Royal Caribbean Cruisetour #1 Review

[milford_cruiser]

Ok, so it's long, but I wanted to cover a lot of highlights. So below, for your reading enjoyment, is my summary of our Cruisetour #1 with Royal Caribbean, Radiance of the Seas!

 

Day 1: 7/3/10 – Travel from Milford, NH to Fairbanks, AK

Woo Hoo! We're in Alaska!

This diary was actually started on the 7 hour flight leg from Chicago to Anchorage when DW passed me a note that said simply: “Day 1: Air Travel Sucks.”

Arrived in Fairbanks after 18:37 hours of travel. I'm a geek, so I started my stopwatch when the van service picked us up in my driveway, and stopped it after we checked into our hotel for the night in Fairbanks.

Long day, but the kids still had enough energy for a quick swim before dinner (arrival time was 6:00pm local time).

Weather was overcast and 75F, but we only saw a couple of spits of rain. Keeping our fingers crossed for the rest of the trip!

Day 2: 7/4/10 – Independence Day in the 49th State

Hmm... Wonder why 2am feels like it's time to get up and out of bed. Could be the time change, could be the light outside. Either way, DW and I got up, checked out the exercise room at the SpringHill Suites (very nice) and I'm now making some notes.

Today we visited the Museum of Alaska at the University. Very nice. Quiet place on the 4th of July, and we had the opportunity for a leisurely stroll through the history and natural resources of the state. Some very nice exhibits and very nice art.

We visited the Large Animal Research Station, where our guide Emily told us all about Musk Oxen, Caribou, and Reindeer. The Musk Oxen went running wildly around while we were there, which was cool, and Emily said she'd never had that happen before. Certainly the group BEFORE us didn't get that excitement, cause we could see them through the fence while we waited.

After some down-time at the hotel and a swim for the boys, we visited the Alaska Pipeline just past Mile 8 on the Steese Highway. It was a pretty cool place to pull off and get a few pictures. There was a steady stream of folks in and out. We spent about 15 minutes there reading the signs and checking the place out. The visitor’s center was NOT open on this Sunday / Holiday afternoon.

Dinner was at the Silver Gulch Brewery. Very good beer, with quite a selection. Food was also good, and not too pricey (~$25 per person, including 1 beer for 3 of us). This is the “Most Northern Brewery in America.”

Cool weather at 65F, but we didn't get rained on, despite a 60% forecast.

Day 3: 7/5/10 – Transfer in to Royal Caribbean Cruisetour

Visited “Fairbanks kitsch” today.

Went to the Santa Claus House in North Pole Alaska. That's actually pronounced “gift shop with a couple of reindeer out back.” It was a nice shop, and we picked up a few trinkets and an Alaska Christmas ornament for the tree this year.

Finished up too early, so we headed back to Fairbanks for a visit to the Ice Museum. Saved the SpringHill Suites parking pass and parked in their lot to make our visit. We watched the movie about the Great Alaska Ice Carving contest, saw and went inside some very cool large ice carvings, and had a demo of all of the tools they use to carve and smooth the pieces.

Back to North Pole for lunch at the number one themed fast food restaurant (according to the Travel Channel): the Wendy's in North Pole. Food was good, and they still had their Christmas lights up. I know other people that just leave theirs hanging all year too, but we just consider them lazy.

After lunch we headed to Pikes Waterfront Lodge to check in with Royal Caribbean for our cruisetour. Turns out they only had 2 of our 3 reservations on the same tour, with the third in a different group. The great news is that they had already noticed that problem, and were working the details to get us back together. So we were in different parts of the hotel, but hopefully will even have THAT part resolved by tomorrow in Denali. Got luggage tags for the land portion: mark some bags for storage, the rest for every day. The storage bags will get delivered on our last land night in Anchorage to allow for some repacking before boarding. Then everything will get transferred to the ship in Seward. We tagged a case of bottled water to be stored and delivered to the ship, but it didn’t quite make it. The plastic wrapping came undone, despite my reinforcement with packing tape, and it arrived in Anchorage as a bundle of bottles. The bellman found us a box that fit perfectly, and we re-wrapped it for the ship. The water on the ship is fantastic, but having bottles was nice for our excursions.

Dinner was the Alaskan Salmon Bake and Golden Heart Palace Theater Show. GREAT food and show, and I recommend them to everyone who gets to Fairbanks.

