Woody9

Agreed! We do love the inside passage, and I'm sure we will cruise there again some day! I am also considering northern europe and new england. However the last minute fares out of port everglades are very tempting....

Anyone cruise to Belize in July? If so, what did you do there and did you enjoy your visit??

We are looking at a Celebrity cruise that includes Belize and Cozumel.

I have two concerns about this itinerary:

1) hurricanes and 2) heat

We live near the coast in Florida so we are used to upper 80's + humidity. Will it be even hotter or --gasp!-- more humid than Florida?

I see your point about visiting Alaska vs. Canada.

I think I would like to see Ketchican, even if only for a few hours.

I looked into Vancouver departures, but I have not found one that works with the flights I booked in and out of Seattle.

How long is the train ride from Seattle to Vancouver anyway?

Thanks for your lengthy and thoughtful comparisons!

Good point about the port times! The longer Carnival port times in Skagway and Victoria kind of make up for skipping Ketchikan.

Can anyone comment on "Puget Sound scenic cruising" vs. cruising the inside passage (albeit mostly in the dark)?

Budget Queen, what gave you the impression that the Miracle's passengers are uninformed?

Thanks for voicing your opinion about Carnival! I was disappointed when they cancelled Ketchikan, but I was willing to give them a fair chance.

Very helpful, thank you! I will definitely check out all your suggestions.

Unfortunately, there is no itinerary to Glacier Bay that works with our flights this time. Next time I will know better!

Absolutely HAL, there is no way I would recommend the Miracle itinerary. Especially to anyone with isn't going to be going there frequently.

Other than missing out on Ketchikan, what is wrong with the Miracle itinerary?

We cruised on the HAL Amsterdam a couple of summers ago and it definitely is a more sedate experience then say Princess or Carnival. But the itinerary offered on HAL seems much better to me. I would not want to miss out on Ketchikan and while Skagway is a wonderful port, Sitka is just as amazing in its own right and if I were to choose I would probably say I prefer Sitka.

Can you please comment on the activities in Ketchikan and Sitka that you enjoyed?

Thanks so much for your replies.

Even though I am booked on the Miracle, I am now leaning toward canceling and booking the Amsterdam cruise.

Any Carnival defenders?

We are considering HAL Amsterdam out of Seattle or the Carnival Miracle, also out of Seattle. We already booked our flights for this July, so I am stuck with this choice.

Amsterdam cruise:

Cruising Puget Sound

Tracy Arm

Juneau

Ketchican

Sitka

Victoria

Miracle cruise:

Inside passage (1st evening/night)

Tracy Arm

Skagway

Juneau

Victoria

THoughts or suggestions?

Anybody been on both of these ships?

Any comments on cruising Puget Sound?

Sitka vs. Skagway?

I've done 2 Mexican Riviera cruises: first time with HAL and second with Princess. I loved them both! For me, the downside to the Princess cruise was that the ship departed from Cabo at 2:00. I didn't like leaving so early, especially since that was our last port (and my favorite port). Because of port time was so limited, the Cabo excursions were also limited. I would choose the Miracle cruise because of the longer time in both Cabo and PV.

There is a seasonal ferry (6/22 to 10/18; 2009 dates, 2010 dates have not been posted yet) run by RIPTA. Here's the link for RIPTA which has not been updated for the 2010 seasonal schedule http://www.ripta.com/programs/index.php?section=30. The ferry departs Newport from about the same location as the tender dock. You will land in Providence at a wharf on Allens Ave, and you will need transportation to the downtown and then to BU; taxi maybe???

 

There is a better write up here with the 2009 times and fares: http://gonewengland.about.com/od/transportation/a/aanewportferry.htm

 

There is a bus service by RIPTA for Providence – Newport, route #60. Here is the link for the schedule: http://www.ripta.com/schedules/view.php

SBtS

Great info, thanks SB! It seems like the bus would take less time than the ferry + cab to get to college hill, so we might go for that.

From looking at some images online, I see things have changed a lot in Providence since I was there last. It's a little discouraging to note how upscale Thayer street has gotten. I suppose the old soda fountain and the calzone/stromboli shop are long gone. I would like to have a nice lunch around there with my family--nothing too fancy or "Californian." Do you have a favorite restaurant/deli/diner in the area??

Kathe

SBS and 138E,

Thank you for the information. I am interested in taking my children to see Brown University. Newport sounds a bit more convenient as a starting point, but the car rental might be a problem. Somewhere in the boards I saw mention of a ferry between Newport and Providence. Do either of you know anything about that? Any other public options from Newport??

Kathe

Brown, class of '83

Not to stray way off topic, but I am not sure where to post this question:

Is it quicker to drive to Providence from Newport or from Boston? I am not sure where the cruise ships dock/tender are located at either port, nor what the transportation choices would be; i.e. are there rental cars available in Newport? Any other other transportation suggestions you can think of would be appreciated.