You’ll never get me on a cruise. Unless it’s to ALASKA! Recap and New PTR Link! 2/1

[glennbo123]

Aw...the boys obviously had a great time if they talked and talked and talked, telling your mom all about it. That's what it's all about.

Sorry that you kind of took a shellacking on your shellacking. Did you eventually see the pro-rated credit?

[eandesmom]

Originally Posted by glennbo123

Aw...the boys obviously had a great time if they talked and talked and talked, telling your mom all about it. That's what it's all about.

Sorry that you kind of took a shellacking on your shellacking. Did you eventually see the pro-rated credit?

I did although it took a while.

[MEK]

Bummer on the nails and what a headache.

Sorry to see your fabulous cruise come to an end. How great that you were able to take your mom out to lunch again and that you found a more suitable place than on the way up.

on Evan talking your ears off. At least you know he had a really good time! So cute!

Looking forward to the recap/final thoughts!

[tinacaplan]

Sorry the nails didn't work out better. I have a gel overlay on my nails, otherwise, I'd have no nails! I do have friends who've had good luck with the shellac, though. Someday, they'll get the whole nail thing right and this won't be an issue anymore. Very frustrating, though.

Your last day sounds nice, apart from that. Looking forward to your always useful trip summary.

[englishrose47]

Way to go Cynthia stand up for your rights!!!!Great ending or almost ending !!Looking forward to the final thoughts !!
By the way I started my PTR for my 2012 Trips !!! It's on the PTR boardThat is a Rosie Link!!!!!!

[eandesmom]

Originally Posted by glennbo123

Aw...the boys obviously had a great time if they talked and talked and talked, telling your mom all about it. That's what it's all about.

Of course you do have to remember that's their MO regardless.

talking, talking talking

Originally Posted by MEK

Bummer on the nails and what a headache.

Sorry to see your fabulous cruise come to an end. How great that you were able to take your mom out to lunch again and that you found a more suitable place than on the way up.

on Evan talking your ears off. At least you know he had a really good time! So cute!

Looking forward to the recap/final thoughts!

Both will talk and talk, regardless, (I can't IMAGINE where they get that from) but they did have a great time! Lunch was really really lovely! Recap coming up very soon.

Originally Posted by tinacaplan

Sorry the nails didn't work out better. I have a gel overlay on my nails, otherwise, I'd have no nails! I do have friends who've had good luck with the shellac, though. Someday, they'll get the whole nail thing right and this won't be an issue anymore. Very frustrating, though.

Your last day sounds nice, apart from that. Looking forward to your always useful trip summary.

I used to have gels and then my nails were destroyed for a year after stopping them. But I did love them! good luck is relative, they DO last longer than a regular mani, for sure. Just not 2 weeks. Cost wise and time wise, probably equal to doing gels, just a little easier on the nails. I'd do it again. Summary coming up very soon.

Originally Posted by englishrose47

Way to go Cynthia stand up for your rights!!!!Great ending or almost ending !!Looking forward to the final thoughts !!
By the way I started my PTR for my 2012 Trips !!! It's on the PTR boardThat is a Rosie Link!!!!!!

I will come by and check it out, I'm behind!!!!!!!!!!

Almost ending, recap very soon.

[Chilly]

Looking forward to your re-cap.

[eandesmom]

Originally Posted by Chilly

Looking forward to your re-cap.

Coming soon!

[eandesmom]

After we got of the ship, we checked our bags and walked up to startbucks. With our drinks in hand we headed around to see the Wonder again. As we walked, we asked the E’s what they thought of the trip.

The best vacation ever.

Ever?

Really?

I mean, we take them on some pretty nice trips!

Ever.

They were pretty darn emphatic about it. And, truth be told, haven’t really stopped talking about it, hinting at it wondering and hoping when and if we could do it again. Although recently Evan has also informed me that one year off was enough from WDW and he is ready to go back. At any rate, with that mindset it’s recap time! In summary I would just like to say…I am SO glad we did this cruise! I was worried that I might feel we’d spent too much for this experience, even though we picked a later sail date to bring costs down, we did pick a pricey room category and excursions. A lot of peple will complain about the price tag. And it’s not cheap. I would say though, if you compare it to a WDW trip and consider deluxe rooms, dining plan, park hoppers and flights…really not all that different. Well at least not that different if you were paying rack rate on rooms at WDW…a PIN or free dining does change that a bit, as would flight prices. But you get the idea. I think most people don’t compare them that way and to me, it included everything I’d get with a hopper and a dining plan so that’s the basis I use! Fuzzy Disney math to be sure!

It certainly can be done cheaper, both in terms of room categories and excursions and still have a very magical time. I can unequivocally say…it was worth every penny! Truly a once in a lifetime trip and one I know we will all remember. I am glad we sucked it up and did the verandah and that we splurged on the excursion. I am glad we didn’t, for a moment, even consider a different cruise line despite knowing we could do it for less elsewhere. As a Seattle resident, I am thrilled we were able to do this out of Vancouver, the fact that we didn’t have to buy tickets did make a big difference in our ability to consider doing this. I hope the change to Seattle makes it easier for folks to due this cruise but doesn’t cut into the port times too much. I am also including the couple Seattle tips posts I’ve made in my table of contents if anyone needs those links in the future and am happy to answer any Seattle questions I can for anyone considering this cruise. Planning a cruise is quite a bit different than a WDW trip and so I wasn’t sure how we’d do and as a result…didn’t make too many plans that had us tied into things. I did have a few though so let’s see how we did!

My BFP going into the trip (Big Fat Plan) is first, followed by what we’d do again, what we’d do differently and a daily photo recap!

Tuesday 8/23.

BFP: Embarkation! Drive from Seattle to VAN. My mom (bless her heart!) will be driving us. Lunch in VAN before we get on the boat, boarding on the later side with the hope of being able to carry those carryons (i.e. beer, wine, rum lol) straight to the room. Spa mani and pedi booked starting at 5:30.

What we’d do again: Later arrival worked wonderfully for us in terms of ease to embark, drop stuff off in room. Bringing beer, wine and rum on board with us…major thumbs up as well as the Via. Late arrival really allowed for those things to be painless to carry. Literally. Spa on day one…what a great way to start a trip!! Great first day activity. The boys LOVED the pool and funnel vision and Eric loved the sail away party! Sailing under Lionsgate was a once in a lifetime experience. Hearing the Wonder play “When you wish upon a star”, as we did so, for the first time…priceless.

What we’d do differently: Leave Seattle earlier! Ok, knowing us that wouldn’t happen, we are late to everything but lunch was rushed and stressful. We also had a little less time prior to sail away to get familiar with things and another hour would have been ideal. I also would have bought the coffee refillable mug night one when we had our late night drinks on deck, along with the coffee punch card. We definitely could have used those mugs earlier. I’d probably also consider packing 2 plastic wine glasses for the stateroom. We ended up snagging them from the dinner table and then keeping them there with notes to keep them from being removed and really, it was kind of a pita. Somehow though, drinking wine out of the in room water glasses just isn’t the same. Though they loved the pool, we did probably blow it by not checking out Edge right away. By the time they tried it out it was in the middle of a nighttime activity and they never clicked with the club or anyone there.

Our day in pictures:

















Wednesday 8/24

BFP: At Sea, no plans

What we’d do again: Everything! It was a great lazy day, gorgeous scenery as we went through the inside passage, our first walk around the promenade, lots of pool time for the E’s, beer, ice cream and reading on deck, a fun movie, a nice workout (not necessarily in that order) and formal night. It was also our first show, the Golden Mickeys!

What we’d do differently: I wish Jeff and I had started hitting the adult pool and hot tub earlier in the trip than we did. Same thing on the cheese plate while getting ready with a glass of wine! I also wish I’d taken the time to try to get some formal pictures (which would have meant getting kids out of the pool earlier and all of us getting ready for formal night before the Golden Mickeys lol!) and that Jeff and I started checking the adult entertainment earlier in the cruise.

Our day in pictures:











Thursday 8/25

BFP: Tracy Arm Day. Palo booked for brunch at 10:30.

What we’d do again: Everything! The naturalist presentation was just wonderful and the day was amazing starting with a lovely couples walk, Palo and then Tracy Arm. Seals, mountain goats and blue ice. AMAZING!

