Wonder-filled first-time cruise to Alaska! (2023 6/12-19; Completed 9/26)

[TxT365]

It's great to follow your adventure as we just started talking about an Alaska cruise after our upcoming January one...thinking probably 2025 though. We have an 11.5 yr old son who sounds alot like yours. I'm worried he won't find it as fun due to the cooler temps and not being able to be in the pool as much. Can't wait to see how your son does.

 

[Flossbolna]

Oh my!! Losing the kid immediately after boarding must have been a nightmare! But at least you knew that he couldn’t leave the ship. So his options were limited!

I remember being totally flustered on boarding day on my first cruise as well. I seemed to want to pack far too much into the day, felt unsure of where things were, had trouble finding my way around the ship and was just generally overwhelmed. So, I can relate!

Also thank you for the info on the rainforest room! We are considering signing up for it in August and I have had a hard time to find out about pricing. So it’s 139$ per person? No couple‘s pass? They used to have that in the past. Do they tag the 18% gratuity on top of that?

 

[shosh1530]

Oh my!! Losing the kid immediately after boarding must have been a nightmare! But at least you knew that he couldn’t leave the ship. So his options were limited!

I remember being totally flustered on boarding day on my first cruise as well. I seemed to want to pack far too much into the day, felt unsure of where things were, had trouble finding my way around the ship and was just generally overwhelmed. So, I can relate!

Also thank you for the info on the rainforest room! We are considering signing up for it in August and I have had a hard time to find out about pricing. So it’s 139$ per person? No couple‘s pass? They used to have that in the past. Do they tag the 18% gratuity on top of that?

I don't think they added a gratuity on top of it. And yeah, it was per person, no couples pass (or at least they didn't offer it to me). We did end up going almost ever day, which was nice.

I had read how overwhelming embarkation could be, which helped me keep my cool through it all. Even when he back so mad! Ironically, he seemed to have no problem finding his way around to the gift shop!

 

[shosh1530]

It's great to follow your adventure as we just started talking about an Alaska cruise after our upcoming January one...thinking probably 2025 though. We have an 11.5 yr old son who sounds alot like yours. I'm worried he won't find it as fun due to the cooler temps and not being able to be in the pool as much. Can't wait to see how your son does.

Alaska is well worth it! DS did great overall, although he does say he wants to do a "fun" cruise next.

 

[shosh1530]

Day 3 - Embarkation and a bit of bumpy start (continued)

Alright embarkation day was flying by and it was already time for our first main dining dinner. We originally had late dining, but were moved from the waiting list to early dining about a few weeks before our sailing. This seemed like a good idea as we were already on Pacific time and couldn't imagine finishing up dinner around the time we usually go to bed.

We had listed our different dietary restrictions when we made our reservation and also requested a private table. I was feeling nervous as I had not been able to confirm any of this when we boarded (I missed the table set up in French Quarter Lounge earlier in the day) and every time I checked the line at Guest Services was so long.

All my worry was for naught though. Once we got to Animator's Palate we were seated at a four-top table. I asked on my way in who I could talk to about dietary restrictions and our head waiter, Devendra, quickly came over to discuss our needs and then communicated the info to our serving team, Raphael and Simone. Both Devendra and Raphael suggested that we pre-order our meals for the next day each night.



For this evening, Simone offered to bring us a special shake (Bora shake I think?) made with non-dairy ice cream to get started. Raphael helped us identify a few items that could be made vegan, including the arugula leaves salad and butternut squash soup as starters.



The soup was just ok (tasted exactly like the prepackaged soup I get at the grocery store), but the salad was quite tasty with beets, white beans, orange slices, and a mustard dressing.



For our main dish, DH and I both got the black bean chipotle cakes, which are vegan without modifications. DS ordered off the kid's menu and had the pasta.

The timing of the dishes coming out was a bit off this first night. DS was already done with his (not very appetizing-looking pasta) while we were halfway through the salads. And he got his dessert as we were starting our main entrees. He snarfed it down and immediately began asking to go back to the room. He seemed to be overwhelmed by all the people and the loudness of the room.



We relented and told DS he could use his room key and go back to the room while we finished up. We had discussed as a family that we would experiment with him having more freedom on the ship now that he is getting older, but I was also a nervous wreck about this.

And of course, about one minute after he left some sort of show started up. I had actually read about all the different things that happen at the restaurants months before our cruise, but completely forgot about animation stuff at Animator's Palate. Raphael had stopped by our table asked where DS went off too and I felt so, so bad when I realized that he was going to miss out. I honestly wanted to cry when Sorcerer Mickey showed up as it felt like such a huge mom fail, but honestly DS probably wouldn't have cared too much and probably couldn't have enjoyed at it by that point.

Once the little show was done, I asked DH to head to the room while I finished up. DH swears the black bean cakes were really good, but I don't remember eating them at this point. We had a special vegan dessert coming, so I offered to bring it back to the room once the brought it out. They very nicely got us a plate cover and folded up our silverware all fancy in a napkin. Raphael seemed very concerned that 2/3 of our table had now left and I explained that DS has ADHD/anxiety and it hard for him to so long. He promised that on future nights they'd get our food out quicker (not that I was mad or anything, I didn't expect them to be able to do that on night #1).

I was super relieved to get back to the room and find DS happily watching his iPad. DH and I dug into our desserts (a dense cake with raspberry sauce, I think).

There was no show this night and DS decided he wanted to check out the kid's club before bedtime. We walked him over to deck 5 and told him we'd be hanging out on deck 4 to watch some scenery. DS seemed really nervous about splitting up but felt reassured that when we agreed that one of us would stay on deck 4 until he came back.



While we were hanging out watching the landscape go by, Captain Mickey showed up! I didn't really realize the characters sometimes walk around so this was a nice surprise. We also got to see some beautiful sunset action.



