Review: Radiance Alaska Northbound - August 2015 plus DIY land

Hello everyone. We sailed on Radiance of the Seas August 7-14, 2015 and then we rented a car and toured Alaska for another week on our own. I’m doing a review because I wanted to give back for all the good advice I received over the course of my planning. Hopefully, something I share will help someone else in their planning. And if not, I do have some pretty pictures!

First, who are we? I’m Linda traveling with my husband Doug, his sister Jennifer and her husband Kenny. Our ages range from 51-57. Our husbands originally mentioned Alaska when we were planning a trip to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversaries in 2010. Jennifer and I convinced them that a Mediterranean cruise would be much more romantic and so that was what we ended up doing. Since this year we will all celebrate our 30th anniversaries, we decided we should make the guys happy and do Alaska. It turned out to be a great choice! (Group shot below – I’m the short one)

This was my 4th cruise, all on Royal and I was excited that the ship sailing Alaska was the sister ship to the Brilliance which was our first and favorite ship. We have also sailed Grandeur and Explorer. I really like the size of the Radiance class ships and all of the windows where you are always able to see the ocean. I wasn’t really crazy about the Promenade area on Explorer. I felt more like I was in a mall than on a ship. I cruise for the ports but I do enjoy the whole aspect of being on the ship too.

My first task was booking the cruise which I did in March 2014 on the first day it was available. I had read about the larger hump cabins and I wanted to secure 8088 which is the first cabin next to the elevators and has a huge balcony but is the same price as the rest in its’ category. Jennifer got 8086 right next door which has a big but just slightly smaller balcony than 8086. I really loved the room location. I know many people do not like these rooms because they can hear noise from the Centrum. I will say that you CAN hear the noise but as long as you don’t go to bed before 11:00-11:30, it does not matter. My husband wasn’t thrilled because he does like going to bed earlier but it was only really loud on two of the nights. The large balcony was really nice and had two regular chairs and two chairs that kind of leaned back but were not lounges. I love the higher tables.

When I originally started thinking Alaska, I really wanted to go the first two weeks of July. However, my sister-in-law and husband have a business in which the summer is their busiest months. The earliest they could go would be August so I had to plan accordingly.

Since we live in eastern, Pennsylvania we have our choice to fly out of Philadelphia or Newark, NJ. We prefer Newark because it is easier to get to. We couldn’t do a round trip because we were doing the cruise one way so we ended up flying Newark/Vancouver on United and Anchorage/Newark on Alaskan/American. I cashed in United points and points from another credit card and my cost for two people round trip ended up being $157.00. Not too bad!

Our excursions were: Capilano Suspension Bridge, Island Wings (bears), FISHES (whale watching), Coastal Helicopters (dog sledding), Puffin Fishing Charters and Kenai Float ‘n Fish. If any of those interest you, stay tuned.

Holding for page links.

Thursday, August 6, 2015 - Newark, NJ to Chicago to Vancouver

Our flight to Chicago was at 6:00AM. We drove over Wednesday night and stayed at a Park/Sleep/Fly hotel in Newark where we could leave our car for the entire time we were gone and have the free shuttle to the airport. The cost for the hotel and keeping our car 17 days was $220.80.

The shuttle to the airport runs on the hour so they recommended using the 3:00AM shuttle instead of the 4:00AM one. I was not thrilled. We were up at 2:30, got ready and were shuttled to the airport by around 3:15. Of course nothing was open and there was only one other couple besides us at our gate. We tried to sleep but that wasn’t happening. More people began to show up around 4:30 so we could have gotten the 4:00AM shuttle.

We met Jennifer and Kenny, who were flying from Richmond, VA in Chicago and we were all on the second plane to Vancouver. We arrived in Vancouver around 11:30. This had to be one of the prettiest airports I’ve ever seen.

Since there were four of us with 1 large bag per person and 3 wheeled carryons plus backpacks, we needed something large. I had read that you could get a minivan taxi and also that the taxi prices to downtown were set. When we exited the airport, we got into the taxi line which was extremely LONG. While standing there I saw a limo stand. Since our line wasn’t moving, I went over to the limo line. We ended up getting a limo for around $30 a couple. I love being on the good side of an exchange rate unlike when we went to Europe. We rode into Vancouver in comfort and style.

I had chosen the St. Regis Hotel from reviews here on CC. This was a great choice! The hotel had a great location, a Starbucks attached and a nice restaurant plus their free breakfast was very good. We even got chocolates on the pillows and nice quality shampoos and soaps in the bathroom. The staff there was excellent and very helpful.

