Jeremiah On a Cruise

I'd say that there are four general options:

1. A travel agent with a discount broker will typically be able to get you a discount on the posted rate.  However, their service is typically polite but limited to booking - they are unlikely to provide much support beyond that.  I recommend that you know exactly what you want, including dates and staterooms, if going this option.  
2. A travel agent with a customer-focused broker will typically match the cruise line's price, but will provide excellent service, and help locating (or even booking) excursions, talking through different cruise lines, different ships, destinations, options, rebooking, etc.  Note that a travel agent who doesn't provide a discount, and doesn't provide these services, should be fired IMO.
3. Booking through a travel agent at the cruise line will typically match the posted price, but will provide excellent service on the cruise.  I've found these agents top-notch at getting difficult to find staterooms, preferred dining times, and things like that.  They also have access to some unique discounts that may not be available via other paths (e.g. casino rates).  However, they typically charge full price, and are obviously limited to a single cruise line.
4. Booking directly remains an option that some love.  Here, the traveler will pay full price, but may have more control over their booking.  If you want control and don't mind paying full price, this is a great option.  Note that this is the only option I haven't used, but I know people who swear by this approach.

Hope that helps.

I've made the executive decision to not fret about cruise ship apps. 

Several lines have killer ideas with great functionality, but none of them are working as intended yet, and all are working through major issues.  Until those are ironed out, I'll stick with paper, and spend my gray hairs other places.

5 hours ago, martincath said:

Cha Time & Cactus Club are certainly close and sensible first and last things to visit, but the spray park in Stanley is a significant hike further - a full two miles going the less scenic short route along Cordova and via Malkin Bowl, but if you stick to the Seawall the whole way it's over 60% longer; even cutting through by the Totem Poles pushes the distance to approx. 3 miles...  with what sounds like younger kids, that could easily be over an hour each way if walked!

 

Cabbing from near the pier will work easily to get TO the splash park, and for almost as cheap as transit to get dropped right next to it on the park 'ring road' instead of having an extra ~500 metres to walk from the bus loop - but trying to get a cabuber to come get you afterward may be challenging due to the one-way system so I'd definitely plan to use the bus on the way back (19, runs from the Bus Loop which is a very short walk from the splash park, and even closer to the pretty nice adventure playground!) It's a 10 minute ride - get off at Burrard, the stop is after the junction, so it's actually easiest to walk up Hornby three blocks (despite Google having issues with it, pedestrians can continue all the way down to Canada Place it's just cars that are blocked at Hastings) and even if you just missed a bus they run every 15mins so you'll be at the pier within about 30mins worst case.

 

Since kids under 13 are free, the adult bus fare of CAD$3.15pp is all you'd likely have to pay (if you have a 13+ child, they do qualify for Concession fares BUT that might be problematic with exact change needed; any Tappable credit card or smartphone can be used to board a bus, but those always charge the regular adult ticket price - this is however frankly worth the extra buck compared to finding a ticket vending machine and buying a Concession ticket for later use on the bus).

 

Personally I'd push the arrival time to at least 2pm - 'boarding time' on any document is meaningless at Canada Place as CBP have such tight and total control over the process, but the lines are hardly going to spend the money and effort on IT systems to print different terminology and time-frames just for Vancouver/Montreal departures... if they were actually willing to invest in seasonal IT improvements they'd instead prioritise their booking systems to reject PVSA-incompatible cruise combos!

Sorry - different splash park.  There looks to be a smaller splash park just about 1500 ft west of Canada Place, near what looks to be a small park.  It's not nearly as nice as the park you mentioned, but we'd feel better staying walking distance from the pier.

4 hours ago, quack2 said:

To kill some time at Canada Place, consider taking the Flyover Canada ride.  Same technology as Soaring California at Disneyland.  I'm guessing the kids would love it too.

ooOOOOhh!  My family loves loves loves Soar'n, and I didn't know that there was anything like it outside of Disneyland.  We will definitely try and do this!!!

On 6/9/2023 at 5:39 PM, martincath said:

Glad to help, fellow Portlandians! Everett's not bad - key thing is it's north of Seattle, although until they finally get that road-widening project complete the first northbound I5 stretch to Marysville remains a drag almost any time of day! I'd check Waze or similar to see if taking the 529 up to Marysville is faster as you're setting out.