Day 4: 7/6/10 – Alaskan Wildlife

Took a walk by the Chena River this morning (at 4am, since the fitness center didn't open until 6 and I'm still on East Coast, or at least Central time).

Saw our first wildlife at 4:22am. It crossed the path right in front of us and saw us, got a little skittish and hid. But if we stood very still, it came out again and wandered around. I wished I had brought my camera on the walk, since we had just seen, from less than 10 feet away, our very first Alaskan vole.

Today: Riverboat; Downtown Fairbanks; Transfer to Denali

Luggage outside for the bellhops to pick up – all went very smoothly. The Riverboat Discovery was a very good show, and we had instructions from our tour guide to get right out at the end so that we could get out quickly ahead of all of the other buses. We were pretty good at that – there's always one family that has to be last, but even they had followed directions: if you want pictures, work to be very early in the line.

12 busloads of tourists descended on Downtown Fairbanks for lunch. Overload? Yup. We had a light lunch (soup & sandwich) at The Fudge Pot. It was very good, and the service was excellent. They only have a couple of tables inside (seating for about 25 people), so we had to wait a few minutes to get through the line and get our lunch and find a seat. All in all it took far less time than I would have expected, given the line out the door.

The bus transfer to Denali included a stop at the pipeline, but since we had just seen it two days ago, we didn't get off the bus.

The ride to Denali was largely uneventful, except when our bus driver screamed “FOX IN THE ROAD” and hit the brakes. The fox scurried across the highway, and everyone settled back in for their naps. The scenery was nice, and we made it to McKinley Village Lodge in Denali only 20-30 minutes later than planned.

Room check-in was too easy. We were handed our keys and walked in. Within 10 minutes, our luggage was at the door – ready to go. Tour guide and the hotel were able to get the room situation sorted out, so all 3 of our rooms are in the same building and near one another.

Dinner was at the Gold Rush Dining Room here at the McKinley Village Lodge – standard hotel fare, and prices reasonable (4 of us ate meals and a shared appetizer for $90, including tip).

The views from McKinley Village Lodge are excellent, but the the hotel is a little too “rustic” for my taste. No air conditioning (and it's 80 degrees out and HOT), no ceiling fan, clunky Internet access, and very basic hotel room. Oh well, I guess we ARE in the woods of Alaska...

Day 5: 7/7/10 – Into Denali Park

Our day started with more Alaskan wildlife: a rabbit and a squirrel out behind the hotel.

Tundra Wilderness Tour boarded at 7:35 for our excursion into the park. The day was bright and sunny and we had great expectations of seeing Denali in all its glory. Our driver was Mary Jane, and she started the day with introductions and we knew we had a great driver for the trip.

In the park, we had a grizzly bear walking the road ahead of us for a ways. 3 buses were jockeying for position and taking turns on photo-ops. Got some really good pictures! We also saw caribou, Dall sheep, and plenty of smaller animals, but alas, the moose and wolf eluded us today. Daniel thought he saw a moose and a wolf in the woods, but we didn't hear him soon enough to stop the tour and look.

Denali was out and looking amazing at the lookout point. Hard to get a picture with everyone clamoring for “we were here” shots, but I got a few that I think came out nicely.

We lucked out – McKinley Village Lodge had a free laundry, and we got there first! Did a few loads to get ready for the cruise portion of our trip. 7 people x 5 travel days adds up to a LOT of clothes, even with wearing things more than once!

For dinner tonight, we ventured into Glitter Gulch for pizza at Prospector's. It was quite good, along with an Elk meatball sub and some appetizers to share.

Tomorrow we're off to Anchorage...

Day 6: 7/8/10 – Cosmopolitan City?

Arrived in Anchorage after about 6 hours in the bus. Long drive, but Denali was out again and we could see it from the highway. We made 2 stops – at Veteran's Overlook and at an ice cream stand in the middle of nowhere.

The plan was to drop us off downtown for an hour, then pick us up and drop us off downtown at our hotel. Since the two stops were only a few blocks apart, we opted NOT to get back on the bus, and instead started our downtown touring early. Visited the Alaska Mint (gift shop) and the Ulu Factory (gift shop).

