NCL Pearl 8/2-8/9 North to Alaska!

[taliho621]

All:

 

First, I just wanted to thank everyone on the boards that helped me with my planning, both through your own reviews and by your answers to my questions (as well as the answers to everyone else’s questions I read and reread). And I want to apologize that this took me so long to write so that it is not very helpful for the 2015 season. But hopefully it will help those planning Summer 2016 and beyond. So here is my attempt at a somewhat brief review of our cruise to Alaska on the Norwegian Pearl (became way too long, so I am submitting in multiple parts for easier reading).

 

The co-conspirators involved are me, DW, DD (19), DS (14) and my mother-in-law. We booked one balcony cabin (BB) and one inside (IC), both on Deck 10 Aft, on the port side. While all involved are semi-seasoned cruisers, this was everyone’s first trip to Alaska, as well as our first time on NCL. I will try to give a somewhat detailed blow-by-blow description with some overall thoughts on the trip itself and the Pearl at the end.

 

Friday – Left Florida via American Airlines. Arrived in Seattle pretty much on time, but for some reason it took almost 40 minutes to get our luggage. Ouch! Fortunately, our driver from Aces Town Car (cannot recommend them highly enough!) was waiting for us. Once we had our luggage, we called him and the SUV was outside the door in 3 minutes. Pleasant 20-minute ride into downtown Seattle, where we checked into the Homewood Suites on Western Avenue. What a great location! 10 minute walk (although all uphill) to Seattle Center/Space Needle, and a little over a mile and a quarter walk to Westlake/Pikes Place Market. We got a 1-bedroom suite for the five of us. While not palatial, there was plenty of room, including a small kitchenette. Great hotel, and the 1-bedroom suite allowed us to save quite a bit of money versus booking two rooms in another downtown hotel.

 

At that point, everyone was hungry, but tired. At the suggestion of the desk clerk, we walked up Queen Anne to find some dinner, and settled on 10 Mercer. Only about a 10 minute wait, which DS and I spent in the used bookstore across the street. Dinner was quite good, and the staff was even better. As we walked back, we stopped in at Dick’s (local burger chain) to get some ice cream for dessert. Then back to room and off to bed.

 

Saturday – Woke up early (still on East Coast time) and had breakfast downstairs. Pretty good spread, including eggs, potatoes, oatmeal, fresh cut fruit, pastries, breads, cereal, etc. Then we took the uphill walk to Seattle Center. Decided to get the City Passes, as the cost was less than the combined prices of Chihuly, Space Needle and EMP Museum, which were all on the agenda for the day (more on each below).

 

First went over to the Chihuly Glass Museum and Garden. So impressive. Even my 14-year old DS was impressed. And I love that they take a number of pictures of you, which you can then e-mail to yourself free of charge (what a great idea, huh, NCL?).

 

Next was the EMP Museum. A very cool place. Exhibits on fantasy, horror movies, science fiction, Jimi Hendrix, Seahawks (Patriots fans, so we skipped), and an amazing temporary exhibit on Chuck Jones, the great Looney Tunes director. That one brought back some great memories for me (Saturday mornings when there were three channels of cartoons, and That’s All Folks). We actually did not finish this all at once, as our Space Needle reservation was coming up. So we got stamps and headed over to the Space Needle. Spent some time looking around, and we even saw Pearl’s sister ship Jewel in port, but did not spend that much time there. So we took a couple of pictures and then headed back down to finish EMP.

 

After EMP, had lunch at the Armory. An impressive selection of restaurants, so everyone had their own thing (grilled cheese, burritos, bagel, veggie plate, etc.). We then took the monorail to Westlake. Okay, don’t mean to be a downer, but it’s not really a “tourist attraction”. It just seems to be a way of moving tourists from one point to another. Nothing special. I think the most remarkable part was the complete lack of air conditioning, or any air movement for that matter.

 

Once at Westlake, we split up. DS and I headed to Barnes and Noble to spend a couple of hours (after swinging by Johnny Rockets for a quick shake), while everyone else headed over to Nordstrom. Met back up and tried to figure out dinner. It was still early – 5:30 or so – and we had a 7:00 reservation at Bell Street Diner (attached to Anthonys Pier 66). So we decided to just walk there and if we were early, we were early. Went down Pine Street around the outskirts of the Market, then down to the waterfront. We were early, but we only waited about 10 minutes for a table. Dinner was not too bad – the food was good (although we really weren’t that hungry), but our server was not the best.

