Just returned from Quantum Alaska Cruise 13-20 June 2022

[SKSMIKE5]

I thought I would provide a quick summary of our trip. We had 21 people from our family on the cruise from age 17-93! I rented a scooter for my dad from Disabilities at Sea and it was waiting for him in his room when we got on the ship. We went out a day early and stayed at the Hampton Inn & Suites on 28th (thank you to all the cruise critic recommendations!). They provide a nice hot buffet for breakfast and is within walking distance to some restaurants. We used their shuttle service in the morning to get to the Pier and it was $15/pp. They were right on time and had plenty of room for everyone and their bags. We even arranged a pickup at the pier for our return. They were the National Towncar Service and you can reach them at 1-206-261-4806 as I believe they service more than just the Hampton.

 

We had a 12:00-12:30 report time for the pier and we arrived around 1145 after leaving the hotel at 11:15. I was able to quickly get a pier employee with a wheelchair for my dad and we were on our way. 3 of us went with my dad through the handicap lanes and the other 10 went through the normal line, which looked long but only took about 15 minutes longer! We had to show our passports, vax cards and our negative covid tests. They asked if we had our arrive Canada forms but didn't have to show them. We did have to provide the information from the arrive Canada form a couple days later on a form they put in our room. We were on board by 1230.

 

We had AWESOME weather all week. It was sunny and no rain. People were in the pools having a great time. I will say all the iFly reservations were gone really fast! By the time I tried to get one, even the one you pay for, they were all gone. And that was around 2 on the day we boarded. You can't reserve until you're connected to the ship wiFi so I couldn't due it when I was still in the terminal, so if you want to do that suggest you register it as soon as you can.

 

At Icy Straight we just paid to go up the "mountain" on the Gondola. The day was beautiful! Sunny and clear with no clouds! We docked at the Cannery dock so we had to take the free gondola over to the Wilderness Dock where we picked up the Gondola that wen to the top. We just bought our tickets for the Gondola at the visitors area at the Cannery Dock. They were $49/pp and you could use them multiple times over the day. We took dads scooter ashore and that worked well and it went right on the Gondola's. Stay on the areas with little rock or you may get stuck. The views were awesome! I planned to upload some pictures but they kept failing so you'll just have to take my word for it!

 

 

 

 

[SKSMIKE5]

Ok I figured out how to upload the pictures. Here are a few from the Gondola in Icy Strait

[SKSMIKE5]

When we went to Skagway we took a van tour and it pretty much followed the train route. It was a nice excursion with my parents and we made several stops to take pictures and our driver Mike was awesome. He would make sure we weren't stopped at a location with a big tour bus so we would move on and catch it on the way back. 

[SKSMIKE5]

In Juneau we went on a whale watching tour with Juneau Tours. They were great. Pick up was right downtown at the tramway that has lifts up the mountain. We docked right in downtown so that made it a very short walk. Again, the day was beautiful, sunny and warm. They had a lot of people going on their Whale watching tour and took us to the marina on three buses. Once there they had a small boat that held about 24 and another bigger boat held about 40. We were on the smaller boat but it didn't really matter as they all talk and had to wherever the whales are. We were lucky and saw a momma with her baby playing. The baby kept breaching and tail slapping. It was magnificent! 

[Nick67]

Following. Love the pics

[SKSMIKE5]

After Juneau we had a day at Sea which was relaxing. Our last stop was at Victoria BC and we were there from 4-10 per the itinerary, but in reality gangway went down at 4:45 and all aboard was 9:30 so we decided to stay on the ship. Our son and daughter in law just walked off and rented some bikes that were right outside the pier and then road around town and had a great time on their own.