 

Now I'm embarrassed - even though I looked at the timetable for K'dam days I never bothered to look at which day of the week... Saturdays way less of an issue with commuters inbound, and tunnel often stays 2 in, 2 out unless there's some big event on during the day (there are night-time fireworks that day, but since it's not a long weekend your fellow Americans coming up for vacations should still be much less than normal weekday commuter volume approaching town).

 

Optimal crossing varies - we rarely deviate from I5 proper, but we have NEXUS. We check the signs though, and personally I can only only recall a handful of occasions in over ten years when deviating as far as Lynden, let alone Sumas, are worthwhile if you're headed downtown rather than to the eastern 'burbs. They add more drive time than the time saved crossing even without NEXUS on all but the super-busy times - even Pacific Crossing, where trucks & buses generally go, adds 10+mins drive time to downtown Van and is rarely more than 10mins faster than Peace Arch for cars statistically, while Lynden and Sumas are both on the order of 30mins extra drive time. Since I assume you will have data within WA State, have your partner/one of the kids keep an eye on not-quite-live data updates from CBSA as you get to the places where you have to make a choice, as well as checking the highway overhead info signs - unless Peace Arch/Pacif X-ing delays are closing in on an hour deviating to Lynden is almost certainly both extra mileage and time.

 

With kids to factor in things get trickier - do you think they'd handle an early awakening well? Sitting around on plastic chairs for an hour? Standing in queues that just stop randomly for no reason? You hopefully know your kids a lot better than I do(!) so it's on you to figure out what options would minimize disruption to/from them!!!

 

In general though, Late or Early both have benefits - anywhere in the middle is just varying degrees of Suck. While the total pax load of Grand & Oc Vic is likely way less than just Majestic, having to have three sets of Check-in desks rather than two means another unknown factor in the 'who will embark first?' sweepstakes...

 

I'd say that if your kids are on the younger end, or just 'full of beans' not keen on lots of sitting types, then splitting things up as much as possible with 'fun stuff for them' as the in-between boarding day treat might be the way to go (i.e. drive up earlyish, drop bags on arrival, then go for some of our awesome ice cream, let them run about in a park, that sort of thing - if you don't mind bringing a wet bag onboard, the splash park on Granville Island could be a real Happy Kid Making thing; if weather sucks then the roof level adventure playground inside the Kids Market is another great 'burn some energy so you annoy me less later child!' option; and of course the shops of the kids market provide a lot of fun, and also educational, toys for bribery!); and while The Old Spaghetti Factory may be of Portlandian origins, the Gastown outpost is the oldest remaining resto (I think it opened just one year after the original PDX one, but unlike that has been in the same building ever since), priced in CAD making it even cheaper (for still mediocre, but enormous portions of) food - and I don't think any other OSF can claim to have a haunted streetcar available for sitting in!

 

If it's older kids who can self-regulate, maybe there's something in Hollywood North that could entice - check out filming locations of fave shows? Seems like several of our recent local productions are aimed at teen audiences, like the whole 'Archieverse' batch of shows, and while the Arrowverse may be effectively over now it always entertained me that The Flash used real Portland maps for Central City but filmed here, two real places combined into one fake one! If the TV/movie sites idea has traction, this is where I'd say that crossing at Lynden/Sumas becomes sensible again - loads of filming sites out east of town: Riverview Hospital might be the single most filmed building in the region out in Coquitlam for example, it's been in dang near every tv show filmed here that uses location shoots!

@martincath and @Northern Aurora Thanks again for this.

I think we have our plans finalized:

Will leave Everett around 7A and get across the boarder around 8:30 or 9:00.  We'll cross at Lynden as my boys really really hate the chaos, crowds, and lines of the I5 crossings.  

We will get to the pier around 10:00, and park in Canada Place (parking already purchased) and drop off our bags at that time, but will not start checking in just yet.

We will then spend the next few hours walking around the waterfront in Vancouver.  We'll hit the Chat Time (bubble tea) first, and then west walk along the Sea Wall Water Walk, grabbing lunch somewhere (Cactus Club Cafe?) and probably spending some time at Spray Park.  But, we'll stay within about a 15 minute walk from the pier.

