cabland

As an aside, if you have never taken regular Dramamine or Bonine/All Day Non-Drowsy Dramamine/Meclizine I suggest trying each out a couple of weeks BEFORE your trip.  I had taken regular Dramamine over the years, but had never tried the all-day/Bonine/Meclizine.  I tried it a week or two before and realized that at anything over a half pill dosage, I was getting some whopper headaches from it.  it definitely didn't turn you into a Zombie like regular Dramamine can though.

Anyway, given all the "prep" folks do for a cruise, I think it would be well-worth it to try before you come to rely on it!

Oh, and as an aside, I mostly stuck to regular Dramamine and did the sea-bands...no issues...hooray!

I like Northstarr Trekking out of Juneau as they offer three different Helicopter tours with progressively more time on the glacier.  I think Temsco offers one with two separate stops as well.  Honestly though, ANY glacier helicopter tour is likely better than none!

I mentioned we just used a pocket camera (in addition to our phones) with a decent zoom (Sony DSC-HX80), but it helps to show what that delta looks like:

Here are some shots from a trip we took to Seattle:

Downtown Seattle w/ Space needle from Columbia Center twoer:

Baseball anyone:

Cruise Ship:

On 3/11/2019 at 11:17 AM, LB_NJ said:

If you are not really in to photography you are probably better off just using your cell phone and buying postcards or professional photographs.

 

I say this with over 50 years of photographic experience starting with kodak instamatic cameras (with flashbulbs) and including Nikon SLR film cameras, and digital SLRs and mirrorless cameras.  Also through in some home darkroom time.

 

99% of people take pictures of their friends and family with scenery in the background to show they were there and commemorate the experience. This is what you will want to see 20 years from now. Have these printed by a big box store or similar and put in an album or a photobook.  You will not get as good a photograph as the professionals if you want a really good shot of the location.  The professionals spend a lot of time at a location waiting for the right light and using great equipment.  Buy prints or postcards of the locations.

 

The modern cell phones will do a pretty good job of the snapshots of friends and family.  If you are really interested in getting into photography (and spending at least a few hundred dollars to get something decent) I recommend looking at the website dpreview.com or consumer reports and researching a pocketable/compact digital camera with a long zoom.

I would suggest a camera that works fine if you leave it completely automatic however one that also allows you a reasonable amount of creative control if you want it.  The major brands, eg, Panasonic Lumix or Canon typically have something reasonable.

 

There is a really good camera store in Manhattan that will let you handle the cameras (B and H Photo) that I would recommend going into before purchasing however do not know of any in Miami.

 

Then take a short class on photography or view a webinar/video (at least an hour or two) on photography.

 

What I have learned after decades of experience is that lugging around any camera that is not small can be a real pain and you will end up not using it and it will sit at home in a closet. Also, if it does not easily allow you to produce decent photographs with a long zoom it does not buy you much over the phone.

 

Bottom line if you are not willing to make an investment of money and time in a decent camera and learning to use it you are better off with your cell phone.  Renting is probably not a good use of money.  

Gotta admit, even though I am "guilty" of taking the scenery shots "sans family" LB_NJ is right on all of this.  Heck, just watch Planet Earth.  Are any of us ever going to get anything resembling that series?  Unlikely.  So then, if not "into photography" it becomes all about the memories with family.  Admittedly, I do appreciate having shots of the EXACT stuff I saw on the day I saw it, but when we all look back at those old albums its "us" 20 years ago (or our parents, etc.) we want to see in the context of their vacations.  Alternatively, everyone just take pictures of every meal you eat and post online for everyone to see...and while you are out it, if you could post every picture of your child or cat doing, well, everyday things that'd be great too...nah, that'll never catch on. ;>

You can take train from Seattle to Vancouver (but it looks like it is a 3 1/2 to 4 hour ride and would burn a day).   Agree that Glacier Bay would win out in these itineraries.