After we checked in and freshened up, we had lunch in the hotel’s restaurant. It was kind of a sports bar. We all shared poutine as an appetizer. I had read that it was some sort of Canadian specialty and it was really good. It was French fries with gravy and cheese curds. I wasn’t sure what to expect but it was kind of like our French fries, cheese and gravy that you can order in the States except that instead of cheddar cheese, the curds are like mozzarella. Definitely not low cal! After lunch, we walked down to Canada Place to look for the free shuttle bus to Capilano Suspension Bridge. I would have preferred going to the Bridge first thing in the morning which was suggested on the boards but I knew my DH would want to get to the ship as early as possible. I had also read that you could go later in the day to avoid the crowds but we were pretty tired since we were up at 2:30AM our time and now we had a three hour time difference. It’s a good thing we didn’t go later because our shuttle driver told us that the last bus back would be between 6:00 and 6:30 even though the park was open until 8:00PM.

The bridge was really fun but very crowded.

The park itself was just beautiful! I have never seen trees so tall. I would love to come to this place on a day that wasn’t crowded and spend an entire day. It would be so peaceful.

The treetops bridges were a lot of fun too.

]

Feeling like an Ewok! (Star Wars lover here)

]

Holding for page links.

Apparently on Cruise Critic you cannot add links because the Edit button disappears.

Enjoying your review.

Keith

Enjoying your review.

 

Keith

Thank you Keith! I was feeling very lonely here:)

Thursday, August 6, 2015 - Vancouver

After climbing around on the treetops for awhile, it was time to do the Cliffwalk. It was pretty hot that day and everyone was tired and the long was really long so I was the only one to do it.

After I finished the cliffwalk, we headed back to where the shuttles were. The air conditioning on the shuttle that we were on was broken and the windows didn’t open. We felt like we were in a sauna the entire way. He dropped us off at the Hyatt stop because he said it was a little closer than the stop at Canada Place. We decided to just eat dinner in the hotel again and call it a night.

We slept in a little and showered and got ready and then headed down to the included breakfast. They had a large room where you were seated and presented with a menu with three breakfast options: a continental type, eggs how you wanted them with sides or an omelet. This was really nice and not your typical free breakfast. After finishing breakfast, we brought our luggage down and the guys at the front called for a minivan cab for us. Even though we could have walked it, it would have been a real pain with all of the luggage. It was less than $10 a couple with the tip. Well worth it. I just loved this hotel and would definitely stay there again.

The cab dropped us right in front of Canada Place and we were through check in in no time. The walk through the building took longer than the actual check in. Once on board, Jennifer, Kenny and I decided to go explore Gastown. Doug headed for the pool bar. Priorities, people!

I just really wanted to see the steam clock. Fortunately we got there almost on the hour so we did not have long to wait to see it do its’ thing.

We walked down as far as Gassy Jack and did a little shopping and then we were all ready for the ship.

By the time we got back, the rooms were opened so I stopped in to check out my balcony before going to find Doug. Look at the size of this thing!

I found my hubby and enjoyed a beverage (or two).

Friday, August 7, 2015 – Vancouver/Sailaway

Soon it was sailaway time and we said goodbye to Vancouver.

We hung around outside for quite awhile watching the scenery. We had muster drill and our location was Schooner Bar. After muster, we explored a bit and got ready for dinner. We always do My Time dining. We requested window seats and got them. Then we normally ask to have the same time and waiters every night so it works out similar to main seating except we are not eating as early or as late.

Saturday, August 8, 2015 – Seaday

Today was our only day to relax so we slept in a little. We wandered around doing ship things. I think Jennifer and Kenny did a movie. Doug and I played mini golf.

We did not pack formal clothes for the guys, no jackets or ties, because of all the extra clothes we needed so we decided to skip formal night and go to Chops instead. Also, I wasn’t crazy about the menu for the first formal night anyway. We did snag some of the free champagne from the Captains welcome before our dinner.

While we were eating in Chops, we saw Dall Porpoises and humpback whales. Our table became very popular with the other diners as they stood around it to look out. We jokingly offered them some bread. It was all in good fun though.

Whale tale from Chops!

We called it a night fairly early because the next day was our floatplane tour with Island Wings to Anan!

Thank you Keith! I was feeling very lonely here:)

I'm enjoying it too! We are living vicariously thru every Radiance AK review, as we impatiently wait for next May. Thanks for reviewing! [emoji4]

I'm enjoying it too! We are living vicariously thru every Radiance AK review, as we impatiently wait for next May. Thanks for reviewing! [emoji4]

Thank you! More will be coming now that I have all the pictures I wanted downloaded. That's the hardest part.

