My first NCL cruise: A solo trip on Encore to Alaska review.

[skittl1321]

I assume the $379 was because it was Alaska in October?  
I went back and looked at the invoice multiple times to make sure.    I also never saw them selling day passes, and heard on embarkation day from someone hoping to book that the week was sold out for it; so I guess if they can sell it, they'll keep it at that price!

 

I am very thankful for my Dad for giving it to me; because there is no way i would have ever paid that.  Honestly, if he hadn't made me show him the reciept that I paid for it, I might have just taken the money and applied it to the cruise, which, as a solo, was a lot more than I typically spend on cruises. 

[skittl1321]

And now, a sea day!

 

Now, historically, I would say sea days are not my favorite.  I cruise to go to new places.  Cruise ships feel very seperated from the ocean a lot of the time, and I'm too "go go go" to just sit and relax. I also don't drink, so there isn't that to do.  My husband and I always like to do trivia, and I try to do the things like dance classes, or game shows to fill the day. 

 

But this year has really changed that. Sea days are excellent and now I want a good mix.  On my family cruise, sea days were really lovely with my kids, and we spent a ton of time in the pool.
 

But on the solo cruise- sea days were an absolute bastion of relaxation where I literally didn't need to do anything. 

 

So this day started with me sleeping until about 7:00, which is quite late for me (I wake up at 4:45 am most mornings and maybe 6 on weekends.)

I started the day by going to the gym and rowing 10k.  I could not figure out how to set rest intervals (or anything really) on these machines, so I just would do either 1k or 2k, then rest for a minute, then go again.  I sent a photo to my coach to prove to her that I was rowing.

(I row with a master's team. We are super low key, but had a regetta the sunday after I got back. At the time I hadn't seen race line ups and while I knew I was coxing the 8s, I didn't know if I'd be rowing in a quad. So I decided to erg to keep up the fitness. Luckily later today I got a text that I wasn't rowing, so the gym visits stopped. This is the only time I've ever been in a gym on a cruise.)

One more digression: here is a photo from our race. This was the most exciting race I've ever been in, though it hasn't been many.  This was a head race, which means each boat starts about 30 seconds behind the others.  In the photo, my boat is the furthest left.  The first to start was the blue boat.  We are about 2k down a 3.5k course, and all about to pass each other on the bend, which was really tight to 'thread the needle' on a narrow river, because the 2nd boat went outside instead of inside to pass the first boat, which left nowhere for the first boat to yield to us (we were the third boat).  Anyhow, we ended up finishing 1.5 seconds behind the second boat, but with the delayed start (like a time trial in biking), we won by about 29 seconds.  MOST of the races during the day there was very little passing at all, you would usually just see a line of boats following each other, and you can close up the space between the boats to beat them, so it was pretty thrilling to pass two boats. 

So after the gym, I went back to the room, highlighted my freestyle dailies of events I thought I might want to go to (spoiler alert: I went to none), and headed to breakfast.

I absolutely loved these egg and avacado wraps.  There was no wait for a table in the MDR, and it was so quiet and serene. A great way to start the day.

 

The whole day, the ship was not very crowded, I think a lot of people were in bed. The seas were ROUGH, all day long. No one could walk a straight line, and unfortunately, I saw a huge number of people getting sick in the stairwells and hallways. The crew, thankfully was on it about cleaning up.  

 

I started my morning with postcard delivery. We had something like 38 rooms in our facebook postcard exchange so it took me nearly 2 hours to deliver most of them (a few waited another day). I was just all smiles walking up and down the ship as it bounced around in the ocean.  I LOVE the feeling of being on the waves. 

 

Then I took a look in the shops (didn't buy anything), but doesn't this send the wrong message about chair hogging?

And saw them setting up for the whisky tasting, so sent a photo to my husband to make him jealous.   (*note- at this point, I hadn't logged into the wifi, had my plane on airplane mode and was able to text on google fi. I wasn't billed for it.  So, weird loophole?)

Although I don't get sea sick, I didn't have much of an appetite all day, so I went to lunch in the buffet instead of the MDR, thinking I couldn't eat a full portion they served.
Buffets are always hard for me. I can circle a buffet three or four times and just see nothing I want to eat. I think the quantity of food puts me off from wanting to eat anything.  (I have the same problem with grocery stores. I'll go in, and unless I'm starving, I'm convince myself I don't really need anything on my list.) 

 

I eventually settled on some Indian food, some pineapple and watermelon, and of course ice cream.  Most importantly, at this point I found the scooped ice cream, which was so delicious.

I ate back in my room, because I wasn't in the mood for the noise of the buffet.  The pappadum and pakora were delicious, the fruit very fresh.  The naan wasn't that good and the various dishes were kind of bland. I think I'll give the points for Indian buffet to Carnival (at least, Carnival way pre-pandemic).  But NCL wins on ice cream! I used this time to do some painting as well, and hung out on the balcony and watched the ocean a bit.

 

Then I went to the thermal suite and hung on tight while in the "wave pool".  I actually decided to not go into the sauna, because while I'm sure NCL has thought of this, I was just really worried of coals coming flying...   But the pool was just SO fun.  I wasn't able to read, because the waves were tossing us all over the place.