I used a combination of my Samsung S9 and a Sony long zoom point and shoot (DSC-HX80).  We have a DSLR, but it is several years old and I didn't want to lug it around.  90% of the shots I took were with the S9 (and were better than the Sony).  I brought the Sony strictly for the longest zoom shots.  Even though it shoots up to 30X, the pics get soft and noisy at that zoom level so I tried to keep it to 20X or so....oh and the Sony does much better in brighter light.

A selection of pics are here for you to decide for yourself:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/x81ZXjb7yqFuP26y7

If you click the little info icon on any given picture you can see whether it was taken with the S9 or the Sony.

7 hours ago, Sashamcg said:

I can't be off work on the first of the month so I think that's why I didn't consider the Koningsdam one a few days later because it gets back on the 30th and if I didn't want an overnight flight we would have to fly home on the 31st and then back to work on the 1st (I am in finance and we have to close the books for my company on the 1st).  So not ideal but could make it work if that ship is that much better.  It's also a cruise the week of Memorial Day so I wonder if it will be more packed than going on the earlier one.  Just more to add to my list of considerations.  Thanks again!

Understood about work.  I ran this question by my wife (i.e. Newer Koningsdam w/o Tracy Arm vs. Older Volendam with it) and she leaned more toward the Koningsdam.  She felt Tracy Arm might be a bit cold.  So take it for what it is worth. 🙂 

I think either one will be a great time!

6 hours ago, Sashamcg said:

Thank you Cabland for your thoughts as well.  Gives me lots more to consider.  My husband is very limited on vacation time so I don't think we will be doing a land tour too.  So it's sounding more like round trip is the way to go for us.  Flying in and out of Vancouver looks appealing and we can probably afford to spend a day there after the cruise checking out the sites there as well.  It's seeming more and more like May will probably be when we go and now I am reading a lot saying that Tracy Arm is sometimes not accessible during May because of ice.

 

Attached are the two itineraries I am considering.  Not sure why the one does not included Tracy Arm but maybe because it's earlier in May?

Alaska Iteneraries A.docx

The early May " too much ice" theory does make sense (heck there were ice bergs there in July).  It is important to note that the "Tracy Arm" in the Volendam itinerary is the EXCURSION to Tracy Arm (where they let folks off the ship onto a smaller boat) - that is, IMO, much better than cruises where they try to take the entire cruise ship into Tracy Arm (and end up far away from Sawyer Glacier and are at risk for having to turnaround sooner due to ice).

Pay attention to the time in ports which you can see for these two boats by going to the Holland America web page by finding the cruise, choosing it, selecting the Itinerary and then "list view" in the upper left of the itinerary.

Volendam - Volendam

Of course, I do see the Koningsdam DOES offer this same itinerary just a few days later: Koningsdam

Between those two boats on the same itinerary, I would go with the Koningsdam hands-down.  It is just so much newer, and we didn't find the Nieuw Amsterdam (which splits the difference in size between the Voledndam and Koningsdam) to be too large at all (and it is still smaller than a lot of boats).

If you forced me to pick between the two itineraries...well that gets tougher.  The Tracy Arm excursion is nice and I would hate to miss it...tough call (how's that for a "non-call"?).

I would strongly consider a helicopter ride to a glacier in either Juneau or Skagway.  Another great excursion is the Tracy Arm Fjord from Juneau - great but will burn a lot of time there if your ship doesn't offer the opportunity to hop onto the excursion "on the way" to Juneau (or HAL excursion did).  I was nervous I would be motion sick on the helicopter, but it was a short flight and very, very smooth.

We did that HAL route last Summer on the Nieuw Amsterdam.  I zeroed in on that route specifically for the combo of Tracy Arm AND Glacier Bay.  Heck, that day we did the Tracy Arm excursion, met up with the ship in Juneau, grabbed a quick bite at Tracy's Crab Shack and then took a helicopter excursion to Mendenhal glacier!  That was one heckuva first port and made the entire trip for us!

