Our First Magical Disney Cruise to Alaska (Lots of Pictures!) Update 10/11!

[BelleYYC]

This is our second trip report, I started one last year which I will continue soon, but let's get this one rolling for now!!

We took the Disney Wonder to Alaska as our first Disney Cruise and we had an amazing time. We think about it everyday and we can't wait to get back on the ship. If it was up to us we never would have gotten off in the first place!!

Now on to the details:

We were on the June 14th - June 21st sailing out of Vancouver. This worked really well for us as we live in Canada and we could drive there. We also spent a week in Vancouver before the cruise, which was really nice and gave us some time to relax before our big adventure.

Our trip consisted of two huge Disney fans, my boyfriend, Brent, and myself, Lisa.


Brent and Lisa with Mickey Gnome by OsanGarYYC, on Flickr

We decided on an inside cabin on deck 6 forward as we knew we would be outside on the decks, or walking around the ship and would mostly only use the room for sleeping. We were definitely right about that!! It would have been hard for anyone to drag us inside on this trip!!

**Before we proceed, if you would like to see the larger version of the pictures you can click on them and you will be taken to our Flickr page. There you can click on the photo again to make it larger. As well if you would like to see all of the pictures together we have placed the links to our sets for our trips in my signature. Feel free to check them all out!!**

Thanks for joining us on this Magical trip report!!

Enjoy!


**Saved for Links**

Pre-Cruise
Day 1 - Embarkation and our first evening at sea

 

[BelleYYC]

Pre-Cruise:

Since we were in Vancouver a week early we decided to go to Ambleside Park to watch the Disney Wonder leave for the June 7th - June 14th sailing. After watching the Wonder leave we couldn’t wait to board when it returned!!

Here are some pictures of her as she neared us, went under the Lions Gate Bridge and passed us on her way to Alaska!!


Disney Wonder Cruise Ship by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Disney Wonder Cruise Ship by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Disney Wonder Cruise Ship by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Next up, Day 1 – Embarkation!

 

[BelleYYC]

Day 1 – Embarkation and our first evening at sea!!

Well the day had finally arrived and I don’t think it fully sunk in that we were going on our first ever cruise and that it would be on a Disney ship!! I don’t think we slept much the night before as we were so excited. We packed up, checked out of our hotel, picked up Brent’s mom at the Vancouver airport and then we were off to the terminal.

When we got to the terminal we made our way down to the parkade made our way down to the parkade and Brent’s mom took the car to Vancouver Island to visit her mom which worked out great for us since we didn’t have to pay for parking. We then made our way through the security area which didn’t take long at all. Next was the check in. We had done the online check in so we got in line and in a few minutes we were called to the desk. They scanned us into the system and then took our pictures and gave us our KTTW cards. We were almost on the ship!! We made our way down the hall and a Disney CM asked if we would like to have our picture taken. We said yes and then onto the ship we went. It was about 3:00 when we boarded. Disney definitely makes you feel like the center of attention when you board, they ask you your name and then let everyone know that you are getting on. It’s quite a welcoming and definitely done in Disney style. We walked around the ship for a bit before heading to our stateroom. You definitely get a good workout as you make your way around the ship.


Stateroom 6503 by MunchYYC, on Flickr

Disney Wonder Bed by MunchYYC, on Flickr

When we got to our stateroom it was all ready for us. We were in stateroom 6503 which was a sideways cabin. It was perfect!! We had tons of room and since we were all the way at the end of the hallway there was hardly any traffic which made it nice and quiet. The only negative about the room's location was that it was so far from the drink station since we were all the way at the front of the ship. Our luggage hadn’t arrived yet but that was alright as we didn’t need anything out of it. Within about two minutes there was a knock at the door and our Stateroom Host introduced himself and asked if everything was okay or if we needed anything. Right after, our first piece of luggage arrived and they said the second one was on it’s way soon. We got settled into the room and we relaxed for a bit. At around 4:30 it was announced that everyone should go to the lifeboat station for the drill. We knew it is mandatory and all but it did seem like a bit of a waste of time. We spent more time cheering and doing the wave then actually going over what would happen if the boat were to sink.