 

Because I can, I got more ice cream from the buffet.  I also got a tres leches cake, and it was very good. Cruise ship desserts are often not great, but there were some real stand outs.

 

Disappointingly, on day 1 I saw some cream puffs and thought "oh, I'll get those tomorrow", and then I never saw them again.  I will have to take another NCL cruise just to see if the cream puffs are as good as they were on MSC.  I love cream puffs.

 

Then I tried to take pictures to show how much the waves were making the ship fly around, but really, that's difficult. I took video too, but it just doesn't show anything. I should have videoed people trying to walk.

 

Somewhere in there, there was also the cruise critic meet up.  It was fun to meet a few more people, and I chatted with many throughout the week when I saw them on the ship. 

 

I also spent a few sessions during the day on my "art retreat". I probably packed more art supplies than clothing, and today I did some lessons I had downloaded from Tamara LaPorte's website.  I'll show you one of them, because I suck at art, and am quite proud of this one.

 

I still think it's kind of weird that I never went to any trivia, or any activity, but I just did not want to deal with having to look at my watch.  Except for to make dinner.

Not being very hungry, I nearly cancelled on Los Lobos for the night, but ended up going. More in the next post.

 

[skittl1321]

Up next was dinner.

Precrusie I waffled forever about which of the speciality restaurants to go to.  Other than a Chef's table on Carnival, I had never done specialty dining as I really don't like to spend more than the base fair once onboard.  However, with FAS, the gratuities are really nominal, so of course, I accepted the two meals.

After booking and cancelling a million times, I ended up at Los Lobos tonight.  (Also, why doesn't NCL let you cancel your own reservations? I had to go through their chat a million times.)

When I got to my reservation, which was a table for 4, since that was the only option when I booked, I told them it was just me, and they kind of gave me a side eye, so I told them the others in the group weren't feeling well (which was true of half the ship), and there were no more questions about being solo. The restaurant was mostly empty though, and stayed that was the entire time I dined. But even if it was fully booked, solo's still have to eat! 

I had gone through the menu a million times at home, and still wasn't sure what main dish I wanted (I was leaning towards fajitas), but knew I wanted all the appetizers.  So after being seated, I asked the waitress if it was possible to get multiple appetizers instead of the entree, and she told me if I wasn't getting an entree, I could have them all.  Well, I wasn't hungry enough for that, but I did order the table side guacamole, the tortilla soup, the quesadilla, and a side of street corn. 

Up first, was the guacamole.  I asked him to make a small portion, but it was still a way too much for me to possibly finish.  It was absolutely delicious, though heavy on the lime.

 

I wish I could have seen a bit better how much of stuff he put in there, as I would have liked a little more tomato.

 

Up next, the tortilla soup came out.  Tortilla soup is one of my favorite foods of all time, enough so that I served it at my wedding. Unfortunately, this was not edible. It was SO salty.  Enough so that if I was paying ala carte, I probably would have sent it back.  I did tell the waitress, and she said she would mention it to the chef, as the cheese that tops it is also very salty.   This was one of the biggest food disappointments of the cruise (the other being the steaks).

 

Then my elotes came out.  The waitress cut it off the cob for me, which caused quite a bit of corn water to spray at me.  No big deal, but if they are being 'upscale', they should probably take it to a station away from the table to avoid that.  This was AMAZING.  The best thing I ate the entire cruise.  We eat corn with butter and Tajin at home, but I need to know what the cheese they put on this was so that we can prepare it more like this.  It was also somewhat chilled, rather than warm, which made it taste really refreshing.

 

Then I got my quesadilla, which was honestly a full main course.  This was just plain cheese, but I ate it with the guacamole, and it had a bit of salsa and sour cream with it.  The tortilla here was a standout, really well made.  I only managed to eat one wedge, as it was huge. 

 

I am getting so hungry just looking at these photos. I want that corn and quesadilla again.

The waitress brought out the dessert menu, but as much as I wanted to try the churros, I left so much food uneaten, I couldn't fathom 1) taking another bite, or 2) wasting more food, so I declined dessert.

I felt the service was fabulous so left an extra tip past the autograts.  I highly recommend los lobos. 

 

After dinner, I grabbed another diet coke (I haven't been filling y'all in on all of these as they arent that exciting, but suffice to say, I was drinking a lot of soda and not enough water), and went to my room to paint.

 

I went to see the Beatles in the main theatre.  The Beatles have never been my favorite, but it was a lovely concert, and I knew all but 1 or 2 of the songs.  Apparently they do the rarer songs in the cavern club; but even not really being a fan, it's impossible not to know the songs.

I sent a photo to my mother, who grew up a massive beatles fan (she said she and her friends sat in the theater the entire day Hard Days Night came out and just watched it over and over again), and said "Spending the night at a great concert from John, Paul, Ringo, and that other guy".

She replied to say "I can't believe I raised you. George was my favorite."

I did like how they did costume changes for each of their eras.  Since it was otherwise just a Beatles concert- no dancers or other performers, so not typically the kind of entertainment I like on a cruise ship.

