Spirit to Alaska May 1 Glacier Bay - Observations/thoughts/pics

[AndyP7]

Just returned Tuesday from the first Alaskan cruise of the season!

 

I know that laniriveira is already in the midst of posting an in depth review, but this will be less of a day by day recounting of what we did and more of an overall synopsis/thoughts/observations kind of review. Well actually it seems to have turned out to be random bits of information which you may or may not find useful, but here goes:

 

I booked this cruise in January for my Mum and I. This was my sixth cruise (1 NCL, 4 with Carnival) and her first. I tend to cruise solo so it was different for me to have someone else along, but it was a refreshing change of pace and I really enjoyed her company. A lot of planning went into the cruise early on - we had a good idea of what excursions we wanted to do in each port, also allowing for some time to explore a little on our own.

 

This cruise left out of Vancouver and ended in Seattle. I live in Vancouver so departure was easy. Although it was kinda cool leaving from my home port, I'm used to travelling to Florida a few days ahead of my cruise, which gets me in vacation mode before boarding the ship. In this case, I was still taking care of day to day stuff in the morning and it wasn't until I was on the ship that I thought "hey, I'm on vacation!". We got to the port just after noon and were onboard and having lunch by 1pm. The line was loooooonnnnggg when we first entered the terminal, but it moved along well.

 

Departure was late (about an hour) and muster drill was late, and dinner times were moved earlier (early seating to 5:30pm each night and late seating to 7:45pm each night - a note explaining this was handed out to each guest and the reason provided was "due to popular demand" - I expect the way it was written that this may be the case for the Alaska cruises this season). All of this meant we missed our CC informal meet and greet. Never found out why we left late. However, to make up for it Canwegoyet? had arranged a cocktail party for the first sea day, which was very well attended and it was great to finally meet people from the roll call - if you're reading this, thanks again Jackie!

 

 

 

[AndyP7]

Overall Impressions/Observations:

 

Ship:

The Spirit is in great shape - no surprise given her recent dry dock. I was on the Legend in 2008 and love this class of ship. Easy to get around. Love "The Jungle" area which was never busy and great for quiet contemplation while watching for wildlife or reading a book. Buffet was a little confusing at first with different stations, but I got used to it quickly. The ship never felt overcrowded and even on sea days we were able to find a place to sit at La Playa Grill (buffet).

 

 

 

 

[AndyP7]

Crew:

The crew on this ship were the some of the friendliest I've encountered. There was an excitement in the air as some crew members had never seen snow before and couldn't wait to get to Alaska - and they weren't disappointed! Service was excellent in the dining room and bar service was always available. Room stewards did an excellent job and were helpful and friendly if something additional was needed.

 

Food:

All of the food was really good, buffet and MDR included. There was always enough choice and the food came out hot. For those of you looking for escargots - they were not available on the MDR menu, although I heard from my tablemates next to me at dinner, who heard through "some people" that they were available at the steakhouse. With such reliable information ;) who knows what the deal is, but someone else with firsthand knowledge might be able to help here. There were no special fish/crab/seafood offerings - menus were basically the seven day menus posted on John Heald's blog.

 

Entertainment:

We went to some of the main shows in the Pharaoh lounge and enjoyed some of them more than others. There was always something going on around the ship - trivia, comedy, karaoke, live music. If anyone is interested in the fun times I can email them to you, but keep in mind our itinerary was different from the usual cruises that will happen round trip from Seattle. I can't comment too much on late night activities as we tended to sleep early and get up early.

 

There was a naturalist on board, Michelle, and she was great - she provided a few informative talks and also gave updates throughout the cruise to help passengers spot wildlife as we cruised the inside passage and then again as we headed back down to Seattle.

 

Sailaway- I've included this in the entertainment area because well, I suppose it's part of entertainment. On my very first cruise with NCL there was a great sailaway party with live music and entertainment by the cruise director. I've never experienced this with Carnival. All of the sailways have been kind of anticlimactic. I think this is one area where Carnival could do something to liven things up and really make sailaway fun. Maybe I watched too many episodes of The Love Boat in my youth with the confetti throwing and my expectations are way off...anyway, just my thoughts.