DS came back and found us after about 40 minutes and wanted to get pizza. This started what would become a nightly tradition of post-dinner pizza and hot chocolate for him.



We got back to the room by 10 pm and had a little bit of back forth on figuring out sleeping arrangements. DS wanted the top bunk, but then was scared to sleep there. DH didn't want to go up and down the ladder, so ended up pulling the mattress down to the floor and slept there, while I took the luxurious queen bed (DH and I aren't really sleep compatible as I move around a lot and then get so anxious that I'll wake him up that I can't sleep).

I almost never sleep well in a new place and was especially worried about different noises on the ship. But I was ready with my sound machine, ear plugs, and eye mask and I swear the waves lulled me right to sleep.

 

[shosh1530]

Day 4 - Rough seas but finding our groove

On to day 4 and our first full day on the Disney Wonder! DH and I both woke up on the early side and he got dressed and went up on deck to check things out. We had heard over the intercom the day before that it was going to be a cold and windy day with gusts up to 50 knots I think. DH reported that it was indeed cold when he arrived back with some hot tea, hot chocolate, and a bagel.

DS snoozed a bit more and then watched some cartoons before we made it up to Cabanas. It was still early and only one side was open. I had read that you can request special vegan items, but I had no idea who to ask. Instead I just stuck with some oatmeal and fruit. The boys both got scrambled eggs, but DS declared them to be inedible and instead had a breakfast of mostly doughnuts.

About halfway through breakfast we started to really feel the movement of the ship and both DS and I began to get queasy. We headed back to the room to get some Meclazine and I put on the sea bands that I brought. I know all the advice is to start this before you get on the ship, but I forgot to do that when we were in Vancouver.

We had signed up for the Royal Gathering photo event at 9 am this morning, so we headed down to the atrium to get in line. There were several people already waiting, but things moved quickly.



We got to meet Tiana, Ariel, Cinderella and Belle and I was happy that DS was a good sport about taking photos.



After our photo session DS found his first hidden rubber ducky. He was super excited!

We decided to go check out the gift shops as we didn't want to deal with the crowds the night before. I was mainly interested in getting a Christmas ornament and an Alaska blanket, which I learned you can only buy for $30 if you make a purchase of $60. I knew that wouldn't be a hard threshold to reach, but we decided to wait for later.

I tried popping outside on deck 4, but it windy was so icy I didn't last more than a minute. The fresh air felt good, but seeing the waves made the rocking feel more intense and the deck was all wet from sloshing water (I later heard it was 15-20 foot swells).

We headed back to our room and I had a really hard time getting down the hallway, feeling like I was trying to walk when drunk. I think it was at this point that we all rested in the room and watched about an hour of Rogue One. Eventually though laying down seemed to make us all feel worse, so I suggested we go up to deck 4 and find a place to sit midship as I heard that you feel the least amount of motion there.

There were a few other people doing the exact same thing and looking even more queasy than me when we got there. Luckily we found a seat and just chilled for a good long while. DS and I saw that Moana was coming out so we jumped in line to do that and after that he went off to the Oceaneer Lab.



Rapunzel also came out while we were just chilling. She was stopping and chatting with all the other seasick folks and I thought that was so nice, especially since I need cheering up! I'll admit that between how cold it was and the rocky seas I was worrying that I had made a huge mistake booking this cruise. What if it stayed like this the whole trip?

It was already lunch time, but I didn't think I could sit anywhere in the aft of the boat. DH offered to grab us some pizza and bring it back to deck 4. He was able to get one with non-dairy cheese, vegan sausage, tomatoes and onion. It was so good! I also realized that keeping food in my belly helped me feel much better.



DS came back after about 20 minutes at the kid's club and said it was boring. We had cheese pizza waiting for him. At this point DH decided to head off to they gym and DS really wanted me to for a swim. I told him there was no way I was doing that, but I did put on more layers and took him up to deck 9.

The life guards had actually closed the pool because of the waves and they had put all the deck chairs away too. But the slide was open so DS did that a few times before quickly putting his jacket back on.



He wanted to check out Cabanas so we walked down the food line and got some french fries to nibble on. I saw that they had a taco bar with chips and salsa that were both very good (and continued to help my stomach feel more settled).

Eventually we connected back with DH and I went off to check out the Rainforest Room on my own. DS had also finally decided he wanted to check out the Edge, so I walked him there on my way to the spa.

The Rainforest Room felt pretty crowded with several people sitting in the middle waiting for the loungers to open up. I tried out both the steam rooms and was grateful for both the heat and a distraction from the rocking.

DS was already back from the Edge when I came back the room, but said he had lots of fun! He declared he'd only be doing the Edge from here on out. By this point we had finally figured out how to message each other on the Navigator App so that helped with all of our comfort with him going around the ship alone. We just had to check periodically that we were all still on the internal Wi-Fi as it frequently dropped during the day.

Our last activity before dinner was bingo, which DS really wanted to try. We just did one of the paper cards for $25. Robyn was the host and she certainly knew how to keep things fun! We didn't even come close to winning on any of the games, but we all had a blast.

We had about 10 minutes after bingo to get dressed for our formal night dinner. We were at Tiana's Place and I was excited I felt like my dress would be a good fit with that venue. DS unfortunately didn't want to do any pictures with Minnie and Mickey this night, so we didn't get any great photos.



DH and I had both pre-ordered the vegetable turnovers. They were good but kind of dry as they didn't come with any sauce (I'm assuming the sauce they come with on the menu item must have had milk in it). We also got the same allergy-friendly (vegan, gluten free) rolls we had the night before (and every night).

DS got the kid's pizza and then ordered the baked Alaska. He did much better overall this evening. We had toted his iPad along to the table, but I don't think he watched it much.



Our pre-ordered vegan desserts were pretty similar as the night before. Dense cake with raspberry sauce. While I didn't love the texture, they were still warm and tasty.



