GibbysMom

15 hours ago, DaveOKC said:

Taxi - easy to find and normally readily avialable.  Just paid $13 a couple of weeks ago.

Excellent !  That works perfect

Is there a shuttle that runs from Port Everglades to the Fort Lauderdale Airport when you disembark - say on a regular loop or do I need to book one?   Similar question for airport to pre cruise hotel.  Haven't flown for a cruise to Port Everglades since 2009 and cannot remember how we got back to airport from the port.  Not interested in Uber or Lyft.  Any info is appreciated.

Thanks to all for the input - Right now we are thinking seriously of booking as the itinerary is excellent.  Plus Baltimore is only a quick 4 hr drive and we don't have to deal with airport hassles.  But want to have enough input to decide for sure.  

Just now, mskaufman said:

It depends on you.  I hardly noticed but DW got sick and would think twice about doing it a third time.

Thanks this has been very helpful

40 minutes ago, mskaufman said:

I have cruised out of Baltimore twice in late December.  You should figure on it being cold on, at least, the first and last days.  On both trips, the water was rougher than when we have cruised from Baltimore in the summer.  That does not mean it always will be. Remember, in January it can also snow.

Thank you so much - the fact that you have done it twice suggests it's a minor inconvenience and it wouldn't keep you from booking a similar cruise again.  Am I right in thinking that?

Looking at a cruise out of Baltimore January 2025.   Was wondering what to expect?  How many days before it's warm enough to go outside on deck?  I know from Baltimore that it takes a good bit to just get out in open water.  Will seas be rougher than normal heading out and cruising back?  Only cruises we have ever taken in Dec and January have been from Ft. Lauderdale, but trying to avoid the flying if possible and Baltimore is a close easy option. The cruise we are looking at has 3 sea days at the beginning and the end of the cruise but wondering if 2 of the 3 each way will have us shuttered inside for warmth.

Thank in advance for any info.

54 minutes ago, SightCRR said:

About 1/3 to 1/2 of the people this year who did land first got c-19 and could not board ship for cruise and several had to quarantine in ANC. From this years reviews and maybe only one of the party but enough to mess things up. 

sightcrr 

Thats definitely a wrinkle that needs to be considered as it would definitely screw things up.

2 hours ago, Thrak said:

We did a 13 day connoisseur cruise tour in 2016 and a 15 day connoisseur cruise tour in 2019. Fabulous. I highly recommend the connoisseur tours.

 

There is a really old thread by @caribill that helped us decide this was the way we wanted to go. We were not sorry. Give it a look.

 

Edit: Expect absolutely horrid Internet on an Alaskan cruise.

 

 

Just finished reading the thread you suggested- thank you it is an excellent reference!

1 hour ago, nwnittany said:

My family recently did an 11-day cruisetour on the Royal.  

 

I'd definitely splurge for the balcony...one of the highlights of the inside passage cruise is all the amazing sights "just when sailing".  It also gives you a place to chill after an afternoon on deck viewing the glaciers. 

 

The one difference we noticed on the land portion was the level of luxury significantly falls off (maybe the way to look at it is that you get spoiled on the cruise portion).   I'm a "lazy traveler" and hate packing/unpacking and moving from hotel to hotel.  So, if you are similar, maybe book an itinerary to stay in one place longer, rather than hopping each night.

 

The weather can be erratic.  I think the best chance for good weather is end of June/early July.  But, to be honest, it's a bit of a crap shoot. 

 

I thought the medallion was fine and convenient.  Perfect?  well, no.  But we used the heck out of it and found it helpful. 

 

I guess one question that's commonly debated for cruisetours is "land first, or, sea first"? 

 

Another positive about the Alaskan cruise is that there is a wide range of activities and excursions, ranging from athletic/adventurous to, well, "enrichment" (lol).  There will be many folks in your age range and many folks who are also "doing it once", so you'll have alot of company.  

 

In any case, I think you will really enjoy it and hope you do it and have a great time.

Much thanks!

6 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

Others can tell you more, but I would definitely do a combination of land tour and cruise voyage.  Note that ALL Princess ships are Medallion now, so the presenter was a little out of date. 

 

Also, take a look around Cruise Critic and find some reviews where folks took Princess to Alaska.  There are are a lot of "live" cruise reports from voyages taken this very season.  Look up a couple of those.

 

I would say universally, everyone who goes to Alaska is thrilled with the experience.  This is partly why it is on our list of future trips.

Much thanks and Go Steelers!  We are from the Pittsburgh area!

We just attended a short seminar by Princess at our local AAA on Alaskan cruises.   We have been talking about taking an Alaskan cruise for years.  The 14-17 day Cruise tours really seem like the way to go.  This would be a 1 time trip for us so we want to do it right.

Anyone do 1 of these cruise tours recently?

What did you like/dislike?

Would you do the cruise tour again or better yet recommend it to a friend?

Balcony vs Interior?

We are thinking May or June?  Thoughts?

Is there a benefit to the 17 day tour vs a shorter one ( say 14 - 15 days)?  Was there enough to do for that # of days?  Was it worth the extra $.  We were leaning more to the 15 day option.

The presenter was really selling the "medallion" ships - are they worth it?  Just seemed more "electronically connected" to me.

There are 2 of us in our early 60's.  We enjoy shopping, hiking and sightseeing.  Trying to do this right since we only plan on doing it once.

Appreciate your kind consideration and input.