saffy12

Thanks for asking.   I was trying to determine if that flash sale (at $15/day for my upcoming trip) is a good bargain or if I should hold out to buy on board.   It sounds like that's a good price to get now if I know I'm going to need it?

On 8/31/2023 at 6:11 AM, AryMay said:

Sorry about that! I think you should be able to access the blog now. Please let me know if you continue to have issues. 
 

I am a little jealous of your upcoming trip! Our South America/Antarctica cruise is our favorite of all time!

Yes, it does load now, thank you!   I'm really looking forward to it, so excited to read your experiences!

On 3/31/2023 at 5:15 PM, AryMay said:

Ushuaia

• Private tour with Federico at Anan Turismo (Excellent!!)
• https://mysouvenirmemories.blogspot.com/2019/02/glacier-alley-and-ushuaia.html

I'm very interested in reading your blog - especially regarding ushuaia and Puerto Madryn as we are trying to finalize our plans for those ports.  I'm getting an error message trying to open it, though.  Is there a trick, or can I get granted access?  Thank you!

What sort of class did you get to take from a cruise ship?

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So excited to see this! We will be there in exactly 1 month and ive been worried we'll be too late in the season. I hope the bears stick around!

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I can't confirm it will work, but that is exactly our plan for ISP when we're there in August. Please report back when you return with any tips you find out!

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7:30

Thanks for the suggestion, but can you explain why you say that?

It's good to know the restaurants are open late! Yes, that was a concern - I know we've been to tourist areas before where they close up shop early so that will help. The next day we don't have to get up early so are leaning towards the afternoon trip.

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Thanks! That was my impression, but wanted to make sure we weren't going to be setting ourselves up for a less enjoyable experience by choosing one trip over the other!

No, we are not on a tour, we're planning our own trip. And I know the recommendation is for the shuttles but we are a group if 5, 3 of whom are mild to moderately disabled. We decided that the 1 bus and narration will be worthwhile for our group.

Thank you!

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We have the choice of a 7:30 or 1:30 start time for our Tundra Wilderness Tour on our day in Denali in August. Is one time more recommended than the other in terms of animal sightings? Either works for us - the 7:30 time is early but we'll be back to have a relaxing afternoon and get dinner. The later time has the relaxing time in the morning instead but we don't get back til 9:30, so not sure how we'll be able to find dinner that late.

With those considerations for both times, it really comes down to which gives us the best opportunities to see wildlife. Is one any better than the other?

Thank you!

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I also have myotonic dystrophy. My mom and grandma had it too and both my kids are showing early signs of it. Mine fortunately is the milder form type 2.

 

I started having symptoms in my early 20's but didn't know it was MD as I did many things like snow skiing and water skiing. I was diagnosed in my mid forties.

 

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This is interesting - I started to read this thread because of my father's disability and hoping to get some information about my upcoming cruise with him. Interestingly enough,, he also has myotonic dystrophy - it's so rare, we haven't actually found anyone else with it! He had symptoms for about 5 years and we were actively trying to figure out what was wrong with him for 3 before he got diagnosed. Once we did, we realized my grandfather must have had it as well, but he had passed away by that time.

He's been diagnosed for about year, and it's been a struggle. My mom has RA, so both of them have mobility issues, but my dad has really been having some of the psych symptoms (lack of motivation, trouble with complex concepts, etc...) and we're still learning how to deal with it.... Any suggestions specific to what you have found with MD would be most appreciated!

When we took a Mediterranean cruise a few years ago, we booked a private operator to Ephesus. They picked us up so we were at the ruins when they opened and were able to explore with up close views of everything at our own pace. The tour buses from the boat arrived when we were about halfway through and you could look back and just see this mob of people descending. We paid the same for the private tour as we would have for the cruise excursion, but had such a more intimate experience and individual contact with the guide. Definitely worth it!

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Thanks for all the help! I was able to track down a zs50 at a Costco sort of near me. They are definitely disappearing but a few stores still had them. And the price dropped today too so I got it for $199 - my desired price point! Now I just need to figure out how to use it!

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I'm so excited! The Panasonic went down in price again on the Costco website, so I called a local store. They were able to track down one at a different store nearby and they are holding it for me to pick up tonight!

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Thanks for all the responses! I think i've finally decided that I want to get the Panasonic ZS50, especially since it shows on the Costco website for $230 which is a great price. Unfortunately, of course, they also seem to be out of stock on it, and no place else has that either. I'm guessing it has been updated, but I like the lower megapixel (and price!) that model has.

Oh well, back to the drawing / researching board!

I agree with Mr T - we weren't fans of the brunch and would actually prefer a sit down Breakfast on our sea day, so this is a positive change to me. I assume the mdr is open for breakfast and lunch then? If I recall on our last cruise lunch wasn't served on port days, nor when the grand buffet was, so there wasn't​ an opportunity on that trip for a served lunch

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Thanks for the relpies - those both look like what I'm looking for. The Panasonic especially interests me for the price, but I'm seeing reviews that say it can only be charged in the camera. Is that accurate? I always like to have a spare battery so one can be in use while the other is charging.... If that's not possible I might as well just stick with my phone.