The photography staff came around took photos during dinner and they got a few nice shots of us all.


Tiana also comes around to the tables during the meal and DH took a photo of me and DS with her. She complimented by flapper-style dress. I don't really like how me and dress came out in this photo, but it is a nice one of Tiana and DS.



We popped back to the room to change before the Golden Mickey's and headed there about 20 minutes early to make sure we could get a decent seat. DS went to get a popcorn bucket while I held the seats. It wasn't too crowded yet down front on the sides.

Our cruise director, Trent, came out before the show (as I later realized he did every night) and he really knows how to work the crowd! He asked everyone if we were getting our sea legs yet and I realized that, although it was still very rocky, it wasn't bothering me as much. He also reminded us that we had a whole week of not only beautiful Alaska coming up, but also no cooking or cleaning! And he promised that the seas should be calmer by tomorrow.

The show itself was quite fun and I was impressed that performers can do all that on a rocking stage! After the show we headed back to the room to turn in. DS loved the chocolates our host had left (if we had a towel animal this night or the one before I forgot to take photos).

I think the seas were starting to calm down a bit (or we were just getting used to them). DH fell asleep the second he layed down and DS and I weren't far behind. I think this was the night that we set are clocks back too (although I didn't do mine until the morning). I fell asleep hopeful that by the time we woke up in Alaskan waters we have a beautiful, smooth day to explore Glacier Day...

 

[cinnamoroll]

Thanks for the write up! Did the cruise director say if it was normal for the swells to be that intense? I thought Alaska sailings are usually pretty calm because the ship sails in the inside passage. Now I’m worried!

 

[shosh1530]

Thanks for the write up! Did the cruise director say if it was normal for the swells to be that intense? I thought Alaska sailings are usually pretty calm because the ship sails in the inside passage. Now I’m worried!

I don't think it is normal and it was much better the rest of the trip. For some reason this summer some of the sailings are having to go more in the open ocean rather than the inside passage on the that first sea day before Glacier Day. Add to that the weather with the high winds and I think that was why it was especially bad. On the rest of the cruise they were going nice and slow through the inside passage with glassy looking water (except one night before our last sea day where it was rocky in the middle of the night).

My advice though is be prepared for anything.

 

[disneyfaninaz]

Thanks for the write up! Did the cruise director say if it was normal for the swells to be that intense? I thought Alaska sailings are usually pretty calm because the ship sails in the inside passage. Now I’m worried!

While it is not normal to have rough seas coming out of Vancouver, you are in the open Pacific Ocean for your first sea day until you arrive to the inside passage, which is usually much calmer. You are also susceptible to rough seas going back to Vancouver as well. Be prepared, start using anti-nausea medicine (Meclazine, Patches, etc.) before you actually need it and the effects of rough seas will be considerably lessened.

 

[shosh1530]

Be prepared, start using anti-nausea medicine (Meclazine, Patches, etc.) before you actually need it and the effects of rough seas will be considerably lessened.

Yes! I wish I had done this (and would for any future cruise).

Interestingly, DS did not take any Meclazine and did just fine, even though he frequently gets motion sickness in cars.

 

[shosh1530]

Day 5: Glacier Day at the Tracy Arm Fjord

The waves had rocked me right to sleep the night before and I woke up to the sounds of DH getting dressed once again. He hustled out of the room to check things out on deck and I peeked out the porthole. I was delighted to see calm, glassy water!

DH reported back that the winds had died down too, but it was still quite cold out (at least for us Arizonans. He was very excited that he saw a humpback whale while he was up on deck and said that things were so quiet that he could hear it's breath when it came up to the surface.

We had learned about the "Morning Show" from Trent during his spiel before the Golden Mickey's the night before, so we turned on our TV to check it out. The show was Trent and another officer chatting about the weather and that day's itinerary and it plays on a loop all morning. We talked about how the captain (and our Alaskan pilots) would be making the final decision about which glacier to visit later the morning based on what the conditions were in the area.

We decided to do breakfast at Cabana's and headed up there just before 7. I wanted to see if I could get a vegan omelet that I had heard others have done on earlier cruises. They were a little confused when I asked at the omelet bar, but then assured me they could do it and but it might take awhile.

In the meantime, I had some oatmeal and fruit. DS and DH repeated their breakfasts from the day before (mostly doughnuts and pastries for DS). Unfortunately we were all done and pretty much ready to go, before the omelet arrived.

I decided to wait and in all it took about 40 minutes, so I have the feeling they had to get it from somewhere else on the ship. It was quite tasty though!



We had used the aft elevators to get to Cabana's on the way there, so I popped outside to see what the weather was like after breakfast. It was cold! We headed back to our cabin to put on more layers, including long underwear, beanies, neck gaiters, gloves and our rain gear to help block any wind.



I had purchased the photo package before the trip started and wanted to get all the different character photos in their Alaska gear. We got in line for Mickey shortly before he came out and waited about 30 minutes. It felt like time well spent as we pretty much wanted to be on deck watching the scenery anyway.



The line for Minnie started forming by the time Mickey came out (Mickey scheduled at 10, Minnie scheduled at 10:30). So it seems like no matter what you pretty much have a 30 minute wait.

We were glad we had brought our binoculars as we spotted a few humpback whale spouts in the distance as we were waiting.



Meeting Mickey was fun and we got some great pics. Almost immediately after finishing with Mickey, DS spotted Goofy out and about on deck 10 and DS wanted to see what he was up to. This was not an organized photo time, but he had a small group that was following along with him as he skipped around to different spots and posed for selfies. It was super cute as he would take different kids by the hand to skip along with him.

DS was a little bummed he didn't get to hold Goofy's hand (amazing how tweens can oscillate between little kid magic and "I'm too cool for that" so quickly), but we did get to say hi and get a photo from our phone that one of the CMs took.



