Live from Canada & Alaska June 2023

[TraderSam]

Pick up from the Delta was well organised. We had been instructed to leave our luggage in our rooms, just as we had found it. After a short drive, we were back in position in front of our carriage and great news.... the sun was shining! 🌞

 

The Staff had the flags and red carpet out and were all there to welcome us on board again.

 

Before boarding, we all took the opportunity to take the photos we should have gotten yesterday. The manager was kindly acting as our photographer, taking photos of us all with the

flags. 

 

 

The RM Staff at Kamloops were all standing on the platform to wave us off. What a lovely touch. 😍

 

It was our turn to go down to breakfast first (remember I mentioned Revenge Day) and the food was even better than yesterday. 

 

 

[TraderSam]

The views through the windows were so much better today, thanks to the blue skies and sunshine. 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 18, 2023 by TraderSam

[TraderSam]

Our Lunch Menu was almost the same as yesterday, but with a prosciutto and brie sharing plate. 

 

 We opted to have the Crab Ravioli and the Steelhead Trout for our Mains. We both had the Lemon Posset for Dessert...and of course, some Sauvingnon Blanc. 

 

 

 

All too soon, we were approaching Vancouver and our time on the Rocky Mountaineer was nearly over. 

The Staff handed us a postcard which they had signed and we gave our thanks and said our goodbyes. 

 

The transfer of us passengers and our luggage to our respective hotels was very well organised indeed. 

We can't recommend the Rocky Mountaineer experience highly enough. 🚂⛰️

[Sunshine Bob]

Thanks for the RM section , I and my better half will be doing the Jasper to Vancouver trip in August and we are now VERY much looking forward to the trip.

 

We will be moving onto the Eclipse after that to celebrate a significant birthday to double down of the vacation fun.

 

All the best

[vickykay]

Very much enjoyed your review, especially of the Rocky Mountaineer. So detailed.  Can I ask which tour company you used for your Lake Louise tour?  Thanks.

[jimbri]

Beautiful photos

[cruise wizard]

We did the same RM trip (many ears ago) but were on a budget (Red Leaf Service)............we should have done the Gold Service - BIG difference. We attended a rodeo in Kamloops with dinner - just a short walk from our hotel which made for a fun evening.

Edited June 18, 2023 by cruise wizard

[TraderSam]

The next part of our trip sees us spending 3 nights in Vancouver, prior to boarding the Eclipse to Alaska.
Having visited Vancouver before, we have been to most of the places of interest and since we've had early rises way too many times this past week, the plan is to take things at a slower pace and just do whatever we fancy.

 

So, first up is a visit to Granville Island.
You have 2 choices of ferry company operating in False Creek.  Aquabus appear to be larger and can accommodate strollers and wheelchairs but do not go to the Maritime Museum. False Creek Ferries do cover the museum that as a stop but are smaller boats. Both are a similar price for an all-day ticket (18CAD) and run constantly. Individual journey tickets are available too. 

 

 

We love looking around food markets and buying our lunch there. So colourful and appealing. There were plenty of makers with stalls there too, from jewellery to pottery and leather goods.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This one gave us the biggest laugh. A popular delicacy from our home land. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

 

 

Lunch was Spanakopita with salad. 

 

Later in the day, we had some Pecan pie and Coconut Cream Pie. 

 

 

 

[Barwick Cruiser]

Such a great report, thank you so much for including your precruise travels. On the train, you get breakfast and lunch each day? What do you do for dinner? Would it have been in Kamloops if you’d been on time? I’m confused regarding what meals are included and served on  the train. Do you have a menu from the second breakfast?
Very happy for you that the weather cleared for your second day. Hope you enjoy your days in Vancouver…we check out Granville Market every time we’re there too lol. You can always find one of the local vendors renting bicycles and take a spin around Stanley Park….take a picnic with you, we usually just grabs subs, and eat along the waterfront…great outing with scenery on a nice day. Have fun! 

[TraderSam]

50 minutes ago, Barwick Cruiser said:

Such a great report, thank you so much for including your precruise travels. On the train, you get breakfast and lunch each day? What do you do for dinner? Would it have been in Kamloops if you’d been on time? I’m confused regarding what meals are included and served on  the train. Do you have a menu from the second breakfast?
Very happy for you that the weather cleared for your second day. Hope you enjoy your days in Vancouver…we check out Granville Market every time we’re there too lol. You can always find one of the local vendors renting bicycles and take a spin around Stanley Park….take a picnic with you, we usually just grabs subs, and eat along the waterfront…great outing with scenery on a nice day. Have fun! 

Yes, breakfast and lunch on the train but I would consider it to be a substantial 3 course meal for lunch. 

A timestamp on one of my photos shows our main course served at 14.36 so that must have been the day we had second seating. I'm guessing first lunch service started at 1pm. We were NEVER hungry. So many snacks served too, like chocolate covered peanuts and raisins and savoury pretzel mix.

 

I think they state arrival as being between 6 and 8pm so you could have eaten in Kamloops. Maybe others who have travelled previously will chime in and clarify. 

In Gold leaf, the breakfast menu was the same for both days. 👍🏻I don't do runny eggs so had the scramble both days. Anything else, please just ask. 😍

I'm trying my best to finish the Vancouver segment as I'm about to head to the cruise terminal. 🛳️

 

😁 Stanley Park coming up... 

[dreamer321]

May I just say I'm absolutely loving this thread with all the wonderful pictures with descriptions.

 

Thank you

[The Traveling Man]

6 hours ago, TraderSam said:

Yes, breakfast and lunch on the train but I would consider it to be a substantial 3 course meal for lunch. 