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In preparation for our upcoming Alaskan cruise in August, I have decided it's time to update my old trusty 5mp Olympus camera. She's done well for me, but is 15 years old now, so it's time for me to get something a bit newer.

Specifically, after reading all the trip reports and seeing close up pictures of wildlife, I want to find something with a good optical zoom. Other than that, what I want is something that costs $200, fits in my pocket, and requires no thought before taking award winning photos!

Obviously, that's a bit tongue in cheek, but really, a small point-and-shoot that doesn't require too much $ (I can up the budget, but don't want to be spending $1000) or too much thought to use, but will take pictures better than either my phone or current camera will (otherwise, I don't need to bother).

Does anyone have suggestions where I should start looking to fit that bill?

In preparation for our upcoming Alaskan cruise in August, I have decided it's time to update my old trusty 5mp Olympus camera. She's done well for me, but is 15 years old now, so it's time for me to get something a bit newer.

Specifically, after reading all the trip reports and seeing close up pictures of wildlife, I want to find something with a good optical zoom. Other than that, what I want is something that costs $200, fits in my pocket, and requires no thought before taking award winning photos! Obviously, that's a bit tongue in cheek, but really, a small point-and-shoot that doesn't require too much $ (yes, I can up the budget, but don't want to be spending $1000) or too much thought to use, but will take pictures better than either my phone or current camera will (otherwise, I don't need to bother). Does anyone have suggestions what I should be looking at to fit that bill?

I know there is a camera board here too, but have seen so many amazing pictures here, and I want the experience specifically from those who have gone on Alaskan cruises to understand the wildlife prospective.

thank you!

Perfect - thank you for the responses! That's good to know I'll just need the passes and shouldn't have a problem delivering them "room service".

I will be travelling in my own (single) cabin with my parents on our upcoming cruise. My parents got the Go Best deal, including the Premium Drink package, but given that I am a single it did not pay for me to get those perks as well.

My parents both have varying mobility disabilities (their cabin is an accessible one and my dad at least will have his scooter with us) so I can foresee that I will "run errands" for them to go to bars and get drinks for them. Honestly, I can see it will be more of an issue with coffee drinks and smoothies than alcoholic ones, but I was curious if there would be a problem with me being able to do that? I assume I would just need to have their SeaPass cards to be able to do so? Will they let me (1 person) get a drink for each of them at the same time?

I have seen threads about using other people's drink package, and honestly, that's not what I'm trying. I just know that I tend to be the "gopher" when we travel, and can imagine my parents sending me to go get a morning coffee drink or after dinner drink for them, and want to know if I will be able to do that, or if the pass is somehow restricted to just their use and/or 1 at a time.

Thank you!

We will be doing the same trip this August, and have almost the exact excursions planned that you took, so this review was great to reassure me we made the correct choices. I'm so excited about our trip to Anan Creek, and your pictures give me something amazing to look forward to!

We also agonized over the decision for an oceanview cabin, but decided that the price difference pretty much pays for our week before the cruise in Denali and Seward, so we made the choice not to get the veranda. I'm glad you were happy with that, too!

Thank you for sharing!

Thank you! I had looked on Celebrity's site but not been able to find that. Thanks for the information.

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Hello,

Both of my parents have different mobility issues, and each owns a Gogo Pride scooter for local use when they will need to walk long distances (such as when going to an amusement park or other similar activity). My dad's scooter is easier to disassemble, so he will be traveling with his, but my mom had been hoping to manage without hers, which I think is a mistake.

We will be doing a 1-week land portion prior to boarding a Southbound Celebrity cruise in Seward, ending in Vancouver. Since travelling with 2 scooters takes up a lot of room especially since Mom's doesn't break down, we will be doing the land portion with just dad's, but I think I've finally talked Mo into renting a scooter for her use when we board the cruise.

We've done that before (traveled with Dad's and rented one for mom to use) but the problem now is that I'm not sure where she can rent a 1-way scooter to leave in Vancouver. Does anyone know of any places that will rent to us in Seward to leave in Vancouver? Or have any suggestions of where to go at Celebrity for such a resource?

Thank you!

OR

Day 1 arrive anc

Day 2 drive to denali

Day 3 shuttle into park

Day 4 sled dog demo. Drive to anc

Day 5 train to seward. Exit glacier

Day 6 kenai fjords boat

Day 7 kayak tour or some other activity, board ship 5pm

 

.

I don't mean to hijack this thread but this is the exact itinerary we put together for our DIY trip next August. Primarily because we could not figure a way to keep driving to Seward if we rent the car in Anchorage. Is that a possibility i did not see?

Denali and the fjord cruise were the priorities for us, so I'm glad to hear that is a reasonable itinerary.