We will target being back to the pier at 1:30.  Our boarding pass says that we must be onboard by 3P, so we'll start fretting if we aren't in line by 2:00.  Hopefully, 1:30 will be early enough to have plenty of wiggle room/not be worried, but late enough to miss most of the rush, and to meet our luggage in our prepared room. 

We've only sailed with our kids on Princess, but found their kids club very good.  Actually, we have sailed on several lines with our kids, and found most of the at sea kids clubs outstanding.  Our kids, who are around the ages of your kids, loved them.  Though, none of these will be quite the level of Disney, which is clearly a step up.  However, I would not call any of these programs educational.

RC has an amazing reputation for kids, and will probably have more families than the other options.  Their sweet spot is probably 12-18, though they will definitely cater to, and offer good services for a 6-11 year old.  We've tried to book them several times, but don't love her itineraries and found their rates for a good cabin too high, and spent a similar amount on a more premium line.  This will be the most lively of the options listed.

I can't speak to the Encore as I've never cruised on her, nor seriously researched her. 

Another option is the Celebrity Eclipse.  If you're open to leaving from Vancouver, the Celebrity Eclipse has a great itinerary, and is actually my kids' favorite ship.  Frankly, it may be my favorite ship as well...  Some, but not too may kids.  Adult focused but do a great job catering to kids.  Fancy but comfortable.  She will be slightly older than the other cruise options, but is a great ship with ideal connecting cabins.  

1 hour ago, martincath said:

Unknown issues: your exact sail date will make a difference... K'dam shares port with either Majestic or Grand Princess, and sometimes also Ocean Victory... since the 2 Princess ships have a significantly different pax load, almost every time will differ as to how many other pax you have to deal with!

 

Your driving route can also have an impact - if you're 3 hours away down I5, over-nighting somewhere in the Seattle area then the time you leave there makes a potentially huge difference if you have to drive with or against an commuter traffic! If you're somewhere further east, like Nehalem, that's also a 3 hour drive on paper you don't have those Seattle area volume worries. So - visiting family, i.e. no option where in WA you are overnighting? Or just splitting the trip from PDX to minimize same day drive, with your choice of where to stay? If the latter - be near the border, Ye Olde bits of downtown Bellingham are really nice, and your drive will drop to <2 hours.

 

But in general...

1) You will sit around about an hour before boarding starts; depending which ships are allowed to start their pax first and what if any priority you have with HAL, you could be right at the start of the lines when they do start moving or still have hundreds of pax ahead of you... curb to cabin time, anything from 90-120mins is likely

2) Second-worst option - noon arrivals means Amtrak may see hundreds of extra cruise pax, on top of the constant flow from airport arrivals and hotels. No initial wait but constant slowdowns and stoppages as CBP get overloaded and prevent anyone entering their area which backs up Security and so on

3) Risky from the perspective of your drive - any border issue, a flat tire, another vehicle crashing can easily turn a 3 hours drive from Seattle into a 5 hour...

4) Impossible - you MUST be at the pier for check-in 2 hours beforehand so for a 4:30 planned sailaway, hard cap is 2:30pm or you risk the manifest being finalized and No Cruise For You!

 

Other Option would be my suggestion, sort of a combo of 1) and 4) - get here ASAP, even if that means getting on the road by 6am to minimise commuter impact around Seattle and give plenty of padding for re-routing around incidents or choosing one of the border crossings further east instead of the main I5 corridor. if all goes well and you cross the border early enough to hit Vancouver commuter traffic, optionally pull over somewhere to chill, grab a coffee, triple-check you didn't leave anything back in the hotel like passports in the safe...(!) Local commuter traffic inbound from the border gets much lighter after 9am, the Tunnel returns to 2 lanes each way approx 9:30am - marking 'normal' flow again. Before that you will benefit from 3 lanes inbound if you stick to 99, but it can still be really slow until close to 9am.

 

Once downtown, drop bags at the pier as soon as you can (9:30am is usually safe although officially bag drop begins no earlier than 10am) and go enjoy time in town... but be back by no later than 2:30pm!!!!

@martincath  Wow!  First - a huge thank you.  Lots of info here that I didn't know.

We are there July 29 - the same day as the Grand.  There are two other ships in port that day, including the Ocean Victory (very small) and the Nature (arriving much later).