After saying goodbye to Goofy, DS departed for the Edge and the adults went to get hot drinks. We popped in the Cove to see if they could do a non-dairy hot chocolate or chai for me, but the gentleman at the counter said they both had milk in the mixes. This was a huge disappointment, but I settled on some free herbal tea over at the drink station.

DH and I wandered around a bit and hung out at the rear of the ship watching the scenery go by. Eventually we saw that the next round of the Minnie line was forming, so we got in line and messaged DS to see if he wanted to join us. He showed up just in time.



DS then ran back to the Edge where he apparently was having a blast meeting up with new buddies and going around the ship (first on an organized scavenger hunt and later just for kicks).

We started to see the very first ice floes in the water just before noon. The morning had flown by! We decided to go back to Cabana's as we didn't want miss any of the beautiful scenery up on deck. The theme of the day was Indian food, which made this our favorite day! DS declined joining us but I knew he'd grab some pizza whenever he got hungry.



We sat outside to eat and got so see the folks on the Glacier Explorer excursion departing. This was sold out before we could book a first-time cruisers, but I probably would have enjoyed doing it if traveling with out our kiddo (who would have gotten very bored). On our glacier day, they did seem to get much closer to the glacier.



DH and I decided to try for another character line and saw that Donald was out. The CMs do a good job of managing the lines and they let us know when we joined the queue that the Donald line was almost full. They gave us the choice of being the last family for Donald or the first family for goofy. What a tough choice! DH wanted to do Pluto and save Donald for when DS might join us.



At some point earlier in the day, they had announced that we would be sailing into Tracy Arm Fjord up to the Sawyer Glacier. The views get more and more breathtaking with every minute and it was this day that I wished the most that I had a better camera than my iPhone.



Reaching my picture limit, so will continue in another post!

 

[shosh1530]

Day 5 - Glacier Day (continued)

More pictures!

DH and I eventually made our way to the very front of the ship on Deck 10. It was extra cold up here, but well worth the views! The water started turn the most beautiful shade of blue as we got closer to the glacier.



From the front of the ship, we also had a view of the crew deck. It was fun to watch them come out and take photos of the beautiful scenery too.



DH and I stayed at the front for about 2 hours and I felt sad that DS was missing all of it. But little did I know he did a bit of glacier watching on his own.



From this photo he took, it looks like he was chilling on deck 4 with some buddies.




He also watched some of the harbor seals on the ice floes that we were starting to pass.



Back up on deck 10, the Wonder came to a stop about 2.5 miles out from the Sawyer glacier.



Here is a zoomed in shot with my phone. We had a slightly better view with our binoculars.



We also had some good views of groups of harbor seals and some pups on the ice floes. This is why the ship didn't go any closer. There was one mom and pup on an ice floe directly in front of the ship (not the one pictured above). By the looks of things the birth had happened not long before as we could see the bloody afterbirth near by.

While we were watching with our binoculars we saw a bald eagle and some ravens come over to check out the scene. The mama harbor seal didn't seem happy with their company, so she hustled her new baby toward the water. We watched her get in first, then coax the babe to slide in after her – just as the bald eagle grabbed the placenta and flew away with it in its talons! Thankfully mom and baby swam away safely.



DS later showed us the above photo he took off one of his new buddies phones. I think their parent must been up front near us and sent it over to them. He was very proud to have gotten his own version of it.

DH and I took a break from the scenery sometime around 3:30 and made a quick trip to the Rainforest Room. It was very empty and felt so good to warm up on the recliners. I

By the time we made it back up to deck 10, the Wonder was making its way back out of the fjord. The scenery seemed even more beautiful.






I was also shocked by how much uninterrupted adult time we were getting this day! We basically did not seem the kid from before lunch time until dinner! I missed DS a little bit, but it helped to know he was having fun. At one point we had ran across a group of him and bunch of kids from the Edge (I think on their own) over near the sports area. They seemed to have invented a game where they all were throwing their shoes at each other. It looked like a blast.

Speaking of dinner... I'll save that for my next post since I've again hit the picture limit.

 

[shosh1530]

Day 5 - Glacier Day (continued)

Aright the last of our Glacier Day recap...

I forgot to mention earlier that we had done a big load of laundry earlier in the day. DH ran down and switched the washer and dryer while we had waited in the various character lines. So before dinner we had some exciting laundry folding to do.

I'm pretty sure DS met us at the table on this evening as he was having so much fun around the ship with friends. Tonight was the Freezing the Night Away menu and we were back in Tiana's Place.



We started with the Shadow Man drink and DS loved this so much I think we got it every night he rest of the cruise.



DS also ordered some plain pasta with just butter from the kid's menu along with french fries. As a bonus they made a Mickey out of ketchup when we asked for some. DS didn't eat much of his food though and was feeling pretty burnt out on the kid's menu.



The Freezing the Night Away menu had two vegetarian options that could be made vegan, so we ordered both. We shared the stuffed cabbage rolls (not a fan) and DH had the vegetable turnover (a bit better). The vegetarian versions come with different cream sauces and I suspect that would have helped a lot.



The night before we had inquired about whether they had any Gardien chicken tenders as we had read others being able to get this on DCL and I was wanting DS to get a little protein (would have gotten him real chicken tenders but he seemed not interested in meat this trip).



They didn't have the Gardien version, but they did bring us a special item that approximated a chicken tender. The texture and taste seemed more like it was trying to be a fish fillet and I'm guessing maybe they use them elsewhere for a vegetarian fish and chips. I appreciated the effort and enjoyed trying them. DS of course refused to do so. Thankfully he loved all the rolls every night and also had pizza elsewhere before and after dinner.

I didn't take any photos of dessert this night, but I'm pretty sure it was raspberry sorbet. I'm not the biggest raspberry fan and this must have been the night that I asked for anything chocolate the next night when we were doing our pre-orders.

