Anyone back from Alaska yet?

[pillow]

We downloaded Muarray's Guide, which I highly recommend. It gives you a mile by mile (and km by km) list of things to see. We visited Carcross, Caribou Crossing, Emerald Lake and stopped at the Alaska/Yukon signs and anywhere we wanted to stop and photograph. We stopped at the Yukon Suspension Bridge on our way back for lunch (we didn't do the bridge). Their buffalo chili, burgers and sliders were delicious and very reasonably priced.

Caribou Crossing charges an $8.50 CAN admission fee and we felt it was well worth it. Sled dog rides are an additional $30 CAN per person but that money goes to help Michelle with her expenses for the dogs and Iditarod training. My DD23 and DMom80 took one and loved it.

I'm not sure if you were asking about food at Capilano or at the Yukon Suspension Bridge. We ate in the cafe at the YSB and it had a beautiful view over the river. We went to Capilano first thing in the morning and headed back to Vancouver for lunch. We actually took the seabus across to Lonsdale Quay. They have lots of different food stalls plus it was Saturday so there was a wonderful farmer's market with even more food options. There is also a food stand right at Capilano. The food smelled wonderful and seemed very popular but we didn't try anything.

Thank you!! I also have Murray's Guide. I was referring to food on your drive. Good to know the food at the suspension bridge was good. Even if we bring our own from the Skagway grocery store, it sounds like that cafe might be a good place to chill out and have a cup of coffee.

I'm curious to know what time the busses arrived at Caribou Crossing?? Should we drive directly there without stops in order to beat the crowds? And then spend the rest of our day at a leisurely pace? I think the sled dog ride would be fun, but I'd like to avoid the hordes of people.

Jodie

 

[pillow]

As a follow-up to my last post . . . can we take a bagged/boxed lunch off the ship with us in the Alaska ports? I know you are not allowed to do this in the Caribbean. Just wondering what the rules are in Alaska.

Jodie

 

[KristiMc]

As a follow-up to my last post . . . can we take a bagged/boxed lunch off the ship with us in the Alaska ports? I know you are not allowed to do this in the Caribbean. Just wondering what the rules are in Alaska.

Jodie

Hi Jodie,

We are currently in Juneau. It has been an amazing cruise so far. The only thing you can take off the ship is something that is pre-packaged.

Kristi

 

[pillow]

Thanks Kristi!! Glad you are having a great time!

Jodie

 

[Disneybridewifemama]

This thread is making me SO EXCITED for our trip!

Random question: for the character breakfast, are the characters in Alaska gear or their sailor gear?

 

[MouseMomx2]

Thank you!! I also have Murray's Guide. I was referring to food on your drive. Good to know the food at the suspension bridge was good. Even if we bring our own from the Skagway grocery store, it sounds like that cafe might be a good place to chill out and have a cup of coffee.

I'm curious to know what time the busses arrived at Caribou Crossing?? Should we drive directly there without stops in order to beat the crowds? And then spend the rest of our day at a leisurely pace? I think the sled dog ride would be fun, but I'd like to avoid the hordes of people.

Jodie

There is food at several places on the drive, including Carcross, Caribou Crossing and the suspension bridge, but there are also lots of places for a nice picnic lunch as well.

We left the ship just after it was cleared (which was slightly later than posted) and started off immediately. I'd guess we were at Caribou Crossing by 9:45 and had a good hour there all by ourselves. Two busses arrived at the same time so the place suddenly became very busy. Because of that, I would definitely recommend driving directly to Caribou Crossing. Spend as much time there as you'd like and then continue on to Emerald Lake and the Carcross Dessert. Stop at Carcross on your way back and then anywhere else along the route you'd like. (We saw bears just north of Bove Island and the suspension bridge is just a few KM on the Canadian side of the border. We ended up there around 1:30.) Finish up with a trip up Dyea road to get some nice shots of the ship/town below.

We got back to town around 2:45 and had some time to wander around town before heading back to the ship.

 

[tidefan]

There is food at several places on the drive, including Carcross, Caribou Crossing and the suspension bridge, but there are also lots of places for a nice picnic lunch as well.