We will be coming from Everett on the day of the cruise.  It's a Saturday so we don't anticipate much traffic until the boarder.  We plan to pass a Lynden to avoid the crowds, but are open to Sumas if you think that's better.  We avoid crossing on I5 whenever possible.  With that said, props for referencing Nehalem - that's my old stomping grounds and one of my favorite little towns in WA.

I'm embarrassed to admit that I didn't know the 2:30 deadline.  We typically board super early, but are traveling with kids, so our priorities are different this go.  Do you think checkin at 1:30 will have a quicker time boarding than a checkin of 10 or 11?  If 2:30 is the hard stop, 1:30 is as late as I would want to plan for.  But, if the wait is 90-120 minutes regardless of when I check in, it may be worth it to board early and have lunch onboard.

Again - thanks!

We will board the Konnsingdam in a few weeks (YAHHOOOO!!!) with a scheduled departure time of 4:30.  We will be driving to the pier and already have parking reserved at Canada Place.  We will have a ~3 hour drive from WA state, but can get there as early as 10A or 11A without issue.

We are pretty worried about long waits at the pier, and are trying to plan the day to avoid the rush and lines.  We hope to plan the day around getting through parking lines, check-in, security, and customs as quick as we can.  We aren't in a huge rush to get on board, and are open to walking around the city for a few hours, or spending some money to be entertained if you have any suggestions.

We have a few general options and welcome your thoughts:

Park at 10A and check in ASAP.

Park at noon and check in ASAP.

Park at 2P and check in ASAP (is this cutting it too close?)

Park at 11A, drop off the luggage, and walk around the city for a few hours.  Check in around 3:00P.

Other options.

I welcome your thoughts.

On 6/1/2023 at 3:58 AM, JRoyston said:

I like to think that by English standards I’m quite good at tipping, but I know it is a lot more important in America. Over here, we might give a small tip to person guiding an excursion, but it is very much optional, and no set amount/percentage.

In Alaska, what is the expectation for tipping generally on excursions? 
To further complicate matters, there are a couple of places where we have booked a private excursion directly with the owners of the company (Glacier Wind in ISP and Gallant Adventures in Sitka). As they are already getting the full amount from the booking, is there a different approach to tipping in those circumstances?

My view on excursion tipping:

Only around half of the people tip on group excursions, with 15+ people.  I'd consider this truly optional.  If you choose to tip, $5 - $10 per person is in the normal realm, with $20 per person being very generous.  Personally, we tip $0 to $20 based entirely on service, with $10/pp being the norm.

On smaller, more private excursions, I would say that it's very different.  If you've chartered a tour guide, or boat, or something, I would say that tipping is the norm and expectation.  The tipping amount also increases; I'd say 5% of the excursion cost is on the low end, around 10%-15% is probably standard.  I've gone as high as 25% on these, but that was a special circumstance (four person boat, overly generous captain, lifetime experience, etc.).  If you're looking for a guideline, I'd say 10% is a good starting point.

But, neither of these are hard-and-fast rules.  For example, we do a flight/bear watching excursion that is $400/person, and includes both a flight and walking portion.  I don't think I've ever tipped a pilot (I actually worry that it would be insulting), but I'm not going to tip the walking guide $40/per person (~10% of the cost).  

As a final note, I'd highlight that tipping on excursions is different in the US than tipping on food, drinks, housekeeping, etc. where tipping is the norm and is expected.

36 minutes ago, visagrunt said:

Absolutely went through Salish Sea and Johnstone Strait.  Given the excess distance, the only reason to divert would be the unavailability of a pilot or a hazard to navigation.

You, my friend, just made my day :).  

@visagrunt  Loving your reviews!

Do you know if the northbound portion of the trip went on the East or West side of Vancouver island?  All of the maps show the trip on the East/inside passage side, but I've read reports from others that earlier trips this year on the Kon. went on the west side of the island (i.e. into the open ocean).  

Again, thank you.

On 3/4/2023 at 4:50 PM, CCJack said:

these photos show you the general condition of the trail.   The one with the Myrdal sign is right near where we were able to start riding after the first 1 km of walking due to rocks.    We had to walk again because the goats wouldn't move, we saw sheep later on as well.  The photo with the buildings is near the end at Flam and the path is the black asphalt to the right. 