Most nights after dinner they had some sort of backdrop set up in the atrium for photos. On this evening it was plain white backgrounds and even a white area to sit and lay down on for some portrait style shots. I really appreciated this as we never get professional photos at home.



Now I've got multiple to choose from for our next Christmas card! It helped make the photo package more worthwhile.

After the photos, we popped over to the Freezing the Night Away deck party. We were too late to get a good spot and DS was immediately underwhelmed so we didn't stay long.

I'm pretty sure this was the night that they had an Alaskan trio called Pipeline Vocal Project perform in the Walt Disney Theater. DS went to the Edge, while DH and I went to check it out – partly because we wanted to catch Trent's introduction.

The group was quite good, performing a mix of Disney songs and other standard tunes. They are all acapella, but use their voices to make sounds like a full band. I wasn't sure if they were performing on just our cruise (they got off in Juneau) or if they do all of the season.

We met back up with DS at the room for bedtime. And this was one night where I actually took a picture of our towel animal. So fun!



We were really tired from the day and turned in right around sunset. We wanted to get a good night sleep as we had an early excursion in the morning for our day in Skagway.

 

[Flossbolna]

Great glacier day recap. Sounds like you were starting to feel more at home on the ship. How lovely that your DS made so many friends!

The vegan food situation seems horrible. I am not sure I could deal with such a parade of dry dishes. I often order the vegetarian option on DCL as I find some of these dishes more interesting. But I guess going that one step further makes it all fall apart. I could also not deal with more or less having no choice but being forced to eat what they give me. I am very impressed how you seemed to just roll with it!

 

[shosh1530]

The vegan food situation seems horrible. I am not sure I could deal with such a parade of dry dishes. I often order the vegetarian option on DCL as I find some of these dishes more interesting. But I guess going that one step further makes it all fall apart. I could also not deal with more or less having no choice but being forced to eat what they give me. I am very impressed how you seemed to just roll with it!

From what I've read DCL can be very hit or miss for vegan options. I've read some people get these fantastic Indian curries and other off-menu options. I tried to ask about that, but didn't push very hard as I usually go with the flow.

But looking back at our photos, many of the meals were pretty bland and could be described as adequate at best. This Freezing the Night Away was the worst. It is surprising to me as Disney parks do a pretty good job in this department with lots of plant-based options on the menus (albeit relying a bit too much on Impossible meat).

 

[shosh1530]

Day 6 - Off the beaten-path near Skagway

We woke up shortly after 6 am for our our first port day, right as the Wonder was pulling into Skagway. Our original excursion was supposed to start at 10 am and go through the lunch hour, but I had also seen the same tour being offered at 8 am. So the day before I managed to use the ship's Wi-Fi plan to email our tour company and move it up so we could be back by lunch.

This meant we needed to hustle over to Cabana's, which opened at 6:30 on this morning. It was actually nice enough to sit outside! I'm pretty sure I had oatmeal and fruit and the boys ate some eggs (and pastries).



We got in line to get off the boat around 7:40 and it moved quickly. Our guide, Tomas, from Skagway Float Tours was already waiting with a sign for us. We hopped in the van and then drove around the port to pick up one other group from the Princess.

I had debated a lot about which tour to do for Skagway as there are numerous options! Most people seem to opt for either the training or taking a tour/renting a car up White Pass into the Yukon territory. I worried I might be missing out skipping that, but I really wanted to stay closer to Skagway and explore Alaska (plus DS can sometimes get car sick on windy mountain roads). We decided to go for a float tour as DS really liked the idea of rafting.

It was a 20-minute ride from the port to the Dyea townsite area that we would be exploring and the views along the drive of the Lynn Canal and Taiya river were amazing. Tomas had been doing tours in Skagway for the past 10 years, so he had tons of info to share about the local area, including a story about his roommate's car being shredded on the inside by a bear.

Our first stop was the Chilkoot trailhead, mainly for an bathroom pit stop. The Chilkoot Trail was an important pathway that gold prospectors used to get to the Klondike gold rush. Tomas explained that they had to carry a ton of goods with them to get through the winter.



Our original tour was supposed to go 2 miles one-way along the Chilkoot Trail to our rafting load out. Unfortunately, some flooding in the fall had washed a bridge out so that plan was no longer possible.

Instead, we got back in the van and drove a short distance to the historic Dyea townsite. Dyea was a boom town with a population of 10,000 during the gold rush. The area is now mostly abandoned and is part of the Klondike Gold Rush National Historic Park.

Much of the area is forested, which made for a lovely nature walk. The "trails" are the old streets of the boom town, which are marked in some places.



My favorite part of our hike was all of the tidbits Tomas shared about the different flora in the area. He pointed out the different trees and plants and we sampled a few different edible leaves, including some spruce tips that are rich in Vitamin C (good for staving off scurvy) and used in making some Alaskan beers.



He also showed us some of the areas where they are doing archaeology work and explained how the river and landscape have been changing rapidly over the last decade.



The hiking part was about 1.5 hours and besides running into two different biking tour groups, it was very quiet and peaceful. There were several species of wildflowers blooming and the Dyea river flats were quite breathtaking. Tomas mentioned that their company is planning to keep offer the Dyea nature walks even when the Chilkoot Trail opens back up as an option for those wanting a less strenuous experience.



After our walk, we got back in the van and drove a few minutes to place where they start the rafting. Tomas gave us a quick safety demo on how to get in the raft ("keep your butt on the blue," e.g. do not stand up!). We all put on life jackets and traded our shoes for rubber boots (that went back into the van with someone driving it all back down to the road where our float would end).



And then we were off! The couple from the other cruise ship took the front of the raft, while the three of us sat in the back. Tomas did all the hard work of paddling to steer the raft.



