1st Alaskan Cruise

JoeyandDavid · January 11, 2006

Hi Mildavis, we havent had the pleasure of sailing Alaska.. It sounds terriffic.. at least I do know that you are doing your planning the right way .. with a stop at Cruise Crazies!! Good to see you posting

jsme · January 11, 2006

I am not too sure about an Alaskan cruise. I love to go where it is nice and warm. I love the beaches and the sand.

mildavis · January 12, 2006

I use to feel that way too Selena. About the warm. But I live in Mobile, AL and we have warm just about all the time. I am looking for a little change in temperature. Besides, I here the glaciers are unbelievable. Last year we took the family skiing in Keystone, Colorado, and the kids loved the snow (as well as skiing). We see snow about twice in our lifetime in Mobile, if that.

Suzila · January 12, 2006

I think it's like Mildavis says...we live in so. California, and I'm not particularly fond of the beach. Neither my hubby nor I can spend anytime in the sun, so when we went on our western Carribean cruise last July, it wasn't as much fun as we had hoped. Most of the excursions were geared to the beach, and we aren't beach goers.

We're going back to Alaska this August and I can't wait. No beaches to sit around there.

GottaCruz · January 12, 2006

Welcome aboard, mildavis. Hope to see you posting often and hope to get to know you.

joesmom · January 12, 2006

One of the best stops we had on our cruise was in Skagway. We rented a car and drove ourselves to Carcross in the Yukon and back. We stopped when and where we wanted and the scenery was breathtaking. There is a waterfall you can walk to right at the end of Skagway through the cemetary. We also found a small turnoff and not a 1/2 mile off the road found ourselves at the shore of a beautiful lake with a backdrop of huge mountains. While the railroad is fun, we enjoyed the car trip more. You can't get lost and there is a mile by mile road guide at explorenorth.com. The cost was about $60 + gas. Look into this before you book the railroad. Also to Suzila. Have read on another forum that Vision has changed the itinerary for your cruise. They are not going to Tracy Arm or any other glacier. We went on Vision a couple of years ago and cruised Hubbard. Probably the 2nd highlight of the trip.

KeithnRita · January 12, 2006

mildavis,

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We did an Alaska inside passage cruise from Vancouver on the HAL Statendam. It remains one of our favorites cruises and we intend on going back when we have enough time to include a land tour.

Double click the photo to view Alaska cruise album

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hazelson · January 13, 2006

If you have any questions regarding Vancouver ask away - we also have the Vancouver entertainment book - so if you think of anything you might like to do I could send those coupons to you. There are some for the trolley, the aquarium, and things like that that we would never use anyway. Just let me know

Suzila · January 14, 2006

Thanks for the info, Joesmom. Would you mind emailing me directly and giving me the place you saw that info? My email address is suzila

I haven't seen any changes about the itinerary yet. It's no problem, but I wouldn't mind reading about it in advance. Thanks

joesmom · January 17, 2006

Sue - Tried to email you but it was returned as undeliverable so here's what I wrote you.....

Before we went on our cruise, I searched every forum I could find. The best was at ######. I still go back and read some of the posts even though I haven't even thought about my next cuise or Alaska trip.

While reading these cruise critics forus, I read about the itinerary change for both Vision and Serenade.

http://boards.######/forumdisplay.php?f=55

The above should be the link to their Alaska destination forum. If not go to ###### and go to their boards. There are a lot of peple that use these as you will see from the many postings.

It was on this board that I asked about different excursions, found out about the Tour Saver book, and planned all of our extra stuff. Speaking of the Tour Saver book.......This is a coupon book that has lots of 2 for 1 specials. The cost of the book was $99. At first I thought this was a bit high but depending on what you want to do it was well worth it. We went on a flightseeing out of Ketchikan with a 2/1 coupon and saved $120 - more that the cost of the book. Also used one for whitewater rafting at Denali and a dinner theater and one or two in Anchorage. Then the book went to a neighbor who used a couple of the hotel coupons. Finally I sold the book on Ebay for $40. If you go in June you can resell the book easily. If you go in July or Aug you can usually find one for sale on Ebay. Definetly worth looking into to save a buck or two. They too have a web site. Not sure what it is but just google tour saver alaska and you'll find it.

Finally - enjoy your trip. If you can swing it, get a balcony. I always thought who needs a balcony with the little time you spend in your cabin. Well, with a balcony you spend a lot more time there. The inside passage is beautiful. We never closed the curtains or the door. Also get an inside passage tour book. You pass so much and have no idea what it is unless you have some sort of guide.