Pay attention to the times in port.  on our cruise the ship didn't arrive in Juneau until 1:00 PM I think.  That's another benefit of the Tracy Arm excursion - on the "way" to Juneau they basically stop the ship and folks disembark onto the smaller excursion boat (holds about 150 I believe).  The excursion boat heads into Tracy Arm while the cruise ship is heading to Juneau...essentially you are on your first excursion while everyone else on the boat is still headed to Juneau.  In many ways, I enjoyed Tracy Arm more than Glacier Bay since the Fjord is beautiful, and you get closer to Sawyer glacier and the various ice bergs.

1 hour ago, phabric said:

 

I have done the Seattle return on Princess.  I am going with others doing the same cruise.

 

For Ketchikan, I took the ship’s Wildness Exploration and Crab Feast and really enjoyed it.  I plan on doing this excursion again with them.

 

We are in Ketchikan from 6am-3pm

 

The ship’s excursion is from 7am-11am.  The George Lodge site has 3 times, 7am, 8:45, 10:30am. The price is roughly the same.

 

Did you do this excursion through the ship or on your own?

 

Did some of your group just do the dinner?

We booked most of our excursions through the ship (Holland America) well ahead of time.  It was definitely more expensive across the board, but not horrible.  As to Ketchikan,  it was a mix for our group as follows:

1. 2 people did the Wilderness Exploration & Crab Feast - Booked through HAL

2. 4 people did just the crab feast - Booked directly with St. George's Inlet

3.  2 people did the Bering Sea Crab Tour - Booked through HAL

Comparing our experiences afterward, I would say the Bering Sea Crab Tour came out on top.  The stories the crew told weren't quite as riveting as I hoped, but getting to see all of the Eagles (dozens of them) swoop down and pick up fish was awesome, and as a bonus, we got to see a whale and they stopped the boat for us to observe that (probably my best whale sighting of the trip).

On 2/28/2019 at 7:28 AM, Sashamcg said:

Thank you Crew News for your site as well with all the great photos!  I will be studying those as well.  And the advice on the laundry is good.  Will probably do that.  You mentioned what the men wear on the gala nights but what about the women? 

 

I've been looking at some of the HAL itineraries for 2020 primarily the ones that are RT from Vancouver or the one ways that are Seward to Vancouver.  It looks like they both pretty much go to the same places except the one way also includes Seward.  Are you saying though the one way trips spend more time at each place?  It that worth it to possibly spend more money to fly to two different places?  

 

The two RT ones that so far coordinate with our dates are on the Volendam or the Koningsdam.  But the Volendam has the Tracy Arm Inlet where the other does not for some reason.  Have you been on either ship?  Thoughts?

 

Just so much to consider.  Trying to take a piece at a time.  I appreciate all the help!

While I am a fan of Tracy Arm (when paired with Glacier Bay), I also like the idea of a nice boat.  The Volendam and Koningsdam are sort of at opposite ends of the Holland America spectrum in terms of size and age.  More specifically:

Koningsdam - Launched in 2016, 13 decks, 2650 passengers

Volendam - Launched in 1999 (note: last refurb in 2017), 10 decks, 1432 passengers

I'd have to see the specific routes to really nail down the preference here.

On 2/27/2019 at 8:15 AM, Sashamcg said:

Cabland, did you have to dress up for dinners on HA?  I really don't want to have to bring formal clothing on the trip if we don't have to.  We are pretty casual and my job is casual so the thought of having to buy dressier clothing just for the cruise doesn't appeal to me.  Like you I am leaning towards a smaller ship with less people.

 

Also why did you decide on round trip instead of one way?

I think you got some pretty good answers on the dress.  Business casual is a good way to describe it.  Heck we came back from our helicopter excursion in jeans and grabbed dinner in the main dining room (somewhat late) w/o objection or feeling out of place.  Actually, now that I think of it, we were in nice jeans on all but the 2 gala nights (and did business casual on the gala nights).  Never felt out of place.

While on the subject of dining on HAL, a few items:

1. Food Quality - The food was generally pretty good in the main dining room (MDR).  The Lido deck was "fine", but I often found myself doing the "Dive-In" burger place at lunch as their burgers are pretty good.