This was advertised as a peaceful float and there were no rapids or anything rough. Just a lot of sitting and watching the beautiful Alaskan landscape go by. Tomas shared more info about the landscape and pointed out a bald eagle nest. We didn't see any other wildlife besides eagles, but later in the season they do sometimes get bears.



DS seemed to enjoy the rafting ride, although at one point he actually seemed to nod off and I was worried he'd fall in!



The rafting part lasted about 40 minutes and we spent just a few minutes on the river bank once we got off. DH and DS both volunteered to help carry the raft up the bank. I assume the deflate it and shuttle it back up for a later tour.

We all got back in the van for the drive back and Tomas gave recommendations for what else to do in Skagway. Our tour companions were looking for a brewery and good seafood, while we asked for some other hiking recommendations. Tomas confirmed that the trails near the ship (Yakutania and Smuggler's Cove) were good ones and pointed out generally where to go as we got back the Wonder.

To be continued...

 

[shosh1530]

Day 6 - Off the beaten-path near Skagway (continued)

It didn't take long to board back on the Wonder and we went up to deck 9 for food almost immediately. DS got his daily combo of pizza and ice cream while DH and I grabbed some Asian noodles and other items at Cabana's.

DS wanted to spend time at the Edge for the afternoon, so DH and I decided to head back off the ship and do a short hike. I had planned for us to each take turns as I didn't think we'd feel comfortable leaving DS alone on the ship. But things had been going so well, we decided to give it a try.

Despite the directions our guide had given just a short while before, we got a little lost trying to find the Yukatania trailhead. We were docked at ORE and really just needed to head left as we got off the ship past where the helicopters fly out of. But we were certain if we were allowed to walk that way so we took a really long way around part of the airport before circling back.



Eventually we found this "Welcome to Skagway" sign (I guess placed here for those who come by plane? Cruiseship traffic doesn't really come by here) and you see off to the right some signs that lead you to the trailhead area. If you don't get lost it is probably a 5-10 minute walk to the start of the trail.



We were excited to see a sign with the trail marked on it and know that we were going the right way.



We crossed this bridge across the water and from there it was easy to find the trail. You can take the trail to Yakutania Point and then head on to Smuggler's Cove (less than a mile) or do a longer hike on the AB Mountain Trail.



Our goal was Yakutania Point. The trail was pretty easy with just a few steep parts. There were several spots to look out over the water through the trees.



It only took us about 20 minutes to reach Yakutania Point and there was nice view back to the port with the Wonder in the distance. We didn't see too many people out hiking (mostly locals walking their dogs), but there was a large group of young people with loud music right near the point, so we didn't stay long.



We decided to continue on to Smuggler's Cove in hope of more peaceful quiet. This took about another 20 minutes with some up and down elevation (but nothing too strenuous).



We explored the cove a bit, checking out lots of driftwood and oyster shells. We didn't linger long as I didn't want to leave DS too long on the ship. From Smuggler's Cove it looks like you could take a different path back to make it a loop hike, but there were signs saying that portion was closed. So we went back the way we had come in. It did feel a bit steeper on the way back!

Once we are back on board, we checked on DS who was happily going around the ship with buddies. DH and I took this opportunity to head over the Rainforest Room. This was a nice daily ritual for relaxing and warming up. I kept forgetting to bring the scrub kit I had bought my very first day though! So I vowed to do it the next day.



DS was back in the room when we left the spa and wanted us to go to the pool. I had just dried off, but DH was game and I went along just to spectate. They both did the water slide and then headed into the pool.



They both claimed the water felt very warm and this was probably the nicest weather day we had on the cruise. I suppose the nice thing on an Alaskan cruise is that the pool is never crowded.



While they were swimming, I discovered the giant chunk of ice one of the Glacial Explorers must have brought aboard the day before. It was still pretty huge, and very heavy.

The boys did the hot tub and DS had some pre-dinner pizza and then we went back to the room to get ready for our early dining seating. Would we have another night of bland vegan food? To be continued...

 

[shosh1530]

Day 6 - Off the beaten-path near Skagway (final part)

And now onto dinner... This was our first night in Triton's and I loved the slightly more-upscale vibe here and more subtle theming (maybe because it felt quieter and not as over-stimulating as the other venues).



We started off with some non-alcoholic concoctions, with a fruit smoothie type drink for me and DH and the Shadow Man drink for DS.



DS had been getting tired of the kid's menu (which hardly varies each night) so we decided to venture into the regular menu for him. He likes cheese so we tried the fried brie as a starter. It looked so good and he said it was good, but then only had one bite (guess we shouldn't have done the pre-dinner pizza).



DH and I got two starters this evening, a specially-made version of the potato leek soup and the farmhouse salad. Both were quite good.




All three of us got the grilled marinated tofu with roasted vegetables. It is vegan as is, and maybe this is why it was the best entree we had on the ship. They subbed plain rice for the couscous on DS's plate and he actually liked (and ate) the tofu.



Even dessert was impressive. I had practically begged for chocolate when we did our pre-orders the night before and we got chocolate cake with chocolate sauce and whipped cream. So, so good! DS ordered his first Mickey Bar of the trip and I think he ended up doing that all the rest of the nights too.



We took a few more family photos in the lobby after dinner. DS sometimes isn't willing to pose for photos so I took them whenever I could.



Our room was already all made up when we got back from dinner. I think our towel animal was a rabbit. DS wanted to go back to the Edge rather than see the premiere of Elemental in the Walt Disney Theater.



I'll admit that DH and I never have this much alone time together, it was quite the luxury! We went to deck 4 to watch the ship pull out of Skagway.



The two us did pop into the theater to check out what tidbits cruise director Trent might have to share that evening and did stay for the first few minutes of the movie. But we hadn't gotten there early and were all the way near the back with a group of very loud teenager girls chatting at full volume about everything but the movie. So we left.