Then all but DS14 & I headed back to the hotel to meet up with the tour director and get room keys set up. DS & I set off to meet up with SegTours of Anchorage for a Segway tour of the city. We had told Alan that we would be there at about 5:30 based on a planned Anchorage arrival time of 4:45, but we actually could have done his regularly scheduled 5pm tour given that we got off the bus early, and only 2 blocks from the starting point. This was a great tour – there were 4 of us on the trip: two father/son teams. We started with a little riding lesson and once everyone was comfortable, we took off. We got to see far more of the sights of downtown Anchorage (beyond the gift shops) than we could have done otherwise. And all in only 2 hours. At the end of the trip, we had about 15 minutes of free time, so we buzzed around the block once more before returning the Segways.

Dinner was at Humpy's, famous for their appearance on Man vs. Food. No Kodiak Arrest for me, but the food was excellent (and a great value) and the service was superb. One note here is that they carded everyone at the door, and told us that we would have to be out the door by 9pm since we had kids with us. No issues, as we sat down to eat at about 7:40 and were done and out by 8:45.

Tomorrow – train to Seward and boarding Radiance!

Day 7: 7/9/10 – Amazing Train Ride

The day started bright and early with a 6:15am hotel departure to board the train. They were ready for us, so we got right on board and settled in. The Wilderness Express was very luxurious and comfortable. Once we were underway, half of the car got to head downstairs to have breakfast. It was delicious, and very reasonably priced. One item not on the menu was Seafood Scramble, with crab meat and shrimp scrambled with 3 eggs ($12). A great breakfast while watching the Alaskan coast slide by.

The scenery from the Anchorage-to-Seward train run was simply amazing. And it is all around – there's no bad place to look! We were still hunting for a moose (no luck), but we did have a couple of bald eagles flying above.

In Seward, the bus met us at the train station to take us to the Sea Life Center, where we had about an hour and 15 minutes to look around. We had the option of sticking around and making our own way to the ship, but everyone was getting excited to be on board.

After a quick bus run to the ship, we tipped Andy and Ree, our fantastic Tour Director and Bus Driver, and headed into the tent to get on board Radiance. There was a bit of a line, but within 20 minutes or so, we had dropped off gear in our staterooms and headed for the Windjammer for lunch (mmm.. Honey Stung Chicken!).

We spent the rest of the day finding our way around the ship and DW checked out the spa – registering for the raffle the next day and learning about the Thermal Suite.

First night dinner was excellent, and we hit the sack for the night.

Day 8: 7/10/10 – Glacier Day

Today was a sea day, so we had a bit of a lazy day, resting up from a huge land trip. We played a few trivia games and didn't lose by much. DW went to the spa raffle and won the grand prize: $250 in free products! Later that day we went to our Meet & Mingle, where she won the bag / mouse pad combo. Too bad that's where our luck ended... It was great to meet lots of folks from the roll call, though!

It was an extremely foggy and rainy day, but we made it in to the glacier, and got to within about 600 feet of it. Hubbard Glacier is amazing. I keep saying that, but everything we have seen is just more incredible than the next. DS14 & I spend the afternoon on deck, trying to keep camera lenses dry while we listened to the calving and got the best pictures we could in the fog. I know that no pictures we could ever take can do it justice.

We skipped the main dining room for dinner tonight, preferring to eat in the Windjammer and not dress for formal night. I didn't see TOO many tuxes, but lots of suits and nice dresses, and we didn't want to be “those people” so we chose another venue out of respect. We still got to have the duck that was being served in the dining room, and had a very nice and relaxing dinner.

The show tonight was “Tribute”, a tribute band to the Temptations. They were a lot of fun to watch, and it was good to know all of the music.

Day 9: 7/11/10 – Juneau

Another foggy day – we are worried about having our helicopter dogsled trip canceled, but they said to just go to the pier and they'll tell us if we're not going. Good news – not only are we going, but we're the first trip of the day, and we're being joined by folks whose Mendenhall glacier trip was canceled. We are headed to Norris, and they are still running.

The helicopter trip was very cool, and we were able to see much more than I thought, even with the fog and rain. We got to the dog camp and met our mushers, got instructions, and headed for our sleds. The dogs were excited to see us, and we took a quick run around the glacier. Again – simply an amazing experience, and I just wish my camera could capture the sheer spectacle of it. Even with the rain whipping our faces, we had a ball. Those dogs are POWERFUL! 12 dogs, and the sled brake that I had to stand on was more of a SUGGESTION to stop. Good thing our musher was an expert!

