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Carnival Legend - August 29th Review


darin2
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We booked a category 8K extended balcony cabin, 8156, about a year prior to the cruise through USAA travel. This is a 7 day round trip cruise out of Seattle stopping in Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan, and Victoria BC. My wife, daughter (23), and I were booked in one cabin. We flew non-stop out of Atlanta into Seatac Airport, the day prior to the cruise. We used Shuttle Express to pre-book a towncar from the airport to our hotel ($52). This was very nice. The driver met us in baggage claim and helped us carry our luggage to the car. We rode in a Lincoln SUV.

 

We stayed at the Thompson Hotel in downtown Seattle. This is a new hotel that was built in 2016. The costs was around $300 with tax. It’s a nice boutique hotel, with plenty of room, and nice amenities. It’s one block from Pike Place Market, so that was a bonus.

 

We took an Uber XL from the hotel to Pier 91 the next morning around 11. Our check-in time with Carnival was 11:30am, but to be honest, I don’t think anyone really even looked, as we were there a few minutes early. I have to say the check-in process super easy. Drop off at the port is very close to the terminal. You go in and drop off your checked bags that have the Carnival tags. You then get in another line, where they check your passport or other travel documents. After that you go up an escalator, and are put in another line where you present your ticket and receive your sail and sign cards. You are then given a number and have a seat in a waiting area. We were in the waiting area maybe 15 minutes before being called to get on the boat. I’m pretty sure we were onboard before noon.

 

Once on board we went up to the Lido deck and had lunch. It was very crowded. At 1:30pm, we went to our room and settled in. All of our luggage was delivered by 2pm. The extended balcony was nice with three people in the room, and we could all sit there comfortably. I had preordered a case of water, which had been delivered. We met our cabin steward, Pepe, and signed up to have evening cleaning service. Our room steward was okay. He did the traditional towel animals every night and kept the room clean. Nothing extraordinary, but what you would expect from good service.

 

We had early dining at 5:30pm, and were put with three other guests, who we enjoyed talking with throughout the trip. We ate dinner in the main dining room every night, except the one night we ate in the Noveau Steakhouse. The service was very good. It was slow a few nights, with us coming close to missing the shows. They brought out a cake for my wife’s birthday one night, which was nice. We all thought the food in the MDR was good. There was always a good variety, and new things you wanted to try. The only real issue I had was on the lobster tail night, the lobster was overcooked and rubbery. We ate at the sushi bar a few times and thought the food was very good. We ate at the Seafood Shack on the Lido deck one time. We had the lobster roll, which was freshly made and tasted great. The fries were very good.

 

We went to all the main production shows in the Follies lounge. I thought they were all done very well, however the night they did British music, it was not as good because the songs were not very familiar.

 

The first day was at sea, so nothing really to report. We did shipboard activities and enjoyed ourselves. We did eat the brunch in the MDR. I thought the food was very good, and couldn’t eat lunch afterwards.

 

The second day was Tracy Arm Fjord. It was about 11am before we entered the fjord. It was rainy all day and cold. There were tons of icebergs floating around. We did see a black bear and whale spouts. We did get to see the glacier, but did not get to get up close because of all the icebergs in the water. They really didn’t tell us anything about it or explain, they just stopped for a period of time and then turned around and left.

 

The third day was in Skagway. We booked the dog mushing camp through Carnival for this day. We were picked up at the dock in a nice bus and took a twenty minute ride into the mountains above town. We arrived at camp and got to see salmon spawning in the river near camp. At the camp, they put us in these large diesel Mog vehicles with seats in the back. It’s a fun ride up the side of a mountain. Once at the top, they put you in a dogsled with a guide and dogs. You take a few laps around an outdoor track area, and then you get to pet the dogs and take pictures. After you get back down to the camp, they give you a talk about the dogs and how they are trained. We then got to hold 9 week old puppies. It was loads of fun, and we all enjoyed it. There was a light rain most of the time we were there, but most everything is covered. They have a gift shop with drinks and snacks if needed.

