June 1, 2015 Wonder to Alaska

[Tigger19]

Imagine meeting you here! Trying to not think about this cruise till after our Fantasy cruise in 54 days Even though I've been dreaming of this cruise for years!!!

Can't wait to finally meet you and we are very excited to count down 2 cruises now!!

 

[Tigger19]

So nice to see so many people!!!

I have looked into excursions... I will have 11,5,6 year old boys with me.. So I have to keep it kind of tame...

We are doing whale watching and may rent a car to drive out to Emerald lake. that is really all we have planned, we are going to fly into Seattle a few days before hand and do some sight seeing and then we plan to take the train or drive over to Vancouver from there... We do have some time to work out all the details Cannot wait to get to know all of you!!

Is it cheaper to fly into Seattle? How far is that from Vancouver? Since this is a Monday sailing we thought about spending the weekend in Vancouver!

 

[bearsfanemily]

What is everyone doing planning wise. Nothing? I'm not doing anything at the moment but I feel behind LOL

 

[Dixielady908]

What is everyone doing planning wise. Nothing? I'm not doing anything at the moment but I feel behind LOL

Not doing any planning at the moment, I am looking at excursions...but not making and decisions on them either....just having fun looking to see what we want to do.

 

[Dixielady908]

May have to check into flying into Seattle. My daughter and son-in-law are stationed there. Could go and spend a few days with them prior to the cruise something to think about.

 

[vljohnston]

Is it cheaper to fly into Seattle? How far is that from Vancouver? Since this is a Monday sailing we thought about spending the weekend in Vancouver!

Vancouver, BC is about 150-160 miles north of Seattle.

Important - there is a Vancouver, WA - do not confuse it for Vancouver, BC when looking at options! It's in the opposite direction!

Depending on the airlines and where you are flying from it can be an additional $250-$300 to fly in/out of Vancouver. When flying from this area also compare airfares to Bellingham, WA - just south of the US border. It can be cheaper at times to fly in/out of Bellingham and rent a vehicle than to fly in/out of Vancouver, BC.

The drive from Seattle to Vancouver is around 3 hours depending on the route. The cost is that of the rental car. Drop offs at a different location they usually get you for a little more $$. And I think there is an outlet mall or so along the route if I remember from previous drives.

The train ride looks to be around $170 round trip for 1 adult. Plus I've read it's suppose to be a pretty train ride but is about 5 1/2 hours long.

There are also buses/vans that you can take - I haven't looked into those at this point.

 

[vljohnston]

What is everyone doing planning wise. Nothing? I'm not doing anything at the moment but I feel behind LOL

I've done some looking at options for getting from Seattle to Vancouver so I talk with DH about it. I think he would prefer to drive to Seattle right now. I would prefer to relax and not have to worry about driving!

I would also like to do a couple days in Seattle since DS (10 by then) has never been there. See the stuff around Seattle Center (Space Needle, museums, etc) and maybe out to Woodland Zoo or the Aquarium at the port.

I've glanced at the port adventures to see what they have. No firm plans there either, except we'll go for the adventures that have more historical or information about the towns. Or maybe explore on our own. Living in south central Alaska we can do the glaciers, dog sled rides, fishing, etc. when we can afford to.

I was interested also in looking around downtown Juneau some and sticking my nose into some doors of state workers I video conference with monthly. On one hand it is a vacation, on the other I've never been on a business trip to see these folks. Maybe I can get some insider tips from them on what to see/do.

At least I have plenty of time to think and decide on things!

 

[vljohnston]

We last sailed The Wonder to Hawaii in Oct 2012 and have been on all of the other ships.

Hi! We also did the Oct 2012 Hawaii trip!!

I loved it and the long cruise. The 4 night cruise on the Dream last month just seemed way too short!

Valerie

 

[msbiscuit]

For the repositioning cruise in 2012, I flew to YVR and took the Skytrain to the waterfront. Very easy, but as mentioned by PP flights in/out of YVR are more expensive. Also the possibility of very, very long lines at customs. (Make mental note: use the washroom before getting into that line!)
For this year's repositioning cruise, I'll be flying to SEA, staying overnight and taking Amtrak to Vancouver. Loved Vancouver so much that I wanted to spend more time exploring and enjoying the city. From reading some trip reports, the scenery looks gorgeous and worth the 4 hour train ride!
As far as excursions, I'm planning on panning for gold so I can afford the other excursions! lol

Barb

 

[smalltowngirl504]

We will also be taking the Amtrak to Vancouver. I am very excited! We just booked Disney World for October so that is something that can occupy my time , instead of obsessing over this amazing Alaskan Cruise

I am still not going to be back there until April 18th when lent is over.

So if you do have a group can you link it here, and if you do not.. I can make one when I go back.

 

[mattykin]

Vancouver, BC is about 150-160 miles north of Seattle.

Important - there is a Vancouver, WA - do not confuse it for Vancouver, BC when looking at options! It's in the opposite direction!