We took a quick walk around Juneau – hitting some of the shops. The Red Dog Saloon was too busy for lunch – the World Cup Finals were on and it was a busy place. So we headed back to the ship for lunch and a dip in the hot tub before dinner.

Tablemates showed up at 7:30 pm? What's up with that?

Day 10: 7/12/10 – Skagway

Wonderful day with Chilkoot Charters on the White Pass and Yukon Route scenic railway and bus trip into Carcross and Emerald Lake.

Tablemates were there by 6:45 tonight, and our waitress Erica caught them up.

We had a few minor issues onboard ship, but otherwise we’re settling in nicely and enjoying the Radiance of the Seas. She’s in great shape, and well kept.

The issues? There were some troubles at the pool: no kids were allowed in the Solarium hot tub, even during family hours, and even supervised. The “pool police” were actively patrolling, and spoke to anyone who even put a toe in the tub. They also strongly discouraged any splashing, even in the main outdoor pool (and yes, my two boys swam in that, too!).

The second issue was troubles with Internet: I was celebrating a birthday onboard, and they gave me a coupon for $10 of free internet service. Unfortunately, the onboard PC kept hanging up, so the first day I went over by $7.50 and hadn’t even GOTTEN to my e-mail yet. They gave me another $10 to try again – no luck. Third time, another $10, but still no luck. I finally said that it wasn’t worth the fight, and didn’t try again until we got home.

Note to anyone still listening: NEITHER of these issues caused me any grief or lasting frustration – it was an AMAZING trip, and the folks at Guest Services are supernaturally patient given the length of the complaint line all week long!

Day 11: 7/13/10 – Icy Strait Point / Hoonah

We went on a wonderful whale watch with FISHES. Not much else going on at the port, but we watched a few zip-liners come down the mountain.

We were the first ones on the first tender to leave the ship and met Floyd at the gate. He gave us the quick tour of Hoonah on the way to the marina where we boarded and headed out. There was a mother and calf playing just alongside the Radiance so we tried to catch them, but they didn't stay on the surface very long.

We cruised out to Point Adolphus where we met up with about 7 or 8 humpback whales feeding. They put on quite a show – no breeches, but PLENTY of tails. We looked over and laughed at the Royal Caribbean shore excursion with hundreds of people onboard.

Day 12: 7/14/10 – Ketchikan

Today we had two trips booked – the first was a Deluxe City Tour with Totems. We met Victoria, our bus driver and guide, and she took the group of 11 of us on a quick run around the town. I would have liked to stop in more places and take a look, but she was very knowledgeable and we saw a lot. We stopped at the Totem Heritage Center for a quick lecture and display of REAL Tlingit totem poles before heading out to Totem Bight.

At Totem Bight it started to rain – good thing we had a raincoat layer ready – and Victoria gave a great tour of the site, explaining each of the totem poles and the clan house. She told lots of good stories and was obviously enjoying her work. I had THOUGHT that Totem Bight had older / “real” poles, but they are all current reproductions.

Our second trip was to the Lumberjack Show, where we had a great time cheering on our team (Dawson Creek) as they beat the other team (Spruce Creek) in a very close (surprise, surprise) match of lumberjack skills. Yes, it’s a hokey show, but they had a ton of fun doing it, and so we enjoyed it immensely.

Day 13: 7/15/10 – At Sea – Inside Passage

Another relaxing day at sea, giving us all a chance to sleep in a bit and just wander the ship and participate in some more trivia games.

Today was sunny, calm, and extremely warm, so we actually spent some time sunning by the main pool. No trouble getting a chair on a sea day in Alaska!

The Inside Passage is filled with fantastic scenery, and Captain Bjorn pointed out the highlights as we passed through on our way to Vancouver. He said there were Orcas out there, but I didn’t see any – of course, I didn’t look for very long, either…

Tonight was the farewell show in the theater, which was the best act of the week – the comedian. We were generally unimpressed with the Radiance of the Sea Singers & Dancers, and we even left about 20 minutes into the “City of Dreams” show. The Temptations Tribute band was good, as was the impressionist on the third night, but we had seen him before in 2008.

Day 14: 7/16/10 – Debarkation (too sad) in Vancouver

Everything went quite smoothly getting off the ship – our luggage was ready and the port of Vancouver was extremely efficient at getting everyone cycled through. We were the only ship in town that day, docked right at Canada Place.

