First Star Legend Alaska cruise live-ish.

Canadian Inside Passage

It's the final full day. It is nice to have sunshine again and the scenery is lovely.

At lunch in the Veranda, the captain jumps up to hurry toward the bridge. There are gasps - what's happened to cause that? No worries, he explains that there is a spot with totem poles on the shore that he is eager to see. It turns out that we aren't quite there yet, it will be about another half hour. The spot is Alert Bay where there are clan house buildings at the U'mista Cultural Center with a carved canoe and totem poles including the world's tallest totem pole - 173 feet of rather plain pole. There are more totem poles to see at the Burial Ground on the other end of town.

Around 5 PM, we go through Seymour Narrows. Our passage is timed for slack tide as the currents can be difficult there at other times. This used to be harder as Ripple rock came up high in the center of the passage. It was blasted away in 1958. To do that, they dug a tunnel from one side on land up into the center of the rock. It took over 3000 feet of digging.

For a while on our trip, we are joined by dolphins including some Pacific white-sided dolphins. They stay with us for quite a while riding the bow wave of the ship while we hang over the deck railing to watch them.

After dinner, it is time to pack and put the colored bag tags on before putting non-carry-on bags outside the cabin door.

Vancouver

The cruise is over. All my prior cruises were 7 or 8 days. I was excited try a longer cruise, but this was 28 days (Windstar called it 27 but we get an extra day crossing the dateline). Would that be too long? Would I be itching to get off by the end? Also, it had a lot of sea days and scenic cruising days. There were 3 ports in Japan and 8 in Alaska/Canada. Would that be too much? It turned out that I loved it. A bit more sunshine would have been nice. May is statistically a bit drier time of year for Alaska but it didn't work out that way this trip. I can't complain too much as our trip last year during typically wetter August had very little rain.

Debarking is very easy. Because we had a stop in Prince Rupert, Canadian immigration formalities were handled by Windstar there invisible to most us. Windstar held our passports during the trip to do this. (If you needed a passport during the trip, e.g. to cross into Canada on the Skagway train excursion, you could get it back from reception to do so and then return it.) In Vancouver, we just walk off the ship and collect our bags.

My flight is next morning. When I was booking hotels, I found that room rates in general were quite expensive for this night, but Pan Pacific Hotel had a better than usual price (less than the price at Sutton Place which is where we stayed last August). I dropped my bags off at the Pan Pacific.

I'd been to most tourist sights in Vancouver but haven't been to Capilano Suspension Bridge. I'd planned to go when I was there last August, but didn't due to forest fires near Vancouver that made for terrible visibility and air quality. I bought a ticket and took the free shuttle from Canada Place. I spent a nice day up there including lunch at the Cliff House.

I went to dinner at one of Vancouver's many Japanese restaurants.

Up early the next morning to head to the airport for a direct flight home. The flight is just before 9 AM. Usually, I've taken the (confusingly named) Skytrain from downtown to the airport, but this morning I was feeling lazy and splurged on a cab. (Metered going this way it came to $35 Canadian including tip. I believe it is a fixed fare of $35 if you take it from the airport to downtown.)

At airport security, showing my Global Entry card gets me into the Global Entry/Nexus security path. There is almost no one ahead of me. From hotel check-out at the Pan Pacific to arrival on the airport concourse took under an hour. That's about the same as when I've taken Skytrain.

Well, that's pretty much it. I may come back and add some pictures. I wanted to get the details written down before memory faded so I didn't insert them as I went along.

Canadian Inside Passage

 

At airport security, showing my Global Entry card gets me into the Global Entry/Nexus security path. There is almost no one ahead of me. From hotel check-out at the Pan Pacific to arrival on the airport concourse took under an hour. That's about the same as when I've taken Skytrain.

First, thank you for a delightful chronicle of your experience on Windstar's first season back in Alaska. Many of us are already planning for 2019 and beyond.

I have a specific question related to Global Entry. My wife and I both have Global Entry and have used it over the last couple of years, but none of those experiences were related to returning from Canada. (They have been all related to returning from Europe) All the information we have from the program guidelines tells us we do not need to carry the actual card, if our departure from the USA and return are by commercial air travel. And indeed we have never needed the actual card. Can you tell us, in more detail, about the logistics of your return from Canada, with Global Entry status, and did you actually need the card or could they still process you the same way without it?

