Secrets, Tips and Tricks for Alaska Cruises

[SillyInventor]

Several sets of recent Personal Navigators (2014 and 2013) can be found here:
7 night: http://disneycruiselineblog.com/cruise-planning/itineraries/itinerary-summary/?itinerary=25
9 night: http://disneycruiselineblog.com//itineraries/itinerary-summary/?itinerary=81
You will find all shows, special nights and events.
Note that this is no guarantee that your cruise will follow the same schedule, but it's as close as you can get.

Enjoy your cruise!

 

[shanhop]

Anyone have information on the shows?
Pixar night...nothing like pirate night? No one dressing up, etc.?
Speaking of dressing up...only one formal night? Semi formal? Rest is cruise casual? (My cruise casual has always been sundresses and sandals. This Alaska thing is totally confusing me!)

Pixar night is also Semi-formal night, so not a whole lot of "Pixar" costumes, but some tshirts. We attended the earlier party, before dinner, so we were dressed for dinner already.

Cruise casual is UBER Casual on Alaska cruises. Many, many, many people were in jeans and long sleeve tshirts for dinner on non-formal nights.

 

[shanhop]

I know in other areas whale spotting is much more prevalent during the winter months. Is this true for Alaska as well? We sail in July and I didn't know what to expect.

I believe the whales spend their summers in Alaska. We were there first week in June, and there weren't as many as I'd have liked. The later into the season, the better.

 

[jenf22]

I believe the whales spend their summers in Alaska. We were there first week in June, and there weren't as many as I'd have liked. The later into the season, the better.

This. We've been on several whale watching trips (in Hawaii and Alaska). It is my understanding that the whales spend the winter in Hawaii where they breed and give birth and the summers in Alaska where they feed and get fat. They don't eat the whole time they are in Hawaii. I think that's just astounding. Anyway, I believe Hawaii's peak whale time is November-March. We were in Alaska in September and saw a lot of them.

Edit to say the above is for the humpback whales. I think the orcas are in Alaska all the time.

 

[DannyDisneyFreak]

Subscribing!

 

[jadee911]

We went to Alaska this last June!! We would suggest:

If you want to go on a Whale Watching Cruise book through Harv & Marv's. They picked us up at the ship and the price was incredible. We were on a small ship (5 total plus the Capt.).

Take an umbrella. The Wonder issued plastic parkas however it is a raining and it rained and rained and rained. You kinda expect this, it is Alaska for Pete's sake.

When you go to Tracy Arm's (if you can get into it, we weren't able to because there was too ice. Cpt. took us to another iceberg just as WONDERful) If you are adults go to one of the inside bars with windows find a comfy chair and just relax. The Capt goes very slow and turns the ship so you can see the iceberg no matter which side you are sitting on. It does take all day, so don't rush to see it. Outside along the railings gets cold and cramped. Our Capt. had a small iceberg brought up on the deck so everyone could see it and the kids were picking up pieces and eating it. That was fun for them.

Think about booking your excursions off ship. Vendors line the dock trying to book last minute guests.

For the adults go to the Art of Entertaining Sessions. They are wonderful!!!!

Go on the tour of the ship. It was so COOL. This is for Adults only. I went to two of the onboard Jewelry lectures, and thought they were boring. Go to the movie or pool instead.

STAY AT ONE OF THE HOTELS AT THE PORT!!!! We had a car and decided since there were 10 of us it might be cheaper to leave the car at a hotel. Well......it was a 2 mile walk with loads of luggage and it cost us $150 a vehicle. So it would have been a much better to stay across the street from the port where they would have taken our luggage across the street, instead of us fighting the one way traffic, the foot traffic and the complete "I have no idea where we are where we are going".

 

[xlxo]

Take an umbrella. The Wonder issued plastic parkas however it is a raining and it rained and rained and rained. You kinda expect this, it is Alaska for Pete's sake.

Go on the tour of the ship. It was so COOL. This is for Adults only. I went to two of the onboard Jewelry lectures, and thought they were boring. Go to the movie or pool instead.

STAY AT ONE OF THE HOTELS AT THE PORT!!!! We had a car and decided since there were 10 of us it might be cheaper to leave the car at a hotel. Well......it was a 2 mile walk with loads of luggage and it cost us $150 a vehicle. So it would have been a much better to stay across the street from the port where they would have taken our luggage across the street, instead of us fighting the one way traffic, the foot traffic and the complete "I have no idea where we are where we are going".

I love umbrellas... but they say only tourists use them in AK.

The Jewelry lectures give you charms.... I had some fun collecting the charms at each port. You do need to be strong willed walking in as it's sales trap.

Which hotel were you staying at? Some tricks with cars...

• In Vancouver rent Alama/National. They have a convenient car drop INSIDE the terminal. Book months early to secure luggage friendly minivans. Hertz is 3 blocks away and AVIS has a shuttle.
• I stay at affordable hotels away from the terminal and then drive passengers & luggage to the ship. Unload and then drop car off elsewhere. Then return to terminal solo on bus or taxi.
• Vancouver actually got rid of most one-way streets to make life easier for tourists. Sadly they also introduced bike lanes with turning restrictions. GPS's help a bit.

 

[stinkrbell]

I am going June 8, 2015.
Can someone tell me if the parkas disney gives out on the rainy days have a hood? (Someone suggested to still bring an umbrella so I thought I better make sure) Are they the ones you buy in the parks? Also, how do we get tickets to the character breakfast? The day they have the bbq and soup bowls is Tracy Arm? Does this run over regular lunch hours? Thanks for any responses.

