journeycollector

Monday, June 6 - back on board

About 10pm and not completely dark...we were following the Westerdam most of the week.

Here is the Princess Patter for Monday, June 6:

Monday, June 6 - Mendenhall Glacier

After Harv & Marv's whale watching, our group split. Mom and her boyfriend went to Red Dog while we hopped on a shuttle to Mendenhall.

What an amazing sight! We did the Photo Point Trail, but unfortunately didn't have time for the Nugget Falls Trail in order catch the last shuttle bus back at 7pm. Lesson learned...make sure you give yourself plenty of time!

Monday, June 6 - Harv and Marv's whale watching

We had booked Harv and Marv's whale watching based on reviews on this site. Everything was seamless! Their driver picked us up near the cruise ship and then it was about a 20 minute drive out to Auke Bay to get on the boat.

Captain Jeff was our guide and by chance we had the boat to ourselves (the 4 of us, plus Jeff!). So basically we got a private tour without having to pay for a private tour!

The whales weren't really doing much that day. But we were still able to see some humpbacks, along with some sea lions, and plenty of eagles. The thing to remember is the animals are NOT there for your enjoyment...so you might just as well enjoy the scenery along the way!

The excursion lasted around 3.5 hrs including travel time.

Auke Bay

Humpback whale sighting...

Sea lions

Scenery

Monday, June 6 - Walking around Juneau

Got off the ship...made a beeline to Tracy's King Crab Shack. Yum! We had scallops and my mom & her boyfriend had the crab bucket.

Then we walked around Juneau...

Temps were around 57F/14C - with off and on drizzle.

Monday, June 6 - Approaching Juneau

We docked at Juneau around 11am. Had great views from the aft decks and Skywalkers Lounge (most people had not discovered it yet...almost empty!).

Made it through the sea day ;) ...let's dock this boat!

Mom and her boyfriend survived too (mostly thanks to the AIBP!)

Juneau ahead

Docking at Juneau

I'm taking the Ruby Princess out of Seattle in July and am very much enjoying your colorful report (including the photo of what you packed)!

Thanks...I way overpacked! Oh well, next time I'll know. My most essential item was my waterproof rain jacket/fleece combo from Columbia. I could wear them together or as separates. Purchased it for under $70 at a local Columbia outlet store!

Sunday, June 5 - Day at Sea

I knew those warm temps wouldn't last forever. As we started heading north and out into the ocean, it was around 54F/12C.

Today was the "sea day" - but in reality, we were at sea from the time we left Seattle at 4pm on Saturday until Monday morning at 11am when we docked at Juneau.

Being a first-time cruiser, I wasn't sure if I would get bored on a sea day. Again, as with most things, I need not worry.

We did the "treasure hunt" - got our stamps as various places (no, I don't want to bid on art, thank you very much!). I actually won something in the treasure hunt: An free entry into a casino game (e.g., poker) . Meh...I don't play casino games...but hey, I can say I won something!

We did the general trivia...tough! I think we managed to get 12 of out 20 questions correct. But it was fun!

It was the first formal night...we opted out (didn't want to have to pack anything extra) and happily paid the cover charge to eat in the Crown Grill. Awesome meal!...I'll talk more about food (and clothing!) later.

After dinner, we attended a show in the Princess Theater: Disco--Blame it on the Boogie. Fun!

Here are the Princess Patters for the Day at Sea:

Day at sea...

Loving your review! Your photos are spectacular. Looking forward to reading the rest. :)

Thank you so much!!!

Saturday, June 4 - Off on our Alaskan adventure

Here is the Princess Patter from as we embark Seattle.

Such a beautiful day!

Spent the day acquainting ourselves with ship, enjoying the sunshine, and getting our stamps for the "treasure hunt" (what can I say, we're newbies!).

Thanks for the review!! I can't wait to read the rest. DH and I plan to do the same itinerary [with one difference of Sitka instead of Skagway] on Holland America Line in September so this is a great overview of what to expect.

 

P.S. You guys are an adorable couple!

Awww, thank you! :) I'm sure you guys will have a wonderful time!

Still coming down from our cruise ship "high." :)

Saturday, June 4 - Leaving Seattle on Crown Princess

So I saw pictures of the Crown Princess, looked at the diagrams, watched some YouTube videos. I just wasn't prepared for the sheer size of it. Amazing!

We found our stateroom: We had an inside cabin - Riviera 724 - towards the aft. My mom and her boyfriend had the balcony room right across the hall from us.

I'll be honest: We picked the inside cabin because of the price. We were pleased. Neither of us felt claustrophobic--we spent most our time outside of it anyway.

I neglected to request the "egg crate" for the mattress. In my case, I need not worry: The bed was super comfortable.

