Megabear2

Yes it is. Sounded interesting and quite a useful short trip. I like "fill in" things like that as I like to use all my time productively. I'm looking at things like cable car and trams as well. I'm conscious one port isn't a full day so want to fill those that are to the brim! Juneau 10.00am to 9.00pm Ketchican 8.30am to 4.00pm Skagway 7.00am to 9.00pm Icy Point 7.00am to 6.00pm Victoria 9.00am to 9.00pm

Yes, that sounded good fun but I have no Cunard offering to date. I have seen an offering on T/A but it's not on sale yet. As I said above some more stuff has appeared for Ketchican today so maybe it's coming soon. Re the crabs one of the Seattle residents mentioned I might be out of season for them in Seattle so maybe it affects Ketchican as well?

Thank you. I've just been back into my booking and a lot of new tours for Ketchican have appeared, several on planes including one with grizzly bears. I have been looking at Icy Strait for whale watching as I thought the flight plane would need to be Juneau. I may change to Ketchican as there are three choices there, including a three hour option which would give me more time for other stuff. The float plane is my real must do, I've been cancelled three times before in Dubai and Canada. I've just seen a hovercraft there too!

This is my itinerary 08/09/2025 Seattle Port Embarkation 09/09/2025 At Sea 10/09/2025 Ketchican 11/09/2025 Juneau 12/09/2025 Skagway 13/09/2025 Glacier Bay 14/09/2025 Icy Straight Point 15/09/2025 Endicott Arm 16/09/2025 At Sea 17/09/2025 Victoria 18/09/2025 Seattle Port Disembark Tours are showing for all but Victoria but there aren't vast numbers at any port although some are already sold out!

Following on from your recommendations last week I've secured my train ride and float plane. However there are no Lumberjack show, helicopters or dogs showing on any of my ports - different itinerary - so I'm wondering if they are incomplete? Certainly only two excursions showing for Victoria, did you have more or is that it? As I'm now confirmed as solo I want to use as many Cunard excursions as possible.

I hope so!! Ironic really, he'd love the RSC, literary or an opera themed crossing. It's just my luck after years of badgering him to do a T/A I get the ballet themedone. I've only ever done two themed Cunard trips and they were James Taylor so no real comparison I can make. I'm a bit worried everything will be ballet, including the lectures etc.

I've just discovered the return t/a on my 21 night July 2025 via Norway/Iceland/Halifax appears to be the ballet themed crossing. Bit of a worry for me, my husband absolutely detests ballet. This crossing was booked as a replacement for a Queen Anne we couldn't make this September and is my husband's first transatlantic and return trip to the US since 2004. Am I to assume that everything is going to be ballet themed as I know he will not enjoy much if it is. What exactly happens on this themed crossing? Thank you.

English sparkling wine is not a cheap drink to purchase anywhere. Around here we have several producers and the starting price per bottle is between £25 and £30 a bottle. Prosecco on the other hand can be bought for half that price. The well known wine warehouse in the UK lists English sparkling wines from £19.99 to £185.00, with most being around £30-40. Despite being a growing market it needs to be remembered that production of all English wines is fairly small and the vineyards do not mass produce. With most wines in the Britannia restaurant being outside the $13.50 bracket any English sparkling wine would I assume automatically be outside the limit as well.

The Ellerman Line used to call their ships City of ... they didn't own a Southampton or Halifax but had two Liverpools. My husband's father and grandfather worked in the London Docks for Ellerman Line and my husband remembers being taken on board City of London and City of Liverpool in 1969 and 1970.

Thank you very much. A lot cheaper than the transfers that way. I'll ensure I pack conservatively so I can carry my luggage to go by transit. It will be a big adventure and another mode of transportation to add to my growing list of " different " journeys. The seaplane will hopefully add another. I've failed three times due to weather cancellations in previous attempts in Dubai and Canada so maybe this will be the lucky one.

On QA in May there were only two cocktails in Commodore Club which fell in the package limit - I had the paid for one. Also most of the wine options in Carinthia and the Britannia restaurant were above the limit. Apart from these venues most cocktails and drinks apart from the 4 Queens gin offerings were comfortably covered by the package. As someone who drinks lots of speciality teas and water in addition to the cocktails, gin and wine I broke more or less even once I added in the breakfast smoothies in the Wellness Centre.