Wow - this is amazing!

I also love your idea of booking both the train and the bikes for the trip down, knowing that you'll simply overpay and not use one of the two.  Money isn't the big concern here - an awful experience is 🙂

Anyhow, just wanted to say thanks,

On 2/1/2023 at 9:56 AM, CCJack said:

Yes, we booked a one way train and had reserved bikes at the Cafe as Hallasm suggested.   At the time we went, I saw no other bike rental options  besides the cafe.   Maybe it is different now.   

 

The biking down was fantastic.   However, note the first part after leaving the cafe is a little difficult.   Most people walked their bikes for about the first 30 minutes due to the large stone gravel path.  However, the path gets smoother as you go, and most of it is paved asphalt.   Endurance / stamina is not an issue as it is all downhill !     

Great info!

Outside of the first 30 minutes that can be walked, would the trail be OK for kids?  Ours are ages 9 and 11.  Both can ride a bike, but would struggle with even modest climbs, and neither has done anything resembling mountain biking.  

I've love your thoughts or additional details.

3 hours ago, REOVA said:

Its an extra per diem cost depending on ship and days which allows expedited embarkation/disembarkment (simolar to Neptune/4*/5* guest), a separate line at customer service and excursion desks onboard and some minor gifts.  I've heard that you get a cabin upgrade within a category and some have liked the upgrade and some have stuck with original selection. What we Iiked about Club Orange is the ability on the Pinnacle class ships to eat in the CO restaurant which is quieter and more efficient than the large MDR of those bigger ships. On non P ships you eat in the MDR, usually in a better table (by a window) and you can order the 1 different entree on the menu for CO members. That wouldn't be as appealing to me on other ships but we like it on the P ships. 

Thanks for the info.  How does seating the Club Orange section work on P ships?  Are there reserved times like in the MDR?  Or, is it open without reservations like Blu on Celebrity or Club Class on Princess?

On 8/5/2022 at 5:25 PM, Kansas Gal said:

We are booked on the Discovery scheduled to be in Skagway on the 18th.  Received an e-mail from Princess today which said we would dock at the aft berth and a "ship to shore water shuttle" would be used since the walk on the dock is closed.

FYI - we did the Majestic (a sister to the Discover) to Cabo in the Spring, had to take the water shuttle to shore there, and had a 2 hour wait for the shuttle off the ship.  I'm not sure if that's a function of the port, the class of ship, dumb luck, or some combination of those - but I wanted to give you a heads-up as you plan the day.

I was there last week, and rented a car from Skagway and drove into the Yukon without issue.   Here's how:

When completing the ArriveCan app, we did not mention Skagway or the Yukon in any way, and could not find a place to do so.  We simply completed our ArriveCan, as instructed by our cruise line, based on our start and end ports and corresponding flight plans.  I also couldn't figure out how to add an additional entry for the Skagway-to-Yukon drive prior to boarding, and I'm pretty sure that there is no place to do so in the app.

After renting the car, when we got the boarder, the Canadian guard took our passport, and when he ran it, he commented that "it looks like you've already completed the Arrive Can app, so you're good there."  We were allowed to cross without issue.

The requirements are constantly changing, but as of last week, this was basically a non-event for us.

I've been on both a few times.

I would agree with others that Celebrity tends to have slightly better food - both in terms of selection and quality in the MDR and buffet.  Blu (and I presume Luminae)  also offers a vastly superior dining experience than Club Class for premium staterooms.

Entertainment is mostly equal, with maybe a slight edge to Princess. 

The smoke free casino is a big plus for Celebrity.

Service is superior on both, but I've found it to be slightly more reliable on Princess.

I strongly prefer Celebrity ship designs over Princess.  The layout, flow, and décor of Celebrity, in both the cabin and public areas, is typically much much nicer.  Princess has some snazzy and luxurious features (e.g. they do the atrium as well as anyone), but overall - I have a strong preference for Celebrity.

Similarly, Celebrity ships are often more intuitive and less crowded than Princess.  Granted, my favorite two ship classes I've ever been on are the Celebrity M and S classes (I haven't got on an Edge class yet.)