First, thank you for a delightful chronicle of your experience on Windstar's first season back in Alaska. Many of us are already planning for 2019 and beyond.

 

I have a specific question related to Global Entry. My wife and I both have Global Entry and have used it over the last couple of years, but none of those experiences were related to returning from Canada. (They have been all related to returning from Europe) All the information we have from the program guidelines tells us we do not need to carry the actual card, if our departure from the USA and return are by commercial air travel. And indeed we have never needed the actual card. Can you tell us, in more detail, about the logistics of your return from Canada, with Global Entry status, and did you actually need the card or could they still process you the same way without it?

If you are returning from Vancouver there is a terminal entrance for US residents. It is identical to returning to a US airport from other countries. There is the same Global Entry lane as your usual place of entry. Follow the GOES signs and it is exactly like your previous experiences. We have never carried our GOES cards as your passport is the document the the reader wants. I believe the only time that card can be used is coming in from Mexico but still, you are better with passport. Vancouver does not yet have Mobile Passport which is really superior to GOES. Agree that new_cruiser did a superior job of reporting the first Alaska cruise. It really helped us in many ways. It's a great cruise!

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First, thank you for a delightful chronicle of your experience on Windstar's first season back in Alaska. Many of us are already planning for 2019 and beyond.

 

I have a specific question related to Global Entry. My wife and I both have Global Entry and have used it over the last couple of years, but none of those experiences were related to returning from Canada. (They have been all related to returning from Europe) All the information we have from the program guidelines tells us we do not need to carry the actual card, if our departure from the USA and return are by commercial air travel. And indeed we have never needed the actual card. Can you tell us, in more detail, about the logistics of your return from Canada, with Global Entry status, and did you actually need the card or could they still process you the same way without it?

Thank you. It is nice to know that people are reading my ramblings and finding them helpful.

Flying from major Canadian airports to the US is different than flying to the US from most other places because you officially enter the US in the Canadian airport by going through customs and immigration there. (I was surprised how many Windstar passengers were unaware of that on my cruise because people on Windstar are usually well traveled. I guess many haven't flown from Canada to the US.) It is important to be aware of it because you should leave extra time for that when going to the airport in Vancouver (at least if you don't have Nexus or Global Entry).

The great thing about this is that any transfers in the US will be the same as transferring between two domestic flights. One person was worried that they only had an hour for a connection on their way home until I explained that.

After you have checked in (or with your on-line check-in), you go through security (similar to going through TSA check in the US) and then through immigration and customs.

There are regular security lines and Nexus/Global Entry security lines. The Global Entry / Nexus line gives you a close equivalent of TSA Pre-check. The line has always been short to non-existent when I've been there.

There is no TSA Pre-check marking on your boarding pass in Canada and at the entrance to the security line, they can't tell who qualifies for Global Entry (or Nexus) by looking at your passport. They want to see the Global Entry card before they let you into toe Nexus/Global Entry line.

You don't need the Global Entry card to use the Nexus/Global Entry kiosks in immigration. That's just like the immigration process you would go through on first entry into the US when flying in from most other places.

If you are returning from Vancouver there is a terminal entrance for US residents. It is identical to returning to a US airport from other countries. There is the same Global Entry lane as your usual place of entry. Follow the GOES signs and it is exactly like your previous experiences. We have never carried our GOES cards as your passport is the document the the reader wants. I believe the only time that card can be used is coming in from Mexico but still, you are better with passport. Vancouver does not yet have Mobile Passport which is really superior to GOES. Agree that new_cruiser did a superior job of reporting the first Alaska cruise. It really helped us in many ways. It's a great cruise!

 

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You of course need the passport to fly from Vancouver to the US. I wasn't suggesting that the Global Entry card replaces the passport. As you say, you don't need the card to use the Global Entry immigration lines.

The Gobal Entry card gets you into the faster security line and I find that to be worth taking the card along as an addition to my passport.

Thank you. It is nice to know that people are reading my ramblings and finding them helpful.

 

Flying from major Canadian airports to the US is different than flying to the US from most other places because you officially enter the US in the Canadian airport by going through customs and immigration there. (I was surprised how many Windstar passengers were unaware of that on my cruise because people on Windstar are usually well traveled. I guess many haven't flown from Canada to the US.) It is important to be aware of it because you should leave extra time for that when going to the airport in Vancouver (at least if you don't have Nexus or Global Entry).

 

The great thing about this is that any transfers in the US will be the same as transferring between two domestic flights. One person was worried that they only had an hour for a connection on their way home until I explained that.

 

After you have checked in (or with your on-line check-in), you go through security (similar to going through TSA check in the US) and then through immigration and customs.

 

There are regular security lines and Nexus/Global Entry security lines. The Global Entry / Nexus line gives you a close equivalent of TSA Pre-check. The line has always been short to non-existent when I've been there.

 

There is no TSA Pre-check marking on your boarding pass in Canada and at the entrance to the security line, they can't tell who qualifies for Global Entry (or Nexus) by looking at your passport. They want to see the Global Entry card before they let you into toe Nexus/Global Entry line.

 

You don't need the Global Entry card to use the Nexus/Global Entry kiosks in immigration. That's just like the immigration process you would go through on first entry into the US when flying in from most other places.

 

 

 

You of course need the passport to fly from Vancouver to the US. I wasn't suggesting that the Global Entry card replaces the passport. As you say, you don't need the card to use the Global Entry immigration lines.

 

The Gobal Entry card gets you into the faster security line and I find that to be worth taking the card along as an addition to my passport.

Interesting. Delta had info on our boarding pass. We showed that and our passport, said Global Entry to the security person, and were shown to the GOES/Nexus line. Had the cards in my bag but didn't need them. Unfortunately we were in Vancouver airport for many hours because of flight cancellation. We never saw a line at any of the passport kiosks and had birds eye view from the upstairs lounge. FYI none of the airlines have a club but share one. We had to pay with our Delta AMEX, platinum AMEX is free, Chase card gave us discount. They had really good food and it was worth it for us because of long a delay. The cruise was perfect, trip home not so much!

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Interesting. Delta had info on our boarding pass. We showed that and our passport, said Global Entry to the security person, and were shown to the GOES/Nexus line. Had the cards in my bag but didn't need them. Unfortunately we were in Vancouver airport for many hours because of flight cancellation. We never saw a line at any of the passport kiosks and had birds eye view from the upstairs lounge. FYI none of the airlines have a club but share one. We had to pay with our Delta AMEX, platinum AMEX is free, Chase card gave us discount. They had really good food and it was worth it for us because of long a delay. The cruise was perfect, trip home not so much!

 

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Sorry about the glitches on the trip home.

I've usually been flying United or Air Canada and never had anything on my boarding pass that said Global Entry. This last time, I was flying Air Canada and as there was no TSA precheck, perhaps I didn't enter my Global Entry number. United has my Global Entry number and when I flew from Canada last year, there was nothing on the boarding pass about it.

There is an Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge in Vancouver. Gold on a Star Allinance carrier gets you in free for an international itinerary on Star Alliance carriers.

Sorry about the glitches on the trip home.

 

I've usually been flying United or Air Canada and never had anything on my boarding pass that said Global Entry. This last time, I was flying Air Canada and as there was no TSA precheck, perhaps I didn't enter my Global Entry number. United has my Global Entry number and when I flew from Canada last year, there was nothing on the boarding pass about it.

 

There is an Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge in Vancouver. Gold on a Star Allinance carrier gets you in free for an international itinerary on Star Alliance carriers.

Forgot about the Air Canada lounge. If you're not flying a Star Alliance carrier day of travel can you still use it? Some of the clubs have restrictions. We've encountered that in the past. Awful trip home. 28 hours Vancouver to Tampa!

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Sorry about the glitches on the trip home.

 

I've usually been flying United or Air Canada and never had anything on my boarding pass that said Global Entry. This last time, I was flying Air Canada and as there was no TSA precheck, perhaps I didn't enter my Global Entry number. United has my Global Entry number and when I flew from Canada last year, there was nothing on the boarding pass about it.

 

There is an Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge in Vancouver. Gold on a Star Allinance carrier gets you in free for an international itinerary on Star Alliance carriers.

Just checked my boarding passes. YVR-SLC definitely say Sky Priority/TSA PRECHK. Also to poster asking about procedures at YVR, I found printout that I had from YVR website titled Automated Passport Control. Went through in under 5 minutes including bag checks.

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Just checked my boarding passes. YVR-SLC definitely say Sky Priority/TSA PRECHK. Also to poster asking about procedures at YVR, I found printout that I had from YVR website titled Automated Passport Control. Went through in under 5 minutes including bag checks.

 

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