LIVE!!!: Eclipse — 9/1 to 9/8 — Alaska

[h20cruzer]

2 hours ago, cruisecatmama said:

Where are photos the Martini Bar bartenders? lol!  We were on the Eclipse in March from Buenos Aires to San Diego and the Martini Bar bartenders were awesome, so much fun... 

I am with you on that, would love to know who the bartenders are. I spent about 29 day s on the Eclipse in Nov and Dec.

Norma

[calicakes]

Your daughter is the spitting image of her mom. 

[What A Market]

Up by Six.  Time for espresso.  Ugh Cafe al Bacio doesn’t open until 6:30.  Oh well, patience is a virtue. (Yeah, right!)

 

Finally!

 

[What A Market]

Let’s travel back in time a bit to Vancouver to finish up Day 2.

 

We get back to hotel for a quick one hour siesta before heading to a bike rental store so we can ride bikes along the Seawall and Stanley Park. Somewhat revived, we walk down to Canada Place to find a bike rental store called EzeeRiders.  There are a number of other rental locations closer to Stanley Park, but this one is the closest to the hotel. EzeeRiders rents both electric assist bikes as well as regular bikes.

 

When we arrive, only one electric bike is available.  And no regular bikes. (It is a beautiful day out so not surprising plenty of other people had the same idea to rent bikes.) It’s a bit before 3:00pm and within five or ten minutes multiple people arrive at the store to turn in their bikes.  With bikes and helmets secured, we head out for the Seawall and Park.

 

You don’t need to be a skilled rider or even in decent shape when you use an electric assist bike.  The power assist is great. But you do need to be comfortable biking amongst hordes of people out walking as well as maneuvering around other people on bikes.  

 

Stanley Park is beautiful.  Another shout out to the weather gods for the perfect day.  Biking it is a great option.  It is definitely crowded. I shudder to think what the crowds look like in what I presume to be the peak season of July and August.  Taking our time to stop occasionally, it took us 90 minuets to make the loop around the Park. A tip of the cap to Vancouver’s city planners for preserving this bit of nature inside their city.

[What A Market]

Quick answer to TeaBag’s earlier question on the SeaPass card.

 

You get your SeaPass card as part of the check in process before you board the ship.  This step takes place even prior to clearing US Customs.  You have to have this card on you to actually board the ship.  The rooms on my floor were closed off by fire doors that sealed off the hallways. No way to drop off your hand luggage at your room door. We are traveling in a suite so the concierge in Michael’s offered to hold our bags for us if we wanted to explore the ship.  Rooms were announced as ready just after 1:00pm.  That’s when you can access your room.

 

[Barwick Cruiser]

We've done the bicycles around Stanley Park as well, very enjoyable and we appreciated that the traffic goes one way only around so at least you're only dodging pedestrians and cyclists going the same way lol!

 

You did depart on a long weekend here in Canada, Labour Day weekend, so that's probably why it was so busy as well.  Enjoy your cruise!!  Alaska is great!

[What A Market]

Monday morning.  Day at Sea.

Weather Report: (Here’s a shot from my balcony.)  A bit think out there.  Ha!

Ship’s Fog horn sounding every several minutes.

 

[gerelmx]

https://cruiseoutlook.com/trip-summary/celebrity_eclipse_7_nights_2019-09-01

Also available for this cruise:
Weather report
Detailed itinerary
Local time at ports
Hourly forecast
Weather charts
Current position

 

 

[What A Market]

Katherine asked for the Daily Planner. Here’s a shot of today’s activities.

 

And thank you calicakes for the comment on wife and daughter. This trip was planned as a celebration for a major life event for all of us.  More on that later.

[Lynnys]

Thanks for all the amazing advice 

looking at the planner looks like the 2nd  nightly show stopper starts at 9.15pm so if like us we have the later dining time( 8.45)because the earlier time was already full when we  booked our cruise the show will be starting before we can possibly eat dinner. 

[Schmoe38]

6 minutes ago, Lynnys said:

Thanks for all the amazing advice 

looking at the planner looks like the 2nd  nightly show stopper starts at 9.15pm so if like us we have the later dining time( 8.45)because the earlier time was already full when we  booked our cruise the show will be starting before we can possibly eat dinner. 

If you are at the late seating for dinner, you will want to go to the show at 7:15pm.

 

Randy

[What A Market]

Passed on having breakfast in Luminae to enjoy the morning “scrum” that is breakfast at the Oceanview Cafe.  I love the energy of the buffets on ships.  Generally everyone is upbeat and happy about facing a new day.  But yes, there are those who participate in the buffet with no sense of waiting one’s turn in line or the basics that human hygiene entails.

 

For me the later proved to be a challenge.  Almost everything at the buffet is self-serve. That means people touching the serving tongs!  Oh the horror!  I shall not relate eye witness accounts, lest I give myself nightmares tonight.  Ha!

