Extensive review (with pictures) of NCL Pearl to Alaska July 28, 2013

[cruisecritiquer]

You have just determined our next cruise for us!

 

I don't recall having this much fun reading a review before. Maybe it's because I rarely catch them as they are being posted.

 

I was soooooooo waiting for your DH to need a nap after the zipline. I thought to myself...he will surely need a nap after that one. :D

[JRA1708]

We went to dinner pretty casually dressed. DH just wanted to eat at the Garden Cafe, which was fine by me. Took our time eating then went to the 9:15pm show in the Stardust called "Second City". It was ok. DH really thought it was funny. I like Saturday Night Live improv, but...idk..this left me kinda meh. Later we went to the "White Hot Party" in the Spinnaker Lounge, we didn't stay long, but it was fun, with a lot of people dancing. Time for bed after of VERY FUN day!

[JRA1708]

You have just determined our next cruise for us!

 

I don't recall having this much fun reading a review before. Maybe it's because I rarely catch them as they are being posted.

 

I was soooooooo waiting for your DH to need a nap after the zipline. I thought to myself...he will surely need a nap after that one. :D

 

I am glad my review makes you want to pick the Pearl. It is really a nice ship. The crew is FANTASTIC! I really did love everything about this cruise. I read a lot of reviews before we went, and thought to myself, maybe I made a bad choice. Now I think, wow..how could my review be so different from some of the BAD ones :confused: I guess it's my attitude (maybe) I was in such AWE of the BEAUTIFUL SCENERY of Alaska, it just made me SMILE everyday!! Like DH pointed out though, if the weather was different and it rained everyday, we might of had another take on the whole experience.

[cruisecritiquer]

I am glad my review makes you want to pick the Pearl. It is really a nice ship. The crew is FANTASTIC! I really did love everything about this cruise. I read a lot of reviews before we went, and thought to myself, maybe I made a bad choice. Now I think, wow..how could my review be so different from some of the BAD ones :confused: I guess it's my attitude (maybe) I was in such AWE of the BEAUTIFUL SCENERY of Alaska, it just made me SMILE everyday!! Like DH pointed out though, if the weather was different and it rained everyday, we might of had another take on the whole experience.

 

We were on the Pearl last Thanksgiving but she was in the Caribbean. I love both the Pearl and the Jewel. I just have never had the pleasure of sailing on one of them in Alaska! Your trip looks like it was amazing! I can't wait to start planning. I already showed DH your pictures! :D

[brunolvr]

I am glad my review makes you want to pick the Pearl. It is really a nice ship. The crew is FANTASTIC! I really did love everything about this cruise. I read a lot of reviews before we went, and thought to myself, maybe I made a bad choice. Now I think, wow..how could my review be so different from some of the BAD ones :confused: I guess it's my attitude (maybe) I was in such AWE of the BEAUTIFUL SCENERY of Alaska, it just made me SMILE everyday!! Like DH pointed out though, if the weather was different and it rained everyday, we might of had another take on the whole experience.

 

I am enjoying your pictures and review very much!

 

We will be cruising to Alaska on the Pearl in a short 5 weeks!:D Am so glad to hear you had a great time on the Pearl and enjoyed the crew and staff onboard.

 

Our upcoming cruise will be our 9th to Alaska (and 4th on the Pearl) and we are just as excited as we have been for each any every one of them. Each time the weather is different and each time we see and do different things.

 

We know we will have a good time! It always helps to have a positive attitude and seeing the beauty of Alaska all around you does nothing but reinforce that feeling.

 

Did you have the butler serve any meals in your suite? What kind of nightly treats did he bring? Did you do the "dining with officers" dinner?

 

September 15th can't come soon enough for us to enjoy another "suite" cruise to Alaska!;)

 

Thanks again for sharing your beautiful pictures and your cruise on the Pearl with all of us!:)

[Poipu04]

Great review. We will be on the Pearl in 4 weeks and I am enjoying this fantastic review!

[JRA1708]

Your welcome to all! Sorry I took a long break :o ready to get started again!

[JRA1708]

Next up..GLACIER BAY!!