 

Dress on Elegant Night:

I had read somewhere on cruise critic that people tend to dress more casually on Elegant Night on Alaskan cruises than say on Caribbean cruises. This was not my experience. Most people adhered to the dress code with some on the more casual side of cruise elegant and others on the dressier side, but I didn't see any jeans or inappropriate clothing. I did see one woman in a sweatshirt and jeans attempt to persuade a member of the dining staff that she should be allowed to go in the way she was dressed, but it didn't sound like she was winning her case (I left before there was any final resolution).

[AndyP7]

Excursions:

 

Juneau:

We went whale watching with Harv and Marv, which was excellent! We had Captain Shawn as our guide and he shared a lot of information about the types of whales we might see (Humpbacks and Killer Whales/Orcas) and some of their habits at this time of year. There were just six of us on the boat, which allowed for great viewing and a more personalized experience. Even without seeing whales, the views of the bay when out on the water were just gorgeous. A stop at Mendenhall Glacier ended a great day :)

After our excursion we explored some of the shops and walked around town for a little bit.

 

The Marina at Auke Bay:

 

Our boat:

 

Whale blow!

 

A Mom and her calf:

 

Humpback!

[AndyP7]

Whale tail!

 

And another:

 

One more:

 

Even without whale sightings, the water was beautiful :)

[AndyP7]

A stop at Mendenhall Glacier:

 

 

 

And some random people (on the left) who insisted in being in the picture. Anyone else have these picture crashers? :)

[AndyP7]

Skagway:

We booked the White Pass Rail 3 hr ride up to the summit and back. The train pulls in right behind the ship! It was a very scenic ride and I was happy to be seeing it in May when there was still a lot of snow on the mountains. It was a little chilly at times on the open deck at the end of the train car, but if dressed appropriately it was fine and allowed for some great photo opportunities. Prior to the tour we spent the morning exploring the town and doing a little souvenir shopping.

 

Rail tracks - so small!

 

 

 

 

The old trestle bridge:

 

[AndyP7]

Ketchikan:

I had booked the Misty Fjords flightseeing tour with Michele of Island Wings. Unfortunately it was a crazy, overcast, windy, raining sideways kind of a day, so the tour was cancelled. A lot of the fishing excursions were also cancelled. Going with the flow, my Mum and I decided to walk around Ketchikan on our own. We explored Creek Street and walked around town and did a little shopping before we were completely soaking wet and headed back to the ship.

 

Creek Street:

 

 

 

[AndyP7]

Glacier Bay scenic cruising:

Although not a formal excursion, this felt like an all day excursion on the ship! There were limited activities around the ship on this day, as the main focus was on the glacier viewing. One the best parts of the day was seeing all the crew out with their crew mates taking pictures of each other in front of the glaciers. Glacier Bay is spectacular and we got the full experience, including some calving. There were also two park rangers who came on board to provide some information about what we were seeing. It was truly an amazing day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[AndyP7]

 

 

 

 

I loved seeing the Spirit whale tail against the backdrop of Alaska!

[AndyP7]

Seattle Tour:

Originally we planned to explore Seattle on our own before taking the train back to Vancouver, but it didn't leave until quite late in the day and would have gotten us back home by about 11pm. At the last minute, we cancelled our train tickets and booked a flight home. Because our flight left at 2:35pm we had just enough time to work in the Seattle Essentials tour (through Carnival), which took us to the Space Needle and Pike Place Market and then dropped us off at the airport. For us it was a great way to see a little bit of Seattle before heading home and couldn't have been easier.

 

Space Needle:

 

 

 

Pike Place Market:

 

 

 

[AndyP7]

Some random things I wanted to try this time around:

1. I had never ordered room service apart from breakfast and wanted to try a few things: the cheesecake, chocolate cake, grilled cheese and BLT. I tried these on different occasions and they were all yum!

2. Having lunch in the MDR - not so great. Don't get me wrong - food was good, but for me the portions were just too large for lunch!

3. Ordering the Indian Vegetarian dish for dinner. I wasn't overly thrilled with the menu options on the last night so I tried the Indian Vegetarian dish. Deliciousness! Everything was so tasty and it's the real deal.