Thank you for so much help and information. I am in Seattle for four days although only three are full ones. Fly on 4th arrive that day. I do not have flight times yet as they obviously aren't released until next month. Will be BA direct arriving around midday apparently. Although my holiday price includes a transfer quoted I'm being advised it's pricey so to look at maybe a taxi or Uber as it may be better, take taxi or Uber to the port and hopefully book a Cunard airport transfer. This will save around £500 - I could upgrade the train without guilt then! Re the plane Cunard offer two (see below). I was going to take one of those but reading up on the Alaska forum I got the impression I should go for the whales in Juneau as they are pretty much guaranteed ($100 refund if none show sounded pretty definite). "Taku Lodge Feast & 5-Glacier Seaplane Discovery This tour offers ultimate combination of quintessential Alaskan experiences. Soar by floatplane over lush rainforest, tumbling waterfalls, snow-capped mountains and the deep crevasses and azure meltwater pools of no fewer than five mighty glaciers. You’re guaranteed a window seat for a perfect view. Then, settle in to the remote Taku Glacier Lodge, untouched by time, only accessible by floatplane and within sight of the Hole-in-the-Wall Glacier. Here, feast on wild Alaskan salmon, learn about the hunters and fur trappers from a century ago, or explore forest trails on the lookout for wildlife, including black bears. The home cooked meal is accompanied with iced tea, lemonade and water, all chilled with actual glacier ice!" $458.10 Or "Five Glacier Seaplane Exploration Only 6 places available for this experience. Book now to avoid disappointment. Take to the skies for an extraordinary perspective over Alaska’s immense natural beauty. This exhilarating adventure will begin as your aircraft gently takes off from the historic downtown Juneau waterfront. You’ll pass through the Juneau Valley to soar over cascading waterfalls and lush rainforest. Reaching the vast Juneau Icefield by air, you’ll appreciate the scale of this 1,500-square-mile expanse of solid ice. The jaw-dropping experience carries you over deep crevasses and azure meltwater pools of the Norris, Hole-in-the-Wall, East and West Twin glaciers, and the famous five-mile-wide Taku Glacier. You’re guaranteed a window seat to capture the scene on camera and keep an eye out for possible wildlife sightings, including goats and eagles." $312.30 Assuming I do the plane here which port should I look at to do independently? Incidentally I have quite a large reward pending on another site following my just completed land based Italian trip in the Sorrento area so could look there for whales if I can get a clue what I'm looking at. These Dungeness crab are getting a lot of shout outs so I will definitely try to find some. Incidentally Dungeness has different connotations for me being the home of a nuclear power station which is defuelling despite being in the middle of a nature reserve! Hopefully your crab will not glow on my plate! I'll have a look into Smith Tower, the baseball and the opera. Thanks for the ideas. I also want to do the obvious "tourist" trip for the Space Needle - more tall buildings to stare at. I'm beginning to feel like a kid in the sweet shop on this one, so much choice!

I hope not too! I wish I had said something off putting but I know the neighbours are really keen to sell because their first buyer pulled out and they're worried about losing their own new house. I must be too kind for my own good!

Hi Evana, thanks for the info. No, I am not on that cruise as I'm going on 8 September 2025. I currently have the ordinary car booked but did look at the luxury option. To be truthful I had a panic when I saw things already sold out so just wanted to hold my must do trip. I'm now debating Juneau! I really want to do the float plane - only place offering it - but I'm told best whale watching. Currently I'm considering booking the two, Whale & Wildlife at 10.30 for 4 hours and the plane at 3.30pm. The system seems to say okay but I need to look into the logistics of where the whale watching comes back to. This is all rather surreal at present as I'm organising this before the four cruises I'm taking in front of this one just to make sure I get my tours booked. At the moment I'm on my own so ship excursions seem the safest bet. Still the planning is half the fun. Monday week we are off for 16 nights in Scandinavia on P&O's Aurora which will be a first but all the family chose it so we are joining them, but strangely I've only booked one thing for that and will do the rest by ear so to speak!

Had a surreal afternoon here. My neighbours are selling their house. Herald a knock on the door which my OH answers while I'm in the garden picking some veg for dinner. He comes out to tell me two people who are prospective purchasers of next door have knocked on the door and he's invited them in for a cup of tea because they want to discuss the area, the house and local services. I get a bit confused at this because sitting in my kitchen are two of my friends who've popped in with some cat food they've just bought for me but being the ever helpful neighbour I go into my house and find these two strangers seated in my lounge, the man on my recliner which he's raised and the lady perched on my sofa with her feet up on my mother's pouffe. Meantime my friends and husband are seated round the dining table drinking their tea and eating cake while I am left to fend questions from these rather odd prospective neighbours. Forty minutes later they've picked my brain on house building, road building, buses, shops, doctors, local children, who the surrounding neighbours are, doctors again and hospitals and even my relationship with my friends and near neighbours. At which point the man lowered the recliner and said thank you for your time and herded the lady down my hallway to the front door. Cue a lot of questions about my large conservatory style porch where I have wardrobes and storage baskets for coats, hats and shoes. And then off they trotted. Strangely they never offered their names or anything about themselves save they had six grown up children. I return to the kitchen none the wiser to what on earth has just occurred to find my husband and friends in fits of laughter. I guess the joke must have been missed by me.

