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PNW Traveler

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  1. Consider researching the suites that are specific to your ship. (Do a search on Cruise Critic) There are some ships where we would book a suite JS guarantee and some where we would not. We are not bothered by noise from upper decks, so on some ships any suite is great. There are sometimes significant differences in costs and the JS guarantee at a lower price may make the difference between a regular balcony stateroom and a junior suite. We had a suite guarantee on the Quantum for an Alaska cruise and loved the stateroom - mid-ship. a bath and a half plus spacious seating area. That JS guarantee was $700 less than a regular JS where we would have chosen our stateroom. We have had good luck with guarantees.
  2. We did the bus trip last year when the road was closed. The closure is far earlier along the road than halfway, and misses some of the more special wildlife sighting areas that are farther in on the road. I've done this same trip twice before, all the way to the end, and the best sightings were definitely farther into the park. On one trip I counted more than 300 sightings and then stopped counting! Denali is still an amazing place to visit. The mountain is there in all its glory. The sled dog kennels are open near the visitor center complete with a ranger talk, demonstration, and a walk through the kennel area. We saw many moose, mostly females with calves.
  3. Consider the Behind the Scenes Tour at the Sea Life Center. It's best to book in advance. additionally, there is a waterfront park with a long walking path that adjoins the Sea Life Center. You may see seals and other sea life from the path. We did. If you like ice cream, there's a fun spot nearby the Center. For lunch, if you don't want a sit-down restaurant, the food trucks are a good alternative. (Try the Mexican) Downtown Seward is compact and easily explored on foot. The waterfront park and walking path give great views of the mountains and bay.
  4. We were on a park green bus. They are really closer to a school bus than a tour bus 🙂 but we had experienced great narration on previous trips. Perhaps our driver was having a bad day. We hope to return when the park road reopens again, perhaps in 2025. Thanks for your replies. Yes, Denali is a special place.
  5. Wolfie is correct. The scenery is spectacular. We were camping in the park last summer and spent three days driving, exploring trails, and just enjoying pull-outs along the road for scenery and views. The park bus, however, was a disappointment. There were many busses and therefore fewer opportunities for drivers to pull over and narrate about Denali and its flora and fauna. At least this was the scenario explained to us by our bus driver. Yes, we too enjoyed viewing the smaller mammals and birds, but did so on our own, venturing out earlier and later in the day. Independent travel offers more flexibility, but many Denali visitors will be dependent on tours and tour busses.
  6. We did the Denali Park bus trip to milepost 43 last summer. We'd done this trip twice before, traveling far into the park. My wildlife count on those trips was 300+. Last summer the abbreviated version yielded only a few sheep far up on a mountain - tiny even with good binoculars. This was a major disappointment compared with prior years. There may be moose sightings along the highway outside the park, but do not book the park bus hoping for a memorable day.
  7. Quick Bus is also referred to as Quick Shuttle or Quick Coach. There are connections to several locations in Vancouver including the cruise ship port. Here's their website: https://quickcoach.com/ The Bellingham Airport is small and is located some distance from town. Scheduled flights between Bellingham and Vancouver are not easy to find. Most cruisers fly into Seattle and then connect to Vancouver. Alaska Airlines has numerous flights to Vancouver daily. We usually fly Alaska into Vancouver. There are additional bus connections from downtown Bellingham to Vancouver, including the Bolt Bus, but I'm not aware of a pickup point at the Bellingham Airport. Bellingham is a lovely small city and worth some time. It has a great waterfront and old town and is near both the San Juan Islands and the North Cascades.
  8. We checked out these cabins while in Seward. They were nice. The location is quiet and grounds were attractive. The location is just outside of Seward. https://boxcanyoncabin.com/
  9. Consider using Tripadvisor or similar, utilizing the map feature as well as the reviews. Seward has a long very narrow park along most of the waterfront in the downtown area. There are several downtown hotels built to take advantage of waterfront views. Don't miss the great gelato downtown!
  10. I would not stay in the motel part. The townhouse units and the log cabin were nice. We were there in an RV and visited the office, the laundry and the gift shop 🙂 We plan to return and rent a townhouse unit.