We left the ship just after it was cleared (which was slightly later than posted) and started off immediately. I'd guess we were at Caribou Crossing by 9:45 and had a good hour there all by ourselves. Two busses arrived at the same time so the place suddenly became very busy. Because of that, I would definitely recommend driving directly to Caribou Crossing. Spend as much time there as you'd like and then continue on to Emerald Lake and the Carcross Dessert. Stop at Carcross on your way back and then anywhere else along the route you'd like. (We saw bears just north of Bove Island and the suspension bridge is just a few KM on the Canadian side of the border. We ended up there around 1:30.) Finish up with a trip up Dyea road to get some nice shots of the ship/town below.

We got back to town around 2:45 and had some time to wander around town before heading back to the ship.

We went to Caribou Crossing on our TNTours98 trip. Michelle got us there about 1:30, which was when the last bus was just leaving. We had the whole place to ourselves.

We are lunch at a small bakery in Carcross which had various Sourdough things and some wonderful salmon chowder.

 

[MouseMomx2]

One thing to keep in mind...if you go directly to Caribou Crossing and visit there first you should be back to town by 3:00, giving you time to explore Skagway before dinner/departure.

 

[marisol72]

Hmm... while I personally like Grouse more for the gondola, chairlifts, birds and lumberjack show.... many find Capilano the better attraction, especially with the treetop and cliffwalk additions.

If you have time, but limited funds... another option is "walk" to the top on mother nature stairmaster... not recommend if you are not physically fit. 30 minutes for pro's, 2 hours for joe average, 5 hours for me.
https://grousemountain.com/grousegrind

I think from all the answers that Capilano is the better attraction but with three kids I think Grouse have more family friendly activities

 

[MichelleVW]

Well, you're in Tracy Arm for most of the day, right? Mixology only takes about an hour.

The tour was listed in the grid schedule at the back of the Navigators.

I've had my eye on the Chocolate and Wine Tasting. Tequila doesn't really appeal to me.

Trust me......Tracy Arm is way too amazing to be in a bar. My husband seriously dislikes standing and looking at scenery....From the time we boarded...until we left the ship at the end....he was standing on the deck...just amazed at everything he was seeing. He even got a little sunburnt on our last day because he was on deck so long (only day we had sun).

Here's a random question....what color is the background on the embarkation photo? I like to secretly pack clothing for my family that half way coordinates on embarkation day. And they have always ended up being my favorite photos! Although my teenage son caught on last year, so I'm gonna have to be extra sneaky...

It is red.

I'm wondering how close DCL is able to dock in the three ports? I've been reading prior years trip reports and it seems like especially in Juneau the Wonder docks quite a ways from town.

Thanks!

It was maybe a mile walk...but they have free shuttles.

 

[pillow]

One thing to keep in mind...if you go directly to Caribou Crossing and visit there first you should be back to town by 3:00, giving you time to explore Skagway before dinner/departure.

Thanks for all the great tips!

Jodie

 

[WestFamily]

Hi,
All of a sudden we are worried about cruise attire. More specifically for the kids. I don't know about any of yours but dressing nicely isn't in their vocabulary. Are jeans, shorts, t-shirts and so on ok for the kids in the dining rooms? What about during lunches? How do people dress for that?

Ok, I'll be honest, I hate dressing up too. Do adults really need to wear khakis and polos and such? There is so much conflicting info these days I figured I would ask on the most recent Alaskian thread.

I can't believe that all I'm worried about is what we need to wear.


Thanks!

 

[Ofinn]

My kids always wear shorts and t-shirts to the dining room. I usually wear skirt, or capris, sometime shorts and a blouse. DH usually wears nice shorts and a nice shirt. We are not big dress up people. I would assume in Alaska your will see many kids in jeans rather than shorts. We are from the desert of So Cal, and my kids never wear long pants. We are going to have to buy a whole new wardrobe when we cruise to Alaska. We have no warm clothes.

You will see people that dress up, and others that don't. I wouldn't worry about it. No one dresses up for breakfast or lunch. Have fun.

 

[missyp]

Hi,
All of a sudden we are worried about cruise attire. More specifically for the kids. I don't know about any of yours but dressing nicely isn't in their vocabulary. Are jeans, shorts, t-shirts and so on ok for the kids in the dining rooms? What about during lunches? How do people dress for that?

Ok, I'll be honest, I hate dressing up too. Do adults really need to wear khakis and polos and such? There is so much conflicting info these days I figured I would ask on the most recent Alaskian thread.

I can't believe that all I'm worried about is what we need to wear.


Thanks!