2. Don't be afraid to get something else - So we have all heard how you can get fat on a cruise, etc., but I found the real benefit here wasn't "quantity" but "selection".  We would sometimes find we had picked something (in the MDR particularly) that we didn't care for (sometimes we just didn't care for it, and others it just wasn't that great).  In those cases, don't suffer through it - just ask for something else.  Indeed, the waiters are more appreciative of you doing this as soon as you order so they don't have to make a second run through the line at the kitchen.

As to the round trip, I think I touched on that a bit in one of my earlier posts, but in general I think one of the big benefits of the "one way" trips is they offer the opportunity to add a "land portion" (i.e. see Denali).  That meant a longer trip over all and since we were traveling with my parents, siblings and their spouses (9 in total) we weren't sure a.) everyone could get that much time off, b.) my 90 year old Dad could go that long, and c.) everyone could afford it.  It did help somewhat that we (my parents, me and 2 of my 3 siblings) lived in Anchorage for 3 years in the late 70s and we had taken a trip to Denali back then (of course I was likely the only child really old enough to remember it).  In short, if the trip to Denali is important to you, then that will be a key decider for you.

I mentioned that my brochure was the "end result" of a bunch of decisions.  I just dug up one of the very first e-mails I wrote to my family on all this. It is excerpted below and includes a few of the early decisions (note: we had a couple of school teachers in the group and were limited to late June or July):

E-mail to my family (note: I am "Chris"):

Read the stuff below and let me know the following:

1. Your availability - What dates are you available between June 20^th and July 30^th (we already know those are the only dates that work for xxx)?
2. Your route preference - Which of the cruise route recommendations below (see item 6) you would prefer (or if you disagree with my assessment your options)?

Once we pick a date and route, I can quickly zero in on a specific cruise and we can book.  FLIGHTS will and are filling up fast!

The details:

3. Cruise Months – Alaskan cruises basically run from May through September.  May and September are the “edge” season where prices are lower, but temperatures are also often lower (as in there can be snow “lower”).  June is a bit dryer than July or August.
   1. Chris’ Recommendation – July or August.
4. Cruise Lines – There are any number of cruise lines serving Alaska.  Princess and Holland America appear to have been there longer and have the biggest presence in the market.  Both offer the “big” and “really big” ships.  Holland America’s ships can be a bit smaller and cater to a bit older crowd.  One advantage Princess and Holland offer involves “docking”.  These two lines may get preferential treatment when it comes to actually getting a dock vs. having to take shuttle boats from the ship to the dock.  Other lines include the usual suspects: Celebrity, Carnival, Royal Caribbean, etc. There are more “luxury” oriented cruise lines too like SilverSea and Oceania, but those are very pricey.
   1. Chris’ Recommendation – Still working on this, but likely Princess.  I am researching which actual SHIPS and ITINERARIES are likely best.
5. Cruise Duration – There are 7, 10, and 14 day cruises.
   1. Chris’ Recommendation – 7 days.  The longer cruises are mostly from further South or go to additional places that aren’t worth it)
6. Cruise Routes – (See maps below so you have a visual of what I am talking about here).  One thing that may surprise you is that “Alaskan” cruises generally only touch on the lower coastal area that is right next to British Columbia (and up to Anchorage).  In some ways, it looks like a “Canadian” cruise in that regard.  Anyway, there are basically two paths and you have to answer the “Denali” question:
   1. Inside Passage – The inside passage is a “round trip” cruise that typically starts and ends in either Seattle, WA or Vancouver, BC.  Since it is a round trip, you don’t cover as much ground as a the “Gulf” cruise.  It is, however, a super scenic route and is much less likely to encounter rough seas as most of the trip is in between little islands and the shore…the islands effectively block the sea.  There are two derivatives of this cruise as follows (both involve glaciers):
      1. Glacier Bay – Glacier Bay is, as the name sounds, a bay and park.  There are multiple glaciers although not all are “close”.  It is big, so cruise ships can “get in there”. 
      2. Tracy Arm Fjord – This is, as the name indicates, a Fjord (i.e. a narrow passage).  It is supposedly very cool, but can be blocked with ice and in some cases the cruise ships (especially the BIGGER ships) cannot make it and you “miss” the glacier…folks report that is a bummer.
   2. Gulf of Alaska – This is a “one way” cruise that can either start North at Seward/Anchorage and go South to Seattle or Vancouver or start in the South at Seattle or Vancouver and head North to Anchorage Seward.  You will obviously fly to/from different cities.  You typically get to see Hubbard glacier (which is huge) on this route too.  You may encounter rougher seas in the gulf since you will be in open water for a longer period of time.  Having said all that, the Gulf of Alaska also opens the door to “Denali”...
      1. The Denali Question – If you take the Gulf of Alaska cruise then the question is “Do you go to Denali National park before or after the cruise…or at all?”.  Denali is either a 5 hour drive or an 8 hour train ride from Anchorage.  It is HUGE (as in 6 million acres).  Dallas is not like Texas.  It is full-on wilderness everywhere (and 2.5 times the size of Texas…when you overlay the U.S. with Alaska it covers almost athird of the U.S. as a pint of comparison).
   3. Chris’ Recommendation
      1. Preface - This is a tough one and will likely come down to “time”.  If you add Denali, which would be seriously cool, then the Gulf of Alaska cruise is really the only option, BUT it adds at least 2 days to the time AND you have to remember that a 7-day cruise and 2 day Denali adventure really has some flight/lodging time on either or both ends and may look more like 10 days (maybe 11).  I’m not sure everyone can afford that kind of time.  Oh, and that is with your flying into or out of Fairbanks (unless you drive back to Anchorage).  I would have a hard time doing the Gulf cruise and NOT doing Denali.
      2. Recommendation – Two options: Gulf of Alaska cruise PLUS Denali if folks can afford the time (seems unlikely) OR keep it simpler and do the Inside passage cruise with Glacier Bay (note: I see a couple options with both Glacier Bay and Tracy Arm Fjord).