If you do skip the evening shows it can be great time to hit the gift shop or find characters with very short lines. We did both as DH wanted to browse for possible souvenirs (something he normally never cares about) and we ran across Donald taking photos in his Alaskan gear in the Atrium. We got one round of photos, then went and found DS, so we got a second round with the whole family.



We went back to the room and all three fell asleep before the movie even let out. All the walking and fresh, Alaskan air must have tired us out.

 

[sadiecatie]

Day 4 - Rough seas but finding our groove

On to day 4 and our first full day on the Disney Wonder! DH and I both woke up on the early side and he got dressed and went up on deck to check things out. We had heard over the intercom the day before that it was going to be a cold and windy day with gusts up to 50 knots I think. DH reported that it was indeed cold when he arrived back with some hot tea, hot chocolate, and a bagel.

DS snoozed a bit more and then watched some cartoons before we made it up to Cabanas. It was still early and only one side was open. I had read that you can request special vegan items, but I had no idea who to ask. Instead I just stuck with some oatmeal and fruit. The boys both got scrambled eggs, but DS declared them to be inedible and instead had a breakfast of mostly doughnuts.

About halfway through breakfast we started to really feel the movement of the ship and both DS and I began to get queasy. We headed back to the room to get some Meclazine and I put on the sea bands that I brought. I know all the advice is to start this before you get on the ship, but I forgot to do that when we were in Vancouver.

We had signed up for the Royal Gathering photo event at 9 am this morning, so we headed down to the atrium to get in line. There were several people already waiting, but things moved quickly.

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We got to meet Tiana, Ariel, Cinderella and Belle and I was happy that DS was a good sport about taking photos.

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After our photo session DS found his first hidden rubber ducky. He was super excited!

We decided to go check out the gift shops as we didn't want to deal with the crowds the night before. I was mainly interested in getting a Christmas ornament and an Alaska blanket, which I learned you can only buy for $30 if you make a purchase of $60. I knew that wouldn't be a hard threshold to reach, but we decided to wait for later.

I tried popping outside on deck 4, but it windy was so icy I didn't last more than a minute. The fresh air felt good, but seeing the waves made the rocking feel more intense and the deck was all wet from sloshing water (I later heard it was 15-20 foot swells).

We headed back to our room and I had a really hard time getting down the hallway, feeling like I was trying to walk when drunk. I think it was at this point that we all rested in the room and watched about an hour of Rogue One. Eventually though laying down seemed to make us all feel worse, so I suggested we go up to deck 4 and find a place to sit midship as I heard that you feel the least amount of motion there.

There were a few other people doing the exact same thing and looking even more queasy than me when we got there. Luckily we found a seat and just chilled for a good long while. DS and I saw that Moana was coming out so we jumped in line to do that and after that he went off to the Oceaneer Lab.

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Rapunzel also came out while we were just chilling. She was stopping and chatting with all the other seasick folks and I thought that was so nice, especially since I need cheering up! I'll admit that between how cold it was and the rocky seas I was worrying that I had made a huge mistake booking this cruise. What if it stayed like this the whole trip?

It was already lunch time, but I didn't think I could sit anywhere in the aft of the boat. DH offered to grab us some pizza and bring it back to deck 4. He was able to get one with non-dairy cheese, vegan sausage, tomatoes and onion. It was so good! I also realized that keeping food in my belly helped me feel much better.

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DS came back after about 20 minutes at the kid's club and said it was boring. We had cheese pizza waiting for him. At this point DH decided to head off to they gym and DS really wanted me to for a swim. I told him there was no way I was doing that, but I did put on more layers and took him up to deck 9.

The life guards had actually closed the pool because of the waves and they had put all the deck chairs away too. But the slide was open so DS did that a few times before quickly putting his jacket back on.

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He wanted to check out Cabanas so we walked down the food line and got some french fries to nibble on. I saw that they had a taco bar with chips and salsa that were both very good (and continued to help my stomach feel more settled).

Eventually we connected back with DH and I went off to check out the Rainforest Room on my own. DS had also finally decided he wanted to check out the Edge, so I walked him there on my way to the spa.

The Rainforest Room felt pretty crowded with several people sitting in the middle waiting for the loungers to open up. I tried out both the steam rooms and was grateful for both the heat and a distraction from the rocking.

DS was already back from the Edge when I came back the room, but said he had lots of fun! He declared he'd only be doing the Edge from here on out. By this point we had finally figured out how to message each other on the Navigator App so that helped with all of our comfort with him going around the ship alone. We just had to check periodically that we were all still on the internal Wi-Fi as it frequently dropped during the day.

Our last activity before dinner was bingo, which DS really wanted to try. We just did one of the paper cards for $25. Robyn was the host and she certainly knew how to keep things fun! We didn't even come close to winning on any of the games, but we all had a blast.

We had about 10 minutes after bingo to get dressed for our formal night dinner. We were at Tiana's Place and I was excited I felt like my dress would be a good fit with that venue. DS unfortunately didn't want to do any pictures with Minnie and Mickey this night, so we didn't get any great photos.

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DH and I had both pre-ordered the vegetable turnovers. They were good but kind of dry as they didn't come with any sauce (I'm assuming the sauce they come with on the menu item must have had milk in it). We also got the same allergy-friendly (vegan, gluten free) rolls we had the night before (and every night).

DS got the kid's pizza and then ordered the baked Alaska. He did much better overall this evening. We had toted his iPad along to the table, but I don't think he watched it much.

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Our pre-ordered vegan desserts were pretty similar as the night before. Dense cake with raspberry sauce. While I didn't love the texture, they were still warm and tasty.

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The photography staff came around took photos during dinner and they got a few nice shots of us all.

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Tiana also comes around to the tables during the meal and DH took a photo of me and DS with her. She complimented by flapper-style dress. I don't really like how me and dress came out in this photo, but it is a nice one of Tiana and DS.