I was worried there might be some noise from the Cafe Caribe directly above us. Again, not an issue. Some minor noise in the morning (hey, we considered it our "wake up" call), but nothing that caused us to lose sleep.

We LOVED the location of our room: Just a few steps down the hall and we were at the Terrace Pool and the bar. It was never too crowded out there. It felt kinda semi-private...wonderful!

For sail-away, we got some drinks and camped out on the Horizon Terrace.

The obligatory "I'm on a boat" pic.

My mom and her boyfriend

Me and my mom

Let's get a drink!

Goodbye, Mount Rainier

The Seattle weather was unusually warm (83F, 28C)...I felt like I was heading off on a Caribbean cruise (that would change the next morning!).

Saturday, June 4 - Time to set sail!

So our info from Princess said we should board at 2pm. Reading these forums, I knew it was usually OK to show up earlier. Plus, we had to be checked out of the hotel at 11am. The hotel (Hampton Inn & Suites--Seattle Downtown) had shuttles going to Pier 91 at 10:30, 11:30, and 12:30. So we booked the 12:30 shuttle ($7/pp).

Since we had some time to spare, we walked from our hotel to Kerry Park for some skyline views of Seattle. It's about a 20 minute walk.

Then we boarded the shuttle for Pier 91. It was about a 10 minute ride.

And then it was time to make it through the controlled chaos that is the Smith Cove Cruise Terminal. My pet peeve is standing in line...HATE it. The good news is these lines kept moving! From the time we dropped off our luggage, filled out the health form, went through security, customs, and the Princess check-in desk, it was just over 30 minutes. No standing, no time to sit...we were always moving--that I can do!!!

In fact when we checked in at the Princess desk, they said our stateroom would be ready in about 15 minutes. By the time we made it on board and found our room it was ready!

We purchased this pic...and also got a cute little flash drive shaped like a Princess cruise ship!

Friday, June 3 - Seattle Public Library

Last pre-cruise post, I promise!

So why did I go to the library on my vacation??? Well, I'm a librarian at a university, so I often like to pop in to check out libraries when I'm traveling.

The Seattle Public Library is fantastic and its central library is an amazing architectural space. It's worth a visit!

Don't forget: librarians know everything and can give you good recommendations on places to eat and things that are cool, but less "touristy." :)

Friday, June 3 - Harbor Tour

We continued with the strategy of plowing through our Seattle CityPass booklet. Up next was the Argosy Cruises harbor tour. It's a one hour, live narrated tour of Elliot Bay. Great shots of the city skyline, the Seattle Great Wheel, Pier 91, the shipping industry, local history and a little humor. There's also booze on board if you like that, too. :D

Where's all that Seattle rain? Not here...weather was gorgeous!

After that, we had lunch along one of the piers and then took a ride on the Seattle Great Wheel.

Friday, June 3 - Pike Place Market

After the Space Needle, we decided to walk to Pike Place Market. It's a one-mile walk. Takes about 20 minutes. Decided to pop-in to a bakery next to the first Starbucks for a mid-morning snack.

Friday, June 3 - Space Needle

Our only full day in Seattle...time to make the most of it.

We returned to the Space Needle for our daytime admission.

No photobombers this time!

Beautiful day with a view of Mt. Rainier

Pier 91--that's where we will meet our cruise ship!

I run into a lady who I helped find the Monorail, who then turned out to be staying at our hotel. Only to run into her again at the Space Needle and then to find out she would be on our ship!

Thursday, June 1

After getting our fill of "Twin Peaks" sites, we headed back to Seattle and returned our rental car to Sea-Tac airport.

Then we took the light rail from the airport to downtown and then hopped on the Monorail and took it to the Space Needle.

From there, we walked about 4 blocks to our hotel: Hampton Inn & Suites--Seattle Downtown (corner of 5th & Roy) where we would stay for the next 2 nights.

Before the trip, we purchased a Seattle CityPass which includes admission to 5 popular attractions. For our budget and what we wanted to see, it was worth it--but you'll need to do the math to see if it works for you.

So we started with our Seattle CityPass sightseeing...

We started at the EMP museum. Had a good time. Loved the Nirvana exhibit (Fun fact: I was in middle school when "Smells Like Teen Spirit" was both a popular song and the name of deodorant!).

EMP also had some cool Jimi Hendrix stuff, a huge sci-fi exhibit, and a special Star Trek display (any Trekkies here?).

Then using our Seattle CityPass, we went to the nearby Chihuly Garden and Glass. Just amazing!

After Chihuly, we had dinner at their Collections Cafe (there was a coupon in the Seattle CityPass booklet!).

Then, with our Seattle CityPass booklet, we were entitled to both a nighttime and daytime admission to the Space Needle. So, our first visit was at night.