 

We had passed Cupcake Royale (?) on the way there, so we decided to walk back there for dessert. Good homemade ice cream with interesting flavors. Then we grabbed a cab back to the hotel and hit the sack.

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Sunday – Woke up early again and hit the breakfast buffet. Surprisingly not as good as yesterday – no plain eggs (had ham or something similar in them), no cut fruit, and no muffins! Somehow we survived and found enough to eat. Packed up and checked out. But we left all our bags at the hotel and grabbed a cab for Pikes Place Market. We could not find a van for the 5 of us (they were all at the port, we were told), so we stuffed ourselves in a Prius. DS had to keep her head down the whole way so the driver wouldn’t get busted, as there were more of us than there were seatbelts. Walked around for quite a while, buying a snack or two while we walked. Beautiful flowers everywhere. After we were done, we walked back to the hotel. We were going to go in to ask the hotel to call us two cabs (because of all our luggage) when we saw a driver dropping off at the hotel with an SUV. Asked if he was available, and he agreed to drive us to the port for $25. Can’t beat that, so we hopped in. Quick ride over there (less than 5 minutes), and the porter came right up and took our big bags. Well worth the tip. The only downside was that it was only 12:40 and we were booked to embark between 1 and 1:30. They actually checked, and would not let us get in line. Could have been worse, though. The gentleman in line in front of us had not brought a passport, telling the guard he didn’t think it was needed. I mean, come on people, how many times, in how many e-mails, had they told us we need passports? Bummer for him, I guess. So we hung for 20 minutes. Once we were in, it was 5 minutes in security line, less than 10 minutes in check-in line and then right on board (after a quick spritz of hand sanitizer of course).

 

Went right to the rooms, and dropped off our carry-ons. The rooms were not huge, and it seemed like there wouldn’t be enough storage room, but lo and behold, there actually was room for everything! Then, as per the Cruise Critic recommendations, we went to Summer Palace for lunch. It was empty. It was nice to just sit down and get served. I had tuna and tomato soup – pretty good. We then went back to rooms to find most of our bags already there, and we met our steward, Roberto. Excellent all week. Towel animals each night, always asking if we needed anything else, and always a smile. We asked him to switch the third bed set-up from the interior room to the balcony, and no problem. Then to the safety drill at Summer Palace. Honestly one of the better drills I’ve been to. There were plenty of seats for everybody, the staff was very friendly, and they made sure you were paying attention (they were asking people to put their phones away during the presentation).

 

After the drill, back to the room to watch sail-away from the balcony. Such a different sail-away than our typical Caribbean cruises, where it’s a few hours past Miami and then open sea. This was watching mountains and forests on both sides. Beautiful.

 

Then I hit up landmark trivia with DW and DS. Second place (turned out to be a theme for the week). DD and MIL napped (smart people). After that was dinner at Summer Palace. The restaurant was in fine condition, if a little dated. But the low ceiling made it pretty loud at times. We had a great waiter – Joel from the Philippines. In fact, we ended up eating at Summer Palace almost every night, and asked for him by name each night. It only took him one night to know my son’s order, and to learn all of our preferences. Look, I know, these guys are in it for the tips, and his friendly attitude and sharing his personal and family history were quite likely calculated to maximize our tip, but who cares? Like being in Disney, it’s part of the ambience, and ambience costs money. So I was more than happy to slip him some extra cash at the end of the week. As to the food, mostly fish and vegetarian. I had the cod, which to be honest was quite bland. But I did discover the chocolate volcano, which definitely saved the night.

 

After dinner was the show. It was the typical opening night show – music, dancing and a preview of the comedian. DS tried to go to the college age social, but it was very difficult to find. It was advertised to be in the Bliss Lounge, but there was no staff and no signage. And there was almost no one in the whole room other than some people bowling and NCL staff doing karaoke. And on top of that – at the same time in the same location, they had the LGBT meet-up, solo cruisers meet-up, college age meet-up and regular karaoke. She knew no one, so was not comfortable going around to the few people and asking them which event – if any – they were attending.

 

After that, they all went to bed, and I hit the casino. This was to be a theme all week. On all our cruises, I like to hit the casino, but not until after I have spent the day with my family.

