aring75

Our first cruise heads south to ¡Mexico! Then we turn around and head out on a Pacific Coastal.

Hello everyone! Getting last minute packing and cleaning done because tomorrow we fly to Long Beach for B2B cruises on the lovely Solstice! My last live report (Solstice from Alaska) was interrupted because of a family emergency back home. Hoping for a much less interesting (read: stressful!) cruise this time! Today we are dog-sitting for the grands. He’s an absolute doll… …but is currently very upset with the back yard situation. He is not allowing anyone out onto the patio at the moment, so I’m not sure who is sitting whom! 😂 So instead I am packing and trying to cram everything we need into one large suitcase and two carry-on bags. So far I am losing this battle.

We ordered flowers and have received a confirmation email and nothing to suggest cancellation or refund. We board on April 15, so I will let you know what happens.

I ordered online after going to my cruise planner. I know I used my desktop computer, but I don’t see the option on the mobile site. I received my amenity confirmation email with receipt attached on 3/18. Wondering if maybe this is something they might be discontinuing? Hopefully the flowers are there when we board. I love to order them for longer cruises. Really brightens up the room. If you want to order, it might be worth calling the number @Lovey Life provided in post #16.

It may vary by ship. I just ordered flowers (last week) for my B2B on Solstice in April.

Thank you for taking the time to do this. Been looking at a similar itinerary for a little while now, so really looking forward to following along!

Tampa’s “fog season” generally runs from Dec to Feb. Dense fog in the area generally occurs when the cooler mornings begin, but we are still having very warm afternoons.

Yes! Only Mark and I agreed that if we were to eat there again, we would split an order of the Dungeness Crab and then maybe split the halibut and chips. We kinda regretted not getting the crab after we saw other people eating it. 😂

I have noticed that the curtains in our stateroom look like they’ve seen better days. Our sliding closet door doesn’t “glide.” The right-hand side kind of needs an extra push when you open it. For the most part, however, our room is clean and neat, even if the decor might be a little outdated. The towels and sheets seem almost new and are sparkling white. The shower is clean and the shower head seems new (even though I don’t like it). Around the ship, I’ve noticed a few minor dings and scratches, but nothing that I would consider problematic. She looks good for her age. She could use a refresh (maybe that’s what people mean when they say the ship looks tired), but I have not seen anything that would make me think she looks old or unkempt. But I certainly believe that two people can look at the exact same thing and come away with completely different impressions. Hope this opinion helps!

We are having dinner tonight at Tuscan Grille. I will report back on that. But, in the meantime, I’m including screenshots of the main dining room menu for tonight according to the app.

Celebrity Today - Ketchikan - Day 3

We took a leisurely stroll back to the ship and spotted an eagle looking over Creek Street. I only had my phone so I know the picture is terrible. Sorry! For those of you still playing “Where’s Waldo,” he’s right here! 😁

I opted for the Denali Single Engine Red. It’s a local amber they had on tap and it was great. Ice cold and went perfectly with the fish & chips. 😊

Mark wanted fish for lunch. Last time we were here, we ate at the Alaska Fish House. It was good, but it was SO busy today (there were four ships in port). We decided to try the Ketchikan Crab & Grille, which is just next door. The prices for crab have nearly doubled(!) since the last time we were here. We still saw lots of people order it though. And it looked yummy!

Had THE BEST weather today. High 60s low 70s and beautiful, sunny skies. Of course, all the Alaskans we met said it was “so hot!”

Docked in Ketchikan at around 6:30 this morning. Just a heads up. You hear every bit of noise from the docking process in our cabin. We are generally awake pretty early, but if you are someone who likes to sleep in, you may want to book something a little closer to mid-ship.

After dinner we headed back to the stateroom for a few minutes and noticed we had Captain’s Club flowers. And we opened up the curtains and we saw the first sunshine we’ve seen all day! Tomorrow is supposed to be great weather in Ketchikan!

Dessert was chocolate cake with a requested side order of vanilla ice cream. The chocolate cake is rich, but it’s never as sweet as I think it’s going to be. Which is great!!

Entrees were the Steak Diane and the Leg of Lamb. Both were good.

We started dinner with the crab cake appetizer and the tomato and watermelon salad. Crab cake was okay. Good flavor, but not a lot of actual crab. The tomato & watermelon was good, but the tomatoes were not really ripe. I liked the feta and onion.

Yes. I will do my best!

Mark is currently napping, apparently worn out from all the relaxing we did today. Tonight is “Chic Night.” Almost as ambiguous a terminology as “Dress Your Best” night that Royal Caribbean likes to use.

We had to warm up a little this afternoon with a Café Mocha. Mark tried the apple cake and some kind of pound cake, but he said they were both a bit dry. The mocha was like a slightly more caffeinated hot chocolate though. Yum.

It has been SO foggy, misty, and chilly all day. I love it! Our cabin is at the very front of the ship and I can hear the ship’s horn sounding once every minute.

I will try to give as much detailed information about the tendering process in Skagway as I can. If I can find someone to ask, I’ll see if they’ve put any plans in place for passengers with mobility issues. I’ll let you know what I find.