Legend-ary Alaska Planning and Trip Report

[ErLee]

Have a great trip! When you come back let me know what you took that you didn’t need and what you wish you had! I’ll start packing around June 1st!

[Mediterranean_Honeymooner]

Well, we got stranded in Nashville.  Our flight got cancelled because we had a connection in Chicago. Who could have predicted a late season freak snowstorm in Chicago?  It’s almost May!  Thank goodness for flying out early....hopefully we can still make it to Vancouver by Monday.

[ErLee]

On 4/27/2019 at 7:13 PM, Mediterranean_Honeymooner said:

Well, we got stranded in Nashville.  Our flight got cancelled because we had a connection in Chicago. Who could have predicted a late season freak snowstorm in Chicago?  It’s almost May!  Thank goodness for flying out early....hopefully we can still make it to Vancouver by Monday.

 

Oh my gosh!! That's crazy! I'm like you, I always go at least a day early because you never know. 

 

I'm sure you made it there by now, hoping the rest of the trip goes smoothly!

 

 

[Mediterranean_Honeymooner]

Just wanted to let everyone know that we are back, safe and sound! Give me a little time to sort through photos before I begin my report.  I have thousands of photos (literally) to sort through!

[er345]

Great.  Can’t wait to read about it and see pictures.

[Anita Latte]

I believe it on the 1000s of pictures...I remember that. Let me just say that the sooner you get your thoughts down, the better. When I decided to write my report, I did each separate post in a Word doc and then did a cut and paste. It's a bit of a pain because there can be formatting issues...weird spaces or lack of spaces between words, etc. but then you have your files with your memories. Don't feel the pressure to post too much too quickly...it's fun to have something to look forward to reading each day or so. Definitely looking forward to a virtual trip to AK with you!

[masterdrago]

Give it to us in small spurts so we can get even more excited. Can hardly wait.

[Mediterranean_Honeymooner]

April 26 - Travel Day 1

 

We were using our Southwest points for our flights and so we were flying out of Nashville (BNA), which is about 2 hours from our home.  We always want to leave plenty of time for traffic, so we dropped the kids off at James’ parents just before 9 and we’re on the road by 9.  We made good time and made it to Nashville around 11.  This was our first time using Flight Park, so we found them, got the car parked and then caught their shuttle to the airport.  We arrived at BNA around 11:30 or so (I believe our flight was at 2:40).  We were excited...our trip was beginning!  

 

The excitement didn’t last long.  We went to the check in kiosk and couldn’t find our reservation.  So we went to the desk only to be told our reservation was cancelled.  We were pretty unhappy that nobody had bothered to contact us, and the news from the Southwest agent continued to get worse.  There were absolutely no other flights that would get us to Seattle that day.  The soonest would be a 5 am flight the next day.  And because the NFL draft was being held in Nashville that weekend, the city was flooded with fans, meaning that the airport was likely to be crazy busy and that the chances we would find a hotel for the night were low. 😢

 

I’m not afraid to admit that I was pretty frustrated at this point.  The agent made it clear that we needed to be there early because of the airport traffic.  So we knew to drive back to Nashville, park again and get back to the airport, we’d need to leave home before midnight.  It just didn’t seem worth it and we knew we’d get no sleep.  So getting a hotel seemed like the best option.  Despite the draft crowds, we were able to find a hotel close to the airport.  

 

We got the hotel to pick us up so we could avoid having to deal with picking the car back up only to have to take it back.  We knew we wanted to try to get to bed early due to the early wake up time, so we didn’t plan any big excursions.  But we did walk to a nearby Mexican restaurant for a late lunch.  Nothing like chips with salsa and queso to ease your worries!

 

 

 

Our late lunch was delicious and we stocked up on a few snacks to make a light dinner in the room.  I was able to call and cancel our Seattle hotel for the night and reschedule our Space Needle time. And then we spent a few hours just relaxing and watching tv at the hotel before trying to get some shut eye about 8.  Sadly, between the early bedtime, stress of the day, and excitement about the trip, sleep did not come easily. So we were exhausted arriving at the airport at 2:45 the next morning.

 

 

 

 

 

But at least this flight wasn’t cancelled!  And early flights have the added benefit of beautiful sunrises!  So our adventure finally begins (almost 24 hours later than we planned)....