4. The slot machines in the casino. I played 10 bucks in the penny slots and won 80 dollars (profit) within about 15 minutes. I decided to cash out and take my winnings knowing if I continued to play the casino would get it all back! I was happy with my little winnings on my first try :)

 

Some helpful hints:

 

Packing:

I way overpacked. This is not really a surprise as I'm a "I-like-to-have-options" girl, but I really tried to be practical for this trip bringing one 25" suitcase and a camera bag. I just brought too many options! I did do well in the layering department and had enough warm weather options without looking like Randy in his snowsuit in A Christmas Story. Really the key is to have lots of layers and the right outerwear. I had brought a lightweight down jacket to wear on glacier day, which came in handy on the White Rail Pass excursion. A knee length heavier rain jacket was great as a wind breaker for windy days and out on deck, and for the sideways rain we had in Ketchikan. Hoodies were super useful as the hood could be tied up and not blow away while keeping you warm. Uggs or rainboots or hiking boots? If you read the CC Cruise Fashions and Beauty board you will get all kinds of opinions on what footwear to bring. I say think about what you'll be doing in each port and then decide for yourself what makes sense for you. I had read rainboots were impractical and don't breathe well. Guess what many locals in all three ports wore? haha!

 

Blankets:

O.k. it might sound weird but my Mum and I brought wool lap blankets. Maybe we wanted to go back in time and imagine ourselves doing a transatlantic crossing sitting out on deck on wooden chairs with our throws, but we brought them. And used them on our balcony whenever we sat out there. But Carnival will also provide them if you go to the Serenity deck. They are treated the same way as towels - borrow one and then return it at the end of the day. No need to pack extra stuff.

 

My Mum keeping warm in her blanket :)

 

Both of us enjoying the balcony and scenery:

 

Starboard or port side?:

If I had to do it over again, I would have chosen to be on the port side, assuming we would dock in the same way at each of the ports (which I realize is not always a guarantee). This would have allowed for more viewing from our balcony coming into ports and as we sailed towards Seattle along the outside of Vancouver Island.

 

Rooms on the eighth/Verandah deck. We were in cabin 8231 extended balcony, under the lido deck. Overall it was pretty quiet, but we did hear some noise from above a few nights (chair scraping). I usually prefer to be sandwiched between two decks of staterooms but we were upgraded at no cost to the extended balcony so I can't complain.

 

Overall, this was an awesome cruise. Alaska is absolutely beautiful and Carnival did a great job of showing it to us :) I would book it again in a heartbeat!

 

If anyone has questions, let me know and I'll try to answer them for you.

 

Andrea

[mrpayroll]

Thanks for taking time to write your review. It's been 5 years since our Alaska cruise ( on Princess ). Loved your pictures. We also did the White Pass railroad. Very beautiful scenery.

[Gypsywych]

Goodness! Beautiful pictures. Thank you for posting!!

[gelo7]

I need to bundle up and do this cruise.

[Cyndi03]

Thank you so much for your review. We are leaving out of Seattle on the 22nd of this month! I can't seem to get into packing mode because I am so confused on what to pack. Your review helped. Your pictures were absolutely beautiful. Thanks for taking the time to share.

[sharecruises]

Whoooo hooo...thanks so much for your great review

 

can you please send me the fun times

 

estymeetup@aol.com

 

I realize they will be different from my r/t seattle but I would so appreciate

 

if you are a past guest, when was past guest party?

 

I wonder if all the dinners will be moved up like this?? interesting

 

did you see the comedy shows, was there a "cover band"??

 

NO Alaska fish?? No Alaska salmon?? Booo....I saw last year fun times and it seems they offered that

 

where was a good place to sit and watch scenery?? I have a balcony but prefer to sit on deck with friends, so what would you suggest?

 

I am a Florida person , allergic to down and wool LOL>> maybe I can snuggle under an acrylic blanket LOL??

 

Thanks so much for your pictures and review

[silvercrikhix]

Thank you so much for sharing your Alaska cruise thoughts!

