First Time Cruisers sail to Alaska on the Wonder - May 23-30, 2016
- Thread starter dinglehopper79
- Start date
Thoughts....
- a verandah offers private space for a meal or for a few hours of privacy space for Tracy Arm viewing
- some say they were able to watch whales as the ship cruised the water
- for me I found Alaska to be too cold and windy for a verandah. Oceanview offered better value for me
- not all oceanviews are the same. Deck 1 offers the "twins", but the Wonder's Deck 2 are much larger to give you the feeling of a climate controlled verandah.
- the mid-ship Deck 2 offers an even larger window where a child can be sleeping in it. Scroll down on this link for a picture...
http://www.disboards.com/threads/a-...luggage-may-2016.3515261/page-2#post-55858429
dinglehopper79
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Feb 16, 2015
- Messages
- 47
Honestly for the amount of time that we were in the room for it worked out great for us. Would have a Verandah been nice? Yes…but for us it was either an inside room or we didn't go on the trip and we really wanted to go. It really is a personal preference but for the two of us it really didn't make a difference on this trip for us.
You are going to love it and I found May was a good time to go! Yes I did see a few people wearing their ears throughout the week but not as many as the parks. They do sell Minnie sailor ears on board too.
You have some very valid points and if you did plan on eating some meals in your room than a verandah would be much more important….just to give you a bit more space.
Thank you so much!! We've been busy with home renos so the TR had to take a back burner but I'm hoping to get back to it in the next day or two
I hope you will stick around.
dinglehopper79
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Feb 16, 2015
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- 47
DAY 6 - TRACY ARM? DAY; PART 1 - May 25, 2016
Our day began very early with a Character Breakfast at 8:15am (which was the 2nd thing we needed a ticket for); during breakfast we got to meet Mickey, Minnie, Pluto and Goofy. Overall we personally didn't enjoy this for a few reasons - the food was the worst we had on the ship (my muffin was the best part of the meal) and we felt very rushed meeting the characters and we only got 1 or 2 pictures with each character (they only took pictures with us both in them). We didn't realize how easy it was going to meet the Fab 5 during the cruise so coming to the breakfast was not necessary but if you had kids with you I'm sure they would love it!!
After breakfast we went back to the room to collect our FE gifts. We were in a small group of 10 staterooms in total which I found was the perfect size for our first FE group. We planned out our delivery and luckily it only took us about 20-25 minutes and was a great way to see more of the ship. Once our gifts were handed out we went back and got ready for our day outside and as the Captain said throughout the cruise……dress like an onion (i.e. dress in layers). We headed up to Deck 10 and not long after getting up there we saw a whale!! We just started to soak in the amazing views all around us and we soon saw mountains with snow caps coming into view along with eagles in the distance and icebergs in the water. We were informed that our plans for Tracy Arm had to change because the ship wouldn't be able to get through on account of all the ice so it was to Endicott Arm we went.
I have to admit that I was a little disappointed that we weren't going to Tracy Arm but it didn't last long because the views were absolutely breathtaking and we were in Alaska no matter what fjord we were going to!! I have to mention at this point the weather wasn't that cold and people were walking around in light jackets and sweaters and even thought there were lot of people on deck there was still lots of room to move around. There were also CMs walking around with mugs of hot chocolate and bread bowls of pea soup; we already had our travel mugs full of our favourite hot beverage of the cruise (mixture of coffee & hot chocolate) but DH did enjoy the soup.
We went for lunch at Beach Blanket as I was told by a friend who took the cruise the previous August that they have a BBQ here on Tracy Arm day. They did have BBQ salmon, chicken and venison sausage however they were in warming trays and not right off the grill which is what I was expecting but it was still delicious. The BBQ items were just outside the doors at the back of Beach Blanket and they still had the rest of the buffet open so there were lots of options.
