Live-ish Alaska on the Edge 9-6 to 9-13

[OrtonPark]

Currently awaiting Lyft that will take us from the uh, serviceable Red Roof Inn Sea-Tac to Pier 91. 
 

A note on this hotel: I booked it because I knew we were arriving in Seattle late, after a long travel day, and would not have the time or energy to enjoy lovely hotel amenities. So I looked for close, clean, and cheap. Red Roof fit the bill. It is very shabby and rundown but it is clean and quiet (so long as the shower fan is off). 
 

if you want a nice hotel stay to kick off your trip, this ain’t it. If you want a cheapish place to lie your head for a few hours, it’ll do. 

Edited September 6 by OrtonPark

[Ciaranaman]

Following!  I've no doubt your accommodations, later today, will be much better 😉.  Sending you great embarkation vibes to kick off your cruise 🛳️

~Bernadette

[OrtonPark]

3 hours ago, Ciaranaman said:

Following!  I've no doubt your accommodations, later today, will be much better 😉.  Sending you great embarkation vibes to kick off your cruise 🛳️

~Bernadette

Yes, my husband said it’ll be a “study in contrast” - and it was! After being stuck in a long line of taxis and Lyft cars, embarking was a breeze. On the ship, stop off at muster and in our beautiful room in under 30 minutes. Things looked more chaotic than they really were - the port crew knows what they are doing. 
 

Our room steward stopped by to introduce himself and let us know our rooms were ready. 
 

The room (sky suite) is gorgeous, large, and cleverly configured with lots of storage and more hangers than we need. 
 

After unpacking, we headed to Luminae. There was a brief wait, which left some passengers disgruntled, but what did they expect?! It’s a short time window so almost every suite passenger is going there at the same time. 
 

Once seated, service was impeccable. My bourbon and peaches was deliciously sweet; Hs woodsman was strong and tasty. We asked for an off-menu shrimp cocktail - good choice! The lobster roll was just okay but the burger was wonderful. Off to more exploring and, almost certainly, a nap before sailaway. 

[Ciaranaman]

Excellent start!  Enjoy!

~Bernadette

[Jim_Iain]

Just what I needed a Live Alaska Post.    We will be flying to Vancouver in a Week for our first Oceania Cruise.   

 

Will enjoy your post to get a good idea of temperatures an port activities. 

 

I've been following a Cunard Alaska cruise and it looks wet and on the cold side.  

 

Hope you have a wonderful cruise

[mac_tlc]

We did this itinerary three weeks ago and had a wonderful time on Edge. We were in a SV, so I missed my Luminae Bourbon and Peaches, but after two days, the MDR bar service was able to replicate it, Never had to ask after day 3!

 

Enjoy Alaska as it is just beautiful. 

 

mac_tlc

Edited September 6 by mac_tlc

[Barwick Cruiser]

Following as well! Hope you enjoy a wonderful cruise. We’ve done Alaska twice in September and had good weather both times. Def some rain but not nearly what we’d been anticipating which was great. Layers is def key but we still got some wear out of our shorts! 

@Jim_Iainwill you be posting a live on your cruise? 

[doghog]

7 hours ago, OrtonPark said:

Currently awaiting Lyft that will take us from the uh, serviceable Red Roof Inn Sea-Tac to Pier 91. 
 

A note on this hotel: I booked it because I knew we were arriving in Seattle late, after a long travel day, and would not have the time or energy to enjoy lovely hotel amenities. So I looked for close, clean, and cheap. Red Roof fit the bill. It is very shabby and rundown but it is clean and quiet (so long as the shower fan is off). 
 

if you want a nice hotel stay to kick off your trip, this ain’t it. If you want a cheapish place to lie your head for a few hours, it’ll do. 

Bon Voyage and hurry back. 😉 🥂 We'll be on the Edge 13 September.

[OrtonPark]

After exploring the ship for awhile, we were flagging so we had a “nappaccino” (coffee drink + 20 minute nap) and felt much better. We did middling well at musical trivia, then headed to the retreat lounge for sail away. 

 

Sail away was beautiful- perfect weather with a gorgeous breeze. H enjoyed a cocktail but I wanted to workout later so I stuck with water. People are friendly and helpful to each other, we’ve noticed. 
 

