michelle1836

so far so good! seems we had a little better weather for the space needle. even got to see Mt Rainier from the top.

and we went early Monday to the Starbucks in Pike Place and had no line. and by the way, it is really not the original Starbucks- learned that on our Pike Place tour.

definitely do the Tracy Arm tour. we went with Ashley in the morning and for some reason think that is a better time than the afternoon

thanks havoc315 and chipmaster! lots of info. my head is swimming but i'll chose one soon. running out of time before my cruise!! LOL

I believe I recommended the Panasonic FZ1000 to you? Which is admittedly slightly above your price range.

 

 

You can play with this comparison tool:

 

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/image-comparison?attr18=daylight&attr13_0=canon_sx530hs&attr13_1=panasonic_dmcfz1000&attr13_2=sony_dscrx100&attr13_3=canon_sx280hs&attr15_0=jpeg&attr15_1=jpeg&attr15_2=jpeg&attr15_3=jpeg&attr16_0=3200&attr16_1=3200&attr16_2=3200&attr16_3=3200&normalization=full&widget=1&x=-0.7321064477690984&y=0.6496240601503759

 

I pre-loaded it with the SX530, the SX280, the Sony RX100 and the Panasonic FZ1000. Try plugging in different ISOs and looking at different parts of the studio comparison. You will see that at ISO 100, all cameras perform somewhat similarly, but when ISO increases (which happens when you need high shutter speed and/or challenging light), you will see the SX models fall way behind.

thank you! will be checking this out today im not so camera literate so I didn't know the relation to the shutter speed and the ISO

Since you have fish-haters and oyster-dislikers among your party I'll throw out some not-seafood-specific restos which do offer some good local seafood among other dinner options:

 

Local360 - Happy Hour, with $1 oysters (although if your kids are not 21+ this is no good to you as they can't sit in the bar), always mussels, something fishy, and a great locavore menu in general.

 

 

 

The first two are downtown, the last nearer Seattle Center.

thanks for the tip. just booked Local360. and just a few blocks from our hotel is a plus

Does anybody know if the downtown waterfront construction project is now complete? It was my understanding that the project was originally scheduled for completion before the July 4th holiday. Is the project near completion yet? Curious minds want to know. :)

thanks for asking! getting on when you get off

any thoughts on this one?

Canon PowerShot SX530 HS.

looking for something like that but without the interchangeable lenses. don't you have to focus yourself with those lenses?

I also just noticed you are not far from me, not to sound creepy.

I do not have the d3200 body but have some others from Nikon you could try. Older entry level up to a full pro body and some in between. If you'd want to meet to try or go over anything.

too funny. I was just going to mention we are fellow Marylanders

but I think that I am probably too much of a beginner for those cameras and can probably only handle a regular point and shoot with the fast speed and great zoom. any suggestions for that?

This forum helped me back in 2009 in purchasing a Pentax Lumix. loved it. but it is getting a bit old and time for a new one.

We are heading to Alaska on a cruise next month so looking for something that has a super fast shutter speed and great zoom for whale watching and such. I am pretty much a beginner so looking for a camera that is fairly easy to use. price range can be $200-$500ish.

I do have the dpreview website but don't even know where to start. :o

thank you in advance!

thanks for posting navybaby! so used to packing for the Caribbean and not Alaska! but this certainly helps. see you on the ship :)

I walk all over Alaska and have done many trails, including down Mt Roberts, Mendenhall East Loop. I've never had hiking boots. My walking shoes are the only shoes I wear, which suits my walking fine.

 

Is your hiking with a ship tour? Usually these are quite tame and easy for most people.

 

If you disclose where you are hiking, there could be additional recommendations.

ship's tour for both hikes. doing the shorter one in Juneau and the Laughton Glacier hike- 2 miles. nothing too bad I assume

I live here, Unless I am on an extended camping or hunting trip in the bush, I never wear hiking boots...I am in my 70's....I wear either sneakers, or a pair of low top Merrils that are waterproof. In the winter, I wear Steger mukluks when I run my dogs...or "bunny boots"....Unless you are hardcore, or have special foot problems, rarely is their a need....Sneakers can be thrown in the laundry if they get muddy or dirty....

thanks. will definitely check out these walking shoes/merrils!