As we moved further into the fjord we saw more and more pieces of ice in the water. The colour of the water also changed and became a beautiful blue/green colour and some of the icebergs had a deep blue to them. Another thing we noticed was the amount of waterfalls, some high up in the mountains and some close to us. The closer we got to the glacier the cooler it got and it started to sprinkle so we put on our mitts and toque and took breaks inside here and there but it didn't last long and then the sun came out for a short time. At this time there were less people on deck and there was a lot more room to move around and those that were out were up front so we decided to check out the view from there. We got a great spot and we stayed there and watched the glacier come into view. It was very windy up front and we were pretty cold but we were dressed in layers and that really helped. Seeing the glacier get closer and closer was pretty cool and as we made our way we noticed some harbour seals relaxing on the icebergs far off in the distance. The one little thing I was disappointed about is that we didn't see any seals up close but I know that is something we can't control but we did get to see them.
It was very clear as we got closer leading to Dawes glacier and I was very surprised that there weren't more icebergs in our path. Again we saw waterfalls galore and there was this amazing valley on one side that was a mixture of greenery and snow…..pictures do not do it justice. Once we got as close to the glacier as we were going to get we stayed around and took some pictures. They did have a photographer set up taking your group photos with a clear shot of the glacier in the background near the front of the boat; they took the picture with their camera only which was the first time we encountered this (all the character pictures they would take some professional shots and then some with your own camera/phone). We decided to make our way down to our room around 3pm to warm up as we weren't going to get any closer and they were slowly turning the ship around to make our way back out of Endicott Arm.
Our day began very early with a Character Breakfast at 8:15am (which was the 2nd thing we needed a ticket for); during breakfast we got to meet Mickey, Minnie, Pluto and Goofy. Overall we personally didn't enjoy this for a few reasons - the food was the worst we had on the ship (my muffin was the best part of the meal) and we felt very rushed meeting the characters and we only got 1 or 2 pictures with each character (they only took pictures with us both in them). We didn't realize how easy it was going to meet the Fab 5 during the cruise so coming to the breakfast was not necessary but if you had kids with you I'm sure they would love it!!
After breakfast we went back to the room to collect our FE gifts. We were in a small group of 10 staterooms in total which I found was the perfect size for our first FE group. We planned out our delivery and luckily it only took us about 20-25 minutes and was a great way to see more of the ship. Once our gifts were handed out we went back and got ready for our day outside and as the Captain said throughout the cruise……dress like an onion (i.e. dress in layers). We headed up to Deck 10 and not long after getting up there we saw a whale!! We just started to soak in the amazing views all around us and we soon saw mountains with snow caps coming into view along with eagles in the distance and icebergs in the water. We were informed that our plans for Tracy Arm had to change because the ship wouldn't be able to get through on account of all the ice so it was to Endicott Arm we went.
I have to admit that I was a little disappointed that we weren't going to Tracy Arm but it didn't last long because the views were absolutely breathtaking and we were in Alaska no matter what fjord we were going to!! I have to mention at this point the weather wasn't that cold and people were walking around in light jackets and sweaters and even thought there were lot of people on deck there was still lots of room to move around. There were also CMs walking around with mugs of hot chocolate and bread bowls of pea soup; we already had our travel mugs full of our favourite hot beverage of the cruise (mixture of coffee & hot chocolate) but DH did enjoy the soup.
We went for lunch at Beach Blanket as I was told by a friend who took the cruise the previous August that they have a BBQ here on Tracy Arm day. They did have BBQ salmon, chicken and venison sausage however they were in warming trays and not right off the grill which is what I was expecting but it was still delicious. The BBQ items were just outside the doors at the back of Beach Blanket and they still had the rest of the buffet open so there were lots of options.