 

Again, what a Beautiful picture perfect day we had! I stood up in what I think is called the Crow's Nest on the ship and took most of my pictures. Met a lot of nice people up there because it was so crowded. The Captain was able to stop the ship REALLY close to Margerie Glacier due to the weather being so nice and calm. What surprised me about the Glacier is the loud cracking noise it makes when it is ready to calve. Almost sounds like a gun shot :eek: but we did see our share of calving. Not BIG HUGE chunks, but still thrilling to watch. While at my perch up in the Crow's Nest and the captain was turning the ship so all could get a good view, some of my fellow mates pointed out how lucky the people were that had Aft-Cabins, because... when the aft was facing the Glacier you prob felt like you could reach out & touch the Glacier. (SLAP IN THE FOURHEAD! DUH!) DH & I headed to our AFT CABIN :o I made some coffee, and thats where we sat until the Pearl started to pull away. Oh, and after a while DH took a NAP lol.

[JRA1708]

More pictures of the AMAZING Glacier Bay...

 

Again...I feel like I am Gushing with words like..AWESOME, BEAUTIFUL, AMAZING, GLORIOUS, BREATH TAKING so on and so on. But that's what it was and MORE!

[JRA1708]

I feel the need to point out something about my DH :cool: I know some of you are thinking..how lame to need to take so many naps on such an awesome vacation. Well here's the thing, I DON'T mind the naps at all..in 2004 he was diagnosed with stage 4 Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma and he fought back to be where he is now :) So I am just HAPPY (actually ecstatic) that he is here with me now. He prognosis wasn't that great, so if he needs to take 2, 3 or more naps a day. I'll fluff his pillow for him :D

 

Ok..back to the subject..our Alaska trip :)

 

After our Glorious day in Glacier Bay, at 3:30pm we entered another Slot Tournament. I actually finished 1st, so I was put into the final's that would be on Friday as long as no one else bumped me out. So that was exciting. We played some more in the Casino, then went back to our cabin to get ready for Dinner. Patrick made reservations for us at Le Bistro. The meal was on the upside of good. I thought Moderno was better, but DH really liked it. I am not sure how they found out it was our Anniversary, but they (waiter's) came out and sang to us. DH thought I set the whole thing up, but I really didn't lol.

We decided on the late show 9:15 pm it was Comedy and Magic with Jeff Hobson. Every show DH & I had been to so far, we sat up in the Balcony seats in the front row. For this show because there was Magic involved, I told DH that I would like to sit as close to the front as possible. Don't get me wrong, the Balcony seats are really good, but for a show like this, I like seeing the little things that you might miss from afar. Right before the show, Jeff Hobson actually came out and was interacting with some of the audience. He DID approach me, pointed and said "Nice shirt" and I in return, pointed back to him and said "Nice shirt" lol. We both had on black sequin tops, his being a blazer.

He was VERY FUNNY during the show and Very entertaining. He pulled a man onto the stage and then a young boy, making them do silly things and magic tricks. Then he approached the audience saying it was a women's turn, and guess who got pulled up :eek: it was a lot of fun, and I could hear DH laughing his head off. I made an egg disappear, don't ask me how I made an egg disappear, because I couldn't tell you lol. He also stole my watch while I was up on stage, and for the life of me I don't know how he did it! It's a new watch with a very stiff band, I have a hard time getting it off. So like I said, he was VERY good! Our kids got a hoot out of it at home, just wish we had some pictures of it! After the show, we went to the Casino for a little while and there must have been a ton of people there that went to the Jeff Hobson show, because a lot were calling me by name and telling me good job up on stage. And it would be like that for the rest of the cruise lol. DH said he draws the limit of me having to sign autographs :p anyway...it was fun, fun, FUN!!

[CruiseIreland]

Loving your review and especially your photos. No one has asked yet what camera you are using, so if I may...what camera are you using?:)

 

Delighted your husband has made a good recovery and we wish him much better health in future!

 

Your review is persuading me to try and persuade herself to make the long flight across the Atlantic. Thanks, Ken

[ssims20]

I'll add my thanks for the review - I will be a first time cruiser next May on the Jewel to Alaska so I love all the little details. I am hoping to be able to try the ziplining in one of the ports providing some current physical limitations can be remedied by then. So fingers crossed on that. And I too am glad that your DH has recovered so well, but honestly, no explanation needed. I know that I will likely not be one for bingo and deal or no deal or trivia games but I absolutely will be one for reading a good book, taking a nap, reading another good book, taking another nap, taking another nap, reading another good book, and oh yea, another nap. And I will consider that a great cruise.

