Penzance

On 6/17/2019 at 7:47 PM, Eaglecw said:

We just got back from Alaska on the Ruby Princess. The weather could have been much better. Sunday our first sea day the seas were really rough, a lot of people were sea sick. Juneau it was cold and wet, and we had light rain most of the day. Skagway, it was cold, overcast, clouds down around 1000 feet most of the day, there were a few light showers. It was pretty windy in the afternoon. Glacier Bay, it was the worst I’ve ever seen it in 15 cruises. Very cold, 49 in the morning and windy and wet. We couldn’t see the tops of the mountains, it was kind of a disappointment but we made due. We still got to see the glaciers. Ketchikan was a beautiful morning, partly cloudy. We had to be back onboard by 12:30 pm so there isn’t a lot of time to do much. Victoria it was partly cloudy, a nice evening. The Ruby Princess is a lovely ship. The crew was excellent as was the food. Never had a bad meal, bar service was excellent. If you have questions I have got answers

We were on the same cruise and can echo Eaglecw observations.  It was unfortunate that the weather played such an important part of the cruise but it was simply awful, cloudy, misty, light rain and cold. We were really looking forward to the 9 hour van/train tour in Skagway but with the thick mist, we couldn't even see the road ahead going up - quite scary.  The train down was interesting but with cloudy grey skies, and thick mist most of the way it was disappointing.   Glacier Bay was a great disappointment, dark grey skies, windy and wet.  Walking around in Juneau in the rain and in Ketchikan with the crowds, we found uninteresting with all those jewelry stores one after another.  As this would be our one and only visit to Alaska, we were sad not to see her at her best.

We have cruised on Ruby Princess many times and know what to expect but we found this particular cruise to be very casual. Jeans, sweat shirts, baseball hats and tee shirts were the normal wear day and evening but on the two formal nights, we did see a few jackets, shirts and ties.

Yes, thank you. We saw the same when we were in New Zealand many years ago.  Maybe we had watched too many National Geographic shows on TV. 🙂

3 hours ago, zelker said:

 

Thanks for the details.  Even if the service was excellent, I don't like how they handled it with you so will book someone else.  Sorry to hear you've been sick.  Do I dare ask - did you catch the infamous upper respiratory infection that seems to run through all ships if you're on them longer than a few days anymore?  Lousy way to end an otherwise hopefully great cruise.  Feel better soon. 

Thank you for your concern. Not sure if my illness was related to the cruise or not.  On the Sunday morning I awoke feeling very lethargic with a thick headache, dizziness, queasiness and a barking cough. I was so tired and weak I didn't get out of bed or eat anything for four days - I just drank water. (one good thing - I lost 7lbs )  To tell you the truth, we thought the cruise was nice enough but only really enjoyed the Skagway Train Tour (lovely but very long and tiring)  We were anticipating a wonderful day in  Glacier Bay but only saw one side which had a white glacier - the other looked like a dirty mud slide to the bay.  I did capture a wonderful shot, on our flight home, as we flew over Mount Rainer.

On 6/18/2019 at 6:35 PM, zelker said:

 

Would be most interested to hear why before I possibly make a mistake and book them. 

 

 

I must have missed their post but if it was with Already There, then no WAY will I do business with them.  @Penzance can you confirm it was or wasn't please?

  

Sorry for the delay in responding, I've been really sick.

I wasn't going to mention the company name because I thought that maybe it was just a one-off incident.  It seems the driver told the company that I only paid him $5 (I paid him (15%)  $9 cash) and when I clarified the amount, the company chose to believe the driver and then tried to insult me by saying that maybe I had mistaken the $5 for a $!.  . I told them that their service was excellent but the driver's integrity was not.

I felt that if a 20% tip was mandatory, they should have that written into their booking.

In anticipation of long lines for the $47 flat fee taxi, we booked a private town car for $60, we gave the driver 15% tip  ($9)  However when we were in the airport we received a text from the company saying the standard tip was 20% and should they add the other 5% to our credit card. 😮

Oh dear, that does not sound professional. This is what we received in our confirmed booking....

We'll monitor your flight and a driver will be at the airport based on the time reported by the airline. I will text you the name and cell of your driver so that you can call or text him after you have collected checked luggage and go out any door on the baggage claim level to the curb. Please tell him which door you're at (numbers are above each door) and he will meet you within about 5-10 minutes of your call, depending on traffic at the airport at that time. Please do NOT cross the sky-bridge to the parking garage.

I will contact Charlotte to re-confirm.

We too did a lot of research to find the most convenient way to book.......Seatac to hotel; Hotel to Pier 91 and Pier 91 to Seatac.  We finally decided on Alreadythere from Seatac to hotel and again from Pier 91 to Seatac. (the hotel booked us into a shared van from their hotel to Pier 91 for only $10 pp)   It's rather disturbing to hear of your experience with Alreadythere.  Their instructions to us are.......they will text the name and phone number of the actual driver who will meet us and we call him on our arrival -- did they text you?

29 minutes ago, Eaglecw said:

No problem, glad to help. Which train tour are you doing in Skagway? I think we've done them all. This year we are renting a car and taking a drive up to Emerald lake and maybe White Horse, playing it by ear.

I like to go to Crooners and listen to the music. It's a fun bar 

 As this will probably be our one and only cruise to Alaska, we have booked the Bennett Scenic Journey with Chilkoot Tours -- train first. 

A cocktail in the Crooners Bar before dinner is always on our agenda.  🙂

Thank you. Most helpful. We now hope for decent weather on our train tour -  in Skagway.

