Cruising Goddess

Are you going to Alaska in 2012? I’m looking for someone to split the cost of the TourSaver coupon book. Please e-mail me if you are sailing in May-July and interested!

About Us
Chris and I are a married couple of DINKS (Double Income No Kids) in our early 30′s. This was our 4th cruise and 3rd cruise in the last 2 years. We have sailed Disney twice and Royal Caribbean once but this was our first Princess cruise.

We did not do a cruisetour and booked our land portion (2 nights in Anchorage, 2 nights in Denali, train to Whittier, and Prince William Sound cruise) independently, though we used Princess for the Denali portion. For more info about this, see my Day 2 post. Other than the Vancouver Overview tour before flying home, we also booked all our excursions independently.

Feel free to post any questions in the meantime or send me an e-mail!

Trip Report
Below are links by day to my DETAILED trip report with photos:

+ Day 1: Anchorage, Alaska – Historic Anchorage Hotel
+ Day 2: Denali National Park, Alaska – Alaska Railroad, Denali Princess, Husky Homestead Tour
+ Day 3: Denali National Park, Alaska – Eielson Shuttle Bus
+ Day 4: Denali National Park, Alaska – Canyon Run Whitewater Rafting, Historic Anchorage Hotel
+ Day 5: Whittier, Alaska – Alaska Railroad, Prince William Sound Cruise
+ Island Princess Review
+ Day 6: Hubbard Glacier, Alaska
+ Day 7: Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska
+ Day 8: Skagway, Alaska – White Pass & Yukon Railroad
+ Day 9: Juneau, Alaska – Mendenhall Glacier Dog Sledding
+ Day 10: Ketchikan, Alaska – Anan Creek Bear Viewing
+ Day 11: Day at Sea
+ Day 12: Vancouver, Canada
+ Newbie’s Guide to Princess Cruises

Overall Thoughts
This vacation was literally day after day of amazing experiences! Like many, I thought this might be a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Alaska but I definitely plan to return in a few years. I loved everything we did but there is so many more things I want to do!

Trip Photos
+ My Alaska photos
+ My photo book

All photos were taken with the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS1, which we bought for this cruise because it has 12x optical zoom, and the Canon PowerShot SD790 IS digital cameras. Many of the photos of Chris and I together were taken using Xshot Camera Extender/Monopod.

Trip Planning
I am an obsessive trip planner and detailed-oriented. These were the resources that helped make my trip a success:

+ Cruise Critic Alaska Forum: The folks on the Alaska Forum are SO helpful and I learned about so many things I would not have otherwise known.
+ Guide Books: Frommer’s Alaska and Frommer’s Alaska Cruises & Ports of Call
+ Port Maps: Destination Alaska coupon book
+ Cruise Compete: Get the best deal on your cruise by getting quotes from multiple travel agencies at one time! I’ve used this site to book 3 cruises now and have always gotten a killer deal!

Packing
Check out my tips on what to pack for an Alaskan cruise, including things we packed but didn’t need and separate clothing lists for men and women:
+ Alaskan Packing List

Shopping
I love collecting souvenirs and I share my favorite deals from my Alaskan trip:
+ Alaska Shopping

Monday, July 12, 2010

When we woke up at 6:45 am, we had already pulled into Vancouver, British Columbia. The final onboard account bill was delivered at 5 am and it was now correct. After having one last breakfast in buffet, we meet for our ship-sponsored Vancouver Overview tour at 8:20 am. Even though we usually try to avoid ship-sponsored excursions, this tour was the most convenient for us because our flight home departed at 2:30 pm and this tour would drop us off at the airport at the end.

After we disembarked, we went to the luggage claim area to get our luggage and we were missing one suitcase. Chris scoured the entire terminal looking for our suitcase, which is easy to spot because it’s orange, and couldn’t find it. After everyone with our color luggage tags got their suitcases, there was one left that was red and the same size as ours. We figured that the owner of this red suitcase must have taken our luggage by mistake because their luggage tag said 2 of 2 and obviously 1 of 2 was already claimed. We talked to the Princess and terminal staff. They tried to locate our suitcase but couldn’t so we filled out the lost luggage form. We were pretty sure that the owner of the red suitcase had ours and since everyone with Navy luggage tags were on our tour, we were pretty sure that our suitcase was on another bus for the same tour. If they didn’t find our luggage, the owner of the red suitcase just might check ours in at the airport and off to Arizona!! We informed the terminal and Horizon tour staff of the other person’s name and what we thought happened but there was nothing else we could do but start our tour and try not to worry about it.

During the tour, dispatch contacted our driver and said they located the bus that the red suitcase owner was on. The other bus driver would try to meet up with our bus since we were both stopping at Stanley Park. At the park, the other bus driver found us and opened up the first luggage compartment door on his bus. There was our orange suitcase!! What a relief! How someone can mistake an orange suitcase for a red one is beyond me. (Don’t want to sterotype but when Chris called the phone number on the luggage tag, he said the voicemail was of an elderly woman.) I’m glad I didn’t meet this person face to face or I would have had some choice words for them. Please, for the love of God, make sure you triple check that you are taking your own luggage and not someone else’s!! There are signs all over the terminal that ask you to make sure but people obviously ignore them. Anyway, I would have been majorly pissed if this lady took my ulus with her back to Arizona and I’d call her every day until she sent my suitcase back! I’m glad everything worked out.

On the tour itself…The Vancouver Overview tour began at 9:30 am. We saw Financial District, Chinatown, Gastown, Yaletown, and stopped at the totems at Stanley Park for 20 minutes. They dropped us off at the airport at 12 pm. It was a good tour for the short timeframe. The tour guide was very informative and knowledgable but sometimes I felt like it was a bit too much information. For example, while driving through an intersection, “If you turned right here and walked 3 blocks, there is an excellent Italian restaurant”. Uhhh…first of all, we can’t see it because we’re driving and it isn’t exactly a key landmark so why bother mentioning it? Plus, everyone is being dropped off at the airport so we’re all flying out today. When would we eat at this excellent Italian restaurant?? He was very good in sharing history about important landmarks and sights though. I guess too much information is better than not enough. I would have also rather spent more time in Stanley Park or made an additional stop in Gastown or Chinatown than just driving through some of the districts but I understand we had to be at the airport by noon. Overall, I’m still glad I got to see a little of Vancouver before leaving. I especially enjoyed Stanley Park and the totems. They were pretty neat!

Island Princess docked in Canada Place

Horizon Coach Lines motorcoach

2010 Olympic Cauldron

Chinatown lamp post

Gastown steam clock

Vancouver buildings from Stanley Park

Stanley Park Totem Poles

This Totem Pole gives perspective on how tall they really are

Scuba Girl Statue in Stanley Park

Inunnguaq rock statue

Science World

Check-in and security at the Vancouver Airport was a breeze. We grabbed lunch at one of the quick service restaurants in our terminal. Our flight was delayed by 20 minutes so we also had time to buy some souvenirs, including maple syrup, maple cream cookies, and lobster pate.

Read my final thoughts on our Island Princess Alaska Cruise.