 

We had early flights back to Ohio (Son was at 0930 and we were at 1030) so we decided to walk off the boat on our own. I was able to get a wheelchair to self push my dad off since we had to leave the scooter in the room. We went down to deck 5 at about 6:25 and the ship was cleared at 6:45. We had already arranged the Towncar Service to pick us up at 6:30 and they had texted me they were there and ready. Once you leave the ship you have to go down an escalator or an elevator (single elevator!). They won't let you take the escalator if you can't hold on to the rail with one hand. So if you are pulling to bags they make you take the elevator. We had to take the elevator since dad was in a wheelchair, but stay left if you don't need it. Even with that we were through customs and in the Towncar by 7:00 and at the airport by 7:30. We were flying Alaska Air and checked our bags at the curb because it was a ZOO inside! My daughter in law wasn't TSA prechecked but she used the Spot Saver I read about on CC and got to skip the long line. 

 

Also if you are going to use the Port Valet sign up early because they only take so many and some in our group missed out on it. It's not available if your flight is before 11 am.

 

Sorry it is over, we had a great time!

[Jaynay]

Thank you for your trip report.  It was really helpful and fun to follow!

[tallgirl97]

Hi there, I'm curious who you did the van tour with in Skagway?

[ldubenion]

I’ve got a few questions, hope you don’t mind! Didn’t plan on possibility of renting a scooter, but knee started acting up.
 

Did you get the Ins with your rental?

Did you have an accessible room (I don’t) - not sure if it’ll fit through doors of other rooms?

Did anyone have them parked outside the room?

 

Thanks.

 

[SKSMIKE5]

6 hours ago, tallgirl97 said:

Hi there, I'm curious who you did the van tour with in Skagway?

We used Chilkoot Charters. They were very nice. Even offered to go get their personal van to pick up my dad at the end of the pier so he didn't have to walk to the tour van! Mike was our driver, he's married to the lady who's name I forget that met us on the dock to direct us to the van. Nice couple! 

[SKSMIKE5]

5 hours ago, ldubenion said:

I’ve got a few questions, hope you don’t mind! Didn’t plan on possibility of renting a scooter, but knee started acting up.
 

Did you get the Ins with your rental?

Did you have an accessible room (I don’t) - not sure if it’ll fit through doors of other rooms?

Did anyone have them parked outside the room?

 

Thanks.

 

I did not get the insurance with the scooter. My parents had a handicap room and it fit nicely in there. I do not think they are allowed to be parked outside the rooms and I didn't see any outside the rooms. Depending on when you are sailing you could check to see if they have any handicap rooms available. I saw several people with those roller type walkers that may help with your knee and fit into your room. 

[CatLadyFemme]

You cannot park scooters in the hall; it is a fire hazard. If you might need one, contact Royal or your TA about an accessible cabin.it would be a super tight fit in most cabins but can likely be done except in the smaller inside rooms.

 

 

[fsufancc]

We are doing the Quantum this very same week but in 2023 (actually June 12-19, 2023).  So glad to hear the weather was cooperative - warm and sunny.  We are going with our 3 grown kids and their spouses.  My daughter and her husband are the only ones without a passport and or TSA-Pre.  I am pestering them to get the Passport and Global Entry (just $25 more than TSA-Pre). 

 

Can't wait and fingers crossed for BIG sales of add-ons like DBP, The Key and other services.

 

Thanks for posting the pics and trip updates. 

[SKSMIKE5]

On 6/28/2022 at 9:17 AM, fsufancc said:

We are doing the Quantum this very same week but in 2023 (actually June 12-19, 2023).  So glad to hear the weather was cooperative - warm and sunny.  We are going with our 3 grown kids and their spouses.  My daughter and her husband are the only ones without a passport and or TSA-Pre.  I am pestering them to get the Passport and Global Entry (just $25 more than TSA-Pre). 

 

Can't wait and fingers crossed for BIG sales of add-ons like DBP, The Key and other services.

 

Thanks for posting the pics and trip updates. 

Just so you know, they can use a Passport Card on this itinerary, that's what my dad used, but he's 93 and he figured he wouldn't be traveling internationally and need a passport. Sound like your kids are young and should probably just pay the extra and get passports! 

