no1racefan1

10 days to go!! Only 6 more work days counting today.... DH had his series of cardiology appts on Wednesday (first since his emergency pacemaker surgery last spring) and got a clean bill of health! We're just working on our list of things to do before vacation: -Lawn care & getting our drip irrigation going -Finishing spring cleaning the house -Setting up the ring cam so we can keep an eye on our pup -Buying travel snacks -Meal planning to use everything perishable -Starting to pack!! I've still been checking excursions, cruise prices, etc. every day even though it's unlikely anything will change at this point. The price of balconies has gone down so it would now be cheaper to call and rebook than it would be to bid on an upgrade. It's still about $500pp more so haven't jumped on that. Photo of our precious spoiled girl we'll be leaving alone for two weeks 😭

Oooh, sounds interesting!

It seems to be ship and/or staff dependent. We sail in 22 days. I've seen people who've said they can already see their ship's schedule and they are sailing after us. The only thing I see so far is 4pm Let's Get Quizzical every day, lol. But hey, it used to be part of the fun to not know the schedule until it was delivered to your stateroom the night before, so I'm not too worried about it!

I don't think it's a scam or bogus, it just depends on when you booked your excursions or if you've already booked them. If you didn't book them super early, you may be more likely to get a cheaper price under this promo than you would without the sale. If you booked them a long time ago, prices have gone up considerably, so even the sales price is more expensive. Basically if you're booking now, under the 'up to 20%' sale, you might be able to get a cheaper price than if you booked full price NOW. But the BEST time to book excursions seems to be as early as you know what you want!

We took this excursion on our first cruise in 2006. I spent so much time out on the platform taking pictures! You're supposed to take turns so everybody has a chance to be outside (it's small) but hardly anybody else ever wanted to go out there, so DH and I spent about half the ride out there. It's so cool!

Two weeks!!!!!! Somebody posted this in another group:

#2 definitely. Also, I believe Anchorage has Walmart, Sam's Club, etc. so probably plenty of options--although I can understand not wanting to use time grocery shopping. Not sure about #1 and #3. I'm not even sure what #3 is referring to. First I was picturing like ramen soup cups or something like that, which would be okay.

We're attending an outdoor dog training event this weekend and it's supposed to be chilly (40's) and raining all day. DH says we can practice dressing for Alaska! 🤣 17 days to go...

You're right, I probably won't need them. I'm bringing gloves and I'm not too worried about weather. So far it seems pretty comparable to what we're used to in WY. I'm thinking the places that might get cold are when we're out on the water on small boats. And since DH has a big pack of these that he uses for hunting, I just grabbed a couple. Definitely wouldn't have bought them special for the trip though!

Have I mentioned I'm a terrible millennial? I posted those last two posts (with pics!) from my phone so I could practice before our trip 😅 I hate typing on my phone. And sideways pics? Yep, get ready for those!!

I've never considered myself an overpreparer when it comes to medicine-y stuff but after the last four years, you just never know. I put together this little kit and hopefully having it means we won't need it. (Not pictured: zicam nasal spray and thermacare heat wraps)

Gathering has begun! I've started making a pile of the things from around the house that I want to bring but might be easy to forget.

I printed everything out today! I had to search CC to figure out where to go to print luggage tags.

Skagway, Juneau, and Ketchikan, in that order.

I've been reading about Princess doing Alaska shore excursion 'sales' the last few weeks and I finally got the offer! Up to 20% off shore excursions. @Ken the cruiser mentioned in his Live review that one of his excursions actually became cheaper than when he booked it (yeah!!) so of course I had to check 'em out: Chilkoot Trail Hike & Float--originally booked at 164.95, was 239.95 before sale and currently 189.95 with the sale Bike & Brew Glacier View--originally booked at 139.95, was 169.95 before sale and currently 154.95 with the sale Alaska Fishing & Wilderness Dining--originally booked at 369.95, was 504.95 before sale and currently 419.95 with the sale So, no deals for me yet, but happy for Ken that he saved some cash and a reminder to all of us to periodically check on reservations. Deals can be sneaky!