Downtown Vancouver by MunchYYC, on Flickr

After that was done we ran back to our stateroom and grabbed all of our camera gear and made our way up to the top deck to watch the festivities and wait for our ship to leave port.Since this was our first time on the ship we didn’t realize that the horn does a magical horn song right before leaving. Unfortunately we didn’t have the camcorder rolling when it went off.


10-metre Olympic Cauldron by MunchYYC, on Flickr

Disney Wonder Funnel & Lions Gate Bridge by MunchYYC, on Flickr

North Vancouver with Lions Gate Bridge and Stanley Park by MunchYYC, on Flickr

Leaving Vancouver was exciting especially when we went under the Lions Gate Bridge.


Lions Gate Bridge with Stanley Park and North Vancouver by MunchYYC, on Flickr

Downtown Vancouver by MunchYYC, on Flickr

BC Ferry - Queen of Oak Bay by MunchYYC, on Flickr

Right before we left it clouded over and about an hour later it started to rain on the ship. We were now off to Alaska!!


Elephant Towel Animal by MunchYYC, on Flickr

Later on that evening when we got back to our stateroom we had our first towel animal waiting for us on our bed. It was an elephant!!

 

[Laundress]

Loving your TR. can't wait for more. Thank you for taking the time.

 

[HermanTriplets+1]

I'm here, too! Keep the posts coming - love the pictures

 

[BelleYYC]

Loving your TR. can't wait for more. Thank you for taking the time.

Thank you!! I'm glad you are enjoying it!! I should have the next post up tonight sometime.

 

[BelleYYC]

I'm here, too! Keep the posts coming - love the pictures

Thanks!! I will make sure there are many more pictures.

 

[plwilliams1049]

Really enjoying your TR and pictures!!! I'm sailing on my first Disney Cruise next June to Alaska so looking forward to hearing more!

 

[BelleYYC]

Really enjoying your TR and pictures!!! I'm sailing on my first Disney Cruise next June to Alaska so looking forward to hearing more!

Thanks!! If you love nature and Disney then this is definitely the cruise to take.

 

[BelleYYC]

We had a wonderful sleep on our first night on the ship and we were ready to go for breakfast when we woke up. We decided to go to Beach Blanket on Deck 9 to have the buffet and it was delicious. There was a really good assortment of fruit and there was all the regular breakfast food as well.


Buffet Breakfast by MunchYYC, on Flickr

These were our plates for the morning. We decided to eat outside since it was such a nice morning. You definitely have to make sure that you don't have anything light that isn't secured to your plate or the table if you decide to eat outside though. We almost lost a napkin!! If we weren't quick enough it would have gone overboard. After breakfast we decided to take a walk around the ship and then play some shuffleboard!! It's a really fun game if any of you get a chance to play it. It's like curling minus the ice.


Disney Wonder Bench by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Disney Wonder Life Preserver by MunchYYC, on Flickr

We then took some pictures on Deck 4, which is the promenade deck, and then made our way back up to the top deck for a bit. We were lucky we were up there when we were as the captain came on to let everyone know that they had spotted some black bears on the starboard side of the ship.


Black Bears on the Beach by MunchYYC, on Flickr

They were pretty far away so we couldn't get closer to them even with our 100-400mm lens but you can see the two of them on the shore in the middle. Our first wildlife!!


BC Clouds by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Eyes in the BC Clouds by MunchYYC, on Flickr

We went back to Deck 4 to relax and enjoy the beautiful scenery. As we were relaxing the sky decided to give us a show!! The top picture is of just the eye formation that the clouds made for us. The second is a panorama of the whole sky that was in front of us. If you look closely it looks like a face with two eyes in the clouds and the mountain in the middle is the nose. The formation of the clouds was amazing and it lasted for quite a bit. We had never seen anything like it before. We had a family from California beside us so we showed them what we saw. They were really nice and asked Brent if he would take their picture. To show their gratitude they bought us a drink. We returned the gesture later on in the cruise.