As we moved further into the fjord we saw more and more pieces of ice in the water. The colour of the water also changed and became a beautiful blue/green colour and some of the icebergs had a deep blue to them. Another thing we noticed was the amount of waterfalls, some high up in the mountains and some close to us. The closer we got to the glacier the cooler it got and it started to sprinkle so we put on our mitts and toque and took breaks inside here and there but it didn't last long and then the sun came out for a short time. At this time there were less people on deck and there was a lot more room to move around and those that were out were up front so we decided to check out the view from there. We got a great spot and we stayed there and watched the glacier come into view. It was very windy up front and we were pretty cold but we were dressed in layers and that really helped. Seeing the glacier get closer and closer was pretty cool and as we made our way we noticed some harbour seals relaxing on the icebergs far off in the distance. The one little thing I was disappointed about is that we didn't see any seals up close but I know that is something we can't control but we did get to see them.
It was very clear as we got closer leading to Dawes glacier and I was very surprised that there weren't more icebergs in our path. Again we saw waterfalls galore and there was this amazing valley on one side that was a mixture of greenery and snow…..pictures do not do it justice. Once we got as close to the glacier as we were going to get we stayed around and took some pictures. They did have a photographer set up taking your group photos with a clear shot of the glacier in the background near the front of the boat; they took the picture with their camera only which was the first time we encountered this (all the character pictures they would take some professional shots and then some with your own camera/phone). We decided to make our way down to our room around 3pm to warm up as we weren't going to get any closer and they were slowly turning the ship around to make our way back out of Endicott Arm.
marciemouse
Raised on Disney
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- Apr 9, 2008
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I'm enjoying your report so far! We're hoping to cruise Alaska for our 20th anniversary in a few years. 
franandaj
I'm so happy, I could BOUNCE!
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We just got back yesterday and also went to Endicott. The waterfall to the right of the glacier was flowing much more by the time of our cruise. It looks like you had more icebergs along the way.
Thanks for your reports!
Thanks for your reports!
PiperGirlInWondrland
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Dec 13, 2007
- Messages
- 1,417
Loving your report it looks so beautiful!
dinglehopper79
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Feb 16, 2015
- Messages
- 47
DAY 6 - TRACY ARM? DAY; PART 2 - May 25, 2016
When we got back to our stateroom we turned on the TV and saw that they were broadcasting the view from the front of the ship so even though we didn't have a verandah or port hole we could still see the glacier in our room.
We decided to try out another thing on our 'cruise must do' list.....we ordered the cake of the day from room service and enjoyed it as an afternoon snack with some of our bubbly. The cake that day was a lemon cheesecake and it was delicious!!
After enjoying our snack we freshened up and headed out to enjoy the rest of the afternoon inside the ship. We ended up doing a few meet & greets and got to meet Tinker Bell for the first time! We decided to skip that night's show which was the Magic & Illusion show with Kyle Knight and Mistie as we really weren't interested in it. We decided to explore the ship a little more and were surprised at how quiet it was as it seemed that people were either at the show or at the early sitting for dinner; it was great though as it felt like we had the ship all to ourselves. We hadn't been to Studio Sea yet so we walked in to find it completely empty and were able to look around and take some pictures. We also did that day's clues for Anna's Chocolate Chase. We happened upon Minnie in her Alaska outfit in the lobby with a very short line and couldn't pass up the chance for a picture with her! We still had some time so hopped right back in line to meet Mickey in his Alaska outfit.
We went back up to our stateroom to get ready for dinner quickly and then headed off to Parrot Cay where our menu that night was Caribbean Island cuisine. Our food tonight was very good. I did forget to mention that I wasn't impressed with my main dish (the grilled tuna) the night before in Animator's Palette and to be honest it was my least favourite (the appetizer and dessert that night made up for it). Our servers also surprised us with our Anniversary cake and sang us Happy Anniversary which was very nice. On our first night they had asked us when we wanted to celebrate and since our actual anniversary was a few days before we boarded we told them it didn't matter to us, for them to surprise us.....and it was a nice surprise. One thing about the restaurant itself was that we found it very loud for some reason and a lot more than the other 2 restaurants.