Glad to hear the "brochure" helped!  Most of it was rooted here in info found on Cruise Critic of course.  One of the challenging items was coordinating all of the Excursions - especially across members of the group with different abilities, budgets, etc.  I fully admit that I "pushed" my own agenda a bit (heck, I was planning it all!), but much of that was based on reading so many reviews here on CC.  On the surface, lots of excursion sound similar, but I started to get the impression that some things were just going to be better than others.  If I had to pick one somewhat surprising disappointment, it was the train ride in Skagway.  We just did the short up to the Summit and back half day journey, but compared to Tracy Arm, and the helicopter ride to the glacier it just didn't cut the mustard.  Another couple in our church community group had done Alaska the month before (longer, one way, land tour, etc.) and said the same of the train ride.  I do wonder how the longer ride (perhaps to the lake and combined with some kayaking) would have been.

Happy to answer any specific questions (although I won't be much help on the one way cruises or Denali tours...note: we called it Mt. Mckinley back when I saw it as a child...:))

We did Nortstarr Trekking in Juneau last July.  Ours was the Walkabout (note: we booked through the cruise line).  We didn't really have a choice as we did another excursion that same day and this was the only option we had with Northstarr.  I highly recommend them as all of their options seem to give more time on the glacier.  Having done the Walkabout, I wouldn't hesitate to do the next level up or even their "toughest level".  It takes a while to get your crampons, etc. on and so the extra time would be worth it.  Regardless, it is an awesome experience!

We didn't use them on our cruise last Summer, but for me Juneau has a lot more to offer beyond ziplining and so I would reserve it for those activities (i.e. we did Tracy Arm Fjord/Sawyer Glacier and a Helicopter ride to Mendenhall glacier out of Juneau).  We actually did our ziplining in Skagway.  In your case, I would do ziplining in Ketchikan.

