Summit - September 10, 2004

[strawhat]

Hi Everyone!

My wife and I have been lurking on this board for a few weeks since we booked our seven day, Alaska cruise on the Summit (Vancouver round-trip, September 10-17). This is my first cruise, she has been on two Caribbean cruises before we met. We now live in the Caribbean for the past eight years and have no desire to cruise around here, but the idea of going to Alaska is exciting and the chilly weather will be a nice change for us.

I have a few questions that I hope you all can help us with.

We have booked a CC room and were wondering if the CC room gives us any advantages when booking shore excursions. We are not really "plan ahead" type people (we like to check things out and decide from there) but it seems as if we should be booking a few port activities before we sail. We have been interested in the helicopter tours in Juneau. Is one better than the others? Some seem to be two hours, some four - how much time is appropriate for a glacier tour if you've never done anything like this? Are there any activites that are "must dos?" Is dog sledding worth doing? The only sled trips I can find on the itinerary are on sleds with wheels, I think we would prefer snow or ice...any comments?

Are there any other activities in the other ports (Skagway and Sitka) that we shouldn't miss? We were thinking about salmon fishing in Sitka and the train ride in Skagway. We're not really the tour bus type and we try to avoid large crowds. We are a couple in our mid-thirties, who are going on the honeymoon we never had and leaving our five year old behind. We would like some free time in each port to hang out, explore, grab a beer and meet local people.

Also, is there a way to find out how booked the ship is? I have been checking this board for a few weeks and have not seen anyone else booked on the same cruise. I went to the connections section and couldn't find anyone there either. I realize that this is a message board and most people are not here but, is there a way to see if the ship is full? If it's not full should we try for an upgrade?

Regarding Spa services...should we book them before we go or can we do that on the ship when we arrive? We're not planning on doing too much but we've heard great things and want to try it at least once.

I'm sure we will have lots of questions as our trip gets closer and I truly appreciate any help anyone can give us. I promise to return the favor when we return home after our trip...

Thanks in adavnce for your answers...