 

Also, for those of you who are ready to pounce that I didn't know all their names, I cannot name all the backstreet boys, nysnc, or new kids on the block, and I had NKOTB sheets when I was in elementary school.   

 

Afterwards, I went back to my room, painted a bit, went to set my glass out in the hallway, AND...locked the door behind me.

Wearing my pajamas.  

and no shoes.  

and no bra.

 

Thank goodness I was on the 8th floor, as I didn't have far to go as I walked, barefoot, down the stairs, passed a group of 5 officers all in uniform, into the atrium, which was completely filled due to some sort of game show, to the guest services desk; who gave me a key with no issue at all so I could get back into my room.  Then I had to do the walk of shame back up again...

Oops...

 

 

[Von & John]

On 11/3/2023 at 12:09 PM, skittl1321 said:

...I started my morning with postcard delivery. We had something like 38 rooms in our facebook postcard exchange so it took me nearly 2 hours to deliver most of them (a few waited another day)...

 

What is this postcard delivery you speak of?
It sounds quite interesting...

[skittl1321]

11 hours ago, Von & John said:

 

What is this postcard delivery you speak of?
It sounds quite interesting...

 

Our cruise's facebook group had someone who organized a postcard exchange (it was her first cruise! so she had gotten the idea from...cruise critic!).

 

Basically, we dropped our cabin number in the event, and just before the cruise she put together a list of all the cabin numbers. We were encouraged to get a postcard or magnet from our home, and then we brought one for everyone on the list.

I got an amazing variety of postcards and magnets, and the really fun part is it wasn't a meet up to exchange, so you never knew when they would appear on your door/light; all through the cruise postcards just kept showing up! 

It was super fun.

Most people just wrote their name and the name of the ship/date on the postcards; some were blank, and some had messages.

I wrote a message on mine, put a cut sticker on them, and made fake stamps.

 

There were even a few people who made custom wooden magnets; like the kind you need a glowforge to do.  They were super cool.

[Von & John]

Thanks - I have a postcard collection... 

1000's & 1000's &...  (or Johnny claims I have that many 🙂)

Sounds like lots of fun & shouldn't take up much luggage space!

Edited November 8, 2023 by Von & John

[skittl1321]

15 hours ago, Von & John said:

Thanks - I have a postcard collection... 

1000's & 1000's &...  (or Johnny claims I have that many 🙂)

Sounds like lots of fun & shouldn't take up much luggage space!

If no one else starts one next cruise, you should! 

I have been collecting postcards since I was little (do you do postcrossing? I love that though I have to watch how much money I'm spending on stamps)- so this was awesome.

[Von & John]

4 hours ago, skittl1321 said:

If no one else starts one next cruise, you should! 

I have been collecting postcards since I was little (do you do postcrossing? I love that though I have to watch how much money I'm spending on stamps)- so this was awesome.

 

I have a lamp I bought years ago...

I believe from Crate & Barrel - but it may have been Restoration Hardware or another store (I've had the lamp longer than I've had Johnny 🙂 )

The base of the lamp is a revolving postcard stand - There are 10 spots for postcard stacks...

When the twins are over to visit - they like to shuffle the stacks & display their favorites in the front for each slot.

We mix it up by changing all the postcards every now & then.

Edited November 9, 2023 by Von & John

[rnr4thatsme]

Following and loving your review!

[sherrihall128]

Loving your review! You really lucked out with Seattle weather that weekend. It's been extraordinarily wet this season so far. Isn't it beautiful here? I'd highly recommend coming back and visiting the west side of the water to Bainbridge Island, Poulsbo, or adventuring to Olympic National Park. I didn't grow up here, but I find every day here beautiful.. even the gross, dark, rainy days. I'm loving your review. I'd probably enjoy a solo cruise as well, especially reading about your positive experiences!

[skittl1321]

On 11/9/2023 at 2:53 PM, sherrihall128 said:

Loving your review! You really lucked out with Seattle weather that weekend. It's been extraordinarily wet this season so far. Isn't it beautiful here? I'd highly recommend coming back and visiting the west side of the water to Bainbridge Island, Poulsbo, or adventuring to Olympic National Park. I didn't grow up here, but I find every day here beautiful.. even the gross, dark, rainy days. I'm loving your review. I'd probably enjoy a solo cruise as well, especially reading about your positive experiences!

I do not think I could have asked for more beautiful Seattle days.  I wish I had more energy to explore, but cruising is exhausting.  We will have to make an actual trip to washington. I'd also really like to go out and hike (but not climb) a bit on Rainer! 

[skittl1321]

So, it what must be the most delayed entry to a review ever, I'm back!  

 

Up next, Juneau! 

 

Part of the reason for the delay is I underexposed most of my whale watching photos and I was hoping my husband would help me fix them.  He deemed them "not good enough to bother", which is probably true...  He also just got back from a scuba trip to Cozumel, so had stuff to catch up with.  He didn't take any photos on that trip (he is an avid photographer, but doesn't dive with a DSLR) so he shared a still from one of his videos with me.  Cozumel is one of our favorite cruiseports, but just for the chance to be underwater. He travels there multiple times a year for actual trips too.  That's actually what got me this cruise- his many trips to Cozumel and one to Utila for diving.