 

Edited September 2, 2019 by What A Market

[What A Market]

A photo of the Solarium.  Given the weather, I thought it would be a bit more crowded.  Maybe it’s the early morning hour.  Just after 10:00am.

 

[TeaBag]

4 hours ago, What A Market said:

Quick answer to TeaBag’s earlier question on the SeaPass card.

 

You get your SeaPass card as part of the check in process before you board the ship.  This step takes place even prior to clearing US Customs.  You have to have this card on you to actually board the ship.  The rooms on my floor were closed off by fire doors that sealed off the hallways. No way to drop off your hand luggage at your room door. We are traveling in a suite so the concierge in Michael’s offered to hold our bags for us if we wanted to explore the ship.  Rooms were announced as ready just after 1:00pm.  That’s when you can access your room.

 

Thank you so much for answering my question.  That is the same way it has always been.  I had read about the cards being in an envelope in the mail slot by your cabin door.  You retrieve them there, open your door and deposit your carry-ons.  Maybe this is only on Edge.  I don't like this as I would wonder about security.  Glad to hear it's just as usual.

[Provence55always]

Loving your review......we are in Alaska next May North and South bound on the Millennium. Have to say I am not a fan of the buffet for all the reason you so eloquently describe 😩 .

[Hatteras51]

1 hour ago, TeaBag said:

Thank you so much for answering my question.  That is the same way it has always been.  I had read about the cards being in an envelope in the mail slot by your cabin door.  You retrieve them there, open your door and deposit your carry-ons.  Maybe this is only on Edge.  I don't like this as I would wonder about security.  Glad to hear it's just as usual.

We just got off of Summit on Sunday.  We were able to drop off our carry ons in our stateroom as soon as we got on board. Our sea passes were in an envelope in the area on the door where they leave any notes or mail that we would receive. 

 

I'm enjoying your report. We've sailed to Alaska twice. It remains our favorite.  We stayed at the Marriott Pinacle on our last trip, and loved it.

[39august]

The sea pass in the cabin mail slot thing is on ships that have been "revolutionized". So Equinox has gone to this and Silly will do this after her Jan. refurb. 

[What A Market]

Last note on Vancouver:  cocktails, food, and more cocktails 

 

So Saturday evening we tried to scratch the surface of Vancouver’s food and bar scene.  We started with drinks at a bar called Long Table Distillery.  Found it  on Yelp. Had no idea what to expect.  Little tiny hole in the wall place. Pretty much entirely devoted to distilling their own gin.  In a word amazing!  Put it on your list. Don’t like gin.  Well you’re in luck — they also distill their own aquavit. Ha! (Ok, ok you can also order a limoncello if you are faint of heart.)

 

We left there for dinner at Iki Japanese. DW and DD are coeliac.  So finding this place was huge. Entirely gluten free. All sorts of great tempura, gyoza (which they never get), and very good rolls and sushi.  We gorged ourselves. Get there if you’re gluten free.

 

Next up. More cocktails. First up: Prohibition at the Rosewood Hotel. Cool, trendy, hipster place. Two doormen out front to decide if they deem you worthy for admittance.  We sent DD up first. 🙂  That worked. We’re in.  So, if you like cocktails in the 25 to 30 Canadian dollar range, then this is place for you.  Crazy pretentious, but at least the bartenders were great. DW and I were the oldest people in there. By far!  Photo below.  DD is drinking a Hendricks High Tea. Wild!

 

After that, it’s on to the other bar in the Rosewood — The Rooftop bar.  Exactly the opposite of Prohibition. Casual, loud, and fun.  Great vibe. Loved it as you can see from the other photo of me and DD.

 

Called it a night after that. Stagger back to hotel.

Edited September 2, 2019 by What A Market

[TeaBag]

3 hours ago, Hatteras51 said:

We just got off of Summit on Sunday.  We were able to drop off our carry ons in our stateroom as soon as we got on board. Our sea passes were in an envelope in the area on the door where they leave any notes or mail that we would receive. 

 

 

Thank you for clarifying this, Hatteras and 39 August.  We will be on Summit in a few weeks.

[calicakes]

9 hours ago, What A Market said:

Passed on having breakfast in Luminae to enjoy the morning “scrum” that is breakfast at the Oceanview Cafe.  I love the energy of the buffets on ships.  Generally everyone is upbeat and happy about facing a new day.  But yes, there are those who participate in the buffet with no sense of waiting one’s turn in line or the basics that human hygiene entails.

 

For me the later proved to be a challenge.  Almost everything at the buffet is self-serve. That means people touching the serving tongs!  Oh the horror!  I shall not relate eye witness accounts, lest I give myself nightmares tonight.  Ha!

