Eclipse 10 night Alaskan May 9th 2019 review. I thought it rained in Alaska?

[clskinsfan]

Day 7. May 12th 2019... Sitka

 

We had no excursions planned for Sitka or Juneau. I usually try to leave a couple of ports open when I book a cruise. It is nice not having to jump out of bed and be in a hurry to get somewhere a couple of days during your vacation. We were up early anyways. And my wife sat up in bed an yelled WHALES!! There were maybe 10-15 whales off in the distance. They were blowing and tail slapping. She was able to catch a couple of pics of them:

 

 

 

We sat on the deck and watched them for a few minutes. We were just a couple of miles away from docking. We were starting to think maybe we should have book our whale watching excursion in Sitka instead of Icy Strait (More on that later). Sitka is a stunning stop. The port area itself isnt really amazing. But you can take a free shuttle into the town from the port. We were up to the breakfast buffet at around 7:45. Had another really good breakfast. Than back to the room to pack up our backpack for the days adventure. We were off the ship by around 8:30. We caught the bus into town which took maybe 10 minutes. Off of the bus and the views were simply amazing. Big mountains on all sides and beautiful waterfront as well:

 

 

 

We then proceeded to walk the entire town. There are some really good walking guides out there for Sitka. I had printed one out before we left. The walk takes you along the waterfront to Sitka National Historic park. Then through the woods to the Raptor Center, Then back into town on a northern road that passes the National Cemetery and ends at the Russian Cemetery. The total walk is a little under 4 miles. Sitka is such a beautiful area to walk. There are views at every turn. We walked along the waterfront:

 

 

Stopped and went into the Russian Bishops House. After touring that it was back to the waterfront. While walking through the woods we had a Raven land right next us. The bird decided to give us a tongue lashing for the next ten minutes. It was hysterical. And we and another couple just stood there in awe listening to him. He eventually got tired of yelling at us and flew off. Back to walking along the waterfront. And the big volcano looms in the distance:

 

 

 

 

Eventually you come to the National Historical Park. There are tons of Totems here and miles of trails to walk as well. The inside of the park building has some really nice historical items from the native people in it. Also some good displays. It is worth seeing. Most of the totems are remakes of originals. But here is a tip. If you want to see some original very old totems go around to the backside of the building. They have them locked up in a display there:

 

 

 

 

 

 

After the park we walked through the woods to the Raptor Center. We did not go inside. We just checked out the area than walked down the road to the National Cemetery.

 

 

From there it was back into town and to catch the bus. We spent around 4 hours in Sitka itself. It is a very special place. Stunning beauty and great people. We got off of the bus at the port and decided we wanted some crab for lunch. There was a tent at the dock selling crab. It is called Halibut Point Crab and it was outstanding. It is family owned. And we met the entire family while eating there. One thing I forgot to mention earlier is that I had a local beer in every port we stopped at. It was one of my goals on the trip. While eating the crab I had a  couple of local beers actually. 🙂  My wife and I shared one and half Dungy's then rolled back to the ship around 2:30 or so. I highly recommend Halibut Point. The food was excellent and the owner and his family are awesome as well. 

 

Once back on the ship it was up to the Sunset bar for our daily Pina's. We stayed up there for sail away. Sitka is a must stop in our opinion. It was definitely the best port of the trip. 

 

We had reservations at Tuscan for dinner tonight. Once again the food and service were outstanding. We had a seat right against the rear window as the sun was going down. It was a very romantic spot to enjoy our dinner. And the views were to die for. After dinner we went to see the Magician they had on this cruise. We thought he was very good. But I felt bad for the guy as he really didnt get the applause he was looking for. After the show it was up to the Sky Lounge for a bit than off to bed.

 

Tomorrow is Skagway and one of the absolute best excursions we have ever been on in our lives.

[robertacrusies]

amazing photos - thanks for sharing!