Anyhow, waking up to a gorgeous day on the Encore, I decided to go to the buffet rather than the restaurant. I was THRILLED to see that there was no line at all for the omelet station, as on some cruises the wait can be FOREVER. This was a reoccuring theme for the cruise- if there was a wait, it was one or two people. There were multiple omelet stations, so the buffet was so well set up for it.  The omelet was excellent.  I also grabbed some breakfast potatoes (a bit cold, but well cooked), some bacon (I had to dig a bit to find crispy pieces, but was happy, and no bacon police like on Carnival, so you can have more than 2 pieces. I did see a few people take more than 20 though!!! But it was quickly replenished.)   I got two croissants that were not very good, and yes, a giant scoop of whipped cream with nothing to put it on. I just really like whipped cream.  (Also saw a kid take an entire plateful, though, in fairness, I believe he DID have a pancake under that pile of whipped cream.)  I grabbed a diet coke, and returned to my balcony to eat.

It was chilly and drizzly, but I was just thrilled to be in Alaska.

 

After breakfast, I took a shower, and as I was getting dressed, I hear  the people next cabin over on their balcony screaming.  I ran out in a sports bra and pajama pants, as this was too important to risk missing.  I was rewarded, as there was not only a whale out there, but a whale BREECHING. 

He did it mulitple times, really putting on a show.

 

I later learned on our whale watching trip that this is a rare behavior in Alaska, as the whales tend to conserve their energy and just eat. They do this in Hawaii when they are showing off for potential mates.  (If I had known this before the whale watching trip, I might have made a different excursion choice, as I really really wanted to see more of this.)

I took tons and tons of pictures of the same dreary landscape, but will not post them, because in retrospect, it was really only gorgeous ther. Not so pretty on camera.  I also took photos of every boat I saw.  Because that's a thing I do.  Here's one of them.

 

The whole trip I was obsessed with all the gorgeous waterfalls.  I just could not get over the fact that I was really, really in Alaska!

 

I still wasn't that hungry, so skipped lunch. 

 

Getting off the ship, I tried to take a nice photo of her, but it was tough with the angles.

 

NCl docks outside of the city, so you had to take a bus in. There was no wait for the bus when I got off, so there was no problem at all.  Then we were dropped off in Juneau, right by the tram up Mount Roberts.

 

So, in Juneau I had planned to go up the tram to take some photos, then just do some shopping.  My first plan was to go to the Mendenhall Glaciers, but the Mendenhall Glaciers and Garden excursion I booked got changed before the cruise so that it would no longer go to the Glacier, but give us a tram ticket instead. Half of it was refunded due to the change.  Well, didn't want to do that, so I cancelled and got a refund. Then on the ship I booked the Glacier canoe trip, but it got cancelled about 4-hours after I booked it.  So, I had my tram ticket, and that was the plan.

 

Originally I was not going to go whale watching, as it was late in the season and most of the whales had begun their migration. But seeing the whale breeching, and knowing they were active, well, I decided to buy a whale watching excursion from a kiosk.  My credit card shows $177.45.  I would have sworn it was $145... hmm...oops.   That is kind of expensive...   Anyhow, with the excursion credit you get for free-at-sea, and just being one person, I would have spent less booking with the ship.  Oh well, it's only money I guess.  

It was about 90 minutes before the trip left, so I weighed whether I could make it up the tram and then back down, there wasn't much of a line, but decided against it and went through town a bit and looked at what was for sale.  I should haved done more shopping in Juneau. EVERYTHING was on sale. Whereas future ports didn't really have great sales. 

I bought two t-shirts for my kiddos ($15.99 for two shirts!), then was super bummed I forgot to bring pennies as a friend of mine and I have been collecting them since we were 6!  I sent her a photo of the penny machine instead and a text message apology.  Then I walked to Alaska Fudge company and bought three bricks of fudge ($35.70). I LOVE fudge, especially vanilla fudge which can be hard to find. The vanilla was fabulous, and of course, that was the smallest brick they gave me.  I also got a divinity and a rocky road. Both were very good, but next time, I'm going all vanilla 🙂

Then I went back to the meeting point near the tram (holy moly the line!) and waited a bit.  

 

The tour had a short drive to the dock, and then we boarded the boat. It was about 25 people, and the cabin of the boat was enclosed, so it wasn't too cold in there.  The tour guides were funny and told tons of jokes. Whale watching did not disappoint at all. Despite there being no breeching whales, we saw probably 5 whales total, in three different spots, one of which was a Mom and baby together.  We only saw a couple of flukes, as apparently they only show them when diving deep.  They were staying pretty shallow, which did mean we didn't wait too long between dives for them to resurface.  The photos just don't do justice to how close they were and how exciting it was to see such amazing animals.

Still...if I had known how subtle it would have been, I may not have spent that much money.  But I nearly cried I was so happy to actually see a humpback in the wild, so money well spent I think.  I also felt the boats were never chasing them, they turned the motors off as we sat with them, and after 30 minutes with any particular whale (Mom and baby), they moved on, as regulations require. That made me happy, as sometimes it seems like whale watching tours are actually whale harrasing tours. 

