rjeffler

We just retuned and rented a car. Rented through Avis. The roads were not bad at all. Very easy to drive and plenty of places to pull off so that the driver gets to see things as well. We bought Murray's Guide and I read it to the entire car and we learned a lot. We had done the train from Anchorage to Seward so really didn't think we needed to do it again.

I always book as early as I can. Booked our Alaska cruise 15 months in advance. Check out cruise fish. It is a site that allows you to enter your cruise and cabin type and it emails you if the rate goes down. No work needed!! I know Most cruise lines will lower your price up to final payment if the rate goes down

Just thought I'd throw this out there...I did get back and posted my trip report as well. There is a link to it in my signature line. I did much of it while on the trip so that it was fresh in my mind!

I guess we are lucky in that we live no more than 1 hour from Dulles, BWI or Reagan National Airport, so I'm bound to be able to use one of them. We did use the 'Saver Award' from United and I did book them out the first day available. I booked the outbound flight one day and then had to wait 2 entire weeks to book the return. Talk about stress! :p I was worried they would change the rules on me and not let me by the return flight (one way).

The groupon didn't save my family anything, but I hope it saved someone else. Earlier this year Seavey's Ididaride in Seward even had a groupon going for BOGO on their tours.

Just did this in June. We did our RR tickets ourselves. They will check your bag at the RR Depot and put tags on it to go directly to the ship. You don't have to do anything extra!

Actually, we stayed 2 nights in Seward, but they checked our bags all of the way to our hotel. My parents arrived in Seward the day of departure and had checked their bags straight through to the boat.

They make it so easy!

Is your question about excursions? If so, they won't answer you until really close to the cruise date. We just got home from an Alaska cruise with my parents...my mom is in a wheel chair. I had requested information on wheelchair accessible excursions in October and just got the info in early May. Cruise date was June 6th.

Just got back mid-June from our Alaska trip and we spent 3 days in Fairbanks and 2 in Vancouver and loved all of it! My trip report is in my signature line.

My favorite in Fairbanks was Running Reindeer Ranch. Got to get up close and personal to 9 reindeer for a couple of hours. Once in a lifetime experience. We also spent time at North Pole and the Ice Museum at Chena Hot Springs.

In Vancouver, we've done Capilano Suspension Bridge before and loved it. This time we planned to do Grouse Mountain, but weather didn't help out. So, we simply did the HOHO and had a great time. Did a lot of walking through the different neighborhoods.

Definitely worth the time at each! I don't regret any of it!

Love it! This is 8102 from Radiance on June 6th. Had very little noise issues. Love the location and the LARGE balcony.

Just got of Radiance in 8102 and LOVED it! We heard a bit of muffled music one night when they had a 70's party in the centrum but other than that, nothing. We would do it again in a minute. For a caribbean cruise it might not be as nice as it is fully covered, but for Alaska or Canada it is great.

We just got off Radiance in cabin 8102. We LOVED it. The location was perfect. We heard a bit of muffled music the night they had the 70's party in the centrum, but other than that, nothing. The balcony was HUGE. You cannot even begin to imagine it from this picture. Our room steward brought us a recliner along with the table and two chairs that were already there. You could easily have 10+ people on this balcony.

I just got back from my trip and also booked with Costco travel about a year in advance. You can read my pre-planning in my signature below. I started booking hotel rooms 10-12 months in advance. I kept checking my rental in the weeks leading up to it and was able to get my rate down by another $100.

Book as early as you can because prices can go up. I know with Skagway, it only got more expensive as time went on. FYI...They take no coupons or specials (Costco included) in Skagway.

I'm just back from there 2 weeks ago. We also were dog sledding in Juneau. Original time was 10:15 and that was cancelled. We asked for a later time and were booked at 2:45. It was raining, but we still went. We did end up being one of only 2 groups that went the entire day.

In hindsight, I would have worn my rain pants as we got soaked. It was worth it in the end, though!

My husband and I were there the first week of June. It rained the day we were there, so we simply did the Ice Museum. We had a great time. There was nothing else we were going to do in Fairbanks that day, so it worked for us.

My review is in my signature line!

I'll simply tell you what I did and what I liked!