[taliho621]

(the epic saga continues . . . )

 

Monday – DS woke up very late, so I stayed in the room and did some work all morning. Went to the Cruise Critic meet and greet and met a few nice people. Spoke with Dan (Cruise Director) about the college age social, and he said more people would show up as the week wore on (they didn’t). Had lunch in Garden Buffet. Food was okay there – not bad, but not particularly good (theme for the week). I had a salad (which, by the way, I cannot figure out why they did not have romaine lettuce until Wednesday).

 

After lunch, DS did the rock climbing – it was extremely windy up there, but he shot up to the top without a problem. DW and MIL went to the cooking demonstration, while DS and I explored the ship and DD did some work. The next thing was a bit of an annoyance. DS loves bingo, so we allow him to play once per cruise (hey, that stuff gets expensive!). So he wanted to do the Haven Suite Bingo, where the winner gets to move to a Haven Suite for the remainder of the cruise. Now, usually, you pay for your cards and then play anywhere between 3 to 5 games. But at this one, there was one game only – a cover-all – with only one winner. But the tickets were no less – the cheapest package (3 cards) was $39! All that money they collected just so we could compete to move to a room that was empty anyway. So not like it cost NCL anything. Just a little cheesy in my opinion. Then off to trivia. As you can see, we love the trivia games (one of the few free worthwhile activities on the Pearl), but the member of the staff (cannot remember his name) who did all the trivia games had a very thick accent and could be hard to understand sometimes.

 

Dinner back in the Summer Palace with Joel again. Then the Not so Newlywed Game. I always love this one, so long as I am not playing. And DS howled throughout the whole thing. Next was Swing, which had some great music and dancing, but just a little long. Then bed for them and casino for me.

[taliho621]

and continues . . .

 

 

Tuesday – Woke up and went to breakfast in the buffet. I think breakfast is the best buffet meal (although I believe this is true for all ships). They have four small omelet stations, rather than 1 or 2 larger stations, so the lines were never that long. They were always happy to make me my eggs over easy. Went back to the cabin to take a shower and do some work. There is something to be said for doing work while sitting on the balcony. I even saw some whales! After that we walked around and played Yahtzee in the card room (this room was always crowded. I liked hanging out here and the library. But one major complaint about the library – there are no 110V outlets! I went to do some work there later in the week, and could not plug in my laptop. Quite surprising for a ship that spends the majority of the year sailing out of US ports.) Then Tri bond trivia – liked this game (they name three things, and you have to figure out the common bond). Second place again. Lunch in the buffet.

 

We were docking at 2, so we got into line at 1:45. Long line, but once they started we moved pretty quickly. It was a short walk to Juneau Car Rental at the end of the dock parking lot. This was a great move. $86 for the day for a full-size car (2004 Oldsmobile). With 5 of us, this was cheaper than the shuttles to Mendenhall. They gave us a map and some basic directions to various sites, and then we were off (I had booked this ahead of time, so they already had my license and insurance info). Easy drive to Mendenhall. I cannot say enough about Mendenhall. And do not skimp on your time there. We started by walking up the Steep Creek Trail to the Visitors Center – saw my first salmon of the trip. Then to the pavilion for pictures, visitor center to buy a refillable water bottle (we didn’t pay the entrance fee). And we walked out to Nugget Falls. By the way, did I mention the weather? It was 75 and sunny. Beautiful! You can probably do the trail in 15-20 minutes, but we took so much longer as we kept stopping for pictures (the beauty of smart phones that serve as cameras – I probably took 300-400 pictures during the week, and that does not include all the pictures everyone else took on their phones and my daughter took with her DSLR). We then spent 20-30 minutes at the beach and waterfall taking pictures and soaking in the sights. My advice – take your time here. This is not a hike you get to take every day (at least we don’t).

 

After a couple of hours, we headed back into town. Decided to stop at Wal-Mart to get some supplies. Nothing to write home about – it was a Wal-Mart like any other Wal-Mart. Although it was in Alaska, so that’s cool. We then parked by the tram and bought tickets. Great views from the tram and from the top. Spent a little while up there, but we didn’t really walk around all that much, as it was pretty late and it had already been a long day. So we drove back to the dock, I left the keys in the visor and dropped off the car (car rental office was closed). The car rental really worked out well for us.