 

[KristiMc]

I am going June 8, 2015.
Can someone tell me if the parkas disney gives out on the rainy days have a hood? (Someone suggested to still bring an umbrella so I thought I better make sure) Are they the ones you buy in the parks? Also, how do we get tickets to the character breakfast? The day they have the bbq and soup bowls is Tracy Arm? Does this run over regular lunch hours? Thanks for any responses.

 

[xlxo]

Can someone tell me if the parkas disney gives out on the rainy days have a hood? (Someone suggested to still bring an umbrella so I thought I better make sure) Are they the ones you buy in the parks?

Parkas? It was a clear plastic "poncho" with a hood. Here's a pic...
http://www.disneydispatch.com/conte.../2011/28-Disney-Park-Rain-Ponchos/poncho1.JPG

The only one that got a Parka was Minnie.

The day they have the bbq and soup bowls is Tracy Arm? Does this run over regular lunch hours? Thanks for any responses.

Hmm... I would say yes for the Salmon BBQ. It's 31 miles in and 31 miles out of Tracey Arm. From what I remember.... the BBQ starts just after you enter the arm around 10:30am and I think it finishes before you get to see the glacier around 1:30pm.

It gets kinda confusing.... get your plates and food in the Beach buffet. Then walk your food onto the stern to join another line for the Salmon (hard to find in the crowds). Hopefully you have a nice sunny day for your Tracey Arm trip as in this picture.... http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2014/06/a-look-at-disney-cruise-lines-taste-of-alaska-menu/

My August trip was wet and they had to move the BBQ's under a dripping cover.

 

[shanhop]

I am going June 8, 2015.
Also, how do we get tickets to the character breakfast? The day they have the bbq and soup bowls is Tracy Arm? Does this run over regular lunch hours? Thanks for any responses.

 

[stinkrbell]

I am on the June 8th cruise also! The tickets to the character breakfast will be in your room along with your main dining room tickets.

I have heard that the soup/bbq is on Tracy Arm day.

I can't wait - only 141 days to go!!

I will see you there!!! I thought I had read the character breakfast tickets were limited so this is great news. Thanks!

 

[stinkrbell]

Parkas? It was a clear plastic "poncho" with a hood. Here's a pic...
http://www.disneydispatch.com/conte.../2011/28-Disney-Park-Rain-Ponchos/poncho1.JPG

The only one that got a Parka was Minnie.Hmm... I would say yes for the Salmon BBQ. It's 31 miles in and 31 miles out of Tracey Arm. From what I remember.... the BBQ starts just after you enter the arm around 10:30am and I think it finishes before you get to see the glacier around 1:30pm.

It gets kinda confusing.... get your plates and food in the Beach buffet. Then walk your food onto the stern to join another line for the Salmon (hard to find in the crowds). Hopefully you have a nice sunny day for your Tracey Arm trip as in this picture.... http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2014/06/a-look-at-disney-cruise-lines-taste-of-alaska-menu/

My August trip was wet and they had to move the BBQ's under a dripping cover.

Sorry I meant poncho. Lol I am so thankful they give those out. I called WDW yesterday to see if I could buy 25 for our group and have them shippedto me. I was told they could only sell up to 24 at a time so I told her I would get a final head count and call back. It was going to be over 200.00. I am glad I found this thread!!!

 

[shanhop]

I will see you there!!! I thought I had read the character breakfast tickets were limited so this is great news. Thanks!

You might be thinking of the Princess Gathering. They recently made that a ticketed event. And they are limited. EVERYONE gets assigned a character breakfast

 

[xlxo]

Don't be LATE for the character breakfast. We showed up on time.... the neighboring table got there 5 minutes late and missed the head mouse as he did the rounds at the beginning.

My poncho was provided because I was on an excursion (which was after Tracey Arm). I packed a goretex jacket knowing wet weather was in the forecast. I faintly remember some grumbling that they ran out of ponchos at one point on my trip, but I could be mistaken.

 

[xlxo]

Soup bowls are served on deck 9 forward, along with cookies and hot chocolate. BBQ is in the rear near the buffet. NEITHER were advertised in the Navigator. We missed the BBQ. It was a major peeve of mine.

It took me 5 trips asking countless people to find the BBQ line. I agree the salmon was hard to find, especially hiding from the rain. To clarify... once you are through the buffet with your food... you need to walk OUTSIDE beyond the buffet onto the stern deck to find the BBQ line.

 

[JAMSquared80]

Recommended excursion in Ketchikan is snorkeling. Absolutely one of the most memorable things I've done in my life. Snorkel Alaska has a website with more information but also check out the reviews on Trip Advisor.

This sounds amazing. Thank you for sharing.

 

[nunzia]

It took me 5 trips asking countless people to find the BBQ line. I agree the salmon was hard to find, especially hiding from the rain. To clarify... once you are through the buffet with your food... you need to walk OUTSIDE beyond the buffet onto the stern deck to find the BBQ line.

and where's the soup?

 

[xlxo]

Don't quite remember, but I think it was at the beach buffet. You walk out of beach buffet holding your tray to wait in the rain for the BBQ salmon. Yes, there was a glass cover, but wind and dripping condensation still had water on my food tray.

I think quite a few others were confused by the salmon location too.

Sorry for being a downer, but the weather did make it unpleasant for me. Ideally the salmon should have been served at the buffet, then again it may have been a space issue.

 

[stinkrbell]

You might be thinking of the Princess Gathering. They recently made that a ticketed event. And they are limited. EVERYONE gets assigned a character breakfast

I think you are right. How do we get tickets to the princess gathering? Do they have Anna and Elsa in Alaska?