nw gardener

I prepaid online through westpark at Canada Place, I think I did it by following a link on Canada Place website if I remember correctly. With the exchange rate it came to $188 for the week.

Anytime after you cross the border, you delete the "trip" and create a new one for embarkation (assuming you are doing a RT out of Vancouver). The new ArriveCan trip you are creating is for entering Canada on the return/disembarking. ArriveCan is tied to your passport so you probably won't even need to physically show it as they can see it when your passport is scanned. Think of ArriveCan is to be used whenever you enter the country with a new trip for each entry. If you are doing a one way cruise to AK, no need for a second entry as you are not "entering " Canada again.

I posted my embarkation/disembarking experience on the west coast departure forum, in short I arrived early and left early and it was the easiest time ever for me out of Vancouver. No problem with Ketchikan, you may be thinking about the damaged pier in Sitka that is making for changes for some cruise lines. Not sure for the fix timeline for that.

I stand corrected! Canada still has testing requirements for cruises, that line up with the cruise lines. Both probably not dropping that requirement anytime soon.

I embarked June 5 as well, 3 ship day. Was assigned 1100 check in and driving up to Vancouver from WA and prepaid parking at Canada place. EASIEST embarkation and disembarking ever! I was pleasantly surprised to say the least because I've experienced the opposite too. Decided to get to the Peace Arch border crossing early , 0845, no line, quick and painless. Traffic was light, pulled off to do our second ArriveCan trip, got to Canada place before 10. Passed off luggage in the parking garage, super easy. Went up to check in area and waited 10 minutes until they opened it up. Quick check in and on to security, again no line and quick. US customs next, again no line, then a 15 minute wait before we could actually board. Lots of people helping to point you in the right direction, for anyone with mobility issues there is a lot of walking for the whole process. The worst choke point is the escalator going down to security, there was a helper at the bottom to direct and a large family ahead of us decided they needed to stop and ask questions. Blocking getting off the escalator..visions of dying on an escalator lol! I yelled to move, nada..got to bottom and had to push 2 adults out of the way. Still didn't seem to comprehend the issue, thankfully the employee moved them. Disembarking, walked off with luggage and no line through customs at Canada place or the border crossing. Very stress free both directions for me, go early and get off early. I am, sadly, always amazed at the number of people who aren't prepared with their paperwork, luggage tags, ID, etc that slow down the process for everyone...sigh.

True, Canada doesn't require a test anymore, but the cruise lines still do and probably will continue for awhile. Lots of debate on that topic!

Yes, no password, open to guests much like wifi at airports etc.

Yes you should be able to open the app in Canada if you have cell and data plan for Canada, and wifi appeared to be usable throughout Canada place. Only freaking out for us was when my friend realized she didn't have a functioning cell phone. But it was a easy work around by adding her as an additional traveler on my ArriveCan. The app is very user friendly, and Canadian cruiser boards has a long post with lots of good tips.

I have a Verizon cell plan that includes Canadian and Mexico calling with limited data for both countries but enough to get the job done. There is wifi at Canada place, my friends phone just happened to turn into a paperweight north of the border lol. It takes less than 5 minutes to fill out the trip info and they email a receipt as well when you successfully complete it. Have a wonderful cruise!

I thought I'd post my experience from last week with ArriveCan. First of all, before your trip download the App and load your info, passport and proof of vaccination. I scanned my passport and loaded pictures of my card, the App saves that for your future trips to Canada, very easy. I drove across the border in the morning for my RT cruise out of Vancouver. I had filled out my trip info for that crossing 72 hours in advance. After crossing the border, I pulled off and deleted the one I had just used and entered the new one for my second entry to Canada which was for the return/ disembarking. My friend traveling with me found out after crossing the border that she had no cell service and her phone wasn't even connecting to wifi. So I deleted my newest entry in ArriveCan and added her as my travelling companion. Not sure how many can go onto the one but it's designed for families. I had to scan her passport and vaccine card, then created a new trip for both of us for disembarking. ArriveCan is tied to your passport so when they scan your passport it shows your trip receipt. Never had to actually show the app, it was very easy. If you make a mistake on your trip entry, just delete it and start over.

Short staffing, and hit and miss provisions, are not limited to Celebrity or even cruising. I do believe cruising will slowly recover their staffing numbers. Service from staff was very good, but I feel for them working 16 to 18 hour shifts to cover the staffing shortages. Go onboard with appropriate expectations, as we are learning to do for everything from grocery shopping shortages to traveling, and you will be fine. I would suggest set dining times if you can do it as having the same servers and set time worked well. Also take into account that the Eclipse actually hasn't been back into service that long. I had a very enjoyable experience overall and have no qualms cruising Celebrity again. Enjoy Alaska, it's beautiful.