We boarded a West Coast Sightseeing tour for Vancouver City Highlights once we cleared Customs. We had booked them ahead because they could take all 7 of us, all of our luggage, and drop 5 off at the train station, and 2 at the Sutton Place hotel. The tour was excellent, including great narration by Bill, our bus driver.

Friday evening was the Amtrak Cascades train from Vancouver to Seattle. We had upgraded to Business class, so we had VERY comfy seats and a discount in the Bistro. Sandwiches on-board for dinner, and a relaxing and scenic ride to Seattle.

Day 15: 7/17/10 – Day tour in Seattle

Stayed at the Marriott – Madison Renaissance – downtown, as they offered free transportation to the airport with the rate code we had. Unfortunately, the reservations office messed up and never sent our vouchers, but the front desk staff was terrific and arranged for a private van service for us to get to the airport, but I get ahead of myself.

We left our luggage with the bellman and walked Downtown Seattle for the day, visiting Pike Place Market (very busy at 9am), taking a Duck Tour (always tons of fun), and going up in the Space Needle (Seattle kitsch?). We had a lovely sunny day and enjoyed our time winding down in Seattle.

Back to the hotel (by bus – we were tired), picked up our luggage, found out they were using a van service for us to return to the airport, and got to SEATAC airport WAY too early – we couldn’t get in until 6:30pm since we had a late flight. So we hung out for a while, then checked everything in and had a leisurely dinner at the airport. The flight home was uneventful, and we were back home by Sunday morning, right on schedule!

Summary

All in all, this was a fantastic trip. I needn’t have worried about weather, luggage, laundry, or ANYTHING else. Alaska was AMAZING. Scenery, People, Everything. I can’t recommend it enough, and I haven’t stopped talking about it since I got home.

[milford_cruiser]

By the way - I'm working on downloading (and sorting) pictures, and scanning compasses. I'll post the link here when I'm done.

[vbmom87]

I enjoyed reading your review. Thanks for taking the time to post. Sounds like you had a wonderful time.

[mapleleaves]

Great report! Sounds like your family had quite an adventure; definitely a trip your kids will remember. How old are your sons? They seemed to handle a busy vacation very well.

Thanks for sharing so many details. I'm sure a lot of people will learn a lot from your experiences.

[milford_cruiser]

The boys are well-seasoned travelers at age 13 & 14. They've been to lots of places and can quickly find their way around a cruise ship, airport, hotel, or whatever. It's a huge help, especially on a big trip like this, because I don't have to worry about them, and they are VERY good at helping others.

 

Our total crew on this trip was 7: myself (43), DW (43), DS (14), DS (13), plus my parents (69 & 67) - my dad with limited mobility, and DW's mother (68).

[NorbertsNiece]

Thanks for posting your review. It's so interesting to read of excursions which are different to the ones we've got planned! (Except for F.I.S.H.E.S which I am so excited about!)

 

Just a bit concerned when you said there were long queues of people complaining about stuff..... we leave in a week!!

[milford_cruiser]

Thanks for posting your review. It's so interesting to read of excursions which are different to the ones we've got planned! (Except for F.I.S.H.E.S which I am so excited about!)

 

Just a bit concerned when you said there were long queues of people complaining about stuff..... we leave in a week!!

 

Glad you enjoyed the posting! If you have any specific questions, I'll be happy to answer. The short answer is that the whole trip was just fabulous, and there were only little glitches that we didn't let bother us.

 

As to the long lines of complainers, I think that's just par for the course. We certainly had nothing to complain about, and my favorite was the guy with a HUGE stack of bar receipts trying to get guest relations to admit that there was an extra $4.95 charged to his account for which he had no receipt. The argument ended when he admitted to having bought a specialty coffee out on deck during our Hubbard Glacier visit...

 

My other favorite was the lady that didn't understand why she hadn't received any "Fragile" luggage tags for disembarkation. I didn't know such a thing existed???? Especially when the instructions clearly state to carry off anything fragile on your own.

 

Many of the other folks just seemed confused and looking for information. When the line got to be more than 5 or 6 people, they actually sent someone else out to walk the line and answer questions. That satisfied many people and was a very effective means of guest relations.

[MercedMike]

I am not quite sure whether you are complaining about the "pool police," praising them, or just noting a fact ...

 

I think I will take it as a very positive comment about the ship and say "HURRAH!" to RCI for making a rule and then enforcing it!