With full bellies we headed to the lobby as we had one more character to meet before we called it a night.....Daisy in her Alaska outfit! DH is a big Donald & Daisy fan so this was one of the only characters he wanted to get his picture taken with solo....he was just so cute!
After our pictures we decided to head to our stateroom to get ready for the next day as we had an early morning ahead of us for it was our first port day and our excursion in Skagway started nice and early. Of course I have to share that night's towel animal...he was just so cute!
When we got back to our stateroom we turned on the TV and saw that they were broadcasting the view from the front of the ship so even though we didn't have a verandah or port hole we could still see the glacier in our room.
We decided to try out another thing on our 'cruise must do' list.....we ordered the cake of the day from room service and enjoyed it as an afternoon snack with some of our bubbly. The cake that day was a lemon cheesecake and it was delicious!!
After enjoying our snack we freshened up and headed out to enjoy the rest of the afternoon inside the ship. We ended up doing a few meet & greets and got to meet Tinker Bell for the first time! We decided to skip that night's show which was the Magic & Illusion show with Kyle Knight and Mistie as we really weren't interested in it. We decided to explore the ship a little more and were surprised at how quiet it was as it seemed that people were either at the show or at the early sitting for dinner; it was great though as it felt like we had the ship all to ourselves. We hadn't been to Studio Sea yet so we walked in to find it completely empty and were able to look around and take some pictures. We also did that day's clues for Anna's Chocolate Chase. We happened upon Minnie in her Alaska outfit in the lobby with a very short line and couldn't pass up the chance for a picture with her! We still had some time so hopped right back in line to meet Mickey in his Alaska outfit.
We went back up to our stateroom to get ready for dinner quickly and then headed off to Parrot Cay where our menu that night was Caribbean Island cuisine. Our food tonight was very good. I did forget to mention that I wasn't impressed with my main dish (the grilled tuna) the night before in Animator's Palette and to be honest it was my least favourite (the appetizer and dessert that night made up for it). Our servers also surprised us with our Anniversary cake and sang us Happy Anniversary which was very nice. On our first night they had asked us when we wanted to celebrate and since our actual anniversary was a few days before we boarded we told them it didn't matter to us, for them to surprise us.....and it was a nice surprise. One thing about the restaurant itself was that we found it very loud for some reason and a lot more than the other 2 restaurants.
With full bellies we headed to the lobby as we had one more character to meet before we called it a night.....Daisy in her Alaska outfit! DH is a big Donald & Daisy fan so this was one of the only characters he wanted to get his picture taken with solo....he was just so cute!
After our pictures we decided to head to our stateroom to get ready for the next day as we had an early morning ahead of us for it was our first port day and our excursion in Skagway started nice and early. Of course I have to share that night's towel animal...he was just so cute!
dinglehopper79
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Feb 16, 2015
- Messages
- 47
Honestly pictures do not do it justice and something you just need to experience (like you said hopefully you do soon!). Yes we just loved all the little Disney touches which made it so much more magical!Wow! What amazing scenery
Thank you! Whatever you have to do so you can go on this cruise you need to do it!!! We are so happy that we chose to do this one as our first cruise....and it definitely hooked us!I'm enjoying your report so far! We're hoping to cruise Alaska for our 20th anniversary in a few years.
Wow, I wonder when Tracy Arm will be clear to sail down as I thought by know it would have! I'm looking forward to reading yours and all about your experience!
dinglehopper79
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Feb 16, 2015
- Messages
- 47
Thank you very much.....I'm sorry it is so slow going as I was hoping to have it done by now but life has been a bit crazy and I want to make sure I get every detail that we want to get out and not just rush through it! Like I said above whatever you have to do to get there it is well worth it!!
Awe, thank you so much! It truly is and the pictures just show part of the beauty - real life is absolutely breathtaking!
minniebeth
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Feb 3, 2006
- Messages
- 8,624
Love your trip report! Hoping for an update on your fabulous trip sometime! 
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