endoellen

Thanks for the info! I just checked & now Radiance of the Seas will be at Broadway dock on May 14! I think this is good for us and looks like we keep our same time in port. I'm looking forward to our White Pass Summit Rail & Bus excursion and if this schedule remains the same we should be in port from 9am-7pm!!!!

We will set our phones to airplane mode while cruising bc I don't plan on purchasing wifi package from the cruise line. From info I was given by my cell provider we should be able to use our phones & data while on land in the ports without any additional charges. Of course it's hard to know how good the service will be. If you happen to notice your phone showing Cellular at Sea & you use data, be prepared for a higher monthly bill. Years ago I checked email when on a ship that hadn't left the dock in Miami & was charged for cellular at sea!

That's awesome for you! Hope we have good weather when we are there in 2 weeks. Were you at the Railroad dock? Aft or Forward? It seems the biggest issue is with Railroad Forward, To best of my knowledge there are 2 other docks that were not affected by the rock slide.

Thank you! Good advice & just roll with whatever happens!

I certainly hope they get things worked out! Our ship Radiance will be at RRF dock on May 14th if it doesn't get cancelled all together. And now I'm finding out that is where Ship Rock is located! Yikes! Radiance is a smaller ship so hoping we won't have to miss this port. I've been looking forward to this port & excursion with Chilkoot! Our excursion is at 12:30pm & with my luck we'll probably be switched to docking 1/2 day in early morning.... The instructions I have from Chilkoot for Railroad dock is to walk to the end of the pier and go through security checkpoint to the "Skagway Small Boat Harbor" sign near public restrooms. I'm wondering if this will be different due to the construction?? So far we have not received any changes from Royal. I sure hope they don't wait & spring the changes on us after boarding. I don't plan on paying for wifi on the ship & we would need to be able to communicate with Chilkoot charters.

Well this is depressing news.... Radiance is scheduled to dock there on May 14th. We have had no notice from Royal as of yet that the port may be cancelled or time change. From everything I've read recently trying to reach Royal for any information is next to impossible!

Thank you! I found the docking schedule for all our 2023 Alaskan ports!

I certainly hope that Radiance of the Seas will be able to dock in Skagway on May 14th! I have booked with Chilkoot Charters for 12:30pm since our port time was listed as 7am-8pm. This is one excursion I am really looking forward to. We cruised many times with Royal & when disembarking in ports they have always let passengers with Royal booked excursions off first. So I would be afraid to have a very early time to meet up for an excursion. But that is just my opinion! Does anyone know or have a link to where I can find out what dock Radiance would be at on May 14th? Thanks for any suggestions!

I have booked with this company for the bus/train option as well. Good recomendations by many on these boards! Just keeping fingers crossed that we will be able to dock in Skagway....

We will be on Radiance of the Seas in May 2023 & also have Skagway as a port of call. I have already booked an excursion with Chilkoot Charters & so looking forward to it. I sent an email to them regarding this matter & this is the reply I got: The Municipality of Skagway has been working diligently with engineers and construction companies to rectify the hillside next to the railroad dock. The work at the dock area should be completed by May 1st. If your ship does not make it to port, you will be fully refunded.

We are cruising from Vancouver this May. I have reservations at Blue Horizon on Robson St. It was the most reasonable priced one that I found with good reviews and is in the area of Canada Place where cruise terminals are. Obviously we haven't stayed there yet but the hotel pics look nice enough & it's only for 2 nights.

Thank you Coral. We will be on Radiance of the Seas & in Juneau on May 13. Looks like 5 ships in port that day!!! Busy!!! From what I see I think we are at AS dock which I read is close to town. Guess that’s good….

I am interested in the whale sightseeing tour & glacier in Juneau. You mentioned that they pick up at the bottom of the tram. How far is that from where Royal Caribbean ships dock? Walking distance? We are in late 60's, but active & don't mind walking if not too far. Also, do you think whale watching better in Juneau or from Icy Strait Point? Thanks in advance!

Thank you for this information! When I booked an Alaska cruise out of Vancouver there were more requirements & glad to see that this has changed. Hopefully it stays this way for our cruise in May of this year.

Thanks for everyone's helpful information! I appreciate it. I've already downloaded the ArriveCan app & will get familiar with it. I'll also do more checking on the Covid testing sites when it gets closer to our sail date. Maybe things could change for the better by then😊

We are cruising with RCI to Alaska in May 2023 & I looked online at Air2Sea to book our airfare & because we didn't book the cruise directly with them but with CruCon.com it states that we cannot book our airfare with RCI & CruCon said they can't book the Air2Sea. Had I known this in advance, I probably wouldn't have used Crucon to book the cruise. They had a Labor Day special with a few good perks & since I've read so many negatives lately about booking with RCI that I decided to use them. I've booked several cruises with them in the past with no issues but I booked my own airfare & hotels. Guess that is what I will have to do this time as well.

Thanks for all the info! From some things I had read I thought we would need negative test to fly into Canada so if that's not necessary it makes it a bit easier! This was one thing I read online: Starting July 19, 2022: Mandatory random arrival testing resumes for air travellers qualified as fully vaccinated. I'm just learning about ArriveCAN & need to read more because I don't know all of the requirements yet. I do know there is an app to download & I'm assuming certain info has to be entered prior to arrival in Canada. We are planning on arriving to Vancouver 2 days before our cruise but our flight may be arriving later at night so looks like we would only have the day before or day of cruise to hopefully have a negative antigen test!! Any knowledge if there are pharmacies that offer it for reasonable cost in Vancouver cruise port area or downtown Vancouver? I haven't booked the hotel yet so not sure of exact location now. If it's possible, since the flights I have been looking at leave NOLA in the afternoon, we might be able to get it done at Walgreens here at home before our flight & our results are emailed to us usually within 2 hrs.

Thanks for your comment! I've checked Alaska Airlines but the flights are quite high & not good flight times. So far 2 one way flights on United has the best price. I'm going to watch fares for awhile before I commit.

Thank you for this information! This seems like an easier option. Maybe you or someone else can answer another question for me about test. Can we take the Covid test in the US 72 hrs prior to arriving in Vancouver for boarding a cruise ship? Or do we have to test in Canada? And since our cruise leaves from Vancouver, then visits Alaska ports, then returns to Vancouver to disembark, do we need another Covid test before disembarking from the ship? I didn't realize how complicated this all gets when I booked this cruise!

Thank you! Good info about excursions. I won't be in a hurry to make decisions yet. I will research more towards end of this year & beginning of 2023!

Thanks for your reply. I'll most likely wait until we board to find out details for our ship rules! I'm sure there is a catch to it. The cruise line is always out to make a profit & it sounds too good to be true!

Do you think it's best to book this through RCI ship excursion or can anyone recommend a tour company in Skagway that has same or similar tours? We will also be there in mid May 2023.

I just booked an Alaskan cruise & this is the first I've known of Cafe Select Coffee card. Is it a one time charge of $31? Do you get 15 cups of different coffees for this one price or does it just give you 50% off the regular prices? It's not very clear on RCI website. I'm more apt to drink coffee on cold days in Alaska vs hot days in the Caribbean!

I don't know if we've ever been on Radiance class ship, but I am sure disappointed to see the horrid shower curtain!! I thought they did away with those!!

We just became Diamond after our last cruise in April 2022. Are the 4 drinks per cabin or per person? My husband & I are both Diamond & wonder if we get 2 drinks each or 4 each per day? And if we don't use all of them one day, does it carry over to other days?