The only times I would worry about dressing up are Formal night, semi formal night, and if you are going to Palo. While not required on formal and semi formal to dress up, most people will. On formal night you will see everything from jeans and shorts to gowns, most will be somewhere in between. I have 2 sons, we are planning the boys and DH to wear a suit shirt and tie on formal night, I will wear a cocktail dress. Semi formal, boys will wear either oxfords or polos with khakis, I will wear a more casual dress. I hate dressing up to and bringing all these clothes across country but I also like to get a nice picture and feel good that night.

 

[MouseMomx2]

The only times I would worry about dressing up are Formal night, semi formal night, and if you are going to Palo. While not required on formal and semi formal to dress up, most people will. On formal night you will see everything from jeans and shorts to gowns, most will be somewhere in between. I have 2 sons, we are planning the boys and DH to wear a suit shirt and tie on formal night, I will wear a cocktail dress. Semi formal, boys will wear either oxfords or polos with khakis, I will wear a more casual dress. I hate dressing up to and bringing all these clothes across country but I also like to get a nice picture and feel good that night.

While this is true on other itineraries it is definitely not the case on the Alaskan. People tend to be much more low key on the Alaskan sailings (we've done two). We saw very few people go all out for Formal Night and most people were completely casual on Semi-formal night. We tend to bring some basic items that we can dress up or down with accessories rather than lots of different outfits. Mix and match is the key to success with Alaska packing.

 

[pillow]

While this is true on other itineraries it is definitely not the case on the Alaskan. People tend to be much more low key on the Alaskan sailings (we've done two). We saw very few people go all out for Formal Night and most people were completely casual on Semi-formal night. We tend to bring some basic items that we can dress up or down with accessories rather than lots of different outfits. Mix and match is the key to success with Alaska packing.

I really really really just want to live in my jeans on this trip. I suppose I need to bring something semi nice for Palo though. I dread packing!

Jodie

 

[DisneyBelle99]

We were also on the DVC Members Cruise, incredibly good! Somebody asked about how close the ships get to the town....this is one of my favorite pictures, because it shows how close! This is Skagway.
We stayed at the Fairmont Pacific Rim before the cruise. If you belong to the Fairmont President's Club, or are eligible for a Friends and Family discount, this is a hotel that offers first class service, with the nicest people on earth. This was our first time in Canada, and we were blown away by how nice everyone was! They even have a service that will take you over to the ship at no charge (besides a tip). Need lots of tip money if you don't have your own car. Doormen will call you a cab. Cab drivers ask about what your plans are for the day, can they help suggesting nearby places, etc. Free Wifi in the rooms and common areas if you are a President's Club member. Room service even if you plane gets in late. A coffee shop/wine bar and a small marketplace that sells paninis, etc. The roof has a pool and cabanas, whirlpool, and food service. We toured Stanley Park, which was beautiful. The walk along the water was great.
My absolute favorite picture (can you guess from my dis name) has to be with Belle! As you can tell from the way we are dressed, I was warm that day, and went with the summer dress, and my DH thought it was Christmas pictures. We were pleasantly surprised with the weather, and certainly overpacked.
We did the Liarsville excursion in Skagway. It was a lot of fun, and included panning for gold, a show, a Salmon bake, and Disney characters.
Here is a picture from the Character Breakfast, which our servers told us about the day before. Still getting all our pictures together, have downloaded them all, sent some off to Walgreens, and hope to share some more soon. We used our Sony Cybershot and my I phone. I was shocked with the great quality pictures I got with my iphone 6. So good.

 

[MichelleVW]

While this is true on other itineraries it is definitely not the case on the Alaskan. People tend to be much more low key on the Alaskan sailings (we've done two). We saw very few people go all out for Formal Night and most people were completely casual on Semi-formal night. We tend to bring some basic items that we can dress up or down with accessories rather than lots of different outfits. Mix and match is the key to success with Alaska packing.

Lol....not me though lol....you know I wear dresses every night!!! Have to look cute in pictures!!!

 

[taysalyn]

We just got back from the June 1st sailing and it was incredible. My DH and I don't dress up at all but DH was in khakis the entire cruise. No jeans for him but for me I wore jean capris nearly the whole trip other than the excursions. The only thing I wish I had was a more protective waterproof jacket instead of my cotton hoodie.

 

[Bill B.]

Yes were back and we had a great time. I did a TR with lots of pictures over on DVCNews if anybody is interested.

http://dvcnews.com/forum/showthread.php?14519-June-1-8-2015-Disney-Wonder-to-Alaska