 

 

 

 

We also saw a buoy filled with sea lions!

 

 

On the ride back, despite it being freezing now, I decided to stay out on the bow, with another couple and just enjoy the amazing Alaska air.  We were treated to an amazing sunset, so looking out at one side of the boat had the sunsetting, and the other the gorgeous blue of twilight.  But it was SO COLD, but man, you just feel alive. 

 

 

And all that effort I went to trying to see the Mendenhall Glacier?  Well, we got a GORGEOUS view of it as the clouds and fog had lifted!

 

 

When we got back to the marina I saw one of the only three bald eagles I saw the entire trip.  (Thankfully, I see bald eagles almost every day at home, so it wasn't a big one for me...)

 

When we got back to the city, the bus offered to drop us off in the main area of town so we could shop, or right where the shuttle buses pick up.  It was already dark, so I decided to just go back to the shuttle bus. I had hoped to sneak the tram in, but, obviously the last one had already run and it was shut down.  (No problem- the ticket was $49.99, for free with the FAS promo, so I just didn't use my ticket, and no money spent.)  I didn't really have any more shopping to do, I thought (mistake! I saw nice fleece jackets for under $20, I should have gone back for one.)  Getting back onto the ship was quick.

 

From there I went to the MDR for dinner. Somehow I have no photos at all of it. I don't really remember anything about dinner, I know I skipped dessert again.  Then headed to the thermal spa for awhile again.

 

There was no production show tonight, I think possibly a magician, so I decided to grab a soda and do another painting.    This was the thing that was just so different about a solo cruise. I really did nothing on the daily schedule. People say they don't spend much time in their cabin.  I sure do!!  

[cruiseny4life]

4 minutes ago, skittl1321 said:

Anyhow, with the excursion credit you get for free-at-sea, and just being one person, I would have spent less booking with the ship.  Oh well, it's only money I guess.  

Please tell my husband this!!! He doesn't like how I do math. 🙂 

 

6 minutes ago, skittl1321 said:

Still...if I had known how subtle it would have been, I may not have spent that much money.  But I nearly cried I was so happy to actually see a humpback in the wild, so money well spent I think.  I also felt the boats were never chasing them, they turned the motors off as we sat with them, and after 30 minutes with any particular whale (Mom and baby), they moved on, as regulations require. That made me happy, as sometimes it seems like whale watching tours are actually whale harrasing tours. 

I understand that "nearly cried" emotion. Whenever I'm out in the wild I well up with excitement, contentment, and just a generally everything is well in the world feeling which leads to me wiping away a tear or two. 

 

I'm glad the excursion you went on treated the whales with respect and dignity. I wish they all would do this! 

8 minutes ago, skittl1321 said:

 

When we got back to the marina I saw one of the only three bald eagles I saw the entire trip.  (Thankfully, I see bald eagles almost every day at home, so it wasn't a big one for me...)

Alaska and only three eagles? Wow! That's like a record. I can't imagine being in Alaska and not seeing dozens of those birds!

 

Did the turtle sneak in from your husband's dive trip? 

[skittl1321]

19 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

Please tell my husband this!!! He doesn't like how I do math. 🙂 

My husband and I joke all the time on cruises about this, because one of our earliest cruises we were with a woman who was running up a drinks bill like CRAZY and she kept saying "it's fine, I'll just go home and make more money".  She also spent the whole cruise drunkenly telling me "We need to get you into SAAALEES!" so my husband and I say that anytime we need more money. 

I will say, as much as I really want to go back to Alaska, the cost of excursions make me not want to do this as a family cruise.  Wow, does it add up fast.
 

Alaska and only three eagles? Wow! That's like a record. I can't imagine being in Alaska and not seeing dozens of those birds!

Crazy right!  I expected to see tons.  We saw tons of crows and ravens though.
But a mated pair of bald eagles nests a few houses down from me, and I see them most mornings, and there is another mated pair that lives on the Iowa river and I see them many mornings when I row.  (The real win is when we can see the owls coming in at the end of the night, those are rarer.)

Did the turtle sneak in from your husband's dive trip? 
I'm really failing at this review... I meant to put that up where I talked about his trip.  He kept tellnig me he'd help me process my photos in lightroom, but then he got busy with his own, so he never helped me with mine. But I didn't think mine we that great to be salvaged anyway.    That's not a good one of his pictures though, just a screenshot from his video.  

 

[graphicguy]

1 hour ago, skittl1321 said:

So, it what must be the most delayed entry to a review ever, I'm back!  

 

Up next, Juneau! 

 

Part of the reason for the delay is I underexposed most of my whale watching photos and I was hoping my husband would help me fix them.  He deemed them "not good enough to bother", which is probably true...  He also just got back from a scuba trip to Cozumel, so had stuff to catch up with.  He didn't take any photos on that trip (he is an avid photographer, but doesn't dive with a DSLR) so he shared a still from one of his videos with me.  Cozumel is one of our favorite cruiseports, but just for the chance to be underwater. He travels there multiple times a year for actual trips too.  That's actually what got me this cruise- his many trips to Cozumel and one to Utila for diving.