Sunday, August 9, 2015 – Ketchikan

Today was the day I was looking forward to the most since I booked the cruise. It was something I took into consideration when choosing my dates. All I wanted to see was bears catching salmon, particularly brown bears. I have been watching Brooks Falls webcams for a couple years and just love watching the bears. I knew we would not have time to do Brooks or the other tours that go to Katmai due to our other plans. So after reading about it on this site, I knew Anan was the place I wanted to go. About a week or so after I booked the cruise (March 2014), I emailed Island Wings. I chose them because of having an armed guide. I know many people use other vendors without guides but this was something that all of my guys wanted. I got in and Shona at Island Wings told me they would let me know in October if we got the permit. We did and everything was a go.

The morning we reached Ketichkan was a nice day. No rain! I was so excited because I had read about other people having their Anan trips canceled due to weather. Shona picked us up right on time and we had one other couple from Celebrity with us. She drove us to their office which we really could have just walked to since Michelle takes off right next to the ship. And here is where we got the BAD NEWS. We could not go to Anan because it was fogged in even though the weather here was nice. Apparently they have cameras set up near the landing sites where they can monitor the weather and it did not look good there. Michelle gave us the option of canceling and getting a full refund or she could take us to Traitors Cove where there are only black bears. Now we live in Pennsylvania and we have black bears here so we weren’t really excited but we didn’t really want to cancel either because we were also excited for the floatplane ride. The consensus of all six of us was to just go. This turned out to be a GREAT decision!

Michelle had us stand there and she looked everyone over and placed us where she wanted us to sit. My brother-in-law rode shotgun. The second seat held Tim, our guide, Jennifer and Doug. The third seat had the couple from Celebrity. And because I’m short, I got the back seat all by myself. As far as I’m concerned, it was the best seat in the house! I had plenty of room AND I could take pictures out of windows on either side of the plane. I loved it!

We had a smooth landing on a beautiful lake.

Sunday, August 9, 2015 – Ketchikan

We took some pictures on the dock and then Michelle left and we started up the hill toward the van where Tim would drive us to the pathway leading to the observation area.

The walk through the woods was really pretty. I loved seeing all the different kinds of trees and bushes.

This is what he viewing platform looked like. Also, please note my boots for those wondering what to pack for Alaska. They had to be my most favorite thing to wear. They were very comfortable and kept my feet completely dry. Michelle loved them and said I was the first person to show up prepared with rain boots. They were Kamicks made in Canada and I purchased them from Amazon.

We saw Mr. Eagle sitting there surveying the salmon.

Apparently on Cruise Critic you cannot add links because the Edit button disappears.

You can only edit for 20 minutes after posting.

Loving your pictures so far. Radiance is a ship we love. We would like to get to Alaska one day, so thank you for taking the time. There is always something to be learnt from other people's experiences. It helps with the dreaming process too :)

Interested to hear about the noise for your cabins too. Handy to know. Love the size of the balcony :)

Enjoying your review, thanks for your posts. We will be on the Radiance next year so I am looking forward to reading all about your cruise adventure. BTW, loved your balcony --- care to share your cabin number????

We have gone with Michele and Tim twice to Anan Creek and enjoyed our bear experience. Sorry to hear that you had to change your plans --- looking forward to hearing more about Traitor's Cove.

Like you, I sat in the back of the plane --- I enjoyed it so much the first time I asked to be seated there on our last trip --- best seat ever!

Sunday, August 9, 2015 – Ketchikan

There were around a dozen people on the observation platform. They had a green blind with holes cut out for viewing. There was some seating and a small covered area nearby where people left their backpacks. We were allowed to bring small backpacks that Michelle stored in the float of the plane. I brought my two cameras, a Nikon D5100 with its long lens that I primarily used. I also bought a Nikon Tough before the cruise which was the best $300 I could have spent. Lots of rain coming! We saw a total of about 8 different bears. Even though they weren’t browns, they were so much fun to watch and SO cute! Prepare for some bear pics!

This bear was my favorite. She tried and tried and did not get a fish. She sat there so dejected.

And then success! Everyone cheered for her and the guides there shushed them. You really have to be quiet but sometimes the excitement gets to you.

Even though bears are mostly solitary, the guides said these two were brothers that still stuck together.

Sunday, August 9, 2015 – Ketchikan

Bear in tree!

]

I wanted to let everyone know something that I had wondered about these spots where bear were catching and eating salmon. How does it smell? BAD. REALLY BAD.

Since we were originally scheduled for Anan and it is further away, we got extra time to watch the bears. After being there for a few hours, Tim took us to this beautiful lake where was where the salmon were heading to spawn and die.

Spawning salmon.

We spent some time at the lake. Tim took our pictures and he was so informative about the area and the salmon and Alaska in general. We really had a nice relaxing time up there. Then it was time to head back down to the lake to wait for Michelle. Here she comes!

And off we go again.

You can only edit for 20 minutes after posting.