Maybe see you in our favorite bar - the Crooners. 🍸

Thank you Ferry-Watcher. The flat rate taxi fare certainly looks to be the best option, but with two other large ships in Port on the Saturday we arrive, we're sure the queue for the taxi's will be immense. We think we will stay with our Alreadythere town car booking.  The folks who arrive on a Monday will only have their ship in Port. 

Thanks again for your help.

I'm not sure about HAL coach transfers because we are on Princess, but they charge the same ($29 pp from dock to Seatac)  For a few dollars more, we have decided to book the Town Car. Plus, it's nice to be able to choose your own time to leave the ship and not have to rely on when the Coach leaves.  Answer to your question #4 = Once you have your luggage and have gone through Customs, you call the driver and he will arrive within 5 - 10 mins.

Thank you Ferry-Watcher.  On T/A and Yelp, the reviews for Flat Rate Taxi are simply dreadful so we will stay with the private town car service.  We don't have a problem pulling our luggage, it was just another passengers observation (which I quoted in Post #22) that gave us concern.

We did check the Port Valet and although it does sound an excellent service, and our airline and departure time does qualify,  our carry-on would have to contain items not allowed on airlines (men's toiletries, women's make-up and hair items)  plus our clothes/shoes (from the night before) our nightwear, camera equipment etc. etc.  

Thank you for all your help and recommendations. Much appreciated.

Thank you Ferry-Watcher. After going around in circles trying to find the best, easiest, less walking pulling luggage, reliable way to make this journey - I gave up all hope and booked a Town Car.  But, if CTA confirms back in time and the Taxi pick-up area doesn't require a long trek  - I could be swayed to change. 

Your, over and above help, is much appreciated.

Zelker - I checked and found our hotel also has the shared van service to Pier 91.  Thanks for the hint. 

Thanks for the information. We are staying at the Mayflower Park Hotel for one night pre-cruise. I assume there must be a few HAL passengers staying at the hotel for a shared van to the port the next morning? I must check with our hotel.

Zelker - I just called the number you wrote and spoke to a very sleepy young lady. She first gave me a quote of $35 from ship-side to Seatac, then changed her mind and said $40 but didn't know for sure. I also asked her if they picked up ship-side. - she didn't know.  Just just kept telling me to book with her. 😣

I then called Princess and found they charge $29 per person for their transfer - but after searching for 1/2 hr, couldn't find out what time the coach would leave from ship-side.

I then checked with Alreadythere town car and they quoted $65 plus a suggested tip of 20%.

Thank you Zelker - I couldn't find that number when I searched 😣 I will certainly call them.

Thanks again.

On 4/24/2019 at 9:31 AM, DaveOKC said:

  On 4/24/2019 at 8:28 AM, Ferry_Watcher said:

In the mornings during disembarkation there is a large sandwich board just by the beginning of the passenger Taxi queue stating that the Taxi Flat Rate to SeaTac is $40 (we are still waiting to see if that price remained the same for 2019).  There is only one 'authorized' cab company (STITA) allowed at Pier 91 for picking up passengers

Has anyone been able to confirm this rate for 2019?

Thank you.  This will be our first visit to Seattle and as we are on the Ruby Princess,  arriving back in port on a Saturday,  knowing what to expect is indeed a great help. Thanks again.

We too only have a 3 hour flight to Seatac which is scheduled to arrive in the morning, but after one of our 5 hour flights (to NY to start a cruise) turned into 10 hour nightmare, we vowed always to fly in at least a day before the cruise.  We did manage to get on board in NY with 1/2 hour to spare but then had to head straight to the bar to calm our nerves.  😮  

Thank you.  After reading another passengers review (see below) when they disembarked on Pier 91,  I want to clarify exactly where the car/taxi pick-up.  

"As our shuttle was driving away, I saw lots of people were dragging suitcases and walking on the side of the road. The normal sized 3-ft wide sidewalk certainly wasn’t big enough for the number of people and suitcases, so a lot of people were walking in the road where the buses and cars were squeezing by with inches to spare. They literally looked like refugees. I thought they were walking toward the parking lot to their own cars, but a minute or so later, I realized that they were going to a remote area that’s designated for Private and Ride-sharing pickup. That place was totally congested with hundreds of people and dozens of cars. Walking ½ mile with suitcases, spending 20 - 30minutes trying to find your driver, then another 10 minutes trying to get out of the port – in exchange for a saving of $5 or $10? Not worth it."

Thank you. We too have booked them from Seatac to hotel. We are now waiting to see if the $40 Taxi flat fare will remain the same for 2019 before booking the town car from Pier 91 to Seatac.    Not sure if Town car can make pick-up at ship side or do we have to walk to meet them elsewhere. 

Thank you, we appreciate your input.   We are waffling between flat fee or metered taxi, shuttle van or cruise bus and/or private transfer.  Trying to figure out which is best for ease, walk, cost and reliability. 

On 4/24/2019 at 8:28 AM, Ferry_Watcher said:

In the mornings during disembarkation there is a large sandwich board just by the beginning of the passenger Taxi queue stating that the Taxi Flat Rate to SeaTac is $40 (we are still waiting to see if that price remained the same for 2019).  There is only one 'authorized' cab company (STITA) allowed at Pier 91 for picking up passengers.   In the early mornings, the taxis arriving to pick up disembarking passengers are lined up in a nearby staging area and their entrance into the Pier 91 driveway is controlled by a staff member.  This also prevents 'gypsy' cabs from trying to pick up passengers. 

Does anyone know if the  Flat Fee rate for 2019 has been confirmed from  Pier 91 to Seatac?

Thank you. That's what I am trying to do but cannot get through to them by telephone or by email, which seems rather odd. Maybe I will try again tomorrow. 

No, I didn't want to send them all our credit card information (requested on their reservation form) before speaking with them.