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We popped back to the room to change before the Golden Mickey's and headed there about 20 minutes early to make sure we could get a decent seat. DS went to get a popcorn bucket while I held the seats. It wasn't too crowded yet down front on the sides.

Our cruise director, Trent, came out before the show (as I later realized he did every night) and he really knows how to work the crowd! He asked everyone if we were getting our sea legs yet and I realized that, although it was still very rocky, it wasn't bothering me as much. He also reminded us that we had a whole week of not only beautiful Alaska coming up, but also no cooking or cleaning! And he promised that the seas should be calmer by tomorrow.

The show itself was quite fun and I was impressed that performers can do all that on a rocking stage! After the show we headed back to the room to turn in. DS loved the chocolates our host had left (if we had a towel animal this night or the one before I forgot to take photos).

I think the seas were starting to calm down a bit (or we were just getting used to them). DH fell asleep the second he layed down and DS and I weren't far behind. I think this was the night that we set are clocks back too (although I didn't do mine until the morning). I fell asleep hopeful that by the time we woke up in Alaskan waters we have a beautiful, smooth day to explore Glacier Day...

This day was so rough! It's good to know our group weren't the only ones having trouble getting our sea legs. As this was our first cruise, we were also a little nervous as to whether we had made a poor choice!

 

[sadiecatie]

Day 6 - Off the beaten-path near Skagway

We woke up shortly after 6 am for our our first port day, right as the Wonder was pulling into Skagway. Our original excursion was supposed to start at 10 am and go through the lunch hour, but I had also seen the same tour being offered at 8 am. So the day before I managed to use the ship's Wi-Fi plan to email our tour company and move it up so we could be back by lunch.

This meant we needed to hustle over to Cabana's, which opened at 6:30 on this morning. It was actually nice enough to sit outside! I'm pretty sure I had oatmeal and fruit and the boys ate some eggs (and pastries).

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We got in line to get off the boat around 7:40 and it moved quickly. Our guide, Tomas, from Skagway Float Tours was already waiting with a sign for us. We hopped in the van and then drove around the port to pick up one other group from the Princess.

I had debated a lot about which tour to do for Skagway as there are numerous options! Most people seem to opt for either the training or taking a tour/renting a car up White Pass into the Yukon territory. I worried I might be missing out skipping that, but I really wanted to stay closer to Skagway and explore Alaska (plus DS can sometimes get car sick on windy mountain roads). We decided to go for a float tour as DS really liked the idea of rafting.

It was a 20-minute ride from the port to the Dyea townsite area that we would be exploring and the views along the drive of the Lynn Canal and Taiya river were amazing. Tomas had been doing tours in Skagway for the past 10 years, so he had tons of info to share about the local area, including a story about his roommate's car being shredded on the inside by a bear.

Our first stop was the Chilkoot trailhead, mainly for an bathroom pit stop. The Chilkoot Trail was an important pathway that gold prospectors used to get to the Klondike gold rush. Tomas explained that they had to carry a ton of goods with them to get through the winter.

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Our original tour was supposed to go 2 miles one-way along the Chilkoot Trail to our rafting load out. Unfortunately, some flooding in the fall had washed a bridge out so that plan was no longer possible.

Instead, we got back in the van and drove a short distance to the historic Dyea townsite. Dyea was a boom town with a population of 10,000 during the gold rush. The area is now mostly abandoned and is part of the Klondike Gold Rush National Historic Park.

Much of the area is forested, which made for a lovely nature walk. The "trails" are the old streets of the boom town, which are marked in some places.

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My favorite part of our hike was all of the tidbits Tomas shared about the different flora in the area. He pointed out the different trees and plants and we sampled a few different edible leaves, including some spruce tips that are rich in Vitamin C (good for staving off scurvy) and used in making some Alaskan beers.

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He also showed us some of the areas where they are doing archaeology work and explained how the river and landscape have been changing rapidly over the last decade.

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The hiking part was about 1.5 hours and besides running into two different biking tour groups, it was very quiet and peaceful. There were several species of wildflowers blooming and the Dyea river flats were quite breathtaking. Tomas mentioned that their company is planning to keep offer the Dyea nature walks even when the Chilkoot Trail opens back up as an option for those wanting a less strenuous experience.

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After our walk, we got back in the van and drove a few minutes to place where they start the rafting. Tomas gave us a quick safety demo on how to get in the raft ("keep your butt on the blue," e.g. do not stand up!). We all put on life jackets and traded our shoes for rubber boots (that went back into the van with someone driving it all back down to the road where our float would end).

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And then we were off! The couple from the other cruise ship took the front of the raft, while the three of us sat in the back. Tomas did all the hard work of paddling to steer the raft.

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This was advertised as a peaceful float and there were no rapids or anything rough. Just a lot of sitting and watching the beautiful Alaskan landscape go by. Tomas shared more info about the landscape and pointed out a bald eagle nest. We didn't see any other wildlife besides eagles, but later in the season they do sometimes get bears.

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DS seemed to enjoy the rafting ride, although at one point he actually seemed to nod off and I was worried he'd fall in!

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The rafting part lasted about 40 minutes and we spent just a few minutes on the river bank once we got off. DH and DS both volunteered to help carry the raft up the bank. I assume the deflate it and shuttle it back up for a later tour.

We all got back in the van for the drive back and Tomas gave recommendations for what else to do in Skagway. Our tour companions were looking for a brewery and good seafood, while we asked for some other hiking recommendations. Tomas confirmed that the trails near the ship (Yakutania and Smuggler's Cove) were good ones and pointed out generally where to go as we got back the Wonder.

To be continued...

This looks like it was a great excursion! I have to admit, I had "train blinders" on when looking at excursions in Skagway - we knew we wanted to do a train ride, so I didn't really look at anything else! But this looks like it was a really enjoyable way to explore the area!