[JRA1708]

Friday, Day 6..Ketchikan, we arrived early, and we were up and moving early. Ate at Cagney's again and again had the French Toast, DH had steak and eggs. Again the meal was excellent.

Today our excursion was the "Deadliest Catch" tour. Again we met in the Stardust, and were quickly ushered off the ship. The tour was right off to the left of where we disembarked from the ship. Very easy walk. The boat we were on is actually one of the boats they have used on the Deadliest Catch Show, but it was totally revamped with stadium style seating. I would guess it will seat prob 150 people total.

 

This tour was OK. I mean..it was interesting to hear about the fishing styles and what it takes to be a fisherman in Alaska. They pulled up their cages & pots, with staged catches. Which was ok, I sure no one on board wanted them to pull up a cage that was empty.

 

We got to see Eagles, not to many though because their bellies were already full Salmon that they could catch on their own. So they weren't overly thrilled at wanting the chum the deck hands were throwing out to them.

 

[JRA1708]

We got to hold live Crabs, and another type of fish that I passed on. The crew was very friendly and informative. There was a small souvenir store in the haul of the boat. I bought a couple T-shirts, the prices weren't bad. IDK..like I said, this excursion was just OK. I found myself walking around the boat while they were talking and looking for Eagles to fly by (yawn).

 

 

Would I do this excursion again? Probably not :( , for the price, next time I would def pick doing a SeaPlane Flight.

[auntierobin]

We did that tour last year, and there were at least 50 eagles that I could count in one of my pictures. They would fly so close that you could feel the breeze from their wings. It just goes to show what a different experience people can have on the same excursion taken at another time.

 

When we were on the excursion, Derrick Ray from DC was on the ship, which also made it fun. Would I do it again? Probably, once we've done all the others

[JRA1708]

We were able to walk around Ketchikan for about an hour. We looked for the Owl Nesting Dolls with NO luck :( I bought 3 Northern Lights Glacier Gem's for our 3 daughters. I feel like I got a really good price. I told the salesman that I needed 3, and got him to drop the price considerably. Plus the girl's loved them when we got home, so I am really glad I have the gift of gab, because I would have never of paid the price he was originally asking.

We were back on the ship by 1:00 pm, ate a quick lunch in the Garden Cafe. DH had his NAP and I had my coffee. Went to the Crew's Talent Show in the Stardust, it was really good. Joel, the Cruise Activities Director has an AWESOME VOICE, just hearing him sing made it worth while. And of course we got to see the "FOUNTAIN'S SHOW" it was Very Funny!

The Final's for the Slot Tournament were at 3:30pm, and I was still in 3rd place. Come time for the Tournament, I was 3rd in picking which slot machine out of six that I wanted to sit at. I picked #5 and ended up coming in 3rd at the end. In hinds sight, I had my hand on the machine that won, and changed my mind :mad: (note to self..always go with your 1st instinct) Anyway...the slot tournament was fun, and I am glad I took part in it. We had raffle tickets to win a free cruise, that we had bought while at a show in the Stardust Theatre. The tickets had to be turned in during Bingo, and all Bingo's were in the Spinnaker Lounge. So DH and I head to the Spinnaker to hand in our tickets at the 4:30pm Bingo only to find out that they were to be handed at Saturdays Bingo. So we left, DH went back to the room and I went shopping around the ship.

Later we went to the 7:00pm "Showtime, Encore" Show in the Stardust Theater. It was good. The singer & dancer's did highlights of different Broadway Shows.

Next we went to the Spinnaker Lounge for the 8:15pm show "Second City, unscripted" It was good, not great but good.

I really enjoyed the Spinnaker Lounge. We saw quite a few show's there and even participated in the Gent's verses Ladies event. I like the way the whole Spinnaker is set up...it's very cozy.

We hung around for the next entertainment and that was "The Liars Club". It had Jeff Hobson, Michael Ziegfeld, Pedro (CD) and Piano Man Jim. This show as always was very entertaining and funny.

