JT1962

I sailed on the Meraviglia in January and thought the food choices & quality were very good. They usually have a few less options on the menu than other lines, but you can order more than one item from each section. I had more trouble narrowing down what I wanted between 2 to 3 different items rather than finding something I was interested in.

I can’t speak to the excursions you listed, but highly recommend the Damajagua 27 Waterfalls excursion. It’s one of the best excursions we have done in 30+ years of cruising. If you are in average shape and have no mobility issues, it is a great experience. Here is a good video so you know what to expect:

As long as you have a passport, you can drive into the Yukon. You would probably need to complete a new ArriveCAN for the border crossing at Fraser, although they may not actually look at it.

You should be ok in Juneau. Skagway will probably depend on how quickly they get the dock repaired.

Juneau - Whale Watch & Mendenhall Glacier Combo with Juneau Whale Watch. They do the whale watch first before going to the Glacier and give you flexible time to stay at the Glacier as long as you choose, with buses returning every 30 minutes. This gives you time to do the hike to nugget Falls or other hikes at the glacier. Just make sure you know when the last bus leaves and allow at least an hour to catch the bus and get back to your ship prior to the all aboard time. Haines - Rent a car and go to the Kroschel Wildlife Center, have lunch at 33 Mile Road House on the Haines Hwy, go to Chilkoot Lake and Chilkat State Parks for a good chance to see bears, moose and eagles. Ketchikan - Either the Deadliest Catch tour or a kayak tour with Southeast Kayaks. Ketchikan is easily walkable. If you have additional time, pick up a walking tour map at the visitor center and see Creek Street, Married Man’s Trail, the Fish Ladder and more.

The pre-order lunch will save you some time. If you need a break / snack, stop in Carcross on your way back. There is a coffee shop with snacks, a few shops, visitor center with restrooms, etc.

I have taken 21 cruises in the last 30+ years, most with Carnival & Royal Caribbean, but also NCL, Princess, Holland America, MSC and others no longer in business. I have never been on what I would consider a “bad” cruise. I cruise primarily for itinerary and price and find that the age / size of the ship & time of year are more important than the specific cruise line. The nicest cruise line / ship I have been on was the MSC Meraviglia and am booked in October on the MSC Divina. If you don’t need an amusement park onboard, constant activities during the day and are open to a more European food menu and entertainment, MSC is a great value with beautiful ships.

You will love the excursion. Amazing scenery, gets much closer to the glacier(s) than the ship, a totally different perspective from the water level than from the ship, usually sightings of some wildlife - seals, eagles, sometimes whales and / or bears. Dress in layers since it will be cooler on the water and when the boat is moving. Depending on when you are going, a hat and gloves can make it more comfortable out on deck.

if you are taking the small boat directly from the ship, it will likely be a 2 deck catamaran from Alien Marine, which is more stable than the smaller boat used by Adventure Bound from Juneau. The waters in Tracy Arm are generally protected and relatively smooth. If your tour returns to the ship in Tracy Arm, there shouldn’t be much of an issue with motion. If your tour leaves from or returns to Juneau, the waters from Tracy Arm to Juneau could be a little rougher, but likely won’t be an issue either. I would still recommend using whatever you normally take for motion sickness (Bonine works for us). Also, sitting upstairs and / or spending time outside on deck can help.

I’ve done the Tracy Arm Excursion with Adventure Bound and the Tracy Arm Small Boat Excursion from the ship with Carnival, and would gladly do either again. I also did the Whale Watch & Mendenhall Glacier Combo with Juneau Whale Watch in May and would recommend it as well. They do the whale watch first and give you flexibility on how long to spend at the glacier, with buses returning every 30 minutes. Just allow at least an hour to get from the glacier to your ship for the all aboard time in case of any potential traffic or other delays.

If you are doing well on time, you might consider also having lunch there. It’s good and served quickly through a buffet type line. If there is no large line due to a tour bus just unloading, it will be faster than ordering at another restaurant. Plus I don’t recall a lot of other restaurant options, although I believe Carcross has a few.

Venice has released details on the new fee for daily visitors. https://www.cnn.com/travel/amp/venice-entrance-fee-launch-date/index.html

Venice banned large cruise ships last year. All of the major cruise lines have had to move their port stops for Venice to other locations. https://www.cnn.com/travel/amp/venice-cruise-ship-ban-government/index.html

We were there in 2017, and I don’t remember many, if any tours being sold at the pier. It is a small town with only about 1,600 people. We rented a car and went to Kroschel on our on, then visited the State Parks I mentioned, but had 8-9 hours there. It was cheaper to rent the car and pay admission directly than it was for 2 excursions. You might check and see if Kroschel will still let you go on your own, what the cost would be and what it would cost to rent a car. If you are able to do that, just watch your time carefully since it’s probably 30 minutes or so each way to and from the wildlife center from town.

There is not a lot to see in Haines other than nature. It is a small town with not much typical tourist shops / attractions. The Kroschel Wildlife Center is excellent, if that is offered as an excursion through the ship. Another option is to rent a car and visit Chilkoot Lake and Chilkat State Parks, if it will be daylight until 9:00 or later when you are there.

The White Pass & Yukon Route Railway Summit round-trip is a good option. You could also rent a car and drive into the Yukon. You would need passports for that and to watch your time since you are in Port a relatively short time for most Skagway stops.