Pearl May 14-21 Alaska Mini-review

Alaska Air Phx-SeaTac. Good flight and on-time. Uber to Springhill Suites in downtown Seattle, excellent and about $38. Hotel about $190 (darn, Seattle is very expensive!) Uber to Pike Market for touristy things, dinner and drinks and Uber back to hotel (about $8 each way.)

Uber to Pier 66 on Sunday about 10:15 AM. Drop off is a pain...very crowded around terminal, confusion by traffic control, lots of cars and busses blocking everything. Luggage drop-off to the right had a long line but went fairly quickly. Then you walk around to the left a good distance (might be a problem for those needing assistance) to enter terminal. Herded around and up until arriving at check-in which was very quick and easy. Got boarding group 5 which, when boarding began around 11ish, went quickly.

Upon boarding, avoided the buffet and had a nice lunch at O'Sheehans which was not crowded at all. After lunch explored a bit until rooms were ready early, around 1:00 PM.

Cabin 9548 Balcony. Really nice though a bit smaller than I had hoped. Still, very clean and new looking. The best steward, Amol (Indian), who always greeted us by name and was just brilliant. You will not get him as this was his final cruise before his 8 week break.

I will not try to go through a day-by-day sequence but will pass on some random thoughts and opinions. The Pearl is a wonderful ship and the crew really stands out. Having just been refurbished, she is clean, modern and the perfect size as far as we are concerned. We had the UDP and the SDP (3) and it was perfect as we like our cocktails and good food. Both MDRs were very nice and the meals and service excellent. Cagney's was terrific, LeBistro just a bit less so and LaCucina (chicken parm) was perfect for our last night. Used the buffet a couple of times and it was so-so but OK if you like buffets. The casino is the right size (bigger than I had expected) and though it was not kind to us, the staff and dealers were wonderful.

All the bars and bartenders are 5 star in my book. Never waited more than a moment for a drink and they are very knowledgeable and professional. Our Meet and Greet was arranged by the wonderful Sandy, and we met the Captain and his primary staff which was great. I would encourage you to attend if your cruise has one.

We did not use NCL excursions. We did the Whale Watching in Juneau with Dolphin Jet Boat tours and I highly recommend them. The boat was about a 20 passenger and we were about 15 pax. Two whale experts on board and we saw at least 9 humpback whales in about 2 hours. Great tour and crew. Used Chilkoot Charters and Tours in Skagway for the White Pass RR into Fraser, CN. Small bus (maybe 14 pax) for the return trip and the driver/tour guide was brilliant. Actually stopped at one point on the Yukon Highway to watch a black bear forage right beside the road! Did not do an excursion in Ketchikan but enjoyed walking around the town and stopped in for a beer at the saloon. Arriving in Victoria at 6 PM, had no desire to do anything for just a few hours so stayed on the ship.

Weather was absolutely perfect for us the entire week. Warm, 60's, sunny, etc. Glacier Bay was spectacular and it does not matter if your cabin is port or starboard since the Captain slowly turns the ship so all can get a fantastic view. The Spinnaker Lounge is a great place to watch from for at least part of the time. Do not miss the chance to go up on the outside deck for the best vantage point of all.

Final thoughts. The NCL Pearl is a fantastic ship with a wonderful, friendly crew. Alaska is a check on the bucket list, and if you are booked on a future Pearl cruise to Alaska, you are in for a treat. We will use NCL again, hopefully on a Jewell class ship since I doubt we'd be happy on the mega-ships. The level of personal service on the Pearl could not have been better.

I'd be happy to reply to any questions you may have.

Thanks for the great report. We're heading on this voyage next month and can't wait. A couple questions for you:

Did you try disembarking first thing at any of the ports of call, and if so how were the lines to get off the ship? We have an early excursion booked in Ketchikan and I'd like to know when we should plan to queue up to exit.

Did anyone seem to be using the pools? Were they heated at all? Our kids are like fish, but I want to manage expectations about how likely / unlikely pool time will be.