The crowds on Celebrity tend to be a bit younger, more hip, more diverse, more liberal, and less formal than Princess.  You can decide if these are good or bad.

No offense intended, but I prefer the pre-cruise experience of Princess.  Their website tends to be better, their rollcalls larger, and forums more active and friendly, and their groupies more positive.  

Princess has always felt like a bit more of a polished company off the ship.  On the ship, they are both great.  (note that both are going through major issues the last few years due to staffing)

Technology/features is a push.  Princess is miles ahead with their Medallion approach when it works  - though the technology is highly unreliable, and has turned into much of a stressor than a feature.

Itinerates are often better on Princess.  I live on the west coast, and Princess offers much better itineraries to Alaska and Mexico. 

Celebrity is, appropriately, but slightly more expensive.

Ultimately, both are great.  Personally, I'll pay a bit more, and accept a slightly worse itinerary to sail with Celebrity over Princess - but thousands of people make the other choice each day - and I'm not about to fault them for that.

We've been to AK many times (8?), have probably seen over 1000 whales, done many nature-based excursions/drives, and only seen bears in the wild once in AK - and that was on a float plane tour to Traitors Cove out of Ketchikan.  This was a great trip for multiple reasons (float plane, nature walk, and bears - oh my!), and was one of the two best excursions I've ever had in AK. These trips are very spendy (~$450/pp) and I don't recall seeing them offered through the cruise ships, but if this is a priority, check out Island Wings Air Service in Ketchikan.

Herring Cove, which is a 20 minute drive from Ketchikan, tends to be one of the best, free, places where you may spot bears on your own.  This is right next to a fish hatchery, so fish, and hence bears, frequent the area.  However, viewing isn't guaranteed, thus there aren't a lot of excursions from the ship that take you there.  And, getting there-and-back on your own is actually a bit of a logistical challenge that I've never bothered to solve.  We've only been to Herring Cove once, and frankly, didn't have a great time.

I also know that there are bear viewing excursions out of Icy Straight Point, but in the past when I've looked at those, they have not had glowing reviews. 

I know that many others have had better luck than us spotting bears from the ship, in fishing trips, from a train, on other boats, on hikes, etc..  So, there's a chance that you'll spot a bear by simply being engaged outside of the towns.  I just haven't been that lucky yet.

On 6/20/2022 at 12:56 PM, runner2013 said:

  We also really enjoy listening to nice music in the atriums on Princess with a glass of wine people watching.

Reading through the thread, Celebrity is a good option (and a better fit than most others), but I would actually encourage you to consider Holland America for two reasons.

First, I would argue that the music on Holland America is the best in class.  It's highly varied, typically with a jazz group, classical group (quartet?) and billboards/piano pair - all of which is really high end.  Celebrity has good musicians, but fewer than Holland America, and they seem to rely on a DJ more than Holland America.

Second, you can't find a more relaxing line than Holland.  I prefer Celebrity over Holland America, but for sitting and enjoying a glass of wine, or finding a peaceful place to read - Holland America is perfect.  I know that they have an old person reputation, and while that's partially true, we typically see plenty of others in our age range (we are in our early 40's), and a big crowd in the 40-60 range.

I'm not trying to dissuade you from Celebrity, as that is my preferred line.  But if you're looking for music and relaxation - Holland America may better fit the bill.

17 hours ago, tetleytea said:

Sounds like yes, I am right to hold out for the 10-hour tour.   Last time I was in Juneau port for that long, I rented a car.   I got good value for the car that day.

Are you on Holland America?  I was with them a few years ago and was super confused by how they set up their itinerary on the Juneau/Tracy Arm Fjord date, or what the excursions entailed.  But, when I was onboard, I figure it out.

The excursion boards about an hour before Juneau.  A small boat come alongside the cruise ship, and several people (50?) got on a small boat bound for Tracy Arm.  The excursion lasted many hours, and brought the people back to Juneau afterwards.  The cruise ship didn't go into Tracy Arm.

I didn't do it, but heard a few things.  First, it was great.  Second, they entirely missed Juneau.  Third, they would only ever do it booked through the cruise line due to the length and risk of missing the ship.

Instead of trying to give you a single itinerary, here are some general thoughts:

*One way trips tend to have more time seeing ideal things and time in port.  But, logistics to get to/from Anchorage are difficult.