 

The van dropped us off in town on the way back. We at lunch at the Skagway Brewery, which was excellent. I love this town most of all, just because it’s small and quaint. After some shopping we walked back to the ship. I will say there is a bus that you can ride back for $2. It is a bit of a walk, depending on your level of fitness.

 

The fourth day we were in Juneau, and had great weather. We had prebooked a whale watching tour with Harv & Marv. We were picked up at the dock and taken to the boat, which was about 20 minutes away. We had 10 people on our tour, and the boat had ample space, and was nicely equipped. We saw so many whales. It was amazing. I got great shots on my camera. They also took us to see seals and sea lions. I highly recommend this tour and company. They offer snacks and drinks It was the highlight of our trip. We got back to the pier about 12:30pm. We went to Tracy’s King Crab Shack and ate lunch. Great food, and atmosphere, and the prices really weren’t that bad. We shared a combo, and one extra king crab leg.

 

The fifth day was Ketchikan. I wish we had time to do more here, but due to the fact we had to be back on the boat by 12:30pm, we just mainly walked around and shopped. We went to Creek Street and downtown. I will say that if you buy from any of the Tonga Trading Company stores, they will ship your purchases home US Priority Mail for $20. And if you buy anything from their other stores, you simply show you have purchased shipping. They hold all your items that you buy from all stores and ship them together. I thought it was a great deal, and saved us from having to put more stuff in our luggage. Our items arrived home three days after we got back.

 

The sixth day was Victoria, BC, but it was really a sea day. You don’t arrive until 7:30pm at night and have to be back in about 4 hours. We didn’t get off the ship. We used the time to go back and pack everything. There’s no show the last night and very little to do otherwise.

 

Day seven was disembarkation. We were off the ship by 8:30am. We decided to leave our luggage at the Pier 91 concierge while we went into Seattle for some sight seeing. It costs $3 a bag, and you have to pick it up by 3:30pm that afternoon. It’s very easy to find. After you pick up your luggage and walk through customs (very easy), and head toward the exit, but concierge is on the left near the exit door. They give you a tag for your luggage and even give you some tips on places to go see. We came back and got our luggage around 2pm.

 

The cruise staff was excellent, and we had a very good time overall. We had excellent weather in Juneau and Ketchikan, which was a big plus. The entertainment was very good. I would probably pick a cruise with a better port schedule next time, but it all worked out well. I’ll say the main dining room had cloth table cloths every night (this is a big deal to some people). The Noveau Steakhouse was outstanding, and one of the best meals of our trip. The best service, and wonderful views of the ocean and sunset for our dining experience. We also did the Dr. Seuss breakfast. It was very fun, but the food was average. Well worth the $5.

 

We used the carnival internet (value) on the ship. Book it prior leaving to get a discount. It was kind of like using a slow DSL internet service. You can access most websites that doesn’t having streaming media. Some times it was faster than others. My wife and I shared it. We just took turns when we wanted to check Facebook or something else. We used the Carnival Hub app for almost everything. You just connect to their wifi and access their app. You can look at schedules, dinner menus, bookmark favorites. If you add a favorite it will notify you 15 minutes prior to the event. We really liked the app and hardly ever looked at the Funtimes paper. It also lets you see all your purchases made on the cruise, which is nice.

 

We did a similar cruise to this 9 years prior. On that cruise we flew into Anchorage and took the cruise out of Whittier Alaska. We then cruised south, hitting four ports and ending in Canada. I felt like I was on an Alaskan cruise the first day that time. This time going round trip out of Seattle, it was 85 degrees when we left, and really didn’t get cold until the third day. I guess it just took longer to get the feel of the cruise this way. If I ever come back, I might cruise out of Alaska again.

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I am curious about the dress code for the dining room on both casual and formal nights, and also just the overall temperature on the ship. I have only been on Caribbean cruises and the ship is usually pretty chilly in all the public spaces and people can be totally decked out but I think the majority are a little more casual than formal. I have heard Alaskan cruises are overall more casual than others. Can someone please help me out...THANKS

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