600 feet tall with 350 above the water line. I had to add the facts because it is indescribable.

Ok being picky, sorry, but it is 7 MILES (not feet) wide and 76 MILES long...........

In the photo below that is the Holland America ship you have a picture of above next to it.

Great review and enjoying seeing your photos. But I have one correction (Yea I know one in every...)

Wow! Hubbard Glacier is MASSIVE! It’s the largest tidewater glacier measuring 7 ft wide, about 76 feet long and 600 feet tall with 350 above the water line. I had to add the facts because it is indescribable.

Ok being picky, sorry, but it is 7 MILES (not feet) wide and 76 MILES long...........

In the photo below that is the Holland America ship you have a picture of above next to it.

Ugh! Thanks and thanks for pointing that out! Of course I know it's miles, not feet. What a stupid mistake. That's what I get for posting late at night with my eyes barely open. What's more frustrating is that I cannot edit the post!

That's a great photo! Thanks for sharing. It really puts things into perspective.

Day 8 – Glacier Bay (Continued)

Our time at Margerie Glacier was coming to and end. What we didn't expect was a grand finale.

As we departed, we heard a thunderous crack as a section of the glacier broke off and fell into the bay. This was followed by another explosive sound, crumbling ice and a huge splash! This was the largest and longest calving event we witnessed. Shannon had her cell phone video camera on and captured the entire magnificent event. My camera was set on continuous shooting.

Take note of the cave in the center at the bottom of the glacier.

This is very zoomed in, the cave is still in tact...

But not for long.

Just incredible!

We didn’t spend much time at Lamplugh Glacier, it was more of a drive-by (or sail-by). After Hubbard and Margerie Glaciers, this one was kind of underwhelming.

It was time for happy hour, so we headed up to our favorite spot on deck 15. We enjoyed a cocktail as we soaked in the warm sun rays and extraordinary sights.

Just before dinner we were back on deck 7 in search of the Pilot Boat. Like clockwork it arrived, and the National Park Rangers disembarked and waved goodbye.

We had another delicious dinner in the main dining room. Eduardo and Astrid were much more attentive, phew! Something to be said about the food in the MDR, the portions were perfect. I know many will disagree, but each course was just enough to enjoy, but not too much to feel overly full. We always had room for cappuccino and dessert because they are portioned perfectly too.

After dinner Pete and I went to see the comedian, Steve Smith. He was so funny! I wish the kids came with us. Instead, they headed to the Explorers Lounge to catch a few auditions for Voice of the Ocean.

Tomorrow: Skagway, Dyea Dave Emerald Lake Tour & White Pass Train

Day9 – Skagway, Dyea Dave Emerald Lake Tour & White Pass Yukon Route Train

Our arrival in Skagway was scheduled for 7am. Our actual arrival was 7:30. We were supposed to meet Kathy from Dyea Dave Tours at 7:45. With no time for breakfast, I got a coffee at International Café and some pastries for the kids. We took our places in line to disembark. This process was a little quicker than I expected, and I had to dump my coffee, ugh.

We found Kathy and boarded a small tour bus, met our driver and tour guide, Dani, and headed to the train depot. Here we picked up our train tickets for our return trip to Skagway. I booked the train about 3 months in advance.

There were only 2 others on the bus with us as we headed up to the Yukon. The day started off overcast and foggy.

Dani stopped several times for photos and gave us lots of information about the areas we traveled through.

The first stop was to view Pitchfork Falls and the Goat Lake Hydroelectric Project. This was so cool! A pipe carries water from Goat Lake to supply electricity to Skagway.

The pipe line

We drove on the Klondike Highway following the same route as the train, along the White Pass Trail. This trail also came to be known as Deadhorse Trail.

Dani pointed out these posts, with red and white/gold markings, along the road. They are for snowplow operators to see where the road curves. They are placed that high because the snow can be very deep. It’s hard to believe.

The fog and clouds quickly cleared. It turned out to be a beautiful and warm sunny day.

Our tour took us from a rain forest to an arctic tundra to the White Pass Summit. The landscape was noticeably different. We stopped at Summit Lake on the east side of the highway. The scenery was quite beautiful.

The Canadian border was just ahead.

We stopped at the border, a Canadian Customs agent boarded the bus and checked passports.

Fraser train station is right at the border. Dani picked up 6 others to join our tour. We would be dropped off here later in the day to take the train back to Skagway.

To be continued...

Day 9 – Skagway, Dyea Dave Emerald Lake Tour & White Pass Yukon Route Train (Continued)

Continuing along the Klondike Highway, we stopped for photos at the Yukon sign. It was nice to be the only ones there as most other pull offs had large tour buses.

Fireweed. I love this flower, the locals don’t. Once it blooms it’s a sign that the first snowfall is about 60 days away. Similar to the groundhog seeing his shadow.

Next was the Carcross Desert. I read about and saw photos of this most unusual place in the Yukon. A genuine desert in a cool climate. Weird, but very cool to see!

Emerald Lake was our next stop and the farthest north we traveled in the Yukon. What a breathtaking site! This is a private lake, but easily viewed from a pull-off on the side of the road. This was also our turnaround spot.

We pulled into the small town of Carcross, formerly Caribou Crossing, population 301. Dani gave us a drive through tour first, then parked and let us wander on our own for about an hour. She mentioned that kids attend school in Whitehorse, 45 miles away. They are picked up by bus on Monday mornings and spend the week at the school, coming back to Carcross on Friday afternoons. If I remember correctly, the number of students in the graduating class is in the single digits.

We opted to have lunch at the Bistro. The food was delicious! We didn’t have too much time after lunch, so we just stayed in the boardwalk area where local artists had mobile shops set up. Everyone was so friendly and there was a lot of talk about the warm weather. It was 22 degrees Celsius. I think that is somewhere in the 70’s, but with the sun beating down, it was downright hot, and we were overdressed.

This was the cutest town! I just wish we had more time to explore. Before leaving Carcross, we stopped at the Visitors Center to get an official stamp in our passports. We boarded the bus and headed to Fraser to catch the train back to Skagway.

What beautiful pictures of Emerald Lake and Summit Lake. Enjoying your review!

Day 9 – Skagway, Dyea Dave Emerald Lake Tour & White Pass Yukon Route Train (Continued)

We arrived at the Fraser train station and Dani got our seating assignment from one of the conductors. We were assigned the last car of the train. This turned out to be the best car for photos and videos.

The conductor/tour guide made an announcement asking everyone to limit their time on the outdoor platforms, so everyone would have an opportunity for photos. He used the words ‘no one likes a platform hog’. There were only 2 other couples in our car, but one couple immediately went to the outside platform and stayed there for a majority of the ride. This couple clearly didn’t think the announcement applied to them.

I did manage to squeeze my way onto the back platform from time to time. There was also an outdoor platform in the front of the car that usually had space available.

The train ride was captivating. So much to see. The scenery was incredible, as it was everywhere throughout this adventure. The train travels on narrow ridges, very high up and close to the edge at times.

The White Pass Trail was certainly visible. The tour guide shared lots of interesting stories about the gold rush and the history of the Alaska Railroad.

The ride was so peaceful until we stopped and picked up a group of hikers. There were about 15 of them, families with young kids and they were seated in our car. This completely changed the tone of the trip as they were all over the place, moving from seat to seat and were very loud for the remainder of the ride.

We were happy to arrive in Skagway. After showing our passports to the US Customs Agent, we hopped off the train to find Dani waiting for us right outside of the train car. She dropped us off in town and we wandered around for a bit and did some shopping.

Skagway is my favorite of all the port towns we visited. This is probably because we walked around late in the day and most other cruise passengers were already back on their ships. I think there were only 2 ships in port too.