Juneau - helicopter to glacier to dog sled with Era. Most expensive tour I've ever done (15 cruises) but we enjoyed it, rain and all. I'm not sure I would do it again (money) but we loved the experience!

Skagway - rented car from Avis and drove to Emerald Lake. Got Murray's guide and I read it out loud to our car as we were driving. Stopped in Carcross for lunch and stopped about 15 other times for photos. We had already taken the train from anchorage to Seward so we didn't want to train again. After dropping the car off, still had time to wander town and get a drink at one of the pubs.

Ketchikan - walked town to Creek St. Did the funicular to Cape Lodge for lunch. Checked out their totems and walked Married Mans trail back to town. Did the lumberjack show and everyone in our group really enjoyed it. Sure, it's touristy, but they are quite entertaining!

All of my planning and review are in my signature.

I started booking my tours (all independent) about 10 months prior. Figure out what you want to do at each port and prioritize. You are going to pay nearly the same for independent or ship booked tours, but the independent are normally much smaller groups.

All of my planning is in the link in my signature.

Research is the answer! I just got back from our 16 day adventure. 7 days prior in Alaska, cruise southbound and 2 days in Vancouver. You are brave for trying to get it all scheduled on such a short time frame. I planned our trip for 16 months. Most of the planning being done in the first 6 months and then a lot of waiting for time to go by!

I have my pre-planning as well as my trip report in my signature.

Don't let anyone tell you that one glacier is better than another. You never know what each will be like on the day you cruise. Once you make your decision, go with it. I'm sure it will be the right one for your family!

I would also like copies, but thought it might be easier to post online again so that everyone can see them. I just thought maybe someone who has received them might be able to repost them in a way all can see. I know you can do it through photobucket.

If not, my email is rjeffler at comcast dot net.

Thanks!

I tend to stay cold as well as over pack!

Just got back on June 15th. I wore jeans the entire trip although my husband did wear some shorts on the boat. I wore hiking shoes that my husband had sprayed with waterproofing any time we were off the boat. I brought my sneakers and never put them on!;)

It really is different for everyone even if you are traveling at the same time. Some people travel with just carry-on's. I could NEVER do that. We went for 16 days and had 2 checked bags and 3 carry on's, total. We probably could have cut back a bit, but we enjoy knowing we have most things that we might need!

To each his own.

I just got back from RC Seward to Vancouver and loved it. I have friends that did Carnival, Seattle roundtrip and loved it. There are people that would only do Princess. To each his own. Pick one and stick with it and don't let anyone change your mind.

I did enjoy doing a one way trip, though. Did a week in Alaska prior and a couple of days in Vancouver afterwards. My pre-planning and trip report are both in my signature!

Good luck. Planning took over my life for a year, but it was all worth it in the end!

Just got back from Alaska and our friend had a Canon XS50. The zoom was unbelievable. I'm buying one now!

Just back from Radiance in Alaska and we had cabin 8102. It was the BIGGEST balcony you could imagine and totally covered. Perfect for Alaska. We loved it. The balcony, the room, the location!

Just did it two weeks ago... When we went through mid-day, we had a longer wait. We are REALLY early people, so we left Fairbanks at 4:30am on our way back to Anchorage and missed one of the construction sections all together - Not that it wasn't there, but there were no workers, so we were able to drive it on our own. Unfortunately, the next one had the flag man and we had to wait.

If you miss a pilot car, it can be 30 minutes until it returns.

Just got home from Vancouver on Sunday. We had friends that stayed near the airport, so they paid $5/bag at the Pan Pacific to have them hold them while they did the Trolley with us. The Trolley is great. Get off at Granville Island and walk around! Gastown is also fun to walk.

great photos! You'll have to make a coffee table book of this trip.

What was the highlight of the trip for you?

Either the Dog Sledding on the Glacier (except we got soaked) or the whale at ISP. So cool to see him right off the shoreline!

I do plan on doing a book for myself as well as the others that were on this trip with us! Definitely once in a lifetime for me as there is so much else out there to try!

River cruise is next year, so that will be REALLY different than what we are used to!

I think you would do better grabbing a cab to get to you Creek Street as it is 5-10 blocks depending on where your ship is docked. We were there with 3 other ships and were as far as you could get from Creek Street. Once you get there, it is very doable with a cane and walking slow.