After our relaxing day we went back to our stateroom to get ready for dinner. Tonight was formal night and our restaurant on our rotation was Animator's Palate. We were excited to see the show that happens at Animator's, so earlier in the day I had phoned the Guest Services to make sure that it always happens at your first night at the restaurant as that was what we had heard. We were told it would be on so we got ready and made our way down. We enjoyed our dinner. We had the Caramelized Bay Scallops and Spiced Asparagus and Citrus Delight for our appetizers, a salad of Mixed Baby Greens, and the Grilled Ginger-Lime Swordfish Steak and the Yachtsman Steakhouse Grilled NY Strip as our main course.


Dinner and a Drink by MunchYYC, on Flickr

And, we had this absolutely delicious drink with our dinner. We believe it's the Golden Dream. Definitely worth the price!!

We waited quite a while waiting for the show to start and after a while we started to wonder when they were going to do it as people were starting to leave. We asked our server and he told us that because it was formal night they would not be doing the show and it would happen on our second dinner there. We were a little disappointed but we would go back again to see it!!

After dinner we went back to deck 4 to watch the sun go down.


Sunset aboard the Disney Wonder by MunchYYC, on Flickr

We had a really pretty sunset even though there was quite a bit of cloud!!


Full Moon on the Horizon by MunchYYC, on Flickr

We went to the other side of the ship and saw a pink dot on the horizon. we thought it was another ship but we soon realized it was the full moon rising. It looked huge on the horizon and the colour from the sun on it made for an amazing shot. It was cool to see a pink moon!! We almost didn't see it because it was behind us. It was pretty late as well, about 11:30, but since it only got fully dark for a few hours that night this shot was made possible!!

When we got to our room we found our surprise of the day on our bed.


Pit Bull Towel Animal by MunchYYC, on Flickr

Brent had left his sunglasses in the room that day so our stateroom host made us a pit bull and put Brent's sunglasses on it. It was super cute.

The weather today started out sunny but as the day progressed more and more cloud moved in.

Next up, Day 3 - Tracy Arm.

 

[BelleYYC]

Day 3 – Tracy Arm

We went for breakfast at Beach Blanket again this morning and ate outside at the very back of the ship in the sunshine. The cloud was starting to break up and it looked like it was going to be a beautiful day. As we were eating we were very lucky to have a pod of Dall’s Porpoises swimming next to the ship.


Breakfast with Dall's Porpoises by MunchYYC, on Flickr

They stayed close by for a couple of hours going in and out of the water. After breakfast we got this shot of them on the port side of the ship. We had heard from some other guests that there were some sightings of some whales on the starboard side of the ship so we rushed over.


Orca by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Humpback Whale by MunchYYC, on Flickr

Sure enough we saw an orca and a humpback while!! It was definitely an active day for the wildlife.

At 12:30 we went to Animator’s Palate for the Animation for Adults. We got to draw Donald which is a really fun character to draw. We got to draw him the year before in Disney World so we had a little bit of knowledge on how to make him better this time!!

As the ship made it’s way north we started to see some icebergs. They started out small but progressively got bigger as we entered Stephen’s Passage. The deep blue on the icebergs was amazing and every one was different.


Icebergs in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Icebergs in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Icebergs in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr

As you can see the deep blue underneath is breathtaking!


Icebergs in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Icebergs in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr

Some icebergs were clear underneath instead of blue.


Tracy Arm Waterfall by MunchYYC, on Flickr

As we continued further into Tracy Arm Fjord there were a lot of waterfalls as well as more icebergs.


Icebergs in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Tracy Arm Waterfall by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Iceberg in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Fishing Boat by MunchYYC, on Flickr

It was cool to see how small this fishing boat looked compared to our ship as well. These people looked like they were having a relaxing day in Alaska!