[Cforlani]

What a fun review to read and what great pictures! Thank you. I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the review. 

[clskinsfan]

Day 8. May 13th 2019....Skagway

 

Up at the crack of dawn this morning as we are pulling into Skagway. We have booked an excursion with Frontier Excursions called the Yukon Discovery Tour. It is LONG. 6.5 hours long to be exact. We did not know what to expect. 

 

We head up to the buffet around 6:30 and it is already hopping. I get some eggs benedict this morning. It was really good. But I will be honest. I think NCL does a better version IMO. We take our backpacks with us to breakfast this morning as we need to be of the ship as soon as possible. After breakfast we head down to deck two. They are already letting the Celebrity excursions off so we just jump right in line and off the ship we go. The walk down the pier in Skagway is a long one. Just a heads up for those with mobility issues. There is a free golf cart shuttle though if you need it. We walk to tend of the pier and find out tour. He says we have 40 minutes until we leave so we can either wait there with him or walk to the office in town which is around a 15 minute walk. We elect to walk into town. 

 

 

My opinion of Skagway is that it is very commercialized. Every store you see is geared towards cruisers. That makes sense. But it is not what we came to Alaska for. Dont get me wrong. We like to shop for stuff just like anyone else. But Skagway is a tourist trap. Really no other way to put it. 

 

We arrive at the excursion office, settle the bill than hit the restroom. The next restroom on the tour is around two hours in. Into the Van we and we are off on what would become the most incredible excursion ever. We will be driving 65 miles into the Yukon. And the sights are just ridiculous. Our guide was fantastic as well. Just the whole experience was really great. We end the northbound loop at Emerald Lake. Then head back south. The ride back is much quicker than the way up as you really do not stop on the way back. We did stop at one point to watch a black bear who was right next to the road. On this excursion we saw Dahl Sheep, Goats, Bear and Eagles. I took hundreds of photos on this excursion. I will post a few of my favorites below. They are in no particular order. But if you take this excursion on a sunny day you will see all of this as well:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I could literally post 100 more pictures with just as stunning of views. The Yukon is without a doubt one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen in my life. And I have been blessed to be able to travel all over the world. In a word If you have a chance to do this excursion DO IT. It was simply phenomenal. Yes. It is long. But is it worth every second you get to spend in that beautiful place.

 

After the excursion we were pretty much wiped out and elected to get dropped off at the dock instead of in town. We had walked around Skagway in the morning and neither of us felt like we really needed to see any more of it. We needed a hamburger. Up to the mast grill we went. The burgers are really good by the way. And so are the fries. After the mast grill it was back to the Sunset Bar for a few more beverages. Then down to get ready for dinner. We ate in the MDR tonight. And Jorge was happy to see us after not eating there last night. After dinner we went up to the Sky lounge for the remainder of the evening. Then off to bed. 

 

Tomorrow is Icy Strait and our Whale Watching Tour.

 

 

[AnnaNicole]

Wonderful review.   I agree about Skagway.   Unfortunately, the little town has been cruise ship commercialized.   Many of the shops are owned by the cruiselines.   I was told the locals are charging them a hefty rent fee.  Good for the locals.

 

Outside of the small downtown is absolutely stunning and well worth the visit.  I love Skagway and the people are so friendly.

 

 

Edited June 1, 2019 by AnnaNicole

[wackywokie]

We also ate in the Tuscan Grille that same night.  Our experience was far different than yours.  It was both Mother's Day and my husband's birthday (Mom was travelling with us).  Where do I even begin with all the missteps that occurred?  For a specialty restaurant that promises and evokes a wonderful dining experience, IMHO, it was no better than Olive Garden. 

 

1.  The waiter couldn't find our table.  Mom has trouble walking, we got an entire tour of the almost empty Tuscan Grille before he found the "correct" table, which was located close to the entrance, no less.