To be continued...

Day 9 – Skagway, Dyea Dave Emerald Lake Tour & White Pass Yukon Route Train (Continued)

As we were making our way back to the ship, Sean heard a helicopter and immediately recognized it as a Coast Guard helicopter. He is very much into aviation and watches Coast Guard Alaska religiously. A career with the Coast Guard is high on his list and he’ll apply to the USCG Service Academy next year. Sure enough, in the distance there was a USCG helicopter hovering over the mountainside.

We watched through binoculars for awhile and then continued watching from the sun deck once we boarded the Coral. The helicopter eventually landed, and then went back up over to where it had been. We went to the aft on deck 11 for a better view. It appeared to hoist something, then landed again and was met by an ambulance.

Dani told us earlier in the day that there was not a hospital in driving distance, so if medical attention was needed, you were to be airlifted at a price tag of $42k. Yikes! We were never able to find any information on the rescue so it may have been a drill. It didn't matter either way, Sean was thrilled!

We had dinner at Sabatini’s since the MDR was Anytime instead of our scheduled 7:30 seating, with no guarantee of our servers. The 8:30pm departure from Skagway was the reason for Anytime dining.The food at Sabatini's was delicious, but it was very drawn out. The kids skipped out before dessert as we had been there more than 90 minutes already.

It was a beautiful night. Pete and I got drinks and headed to the lounge chairs on deck 11 aft as we departed Skagway. I wanted time to stand still. The view, the air, the humming of the engine, no cell phones… so peaceful. This feeling was present for the entire trip.

Next: Juneau - hiking at Mendenhall Glacier, salmon hatchery

Good luck to your son Sean and his application to the USCG! My son is a Coastie, has been in for 16 years and loves it ! It is a very rewarding occupation.

Good luck to your son Sean and his application to the USCG! My son is a Coastie, has been in for 16 years and loves it ! It is a very rewarding occupation.

Thank you! Has your son ever been stationed in Alaska?

Day 10 - Juneau, Mendenhall Glacier, salmon hatchery

We arrived in Juneau at 6:30am. Our rental car pick-up was scheduled for 9am and the office was within walking distance of the port.

After a leisurely breakfast, we disembarked at 9:15 and walked to Juneau Rental Car Company. It wasn’t as close as the directions implied. By the way a crow flies, it was about ¼ mile. Walking there was more like a mile to a mile and a half. Maybe that was because we thought we were going the wrong way and turned around, only to realize we had been going in the right direction.

After what felt like eternity, we arrived at the office and were given the keys to a 2005 Chevy Malibu. I was fully aware the cars rented through Juneau Rental Car Company were not new cars and it was fine. The daily rate was just over $100 and was less expensive than 4 of us taking the bus to Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center. The Malibu served its purpose and got us to where we wanted to go.

It was another beautiful day. The first stop was Mendenhall Glacier. Our timing was perfect as we seemed to beat the crowds and tour buses.

As we walked from the parking area, the glacier was visible. It just wasn’t as impressive as any other glaciers we’d seen, but still breathtaking.

We hiked the East Glacier Trail which was a nice, moderate 3.5 mile hike. I thought we’d get to Nugget Falls, but we didn’t make it there. We heard it, we just didn’t see it up close. There was a side trail to AJ Falls so we did see a waterfall.

The view from East Glacier Trail

After the 2ish hour hike we left Mendenhall Glacier parking area. We decided to check out more of Juneau and made a right onto Egan Drive.

We came upon Southeast Alaska University and took a quick driving tour of the campus. It was very small, but nice and definitely too far for either of our kids to consider applying.

To be continued...

Day 10 - Juneau, Mendenhall Glacier, salmon hatchery (continued)

From there we headed back towards downtown and stopped at the Macaulay Salmon Hatchery. This place was very interesting. We didn’t take the tour, we just walked around in awe of the vast amount of salmon there.

Shannon was not comfortable, she felt the salmon were being tortured. They were, in fact, being released into the channel. It is quite some operation and worth seeing. I enjoyed watching the seals hanging out and eyeing up their next meal.

Before returning the car, Sean and I were dropped off in town to check out some stores. This port was super crowded, and it was hard to walk on the sidewalk. It felt more like Times Square than Alaska. There were 4 ships in port.

I was on a mission to find the glacier soap store. After walking around a few streets and stopping in the Alaskan Brewing Company store, we gave up and headed back to the ship. As soon as we crossed the street, right in front of us was a cute building with 'Glacier Silt Soap' in huge letters. I don't know how we missed it. Unfortunately, it was closed. I was bummed.

Our All Aboard was 3:30pm and it was getting close to that time. Pete and Shannon were waiting for us by the gangway. We boarded the ship and headed up to the sun deck for a cocktail and some people watching.

As we departed Juneau we kept an eye out for whales. We got lucky and saw 2 orcas. They were far away and by the time I got the camera they were too far to get any good shots.

Dinner was in the main dining room, it was the second formal night. I think fried chicken was on the menu. This seemed like an odd meal for formal night, but it was a big hit with the kids.

It was another beautiful night so we strolled to what was becoming our favorite evening spot, the lounge chairs on deck 11 aft.

The view leaving Juneau

Next: Ketchikan – float plane bear viewing excursion

Loving your review!! We just booked this week this same itinerary on the Royal Princess for June 2019. We are also late 40's traveling with our son and daughter just a little older than yours.

 

How far in advance did you book most of your tours, hotels, etc.. I feel like I'm behind already. Right now all we have is the cruise. Hoping to do 3 or 4 days prior DIY and a few days after in Vancouver.

 

Never been to Alaska but having cruised many times (in more tropical areas ;):D).

We are cruising June 2019 and feel like I have much research to do. We need a support group. We are spending 2 days in Fairbanks before Princess Land tour. Then DIY Vancouver and Seattle.

Let me know if you discover anything.

Bobbi

Day 11 – Ketchikan, float plane toTraitor’s Cove

It was another beautiful, warm day in Alaska. In my opinion, Ketchikan could very well be the float plane capital of the world. They were taking off in threes as we were pulling into port. Then landing in threes. I could have sat on the balcony and watched the planes all day long! In a few short hours we would be in one of those planes.

We didn’t have to check in for our excursion until 11:15 so we had time for some laps around deck 7 and breakfast at Horizon Court.

After breakfast we disembarked and thought we’d walk around town as we had about 40 minutes to kill before check-in. Wow was it busy! Like Juneau, it felt more like Times Square than Alaska.

A friend of mine from high school lives in Ketchikan seasonally and works at a jewelry store on Front St. I stopped in for a quick visit. She recommended walking to Creek Street so that’s what we did.

My family was not happy with the crowds of people and opted to stay behind. I strolled along Creek Street by myself. They made the right decision as I felt a bit claustrophobic with so many people walking aimlessly. I did stop in a few shops and decided I would go back after our float plane/bear viewing trip, hoping it would be less crowded.There were 4 ships in port that day.

I found this and thought it was perfect for Pete! I’m so mad I didn’t go back and have it shipped home.

We checked in at the Visitors Center and had to wait about 20 minutes until we were called to board the van. It was a quick drive through town to Southeast Aviation’s office/dock. We met our tour guide, Kim and pilot, Kevin. They were both great! I fully admit I was nervous knowing that there was a float plane crash just weeks earlier. If the weather wasn’t ideal, we weren’t going up (this was my decision, the rest of my family was not in agreement with me). Thankfully there was not a cloud in the sky, phew!

A solo traveler from Germany, the 4 of us, Kim and Kevin made our way down the dock. Kim pointed out how much of each piling was visible during low tide. The tide fluctuation in Alaska is crazy! When we returned 3 hours later, the water was covering the barnacles.

As Kevin had us board the plane, I asked if Sean could sit up front in the passenger seat because he wants to be a pilot. I knew sitting up front would absolutely make Sean’s day, and I also knew he was too shy to ask. In the end he thanked me and was so happy to be up front.

Kevin gave us a short safety briefing, we put on our headphones and we were off! It all happened so fast I forgot to be nervous! At least for the time being...

To be continued

Day 11 – Ketchikan, float plane to Traitor’s Cove (continued)

It was a gorgeous 20-minute flight to Traitors Cove. Once we arrived at the dock we exited the plane and made our way to a van and Kim drove us to the viewing platform.

To access the platform we walked along a trail that was approximately ¾ of a mile. Kim pointed out signs of bears in the area including fresh scat. We were really hoping to get lucky and see bears fishing for salmon.

As we approached the platform we noticed there was another group there. They had not seen any bears. Bummer. The platform overlooks a running creek, but there hadn’t been rain in about 2 weeks, so the water was very low. Too low for the salmon to be running, therefore, no bears.

The other group left, and we stayed for about an hour or so. We kept looking, but nothing. We did see a bald eagle land in a tree across the creek so that was cool. But we were not cool. It was so hot with the sun beating on us and there wasn’t much of a breeze. Kim thought it was good idea to head to the lake where it would be cooler, and we may just spot a bear there.

The lake was just up the road a bit. Kim was right, it was much cooler. She pointed out a gravel road and said that was the most likely place we'd see a bear. The view of the lake was beautiful. After taking a few family photos, we were having a nice conversation with our new friend from Germany when suddenly Kim called out, 'bear'! Sure enough, a black bear was crossing the gravel road. By the time I picked up my camera, I was only able to snap a photo of the bear’s rear end as he wandered into the woods.

Having seen so many bears during our time on the Kenai Peninsula, we were not at all disappointed. Our visit to Traitors Cove was so peaceful and relaxing.

Kevin was waiting for us at the dock. We boarded the plane and in no time, we sped off in the water like a motor boat, but were quickly in the air like an ordinary plane.

Because of the perfect weather, Kevin told us he was taking the scenic route back to Ketchikan. It was so incredibly beautiful, but I was nervous! We were so close to the mountains and it was breezy. He was telling Sean about catching the updraft and boy could you feel it! Apparently catching an updraft is a good thing, but it still made me nervous. I was thankful for my camera. Snapping photos and taking videos helped keep my mind from wandering.

To be continued

Day 11 – Ketchikan, float plane to Traitor’s Cove (continued)

Once we were over water my nerves calmed. Our final approach had us flying low right next to the cruise ships quickly followed by a smooth water landing.

Coral Princess fly by

This trip was absolutely worth every penny! I’m very grateful for the nice weather. I really don’t think I would have had this experience if the weather on this day was typical Ketchikan weather.

It was later than we expected when we arrived back in town. There wasn't enough time to go back to Creek Street so we stopped in a few shops close to the ship. The crowds had thinned substantially.

I was caught off guard and lured into a fragrance and cosmetics store by a salesman that put a small shopping bag with a free gift in my hand. Next thing I know, I'm in the store and he is applying eye cream under my eye and asking my daughter if she notices the brightness/tightness blah, blah, blah. I insisted I wasn't buying the $250 miracle eye cream, but he applied it to the other eye, so it was even. We managed to get out of there without spending a dime.

It was getting close to the all-aboard time so we could only visit a couple of stores. I was searching for earrings for my mom, and I had a specific idea of what I wanted. I didn't find exactly what I was looking for, but I did find a nice pair that I'm sure she will love. I also picked up some Devil's Club hand salve and lip balm. Devil's Club is a plant I was seeing over and over again, and couldn't get over the size of the leaves. While we were on the bear viewing tour, I mentioned this to Kim and she gave me quite a bit of info about the plant. She mentioned the hand salve from Devil's Club was exceptional, so I when I saw it in a store, I had to buy it. I still have not used it, but with the cold weather on the horizon, I'm sure I'll be using it soon.

We were back on the ship right around the all-aboard time of 4:30. I touched my face under my eye it felt scaly and cracked. I found a mirror and the eye cream dried and left a white, crusty mess that was nearly impossible to rub off, even with make-up remover wipes! Boy was I happy I stood my ground and didn't buy the eye cream.

After the painstaking process of scrubbing the dried eye cream off my face, we headed to the sun deck for a cocktail while we pulled out of port. Instead of our usual table, we sat in lounge chairs and played Deadliest Catch Trivia. This is about the time I felt sad that our unbelievable vacation was almost over.

Dinner was in the main dining room, and we were pleased with another delicious meal. After dinner the four of us took in the Master Illusionist Hawley Magic Show. They were finalists on America’s Got Talent a few years back, if I remember correctly. We all enjoyed it.

Next: Sea day

Thank you so much for your wonderful review. My husband and I are doing this cruise with 4 nights DIY in Kenai next summer. You mentioned you got a 40% discount from Major Marine Tours around the Thanksgiving holiday. How did you find that discount? Email, newsletter or just lucky??? Thanks so much!

Thank you so much for your wonderful review. My husband and I are doing this cruise with 4 nights DIY in Kenai next summer. You mentioned you got a 40% discount from Major Marine Tours around the Thanksgiving holiday. How did you find that discount? Email, newsletter or just lucky??? Thanks so much!

Hi there. I read a couple of reviews that mentioned a Black Friday discount offered by Major Marine so I started looking at their website the week before. If I remember correctly, the website had the information about the upcoming Cyber Monday discount. I just pulled up my receipt and it's dated 11/27 so it was a Cyber Monday deal. Enjoy your planning!

Day 12 - Sea Day

Our last day was spent at sea and the weather wasn’t nearly as nice as it had been in all 3 ports. It was chilly and overcast. Pete and I ran on the promenade deck, picked up coffee at International Café, and then headed to Horizon Court for breakfast with the kids. Sean made sure he loaded up on his carbs with only one buffet breakfast left.

Since we hadn’t done any shopping on the ship, Shannon and I decided to check out the shops. Lots of passengers had the same idea. The shops were packed!

We picked up a few things and headed back to our stateroom to begin the dreaded task… packing (insert sad face here). As I was folding clothes, staring at the water through the balcony door, I spotted a humpback whale! So much for packing. We stayed out on the balcony watching the water, looking for the spray, hoping to see more.

According to the Patter, the best chance to see killer whales was in the afternoon when we were going through the waters of Johnstone Strait. Canadian Pilots were scheduled to arrive at 1pm so our plan was to be on the promenade deck to see the Pilots board, and to whale watch until Bingo at 3:30.

The Pilot boat arrived right on time, but we didn’t see any whales. I was torn. I wanted to continue looking for whales, but I didn’t want to miss the final Bingo (the Snowball Jackpot was over $1500).

It was time for Bingo. Sean opted to sit in a chair on deck 6 to keep up the whale watch. During our 7 days on the Coral, we spent a fair amount of time in those club chairs on deck 6. They face the windows for perfect viewing outside. The rest of us went to the Universe Lounge for the final Snowball Jackpot Bingo. The woman from the casino staff who called the numbers was great! She kept everything moving at a good pace. There is definitely some type of Bingo lingo. I was starting to pick up on it after playing twice on this cruise. I'm not sure if it's real Bingo lingo, or Coral Princess Bingo lingo.

After Bingo ended, we found Sean just where we left him. He clearly made the better decision to stay on whale watch. We didn’t win, but he did. An orca breached right in front of him! I was so bummed I missed it. Of course he didn’t have the camera.

The weather really improved so we took our usual spot on the sun deck, enjoyed our last Happy Hour drinks, and played cards. It was a nice afternoon. And we did see a couple of orcas, but they were far away and unidentifiable in the photos.

We finished up the last of the packing and placed our bags in the hallway. Soon we were off to our last dinner with Eduardo and Astrid. The theme was American, and it was my least favorite meal. The food was good, it just wasn’t as great as it was the other nights. I'm pretty sure I had meatloaf. Something I found odd was the menu on the second formal night included fried chicken. I think that would have been a better menu selection on American night. Am I wrong?

As we ordered cappuccinos, our Cruise Director, Gary, entered the dining room and got on the mic. He said a few words, made some introductions, thanked the dining room staff/chefs and then he queued the Baked Alaska parade. Napkins were waving in the air and the servers paraded around the dining room carrying flaming Baked Alaskas. It was cute and fun, and a nice way to end our last evening. We all tried the Baked Alaska, but if I remember correctly, no one in my family thought it was anything to write home about.

Day 13 – Disembarkation in Vancouver

The morning weather was gloomy which aligned well with my mood. After packing the last of our belongings, we said goodbye to GinaLynn, our room steward. She was wonderful from start to finish! She always greeted us by our names with a big smile on her face. I made sure to mention her awesomeness in the post-cruise survey from Princess.

Our assigned disembarkation time was 8:30 to 8:45. We dragged our carry-on bags and one suitcase to our final breakfast in Horizon Court. Since we had so much with us, we took a table outside of the dining room.

The disembarkation process was very efficient. We were off the ship at 8:35, through Customs and had our luggage by 9:15. We were directed to the exit for private transportation where we waited a few minutes for our van. I booked transportation (Aerocar) in advance after reading about the size of most of the taxis. Too small for the four of us and our 300 lbs of luggage.

The drive through Vancouver made me wish we had a couple of days there. Something I noticed as we drove to the airport was the absence of screens in any windows. Small office buildings, apartments, houses; none had screens in the windows. I should mention the windows were opened, that's how I noticed this. I guess there are no bugs in Vancouver.

Our experience at Vancouver International Airport was smooth and painless. We had plenty of time to sit down for an early lunch before we boarded our flight to Newark. And we were back on the grid with wifi and cell service, that was bittersweet.

Some final thoughts…

• This was the best vacation (by a million miles) for our family. Everyone agrees.
  
• Princess Cruises exceeded our expectations. We purchased Future Cruise Credits and will most likely book a Norwegian Fjords cruise when summer 2020 itineraries are released.
  
• We loved the size of the Coral.
  
• The only change I would make to this itinerary is add one more day in Homer and one more day in Seward.
  
• I booked our return flight with Princess EZAir and was happy I did. I checked fares regularly (on different travel web sites) and changed our flight when there was a price drop. So easy.
  
• I booked the cruise during a Sip and Sail promo. This was a nice savings. I hope I'll be able to book our next cruise when this promo is offered again.
  
• I also used a big box TA and we received quite a bit of on board credit. This was nice, although we did not have the OBC to use until we boarded. I was not able to book excursions or special dining in advance unless I paid out of pocket. This is why I booked all of our excursions on my own.
  
• In the end, Expedia did the right thing. After one final, long, firm phone call the day after we returned home, I was finally able to speak to someone in the corporate office who issued a refund for the rental car price difference.
  
• This trip report took way longer to write/post than I ever imagined! But I'm glad I did it so I could relive this incredibly amazing trip. Now I'm reliving the post-vacation blues all over again.
  

Until next time...

Thanks JerseyShoreGirl, I enjoyed your review and have gathered a lot of hints from it.

Can't wait to hear about your (potential) Fjord cruise!

Thanks for the great review! We are booked on the Coral northbound from Vancouver next June with a Princess Connoisseur Escorted land tour afterwards through Denali and up to Fairbanks. We're really looking forward to the trip and your review just flamed that fire!