Could you please email me the Fun Times? TIA

sallybodean@yahoo.com

[realtreebar]

Thanks for sharing leaving in a few months:)

[musicgal]

Ah yessss.... we will be in a similar cabin on the starboard side. So looking forward to it. Nice pictures!

[klmorg]

Thanks for the review & pics! We are going on the EXACT same excursions as you in a few weeks in Juneau, Skagway & Ketchikan. Except, we are taking our first Princess cruise, and are doing a southbound from Anchorage (Whittier) to Vancouver. I hope we will be able to make the Misty Fjords flightseeing excursion, but understand the weather sometimes changes those plans. Thanks again............

[AndyP7]

Thanks everyone for your comments. I'm glad some of the information is helpful.

 

One other thing I wanted to mention. We found a really great book in the gift shop onboard called "The Alaska Cruise Handbook" which contained tons of historical and current information about Alaska. It also contained a pull out map which we used to track our route through the inside passage. It sold for $19.95 and makes a great souvenir. As a side note, most of the hot weather Caribbean gift shop items were changed out for warm weather Alaska items so if you forget your hat, scarf, gloves or need a sweatshirt, they've got you covered (of course - they want to make $$!).

[AndyP7]

Whoooo hooo...thanks so much for your great review

 

can you please send me the fun times

 

estymeetup@aol.com

 

I realize they will be different from my r/t seattle but I would so appreciate

 

if you are a past guest, when was past guest party?

 

I wonder if all the dinners will be moved up like this?? interesting

 

did you see the comedy shows, was there a "cover band"??

 

NO Alaska fish?? No Alaska salmon?? Booo....I saw last year fun times and it seems they offered that

 

where was a good place to sit and watch scenery?? I have a balcony but prefer to sit on deck with friends, so what would you suggest?

 

I am a Florida person , allergic to down and wool LOL>> maybe I can snuggle under an acrylic blanket LOL??

 

Thanks so much for your pictures and review

 

I'll be scanning the Fun Times this weekend and can email them to you once they're all ready.

 

I didn't see the comedy shows. I've been to a few on past cruises and I find them to be really hit and miss. So this time we found other things to do.

 

I think the cover band was called "Bridges". They played in the main atrium and did covers of a variety of music. There were two singers - one guy and one girl. IMO, the guy was better than the girl.

 

The past guest party was on Thursday, May 3rd from 11-11:45am. I thought it was a strange time. In fact, I ended up not going because of the timing/conflicts with other activities.

 

I was hoping for some different seafood offerings at dinner too, particularly because I read in a few reviews that this was available in the past. Oh well, food was still good!

 

I noticed that on Glacier Bay day (and other days) that a lot of the Lido deck chairs were brought inside to the La Playa Grill area and lined up against the windows. Many people sat there and watched the scenery go by (warm and dry spot!). It didn't interfere with the buffet dining because the regular seating was unaffected. Also the pool area on the Lido deck had the dome cover, so that part was protected by the elements and some people sat out there as well. Many people spent time under the covered part of the Serenity area. It seemed to be heated and people cozied up on the couches. Not the best viewing but they could wander over to the railings every so often to watch the scenery and then come back.

 

I think the blankets Carnival provides are not wool. At least they didn't look like wool and I think with all the washings they would go through, they would choose a fabric that requires less maintenance.

 

Hope that helps!

 

Andrea

[AndyP7]

Thank you so much for sharing your Alaska cruise thoughts!

Could you please email me the Fun Times? TIA

sallybodean@yahoo.com

 

Hi,

 

I'll be scanning all the Fun Times this weekend and will email them to you once I have them all ready :)

 

Andrea

[AndyP7]

Thanks for the review & pics! We are going on the EXACT same excursions as you in a few weeks in Juneau, Skagway & Ketchikan. Except, we are taking our first Princess cruise, and are doing a southbound from Anchorage (Whittier) to Vancouver. I hope we will be able to make the Misty Fjords flightseeing excursion, but understand the weather sometimes changes those plans. Thanks again............

 

The whale watching with Harv and Marv was just great - you'll love it! I really hope you get good weather for Ketchikan and can do Misty Fjords. I was disappointed but what can you do? I guess I'll just need to go back again!

 

Andrea