 

We decided to go to the buffet for dinner, but nothing appealed to us all that much, so DD and I went to Summer Palace. Joel was not on duty, so we had another waiter that was not nearly as good. But the fish that night (can’t remember exactly what it was) was actually pretty good.

 

I honestly don’t remember what the show was or if we even went. DD tried college age social again, but same results. No one seemed to be there other than karaoke people, so she gave up again. Bed for all and casino for me.

[taliho621]

still going . . .

 

Wednesday – We had to wake up early for a 7:25 excursion, but for some reason I woke up at 5 instead of 6. Oh well. Breakfast at the buffet, and then we walked off to meet our excursion. We were doing the train and cycle excursion. Now, I usually book all excursions directly, but on this one I booked through NCL, since it was such an early start. I didn’t want to lose money if the ship docked late. And besides, it was only a $10 difference.

 

Once off the ship we met up with Naresh at the end of the dock. He packed us all on to the van and took us to the train station. Based on my Cruise Critic research, we grabbed seats on the left side. We were quite early, so we waited about 25 minutes. Again nothing special other than spectacular scenery! I spent a lot of time out on the platform, where you can get some great shots. At the end of the ride, we met up again with Naresh and our other guide, Alyssa. They took us to the vans, although I woud have liked a couple of minutes to take some pictures. Ater about a ten minute drive, we all got out, and grabbed bikes and helmets. They also provided gloves and jackets for those who wanted them. Quick safety briefing and then we were on our way. We rode for about a mile, and then made our first stop for everyone to ascertain their comfort levels. At this point, DW decided to hop back on the van and drive down, and the rest of us jumped back on our bikes and coasted downhill. It was a great ride, with maybe 3-4 stops for pictures. I know I have heard concerns that the ride is on the side of the road, and worrying about traffic, but honestly it was never a big concern. Yes, there were cars, and even a few trucks, but the guides were great at letting us know when something was coming, but never a problem. And there is one spot of maybe 100-200 yards of pedaling uphill, and then at the bottom, about ¼ - ½ mile of flat, but the rest of the time, I was pretty much riding the brakes. The rest of the group met us at Sockeye’s store, and they gave us a ride back to the ship. Again, I cannot recommend this excursion enough.

 

We had lunch in the buffet and rested for a little while. After lunch, we walked back into town to walk the main street. It’s a cure little town – nothing’s cheap, but we didn’t really buy anything, except ice cream and some really good sea salt caramel popcorn. There was a good sporting goods store where DD got a nice North Face hat for college up north. On the way back to the ship, we crossed over the railroad tracks to check out the stream. It was practically crawling with salmon. As we got back to the ship, we ran across a trio of seals in the harbor that were hanging by the mouth of the stream snacking on all the salmon.

 

Back on ship to rest up for dinner. Food was just typical, but Joel was a rock star as always. After dinner DS was exhausted so he headed back to the room. Rest of us checked out the couples show (again, always funny so long as I am not on stage) and then comedian Bud Anderson. He was really quite enjoyable. And he was never worse than PG-13, so everyone enjoyed. Then (okay everybody guess) bed and casino.

[taliho621]

getting closer . . .

 

Thursday – Woke up around 7:30-8, and hit up breakfast at the buffet. Very hard to get a table near the windows, especially since it was foggy and rainy. It was in fact quite foggy as we entered Glacier Bay, and it pretty much stayed overcast and off and on rainy all morning, but at least the fog lifted after a little while. Spent the morning rotating between Great Outdoors, our balcony, Spinnaker and the Garden Café. Took tons of pictures of course. DW watched a glacier calf, but I didn’t see any. I do have to admit that it is very hard to put in words what a glacier looks like – just big and impressive. The whole of Glacier Bay was beautiful – not just the glaciers. I was hoping to see a few more whales, but no luck. We were, however, a little disappointed that rangers said they would be in spinnaker until 12 but when we went to look at their stuff and ask questions at 11:40 a.m.they were already packed up.

 

Before lunch we decided to try the family circus activity. Definitely for younger kids than ours. It was cute, though, and we all tried a few of the tricks on our own (I think DW may have found her calling). Lunch at the buffet again. Then we split up between napkin folding and cupcake decorating. We blew off the cupcake event, as it was really just a line of people getting cupcakes and then putting toppings on them. I guess we were thinking more of a class (like on Royal Caribbean – although you pay for that one). And there was no need to stand in line for a free cupcake when the buffet is right around the corner. DS and I played Heads Up, which was a lot of fun (a really good group of people), although we got in trouble because we were a little too loud (oops). Rest of the afternoon involved air hockey, napping and catching up on work. Dinner was our standard table with Joel, and then the magician/comedian. His act was cute, if a little dated. Bed and casino.

