Dumb newbie questions

[tachyonbb]

Taking our first cruise in August. Disney Alaska cruise. Working through all the online checkin stuff but have some really dumb questions.
1. what to pack? will it be sweater weather or colder?
2. Other things you found worthwhile to bring?
3. Other than seeing incredible sights what do you do?
4. Will the northern lights be visible?
5. I had back surgery in June, will there be a lot of walking? lot of stairs?
Thanks in advance for any information you provide

 

[kps7795]

1) This depends upon where you are from and what you're used to. My family went to Alaska twice from South Florida. We didn't need anything more than a light jacket, but I wore my favorite DCL fleece every day on excursions.
2) Definitely bring a decent pair of binoculars. The sights are amazing to see from the natural landscapes to the wildlife like bears and whales.
3) If you have time before or after your cruise, two of our favorite places to enjoy were Grouse Mountain and the Capilano Suspension Bridge Park. They are both extremely memorable.
4) The Northern Lights will unfortunately not be visible. This is one of my DW's bucket list items that we're still working on.
5) I went on our first Alaska cruise three weeks following a bad car accident in which I fractured my C2 and my right wrist requiring surgery. So, I spent our Alaska cruise in a cervical collar and a big bulky cast. Everything will be fine.

Have a great cruise! It is one of the best experiences and DCL does an amazing job. Which excursions have you chosen to do? The whale watching is probably the one that we enjoyed the most.

 

[Geomom]

1. Bring rain gear and waterproof shoes. Southeastern Alaska is a temperate rainforest. We had misty/rainy days (temps in the 50s, 60s) in Alaska. Lol, but the sun came out whenever we entered Canada. Some people do have sunny hot (70s, 80s) days though. We're from Massachusetts. We mostly wore jeans, short sleeve tees, and a rain shell. Did have a fleece layer when it was cold. I only used gloves/hat on 'glacier day'. It was hot enough for shorts the day we got off the ship. The pools are heated, so if you can put up with the cold air, you can enjoy less crowded pools. Hot tub was especially great!

3. There are a ton of activities on the ship. Recent Disney movies in the movie theater, 3 Broadway style Disney shows in the Walt theater (you go to the time opposite your dining time), some entertainers in the theater other nights. Trivia, Disney character drawing classes, character meet and greets (love seeing them in their Alaskan costumes!), 'cooking' classes for adults, napkin folding, Bingo ($), etc. Make sure you download the Disney Cruise Line Navigator app to your phones before leaving. Once you put it in airplane mode and connect for free to the ships wifi, you can see ALL the activities for every day of your cruise.

4. No, northern lights will not be visible...may not even see stars if you have our weather!

5. The Wonder is one of the smaller ships, so it's less walking than Dream/Fantasy. With recent back surgery, I'd plan to wait for elevators. The midship ones can be busy, but aft and forward ones aren't too bad. Most of the public spaces are on decks 3, 4, 5, and 9.

 

[Drusilla99]

We loved our Alaska cruise in 2016.

1. As stated, it just depends, keep an eye on the local weather up there and that'll be the best for you. We set sail on July 4th and some days were hot and we were out at the pool, others were cold, and we I had my cocoa and Bailey's with blankets on the veranda.
2. The only thing that comes to mind would be chip clips, or similar, to clip the drapes since it stays light out super late.
3. We walked the streets in the towns and stopped in at local watering holes just to see what we would find, ie food and drink.
4. Nope
5. We only walked as much as we wanted to. I don't recall any big distances that were necessary. We did do a couple walking tours, but you'd probably skip those.

Have a great time

 

[Snowwhyt]

1. what to pack? will it be sweater weather or colder?