What we’d do differently: We were a little sad to leave the naturalist early in the morning to make it to Palo but oh was it worth it! This is the day I really wish we’d purchased those coffee mugs when we were on our morning walk, it was silly not to and a hot coffee drink especially later in the day would have been lovely. We finally bought them on our way IN at the very end of the afternoon, which was silly. Other than that I can’t think of a thing I’d change! Well except I really do wish they’d taken a picture of Jeff and I at Palo, that kind of bummed me out that

Our day in pictures:



















Continued in next post

[eandesmom]

Friday 8/26.

BFP: Skagway. Ziplining excursion. Palo booked for dinner that night.

What we’d do again: Broken record…everything! I couldn’t have been happier with our choice of excursion, of snack spot after the excursion and then our amazing dinner at Palo.

What we’d do differently: Again…honestly, not a darn thing!

Our day in pictures:

















Saturday 8/27

BFP: Juneau. Our BIG excursion, the Enchanted Taku Glacier Lodge Flight and Feast. I’d also hope to have time to ride the Tramway.
What we’d do again: All of it.

What we’d do differently: IF the weather had warranted, we would have done the tram. There was also a very cool airplane/seplane themed brewpub we’d have liked to check out, if there had been time and we’d have planned it accordingly.

Our day in pictures:

































Continued in next post

[eandesmom]

Sunday 8/28.

BFP: Ketchikan. Our no plans day.

What we’d do again: I’d still stroll the waterfront and creek street. Adult pool and hot tub! Pirate night! Character breakfast was a blast even if the food was meh. Rebooking done via card and phone was definitely the way to go, any time that desk was open…there was a serious line.

What we’d do differently: I really should have mapped out how to get to Creek Street. Though there were signs, it still wasn’t terribly clear to me and we wasted some time. I would also do more dining homework as there may have been an even better option but we were happy where we ended up. I wish we could have done the hike we’d planned here. While it was a nice and lazy day it didn’t have quite the wow factor of the other two ports and I’m not sure why. Arguably the cutest of the ports in some ways, I think we still felt something was missing and I think it was the lack of a defined plan or excursion. It was a great day, don’t get me wrong, I think it just fell a little short compared to the other two and we probably could have gone back to the ship, or eaten, earlier than we did. Pirate night, at least the dinner portion, was a blast. Somehow it fell short at the party but I’m not sure if that’s due to it being inside, the Alaska vibe or the fact that my kids are just not into those kinds of shows any more (they had a similar lackluster response to the sailaway party).

Our day in pictures:

















Monday 8/29

BFP: At Sea, no plans.

What we’d do again: The second part of the day was golden for me and I think the morning, pretty darn great for everyone else. . Hot tub, pool, reading on deck, Wine and Cheese in the room, sunset on the verandah, great dinner, show and adult entertainment. Perfect really!

What we’d (I'd) do differently: NO laundry! It’s not like we were flying home or going anywhere else after disembarking. I could have just dedicated a suitcase to dirty clothes. Serious waste of a couple of hours. I could have had a workout, and then a beer on deck! I also should have picked up my own souvenir earlier as I did know what I wanted. We also never tried Beach Blanket for lunch and it would have been a great day to do that. I’d also be more organized with the packing as that felt very rushed to get the darn suitcases outside the door and as a result, we had too much to lug to breakfast in the morning.

Our day in pictures:

Ok these aren’t from the last day but since those are pretty much all show pics it seemed like a good spot for them.











Tuesday 8/30

BFP:Disembark, get picked up by my mom and make our way home. Very likely we will stop either in Bellingham (Boundary Bay Brewery and Bistro) or Mt. Vernon (Skagit Valley Brewery) for lunch.

What we’d do again: Gosh, it's such a depressing thing, the end of a trip, but I guess we'd have to get off the ship gain, like it or not!

What we’d do differently: Be bad and leave our bags in the stateroom till after breakfast if I thought we could get away with it. Perhaps, depending on tablemates and servers, consider breakfast at the buffet (if it’s open in the disembarking day, I’m honestly not sure) or even do room service. I’d also try to avoid last minute errands of any kind although they seem to happen whether you plan ahead or not.

Our day in pictures:

Since I didn’t take any on the last day…you get a couple of…..souvies!
I had very good intentions of taking pictures of everything when we got home. However as all 3 boys commandeered shirts right away, I never really had everything together to take any! They do all seem to get worn so that’s a good thing! Here is what we ended up with.

Jeff. Alaska Brewing Company Hat (Juneau), Alaska Brewing Company Shirt (Juneau), 3 different Ketchikan seaplane shirts. One Alaska mug.





