hapster85

Currently on the Grand. We only have gold status, but I was able to make dinner reservations in the app months before final payment. Their system is very consistently inconsistent.

Didn't even need the digital boarding pass when we checked in on the Grand last Saturday. Just handed them our passports and they handed us our medallions. Easy peasy.

Why did you rebook on your own instead of having the EZAir team do it? Did Delta offer no other options?

If I'm remembering correctly, there's no Skywalkers on the Grand. OP is booked on the Grand.

Is that the White Pass Summit round-trip? That's a different trip than the one combined with the bus ride mentioned above. If it's not the White Pass Summit, that's awesome.

I don't believe the OP said this will be a once in a lifetime trip. Lots of people return to Alaska again and again. We're just over two weeks from our fourth trip up there. We had a great time last year on the shortened Tundra Wilderness Tour. Just doing the cruise this year, but looking forward to returning again someday.

I won't try to reassure you, as I know that would mean even less than the reps you've talked to. But I will say I understand the anxiety it can cause. I caused myself undo worry over this last year for our trip to Alaska. I can't remember when our flights were finally ticketed; it was somewhere between 2 to 4 weeks out. The same window you are in now.. I thought things would be a bit calmer this year, but perhaps not. Many people, both at Princess and here in these forums, assured me I had nothing to worry about. I'm sure that was true, but it didn't make me any less anxious about it. So for our trip to Alaska this year, I requested early ticketing the same day we made final payment. It happened a few days later.

We've been on land tours twice in Alaska, without a meal package, and we do not regret that decision at all. Yes, the restaurants are all more than what they probably are back home, but nowhere near expensive enough to justify the cost of those packages. $1080 for 12 meals is $90 per meal, so unless you plan to splurge and buy the most expensive things on the menu at every meal, save yourself some money and skip the package. Honestly, I don't think you'd spend that much even if you did splurge at every meal, but YMMV.

We tried to have our 3rd Alaskan cruise on the Sapphire. In 2020. In the fall of 2019, Princess moved us to the Royal. Then came covid, so no cruise. Tried again in 2022 on the Sapphire. I tested positive for covid on day 6 of our land tour. So once again, the cruise didn't happen. I'm not normally superstitious, but when it came time to rebook our cruise for 2023, I couldn't bring myself to book Sapphire again. But we are looking forward to being on board the Grand in June. Fingers crossed this time it actually happens. 🤞😁😂

That is probably because the cruiseline tend to only sell the bus and train combos? My experience is limited to only 3 cruises, but that's the only way I can recall seeing those excursions offered. A lot of people shy away from going out on their own and booking port tours independantly. 🤷‍♂️

I voted annoying, but think they are also hilarious.

Even though arrival day is a planned travel day, if your schedule permits, I would recommend flying in a day earlier. It will give you peace of mind, but also will give you the whole first day to explore Fairbanks, take an excursion, whatever you like. Our first cruisetour, we did not fly in a day early, so it felt like a wasted opportunity. All we did that day was check into our Anchorage hotel, have dinner, walk around a bit, then go to bed exhausted. Our second cruisetour, we flew to Fairbanks a day early. We then used the extra full day to take a tour north to the Arctic Circle, but there are lots of options. Anyway, no need for dress clothes on the land tour. Everything will be pretty casual, so plan accordingly. Just remember that temps can vary, so be prepared to dress in layers, and bring a jacket gloves. It might be in the 70s - 80s in Fairbanks, the 50s in Juneau, and 30s near the glaciers. Don't forget about the rain. You likely won't have to worry about it on your land tour, but it is pretty commonplace down south. Ketchikan gets about 13 feet per year. Resaurants in Alaska can be quite a bit more expensive compared to the lower 48. While I don't think you'll actually spend that much, double whatever you think you would normally spend in a week eating out at home, and it will ease the sticker shock. HTH. Have fun.

The first time we were in Alaska, we just got off the ship and walked around in Ketchikan, visiting the various shops. The second time, we got off the ship and went in the visitor's center (I think that's what it was called.), and booked the Duck Boat tour. It was pretty cool. If I recall correctly, it was about $10 per person cheaper at the visitor's center than booked through the ship, but that was in 2015, so mileage may vary. We'll be in Ketchikan again this June and have a Hummer tour planned. The Deadliest Catch tour looks interesting enough, but Dad is loathe to get off the ship and get on a boat. We did manage to talk him into going whale watching in Juneau, so not pressing our luck on another boat tour.

You can send texts and make calls over wi-fi with wi-fi calling enabled. You are correct, but as mentioned above, wi-fi calling must be enabled. If you've been using it, you obviously already have it enabled. You've obviously already done so, but others may not have. Anyway, anyone who has never used wi-fi calling before will need to enable it for the first time while connected to a landside cellular tower. HTH

Or you can just wait and do your check-in at the same time as the other two. I assume you'll want to stay together, so your earlier check-in time isn't really going to be an advantage in this situation. 😉

They apparently also forgot to take down the promotional pages on their website. 🤣 https://www.royalcaribbean.com/cruise-to/glacier-bay-alaska

I thought Royal Caribbean withdrew from the process before permits were awarded? Edit: Yes, only the six listed have permits according to the NPS website. https://www.nps.gov/glba/getinvolved/dobusinesswithus.htm

Ah. Thanks for the clarification. Has been a while since I have explored the options.

Meals on land are not included regardless of which tour you choose. Meal packages are available, but they are overpriced in my opinion. Some excursions will include a meal. If I remember correctly, the "on your own" tours don't have any excursions already included, where tours like the Denali Explorer do. Even then, you can call and request different excursions, if the ones included aren't to your liking. Lots of people do this with the Denali Park tours, for example, opting for the longer outings. Anyway you go, it's hard to not have a great time in Alaska.

I guess i was not clear. I already used Fly2Fun to book my flights 10 months before the cruise. This was done last month, December 2022 for an October 2023 sailing.

Booked flights for our October cruise more than a month ago, so that's 10 months out. Not sure I would use Fly2Fun again in the future. It has some benefits, but you can neither see your flights nor access Fly2Fun again once you've booked. Not to mention that they only support regular economy. If you think prices have dropped, or want to make other changes, you have to call. And if you booked with a travel agent, you have to them instead of a cruise rep. It's like a crippled version of the same booking engine that Princess uses.

Bottom line, the cruise line doesn't want a bunch of unsupervised young adults running wild on their ships. (By no means unique to Carnival.) No idea why they continue to refer to them as minors, though. Married adults under 21 can travel together without an older relative or guardian.

Had not realized the medallions also had a Bluetooth component. I thought they were strictly RFID. Interesting. 🤔

Do what you feel comfortable with, of course, but it would be the RFID reader, rather than the device with the RFID chip, that would be the source of possible electromagnet interference. Changing to a card will not remove the reader that is controlling your cabin door, or any other location that scans the medallions. 😉

That's surprising. The handful of times I've talked to the air department, the person who answered the call was able to take care of everything. Including after our cruise was cancelled, when I tested positive for covid on the land tour in Alaska, and needed new flights from Anchorage instead of Vancouver. Hopefully, they eventually get back to a staffing level they allows everyone the same level of service every time.