I'm at the Inn At The Market. My big food love is fish, particularly shellfish I also love Italian food, not so keen on red meat though I like a really good steak in moderation! I love tall buildings with observation towers, decks and scenic restaurants and also museums and modern art galleries. Been following with huge interest the debate on Queen Anne's art as I rather liked it. Any suggestions much appreciated. While I'm in Seattle I'd love to do something at the opera or theatre. Is this open to visitors or only for season ticket holders? Also I understand there are a variety of sport venues, are any of them likely to be having events in September? I'm not sure of your sports seasons so no idea which might be playing while I'm in town. I do love a good baseball, football or soccer game. I've just been able to log in to My Cunard and the excursions are already on sale and some are sold out too which was a shock. I've managed to get the 9.00am White Pass Railway and now I'm panicking about what to book next! A lot of the walking tours are already sold out.

I've been thinking along the same lines re Arcadia. She is due a major refit in November this year which apparently is intended to upgrade her for 5 years. She does indeed meet the "smaller" ship category beloved by Cunard passengers. The question would be though how much would need to be spent to make her a Cunard level ship. Queen Anne would appear from statements prior to her launch to now be to attract new, younger UK guests.

Well I'm booked!! Hopefully I've chosen wisely. I have a friend who is a travel counsellor and ended up using her for a package as the deal seemed quite good. Fingers crossed I've done the right thing! My package is a Cunard package bundled with a full ATOL certificate, hopefully like Victoria2 uses. I have used this friend previously for something similar. I have a direct flight, 3 nights in a downtown 4* hotel at Pike Place, transfers and my deck 7 cabin for £4,703.00 plus my Cunard OBC and $100 extra from the agent. I'm going alone at this stage as my SIL is still dithering. Thanks for all your help and suggestions. Now to think about excursions... ideas gladly received!!

I actually had the Pinot Grigio every night with dinner as I do not drink red wine. I agree if i had a more varied pallet there were other choices. The small glass just fitted into the package but I only had one glass with each meal as the sommelier did not reappear. My table companions all had bottles.

I struggled to find anything more than a basic small glass of white wine under $13.50 in the Britannia restaurant on Queen Anne in May and also in Carinthia and Commodore Club. Whilst making very good use of my package everywhere else and breaking more or less even across the 14 nights I found this lack of choice in these venues rather restricting.

It was quite legitimate! My mother and I sailed on QE's maiden voyage and when she died her ashes were scattered from QE in a ceremony conducted by the Captain. In the run up to the event we told Tommi our Cunard organiser little stories about my mother's Cunard adventures including her love of afternoon tea. She had never left the UK until her 80th birthday when I took her on QE2 and the highlight of every day onboard a Cunard ship was her afternoon tea. She absolutely loved QE and referred to her as her ship, QM2 and QV were very much second rate in her opinion! On the last evening of my husband and I sailing back to Southampton after the ceremony a package arrived for us and inside was a tea cup and saucer together with a certificate giving the details and location of where my mother was scattered. The note accompanying this asked us to raise a cup to my mother on Cunard's behalf.

The "steel pitcher" is a teapot and most certainly Cunard do not serve tea in a glass. They use teacups and saucers (Wedgewood according to the one I own!)

Stainless steel is far easier to clean at high temperatures. Depending on when the sailing took place it may have been an 'elf and safety procedure.

Thank you. That may be the catch then. A midships cabin 8068 is £4603 which is much more in line with what I expected. I guess it's a case of how noisey, we are both very early risers so nighttime would be more of a worry. I assume it would be setting up in the morning if it's the pool area, but then again how much use does the pool get on a September Alaska cruise?

I'm almost scared to jinx this or ask, but is there anything wrong with Britannia Club balconies around midforward 8034 to 8050 or 8043 to 8059? Seemingly I can book one of these solo for £3256 or £3798 for 2 which is the same as the "hump" normal balcony.