 

 

Edited May 9, 2019 by Mediterranean_Honeymooner

[masterdrago]

Chips and salsa always has a calming effect. I have no idea why. I'll bet you never want to see an airport look like that again. I'm so stoked to see more. We're outa here in just over a week and DW is already worried about our fly out weather. Has been major flooding which looks to continue...

[masterdrago]

It looks like you are already dressed in layers for Alaska. Weren't the temps 60-70 in Nashville? You have the face of someone not stressed at all. Nice.

[Mediterranean_Honeymooner]

3 minutes ago, masterdrago said:

It looks like you are already dressed in layers for Alaska. Weren't the temps 60-70 in Nashville? You have the face of someone not stressed at all. Nice.

 

Yes, I am wearing my fleece coat.  The temps were very nice in Nashville and I only wore a T-shirt and jeans, but it was chilly in the airport!  I’m glad I don’t look stressed.  I was definitely stressed and exhausted, although that eased significantly once we were actually on the flight.

[Firery Fairies]

This is my first time on legend and I see people mentioning adapters for charging for different cruises. Does anyone know if I will need one on the legend or can I use my normal charging cables?

[Mountaineer0313]

Looking forward to the rest of your review! We went last year, and going again next year. I get so excited when I see how much fun people have in Alaska!

[SempreMare]

51 minutes ago, Mountaineer0313 said:

Looking forward to the rest of your review! We went last year, and going again next year. I get so excited when I see how much fun people have in Alaska!

Hi @Mountaineer0313, I'd be interested to hear what you are going to do differently (or the same) on your next trip.  Maybe in a different "how I'm planning" type of topic if you're up for that. 

PS:  re: "I get so excited..."

Me too!  Before I started reading this forum I have never been more excited about other peoples trips!

Edited May 10, 2019 by SempreMare

[Mountaineer0313]

1 minute ago, SempreMare said:

Hi @Mountaineer0313, I'd be interested to hear what you are going to do differently (or the same) on your next trip.  Maybe in a different "how I'm planning" type of topic if you're up for that. 

PS:  re: "I get so excited..."

Me too!  Before I started reading this forum I have never been more excited about other peoples trips!

 

So far, the only difference is we're doing Southbound instead of Northbound. Last year, we started in Vancouver for 2 days, cruised, and then spent 3 days post cruise exploring in between Seward and Anchorage. This time, I think we're going to spend a few days north of Anchorage (we have friends in Wasilla), Talkeetna, etc. then take the train to Seward and spend two days there before the cruise and do the Kenai Fjords cruise. But in general, I'm going to soend a lot more time researching ways to save money. I actually just posted that topic a few minutes ago. I'd love to see everyone's favorite money saving travel tips.

[crazycatlady82]

Waitin to hear how the rest of it went! 

[Mediterranean_Honeymooner]

4/28 - Day 2 - Travel/Seattle

 

We arrived in Seattle around noon, with our Amtrak reservations at 7.  So we were reduced from 24 hours in Seattle to less than 7. 😢. But we were determined to make the most of the time we had.  So we got a Lyft to Amtrak to drop our bags for optimal touring!  Some views of Seattle from our Lyft....

 

 

 

 

 

We made it to Amtrak and checked 2 bags, but as we were trying to check our duffel bag, the zipper exploded, so we shut it the best we could and put it in bag storage instead of checking it.  No time to waste! 

 

 

 

We were headed to Pike Place Market, but we decided to walk the mile or so there so we could take in more of the city.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We stopped by the original Starbucks, just to say we did.  (Neither of us are big coffee drinkers.)

 

And then it was time to eat and shop our way through Pike Place Market.  I found some good pointers on Love From the Oven blog, and so we used those to figure out what we might enjoy.   Our first stop was DeLaurenti Specialty Food and Wine for some prosciutto pizza. 

 

 

 

 

Next we had to stop at the fish market to watch them throw fish and visit Rachel the pig. 

 

 

 

 

 

Our next stop was the one I was most excited about... Beecher’s Handmade Cheese. 🤤   It did not disappoint.  Both the grilled cheese and the mac and cheese were amazing!

 

 

 

 

 

A quick stop by the waterfront...

 

 

 

 

James was most excited about digging into some Pike Place Chowder.  The line was sooooo long.  One of the employees came out and told everyone they could order online.  Online you could only do a fixed sampler instead of choosing your selection, but that was okay with us.  It was great to bypass the line. 