Carnival Spirit by MunchYYC, on Flickr

The Tracy Arm Fjord is not very wide and therefore we were quite close to other ships passing us and leaving Tracy Arm. This is the Carnival Spirit as it was leaving the Fjord. We were able to get some really great pictures of her as she came towards us and then passed us. Everyone on the Carnival seemed to be in awe of our ship!!


Carnival Spirit by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Carnival Spirit by MunchYYC, on Flickr

We would see her again a few more times before the end of the trip.

The Captain came on a few times while we were in Tracy Arm to tell us about the area and what we might see.

As we moved in closer we were greeted by some adorable Harbour Seals and pups!!


Tracy Arm Seals by MunchYYC, on Flickr

Some were the mom and pups sunbathing!! They were absolutely adorable!!


Tracy Arm Seals by MunchYYC, on Flickr

And some were the mom and pup giving each other a sniff test!!


Icebergs in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr

The scenery in the fjord was unbelievable and we had excellent weather.


Sawyer Glacier by MunchYYC, on Flickr

 

[BelleYYC]

After a bit we arrived a Sawyer Glacier. The Captain navigated very slowly through the water to get us closer to the glacier.


Iceberg in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr

There were lots of different icebergs all around us. Every single one had something unique about it.


Bald Eagle in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr

The Captain told us to be on the lookout for a Bald Eagle on an island that was on the starboard side of the ship. We found her and the home that she made!!


Seals in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Seals in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr

As we slowly moved closer to the glacier we started seeing more and more seals. They were almost everywhere you looked!!


Tracy Arm Fjord by MunchYYC, on Flickr

There were lots of people on deck 4 taking pictures just like us.


Family of Seals in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr

Family of seals!! As we saw more and more of them the captain advised us that he didn’t want to go any further into the Fjord because he didn’t want to take a chance of injuring any of the seals. We could see the glacier from where we were so we didn’t mind at all. It would have been amazing to get closer but we understood why he didn’t want to go any further. He tried to move the ship around so that everyone got a chance to see the Sawyer Glacier. It was a beautiful sight to see!! We were so lucky we got to see all the wildlife and the glacier on such a beautiful day. It was perfect.


Iceberg in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr

Iceberg cave!!


Sawyer Glacier in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr

This is Sawyer Glacier and view that we were able to get with our camera.


Icebergs in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr

More interesting icebergs!!


Sawyer Glacier by MunchYYC, on Flickr

We were almost able to see the whole thing from where the ship was situated.


Tracy Arm Fjord and Sawyer Glacier by MunchYYC, on Flickr

This is the closest we got to the glacier.


Lisa in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr

Lisa with the glacier in the background.


Icebergs in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Icebergs in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr

A view of the Fjord with the Sawyer Glacier in the distance and an iceberg right beside us.

We stayed in Tracy Arm Fjord for about two hours before the captain turned the ship around and we started heading back down the Fjord towards Stephen’s Passage.


Leaving Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr

As we left the icebergs started to disappear but the beauty of the area stayed with us.


Waves and an Iceberg by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Iceberg in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Sinking Iceberg by MunchYYC, on Flickr

There were still some icebergs around though and they were quite close to us. As the ship moved past them the wake from the ship would crash against them.

 

[BelleYYC]

Iceberg in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr

The Pyramid Iceberg!! This was one of the last ones we saw.


Alaskan Waterfall by MunchYYC, on Flickr

As we continued back to Stephen’s Passage we saw a double waterfall. We were up on Deck 10 relaxing in the sunshine and enjoying the views. Most of the people on the ship had gone to the first sitting of dinner or had gone inside. All of a sudden the ship started to turn and the Captain had a surprise for us.


Close Encounter with Alaskan Waterfall by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Close Encounter by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Alaskan Waterfall by MunchYYC, on Flickr

I had gone to the front of the ship to get a picture of the waterfall and then realized that the ship was moving towards it.

I ran back to Brent and we watched as the Captain did a special 360 degree turn in front of the waterfall. It was absolutely amazing. At one point we even thought he was going to hit the waterfall with the front of the ship. He definitely knew how to maneuver his ship. He didn’t announce anything on the intercom but we figured he did it since he wasn’t able to get us close to Sawyer Glacier. It was a nice extra that we got to experience while we were on board that most people didn’t get to since they were at dinner. There were only about 50 people outside when he did this.


Disney Funnel by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Disney Funnel and TV by MunchYYC, on Flickr

The sun was out in full force still so we got some pictures of the outside of the ship and had a quick bite to eat.


Iceberg in Tracy Arm by MunchYYC, on Flickr

Our last iceberg.


Holland America Line Statendam by MunchYYC, on Flickr

We decided to go to deck 4 and spend the evening relaxing and watching the beautiful scenery. There was no going inside today!! We had a busy night ahead of us. As we made our way up to Skagway we saw some ships going back home. This included the Holland America Line Statendam.

As the sun started to go down we were in for quite a surprise.


Humpback Whales by MunchYYC, on Flickr

In the distance we spotted quite a few water spouts.


Humpback Whale by MunchYYC, on Flickr

Then they started to get closer and we were able to see them much better. A Humpback Whale going back down after getting some air!!


Whale Tail by MunchYYC, on Flickr

A humpback whales gives us a show with it’s tail and it makes it’s way back into the water in the sunset.


Humpback Whales by MunchYYC, on Flickr

One humpback whale coming up for air as the other goes back into the water.


Whale Tail by MunchYYC, on Flickr

We also got this shot of a humpback whale with it’s tail directly facing us!! The underside of each tail is different and is exactly like fingerprints on humans. We got our wave of the evening from this one.

As we continued our whale watching on Deck 4 we saw a few more cruise ships close to us.


Celebrity Century by MunchYYC, on Flickr

The Celebrity Century was on it’s way home. The Carnival Spirit is making it’s way up to Skagway ahead of us.


Celebrity Century by MunchYYC, on Flickr

Another shot of the Celebrity Century as it goes back south.


Carnival Spirit by MunchYYC, on Flickr

The Carnival Spirit wasn’t too far ahead of us.


Disney Wonder and Carnival Spirit by MunchYYC, on Flickr

We decided to go to the starboard side of the ship so we could see the Carnival spirit as it was slowing down and get some pictures of the sun setting. The colours created by the sunset were amazing.

The mountains in front of the ship started to part so we decided to go up the deck 10 and go to the front if the ship to watch the sun set.


Alaskan Sunset abord the Disney Wonder by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Alaskan Sunset by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Alaskan Sunset by MunchYYC, on Flickr

The sunset was absolutely gorgeous!! We stayed outside for quite a while braving the strong winds so that we could see it. It was definitely worth it!!


Nighttime on the Disney Wonder by MunchYYC, on Flickr

We took a few pictures of deck 10 and then decided we would go do laundry and come back a few hours later so we could get the ship all lit up at night.

We did our laundry, and we weren’t the only ones. We weren’t expecting anyone to be up so late doing laundry but there was. When we came back from doing the laundry at around 3:30am we were quite surprised at what we saw. It was even lighter outside at 3:30 am than it was at midnight. We couldn’t believe it. Since we were so far north the sun never fully went down!!


Mickey Pool by MunchYYC, on Flickr

The Mickey Pool!!

 

[BelleYYC]

Disney Wonder Funnel at Night by MunchYYC, on Flickr


Disney Wonder Funnel at Night by MunchYYC, on Flickr

The Disney Funnels lit up even though it wasn’t very dark!!


Disney Wonder Hallway by MunchYYC, on Flickr

We decided to go back to our stateroom and get a few hours of sleep. As you can see the hallways at 3:30 am on deck 6 are deserted.


Bunny Towel Animal by MunchYYC, on Flickr

When we got back to our room our towel animal was waiting for us on the bed. It was a bunny with chocolate eyes.

Next, up Day 4 – Skagway.

 

[mufasa0505]

Great photos!

 

[CrystalS]

Wonderful photos, I can't wait to see more!

May I ask what camera/lens you are using?
sorry, but the photographer in me has to ask