I went to the gym and used an empty exercise studio to do a YouTube workout. Nothing at Luminae jumped out at us for dinner, so we hung out for awhile before giving Blu a try. 
 

At 7:30, we were seated with no problem at Blu. The food was absolutely delicious. The blue cheese soufflé and filet mignon were standouts. 
 

We weren’t offered drinks until after our entrees were served, but we were happy to stick with water anyway. We are now headed to the Studio for live karaoke. We will not sing - why ruin the cruise for everyone 🤣

[OrtonPark]

A few dinner pics (I keep forgetting to take them) and a note on our butler. 
 

He is here, I messaged him with a request (to inquire as to getting into Blu). He insisted on meeting us in person. He was very handsome and gracious, but not particularly helpful. 
 

Regarding Blu, he first encouraged us to try Luminae, but said we could stop by Blu and ask. lol. 
 

I asked if I could have a latte delivered in the morning, and he suggested I order morning room service. lol again. 

[OrtonPark]

One last note: people are more dressed up than I expected, from reading reviews here. More “smart” than “casual,” at least in the evening. 

[OrtonPark]

Woke up early (for me), probably due to the time change. We watched live band karaoke last night - the band is good and very smart about how they support the singers, who varied in ability. It was fun! 

Then to the martini bar for the bartender show and the ridiculously fun silent disco. Silent disco was so fun - we’d stick with one channel but then see another channel’s listeners (indicated by the colored lights on the headphones) pop off so we’d switch quickly to hear what they’re hearing. 
 

It was really awesome but I guess I shook my tail feathers a little too hard because I felt pretty wiped out afterwards and my H had to get his last drink of the night by himself while I went to the cabin. 
 

More info on the cabin: as a sky suite, we have an actual step-outside balcony with two chairs, a small table, and one lounger. We are doing some “bathroom sink laundry” and hanging it on a travel clothesline which is probably tacky but I didn’t want to pack 7 sets of workout clothes.  
 

Off to breakfast- I am happy to answer any questions! 
 

ETA: breakfast was delicious. Instant offerings of coffee, various juices, various pastries. I had the cherry yogurt parfait (delicious but a tad over sweet: H had salmon and a fruit plate). 
 

The skies are blue and beautiful this morning but the deck is jacket weather with a very strong breeze. Some might call it a wind, but I’m on vacation, so breeze it is! 
 

 

[Jim_Iain]

15 hours ago, Barwick Cruiser said:

will you be posting a live on your cruise? 

 

If able to, I will have two posts.... One will be a comparison of Oceania to Celebrity here.      I will be doing a Live Post on the Oceania Thread.

 

The reason I say hopefully is that Oceania will not have the ship we are on upgraded to Starlink until the end of the years.   Thus we will have the OLD satellite based wifi.     I may be able to get around this as the Alaska cruise is mostly in the  U.S. and can use Cellular while in port.

[Syd58]

16 hours ago, OrtonPark said:

One last note: people are more dressed up than I expected, from reading reviews here. More “smart” than “casual,” at least in the evening. 

Did this cruise the week before you in S1 aft suite.  This was not the case on our cruise.  This was the most casually-dressed bunch I've ever seen on any cruise.  Very, very few people wore dressy clothes.  One guy was wearing shorts and a t-shirt in Luminae at dinner.

[Ferry_Watcher]

Happy that your embarkation went well in Seattle and that you were on the ship so quickly.

 

Can you share any Retreat photos that you have?  Many of us would love to see what Edge Class Retreat is like.  Thanks!

[peanut head]

18 hours ago, OrtonPark said:

A few dinner pics (I keep forgetting to take them) and a note on our butler. 
 

He is here, I messaged him with a request (to inquire as to getting into Blu). He insisted on meeting us in person. He was very handsome and gracious, but not particularly helpful. 
 

Regarding Blu, he first encouraged us to try Luminae, but said we could stop by Blu and ask. lol. 
 

I asked if I could have a latte delivered in the morning, and he suggested I order morning room service. lol again. 

 

Thanks for taking us along.  Have a wonderful trip.  A few questions:

 

1. being that it's September, are there children on board?