 

The ship was heading out into open water by now and heading to Victoria BC. This was the only time we really noticed the ship swaying and rocking quite a bit. DH was starting to feel pretty crappy by the end of the show. Once during our long walk back to our cabin, I turned around and he was nowhere to be found. He had stopped to lean against the wall, feeling pretty sure he was gonna be sick. He made it to the cabin, and I gave him motion tab's and he fell asleep. In the morning he was fine.

[JRA1708]

Day 7, Victoria BC- We slept in today 8:00am :eek:, had breakfast at Garden Cafe, and the food again was good. This was a pretty leisure day, because we wouldn't be getting off in Victoria until 6:00pm. So I did more gift shopping and DH went onto the top deck to watch the youth play basketball. By 10:30am we decided since the casino closed early we would go play for awhile. DH usually plays Blackjack, but today he was moving from one Slot Machine to another. I was playing Roulette. I could see DH from where I was sitting & after a little while I notice him frantically waving at me :confused: so I hesitantly cashed out and headed his way. He was playing a Quickhit Machine and had won the Progressive :eek: I COULDN'T BELIEVE IT!!! I have NEVER seen anyone win a large amount of $$ before on a cruise, and I really thought it couldn't be done. GUESS I WAS WRONG!!

I think he skipped his Nap that afternoon lol

[JRA1708]

I need to add..remember the raffle tickets for a free cruise we tried to hand the yesterday and found out they had to be handed in on Saturday? Well all the Bingo's have been at 4:30pm everyday, all week. We went at 4:30pm and found out the drawing was earlier at 11:30am. If we would have been paying attention to the daily, we should have been sitting in the Spinnaker at Bingo instead of DH sitting at a Penny Slot winning the Progressive. BUT, we also could have won a cruise..sooooo..just a thought!

[pamletx]

So enjoying your report! The pictures are great!

 

We will 100% be going back to Alaska some day - absolutely LOVED it!

 

Pearl is a beautiful ship!

 

Congrats to hubby on the big win!!

[Poipu04]

Congratulations on the jackpot! You two really deserve it! I am happy to hear that DH's health is on the mend.What a trip of a life time!

 

BTW, did the Pearl have any onboard lounge singer/piano player/guitar player sort of act? I know the Gem and Jewel usually have someone like that outside of the Champagne bar area.

[Cruiser Bruiser]

Thanks for posting your review of your Alaska cruise on the Pearl. I've sailed her twice, including once to Alaska and had an awesome time, too. You've got me tempted to go back for some zip lining and to do the White Mountain Pass railroad. Cheers! :)

[kapoho2]

We went on the same cruise on the Pearl the same week last year. We were also celebrating an anniversary. Our weather was less than perfect. Just goes to show you never know...lol. We had drizzle and cool temperatures almost everyday. Our day in Glacier Bay was extremely foggy. At first I was disappointed, but it made the whole experience very eerie and actually, my pictures came out beautifully in a spooky way. So, I am loving your review and especially your photos....with the glorious sun shining down in all of them. thanks!

 

But, we will definitly do the Alaskan cruise again....we loved it despite the weather.

[JRA1708]

Congratulations on the jackpot! You two really deserve it! I am happy to hear that DH's health is on the mend.What a trip of a life time!

 

BTW, did the Pearl have any onboard lounge singer/piano player/guitar player sort of act? I know the Gem and Jewel usually have someone like that outside of the Champagne bar area.

 

Oh yes they had lots...

Piano Melodies with Peter James-Bar City

Solomon Tickles the Ivories- Star Bar

Live Music with Exotique- Spinnaker Lounge

Grooves with Stems & Eddie- Bar City & Crystal Atrium

Music & Humor with Piano Man Jim- Bar City

Musical Love Land with Arvin & Emily- Crystal Atrium

 

We listened to most and they were very good

[Redheel Girl]

It was a thrill to see the Pictures of your Cabin 9670 on the Pearl. I will be staying in it Sept 8th. you have such beautiful Pictures. I love the Wake and when I last went to Alaska I like you loved sitting on the Balcony watching the Wake. ...Keep showing more Pictures

[Redheel Girl]

Hi JRA1708 I will be staying in 9670 Aft who was your Butler and who was your Room Steward. It will be fun to see if I have had the same Butler before. Of course they could change just like Monica will be the Concierge Sept 8th. I really would appreciate your answer.