 

Loving your pictures so far. Radiance is a ship we love. We would like to get to Alaska one day, so thank you for taking the time. There is always something to be learnt from other people's experiences. It helps with the dreaming process too :)

 

Interested to hear about the noise for your cabins too. Handy to know. Love the size of the balcony :)

Interesting to know about the edit button. I've posted reviews on DIS boards and the edit button stays there. It's nice because you can put links to each post there and people who are reading don't have to scroll through everything.

I'm glad you are enjoying it. I love the Radiance ships. If I could, I would sail exclusively on them.

Enjoying your review, thanks for your posts. We will be on the Radiance next year so I am looking forward to reading all about your cruise adventure. BTW, loved your balcony --- care to share your cabin number????

 

We have gone with Michele and Tim twice to Anan Creek and enjoyed our bear experience. Sorry to hear that you had to change your plans --- looking forward to hearing more about Traitor's Cove.

 

Like you, I sat in the back of the plane --- I enjoyed it so much the first time I asked to be seated there on our last trip --- best seat ever!

My room was 8088. My sister-in-law had 8086 which was slightly smaller but still a good size.

I would definitely fly with Michelle again. We had a great experience with her and Tim and Shona. Very nice people.

Definitely best seat ever! It pays to be short.:D

Sunday, August 9, 2015 – Ketchikan

On the way back, my husband got to sit in the front. He has always wanted to learn to fly and he does fly remote control airplanes. He enjoyed seeing it from that view and also talking to Michelle about the remotes which she says are harder to fly that her plane. Once we landed, Michelle showed us her catch. She has crab pots on one of the lakes and it was loaded with Dungeness crab which is my favorite.

]

Michelle gave each couple a DVD which included Misty Fjords as a souvenir. She also refunded part of our money since the Traitors Cove excursion is cheaper than the Anan excursion. I really enjoyed the whole experience and would definitely use them again. They were genuinely nice people.

It was about 1:30 by the time we got back to town and everyone was starving. We had an all aboard at 4:30 so we didn’t have a lot of time and I really wanted to see Creek Street. We had asked Shona about where to eat and she suggested Annabelle’s but when we went there it was over an hour wait. The hostess suggested Fish Pirates and said it was owned by the same people. We walked about a block and got in there. From what I recall, the food was good. I think I had some sort of halibut. Doug decided to go back to the ship and Jennifer, Kenny and I walked around Creek Street. There were many dead salmon in the creek and there was that odor again.

WOW Linda

Thanks for this review. Your photos are fantastic! I am on the same southbound cruise with Barb from TN who posted earlier. :) I love Radiance class too.

So I guess the Black Bears are the ones that climb trees. :D

Denise

Interesting to know about the edit button. I've posted reviews on DIS boards and the edit button stays there. It's nice because you can put links to each post there and people who are reading don't have to scroll through everything.

I'm glad you are enjoying it. I love the Radiance ships. If I could, I would sail exclusively on them.

Yes, we have found Celebrity Solstice to be a great ship too. Each has its own pros and cons. We are going on Voyager & Explorer again soon as the itinerary and price added up for us, and really all the ships are great. When you sit an a balcony the sea looks the same on each one :)

The 20 minute thing is strange as there is only a short time after that when the warning message comes up. Your other post on the RCI board that you just replied to, I could do this, but now the edit link has completely gone for me. I guess when they set up the site they decided that was the way to go. You do need to say things with the realisation it will be there for good :) Also, I beleive from what others have said that administrators do not reply quickly and are not keen to edit unless there is a very good reason.

Thanks, Linda for posting such a wonderful review of your Alaskan cruise on the Radiance! I am loving all of your pictures and so far many of them are bringing back wonderful memories of both of my Alaskan cruises, the last one in 2011 aboard the Radiance! (I'll be back on board her in less than two weeks on her southbound run to Hawaii while repositioning to the New Zealand/Australia cruise season.)

Can't wait for more; you are a gifted photographer as well.:)

Ellen

WOW Linda

Thanks for this review. Your photos are fantastic! I am on the same southbound cruise with Barb from TN who posted earlier. :) I love Radiance class too.

So I guess the Black Bears are the ones that climb trees. :D

 

Denise

Glad you're enjoying it! Thanks!

Thanks, Linda for posting such a wonderful review of your Alaskan cruise on the Radiance! I am loving all of your pictures and so far many of them are bringing back wonderful memories of both of my Alaskan cruises, the last one in 2011 aboard the Radiance! (I'll be back on board her in less than two weeks on her southbound run to Hawaii while repositioning to the New Zealand/Australia cruise season.)

 

Can't wait for more; you are a gifted photographer as well.:)

 

Ellen

Thanks! I love taking pictures.