 

I think this is the first time I’ve heard someone say they passed up a breakfast in the suite restaurant to eat at the buffet.

[hsk1977]

On 9/1/2019 at 8:49 AM, What A Market said:

Hoping to post some thoughts later on our Saturday in Vancouver.

 

Here’s a photo in the meantime of the Eclipse arriving.  Time is 6:30AM, so right on time.

Yay for that!  Need it to do the same thing next Sunday because we have an 11:40AM flight back to Phoenix. (I know, I know.  Not the smartest thing to do, but I have to catch a flight from Phoenix to NYC for work later that same day.  Ugh!)

 

We were onboard yesterday morning! 😁 If it helps, we were in group 11 and were disembarking at 8:30. Customs/immigration were pretty fast, and then we walked back to Waterfront Station and caught the train to YVR. We got there probably around 10. I don’t remember the exact time, but I know we were way too early to check our luggage for our 3:17 flight and had to wait quite a while.

[What A Market]

Sunday evening — Dinner in Luminae

 

So backtracking again to our first dinner onboard. I choose Luminae for the first night to get a feel for what is supposed to be my designated dinner spot. I have to say it was a bit of a bust.  

 

The dining room is intimate.  Feels nice.  Everyone is fairly formal.  DW and I show up before the kids and the host immediately seats us at our table.  And then we wait.  And wait.  Our waiter makes it over to introduce himself and asks if we are still a party of four.  I respond that yes “we are waiting on the kids.” I ask him to send over the wine steward so we can order a glass of wine while we wait.  And then we wait. And wait.  I ask our waiter a second time to send over the wine guy. (I just demoted him from steward. Not sure if he is an actual sommelier. Ha!)  It’s worth noting that I motioned at least once or twice to the wine guy prior to that trying to catch his attention.  Waiter genuinely not happy that we have not been served.

 

Finely he appears. Wine is ordered.  He offers no suggestions or thoughts on any of the wines. But no matter.  Order is restored. Wine is served. By the way, the wine guy is the ONLY person that is dealing with beverages for the entire room.  But the venue is not that big AND it’s not full.

 

On with the evening.  Kids arrive.  They order cocktails.  Dinner is ordered. Everyone is happy.  But......  Things fall apart again from here.  We placed an order for two rounds of starters.  DD’s SO (name is Blaine, so I’m going to use that now) and I order escargot from the MDR’s menu. Escargot is Meh.  They should be blazing hot when served, but they come out like warm.  They are also not of great quality. No matter, there’s lots of melted butter and some decent bread. DW orders an soup to start from Luminae’s menu. Interestingly, this comes out luke warm as well, but flavor is excellent.

 

For the second round of starters, three of us Luminae’s tomato soup.  Hot and yummy.  Blaine also ordered the pork belly to be shared at the table while we eat our soup.  It’s excellent.  The moment the pork belly arrives we decide to order a second one.  Waiter say “no problem” and runs back to get that order in.  Second round of starters are complete and plates are being cleared, but no pork belly.  No biggie. I mention to waiter. He’s not happy. Bolts back to kitchen and immediately comes out with a pork belly. (Probably beat up another waiter from the MDR to secure.  Ha!)

 

On with dinner.  Blaine and I have the filet.  DW orders the prime rib from the MDR menu.  Can’t remember what Shannon ordered. Three filets come out as well as Shannon’s meal.  I tell waiter that DW’s order is wrong.  He smacks his head and rushes off to correct.  Probably couldn’t find a prime rib to steal from the expediting line in the MDR because Heidi had to wait awhile. Never fun having three people eating while the fourth is waiting.

 

This is all small stuff obviously in the grand scheme of things.  We enjoyed each other’s company.  Had great conversation.  That’s #1 and #2 for me for enjoying a great meal.  One last comment on the wine guy’s approach to wine service.  I ordered a glass of the Caymus cab to enjoy with the filet.  He comes back with the bottle and asks “do you want a clean glass”?   My first glass was a granacha.  There’s clearly a significant amount of the wine remaining in my glass. My brain screams, “Come on man, what the hell do you think?”  Fortunately, my mouth says “Yes, please.”

 

Evening complete.

 

[tcmagnum]

On ‎9‎/‎1‎/‎2019 at 4:25 PM, What A Market said:

Rooms announced as ready at 1:08pm. 

The important stuff at hand......

Very Very Important items!!!

[tcmagnum]

19 hours ago, What A Market said:

 

 

Love seeing the joy in both your faces!!

[What A Market]

calicakes:  You’ll be happy to know we didn’t brave the buffet this morning.  🤣

 

We ate in Luminae.  Very, very nice. And civilized.

The maitre d’ was curious why we were even trying the buffet — for breakfast or lunch.

We will be back!