You don't mention how old you are, but I find that my teen/young adult children do fine in sneakers in places where this old lady needs boots, or at least hiking shoes. Last summer we hiked to Yakutania Point and Smugglers cove in Skagway. The kids (15, 18, 18, 21) all wore sneakers, as did my husband (early 50s) but I wore low hikers. I have a bad back and weak ankles and knees, and I have high arches that complain if I walk a lot in bad shoes. My daughter wore Converse with no issues, but those would have killed my feet!

 

What does everyone wear when hiking at home?

hiking at home?? LOL we are late 40's and in fairly good condition.

I will pass on all your information to the others and I think I will look at getting some of those low light weight waterproof shoes.

thanks for everyones help!

Doing a couple of excursions with hikes (one about 2 miles) and wondering if hiking boots are absolutely necessary. I have a pair but my friends don't. is it worth taking up space and weight in you luggage? will sneakers be fine?

thanks

One of the best (okay, I'll say it, IMO THE best) combination - twofer/threefer/fourfer - outings in Seattle for food, view, neighborhood experience is the West Seattle water taxi from the ferry terminal downtown across Elliott Bay to Seacrest Park on Harbor Avenue facing downtown. http://www.kingcounty.gov/transportation/kcdot/WaterTaxi/WSeattle.aspx

 

The view crossing the bay is sensational - the skyline, Space Needle, Mt. Rainier.. then when you land, your food truck experience is right there, in the form of a land-based branch of one of the best food truck operations in town. Marination Ma Kai is a Hawaiian/Korean/Mexican fusion place (Spam sliders, Loco Moco, Kalbi beef tacos) with an outdoor beer garden (spiked shave ice, mai tais...) with the same drop-dead view of downtown. http://www.marinationmobile.com/#about

 

Next door you can rent bikes (or kayaks) and bike, or take the free shuttle bus, or walk of course - on the the level path that runs along the waterfront, around a mile and a half around Duwamish Head to Alki Beach, with its little west coast statue of liberty, sandy beach, views of passing ferries with the Olympics in the background, and more shops/cafes/bars facing Puget Sound. Then it's back to the water taxi and back downtown. Or maybe another stop in the patio. Decisions, decisions.

 

View from ferry dock -

 

 

View from Alki Beach -

 

thanks! this is exactly what I was looking for on West Seattle/Alki

I'm very disappointed John Heald is completely off the Legend for Alaska.

just saw that too. we are on the Legend 7/14 :(

no idea but GO SOX!! :)

yes. as soon as you board, go to your cabin and call room service. order what you want and they will deliver it to your cabin. we have done this a few times

I like the familiarity of staying with carnival. go with what makes you feel comfortable

so, let's say I bring 2 bottles. how do they keep a record of that and how do they charge you? your on board account I assume?

Cant wait till the Pride comes back to Baltimore!!!

The excursion doesn't actually take place in any of the ports. On the day of Tracy Arm cruising, the small boat would come right up to the ship to pick up passengers and take them closer to the glaciers and then meet back up with the ship after the 3 hour tour. When we booked, you could find the Tracy Arm small boat excursion (I think it was called "Tracy Arm Fjord and Glacier Explorer) listed under each Alaska port (Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan), however I noticed that there isn't anything listed there right now for some reason. You may want to inquire with Carnival why it's not listed yet (maybe it's too early). Hope that helps.

thanks it does help. I will call Carnival tomorrow and hope it just isn't listed yet. I hear this is a great excursion!

question about Tracy Arm. we are going on the same cruise (7/14/15) it is on the itinerary but no excursions listed. is this actually a port stop? nothing is listed as of yet on the carnival website. people say this excursion is the best but a bit confused as to why I cant book anything for this. wondering if we picked a wrong week? does the ship just stop and anchor? or is this an excursion out of another port? does this make sense?

thanks!

and love your pictures!!!!

just reread your review and have a quick question- for the train you mentioned sitting on the left side. is that the left side facing the train or while facing forward? thanks. looking at booking excursions now

The taxis have a flat rate of $40 between downtown Seattle and the airport. The cruise terminal is a little farther away so around $50 would be an estimate.

Right on. Taxi from Cruise port to SEATEC ran us $51 last June.

thanks! was that per cab?

OP thanks for asking. sailing a month after you.

anyone know how much a cab or the carnival bus costs? do you have to reserve the bus?

TIA