+ See all Vancouver photos
+ Read more about my Island Princess Alaska Cruise

Sunday, July 11, 2010

This was a day at sea as we sailed towards Vancouver and past Vancouver Island. After 3 days of waking up early and losing an hour because we changed to Pacific Time at 2 am, we decided to sleep in and then had breakfast at the buffet. At 11:30 am, while we were still in Horizon Court, they opened the Dessert Buffet. Today was Island Princess’ 7th birthday and they had a birthday cake for her along with a ton of gorgeous and yummy looking cakes and desserts! (It’s such a coincidence that it was Island Princess’ birthday. It was also Voyager of the Seas birthday during our last cruise! We must have good nose for ship birthdays!)

Dessert Buffet

Island Princess’ Birthday Cake

Sailing past Vancouver Island

We went to the Photo Gallery, sorted through all our photos, and bought 4 total in addition to buying the Panraven photo book deal. By the way, if you want a professional photo of you at Glacier Bay or Hubbard Glacier, you need to be out on the top decks. The ship photographers only hang out there. We didn’t even know they’d be taking pictures and would have liked to go out there briefly to get a photo done.

We packed for a couple of hours and then went to afternoon tea, followed by some time in the hot tub. They had some reindeer chili at the Lido Pool so we tried some of that too. I played some video poker in the casino and actually came out ahead! I won $7.50!! We had sent out some laundry the day before using the all-you-can-fit-in-a-bag special and it arrived when we got back to the room. We went to dinner at 6:30 pm and this night we had very slow service. We weren’t out until around 9 pm and hurrily finished packing so we could set out the luggage at 10 pm for pickup. We also went to the Internet Cafe to check into our flight and print our boarding passes.

Make sure you ask for a print out of your onboard account in the morning of this day. We did and found out they had not given us credit for pre-paying for our internet package so essentially, we were paying for it twice! They said they couldn’t correct it until 11 pm this evening because “the night manager handles refunds and credits”. If we found out on the morning of disembarkation, we may have been out of luck on getting it corrected until we got home.

See my thorough review on Island Princess for more detailed opinions on the ship.

+ See all Island Princess photos
+ Read more about my Island Princess Alaska Cruise

Saturday, July 10, 2010

Our good luck in weather ran out in Ketchikan. It was foggy and drizzling the whole day. It didn’t rain so hard that we needed to bust out the rain pants, though we packed them in case, but water resistant pants and a waterproof jackets were musts. The ship was supposed to arrive at 10 am but we were able to disembark around 9:45 am. This was the first time we were actually in a line to wait to disembark.

Foggy, drizzly morning in Ketchikan

We had about an hour before our tour picked up and I winded up buying quite a few things in 45 minutes so Chris took them back to the ship while I walked out to the Eagle Totem to take photos of it. Our tour was scheduled for the entire day so we were worried we wouldn’t have time to walk around when we got back so we tried to squeeze in as much as we could.

Welcome to Ketchikan sign

Ketchikan Liquid Sunshine Gauge

Eagle Totem

We booked the Anan Creek Bear Viewing with Family Air Tours for $475 per person and added on a flight over Misty Fjords for $110 per person but we got 15% discount for booking before the end of January. Basically, what this entailed is chartering a plane to take you to Anan Bay in the Tongass National Forest. From there, you hike up a trail to the Anan Wildlife Observatory over Anan Creek, where bears come to fish for salmon. Family Air Tours picked us up at the Liquid Sunshine Gauge next to the Ketchikan Visitor’s Center on the pier at 10:45 am and drove us to their plane hangar. Dave is the owner and pilot. His plane is a Cessna 185 on floats so it takes off and lands in the water. We were the only ones on the plane for our trip. I sat in the back and Chris in the front, next to Dave. The flight was about 45 minutes, longer than advertised because Dave had to take “the long way” due to the fog. We got to see Ketchikan and Tongass National Forest from the sky. People often ask if flightseeing in a floatplane is a lot different a helicopter. Since we experienced both in 2 days, I can say it’s a lot different. You can see much less inside a floatplane because the windows are much smaller and don’t seem like they’re all around you like in helicopter. Also, the wings of the plane were often in my photos and obstructed part of the view. Lastly, the flight experience in a helicopter is just so unique because it can go straight up and down. Take off and landing in a floatplane is very similar to being on a regular airplane, even though it happens on the water. That being said, we weren’t taking this floatplane for the flightseeing. It was a mode of transportation to Anan Creek.

Tongass National Forest from our floatplane

When we landed in Anan Bay in the Tongass National Forest, the ranger helped wrangle our floatplane in so we could deplane. I expected that we’d hop off the plane on to a sandy beach but we basically had to jump off the floats on to slippery rocks. I almost fell in the water! I think this part might be difficult for those with limited mobility. After dropping us off, Dave set a time for when he’d come back to get us and then left. The ranger then checked us in and gave us a brief safety talk. Since it was already 11:30 by now, we decided to eat our packed lunches since you cannot bring food on to the trail. However, we found out there is a food storage locker at the ranger station that you can store your food to get or eat later. There is also an outhouse at the bottom and top of the trails but they recommend that you use the one at the bottom because bears frequent the outhouse at the top and you may be stuck in the outhouse if a bear decides to hang out in front of it. (One of Dave’s employees was stuck in it for 45 minutes!)

The trail itself is a mix of raised platforms, like a boardwalk, and dirt trail. When booking this tour, I was worried about not having a guide but, as everyone said, it was impossible to get lost. We used a bear bell, which we bought at Wal-mart, the entire way and it took about 20 minutes. We didn’t see any wildlife on the way up, though we saw lots of scat.

Family Air’s floatplane in Anan Bay

Anan Bay

Forest Ranger Station

Boardwalk portion of Anan Creek Trail

Anan Creek Trail

The Anan Wildlife Observatory sits right over Anan Creek, where an enormous amount of salmon are swimming upstream. Bears come to the Creek to catch salmon. When we arrived, there were probably about 10 people at the Observatory. Part of the deck is covered, which was good for the pansies who didn’t want to be in the rain, but you really need to get out on the deck to see the bear action! We spent close to 3 hours at the Observatory, including 30 minutes in the photo blind. You can only sign up for one photo blind spot during your first visit. (I think this is a new rule change this year because the text on the sign-up sheet that said you can sign up more than once was crossed out and corrected with “once”.) We had to wait for about an hour and a half for our reservation. The photo blind brought us closer to the salmon running but we didn’t see as much from there because the deck is so low and you can’t see what’s going up higher up the hill or on the other side of the Observatory. I was happier with being out on the top deck but spending 30 minutes in the photo blind was good to get a different perspective. Being close the salmon made me realize the effort they make to swim upstream, only to spawn, and die. It’s sad but inspiring. Here is a video of the salmon swimming upstream that I took.

Right after we arrived, a young bear climbed the tree in front of the deck and sat up there almost the entire time. We probably saw 15-20 black bears of all different sizes & ages, including a mama black bear and her cub, as well as young and adult bald eagles. It was so amazing to see the bears catch salmon right in front of us! Near the end of our visit, the group from Taquan Air left and we were the only ones at the Observatory with the ranger. Maybe because it was so quiet but a bear walked right under the deck and popped up on the other side of the fence. He was literally a couple of feet away from us! He looked at us a little surprised, calmed down, and then climbed the tree right in front of us, not more than 5 feet away! SO AMAZING!! We were told that earlier in the morning around 8 am, there were also a few brown bears and otters but we didn’t see them. It stayed drizzly the entire time we were at the Observatory but it didn’t bother us. We were dressed appropriately and seeing the bears, salmon, and eagles was so awesome. I’ve never felt so much like I was truly in the middle of nature.

Black bear

Chris in front of the Anan Creek Observatory’s shelter

Bald eagle perched over Anan Creek

Black bear with salmon in his mouth

Bald eagle

Black bear on rocks

Mama & Baby Black Bears

2 adult bald eagles & young bald eagle

Black bear catching a salmon, dropping it, and catching another one

Black bear climbing the tree in front of us

Black bear in a tree a few feet away from us!

On the way back down the trail, we had a brown bear cross in front of us. I’m thinking that she heard us coming because of the bear bell and decided to cross the trail before we got to her. The ranger later told us HER name was George. =) Dave picked us up at 3:15 pm. We had also booked the add-on flightseeing through Misty Fjords but Dave checked with other pilots who just got back from there and said it was too foggy to see anything. I was very impressed on how honest Dave was about this and not just take us there so he could keep our money. He refunded the cost for that portion of the tour. I was a bit disappointed that we wouldn’t see Misty Fjords but this was one of the most amazing experiences in my life! I’m so happy that I went and I would highly recommend it to anyone visiting Ketchikan or Wrangell.

We got back to Ketchikan earlier than we thought we would since the Misty Fjords flight was cancelled so we had some extra time to walk around town. We walked up to Creek Street and saw the various totems along the way. There were a few salmon in Ketchikan Creek and some people were standing over the bridge oooing and ahhing. I kept thinking that this was nothing compared to all of the salmon we saw in Anan!! After visiting Creek Street, we shopped around Ketchikan. Chris also got a yummy Alaskan blueberry ice cream cone inside Salmon Landing Marketplace. If you like shopping for souvenirs, make sure you also see my Shopping post. Ketchikan had the best souvenir deals in my opinion.

Raven Stealing the Sun Totem Pole

Creek Street

Ketchikan from our balcony

After dinner that evening, we watched another show of Comedian Kevin Hudges. Word was obviously spreading that he was hilarious because it was completely packed about 10-15 minutes before his show started. People who showed up later couldn’t find a seat at all, not even in the front rows! If you see this guy on a future cruise, make sure you see him!

+ See all Ketchikan photos
+ Read more about my Island Princess Alaska Cruise

Friday, July 9, 2010

We booked the Dog Sledding on Mendenhall Glacier Tour through Temsco for $479 per person and they asked us to meet them at the Mt. Roberts Tramway parking lot, which was about a 5-minute walk from the ship. They picked us up at 8:15 am and they drove us to their office, where the helicopter pad was also located. We watched a safety video, locked up our belongs (no bags allowed, only cameras), and donned snow boots. There was only one other person in our group, a young guy working for a dental program in Alaska for the whole summer, so it was just 3 of us. They assign our seats on the helicopter based on weight. Chris and I were put in the front row with the pilot with me in the middle. The other guy was in the back by himself.

TEMSCO Helicopter

Inside the helicopter

This is definitely one of the most amazing things a person can experience in their lifetime. In one excursion, I was able to do three things that not many people can say they’ve done: ride in a helicopter, set foot on a glacier, and take a dog sled ride on snow. This was our first helicopter ride and it was exhilarating! If you’ve never been in a helicopter, the accent is quite an experience in itself. It was amazing how it could lift you straight in the air. The views of the mountain tops and the glaciers were absolutely stunning. It seemed like there were windows all around us, even under our feet, so when we were up above the trees and glaciers, it was like we were flying! The view was spectacular and gorgeous. I didn’t realize how big the glaciers are until the pilot pointed out the dog camp and I could barely see it until we got closer.

Leaving Juneau

Mendenhall Glacier Helicopter Flight

Mendenhall Glacier Helicopter Flight

Husky Dog Camp on Mendenhall Glacier

The landing at the dog camp was very smooth but walking around on the glacier wasn’t easy. I feel on my butt once or twice! (I talked to someone who went on the Glacier Trek and the spikes in their boots are a lot longer so it’s probably easier for them to walk. Our spikes were about the same length as, if not shorter than cleats.) The dog camp is run by Alaska Icefield Expeditions. We were taken to the sled with dogs already hooked in. The dogs were all very obedient and very friendly. The musher introduced us to each dog and then we were off! There were three stops along the ride so we each got to try sitting in a different spot or stand in the back for each leg. It was so amazing dashing through the snow with surrounded by such beauty. The weather was very nice, though it got chilly once the sled was moving. We wore long-sleeved shirts, jackets, long pants, and gloves. It worked out perfectly. The sun was very intense though so wear sunscreen and sunglasses. It’s a truly amazing experience. The ride lasted about 20-25 minutes. After it was over, we got a few more photos with the adult dogs and then moved on to the puppies! There were 4 puppies at the camp and we took turns holding the 2 that were awake. Adorable little guys!! Then we waited for a few minutes as our helicopter returned to fly us back to Juneau.

On Mendenhall Glacier

Glacier dog sledding

Glacier dog sledding

Glacier dog sledding

Visiting the resident puppies

TEMSCO dropped us off at Mt. Roberts Tramway around 11 am. The weather was pretty warm so we decided to go back to the ship to unload our jackets. Since we were already on the ship, we thought we’d grab a quick lunch at The Grill too so we’d have more time to go to the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor’s Center. By the time we finished lunch and got back off the ship, it was already 1:30 pm and we had to be back onboard by 3:30 pm. We decided that 2 hours wasn’t enough time to go to the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor’s Center and get back in time so we spent the last 2 hours walking around Juneau. I’m still a little sad that we didn’t have a chance to see Mendenhall Glacier from the Visitor’s Center but I tried to comfort myself with the reminder that we were ON it! Plus, I’m glad we got a chance to see Juneau up close and personal.

We visited Patsy Ann’s statue, Red Dog Saloon, and then shopped up Franklin St. I mentioned this in my Skagway post but if you need bottled water, the Alaska Shirt Company has the cheapest bottled water and they come in large bottles too. They are located across the street from the Mount Roberts Tramway. If you like shopping for souvenirs, make sure you also see my Shopping post.

Mount Roberts Tramway

Juneau & Red Dog Saloon

Patsy Ann Statue

Alternative “hunting trophies” at Taku Smokeries

Alaska Forget-me-not Flowers

Alaskan Brewing Co.

That evening was the second Formal Night. We took photos again and had dinner early so we could watch Comedian Kevin Hudges’ show. You can read my review of him in my Island Princess Review.

Second Formal Night

Comedian Kevin Hughes

+ See all Juneau photos
+ Read more about my Island Princess Alaska Cruise

Thursday, July 8, 2010

We booked the 7.5-hour Yukon Rail & Bus Tour with Dogcart Ride with Chilkoot Charters. The cost was $206 per person, or $175 per person without the dogcart ride. Upon disembarking the ship, you face a cliff wall and it’s painted with tons of cruise logos. That was really neat to see.

Skagway harbor painted cliff

Chilkoot Charter mini-bus

We walked through security and found the Chilkoot Charters guide easily. When everyone in the tour arrived, Chilkoot Charters drove us to the White Pass & Yukon Rail Depot and we boarded our train car. The guide did not board the train with us. He was going to drive to Fraser to meet us with the mini-bus. Unlike the trains we took in Anchorage and Denali, this train has a vintage feel to it.

People always ask what side to sit on the train & bus for the best views. Leaving Skagway on the train, sit on the left side but make sure you get up and go outside on the platform while the train is moving!! Once you get to Fraser, sit on the right side of the bus. On the way back down via bus, sit on the left side. If your train/bus legs are not in the same order, please see this page for info on the best views.

White Pass & Yukon Route train engine

White Pass & Yukon Route train caboose

Onboard the White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad train

We rode the train to Fraser, British Columbia and saw some gorgeous views along the way. It was really cool to see the rail bridges perched so high up in the mountains and then cross over them! We were also up SO high on the mountain. The views were amazing and none of the other train rides we went on were so high up! You also have to go and stand out on the platform a couple of times. It’s amazing to hear the clanking of the train and feel the wind blowing in your hair! I also saw a really fat, arctic ground squirrel and that made my day!

Bridal Veil Falls

White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad

Video I made outside on the viewing platform

Arctic ground squirrel

Steel bridge

Landscape as we approach Fraser

When we arrived at the Fraser train station, our guide from Chilkoot Charters was there to pick us up and continue our tour. Arriving in Fraser was very exciting for me because it was my first time on Canadian soil!! Even though Fraser is in British Columbia, Canadian officials never stamp our passports. The Fraser train station has a souvenir passport stamp that you can use to stamp your own passport. We had several scenic photo stops along the way, including Lake Bennett, the “Welcome to Yukon” sign, Bove Island, Carcross Desert, and Emerald Lake. And yes, Emerald Lake is as gorgeous as it sounds!

Arriving at the Fraser Train Station

Lake Bennett

Yukon, Canada

Carcross Desert

Bove Island

Emerald Lake

Believe it or not, we did all of that before lunch! The stop at Caribou Crossing was very rushed. We only had an hour to eat lunch and do anything else we wanted to do before leaving. The BBQ lunch served at Caribou Crossing was very good and that is saying a lot coming from me because I generally don’t like chicken, unless it’s fried and even then, I mostly like the skin! The BBQ chicken was tender and those cinnamon donuts were the 2nd best donuts I’ve ever had!! (Second only to freshly made, piping hot Krispy Kreme donuts!)

Caribou Crossing

Caribou Crossing BBQ Chicken Lunch

Our time at Caribou Crossing felt especially rushed because we pre-booked the dog cart ride there. If you want to do the dog cart ride, it costs $31/person extra and I highly recommend that you pre-book also. There were others on our tour that decided they wanted to do it at the last minute but could not get a time slot before our mini-bus left so they missed out. You could see a crowd of people watching the dog camp from outside of the gates and they looked jealous when we walked in with our tickets. The camp was a bit muddy and EXTREMELY dusty so the dogs were dirtier and less trained than the ones we saw at Jeff King’s Husky Homestead. The dogs were so excited to get picked for the cart ride but they were hard to control so the drivers struggled to hook them up to the cart. Still the dogs were absolutely adorable!! The ride itself was a lot of fun! We rode through the forest behind the camp and spotted a few times for the dogs to get a drink. The plastic pools they drank out of were pretty disgusting though. The water was really dark from all the dust. The ride was very dusty also and we were covered in dirt when it was over. Bring your sunglasses to protect your eyes from all the dust. Overall, the ride was a lot of fun and worth the money! However, it was NOTHING compared to glacier dog sledding, which we did in Juneau. If you debating between a dog cart ride and glacier dog sledding, defintiely go with glacier dog sledding!

Husky dog camp at Caribou Crossing

Dog cart ride at Caribou Crossing

Dog cart ride at Caribou Crossing

After the dog cart ride, we had about 10 minutes to do some souvenir shopping and use the restrooms. I’m a souvenir fiend so rushing through the shop was tough for me but I managed to snag a magnet and postcard. Once back onboard the mini-bus, we drove through Carcross and Nares Lake. Then we headed back to Skagway. The return trip was much less eventful and I slept almost the whole way, waking up for the scenic stops, which were the “Welcome to Alaska” sign and a waterfall. By the way, since we thought we’d be on a train or bus most of the day, we decided to give the insect repellent wrist bands we bought from Wal-mart a try and they failed. I was bitten twice and Chris once!! FAIL. Definitely stick with Off Deep Woods wipes or spray.

Carcross Train Station

Welcome to Alaska sign on Klondike Highway

Waterfall along the Klondike Highway

We got back to Skagway around 3 pm and we had Chilkoot Charters drop us off at 7th & Broadway so we could walk our way back down to the ship. It was very warm and sunny so we converted our pants to shorts. (I cannot stress how awesome convertible pants are! See my Packing List post for more info.) We spent the rest of the day (3-4 hours) doing the self-guided walking tour and shopping. The buildings in Skagway are so adorable! It kind of reminds me of a theme park! All the shop workers kept saying how the warm weather was really strange, that it has rained every day this summer up until now, and that we must be lucky cruisers bringing the warm weather with us! Places we saw in Skagway included the Historic Skagway Inn, Moore Homestead, Sarah Palin Store, Days of ’98 Theater, World War II Barracks, Mascot Saloon, Arctic Brotherhood Hall, Red Onion Saloon, Klondike Gold Rush Museum, White Pass & Yukon Railroad Depot, and Pullen Creek & Pond.

Skagway Old Town

Moore Homestead

Moore Homestead

Sarah Palin Store

Arctic Brotherhood Hall

Red Onion Saloon

Rotary snowplow at White Pass & Yukon Rail Depot

Toliet in a gazebo

If you want to buy drinks, the liquor store across from the Train Depot on 2nd Ave. has the cheapest sodas and the Alaska Shirt Company on 1st & Broadway (or in Juneau across from the tram) has the cheapest bottled water. Yes, we comparison shopped! If you like shopping for souvenirs, make sure you also see my Shopping post.

Walking back to the ship was slightly confusing since we did not walk from it. We were NOT docked at the Broadway Way Dock, which is at the end of Broadway and really easy to get to. Island Princess was docked at the Railroad Dock and you have to walk past the Rail Depot and down Congress Way to it. We were slightly confused on how to get over to Congress Way because or the tracks and Pullen Pond. The most useful maps I found were the ones in the Destination Alaska coupon book. They are much more detailed than some of the other maps I’ve seen of the main tourist areas and very helpful in figuring out exactly where our ship was docked. Make sure you pick up a coupon book before boarding the ship in Whittier!

+ See all Skagway photos
+ Read more about my Island Princess Alaska Cruise

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

We reserved the Glacier Bay Champagne Breakfast the day before to be delivered to our cabin around 10 am. It was perfect timing because we were sailing into Glacier Bay, past gorgeous scenery but nothing too exciting that we had to pay close attention. The breakfast cost $32 for 2 people and included the following:

• Alaskan King Crab Quiche served with 2 crab legs and a cheese-stuffed tomato
• Smoked salmon with dill cream cheese and toasted lemon brioche
• Fruit & berries medley
• Assortment of pastries
• 1/2 bottle of Heidsieck Monopole Champagne
• Choice of juice
• Coffee or hot tea

See photos of all the Champagne Breakfast food. The breakfast was very good and filling! Though next time, I would ask if they can substitute the champagne for Martinelli’s Sparking Cider because we can’t drink much and had about 1/2 a glass each of the champagne. The Ranger Presentation began at 11 am and they showed it on the TV so we turned the volume all the way up and listened to it while we ate our breakfast on the balcony.

A toast in Glacier Bay

Glacier Bay Champagne Breakfast

Sailing into Glacier Bay

The Ranger commentary and Glacier Bay scenic cruising began around 12:15 pm. Our ship visited 3 major glaciers: Reid Glacier, Margerie Glacier, and the Lamplugh Glacier.

Glacier Bay

Reid Glacier

We spent the most time at the Margerie Glacier but I think the ship turned for at each of them so both sides of the ship could see. Scenic cruising ended around 5 pm so there was plenty of time to alternate between spots on the ship. We viewed the glaciers from our balcony and the secret deck on Deck 10 forward. On Decks 9-11, walk all the way forward and through the doors on either side of the ship. They will lead to public decks that most people do not know about. At most, there were 10 people and sometimes I was there by myself. I thought it was good to see the glaciers from both my balcony and Deck 10 forward. Approaching Margerie Glacier was my favorite part while on Deck 10 forward because you’re facing the glacier and there is nothing obstructing your view. It was beautiful! There was also this harbor seal who was chilling on an iceberg but it was in the path of the ship. He looks up at us and starts to scooch himself towards the edge of the iceberg. He then gives us the dirtiest look as if to say “I was freaking here first!!!” and then jumps off the iceberg before the ship pushes it aside. Poor guy!!! LOL! Once the ship started to turn, we headed up to our balcony and viewed from there until the ship was facing the glacier again, then we would return to Deck 10 forward.

The harbor seal who hated us

Margerie Glacier

Margerie Glacier

At one point, we also stopped by Horizon Court, where Glacier Bay Rangers were selling merchandise, and we popped over to the Forward Deck in front of Horizon Court. It was very crowded so we headed up to Deck 15 and realized almost the whole ship was outlined in this blue glass that made it hard to see and almost impossible to take photos. There were only a few spots without the blue glass and they were completely crowded with people. Luckily, there was a small section that people were taking turns to use for a group photo and then stepping aside to let others go next.

Park Ranger in front of the damn blue glass

Our photo in the shared photo spot

We had beautiful weather the whole day! It was sunny though sometimes a bit windy. I took my jacket off on the forward deck because sunny and uncovered but I wore it when I was on our balcony since it was shady and not covered. Apparently, this type of weather is not good for calving so we didn’t see much of it in Glacier Bay. Marjorie Glaicer gave us one good calving but still not as big as what we saw at Hubbard Glacier and not even close to Prince William Sound.

In terms of wildlife, we saw whales, bald eagles, and harbor seals. A seagull also decided to make a perch out of a balcony a few doors down from us. He was HUGE upclose! While we were on the Lido Deck, the Park Ranger on the bridge said she spotted a brown bear but no one could find it, not even the Park Ranger that was on the Lido Deck with us.

Bald Eagle on iceberg

Pair of harbor seals

Whale in Glacier Bay

Seagull on balcony railing

Lamplugh Glacier

Overall, Glacier Bay was stunning! I can see why people on the Cruise Critic Alaska Board say it is a must for the first time Alaska cruiser!

We went to dinner at 6:30 pm and didn’t have to wait. After dinner, we watched Kalin & Ginger’s Magic Show, which I reviewed in my Island Princess review.

Kalin & Ginger’s Magic Show: Sawing Ginger in half

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Tuesday, July 6, 2010

We wanted to have breakfast in the dining room at least once but never did because we didn’t want to wake up early enough to make it. We had breakfast at Horizon Court buffet. I organized the Meet & Mingle for our roll call, which was fairly quiet, so I wasn’t expecting much. I was just praying someone else would show up at the Wheelhouse Bar at 11 am. To my utter joy, we had 10 people attend the Meet & Mingle and 6 of those people wore the shirt I designed!! Yay!! Trivia was going on at the same time in the Wheelhouse Bar but I don’t think we disturbed them since we sat in the back off to one side. Friends of people at the Meet & Mingle winded up winning the trivia! I handed out postcards and magnets that I made and we all chatted until about 12 pm before disbanding.

Cruise Critic Meet & Mingle at Wheelhouse Bar

We had lunch in the Bordeaux Dining Room and this was when I had the crappy Philly cheesesteak that I mentioned in my Island Princess review.

We were scheduled to arrive at Hubbard Glacier at 5:15 pm so we had a few hours to kill before then so we hit the Lotus Pool and the hot tubs.

Speaking of Hubbard Glacier, the Princess Patters say “Yakutat Bay” in the place they print the day’s port and I thought that was confusing because I had never heard of it and everyone always talked about Hubbard Glacier. Well, Hubbard Glacier is in Yakutat Bay for your future reference.

Sailing into Yakutat Bay

It was gloomy, drizzly and windy the whole day and the weather was no different when we arrived at Hubbard Glacier. We wore our waterproof jackets, rain pants, and long underwear and tried going out on the open decks at first. It was hard to stay on the upper and forward decks because the wind would blow rain into our eyes and all over the binocular lenses and cameras. We winded up staying on our covered balcony the rest of the time and it was perfect. We didn’t even have to wear waterproof jackets and just wore fleece pullovers. (I also wore a cap and gloves.) There wasn’t fog though so I guess we were lucky in that department! (Our photos look foggy but I think that was mostly due to the gloomy lighting. It was actually pretty clear to see.) Also, it was drizzly so the weather was ripe for calving! What I loved the most about Hubbard Glacier was the gorgeous, gorgeous blue icebergs that were floating in the water. They were so blue and pretty that I’d love to set it in jewelry!! I’ve never seen ice so blue.

We were lucky enough to see Hubbard Glacier calve a few times but nothing really big like we saw during our Prince William Sound cruise.

Gorgeous blue iceberg

The massive Hubbard Glacier

Close-up of Hubbard Glacier

Hubbard Glacier from our balcony

Hubbard Glacier scenic cruising lasted about 1.5 hours. Then, it was time to get ready for formal night! We got dressed and took our formal photos. As I mentioned in my Island Princess review, we tried to eat at 7:15 pm and there was a long wait. We winded up watching the Captain begin the Champagne Waterfall and still we were still waiting, we went ahead and did the Champagne Waterfall ourselves!! This was our 4th cruise but first ever Champagne Waterfall! LOL! We were finally seated for dinner at 7:50 pm. We also hit rough seas during dinner and our table felt like it was bobbing up and down but it calmed down by bedtime.

First Formal Night

Champagne Waterfall

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I find it easier to review my experience on the ship in one entry, then breaking it up by day. So I’m going to go ahead and review Island Princess now…

Decisions, Decisions
If this is your first Alaska cruise, I would highly recommend Princess Cruises over any other cruise line in Alaska because their ships go to both Hubbard Glacier and Glacier Bay. We had originally booked Celebrity Millennium for this trip but switched to Princess after reading the Cruise Critic Alaska Forums. Glacier Bay and Hubbard Glacier are widely considered the “best” scenic cruising in Alaska and Princess goes to both in one cruise! If anything, at least pick an itinerary that goes to Glacier Bay. It was fantastic and you can read about it on my Glacier Bay entry.

So Diamond, Coral, or Island Princess? This is the question for most Alaska cruisers who have picked Princess Cruises for their Alaska trip. I asked this question on Cruise Critic when planning my trip. Basically, you can’t go wrong with any of these ships. Diamond Princess is a bit larger. Coral and Island Princess, which are sister ships, are smaller and more narrow to fit through the Panama Canal. Their ship plans are nearly identical. During the 2010 Alaska cruise season, Island Princess sailed on Mondays, whereas Diamond and Coral Princess sailed on Saturdays. We winded up choosing Island Princess because the airfare was slightly cheaper for those dates than for sailing on the Saturday before.

I also highly recommend a balcony in Alaska for the scenic cruising days. It is a must!! We would not see the fantastic views and taken such good photos without a balcony at Hubbard Glacier and Glacier Bay! If you are traveling southbound as we did, you will want a port side balcony because of Glacier Bay. I’m not sure if it is the same for northbound cruises, so check with the folks on the Cruise Critic Alaska Forums.

If you’re booking a balcony cabin on Coral or Island Princess, you should be aware that some balconies are not fully covered and I recommend that you make sure your balcony is covered. It was windy and rainy at Hubbard Glacier. When we looked down on the other balconies, the uncovered balconies were empty and when people did go out on them, they didn’t stay long. This includes the corner bump cabins too. Since they stick out, they were not protected from the wind and rain either. So how do you pick the right balcony cabin? Cruise Critic member Tom O. created this awesome web site that maps out Coral & Island Princess balconies! Thanks, Tom O.!!

On to the meat of the review…

Island Princess in Skagway

Embarkation/Disembarkation
As I mentioned in my Day 5 post, embarkation was a breeze by the time we arrived. There was no line and the process was quick and painless. There wasn’t any fan fare when we got onboard. (On Disney, there is a live band in the Atrium and staff members are lined up at the door. They announce “Welcome to the Low Family!!!” and all staff members cheer.) There wasn’t even any staff members to welcome us or ask if we need directions. We were basically on our own. This is the first time I sailed Princess so I’m not sure if this experience is typical since we were boarding a little later than most people but I still think it would have been nice if the staff was more welcoming, even just leaving one person to welcome passengers and ask if they need help.

Disembarkation itself was painless but picking up our luggage was not. I’ll spare the gory details for the Disembarkation Day post but basically, another passenger took one our suitcases by mistake. The Princess staff was very friendly and tried to help but there wasn’t much she could do since it was already gone. She had us fill out a form for our missing luggage. What I think Princess should do is check the luggage tags of everyone leaving. The Princess luggage tag is already on the suitcases so as people exit the terminal, just ask the passenger’s name and make sure it matches that tag, (I’m sorry to say) especially on a cruise like this where many of the passengers are older. (This old lady mistook my orange suitcase for her RED one! And yes, we know she is old because we called the phone number on her bag and got her voicemail.) Princess did give us a call at home the next day to confirm that we were reunited with our missing luggage so that was nice that they followed up.

Room
We booked a BH balcony guarantee and winded up with a BB balcony. We were assigned a room under the Lotus Pool. I’ve read on Cruise Critic that the crew moves pool furniture around in the early morning and it sounds like a stampede of elephants so I requested to have our room switched to A620, which is on the port side (recommended by CCers for southbound cruises) and under the Salon & Spa. The only time there was noise was around 11 pm one night for about an hour. It sounded very squeaky, like they were cleaning lots of glass.

The room was a bit smaller than what we are used to on Disney but I think they did a great job in using the space. (For example, there is no sofa or large coffee table in the way.) I LOVED the closet! It was very large and open with no doors. I think it really maximized the space. There is also a wall of shelves and a flat-screen TV. The bed was very firm, as people have reported, but we found it very comfortable and didn’t need an egg crate. Our room steward was wonderful! She accomodated all our requests and we didn’t have any problems with her. There were little things on Princess that we loved, like chocolates every night, robes, and a free reusable shopping bag in our room. (The one we got at Denali Princess was bigger.) I loved that they had a luggage mat spread out on the bed when we arrived so we could throw our luggage on the bed without worrying about getting it dirty! So thoughtful! It was tucked under the bed after the first day and we rolled it back out the last night for packing! The refridgerator was also much better at keeping and making drinks cold than the ones we have had on other cruise lines. The balcony was a good size. Our cabin was only 2 away from the aft bump and I was worried about not seeing around it but it wasn’t an issue at all. I couldn’t see the back of the ship but the wildlife spottings and glaciers were not THAT close to the ship so we could see everything fine, including whales in Glacier Bay!!

Chris had to check in with work daily so his company bought us an internet package. Surprisingly, the wifi in the room was super fast! By the way, if you plan to buy an internet package, buy it before your cruise and you’ll get a ton of extra minutes.

Chris needed to check his work e-mail throughout  the cruise so his company pre-paided for the 250-minute internet package before  our cruise and we got an additional 60 minutes free. It’s a very good deal to pre-pay before your cruise if you know you’re going to need an internet package. We checked our work and personal e-mail every day  (sometimes more than once a day) along with the weather each night before we got into a port. Surprisingly, the wireless internet in the  room was a lot faster than the computers in the Internet Cafe but you  need to go to the Internet Cafe to print. In general, the internet was a lot faster than we have experienced on other cruise lines. We ordered a lot of minutes because we thought the internet would be really slow and thus take more time but  we winded up having 89 minutes left out of 310 minutes.

My biggest complaint about the room is the shower. It’s tiny. In order to shampoo, condition, and soap without water hitting me, I had to turn the shower off. The shower curtain is also the kind that clings to you and it attacked me constantly. (I recently heard that clipping clothespins to the bottom of the curtain can weigh it down enough so that it doesn’t attack you. I had clothespins with me and didn’t know this! I’ll have to try that next time.) Either way, once the steam started building in the bathroom, the curtain would take up half the shower space. I think Princess should do a better job of weighing the curtain down.

My cabin door decorations

Island Princess Cabin A620

Flat-screen TV & refridgerator

Large closet

Bathroom

Balcony

Back of the Cabin Door where I hung up a map, our itinerary, our lanyards, and magnets that I collected at each port

Food
We had breakfast in the buffet every morning. The selection was probably the best we have seen on a cruise. They even had congee (Chinese rice porridge) and rice!! I love to eat rice with corned beef hash and happily ate this every day, in addition to alternating between eggs, bacon, and toast. We used the omlette station on sea days, as it was too long of a wait on port days. The OJ was watered down, like on other cruises. Overall, we were very happy with breakfast!

Horizon Court Breakfast Buffet

We had lunch once in the Main Dining Room and I thought it was horrible. I ordered a Philly Cheesesteak sandwich and the cheese they used was not Cheez Whiz nor regular cheese. It was some powdered mix and it was disgusting, lump mess. It was the most disappointing thing I ate onboard. We also were not thrilled with the lunch buffet. There wasn’t anything that was particularily fabulous. After that, we just got burgers or pizza from The Grill and Pizzeria by the pool for lunch. They were VERY good! The pizza crust is so crispy! We also had afternoon tea on the last day at sea. The waiters brought around trays of sandwiches, scones, cookies, and desserts. They were good but not very filling. I would feel guilty for taking too many because the trays emptied quickly. If they had enough food, it didn’t seem like they were bringing it around fast enough.

We had all of our dinners in the Main Dining Room and we had Anytime Dining. On the second night (first formal night), we tried to eat at 7 pm and we had to wait for 35 minutes. After that night, we tried to have get there between 6-6:30 pm and didn’t have to wait. The general experience I was finding from others that coming between 7-7:30 pm resulted in a 20-30 minute wait so get there before 6:30 pm or after 8 pm for Anytime Dining to avoid a wait.

MY BIGGEST COMPLAINT OF THE WHOLE CRUISE: I was very unhappy about the fact that traditional seating folks could go to the Anytime Dining Room. It made it the Anytime Dining Room much more crowded and made us wait longer to be seated than it should have been. There were several people who we talked to that had to do Anytime Dining because they couldn’t get a slot in Traditional Dining and those Traditional Dining folks went to Anytime! When I sailed with Royal Caribbean, they verified your room number before seating you in Anytime Dining. I think Princess should have done the same on our cruise (and I told them so much in my survey). If Traditional folks miss their seating, they should go to the buffet. It’s not fair to those of us in Anytime Dining that they get our option but we don’t get theirs.

We were flexible in sharing a table and shared a table every night, except for one. We were usually put at tables of 8 or 10. It was nice chatting with other cruisers about their experiences. (If I mention “I heard from other cruisers”, it was probably someone we met during dinner.) Also, don’t believe anyone who says people don’t dress up in Alaska. I’m sure it’s different from cruise to cruise but everyone was dressed up for formal night (dresses and suits, not tuxes) that were in the Main Dining Rooms. If you don’t want to dress up, plan to eat at the buffet.

The food in the Main Dining Room was fabulous! I loved the variety and choices. I enjoyed every dish I had! I also loved having cheese for dessert, which was a new experience for me! I absolutely hated the iced tea though. It was always very bitter and strong, even when I drank half of it and diluted the rest with water! I winded up drinking water or soda after the first couple of nights. We had different waiters every night. Some were great and made you feel really taken care of, while others we were lucky if they told us their name. For the most part, the service was great! On one night, a waiter walked around a serenaded the dining room in Spanish and of course, we had the Baked Alaska Parade! On two nights, we also brought our own sodas that we bought in port into the Dining Room and we did not have any problems. The waiters didn’t make us feel bad or anything.

Bordeaux Dining Room for Anytime Dining

Video of waiters serenading the Bordeaux Dining Room

Alaskan Summer Ale served in the dining room & bars

The ever favorite, Lobster Night!

Executive Sous Chef Dirk

Click here to see all of my photos of menus and food onboard.

Entertainment
We’re really not the type to see shows unless they involve Disney characters but we decided to see Comedian Kevin Hughes after hearing rave reviews about his first show during dinner. We absolutely loved him! Chris had to bring tissues to the show because he cried from laughing so much! He was hilarious and we saw 2 of hisshows!

We also watched magicians Kalin and Jinger. I thought their bigger acts were good and one was particularily impressive but some of the smaller acts, like his slight of hand tricks with balls, were not very good. We pretended to be judges on “America’s Got Talent” and we would have definitely buzzed them a few times. =) Still it was worth seeing the show.

Kalin & Jinger’s Magic Show

Ship
Island Princess celebrated her 7th birthday during our last sea day! (They had a birthday cake for her at the Dessert Buffet.) I didn’t notice anything in the public areas that showed her age, unlike when I was on Royal Caribbean’s Voyager of the Seas. I never really felt like the ship was crowded, except when waiting for a table for dinner in front of the dining room and at the Lotus Pool on the last sea day. However, I like the Royal Promenade that is on the Royal Caribbean ships better than the layout of the shops and lobby area of the Island Princess, where everything is on multiple floors, and you have to go all the way up to the pool to get a snack. It was really annoying trying to go between Decks 5-7 (the most popular public areas) when they closed the Atrium staircase for photos!

We signed up for the Ultimate Ship Tour and were really excited to be the first ones to sign up on Embarkation Day. However, they called us the evening before our last sea day when the tour was scheduled and they told us it was canceled because we were the ONLY people who signed up for it! =( Very disappointing. I can’t believe we’re the only ones out of almost 2,000 passengers who signed up!!!! Grrr…hopefully, we’ll get to do it next time.

Since we’re sailing Alaska after all, people often ask about the pools and hot tubs. The Lotus Pool, which has 2 hot tubs, is indoors and was opened to all ages during the entire cruise. The pool was not heated but it wasn’t too cold and you get used to it really quickly. Ironically, the Lido Pool is outdoors and is heated. However, the hot tubs by the Lido Pool were often closed due to the weather and the Lido Pool was pretty much deserted, except for the last sea day when it was warmer as we approached Vancouver.

The onboard shopping was what I would expect. There was a store that sold Princess merchandise and souvenirs, one that sold higher end items, and another one that sold just jewelry and watches near the casnio. They had a small selection of Alaska souvenirs. The prices were higher than what we could find at the ports but it was good to know they were there in case you forgot to buy something for Aunt Ethel. They also had shirts and sweatshirts for Hubbard Glacier, Glacier Bay, and every port we stopped at.

The casino was pretty empty most nights. I paid video poker briefly a couple of nights and found it very fun! The casino was very clean and a good size. Also, if you need cash, you can get cash without a fee by putting cash on to your casino account and then take it to the cashier to cash out.

Lobby Elevators

Passengers in the Atrium waiting for the Champagne Waterfall

Enjoying the hot tub at the Lotus Pool

Lido Deck

Overall, I’d love to sail Island Princess again! I’m actually considering sailing her through the Panama Canal in the future. We were also pleased with Princess Cruises and have already booked another sailing for April 2011! If you enjoy your cruise at all, make sure you buy a Future Cruise Credit while onboard. You pay $100 per person as a deposit for a future cruise (you don’t have to choose what or when) and you can use it up to 4 years. If you don’t use it after 4 years, Princess will send you a full refund. The benefit of buying an FCC is that the deposit is generally less than what you would pay to book and you will get Onboard Credit (OBC) for the future cruise. The amount depends on the length of the cruise you wind up booking.

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Monday, July 5, 2010

We had an early breakfast at the hotel again and checked out of our room. We each had a large suitcase and rolling carry-on suitcase so we decided to take a taxi to the train station, instead of walking. The taxi ride was $5.

We booked the Glacier Discovery train to Whittier directly through Alaska Railroad for $65 per person. (There is no GoldStar option on this train.) Upon arriving at the station, we returned to the white tent for cruise passengers and checked all of our suitcases in with Princess, who took them to the ship and we didn’t see them again until they appeared in front of room that evening. We only kept a backpack and my purse because again, you can only bring onboard the train what would fit under an airline seat. After checking our bags, we went into the station and had to check-in with Alaska Railroad, which requires you to check in by 9 am for a 10 am departure. This meant waiting for over an hour inside a busy train station lobby without enough seating. If you need to sit during this wait, I suggest you arrive early to beat the crowds. Otherwise, you might find yourself standing for a good portion of an hour unless someone is nice enough to give up their seats. The good news for me was that they had a gift shop and that occupied me for 15 minutes. My friend is a huge train buff so he was thrilled I brought him back an Alaska Railroad souvenir since the rail line is famous.

They make an annoucement when the train is ready to board. I think they boarded by rail car but I’m not sure. We were in rail car A and in our rail car, all the passengers got seats upstairs. The seats are assigned so you don’t get to choose which way you face or which table you sit at so there is no incentive to board early in this case. There are large windows but the ceiling isn’t glass like on the Princess rail cars. I personally didn’t find this train ride very scenic, even though I’ve read reviews that it was. However, I was very tired at this point and did sleep through a portion of the ride. If I did this again, I would probably take a motorcoach to Whittier, instead of the train, so the ride would be faster. If I had to choose between taking the train to Denali or taking it to Whittier, I would definitely take it to Denali. I enjoyed that train ride much more. Also, if we could have gotten to Whittier earlier, it would have been nice to be able to walk around and check out Whittier itself, which we didn’t get to do.

Alaska Railroad rail car

View from our train ride to Whittier

Alaska Railroad Train in Whittier

When we pulled through the tunnel, it was pouring rain in Whittier. Luckily, we packed our rain pants in our backpack so we put them on while still on the train. Other passengers were not so lucky and got drenched right when we disembarked. It pays to be prepared!! It was something else to come out of the tunnel on the train and see Island Princess docked in Whittier! “That’s our ship!!” I squeeled with excitement like a little girl!

Island Princess in Whittier

We walked off the train and right there was a rep from Major Marine. We checked in with her, received our boarding passes, and got in line for our Prince William Sound cruise.

There are 3 main operators of Prince William Sound cruises: 26 Glaciers, Prince William Sound Glacier Cruises, and Major Marine. Prince William Sound Glacier Cruises offer 6-hour and 4-hour cruises. We could not make the 6-hour cruise due to the train schedule and they don’t offer the 4-hour cruise on Monday, which was when we were in Whittier, so they were out. Between 26 Glaciers and Major Marine, we chose Major Marine because they got a review from “Frommer’s Alaska”. Frommer’s basically said that 26 Glaciers rushes through the cruise in order to check off all 26 glaciers, whereas Major Marine only goes to 10 glaciers but stops to watch the glaciers calve. Food is pretty important to us. The buffet offered by Major Marine was also rated highly, whereas 26 Glaciers offers fish or chicken baskets. Lastly, the Northern Lights coupon book offers a 2-for-1 discount on Major Marine. (They have a coupon for Prince William Sound Glacier Cruises too.) With the coupon, it cost us $156 for 2 adults, including the lunch buffet. Just to be clear, I’m not ragging on 26 Glaciers. Many, many people on Cruise Critic have taken 26 Glaciers and were very happy. I’m sure if you take any of these 3 cruises, you’ll be happy but we had to choose one and went with Major Marine. Even if we could have gone on the 6-hour Prince William Sound Glacier Cruises cruise, our 4-hour Major Marine cruise seemed like the perfect length and I’m not sure if I would have wanted it to be 2 hours longer.

As I mentioned, it was pouring rain. I think passengers from both 26 Glaciers and Major Marine were lined up under the same awning as we waited to board the ships. Our boarding passes had the table we were assigned to so when we boarded the ship, we found our table. The tables are really close together. Our table was near the aft of the ship and we sat with another couple, who was part of larger group that were seated in tables behind us.

M/V Emerald Sea docked next to Island Princess

Inside the Major Marine Prince William Sound cruise ship; Chugach National Forest Ranger is on the far left

It was cold, rainy, and windy the entire cruise. While this type of weather isn’t very fun, the ranger told us it was perfect conditions for calving glaciers! We braved the elements and went out on the top deck in our waterproof jackets and rain pants at each glacier we stopped at and whenever wildlife was spotted! We were some of the few who did this so the deck was never crowded and we were able to take some wonderful photos. Had the weather been nice and everyone outside, I can imagine the top deck would get very crowded.

Once we saw our first glacier, they bought a huge chunk onboard and also offered glacier ice cocktails and iced tea! During the cruise, we saw several glaciers calve up close, whales, seals, kittiwakes, bald eagles, and sea otters! The sea otters and seeing the glaciers calve were my favorite moments! The buffet lunch was surprisingly delicious! We didn’t expect much but the food was really good. It included Alaska salmon, prime rib, rice pilaf, salad, sourdough bread, cheesecake, carrot cake, brownies, jello, and fruit. Coffee, hot tea, water, and 1 soft drink were complimentary.

Blackstone Glacier

Blackstone Glacier

Glacier Iced Tea

Beloit Glacier calving

Sea otters in Blackstone Bay

Whale tail in Blackstone Bay

Weather clearing up in Blackstone Bay

As we pulled into Whittier, the weather started to clear up a little bit. After disembarking the Emerald Sea, we literally walked next door to check-in at the Island Princess. It was about 6:30 pm by then and there was no line. I picked up a copy of the Destination Alaska coupon book on the way to the check-in desk. (Make sure you pick up a copy! I’m a souvenir fiend and loved the discounts and freebies I got from it!) We went straight to our room and our luggage was already there. We didn’t have much time to do anything before the Muster Drill, which was at 7:15 pm. We had to bring our lifejackets but did not have to wear them. We had dinner after the drill and then spent the evening unpacking. It was actually a little dark when we went to bed! That evening, we had rough seas. It was rocking and rolling all night but I always come prepared.

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