 

 

Clockwise from top left: original clam, market (which was a corn and haddock this day), salmon, and seafood.  The original was James’ favorite and the seafood was mine, but these were all so good!  I’m almost drooling looking at the photos. 😂

 

Final stop was Ellenos for marionberry Greek yogurt.

 

 

 

 

Everything was delicious, but we were stuffed and ready to see more of Seattle, so we moved on.  We walked over to Westlake Center and grabbed the monorail to the Space Needle.

 

 

So excited but so tired!

 

Our first glimpses of the Space Needle and some of the Chihuly glass.

 

 

 

 

We had originally pre-booked an early time, but when our flight was cancelled, they worked with us to get it moved.

 

We took the elevator up and were rewarded with some stunning views of Seattle.  It was an absolutely beautiful day!

 

 

 

 

Here is our green screen photo they took as we went in (you choose the background). 

 

 

 

Next, we went down a floor to enjoy the revolving glass floor (and some more of the Chihuly gardens through the floor). 

 

 

 

 

 

I had so many more things I wanted to see and do in Seattle, but it was getting closer to our train time, so we began our walk back to Amtrak.  

 

 

 

I am not cut out for Seattle fashions! 🤣

 

 

 

We made it back to the station and relaxed until it was time to check in.  Despite being able to get a hotel the night before, neither of us was able to get much sleep, so we had pretty much been up for 36 hours at this point. 😴. The Amtrak station was beautiful inside.

 

 

 

We checked in and asked to be seated in the left (coastal) side of the train.  Our request was granted, and before too long we were on our train. 

 

 

 

I’m glad I had read the tip on CruiseCritic to sit on the left side of the train as the scenery on that side was gorgeous!  At some point, we went to the dining car for sandwiches, but we mostly just relaxed and watched these views pass by. 😍

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We arrived in Vancouver around 11 pm.  But we didn’t realize that we would have to stand outside in line in the dark and cold for an hour to go through customs.  Not the funnest surprise. But after 40 hours of traveling, a 2 hour drive, 2 flights, 3 shuttles, 1 Lyft, a 4 hour train, and 1 cab....we were greeted by this sight for sore eyes!  

 

 

 

I don’t think we lasted 10 minutes before we were out! 😴😴

[Mediterranean_Honeymooner]

Ughhhh.  It posted once with text and once without.  And it says I can’t edit.  Anyone know how to remove the first one?

[mapleleaves]

44 minutes ago, Mediterranean_Honeymooner said:

Ughhhh.  It posted once with text and once without.  And it says I can’t edit.  Anyone know how to remove the first one?

 

next to the post number #67 are a couple of symbols.  One of them says REPORT POST.  Choose this and say duplicate.  

[Mediterranean_Honeymooner]

8 minutes ago, mapleleaves said:

 

next to the post number #67 are a couple of symbols.  One of them says REPORT POST.  Choose this and say duplicate.  

 

Done.  Thanks.

[kimberlydrzymala]

Loved your photos and cannot wait to read more - Have a great time!

 

[Mediterranean_Honeymooner]

April 29th - Vancouver/boarding the ship

 

While we would have loved to have slept in late and recovered from the jet lag and lack of the sleep from the previous two days, we only had a half day in Vancouver and we wanted to make the most of it!  With this in mind, we had booked a private tour through Viator.  This particular tour included a private guide that picks you up at your hotel, drives you wherever you want for 2 hours, and then drops you at the cruise port. I have read/been told that Vancouver is easy to do on your own, but I thought the tour would really maximize what time we had. 

 

Our guide was picking us up at 9, so we woke early, packed our things, and walked a block from our hotel (Moda Hotel) to McDonald’s.  I don’t really like McDonald’s normally, and I really don’t like eating at chains when we are on vacation when there are so many new things to be eaten.  But it was close and we knew it would be quick and fill our bellies, so convenience won out this morning.

 

View of the Moda on our walk to breakfast

 

 

Neil was our tour guide and he picked us up a few minutes before 9 in his SUV.  Our luggage fit easily in the back and we were on our way.  Neil started by asking us what we wanted to see and do.  We made a couple requests and let him fill in the rest.  It seemed that he would be fine if we wanted to plan every minute, but we knew his decades of experience living there would be better than any research we had done, so we let him take the reins.