My parents, siblings and our spouses (9 of us in total) did Alaska last Summer (first cruise for some of us - including me and my wife).  I (the oldest "child"...I'm in my early 50s) was on the hook to plan the whole thing.  I did the requisite 4971 hours of research - much of it here on CC!   Before it was all said and done I had written a cruise "brochure" for my family...which I have attached (note: it is the culmination of the 400 decisions that occurred along the way).

You will first need to decide if you want to do a round-trip from say Seattle to Seattle or Vancouver to Vancouver v. a "one way" trip going "North" (i.e. Seattle/Vancouver to Anchorage) or "South" (i.e. Anchorage to Seattle/Vancouver).  The latter open the door to do a land trip before or after in Alaska "proper" to Denali.

As others have said, Alaska is mostly about, well... ALASKA!  You may never get back here again (although don't be surprised if you decide this is only your "first" trip to Alaska after you finish the cruise).  This comes down to itinerary - aka ports and excursions.

In our case, we ended up doing a 7 night round-trip on Holland America's Nieuw Amsterdam out of Vancouver.  Here's why:

1.  Duration for "Us" - I mentioned above that our passengers included my parents.  My dad is 90.  I was concerned a longer trip might be a bit taxing on him.  In retrospect, we might have been able to pull off a longer tour, BUT the cost goes up and making sure everyone had that much time off was also a challenge.  The fact that my parents and a couple of my siblings lives in Anchorage for three years when I was a child made losing the land portion a bit more tolerable (note: we did see Denali in the late 70s, but I am likely the only child old enough to remember it).

2.  The sailing route - I REALLY liked the fact that sailing out of Vancouver meant we would be doing more true "inside" inside passage than sailing from Seattle.  From Vancouver, you go between Vancouver Island and the mainland.  When you travel from Seattle, you go AROUND Vancouver Island (i.e. exposed to open Ocean).  Beyond being more scenic, my own penchant for motion-sickness also made the "sheltered" route more desirable.  I also like Vancouver (although Seattle is fun too).  I recommend spending a day in Victoria before or after the cruise.

3.  The Itinerary and Glaciers A-Go-Go - I knew I wanted to see glaciers (we live in Texas so,m um, yeah...no glaciers) and this itinerary offered MULTIPLE opportunities.  Some ships, as an example, do Glacier Bay OR Tracy Arm/Endicott.  This particular ship had an "excursion" where while "traveling to Juneau" they basically stop, and let you unload onto a smaller boat (about 150 people) that takes you into Tracy Arm Fjord to see Sawyer Glacier.  The cruise ship heads to Juneau and the smaller boat meets up with it in Juneau after the excursion.  You also have an opportunity to see Mendenhall glacier once in Juneau (by car or helicopter...we did the latter)...so that's TWO glacier opportunities on the first day.  The next day is Skagway and offers a second glacier opportunity (by helicopter) or by boat excursion.  Although we did not take a helicopter out to see a glacier in Skagway, we liked having the option since weather could have easily canceled our helicopter opportunity the day before in Juneau (and, in fact, it was drizzling that day in Juneau).  Finally, the cruise ship itself ALSO cruises into Glacier Bay.  All of these glacier experiences are pretty different from each other and having this many opportunities was great.

3.  The Boat - Our desire for certain ports and round trip pushed us to either Princess or HAL.  More specifically, it came down to the Ruby Princess out of Seattle or the Nieuw Amsterdam out of Vancouver.  Both had pros and cons.  Seattle is MUCH cheaper to fly into than Vancouver, but my desire to have BOTH Tracy Arm AND Glacier Bay really pushed me to choose the Nieuw Amsterdam.  Beyond that however, we gravitated to the Nieuw Amsterdam as a smaller ship (2k passengers vs 3k) with purportedly better food and larger cabins.  It also helped that the NA had just come out of a dry dock refurbishment 6 months earlier.

Enjoy, regardless!

Alaskan Cruise - v7 - de-identified.docx

3 minutes ago, canadianbear said:

I respectfully disagree-can you imagine all the noisy sounds of everyone’s chat notifications dinging!  Basically we tell each other if not together to check every 30 minutes for updates if so inclined.  