[taliho621]

just a few more . . .

 

Friday - Woke up to very overcast skies with low ceiling. I was very nervous, as this was the day I was most looking forward to – floatplane with Seawind Aviation into Misty Fjord. I called Seawind a few times and left messages. When I finally got through, Lesley asked us to try and get off the boat early (we were supposed to meet them at 8:20). Shoved last few bites of breakfast in our mouths and then got off the ship. I called Lesley when we were off (as she had asked me to do), and she reported that her husband and another pilot were reporting bad weather so they were cancelling. Crushed is not a sufficient word to describe how I felt. So we decided to walk around town for a little while to see what we felt like doing. I had somehow missed her call 10 minutes later, but I got her message that weather was improving and they could still take us if we wanted. I quickly polled the group and it was a definite yes. So I called her back 10 minutes after she left her message – 10 minutes! – and she told me Steve had decided to take another family, so we were out of luck again. Ten minutes!!!! Now I understand cancellations due to weather – I appreciate that they value our safety. But to take another family when we had a reservation – and deposit – without giving us a chance to get there, in my opinion, is just wrong. I understand they are there to make a living, and they don’t do that when the planes aren’t flying, but ditching us like that without giving me a chance to call back did not make me happy. Of course, they refunded our deposit. So as things go, they are not bad people, and Leslie was very apologetic throughout the whole ordeal, but I am still smarting from losing that opportunity, as I have no idea when I will have a chance to do that again.

 

So we walked around for a little while and decided we wanted to go to Totem Bight. Found a van driver, and arranged for round trip. And he even agreed to tour us around Pot Latch Park after (only certain guides are allowed within Totem Bight). The Park is great, and the history is incredible. Took lots more pictures. We then met up with Olaf, and he guided us around Pot Latch Park next door. He then took us back to Creek Street, but took the scenic route – showed us parks, schools, municipal buildings, etc. And no, this was not a ploy to get a higher fare, as we had already agreed to a flat price for the entire trip. We walked around Creek Street and bought a couple of things. Interesting side note – when we were in Skagway, the salmon were swimming upstream by the dozen. In Ketchikan, the creek was filled with salmon as well, but all these guys were dead. Guess they had already done what they had set out to do. Oh, and we bought some things at Tongass Trading, and were quite content. Yes – it’s touristy stuff, but we’re tourists, and how can you go to Alaska and not get a t-shirt?

 

By this time, it was starting to rain for real, so we headed back to the ship. First it was superhero and villain trivia. Came in (what else) second. Then DS and I went to O’Sheehans for lunch. He had chicken strips and fries, and I had a tuna sandwich which was not bad, and mozzarella sticks, which were. Then even more trivia (we like it, what can I say?). Wanted to play shuffleboard, but the courts were full, so back to air hockey. At dinner, we first took a few formal pictures and then met up with Joel at Summer Palace. As we would not be there for dinner on Saturday night (planning an early dinner at the buffet before heading into Victoria), we said our good byes, took a few pictures with Joel and handed him an extra tip. I cannot stress how good of a waiter he was. Always attentive without being overbearing. Happy to share stories with us, and he very quickly learned what we liked and didn’t like.

 

There was a 2-for-1 special at bowling, so we tried it out after dinner. It was cute and fun. Not serious bowling, but we enjoyed ourselves. A quick dessert at Garden Café, and then off to the Legends Show. Theatre was very full. Elton John guy was great. As was Tina Turner. Madonna was okay, except every time she spoke, she used an annoying New York accent that was intended to mimic Madonna’s but didn’t. And then – you guessed it - bed and casino.

[taliho621]

Almost done . . . (I promise)

 

Saturday - DW and DD did Zumba and then breakfast (the ship’s instructor had gotten injured, but apparently an enthusiastic passenger volunteered so they could have the class). DS was sleeping in again, so I waited for him and then to a late breakfast before it closed. We hit up bingo – not to play, but to see if our one and only raffle ticket was a winner for the free cruise. No dice. Interesting thing happened while we were there, however. We actually came across a lifeboat drifting in the ocean. Not one like on the ship, but of the type you often see on cargo vessels – large tent-type raft. I watched it go by from Spinnaker, and it was rather eerie as it looked empty. The captain came on the PA a little later and announced that they had inspected it, and it was empty. Most likely left over from a training exercise somewhere.

 

Before lunch, DW went to towel-folding demonstration while DS and I played shuffleboard. Light lunch at the buffet and then the crew talent show. I am quite certain that the show is the same every week, including all the same jokes. But since I wasn’t there the week before, it was all fresh to me. It was actually one of the more enjoyable shows we saw all week. And the finale was quite funny. Then one last trivia game for the week before trading in all of our activity “tickets” for a t-shirt.

 

Another meal at the buffet while we waited to get off the ship in Victoria. Grabbed a cab at the port – don’t worry about pricing, they all charge the exact same to get to Butchart Gardens. When we got there, we made arrangements with Victor (our driver) and the folks at the Gardens for him to pick us up. And he didn’t want my money! He said I would pay him when he picked us up. What a great island. As to the Gardens, words cannot describe the beauty, so I will not even try. Just take my word for it and get there if you ever have the opportunity. And they had a live band playing (we never sat down at the stage, but could hear them throughout the Gardens – and they were in fact quite good) and fireworks (we did not stay). We took a ride on the carousel and had a couple of snacks while we were there as well. Victor picked us up promptly at 9 to take us back to the ship. We actually split up then and he dropped a few of us off in town and the others back at the ship. It was a beautiful night, so we walked back to the ship from downtown. Not a strenuous walk.

 

After getting back to the ship, DW and I hit the Bud Anderson adult comedy show. Not sure if he was less funny or we were more tired, but we left early. Casino had closed earlier in the day, so I just went to bed.

[taliho621]

winding down . . .

 

Sunday - Everyone was tired. Met for breakfast at 8 in the buffet. After breakfast we went back to the rooms to finish packing. This was quite a treat for us, as when we usually take cruises out of South Florida, we are up at the crack of dawn to walk off the ship and drive to work and/or school. We then sat in the sun at the Great Outdoors and waited for purple to be called. They called us at around 9:20, so we walked off the ship as leisurely as we could. Took us just 10 minutes to get off the ship, and then another 10 to get out of the port. Our friends at Aces were ready for us, and took us to the Residence Inn Turkwilla (out by the airport). Room was not ready yet, so we left all of our bags (12 of them!) and the free shuttle took us to the light rail. Bought day passes for all of us (which by the way, were never checked. I’m sure we did something wrong, but that seemed a little too trusting).

 

Once in Westlake, we walked down towards the waterfront. The City Passes we bought before the cruise still included a harbor cruise and admission to the aquarium. Hey – they were paid for, so why not? The Argossy Harbor Cruise was a relaxing hour on the water, and the aquarium was actually not a bad place to spend an hour. We took one last trip through Pikes Place to get some more snacks, and then back on the light rail. We called the hotel on the way, and the shuttle was there waiting for us. Our room was ready, with all the luggage inside. I just want to take a moment to recommend the hotel – we had a one bedroom plus loft for the five of us – basically two bedrooms with a sofa bed as well. At a good price, so keep this in mind if you want to be near the airport (less than a 10 minute drive). No one was particularly hungry, so we took the shuttle to a local mall to eat in the food court. Shuttle came back to pick us up, and then early to bed.

 

Monday - What’s to say? Left the hotel at 5 a.m. to get to the airport. Flights on time, and home to unpack.

[taliho621]

Okay, so here are some general thoughts about the trip and the ship:

 

With respect to NCL: I went in with an open mind, having never cruised Norwegian before. Lots of fans and non-fans on this page. So after everything, my honest opinion was – it’s okay. Not bad, but not exceedingly great either. They do some things well and others not as much. Embarkation and disembarkation? No complaints here.

 

Washy Washy – what’s the big deal? So they want you to have clean hands before you go the buffet and share serving pieces with a couple thousand people. Good for them. I did not find it annoying in the least, as the staff were always smiling.