Any chance you used the bowling alley, golf nets or climbing wall? How do those work in terms of having to book time slots, wait in line, pay for use, etc.

Thanks again.

Pearl will arrive in Ketchikan no later than 6 am, and disembarking should be no problem that early! One would think if you're ready to go by 6 AM you'll get right off straight away. It is a very simple process. Pools are not heated but the two hot tubs adjacent are. Even though quite brisk on the pool deck, the kids seemed to be in the pools and hot tubs all day! Assuming they are normal kids that lets nothing phase them, pool time will be plentiful. Watched some folks bowling in the Bliss Lounge and on the rock wall, but did not do so myself. Not sure how you make arrangements. You will love your trip...have a blast!

Appreciate the feedback.

Oh, thank you! Heading out on the Pearl next month for my first ever cruise. Cannot wait!

A couple of questions - is ship time consistently Seattle time or Alaska time? What time did you absolutely have to be back to line up to get on board (I'm especially concerned about Ketchikan). So if the ship schedule says it leaves at noon - did you have to line up an hour early to get on board on time?

Glacier Bay questions - I have an inside cabin, so have to rely on the public spaces. I also have a new camera. After going on a walk last night to practice, I'm realizing a tripod might be nice. Will the decks be too crowded? (Outdoors). How early does the ship enter Glacier Bay and when did it leave the bay?

Finally - got any dailies pics you can upload? :)

Hi and hope this helps. You will be on West Coast time until you enter the Alaskan time zone. The dailies, as well as signage throughout the ship, will tell you when to change your clock - I think it 's around 2 am so you will make the change when you go to bed. Same will happen when it's time to change back. Very easy and they will not let you forget.

When you disembark at a port, again the dailies, signs and announcements will tell you the time to back on board, usually 30 minutes before sailing time (1 hour for the crew.)

Pearl will enter GB and pick up park rangers about 6 am but it will be about 3 hours before you reach the 1st glacier which is spectacular! There is plenty of room on deck to see everything and they open the bow area for viewing as well. The Spinnaker Lounge is also a great place to view from inside the ship. You will be in GB all day long and see numerous glaciers so you'll have plenty of time for meals, etc. a tripod would be nice but not necessary unless you really want one. You will get pretty close to the glaciers....we got great photos with just our cell phones.

I do not have the dailies...sorry.

You will love this cruise and the Pearl! Enjoy....

Thanks for the info! I have family in Ketchikan - notoriously late family, so I am going to tell her I need to be back at the ship an hour before to give us some wiggle room! I wasn't worried about the other ports as Juneau feels like we have lots of time to do what we want to do (the tram, and a shuttle to the glacier. We're not worrying about booking through the cruise line) and in Skagway we are doing a NCL excursion.

Based on the practice photos with my new camera, I might like having a tripod. I just didn't want to annoy other passengers (since I won't have a balcony). Not needing to fly in to Seattle means I can go a little easy on my usual travel light philosophy!

Thanks for the review! This is the first I've seen for the Pearl Alaska of the season. We head out on 7/2! :D

Thanks for the review! This is the first I've seen for the Pearl Alaska of the season. We head out on 7/2! :D

My husband and I will be joining you on that cruise. We can't wait. Mostly I can't wait. He seems to be managing just fine. This will be our second Pearl cruise to Alaska. 30 days :D

What is the name of the shopping consultant on the Pearl? I think his name was Trey, but I can't remember his last name.

What's a shopping consultant?

Just want to say thanks for taking the time to post.

Thank you for sharing your experience.

Thank you for posting! After a year and a half of planning we finally sail late next month

Nice review, real shame you don't get into Victoria until 6pm. Don't know what NCL did to the schedule but we arrived at 2pm on the Jewel last year, plenty of time to do things

What's a shopping consultant?

They are the one's who steer people who like to shop to the most expensive stores on port days:')

Such an informative review for a newbie like me! Thank you for sharing your experience. This is why I love Cruise Critic so much!