2.  The staff gave both Mom and myself roses with the thorns still on them.  

3.  The spaghetti and meatballs was inedible.  Spaghetti way under-cooked (raw) and the meatballs were more like a bolognese sauce instead.

4.  The dry aged steaks, my husband and I both ordered, were nothing special (an additional charge for these too).  A quarter of inch thick and certainly no way near the way we ordered them cooked (medium-rare) and both were medium-well.  I get better quality steaks at my local supermarket.

5.  Service overall was poor.  We ordered drinks at the beginning of our meal and the drinks didn't appear until we were almost done with our entrees, after repeated reminders to the staff.

 

The staff of the Tuscan Grille, when notified of our dissatisfaction, sent out extra desserts as compensation.  Guess everything is better with more sugar - not so good when you are pre-diabetic though.

 

We related our experiences with other fellow cruisers - and all shared our experience.  It's not worth the upcharge.  Stick to the buffet or the MDR.

 

We have had sailed Celebrity many times before and we have always made it a point to eat in at least one of the specialty restaurants during the cruise.  In the past, we have always walked out sated, satisfied, and glowing.  Not so much this time.   

[mek]

On 5/28/2019 at 3:34 PM, Solution said:

 

We were on board this sailing from Honolulu to Vancouver !  Port side 1581.

We were on the 4/17 sailing from Vancouver to Honolulu.  Cabin 6136.  It was a lovely cruise.

OP - your photos are stunning.

Edited June 2, 2019 by mek

[clskinsfan]

21 hours ago, wackywokie said:

 

We have had sailed Celebrity many times before and we have always made it a point to eat in at least one of the specialty restaurants during the cruise.  In the past, we have always walked out sated, satisfied, and glowing.  Not so much this time.   

 

I am sorry your experience at Tuscan was not good! We ate at all of the specialty restaurants on this cruise. And to us La Petit was the worst of them. We rated Murano the best and ate their twice on this cruise. Tuscan was second and the Sushi place was third. I tend to agree with you about spending money on them though. We would probably only do Murano again in all honesty. The MDR food and service are outstanding on this ship.

Edited June 3, 2019 by clskinsfan

[clskinsfan]

Day 9. May 14th 2019....Icy Strait

 

We are up early and excited for our whale watching excursion today. Icy strait is a really nice port. It is located a good distance away from the town of Hoonah though. And there are shuttles that will run you into town for a nominal price.  Once you get off of the ship you walk through the port and meet your tour guides on the outside of the port area. Our guide pulled up roughly 10 minutes after we arrived. And right on time. 

 

We decided to do our whale watching tour with Glacier Wind Charters. They are a dream to deal with. Prompt email responses, great customer service and two small boats make this a really nice way to see whales. The boats are run by a Dad and Son team. I dont want to call out anyone by name. But we were with the dad  and he was really nice. We saw eagles, sea lions and whales on the tour. Including a calf with its mother. The guides are very knowledgeable about the area. And we had some great conversations about the past in that area. One thing I will tell you about Icy Strait is that the cruise ship docks in the perfect spot to see whales. We saw as many whales from the ship as we did on the excursion itself. But dont let that stop you from using Glacier Wind. They have excellent reviews for a reason. We really enjoyed our time with them. One thing I was told is that they are expanding the docking capacity of this port to allow for three ships in the future. The locals we spoke with showed some real concern about this. Yes. They need tourism to survive. But they arent sure how the port be able to handle that number of people in a single day.

 

After our excursion. We elected to be dropped off in the town of Hoonah. We spent a couple of hours walking around and checking out some of the small stores. We then caught the shuttle back to port around mid afternoon. Where I got my local beer from a restaurant right at the pier area. Icy Strait is a beautiful place and unspoiled by tourism. It is a shame that will most likely change in the future. Here are the pics of our day. I will try to keep them in chronological order as much as possible. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once we were back on the ship it was up to the room for some evening relaxation. Then up to the Sky Bar for a couple of drinks before dinner. Dinner was in the MDR again tonight. And once again Jorge, the food and service were excellent. I believe we had the comedian after dinner tonight. And he was really good. After the show we spent the remainder of the evening at the Martini Bar enjoying people watching and the band in the center of the ship. Then off to bed. Tomorrow is Juneau.