A timestamp on one of my photos shows our main course served at 14.36 so that must have been the day we had second seating. I'm guessing first lunch service started at 1pm. We were NEVER hungry. So many snacks served too, like chocolate covered peanuts and raisins and savoury pretzel mix.

 

I think they state arrival as being between 6 and 8pm so you could have eaten in Kamloops. Maybe others who have travelled previously will chime in and clarify. 

In Gold leaf, the breakfast menu was the same for both days. 👍🏻I don't do runny eggs so had the scramble both days. Anything else, please just ask. 😍

I'm trying my best to finish the Vancouver segment as I'm about to head to the cruise terminal. 🛳️

 

😁 Stanley Park coming up... 

We took the same route 19 years ago.  Our train also was delayed getting into Kamloops, but we did make it there by about 8:30 PM.  There was a restaurant in our hotel.  The dinner there was not at all on a par with the food served on the train, but it was filling.  Looking at your photos, I started salivating just remembering the amazing meals on board.

[Silkroad]

@TraderSam I hope you’re on board and having a wonderful cruise! Please let us know how things are going when you have a chance. 

[marci4tony]

Here's hoping that your cruise portion will be all you imagined.  We had a rough experience with Celebrity/Alaska with very blatant ignorant/prima donna passengers and management with no backbone to put a stop to said weeklong behavior.  Hopefully it was an isolated "group" - because Alaska is beautiful, and the serenity and majesty should be enjoyed without exterior circumstances.

[vanislandcruisers]

Thanks for taking us along...really enjoying following along with your travels!

[Barwick Cruiser]

It’s been three days since @TraderSam updated…I’m thinking the wifi isn’t working very well, or they’re enjoying their cruise too much! The nerve 🤣🤣

[Silkroad]

22 minutes ago, Barwick Cruiser said:

It’s been three days since @TraderSam updated…I’m thinking the wifi isn’t working very well, or they’re enjoying their cruise too much! The nerve 🤣🤣

I hope it’s the latter!

[yoshi]

I can't wait to see the Alaska photos, maybe when Trader Sam gets back home 🙂

(keeping the thread near the top while they enjoy the rest of their cruise)

[TraderSam]

Well, so much for a live report!🤦🏼‍♀️

Classic WiFi was never good enough at any location, at any stage in the cruise, to post to Cruise Critic. I tried many times.

I could see I had notifications but could not open them. I could read posts but not reply. We could send messages but not photos on What's App. Only messenger between iPhone devices worked for us to share photos with family at home.

 

Sorry to let you all down. 😔

The good news is, the cruise was wonderful and I have lots to share. I'm going to pick up where I left off, with more of our pre-cruise time in Vancouver. 👍🏻 

 

[Silkroad]

1 minute ago, TraderSam said:

Well, so much for a live report!🤦🏼‍♀️

Classic WiFi was never good enough at any location, at any stage in the cruise, to post to Cruise Critic. I tried many times.

I could see I had notifications but could not open them. I could read posts but not reply. We could send messages but not photos on What's App. Only messenger between iPhone devices worked for us to share photos with family at home.

 

Sorry to let you all down. 😔

The good news is, the cruise was wonderful and I have lots to share. I'm going to pick up where I left off, with more of our pre-cruise time in Vancouver. 👍🏻 

 

I’m so happy you had a wonderful cruise! I did wonder if Wi-Fi was the issue. It’s a pity you had to waste time trying to post. I am looking forward to the rest of your wonderful review🙂

[TraderSam]

And so back to our pre-cruise time in Vancouver. 

 

We walked down to Canada Place to understand where to go with luggage the following morning and of course, to have a look at the Princess and HAL ships in port. It was interesting watching the provisions being loaded o board. 

We then made our way along to the Coal Harbour area and on towards Stanley Park. 

Given that the weather forecast was for cloud & rain on the days we visited Vancouver, our plan was to book a seaplane tour upon arrival, based on the best forecast. The bottom line is that we never manged to do this due to the times with better weather being sold out. So we made do with watching the seaplanes take off and land and an old paddle steamer going on leisure trip.

No big deal. We can take a seaplane on another visit. Always good to have an excuse to come back. 😉

[TraderSam]

Onwards along the seawall, towards Stanley Park.

 

 

 

We cut in to Stanley Park to visit the totems.

 

 

This signage in Stanley Park made me laugh. Keep to your own lane.

🐎🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️

 

Our goal was to make it up to Prospect Point and the Lions Gate bridge to remind us that we would be sailing out beneath it tomorrow aboard the Eclipse. 

 

 

 

 

 

[TraderSam]

I think this ended up being a 28000 step day. 🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️

After lunch, coffee and a rest at Prospect Point, we headed to the rose gardens. 

 

 

 

 

 

I won't bore you with too many rose photos but they had some lovely fragrant varieties and a good range of colours. 

Yet again, I witnessed the those who have to trample into the flower beds to get a better selfie. Found myself secretly hoping a rose thorn would tear them a new one... 😉🤭

[TraderSam]

On our way out of the park, we stopped by two statues. 

One of Scotland's National  Bard, Rabbie Burns, apparently his was the first statue to be erected in the City of Vancouver. 

 Hubby was reciting as he stood there... 

 

When chapman billies leave the street,
And drouthy neebors neebors meet... 

 

Then onto Lord Stanley, who can be seen welcoming everyone with open arms. 

 

 

 

As I said, this was a long walking day but we enjoyed every minute of it. 

It was rounded off nicely as we watched the 2 ships make their way out and under the bridge. Off to Alaska. 

Just look at those skies! 

 

[hcat]

what a great review..live or not!

 

photos of breathtaking scenes,  places and items  of interest  flowers, food..all wonderful !

 

and the commentary is very enjoyable!

Thanks for sharing!