Vibrate would work just as well and likely be just fine.  There is generally enough ambient noise on ships to drown out the occasional noisy vibration. 

13 hours ago, 0bnxshs said:

 

It probably will display the same information as the web-based app, but it is a different thing.  For starters, the chat feature may just provide the notifications that the web-based app lacks (i.e., notification sound on new messages, popups, etc.) and with NFC (or similar) enabled permit users to open their cabin doors, charge items, etc.  I think it's about time they did this.

 

Now if HAL could only get their act together on their website..... 

The notification would be awesome.  My family and I used the navigator chat on our Alaskan cruise last Summer, and while it was better than nothing, we were perpetually missing each other as folks wouldn't check for chats frequently enough.

We went last July (Holland America, Nieuw Amsterdam, RT Vancouver/Vancouver).  The two best excursions were:

1. Tracy Arm Fjord Excursion with Allen Marine -  Departed from the ship (i.e. the smaller excursion boat from Allen Marine pulled up alongside our cruise ship while we were on the way to Juneau and we disembarked onto it; the cruise ship then headed on to Juneau where we met up with it at the end of our excursion).  Even with the rainy weather we had, it was so very picturesque and you get reasonably close to the glacier (much more so than any cruise ship would, but not as close as the National Geographic "rafts").

2.  Helicopter Ride with Northstarr Trekking to Mendenhall Glacier - I went with Northstarr because they offer three tour levels to give you the most time on the glacier itself.  We did the "easiest" of their three options as that was the only one that worked with our time slot.  It is surreal being on a glacier, but the scenery from the helicopter ride is breathtaking.

Both of these were actually on our "Juneau" day.  I would do the same again.  Indeed, I might go so far as to book a helicopter ride again in Skagway!

A few pics (not the best quality, but you get the idea)...

Tracy Arm

Mendenhall Glacier (via Helicopter)

Mendenhall, as stated above is in Juneau and you can actually take canoe excursions out to it and even walk on it with one or two of them.  They were doing ice caves in the past, but I think they all collapsed so far back last year, they may no longer exist.  Of course you can also take a helicopter ride out to a glacier (and walk on it) from either Juneau or Skagway.  We did that in Juneau last year - totally worth the coin ($500/person!).

How cold was it on the Tracy Arm Excursion?. Have that planned next week What type of jacket did you wear?

It was definitely a bit chilly. The boat is at speed for part of the journey so it is windy when you are outside. In our case, it was also raining lightly. I wore an undershirt, flannel shirt and a rain jacket of I remember correctly. I also wore gloves and a stocking cap.

The rain definitely contributed to the cold, so that will make a big difference.

It definitely seems more noticeable on lower decks, but isn't limited to them. It is also more apparent when you are sitting still / laying down. If you are a light sleeper you may notice it more.

Since it was definitely speed related, I wonder if it is common practice to run the ship faster at night when people are sleeping and many just might sleep right through it.

Friday - Sea Day

A relaxing day at sea (got a little chilly).

Ultimately, the trip was awesome. We had a great time and wondered aloud how in the heck we were going to top this trip. Indeed, I can see now why people do MULTIPLE Alaskan cruises!!!

Thursday - Ketchikan - Bering Sea Crab Tour - Crab Feast

We encountered some rolling seas Wednesday night on the way to Ketchikan, but nothing too bad. This would, however, be a good time to note that we did experience some vibration in the ship while at night when they cranked the speed up on the ship (above 21 knots typically is when it manifested). I have a separate post here n CC in the HAL board if you want to check that out.

Anyway, we pulled into Ketchikan around 10:00 AM and headed out onto different excursions. My wife and I did the Bering Sea Crab tour while my siblings and parents did either the crab feast at the George Inlet lodge or the combo Wilderness Exploration and crab feast. We also walked around Ketchikan a bit although we had limited time as we departed at 6:00 pm.

I get the impression the Bering Sea Crab tour was the winner in these tours, but it was pricey. Still, seeing the Eagles was great and we even got lucky and saw a whale!

Pics: