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Puget Sound and San Juan Islands


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I'm starting a thread for Puget Sound and San Juan Islands. I made final payment in June and will be onboard the American Spirit in September. I'll be traveling with a friend who, like me, has been on previous ACL cruises. Our flight had been booked to leave early in the morning the day before the cruise; however, American Airlines took the flight out of service (with no other explanation), so we won't be leaving until 3:25 p.m. and arriving in Seattle at 9:45 p.m. It's a cross country flight via DFW, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed there will be no weather or other delays. We had the option to not take the 3:25 p.m. flight, but alternate options were few on other airlines and fares had gone up.

 

I plan to write a mini-review when I return as I did for the Great Rivers of Florida in March. I also still plan on leaving Ray in NH some notes with the Cruise Director as he is on the cruise immediately after mine.

 

So, I'm starting this thread for discussion of this cruise/itinerary. If you've been on this cruise, any comments you might have about it, what to see, what to miss or just anything in general would be appreciated.

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  • 1 month later...

we recently completed a sailing on the Spirit and was quite disappointed in the size of the cabin and the bathroom. The brochure showed the newer ship which they moved to Alaska. Balcony was very small and useless. The top deck was windy all the time. The food was ok but not outstanding and the cocktail hour was fine although some nights the canapes were not very good. The shrimp and crab claws were the best. They did have a good selection of liquors and the dinner wines were fine. Comparing what we paid for this cruise vs. Seabourn a few weeks earlier, we would take Seabourn in a heart beat.

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  • 2 weeks later...

A few changes to my cruise. Less than a week ago the friend who was traveling and booked with me called to inform me that she was cancelling, two weeks short of our departure. We booked the cruise last September when on an Upper Mississippi cruise. I took some time to process this news, not feeling good about receiving this call. I called my travel agent to ensure she knew I was still planning to go, now solo, and was assured they would handle all the details should I find myself having to pay a supplement (I have travel insurance that will cover it).

 

As my departing flight to Seattle was previously changed by American Airlines, I had the option to cancel with a full refund, but at the time could not find another good flight. After my friend cancelled, I checked some flights and was able to find an earlier departure on United and cancelled the AA flight and received a full refund.

 

So I’m off very soon on this beautiful cruise, not how I expected it to be, but still very much looking forward to it.

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The Puget Sound and San Juan islands are beautiful! I grew up just north of Seattle and traveled to many of them over the years. It's been many years since I've been back that way, so I'm not much help for specific excursions or "must see" places. My fondest memories are of simply beach combing and wandering the many quaint little towns you'll find on each island. If you have the opportunity to visit one of the WW2 forts in the area, those are interesting.

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An update: I received a surprise call from my friend yesterday. She stated she had changed her mind and was going to go. Great! I am packed except for toiletries. Getting picked up by airport transport at 5:15 a.m. Friday for the loooong flights cross country and then onboard Saturday. Anyone else onboard this week? Look for my mini-review when I return.

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An update: I received a surprise call from my friend yesterday. She stated she had changed her mind and was going to go. Great! I am packed except for toiletries. Getting picked up by airport transport at 5:15 a.m. Friday for the loooong flights cross country and then onboard Saturday. Anyone else onboard this week? Look for my mini-review when I return.

 

Bon Voyage !!!

So glad that your friend can still join you. I commiserate with your early transport to the airport -- just confirmed our pick up (next week) for 04:15 a.m. :( I am sure it will just be a minor glitch -- the six, plus, hour flight should provide for some nap-time, especially since we are flying Jet Blue Mint. :cool:

Have a wonderful trip and please leave Spirit in good shape.

 

NRayH

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