Anyhow, waking up to a gorgeous day on the Encore, I decided to go to the buffet rather than the restaurant. I was THRILLED to see that there was no line at all for the omelet station, as on some cruises the wait can be FOREVER. This was a reoccuring theme for the cruise- if there was a wait, it was one or two people. There were multiple omelet stations, so the buffet was so well set up for it.  The omelet was excellent.  I also grabbed some breakfast potatoes (a bit cold, but well cooked), some bacon (I had to dig a bit to find crispy pieces, but was happy, and no bacon police like on Carnival, so you can have more than 2 pieces. I did see a few people take more than 20 though!!! But it was quickly replenished.)   I got two croissants that were not very good, and yes, a giant scoop of whipped cream with nothing to put it on. I just really like whipped cream.  (Also saw a kid take an entire plateful, though, in fairness, I believe he DID have a pancake under that pile of whipped cream.)  I grabbed a diet coke, and returned to my balcony to eat.

It was chilly and drizzly, but I was just thrilled to be in Alaska.

 

After breakfast, I took a shower, and as I was getting dressed, I hear  the people next cabin over on their balcony screaming.  I ran out in a sports bra and pajama pants, as this was too important to risk missing.  I was rewarded, as there was not only a whale out there, but a whale BREECHING. 

He did it mulitple times, really putting on a show.

 

I later learned on our whale watching trip that this is a rare behavior in Alaska, as the whales tend to conserve their energy and just eat. They do this in Hawaii when they are showing off for potential mates.  (If I had known this before the whale watching trip, I might have made a different excursion choice, as I really really wanted to see more of this.)

I took tons and tons of pictures of the same dreary landscape, but will not post them, because in retrospect, it was really only gorgeous ther. Not so pretty on camera.  I also took photos of every boat I saw.  Because that's a thing I do.  Here's one of them.

 

The whole trip I was obsessed with all the gorgeous waterfalls.  I just could not get over the fact that I was really, really in Alaska!

 

I still wasn't that hungry, so skipped lunch. 

 

Getting off the ship, I tried to take a nice photo of her, but it was tough with the angles.

 

NCl docks outside of the city, so you had to take a bus in. There was no wait for the bus when I got off, so there was no problem at all.  Then we were dropped off in Juneau, right by the tram up Mount Roberts.

 

So, in Juneau I had planned to go up the tram to take some photos, then just do some shopping.  My first plan was to go to the Mendenhall Glaciers, but the Mendenhall Glaciers and Garden excursion I booked got changed before the cruise so that it would no longer go to the Glacier, but give us a tram ticket instead. Half of it was refunded due to the change.  Well, didn't want to do that, so I cancelled and got a refund. Then on the ship I booked the Glacier canoe trip, but it got cancelled about 4-hours after I booked it.  So, I had my tram ticket, and that was the plan.

 

Originally I was not going to go whale watching, as it was late in the season and most of the whales had begun their migration. But seeing the whale breeching, and knowing they were active, well, I decided to buy a whale watching excursion from a kiosk.  My credit card shows $177.45.  I would have sworn it was $145... hmm...oops.   That is kind of expensive...   Anyhow, with the excursion credit you get for free-at-sea, and just being one person, I would have spent less booking with the ship.  Oh well, it's only money I guess.  

It was about 90 minutes before the trip left, so I weighed whether I could make it up the tram and then back down, there wasn't much of a line, but decided against it and went through town a bit and looked at what was for sale.  I should haved done more shopping in Juneau. EVERYTHING was on sale. Whereas future ports didn't really have great sales. 

I bought two t-shirts for my kiddos ($15.99 for two shirts!), then was super bummed I forgot to bring pennies as a friend of mine and I have been collecting them since we were 6!  I sent her a photo of the penny machine instead and a text message apology.  Then I walked to Alaska Fudge company and bought three bricks of fudge ($35.70). I LOVE fudge, especially vanilla fudge which can be hard to find. The vanilla was fabulous, and of course, that was the smallest brick they gave me.  I also got a divinity and a rocky road. Both were very good, but next time, I'm going all vanilla 🙂

Then I went back to the meeting point near the tram (holy moly the line!) and waited a bit.  

 

The tour had a short drive to the dock, and then we boarded the boat. It was about 25 people, and the cabin of the boat was enclosed, so it wasn't too cold in there.  The tour guides were funny and told tons of jokes. Whale watching did not disappoint at all. Despite there being no breeching whales, we saw probably 5 whales total, in three different spots, one of which was a Mom and baby together.  We only saw a couple of flukes, as apparently they only show them when diving deep.  They were staying pretty shallow, which did mean we didn't wait too long between dives for them to resurface.  The photos just don't do justice to how close they were and how exciting it was to see such amazing animals.

Still...if I had known how subtle it would have been, I may not have spent that much money.  But I nearly cried I was so happy to actually see a humpback in the wild, so money well spent I think.  I also felt the boats were never chasing them, they turned the motors off as we sat with them, and after 30 minutes with any particular whale (Mom and baby), they moved on, as regulations require. That made me happy, as sometimes it seems like whale watching tours are actually whale harrasing tours. 