 

First glimpse of our home for the next week! ❤️🚢

 

 

Our first stop was Chinatown.  Neil was a great tour guide - perfect blend of history, facts, and personal anecdotes. We stopped for photos at the Millennium gate and the world’s narrowest freestanding office building.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next stop was Gastown where we saw the Gassy Jack statue and the steam clock.

 

 

 

 

 

The Olympic Cauldron

 

 

A lot of our tour focused on Stanley Park per my request.  This was an absolutely beautiful area.

 

View of Canada Place and the Carnival Legend from Stanley Park

 

 

 

 

Lions Gate Bridge

 

 

 

 

 

The Hollow Tree

 

 

 

A-maze-ing Laughter statue - Neil said it was impossible to look at this art display without at least cracking a smile. 😊

 

 

 

For our final stop, Neil humored my request for a quick stop to buy wine and soda to take onboard. It just took a few minutes and with that done, we headed to Canada Place.  We were sad that our time with Neil was over, but we were excited to board the ship. I know there is much disagreement about the “perfect” time to board, and I know that delaying our boarding time would have given us more time to enjoy Vancouver.  However, I personally have trouble truly relaxing until I’m settled onboard, so an early time is my favorite.  I was pleased to have gotten an 11:30 boarding time and to see that the line for security was short and moving quite fast.  But then....we get through security only to come to a dead stop.  The US Immigration Computer system has crashed.  They have no idea when it will be back up, so they have no choice, but to put everyone in chairs in this big room to wait. And wait and wait. I don’t think we actually waited that long (maybe 30 minutes?), but it felt like ages when we didn’t know how long we would have to wait and we just wanted to be on the ship.  

 

They finally let us start moving again, and after Customs, check in, and photos, we were finally on the ship!  It wasn’t 1:30 yet, so instead we headed up to Lido and started off our trip with some Guy’s burgers! 😋

 

 

After lunch, we did a little more exploring.

 

 

 

View of Vancouver from the boat

 

 

 

Our hammock on Serenity

 

 

 

 

 

Then it was time to check out our room.  We had booked a guaranteed balcony room for this trip, which was a steal compared to the regular price.  We were told it was a guarantee for an obstructed balcony, but our research showed the “obstruction” was really just a lifeboat below for most of these rooms.  We were also told that we may not receive our room assignment until check in. 😳. I’m not sure how I would have liked that with my type A/overplanner personality, so I’m glad ours was assigned over a month in advance.  

 

We were assigned cabin 5235, which wound up being perfect for us.  We were close to the elevators, but not close enough for it to be noisy.  And being so close to the aft elevators/stairs was super convenient for both the MDR and buffet dining.  This was also the most spacious stateroom we’ve had in our 5 cruises! And from what I have read, this is one of the best “obstructed” views, because the lifeboat is off to one side, so you still have views down to the water on half the balcony. So overall, I was pleased with the “guaranteed balcony” experience and would do it again.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fun Times 

 

 

 

 

One of our bags was already there, so we started unpacking/organizing.  Soon it was time for muster.  This seemed to drag on, but finally we were dismissed.  We headed up to Serenity, where we grabbed a two person hammock and some drinks and settled in for sail away!

 

Sailing under Lions Gate Bridge was a very cool experience.

 

 

After sail away, we went back to the room.  One more bag was there, and the other arrived not long after, so we finished our unpacking and got everything set up the way we wanted for the next week.  All that unpacking made us hungry, so we got freshened up and headed to the dining room.  We had anytime dining for this trip which was perfect.  We are normally early eaters, but with several long port days, we didn’t want to be tied down to a certain time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

For dinner, I had the corn and poblano soup and shared rockfish fingers with James as appetizers.  For mains, I had the salmon and James had sweet and sour shrimp.  We both had melting cake for dessert.  And when we were stuffed to the gills, they surprised us by bringing out this anniversary cake and singing to us.  It was very sweet of them and everything was delicious! (But we basically had to roll out the restaurant. 😂)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After dinner. we had talked about doing the Welcome show and some other things, but honestly we were still so tired that we took it easy and enjoyed some beautiful scenery from our balcony and then went to bed early.

 

Edited May 21, 2019 by Mediterranean_Honeymooner

[Mediterranean_Honeymooner]

Sailaway under Lions Gate Bridge!

[ErLee]

Sounds like a great first day! 

[Cairns Cruisers]

Thank you for the great report an pictures, what a lovely sunset!