[fsufancc]

17 hours ago, SKSMIKE5 said:

Just so you know, they can use a Passport Card on this itinerary, that's what my dad used, but he's 93 and he figured he wouldn't be traveling internationally and need a passport. Sound like your kids are young and should probably just pay the extra and get passports! 

I'm of the opinion that anyone over 18 should have a Passport.  Daughter and SIL are both in their 30s.  Get a Passport and a Global Entry card.  A lot of credit cards these days will cover the $100 fee for the card.

[mndity]

On 6/22/2022 at 7:50 PM, SKSMIKE5 said:

 

 

 

 

 

 

We were on the same cruise.  The weather at all the ports was amazing (mid 70s to 82). Brought too much cold weather gear. We did not take the tram to the top at Icy Strait but instead wondered around town.  IMHO Icy Strait might be a desired stop in a couple years but not now.  Did find a small restaurant in town (Fisherman's Daughter) with amazing fish and milkshakes!! 

 

Skagway was a very fun place.  Train trip was very nice. Salmon bake very tasty but I did not find enough gold to retire.....  Visited the Red Onion Saloon and learned a bit of the history of the place. Wondered around downtown and checked out the breweries!!

 

Juneau was last but perhaps the best. Went on a Whale watching tour through Alaska Shore excursions (not through RCCL as they were sold out months earlier)  towards the end of the tour we stopped by a group of boats watch a young whale having fun breaching and tail splashing.  We were surprised to see this whale swim towards our boat.  When it got within 10-15 feet it started splashing our boat, breaching, swimming under the boat and having a good ol' time with mom watching things from 30-40 yards away.  Our Captain, Branden said to never take a whale watching tour again because what had happened will probably never happen again. Very fun experience.

 

The stop at Victoria??  Sunday night after 5 pm???  I didn't see the reason for it.  We walked around, mainly through a residential area to get to the downtown area.  Back on the boat by 9pm and finished packing.

 

This was a cruise we to reschedule twice due to Covid but it was definitely a bucket-list experience.  The only problem..... we both tested positive for Covid.  My wife the night we got home and myself 4 days later. Nothing serious just rundown with cough and a fever.

 

In all I agree with SKSMIKE5 that it was a great time!!

[Biker19]

3 hours ago, mndity said:

The stop at Victoria??  Sunday night after 5 pm???  I didn't see the reason for it. 

Needed to satisfy the PVSA requirement, not your enjoyment of the port.

[miraflores]

3 hours ago, mndity said:

The stop at Victoria??  Sunday night after 5 pm???  I didn't see the reason for it.  We walked around, mainly through a residential area to get to the downtown area.  Back on the boat by 9pm and finished packing.

 

It's a technical stop, outside the US, to satisfy PVSA (Passenger Vessel Services Act) requirements. This is about the only reason ships ever stop in Victoria, or Ensenada.

Edited July 6, 2022 by miraflores

[sushitex]

It was recommended to me by a fellow cruiser to tour Butchart Gardens (near Victoria, B.C.) so that's what we did during our late May cruise on the Quantum. Yes, we didn't get off the ship until @ 5 pm, but we packed some prepackaged snacks. A good thing we did - none of the restaurants at the Gardens were still open. The Gardens, however, were truly magnificent and there was still plenty of sunlight. The tour also included a stop at the Butterfly Museum. Nice, but the Gardens are the real show. My son-in-law who is into biology, botany and loves to plant things, would have been ecstatic had he been there. Don't miss the Sunken Gardens and Japanese Gardens if you go - spectacular! 

https://www.butchartgardens.com/ 

Edited July 6, 2022 by sushitex

[Jimbo]

Did I miss it in your review, but where are the glacier pictures?

[Chrisymayb]

During checkin, did they scan the QR code for the negative Covid test results, or just look at the papers? We board on Friday for our Alaska trip and want to make sure we’re prepared!

[mndity]

19 hours ago, Biker19 said:

Needed to satisfy the PVSA requirement, not your enjoyment of the port.

Figured it was something like that!