Evan. Great north tee (like a northface knockoff) from Skagway. 3 different Ketchikan shirts. Moose Puppet (Skagway). Vinylmation pin. Slinky dog pin. Alaska knit hat (Ketchikan). Baby pooh and owl pins (which killed me to see him pay full price for but it was his money. They are cute but it was surprising choices!) A goofy pillowcase with lots of fun siggies!





Eric. Skagway ziplining tee. Moose puppet (Skagway). Ketchikan shirt. Seems like there is one more shirt but I can’t think of what it is. Mini stuffed eagle, bear, whale and husky (Ketchikan). Disney Alaska pin with Chip and Dale, lanyard KTTW and extra pink holder pocket thing. And of course, a pillowcase!





Me.

Skagway brewing company pint glass. I have a thing for these; will pick them up from cool brewpubs when we travel. My favorite one is from Kona Brewing…”liquid aloha” is the slogan on the glass. LOL! This is actually not the beer I had but I liked it as it referenced the Chilkoot Trail.



Alaska Mug. I actually use this WAY more than I thought I would. In general, I’m not big on plastic mugs for anything and never use any of the refillable mugs from WDW I’ve carted home. This one, maybe b/c it’s the darker color, or just cooler, I do use as my backup travel mug when my favorite ceramic one is dirty. Go figure!

And…an inaugural tee



I wear this shirt ALL the time. My only issue with it is the burnout fabric does pill, but I still really really like it! I really wanted a DCL coffee cup but just didn’t find a mug I loved enough to buy. Major WAH on that one. I passed on a DCL ornament and wish I wouldn’t have but other than that, am quite content with what I bought. This one shirt was the most expensive thing any of us bought. Was it overpriced? Totally. I still love it though. I figure the shutters pics are my souvies! Not to mention the fact that I DID treat myself to a mani/pedi.

So…what’s next?

Come visit my new PTR and see!

Book it. Buy it. BELIEVE it!

[MEK]

Thank you so much for that wonderful recap. What a great experience. I seriously don't know if I will ever cruise to Alaska, but it certainly looks like an unforgettable experience.

Cost factor aside, are you happy with the week you picked or do you wish you had gone earlier in the season? I know it can get cool in late August and wonder what it would have been like in july.

Where there many other kids on the cruise considering it was the last week in August? Did the ship sail one more week after that? Inquiring minds want to know incase I ever do cruise there.

[eandesmom]

Originally Posted by MEK

Thank you so much for that wonderful recap. What a great experience. I seriously don't know if I will ever cruise to Alaska, but it certainly looks like an unforgettable experience.

Cost factor aside, are you happy with the week you picked or do you wish you had gone earlier in the season? I know it can get cool in late August and wonder what it would have been like in july.

Very happy with the week. I don't know that it would be that much warmer earlier, and certainly not worth the extra cost. It was a cool summer, period, in the Northwest much more so than usual so we were already kind of used to it. The TR's I read (there aren't all that many for Alaska, not sure why) seemed to be early in the season, so colder actually so I'm not sure how July was. I do know tracking the weather for the 2 weeks prior to the cruise it was fairly consistent with what we had though apparently the week before ours was horrible on Tracy Arm day.

Originally Posted by MEK

Where there many other kids on the cruise considering it was the last week in August? Did the ship sail one more week after that? Inquiring minds want to know incase I ever do cruise there.

TONS of kids, no issues there. I think b/c the boys kind of hooked up with the 2 girls each evening, they weren't really looking too hard for other playmates, since they had each other but every day in the pool they seemed to have new friends!

It did sail one more week after that. I'd originally looked at that week but decided it was too close to the start of school. Ironically school ended up starting almost 2 weeks later thanks to budget cuts, which meant removing a lot of in service days and a mid sept start date!

[MEK]

I forgot to add that your scenery pictures are so lovely.

And - I am freaking out because I can't find the link to your pTR. It's like it disappeared. Is it me or is in the DIS? I am afraid of your answer - just post it again!

Edit: found it! LOL!

[mrsksomeday]

I loved the recap !! If we ever did a cruise I would want it to be to Alaska, the pictures were just gorgeous!! Your family looked like they were having a fantastic time. Thank you so much for sharing your trip with us .