Just back ... here is some info

[tinkerbells.twin]

Just back from Celebrity Millienium Northbound Vancouver - Seward

Aft balcony room 7203 Concierge room

 

The weather in Alaska was pretty nice. 60s and 70s mostly sunny not cold like I thought it would be... we got a few days with some light rain but usually it cleared up. It was WAY greener than I thought too (yes it is considered a natural rain forest but I never expected it to look like Ireland!!!!)

 

We flew into Vancouver, Canada and the city was BEAUTIFUL! We took a towncar w/ a company called High End Limo (they have flat rates $39 for a towncar and $45 canadian for a limo ... but oldly enough it is more money if you actually make reservations but no need to cuz they are always sitting out front)

We stayed at the Westin Bayshore which we were glad we chose. It was right on the seawall and right at the beginning of Stanley Park (it is closer to the ship port as well and the scenery and activities are better IMHO than staying near the airport)

We went to Stanley park and vancouver aquarium saw tons of sea life my favorites the sea otters and beluga whales (with a baby beluga that was three days old!!)

 

In Alaska we saw SOOO much wildlife TONS of humpback whales, a pod of Orca whales, grizzlys, black bears (one mommy w/ three baby bears too!!!), coyote, moose, husky puppies, bald eagles, marmot , red squirrels (much smaller and cuter than the squirrels around here), seals, sea lions. One morning from our balcony we saw a humpback whale breaching!!

We went to a wildlife conservation center where they save injured animals and saw tons more animals includes three week old baby moose!!! SOOOO CUTE! No polar bears (except stuffed ones!!) TONS of people asked me this!

 

Our excursions were AWESOME! Would not change our choices ... the only thing I wish was that we had MORE TIME!!

-In Ketchikan we did a Misty Fjords cruise we saw amazing waterfalls, active bald eagles nests, new eddystone rock (a volcanic plug) and a grizzly in a meadow playing in a stream.

- In Juneau we did whale watching / Orca Point Lodge / Mendenhall glacier (thats where we saw the pod of Orca, humpbacks, seals etc) , stopped for lunch at Orca Point Lodge which we had AMAZING salmon, Then we went to Medenhall glacier ... took a short 12 minute hike to the beach area and the view was SO rewarding (much better than from way up in the visitors center) wish we had time to take the hike all the way up to the glacier but they told us it was a 3 hour round trip (its looks so much closer than that though!)

-In Skagway we took the bus/ railway tour that brought us to the Yukon territory the scenery was amazing, also saw several black bears grazing on dandelions along side of the road. We stopped for lunch at Caribou crossing a nice little place where the have the sled dogs and you can do a short 15 minute dog sled run (on wheels not skis cuz there is no snow) and we saw husky puppies!! On our ride back we saw a momma bear w/ her three cubs playing and running around. Then we took the White pass railway for our scenic trip back to Skagway.

-In Icy straight point we did the whale watch / bear trek ....humpback whales all around the boat! They are so curious they come over to investigate ... one couple was kayaking and a whale went right up to them !!! Then we did the bear trek which after seeing a big grizzly bear cross the road on the way to the trail .... we werent so sure we wanted to get out of the bus!!! But luckily we saw beautiful scenery and not big bears during our hike!

 

The day we were at Hubbard Glacier the captian told us we were closer than he has ever been able to get to the glacier ... it was amazing .. NO PICTURE can ever do it justice! It made crackling noises like ri ce crispy cereal and white thunder sounds like thunder when the glacier calves ... the sight is something to see!!!

 

Our last day when we got off the ship in the morning we did a private tour (our flight didnt leave from Anchorage until 9:40 pm that night) We booked thru Salmonberry tours and they were EXCELLENT and I HIGHLY recommend them!!

They picked us up at the ship ... fist we went to Kenai Fjords national park and took a short 20 minute hike to Exit glacier ... the we went to the wildlife conservation center ... then to Mount Alyeska to take a tram ride to the top of the mountain for lunch .... then took a tour around anchorage before getting dropped of at the airport (they even offered to hold our luggage and let us shop and eat in downtown and bring us back to the airport later if we wanted)

Much better than the feedback we heard from a few of our fellow cruisers we ran into at the airport about the railroad transfers offered by Celebrity!!!!

 

 

We LOVED our aft balcony at the back of the ship ... it was HUGE as big as our room!! It was great for relaxing and watching the sights the best part was leaving hubbard glacier and watching from our room.

As far as concierge it came in handy when boarding and unboarding the ship (we always got priority) we got fresh fruit and flowers in the room everyday, champagne on arrival, and afternoon canapes (which were kinda gross ..HAHAHA) Balconies are outfitted with higher-quality furnishings, including a table big enough for dining.

 

It was such an amazing place ... and we will definitely go back! But I think this time we will do more time on land so we can do more hiking and more glaciers

 

Thanks to all that helped with my questions!!

[themerle]

Enjoyed the review, thanks for posting! Alaska is wonderfully!

[coloradogreycat]

What a great review! Do you mind if I ask you how much Salmonberry charged for your tour? And do they charge by the person or by the "carload"? :confused:

[Donna S]

What cabin did you stay in and was it noisy?

[tinkerbells.twin]

coloradogreycat

Here is their website.

http://www.salmonberrytours.com

Candice is the owner and she is GREAT w/ email info.

It was just the two of us and it was $199 per person (we were originally going to have my sister and my two nieces and it would have been $159 per person) so I think it gets cheaper the more people you have but. Thats all inclusive... This means it includes entrance to the wildlife center, Exit glacier, Mount Alyeska & the tram ride, the guide and vehicle (private), and even lunch. They picked us up at 9:00 am and dropped us off at the airport at 5:30pm so we had them all day!!! It might be different pricing according to what you want to do and the amount of time.

 

Donna s

We were in room 7203 which was an aft balcony ..... no problem w/ noise at all. We LOVED the aft view!!!

[Sammy1]

coloradogreycat

Here is their website.

http://www.salmonberrytours.com

Candice is the owner and she is GREAT w/ email info.

It was just the two of us and it was $199 per person (we were originally going to have my sister and my two nieces and it would have been $159 per person) so I think it gets cheaper the more people you have but. Thats all inclusive... This means it includes entrance to the wildlife center, Exit glacier, Mount Alyeska & the tram ride, the guide and vehicle (private), and even lunch. They picked us up at 9:00 am and dropped us off at the airport at 5:30pm so we had them all day!!! It might be different pricing according to what you want to do and the amount of time.

 

Sounds like they offer a good option for Anchorage. We just contacted them for pretty much the same itinerary and they quoted us a higher rate. :confused: Did you negotiate your price? Also, who was your driver/guide - would you recommend them?

 

Thanks very much!

 

Sam

[Sammy1]

And, how did you find out about Salmon Berry Tours? I haven't been able to find any other recent reviews of this company.

 

Has anyone else out there recently used them?

 

Thanks again!

 

Sam