 

 

 

 

We also saw a buoy filled with sea lions!

 

 

On the ride back, despite it being freezing now, I decided to stay out on the bow, with another couple and just enjoy the amazing Alaska air.  We were treated to an amazing sunset, so looking out at one side of the boat had the sunsetting, and the other the gorgeous blue of twilight.  But it was SO COLD, but man, you just feel alive. 

 

 

And all that effort I went to trying to see the Mendenhall Glacier?  Well, we got a GORGEOUS view of it as the clouds and fog had lifted!

 

 

When we got back to the marina I saw one of the only three bald eagles I saw the entire trip.  (Thankfully, I see bald eagles almost every day at home, so it wasn't a big one for me...)

 

When we got back to the city, the bus offered to drop us off in the main area of town so we could shop, or right where the shuttle buses pick up.  It was already dark, so I decided to just go back to the shuttle bus. I had hoped to sneak the tram in, but, obviously the last one had already run and it was shut down.  (No problem- the ticket was $49.99, for free with the FAS promo, so I just didn't use my ticket, and no money spent.)  I didn't really have any more shopping to do, I thought (mistake! I saw nice fleece jackets for under $20, I should have gone back for one.)  Getting back onto the ship was quick.

 

From there I went to the MDR for dinner. Somehow I have no photos at all of it. I don't really remember anything about dinner, I know I skipped dessert again.  Then headed to the thermal spa for awhile again.

 

There was no production show tonight, I think possibly a magician, so I decided to grab a soda and do another painting.    This was the thing that was just so different about a solo cruise. I really did nothing on the daily schedule. People say they don't spend much time in their cabin.  I sure do!!  

Love your pics and your live review!!!!  

 

TY!

[skittl1321]

10 minutes ago, graphicguy said:

Love your pics and your live review!!!!  

 

TY!

Thanks so much!  But, very delayed review!  I think next time I will bring a laptop with me and do a live review, as I used to keep notes (before there was much internet on the ship), and didn't this time, and look how long it has taken for me to get anything up!

[Grimix]

On 11/15/2023 at 7:11 AM, skittl1321 said:

NCl docks outside of the city, so you had to take a bus in

Thanks for the review! Love reliving ours we took a couple weeks earlier than yours!

Just to let future cruisers know you don't have to take the bus into town. You can (and we did) walk about a mile into town. We had a great walk, but it wasn't raining. 

Now Skagaway they don't let you walk to the ship (even though it's a shorter walk) but I believe that is because of the rockslide they had last year and safety concerns...

[Grimix]

On 11/15/2023 at 8:32 AM, skittl1321 said:

Thanks so much!  But, very delayed review! 

If you haven't done one of these things I don't think people realize how much time they actually take! I can't imagine doing one live. I think I would miss most of my vacation, and my wife would yell at me for being on my phone the whole time!

[Von & John]

Always nice to Iowans fall in love w/ Alaska...

I grew up there & my first trip to AK was when I was living in Orlando - stated I'm going to live here (AK)...
Started the move to AK about 9 months later & LOVE IT!

We had nesting Bald Eagles across the Massey Slough from us @ our cabin on the Mississippi...

We see lots of Golden Eagles @ home in Talkeetna & some Bald Eagles as well.
The Baldies once again have a nest near our home 🙂 
Did you see any owls during your trip up here - they are plentiful?

 

"Alaska and only three eagles? Wow! That's like a record. I can't imagine being in Alaska and not seeing dozens of those birds!

Crazy right!  I expected to see tons.  We saw tons of crows and ravens though.
But a mated pair of bald eagles nests a few houses down from me, and I see them most mornings, and there is another mated pair that lives on the Iowa river and I see them many mornings when I row.  (The real win is when we can see the owls coming in at the end of the night, those are rarer.)"

 

Edited November 18, 2023 by Von & John

[Ixtoras]

On 11/15/2023 at 7:11 AM, skittl1321 said:

When we got back to the marina I saw one of the only three bald eagles I saw the entire trip.  (Thankfully, I see bald eagles almost every day at home, so it wasn't a big one for me...)

 

I swear that the Juneau Marina pays those eagles (in fish) to hang out there by the docks.  This is one I caught of them in May 2022.

 

[skittl1321]

12 hours ago, Ixtoras said:

 

I swear that the Juneau Marina pays those eagles (in fish) to hang out there by the docks.  This is one I caught of them in May 2022.

 

 

It wouldn't surprise me if they are the same ones. Eagles use their nests for life, and mate for life.  If you've got a lot of easy food coming to you, why leave?!

 

Thanks for reading! Hoping to get the next day up soon if the kiddos leave me alone.

[skittl1321]

20 hours ago, Grimix said:

If you haven't done one of these things I don't think people realize how much time they actually take! I can't imagine doing one live. I think I would miss most of my vacation, and my wife would yell at me for being on my phone the whole time!

I used to love doing trip reports pre kids, but man they are harder to get in now!!