*Vancouver tends to be the preferred over Seattle due to it's close proximity to AK, and typically, better times in piers.  Though again, logistics at the pier, and even at the airport, can be more difficult than those in Seattle.

*Best whale watching it from Juneau or Icy Straight Point/Hoonah.

*Best bear watching, probably best fishing, is from Ketchikan.

*Skagway may have the best scenery - both with the trip in the fjord on the cruise ship, and up the mountain on the train (or, as I suggest, a rented car).

*Glacier Bay is often thought of as the best site to see in all of AK Cruises.  It's a full day extravaganza.

*I've found Hubbard Glacier to be even more awe inspiring than Glacier Bay - though it's a briefer say, and more of a one-trick pony.

*I strongly prefer SB cruises so that I can "rough it" first, and then relax on the cruise ship after.

*Victoria BC is often thought of as the least interesting AK stop.  This stop is done to meet legal requirements for ships out of Seattle, but doesn't have the same draw as AK stops.

*Sitka is a smaller player in the AK Cruise circuit.  You'll need to tender there, and options aren't as abundant as the stops listed above.

*Leaving from SF give you several more days on the water, but not much more time in AK.

*Some cruises do one of the arms/fjords (e.g. Tracy Arm).   I find these nice, but are a large step down from the glaciers mentioned above.  These arm tend to have a glacier at the end, but the glacier is smaller and further out than others.  But, the fjords are quite nice with towering mountains to the sides. Be mindful that some lines imply that they go into the fjords when they don't (looking at you HAL).

What the right itinerary is for you, depends on what you're looking for.

Highly variable topic, and I encourage you to make your own choice.  But, here's my approach.

We bring about $100-$150 in cash for onboard tipping.  We typically tip $1-$2 for virtually any food or beverage service (fairly common), and ~$5 after each meal in the MDR (this one is not common) - maybe $10 for a specialty restaurant (fairly common).  We will tip our room steward $20 early in the cruise (not very common), and $0-$50 at the end (very common).  We tip our wait staff (2-3 people) $0 - $40 per person at the end (pretty common).

Some people don't tip anything above the standard gratuity, and I'd argue that's 100% fine.  Some people tip upwards of $400 on a 7 day cruise, and I'd argue that's awesome.

15 minutes ago, leo72976 said:

I just want to fit in.  With this being our first time on Celebrity, I wasn’t sure what to expect.  Our TA is telling us it is rather formal and yet I was reading the opposite online. I figured CC would be able to give me the lowdown.

Maybe formal is in the eye of the beholder.

For non-formal nights, I wear dockers and a button down shirt - and I am probably slightly over dressed.  But even this outfit would be accepted on formal nights.

On formal nights, I typically wear a suite (blue) - complete with jacket and/or vest.  Again, I am probably slightly over dressed most of the time, but not abnormally so.

Formal attire, such as tuxes or formal black suits, are not very common in my experience.  You'll see them, and they are accepted but they are far from the norm or expectation.

Enjoy.

Probably a silly question, but can we still drive into the Yukon?  I'm not sure what testing requirements, or closures, or the like are in place due to Covid.

As context, we are southbound from Anchorage to Vancouver, and will complete the ArriveCan for our trip the day before we board.  Fully vaccinated, and will test 48 hours before boarding (closer to 4 days before Skagway).

SHIP:  Millennium

REVOLUTIONIZED:  Yes

CABIN #: 8092

DECK #: 8

CLASS: C1

AREA:  Just forward from mid-ship elevators (though on opposite side of ship).

BED NEAR: Floor?  

QUIET?: Yes - very quiet.

BALCONY VIEW: Good view without issue.  Below the supports for the upper decks (which may obstruct view on deck 9?).   

BALCONY SIZE: Standard (?) but nicely sized.  Plenty of room.

WIND A PROBLEM?: N

SOOT A PROBLEM?: N

PROBLEMS/COMMENTS:  Joining room with 8094 with the two rooms joining via a simple door between in the wall between the two staterooms.  Note that the balcony divider could not be removed and the kids' balcony door could not be locked.  A good location that was fairly easy access to the mid-ship elevators (other side of ship).  We had no noise issues, but a crew entrance was about 5 feet down the hall (forward) from our door.