2. what is the name of your butler?

[curry767]

Thanks for the live posts. Really helps someone who is doing their first Celebrity cruise next year. 

[Syd58]

1 hour ago, peanut head said:

 

Thanks for taking us along.  Have a wonderful trip.  A few questions:

 

1. being that it's September, are there children on board?

2. what is the name of your butler?

We were on this same cruise the week before, and there were very few kids onboard.  I think I saw 2 or 3. 

[OrtonPark]

2 hours ago, Ferry_Watcher said:

Happy that your embarkation went well in Seattle and that you were on the ship so quickly.

 

Can you share any Retreat photos that you have?  Many of us would love to see what Edge Class Retreat is like.  Thanks!

Yes!  Not the best quality,  it here is the Retreat at around 4:30 pm

[OrtonPark]

2 hours ago, peanut head said:

 

Thanks for taking us along.  Have a wonderful trip.  A few questions:

 

1. being that it's September, are there children on board?

2. what is the name of your butler?

1. Very few children - I have seen three. All of them younger than school age. 
 

2.  I do not remember, but I’ll look when we return to our room. 

Edited September 8 by OrtonPark

[OrtonPark]

Very relaxing and lovely sea day so far - we saw two excellent lectures, swam and hot tubbed in the solarium, napped (not in the solarium, but there are a few snoozers here), and had a good workout in the beautiful gym. Nothing like cardio with a floor to ceiling ocean view. 
 

We are looking forward to Chic Night and the Magic show. Skies are blue and beautiful at the moment. 

Edited September 8 by OrtonPark

[Georgia_Peaches]

Sounds like you are off to a fabulous start!  Looking forward to following along!

[OrtonPark]

Dinner was so good I forgot to take photos! H said it was the best meal of the trip. Luminae was festive with most people dressed up nicely (not to the nines, generally, but a step up from business casual).

 

We both got the poached lobster and the cold corn soup appetizers, and they were absolutely delicious. My H will probably be talking about that soup for YEARS, lol. My red snapper was perfectly prepared, and Hs steak was good, too. Desserts were wonderful as always - I got the milk chocolate pill and H got a sort of deconstructed carrot cake. 
 

Some folks spotted a whale, but alas, we did not. Now in the theater awaiting a magic show. No sign of a reserved area for suite guests, but we got here early enough not to need one. 9 pm show; maybe the earlier one was more full. 
 

oh another note on the cabin: the shower is roomy and nice, but I’ve never seen this feature before: rather than cold water being controlled by one spigot and hot by the other, one spigot handle dials the water temperature and all the water comes from the other. 

[OrtonPark]

Dinner was so good I forgot to take photos! H said it was the best meal of the trip. Luminae was festive with most people dressed up nicely (not to the nines, generally, but a step up from business casual).

 

We both got the poached lobster and the cold corn soup appetizers, and they were absolutely delicious. My H will probably be talking about that soup for YEARS, lol. My red snapper was perfectly prepared, and Hs steak was good, too. Desserts were wonderful as always - I got the milk chocolate pill and H got a sort of deconstructed carrot cake. 
 

Some folks spotted a whale, but alas, we did not. Now in the theater awaiting a magic show. No sign of a reserved area for suite guests, but we got here early enough not to need one. 9 pm show; maybe the earlier one was more full. 
 

oh another note on the cabin: the shower is roomy and nice, but I’ve never seen this feature before: rather than cold water being controlled by one spigot and hot by the other, one spigot handle dials the water temperature and all the water comes from the other. 

[OrtonPark]

I don’t know why the other post posted twice. Sorry!
 

Last night’s main theater show was magician Jessica Jane. She was very exuberant and charming, but I found the actual magic lackluster. She is an historian on magic, with a specialization in Harry Houdini, and I would have much rather seen her do an hour lecture on that topic. 
 

Later in the Club, the crew’s song and dance team put on a combo performance/dance party and they were fantastic. So much fun. 
 

Woke up in Ketchikan and ordered room service for breakfast. We are attending the Lumberjack Show and a wildlife tour on a hovercraft. It is chilly but partly sunny today. 

Edited September 8 by OrtonPark