 

;)

[milford_cruiser]

I am not quite sure whether you are complaining about the "pool police," praising them, or just noting a fact ...

 

Frankly, me neither. I agree that having a rule and enforcing it is the best - and that's how I explained it to DS14 when we had a bit of a discussion about the hot tub in the Solarium.

 

I think where I would have let up a LITTLE bit is to allow some more splashing in the main pool when there were only 3 or 4 kids in it, all playing the same game. But that makes for many shades of gray, which in turn makes it more difficult to REALLY enforce important rules.

[milford_cruiser]

By the way - I'm working on downloading (and sorting) pictures, and scanning compasses. I'll post the link here when I'm done.

 

Compasses for both the land and sea portions are now posted at http://milford_cruiser.home.comcast.net

 

It's taking me FAR longer to sort through the pictures than I thought. I'll post that link when I'm done!

[jeniferlyn]

Thank you so much for taking all of the time to post the awesome review and providing all the links to the information. You provided me with the exact information about the tour times! Looks like you had a wonderful trip!!

[NorbertsNiece]

OP: Thank you so much for posting your compasses and land tour info. Absolutely wonderful.

[milford_cruiser]

Thank you so much for taking all of the time to post the awesome review and providing all the links to the information. You provided me with the exact information about the tour times! Looks like you had a wonderful trip!!

 

You're welcome.

 

You may have noticed that the Tundra Wilderness Tour times in Denali are blank. Our tour director told us what times to write in when we arrived in Denali - in my case we had a morning tour, and ended up on "Bus #12" departing at 7:30am. We were back at the hotel at around 3:30pm. Those tours start as early as 5:30am I believe.

[essgee_ca]

Thanks for posting your terrific review and cruise compasses for your cruise. I am leaving on the same cruise (no cruisetour) in two weeks so it was great to have a peak at the cruise compasses.

Thanks again!

[CruizinTigers]

Compasses for both the land and sea portions are now posted at http://milford_cruiser.home.comcast.net

 

It's taking me FAR longer to sort through the pictures than I thought. I'll post that link when I'm done!

 

Milford Cruiser,

 

Thank you so much for all the great information in this post, and especially for sharing your Compasses. I am part of a group of 21 travelers who will be leaving for the exact same trip as you in less than two weeks. I searched high and low for someone posting Compasses from recent sailings but no luck, until now!!

 

Your kindness in sharing all this is VERY much appreciated.

 

Thanks again!

[milford_cruiser]

You're very welcome.

 

I know the compasses were hard to find when I was looking around last summer & fall, so I knew they would come in handy.

 

The land timing was impossible to find. I finally got some great information here from sparky-elpaso, but definitely knew I was saving a copy of the land itinerary to post.

 

Traveling with 21 people will be interesting! There were several large groups on our trip, many of whom seemed as if they couldn't bear to be apart from one another. In our case (but with only 7), we weren't shy at all about everyone doing whatever they wanted, then getting back together for dinner and swapping stories!

 

If you have any questions about the trip, please feel free to ask - I'll do my best to fill in what I found out!

[Cruise Craver]

Wonderful review. Thank you so much. I'm on the August 6th sailing and your information was very helpful. Now I'm going to go read the compasses!

[cruisegirl22]

Thank you so much for taking the time to write your report and then to post the compasses. I am on this cruise next year, so it is nice to spend the time reading and looking forward to our wonderful cruise next year.

[Dawnyy99]

I will be taking this Cruisetour next June. Your review and other posts have already answered some questions, gave us some good ideas and were very informative.

 

THANK YOU!!!

 

P.S. Thanks for the land tour schedule...that's great!

[Dawnyy99]

I thought of a question already...

 

Since the ship leaves port at 9pm do you eat in the main dining rooms the first night? Or do you just eat in the Windjammer?

 

 

Nevermind, I checked your compasses and answered my own question.

[milford_cruiser]

I thought of a question already...

 

Since the ship leaves port at 9pm do you eat in the main dining rooms the first night? Or do you just eat in the Windjammer?

 

 

Nevermind, I checked your compasses and answered my own question.

 

Glad you found the answer!

 

For those who may not have, the answer is "Yes, the main dining room is open for dinner the first night."

 

However, since you didn't have to be on board until 8pm, there were A LOT of empty tables. I'm assuming that is due to several reasons - people touring Seward, people arriving late, and people tired from a full day of traveling choosing to crash at the Windjammer.