June 7 on the Celebrity Eclipse, only got within 4.5 miles due to ice field. But on the plus side there wasn't a cloud in the sky so fantastic pictures.

Back home and here are my observations. Background, normally cruise every year to AK, but last time on Celebrity was on the Century for the same itinerary. Yes, it's been awhile since I've sailed Celebrity. Good- Cabin was C2 1231 , deck 10 on the hump. Very good but overworked room steward, loved the very large balcony and was convenient to elevator and stairs, and very quiet. Dining was early set dining and lucked out and got a window seat. Good service, food was mostly very good, and dinner normally took about an hour and a half. I think we fared better than the anytime dining as I heard more complaints about cold food and uneven service. Entertainment, enjoyed the evening shows. Cafe al Bacio was excellent for my caffeine fix and extra calorie sweets, but so sad no lemon tarts that I've read are so amazing. Just OK - Room service was prompt for breakfast, but the only thing that ever arrived hot was the coffee. Buffet was too crowded during lunch and MDR for lunch was hit and miss on service and hot food was sometimes lukewarm. Mast grill wasn't always open for lunch and guessing it may have been a staffing issue. Bad- I'll just leave it with if you can only staff at 65 to 70 %, then sell to a corresponding percentage of passenger numbers. If you are consistently overworking your employees cruise after cruise, in the long run you are making it difficult to retain your employees. When I look back at how I rate my vacation, good service always is right up near the top. Staff was trying so hard, and very pleasant, but clearly overworked. And saving the best for last, tested positive for Covid, the cruise souvenir no one wants but is rather prevalent. Myself and the friend (who is also positive) I traveled with tried to be very careful and were some of the VERY few that wore masks throughout the cruise. Good compliance of masking in the theater, no compliance on tours. Don't know where we picked it up other than the ship or a tour, went knowing chances were we could pick it up. Thankfully so far it's only like a bad head cold, thank you Moderna! There was a lot of coughing the last 2 days of the cruise so I'm sure quite a few brought home the same souvenir. Internet, slower than dial up. Alaska- We had some nice weather, and did the following tours. Icy - private whale watching with Hoonah Travel Adventures on a boat with about 30 people. Great time, lots of whales, highly reccomend them. Hubbard Glacier day, wow did we luck out with a clear sunny day. Due to ice field only got within 4 to 5 miles but still spectacular. Juneau, tram in the morning, Mendenhall Glacier and Gardens in the afternoon, and some shopping in between. Beautiful weather again and good tours. Ketchikan, rain and showers and did the Duck tour, kinda cheesy but fun, and some more shopping. Getting back to cruising was fun and felt like a return to normal, but Covid is still out there and will be for some time. I had a wonderful time even with the unwanted souvenir. I will try to answer any questions you have.

On the Eclipse now and having a wonderful time. Barnacle debacle is behind them. AI ship internet is slooooow, and I've found my Verizon coverage isn't so great in SE AK, so will post my thoughts and review after I get home. 2200 or so passengers, staff stretched a little thin but trying very hard. Weather has been great so far but probably rain tomorrow in Ketchikan. Unknown covid numbers, I'm definitely in the minority masking . I'm finally back cruising and first real vacation in 2 years and I'm definitely having a #%!@ good time!

Hoping someone onboard can update me on how staffing is currently. The app is showing no room service until after 11 AM for the entire week. Plus a couple of bars and Mast Grill have been closed until today, day 4 on the app. Is the app wrong or is there a staffing problem? TIA.

Thank you for the quick response, that is what I thought.

Hello, looking for clarification on my scenario coming up next month. US citizen driving to Canada Place for a RT cruise to AK. I have already downloaded the app and created my account, easy. Do I need to create 2 trips forms, one for the border crossing and one to embark? Lastly, only 1 can be created at a time if I have been told correctly. So do I need to delete the first one after crossing the border, and then make a new one to embark? Thanks in advance for your help!

I'm on the June 5th Eclipse cruise and was looking at available HAL cruises during the same week in case my cruise was canceled due to the barnacle debacle. Sorry that it ended up being your cruise, but I would have taken the refund and cruised HAL if mine was canceled. Before Covid, my last 5 cruises to AK have been on HAL, they normally deliver a very good experience. The Koningdam ( a newer ship) sails the 21st out of Vancouver and goes to Glacier Bay, which is spectacular. It comes down to what you can schedule, but I think you'd have a great cruise on HAL too.

Reading the May 22 roll call, appears that cruise is canceled to put the Eclipse in dry dock to fix the problem.