  11. If you qualify to stay at military resorts (retired, disabled veteran or active duty) there is a great resort just outside of downtown Seward - Seward Military Resort. There are many options, from cabins to townhouse style to motel, most with fireplaces. I was in Seward last week. I would not stay at Miller's Landing. It was beyond rustic and the access road nearly impassable due to rock slides and construction, not to mention the wheel devouring potholes. You cannot walk into town from Miller's Landing. Seward's waterfront and downtown is compact, walkable, and worth some time. The Sea Life Center on the waterfront was a great facility, funded by Exxon Valdez $$. You can book specialized tours within the center (best to book online, in advance.) There is a large park and walking path along the waterfront with mountain views and the occasional bald eagle, sea otter or seal. We spent three days in Seward and very much enjoyed our time there.
  12. ArriveCAN information links directly to your passport number. When crossing from the U.S. into Canada and Canada into the U.S. this makes the process more efficient for all involved.
  13. I posted because many cruisers also include a land based tour with their Alaska cruise. My post may help someone who visits these areas.
  14. On Alaska cruises you will see porpoises and Orca whales from the port and starboard sides of the ship but not so much from the aft as these marine mammals don't seem to like the ship's wake. If this is not important to you then enjoy the aft stateroom.
  15. I have been in Alaska for the past two weeks. Mosquitoes are bad this year. They are big and hungry. I was in Fairbanks last week, Denali, then Anchorage. If there is no breeze, the mosquitoes are out and I need repellent. Wipes take up no room in luggage and are not subject to the 3 oz rule if you are flying. I would compare the Fairbanks mosquitoes to small hummingbirds. If you don't like deet based repellent, consider picariden. It's just as effective, but more expensive and harder to find (but worth the search.) Outdoor stores and Amazon have picariden based products.
  16. I am in Fairbanks for five days, arriving yesterday on a land tour. The sky is smoky and the sun cannot shine through the smoke. My lungs hurt and I am coughing. I travel with an inhaler and it helps. We are also experiencing hot temperatures with lightning forecast for tomorrow which could ignite more fires. Water bomber aircraft have been flying overhead since we arrived and some outdoor activities in the city have been canceled. I am hoping that conditions will improve, but there are many fires throughout Alaska, likely to impact air quality for some time.
  17. We did a RC tour. I could not find a private tour that I liked for a walking tour. I don't recall for certain if the shuttle was free. This was a Baltic cruise where many ports were not close to downtown areas. I do remember that if there was a charge for the shuttle, the cost was nominal. Riga is a big city - population over 600,000.
  18. The port is in an industrial area some distance from Riga's old city. Although Royal had a shuttle, lines were long and there was a long wait to board the shuttle. We enjoyed a walking tour excursion in the old city, so that's how we got into town. The walking tour was leisurely, interesting, many photo ops, and great guide. The industrial area near our ship was interesting - mostly coal and lumber - large area busy with cargo operations and ships. We docked next to a large coal loading facility.
  19. I am celiac and have cruised on most of Royal's ships. I frequently choose the Windjammer for its variety and choices. The Windjammer chef or assistant will walk me around the various "islands" pointing out gluten free items. Morning toast can be requested near the omlette station. It's a dedicated gluten free toaster. Gluten free bread can be requested for sandwiches and burgers. The dessert station will label gluten free desserts. The pavlova is quite good. Gluten free cookies can be hard to find, but don't be afraid to request them if they aren't a displayed dessert choice. Try to avoid premixed eggs in scrambled or omlettes. Sometimes they are an egg mix that may not be GF. Be prepared to wait and have a bit of patience with GF requests, whether the dining room or Windjammer. It usually takes awhile and busy staff are taking time from regular duties to help with your GF. Hope this helps!
  20. I have allergies also. The chef in the Windjammer will walk me around the various serving stations and islands pointing out items that I can eat. Sometimes it takes a bit of patience when the Windjammer is busy.
  21. I agree that the excursions descriptions are too brief and often lack basic information. As a result, I've often resorted to "googling" and researching excursions by the name or title in the shore excursions listing. It takes a bit of work, but other cruise lines and tours will offer an identical excursion and provide a more detailed description. Sometimes I can even find photos of the excursion, length of time on bus, and even reviews. This is internet work, but it has helped in the past. Royal's descriptions used to be better.
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