[skittl1321]

15 hours ago, Von & John said:

Always nice to Iowans fall in love w/ Alaska...

I grew up there & my first trip to AK was when I was living in Orlando - stated I'm going to live here (AK)...
Started the move to AK about 9 months later & LOVE IT!

We had nesting Bald Eagles across the Massey Slough from us @ our cabin on the Mississippi...

We see lots of Golden Eagles @ home in Talkeetna & some Bald Eagles as well.
The Baldies once again have a nest near our home 🙂 
Did you see any owls during your trip up here - they are plentiful?

 

"Alaska and only three eagles? Wow! That's like a record. I can't imagine being in Alaska and not seeing dozens of those birds!

Crazy right!  I expected to see tons.  We saw tons of crows and ravens though.
But a mated pair of bald eagles nests a few houses down from me, and I see them most mornings, and there is another mated pair that lives on the Iowa river and I see them many mornings when I row.  (The real win is when we can see the owls coming in at the end of the night, those are rarer.)"

 

 Ahh, no owl sitings in Alaska.  

That would have been icing on a really incredible cake.  

[skittl1321]

Up next, Skagway!

 

This was THE BEST day of the cruise.  Truly, truly phenomenal.  Sorry this took so long to update- I was waiting to get my Gopro back from my husband so I could grab some POV video of rappelling. But then it turns out me rapelling, while thrilling, actually looks a bit like a snail rapelling, so not really worth seeing...   I have some video of other people, but from my view of them, and while I know I 'beat' their time, they actually look fast, so clearly I got the wrong angle!

 

Anyhow, we started the day, as cruisedays do, on the ship.

Up first, breakfast.  I went to the MDR, wanting to avoid the busy buffet and was treated with DELICIOUS huevos rancheros.  I asked for crispy bacon, and the waiter delivered.  An EXCELLENT way to start the day.  Minus the people sitting next to me who were complaining about EVERYTHING.

 

In Skagway, when you exit the ship, you have to take a shuttle to town (thanks for the correction in Juneau, where it isn't strictly necessary.) There is an accessible shuttle, which picks up right by the ship, possibly just to take you to the other shuttle, or you can walk through a line of shipping containers to get to the shuttle.  I got off early, and it was very drizzly, so there was no line at all.

My excursion didn't meet for another 2 hours, so I decided to walk into town to see what was around.

I was greeted with a highlight of my Alaska trip.  A fox!

 

Did I tell you my husband gave me photography lessons before the trip? (You sure can't tell from the whale photos.) WELL...because of the rain, I decided to NOT take the good camera, and only had my phone. So here's a HORRIBLE photo of a fox, and my husband is truly disappointed in me, because, really, when do you see a fox?  (We once saw one running on the side of the road in Saskatchewan, but other than that, no fox sightings.)

 

Not only did I get bad photos, I got bad video! I am versatile.

 

 

The walk into town is very easy.  When I got there, I found that almost nothing was open, but I did find one shop selling t-shirts and stuff (no sales like Juneau) and IT had a crank penny machine! So I bought my kids a bag of rocks (you know tumbled, dyed agate and jasper that every tourist attraction in the US has from China? But THESE ONES, they are from Alaska!) I paid in cash and asked for change for the penny machine, she gratefully gave me some, including 10 pennies seperate from my change, and I was able to press pennies for myself and my friend.  (The rocks were a MASSIVE hit with my kids.)

I took a few photos to use up the time. Really enjoyed walking through the park and seeing the brook

 

Thought these bathrooms were super cool looking, I love the artwork.  (They were also very clean inside. Public restrooms are rare.)

 

Saw a piece of a train (and OMG the line to get the railway excursion. WOW, that thing was long. Everyone seemed to have taken the train.)

 

The streets really were deserted.

 

And of course the Red Onion Saloon, which I would visit later.

 

I headed back to the excursion waiting point, glad I had waterproof gear and just hung out and waited for about an hour.  I heard someone ask one of the NCL people how we would know which people were for our excursion. They told them "they will look very outdoorsy".  They did.  They were wearing harnesses, apparently too busy to take them off?

 

Isn't it gorgeous?

There was another public restroom here too. Way to go Skagway!  (I think this is actually an afternoon picture, as it cleared up near the middle of the day.)

 

About the train- it was overall a drizzly, dreary day.  The first railway excursion was said to have half visibility and then the second they were saying it was considered 0 visibility due to the fog.  The plan I heard them discussing was they would load everyone onto the railcars, THEN tell them there is no visibility, and if they want to exit they would get a full refund.  But not until you've waited in line, taken the time to sit down, and then would have to get up...  maybe it's just easier to stay on and hope the weather clears?   I didn't see how many people got off, as by then the van for my excursion arrived.

 

[GALSews]

Thanks for the photo of the showing the National Historical Park sign. We will have to remember to bring our National Park booklet so we can get a stamp in Skgway. .Hopefully, also one for Glacier Bay.

Two of our least favorite lines: 1) Gee, we should have brought the binoculars.

2) Gee we should have brought the national park booklet for and done a stamp.

 

The fox we sometimes see on our street, Quick Fox Lane, is red with a black tail.