 

Cruise Directors Staff – Quite underwhelmed. It just seems that other than Philly Joe (the bingo dude), no one was overly enthusiastic. And I wish there were more free activities than trivia. I know we were in Alaska, and that is the draw, but there was quite a bit of time on board. And while I appreciate the fact that they even scheduled events for college-aged adults, if you are not going to staff it, or even clearly mark where the event is, why bother? As far as we could tell, these events fizzled each night, in large part because they scheduled the events in the Bliss Lounge at the same time as other events, with no staff or signage to direct people. So I guess you were supposed to go up to every single person in the room and ask “Are you college-aged? Solo? LGBT? All of the above?” A little too awkward.

 

Casino – Great casino staff. They all worked to learn my name and standard bets at the craps table by the second night (I know that tipping helps in that regard, but hey – they work for it). And actual casino odds at craps! That is quite the rarity at sea, as it lowers the house edge considerably. My only complaint was about the fellow passengers – the tables were often dead by midnight or so, and I am a late night gambler. Not the ship’s fault, though.

 

Staff – for the most part, professional, courteous and enthusiastic. I have already talked about our waiter Joel, but our steward Roberto was top notch as well. Everywhere we went, the staff did whatever it took.

 

Food – I’ll just say it – it was purely middle of the road. Not awful, but nothing memorable. We are far from food snobs, and are typically pretty easy to please at restaurants. So I won't turn my nose up at what we were served - we ate it happily. Did we always find something to eat? Yes. Were there some items we really enjoyed? Yes again (especially the desserts). But the food would not be what brings me back.

 

Ship – No complaints about the Pearl itself. I like the colors, I like the vibe. It was in good shape (were there some signs of age? Yes, but who am I to talk?). Yes, the cabins were on the small side, but everything fit. My only complaint is the extra wall in the bathroom between the toilet and sink. Seems to unnecessarily take up what could be additional storage space, and makes for a cramped feeling when sitting in the bathroom.

 

iConcierge – Loved it! While I typically walk around on all cruises with the compass in my pocket, it was great to have the back-up on my phone. And we did pay for each of us to have the texting feature, and it was well worth it. It was great to be able to just shoot a text to say when I am heading somewhere, or where I am sitting at the buffet. True, it’s not perfect, as there were times when we were mysteriously kicked off the network, but we all just worked around that by checking every once in a while and then just getting back on manually. But overall well worth it and so much better than the walkie-talkies we often use on board other ships.

 

Alaska - Awe-inspiring. If you can, go! If you go, get off the ship and do! Yes, the excursions are typically more expensive than your standard Caribbean fare, but how often will you be in Alaska? We loved the train and bike excursion – our favorite of the trip. The folks at Sockeye Cycle were fabulous. So glad we rented the car in Juneau. It allowed us to do Mendenhall Glacier at our pace. And we even got to stop at Wal-Mart! While I am still heartbroken at missing Misty Fjord, we really enjoyed Totem Bight, so it was not a total loss.

 

Okay, so this was way longer than I anticipated. Please feel free to ask any questions, and I will be happy to answer whatever I can.

 

Thanks for sticking with me this long.

[cruisin07family]

Thanks for the review. We will be taking the Pearl to Alaska in 2016 at basically the same week and I was wondering about the weather. Was it particularly warm in Seattle in early August? How about the stops in Alaska? Did you take sweatshirts or winter jackets? Could you use the pools/hot tubs on board during the week?

[taliho621]

Thanks for the review. We will be taking the Pearl to Alaska in 2016 at basically the same week and I was wondering about the weather. Was it particularly warm in Seattle in early August? How about the stops in Alaska? Did you take sweatshirts or winter jackets? Could you use the pools/hot tubs on board during the week?

 

Seattle weather was beutiful. Short sleeves all the way - very warm but not suffocatingly hot. As to Alaska, Juneau was very warm, Skagway was cool but not cold (although it was a bit cooler at White Pass before we headed back down) and Ketchikan was cool, overcast and rainy. I wore a long sleeve t-shirt plus sweatshirt in Skagway and Ketchikan (plus a rain jacket for parts of Ketchikan). DS wore a ski cap in Skagway, but that's her - YMMV. Glacier Bay was cold. On the ship, I typically wore a long sleeve shirt and sometimes a sweatshirt in the evenings (other than Glacier Bay where I wore a heavy sweatshirt for most of the day). Nothing heavier than that.

 

As to hot tubs - I saw people in them every day, regardless of air temperature, but we never went in.

 

Hope this helps. Happy to answer any other questions you may have.

 

Enjoy!