Depending on the airlines and where you are flying from it can be an additional $250-$300 to fly in/out of Vancouver. When flying from this area also compare airfares to Bellingham, WA - just south of the US border. It can be cheaper at times to fly in/out of Bellingham and rent a vehicle than to fly in/out of Vancouver, BC.

The drive from Seattle to Vancouver is around 3 hours depending on the route. The cost is that of the rental car. Drop offs at a different location they usually get you for a little more $$. And I think there is an outlet mall or so along the route if I remember from previous drives.

The train ride looks to be around $170 round trip for 1 adult. Plus I've read it's suppose to be a pretty train ride but is about 5 1/2 hours long.

There are also buses/vans that you can take - I haven't looked into those at this point.

lol I live in Vancouver WA so I will attest that it will be out of the way....I am super excited to be able to drive to our cruise for the first time rather than flying I look forward to meeting you all

 

[msbiscuit]

lol I live in Vancouver WA so I will attest that it will be out of the way....I am super excited to be able to drive to our cruise for the first time rather than flying I look forward to meeting you all

Lucky you! I've given up wishing that DCL could ever cruise the Great Lakes. That's probably the only way I could drive to the port.

 

[DVC_Corrys]

Hi everyone! We are joining you on the 6/1 cruise!! It will be my wife and I. We are leaving the kids behind on this one (3/1).

Our plan was to sail with Princess or Royal since it was just the two of us. This wasn't based on not having kids but the cost Disney charges for Alaska. They can be up to 100% more expensive than those two.

What switched us was having an dummy cruise and booking opening day. Those prices with discount made it only slightly more expensive that the others.

This will be our 5th cruise with DCL. Right now we are going back on the Fantasy 11/29/14 for Christmas. The Wonder was our first Disney Cruise in 2011 so it is a "homecoming".

My wife and I are from Central Washington. If you have eaten an apple, it is probably from my town!!

Looking forward to seeing Alaska and meeting you all. I assume we are doing an FE list?

 

[msbiscuit]

Hi everyone! We are joining you on the 6/1 cruise!! It will be my wife and I. We are leaving the kids behind on this one (3/1).

Our plan was to sail with Princess or Royal since it was just the two of us. This wasn't based on not having kids but the cost Disney charges for Alaska. They can be up to 100% more expensive than those two.

What switched us was having an dummy cruise and booking opening day. Those prices with discount made it only slightly more expensive that the others.

This will be our 5th cruise with DCL. Right now we are going back on the Fantasy 11/29/14 for Christmas. The Wonder was our first Disney Cruise in 2011 so it is a "homecoming".

My wife and I are from Central Washington. If you have eaten an apple, it is probably from my town!!

Looking forward to seeing Alaska and meeting you all. I assume we are doing an FE list?

Hi!

I understand what you're saying about DCL being a really expensive option for an cruise to Alaska! I wouldn't be able to afford this without my roomie!

I'd guess there will be an FE list. I've never participated, but would be happy to help organize.

Barb

 

[Lexi221]

This will be our 5th cruise with DCL. Right now we are going back on the Fantasy 11/29/14 for Christmas. The Wonder was our first Disney Cruise in 2011 so it is a "homecoming".

How funny... We booked the 6/1 Alaska cruise, and will also be on the 11/29/14 Fantasy! What a coincidence! It will be myself, my DS (8) and DS (15), plus my sister, for both sailings... although, both boys will each be a year older by the time we set sail to Alaska.
The Wonder was our first as well, back in 2010. I love the size of the classic ships, so I can't wait.

 

[Mommynurseof2]

We literally just stepped off the Fantasy this morning. We are super excited about our next voyage! We are definitely in for FE!!

 

[asummerlin1254]

We just got in the car from our Disney dream cruise. On board we booked the Alaskan cruise on June 1st. My husband and I and the three kids will be going. This will only be our 2nd cruise we loved cruising the dream and cruising Disney in general. We can't wait to join for a 2nd time

 

[Dixielady908]

Happy Monday.


Nothing much going on here...just popping in to say hello...


later

 

[vljohnston]

For those early birds looking at port adventures already for next years cruise yay, I wanted to share a potential resource. Not everyone does the Disney port adventures (shudder, I know). The Alaska TourSaver is a 2-for-1 deal book for Alaskan adventures. They have a number of Southeast Alaska deals listed for this year at http://www.toursaver.com/inside-passage/ that include stuff at Skagway, Ketchikan and Juneau.

They come out with a new book each year, so don't go buying anything now! They are not cheap - $99.95 plus shipping but if you are doing a 2-for-1 tour that costs $208 each, it can save you some money. For now, use it as a resource to see what tour companies are out there, prices, etc.

And in case you were wondering, no, I have no financial or other interest in this company. I tend to look at it each summer (or winter!) when looking at things to do.

 

[dunnhorn]

Hello everyone!

We were on the Magic a week ago, and we rebooked the Wonder 6/1 for Alaska! It has been a bucket list item for me for so long, I can't believe it!

I also really like the "Classic" ship size... We are planning a 5th cruise in August so the Alaska cruise will be our first cruise at GOLD level!

I look forward to getting to know y'all!