GirlScoutMom2015

Putterdude - thank you so much for the reply and the guideline. Although we are taking 3 different shore excursions, they are all with different companies so your guidelines are a great place to start and I can live with those amounts. So the only question that remains is whether to tip the catamaran excursion people which is a Carnival excursion or if our price includes a gratuity on that one.

Hi all - I just realized I have no idea what an appropriate tip is for our tour guides. We are a group of 19 girl scouts and adults chaperones and will be going on the Carnival Tracy Arm Fjord Catamaran, a White Pass Railroad / Motor Coach combo tour in Skagway which includes lunch at Bennett Station and a kayak/hike of the Tongass National Forest in Juneau with Beyond Alaska.

We don't want to overtip but definitely don't want to undertip either so all suggestions are very much appreciated. We are also not sure if a tip is expected on the catamaran but will certainly tip if expected / recommended.

Thanks so much

Jen

WLHyatt - thanks for the info and I'm thrilled to hear about GF wraps at the Deli as I love sandwiches and my daughter who is 16 and also gluten intolerant misses sandwiches and pizza the most so that's great news.

If I can ask about the Steakhouse - I know I'm probably fine with appetizer and entrée / sides but I'm worried about dessert options (although I'll probably be too stuffed to care but it's nice to feel like there are choices). Do you remember what dessert options were available?

THanks again

I have e-mailed to all that requested two Zip files containing all eight Fun Times.

Thank you so much for these!!! They are a huge help as I get down to the nitty gritty of planning with my troop.

thanks again,

Jennifer

Hi,

I am sailing on the Legend to Alaska in 2 weeks :) and was wondering if anyone could share their gluten free dining experiences with me. I've already received a lovely email from Carnival letting me know they are aware of my gluten intolerance / allergy but it would be great to hear from people who have BTDT about favorite meals, things to look out for and food on the Lido deck or room service that is safe to eat.

Thanks so much in advance

Jennifer

I'm just back from the first sailing to Alaska.

 

Regular menu - NOT American Table menu.

 

Not as much entertainment as Carribean cruises but there is a Naturalist

on board that shares a great deal of info over the ships P.A. system.

Binoculars are a MUST, Carnival couldn't afford to pay the wildlife to swim up close to the ship and wave for photo's.

 

If you post an E-mail address, I'll scan and e-mail the Fun Times to you. First sailing was an eight day with a visit to Glacier Bay that is not in the regular seven day sailings for the season.

 

Mid ship pool deck roof was closed the entire voyage. There were people swimming and using the hot tubs.

Thank you so much for the reply and the info - we would love the fun times and my email is thecassinis@gmail.com. Thanks again!!

Hi - I can't seem to find these answers anywhere and I am 45 days from taking my girl scout troop to Alaska on the Legend and hoping someone will have the answers. I realize the questions probably don't seem all that urgent but its the first time I will have taken 9 teenagers this far from home so the more information I have the better.

The first is whether the new American Table menu has been rolled out on the Legend and if so if anyone knows what the Port of Call menu looks like for Alaska?

Another is when or how I might be able to get copies of the Fun Times (I think that's what they call the schedule of each days events). I know they would be subject to change and that's fine but I'm hoping to review them to get a sense of what activities are available and which the girls are interested in.

And the last is just a request for any suggestions / tips for how to make the time on the ship the most fun for both the kids (9 - 16 year old girls, 2 younger brothers (12 & 13 yrs old), and the adults traveling with them)

Thanks so much for any help,

Jen

BudgetQueen - thank you so much for the info on kayaking Mendenhall not being any more risky than Chilkoot. I think we will definitely go that way. I emailed orca tours for pricing and information on a combo-tour that included the whale watching so that will be perfect. The link for nps is also great - we will definitely try to fit in either the walking tour and/or the informational movie I am curious why splitting the group up would help? It's not undoable but not ideal either so would depend on how important it is.

Bonvoyagie - thanks so much for the cruiseportinsider link. I'm not sure how I didn't find it before but it has a ton of great information and I will be reading forever I think. And it's an interesting point about merit badges - my sons are both in boy scouts and I'm used to that also but I don't always think about it with the girls as the program isn't as badge focused. I will have to take a look at them though as it would be nice to earn a few.

New2cruise1483 - thanks ! We are thinking about visiting Totem Bright but I didn't know about the bus. I will definitely look into that. Thanks again!!

Thanks for the replies - Budget Queen - I'm wondering what about the Chilkoot Lake kayaking you didn't like? I know it's definitely not high adventure (we are considering kayaking at Mendenhall but have to see if that's too high adventure). We have looked at the Chilkoot Hike & Float trip but the girls are partial to kayaking although they could definitely be swayed into trying something new. The problem is they don't want tourist trappy and all the tour books they've picked up imply that staying in the ports is exactly that. And Don, while I agree the gold rush would be cute it is exactly what they don't want to do. They're a little embarrassed that they are going on a cruise as a girl scout trip but doing it because it's the only practical way to see Alaska on a budget that I'm comfortable taking a group of kids on so they want to make up for it by doing really cool (read "non-girly") stuff on their trip.

And oaktreeb, I did see the maps you are discussing for trail hikes in Skagway but I'm concerned that the cool ones are risky on our own and the safe ones are a little on the boring side for teenagers. Are there any specific hikes you would recommend that don't risk us not making it back to the boat because we get lost?:eek:

Thanks again and keep the comments coming - they're all much appreciated.

Hi all,

Well it's official - my girl scout troop is going on an Alaskan Cruise. We are booked on the Carnival Legend for the July 7th sailing. There are a total of 19 people in our group including adults. The majority of the girls are sophomores in high school with a couple a few years younger.

I would love any tips on how to make this the best possible trip for them as they've worked their tails off raising the money to make it happen.

To give you a sense of what they are thinking of as far as shore excursions go they are looking at the following:

Skagway: a kayaking trip in Haines

Juneau: a combo whale watching / Mendenhall Glacier / Salmon Bake

Ketchikan: not totally sure

Victoria: a tastings tour

In addition to general cruise advice (especially for a large group) I'm looking for suggestions for what else to do in port as they don't want to spend hours on end shopping and how to use the time in Skagway well since we have 14 hours there and even with a 6+ hour shore excursion that leaves a ton of time to do something cool.

They've traveled as a troop many times visiting Cape Cod, a dude ranch in New York State, weekends in Boston and numerous day trips to NYC and around NJ and Pennsylvania so they are used to behaving well in public and are willing to try almost anything.

Thanks so much in advance for any advice - can't wait for July:D

Hi - I'm sailing on the Carnival Legend this summer (July 7th to be exact) and was wondering if anyone knew if the Tracy Arm excursion was offered on that ship and if so how to book it? It sounds wonderful but I can't find it anywhere. Thanks in advance

Jen