Here's our pic...I like how the lady smiled as she photobombed our photo! :)

Wednesday, June 1

We got up way too early...had a 5:30am flight out of Milwaukee on Southwest Airlines to Seattle, connecting at Dallas Love Field. The flight got into Seattle at 11:30am which allowed us to maximize our sightseeing starting on day 1.

Now I could say that my partner and I booked a night at Salish Lodge and Spa in Snoqualmie, Washington because it's a great hotel. Yes, it's true...it is. But it also happens to be one of the filming locations of our all-time favorite TV show "Twin Peaks" (you remember it? The now cult classic show only aired from 1990-1991).

Many of the exterior filming locations are centered just outside of Seattle in Snoqualmie and North Bend.

So after landing at Sea-Tac, we rented a car and drove the 40 minutes to Salish Lodge and Spa for our first night.

...And that's when we started geeking out. #sorrynotsorry

First up, the Salish Lodge and Spa, majestically perched at the top of Snoqualmie Falls. It functioned as the "Great Northern Hotel" on "Twin Peaks." Here's a pano shot with the hotel on the left side of the falls.

Here's me with a closer shot of Salish Lodge and the falls.

Then it was off to North Bend to have a "damn fine cup of coffee" and a slice of cherry pie at Twede's Cafe (on "Twin Peaks," this was the Double R diner).

Did some hiking at Snoqualmie Point Park (featured as the "picnic spot" scene on "Twin Peaks").

Found the exact spot on the road that's used in the opening credits to "Twin Peaks." For the record, my partner liked "Twin Peaks" first and then I became a convert!

Did some more hiking around the falls (smell that fresh air!) and had a great dinner and cocktails back at the Salish Lodge.

We did the "Twin Peaks" package at the hotel (of course!) and it included a map of all of the local filming locations. By the way, the show has been resurrected. Look for it on Showtime in 2017.

Back from a 7-day Alaskan cruise on the Crown Princess, round-trip from Seattle.

The CruiseCritic boards have been so helpful, I thought I would return the favor with a trip report. I'll highlight each day and share some pics.

About Us:

My partner and I (both in our 30's) traveled with my mom and her boyfriend (both in their late 50s/early 60s). This was the first cruise and first time to Alaska for everyone. So we were all newbies to everything! My partner and I live in the Milwaukee, WI area and my mom and her boyfriend live in Indiana.

I'll be honest, up until now, I never had a strong desire to go on a cruise. Some of it was bad pr (like the Carnival Triumph "poop cruise"), some of it was outdated thinking on my part (like doing "forced" activities--hey, no one is actually forcing you to do anything!).

But Alaska was on the travel bucket list and we thought doing a cruise sounded like a good way to go.

Selecting our cruise

We ended up choosing Princess Cruises' roundtrip from Seattle, primarily for their expertise in Alaska and Glacier Bay was on this itinerary. I would have loved to have done a land tour too (like Denali) but we couldn't spare the extra time (hey that gives me an excuse to go again!). Plus, I'd rather do Denali on my own and really spend some time there.

So we opted for the roundtrip so we could fly into and out of the same place. We chose Seattle as opposed to Vancouver for cheaper air fares. It's easier for us to get to and we have family in the area.

We booked last Fall and then I spent the rest of the time eagerly reading the forums and Alaska travel books. It seemed such a long stretch until June.

And then...

The night before we fly out for cruise, I try to fit everything into my suitcase! I overpacked. Lesson learned.

Pro Tip: Besides the usual waterproof jacket, layering advice...the most useful thing I brought was a travel size surge protector with 3 outlets and 2 USB ports: No fighting to charge our phones and devices on the cruise ship!

Itinerary:

• Wednesday, June 1: Fly to Seattle. Drive to Snoqualmie, Washington. Stay night at Salish Lodge and Spa.
  
• Thursday, June 2: Return to Seattle. Stay at Hampton Inn & Suites near Space Needle. Tour Seattle.
  
• Friday, June 3: Tour Seattle. Dinner w/ family who live in the area.
  
• Saturday, June 4: Leave Seattle on Crown Princess
  
• Sunday, June 5: Sea day
  
• Monday, June 6: Juneau. Booked Harv & Marv's whale watching excursion.
  
• Tuesday, June 7: Skagway. Book Frontier Excursion's Yukon Discovery tour.
  
• Wednesday, June 8: Scenic cruising through Glacier Bay.
  
• Thursday, June 9: Ketchikan. Book Island Wings Air Service flightseeing tour over Misty Fjords.
  
• Friday, June 10: Victoria BC. Booked shuttle bus to downtown; explore on our own.
  
• Saturday, June 11: Return to Seattle. Fly home.
  

More to come!