Depends on where you’re from since the average temperature for Aug is 60-67°. I’m still wearing shorts then during the daytime, but you might be very cold. So to save space in your suitcase optimize your top layers.
A) Bring your largest most spacious, water friendly, outerwear and layer underneath. Pick up an oversized coat (new or used) for the largest person and pass their current coat to the next person smaller and so on. Give the oversized coat to a charity in the fall.
B) go to the dollar store and pick yourself up the plastic raincoats. Even waterproof coats get soaked in a downpour.
C) plastic bags from a loaf of bread offer great protection inside shoes with a larger rubber band during downpours on an adventure. For smaller feet you could consider doggy do-do bags. Purchase the larger rubber bands also.
D) sweaters need a shirt underneath, consider the sweater clean and reuse it. Most others on the ship will be doing the same thing. A fleece can be worn like a sweater.
E) Formal night: Wear a sweater with collar shirt, dress pants, maybe with a tie. So think cottage Christmas by the fire looks. Your pictures will be lovely then. I would leave the dresses at home it’s not worth the extra shoes in the heavy tight suitcase. Alaska cruises are the least formal of any cruise Disney has, Transatlantic and holiday are the most formal.
F) Consider a water resistant hat that will keep rain off you neck and away from eyes/face. Styles will vary but function will make you more comfortable to enjoy your site. Or use a baseball cap under a water repellent hood.
G) buy several water repellent sprays on Amazon use it for shoes and hats. All adventures will go on rain or shine. Spray the shoes at home and bring 2 cans in the suitcase for your weather needs. Like the front of pant legs the back usually is dry.
H) bring looser pants that you can layer leggings under. Gentleman might prefer longjohns or a thin pair of longer shorts. This is only for individuals who are cold very easily most won’t need this.

2. Other things you found worthwhile to bring?

Some like binoculars. Big suitcase for the kids too.

3. Other than seeing incredible sights what do you do?

Whale watching is best in Alaska.

4. Will the northern lights be visible?

Never say never, but I didn’t see them on our trip.

5. I had back surgery in June, will there be a lot of walking? lot of stairs?

This can be a problem. We went on the Bering sea cruise, and it was wonderful. The Disney personnel who took us to the Bering sea ship, walked us there so fast my father couldn’t keep up. And he was totally embarrassed, the host knew that we would have difficulty because she knew we needed the elevator. Read the descriptions carefully on the adventures, and believe what it says.

Sidenote: bring your old shoes that you can throw away to give your self space in the suitcase for souvenirs. The same can be said for old unloved shirts or jeans. I have a bag of stained/ill-fitting clothes and old shoes just for traveling. If goodwill is going to throw them away I might as well do it myself.

 

[auntlynne]

It doesn’t matter when I cruise AK, I bring cold weather outerwear. (Also tee-shirts). The old rule of layers is really true. It can be cold in the shade but hot if the sun is on you. I don’t enjoy hot places (like where I live), but being cold is just miserable.

Remember - there are self-service laundries in the ship. Taking a coat is more important that lots of variety of daily wear.

SE Alaska is known for rain. We went a week without the sun breaking through - until the final night’s sunset. You can’t predict the weather, but you can be prepared.

“3. Other than seeing incredible sights what do you do? ” See them again. Spend as much time outdoors as possible. The air is crisp. The mountains beautiful. Watch for those spouts of air from whales. Look for wildlife. It is the perfect cruise to just relax and enjoy. I had a friend recover from pacemaker surgery on an AK cruise.

You don’t have to do excursions! Follow your body’s lead. The flight to the ship, including moving luggage, can be a big strain on the back - healthy or not. Make sure your group understands this - and allows each person to do what is physically safe for each.

I always go to Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau. It has a two-mile walk to Nugget Falls. However, they have a newer trail to the left that is flatter and smoother and provides a great straight-on view of the glacier. (Steep Creek Viewing Site). If you opt to go in the Visitor Center, there is a long rampway - and an elevator (at the back - to the right as you go into to the park. (It’s a pretty small “park” compared to most National Parks, a designation it does not have.). If you enjoy crab, combine this with a meal at Tracy’s Crab Shack $$$$ and call it a day. There is a free shuttle from the pier to downtown Juneau (~5 minutes) if you choose to do a Mendenhall excursion followed by a stop downtown (most excursions have the option to get off instead of returning straight to the ship).

Skagway - I would recommend the train excursion. We did the train both ways. There is also the option to have a bus in one direction.

Ketchikan - get out and walk around. It is a very flat town - nearly everything is within walking distance. Amble over to Creek Street to see if the creek is flowing past the painted wooden buildings.

We did our first AK cruise when my niece was six weeks post-hospitalization for MS (had had left side paralysis). We modified what we could do - and sent the more active ones to do their things. We still did helicopter, float plane and whale watch - though expensive and adventures - they did not require a lot of physical exertion.

Not a lot of stairs - but the ramp on and off the ship can be steep depending on the tide. The ports are actually all extremely flat where you walk around. Skagway is a very small, walkable town. And excursion buses can have steep steps - but not a lot.

 

[Snowwhyt]

FYI the northern most 17 states of the United States will see the Northern lights. It’s this WEDNESDAY Night 10pm until 2 am Thursday. So someone will see them on the cruise this week. .