[miched]

We did a B2B in for a total of 14 days in May 2008 or 9.  .  The only day that it rained was the last port  day in Ketchikan.  The rain started around 1 PM and was a cloud burst. 

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

 

[cattman]

On 6/2/2019 at 9:24 AM, wackywokie said:

We also ate in the Tuscan Grille that same night.  Our experience was far different than yours.  It was both Mother's Day and my husband's birthday (Mom was travelling with us).  Where do I even begin with all the missteps that occurred?  For a specialty restaurant that promises and evokes a wonderful dining experience, IMHO, it was no better than Olive Garden. 

 

1.  The waiter couldn't find our table.  Mom has trouble walking, we got an entire tour of the almost empty Tuscan Grille before he found the "correct" table, which was located close to the entrance, no less.

2.  The staff gave both Mom and myself roses with the thorns still on them.  

3.  The spaghetti and meatballs was inedible.  Spaghetti way under-cooked (raw) and the meatballs were more like a bolognese sauce instead.

4.  The dry aged steaks, my husband and I both ordered, were nothing special (an additional charge for these too).  A quarter of inch thick and certainly no way near the way we ordered them cooked (medium-rare) and both were medium-well.  I get better quality steaks at my local supermarket.

5.  Service overall was poor.  We ordered drinks at the beginning of our meal and the drinks didn't appear until we were almost done with our entrees, after repeated reminders to the staff.

 

The staff of the Tuscan Grille, when notified of our dissatisfaction, sent out extra desserts as compensation.  Guess everything is better with more sugar - not so good when you are pre-diabetic though.

 

We related our experiences with other fellow cruisers - and all shared our experience.  It's not worth the upcharge.  Stick to the buffet or the MDR.

 

We have had sailed Celebrity many times before and we have always made it a point to eat in at least one of the specialty restaurants during the cruise.  In the past, we have always walked out sated, satisfied, and glowing.  Not so much this time.   

Don't mean to hijack, but we were on this cruise and when we mentioned to fellow cruisers that we were looking forward to the Tuscan Grille we were told not to bother. We took their advice.

 

Major service issue we had was with the after dinner coffee. We would be offered coffee, cups would be brought immediately, then we would wait at least 10 - 15 minutes for the coffee to be poured. This in both the MDR and Blu, every night. 

[mrsgoggins]

5 minutes ago, cattman said:

Don't mean to hijack, but we were on this cruise and when we mentioned to fellow cruisers that we were looking forward to the Tuscan Grille we were told not to bother. We took their advice.

 

Major service issue we had was with the after dinner coffee. We would be offered coffee, cups would be brought immediately, then we would wait at least 10 - 15 minutes for the coffee to be poured. This in both the MDR and Blu, every night. 

 

We were also on this cruise and ate in Tuscan Grille on the first night.  We were on this ship last October in the Med and ate here 3 times we enjoyed it so much, and preferred it to Murano where we ate twice.  A different story this time alas!

 

We both ordered steak, DH medium rare and mine medium.  Both arrived well done - no pink to be seen.  DH had his replaced on the insistence of the waiter.  The replacement was exactly the same so we gave up.  Everything else was fine but it did change our view of Tuscan.  We were highly amused to see that one of Sea day activities offered was a ‘how to cook a perfect steak’.

 

It was a very minor issue in an otherwise excellent cruise but I now understand why others did not share our previous very high opinion of Tuscan Grille.

 

We had coffee in Blu a few times after dinner but I do not recall a delay.

[Ginnyfyr]

We were on this sailing with you! We sure did luck out with fantastic weather - we've had more rain since returning home than we did in Alaska!