JeanneEDW

Thank you both. Watching sail away is something I am looking forward to. I guess eating in Tamarind or Canaletto might interfere with that. We will just take it as it comes and hope we are not standing in a long line out in the rain to get aboard. 😄

When arriving in Whittier by train as part of a HAL cruise/tour, is embarkation fairly straightforward? We were assigned a boarding time of 6:30 pm and the Nieuw Amsterdam sails at 8. Does the ship have a sail away celebration like Vancouver and Seattle? Should we plan on having a change of clothes in our carry on bags, touring the ship, etc while awaiting the arrival of our luggage? My apologies if this has already been addressed, but I can only seem to find embarkation information about Vancouver and Seattle. Should we “count on” the boarding time and make dining arrangements at Tamarind or Caneletto? Thanks in advance for any info you may have.

Lucky people! 😄 Does anyone recall the cost of the robes…regular OR plushies?

Saving space in luggage was my main reason for hoping for a robe! One thing crossed off the packing list…now for deciding what clothes to take that I will REALLY need and wear 😁. Thanks again folks!

Thank you both - very much!

Are robes provided in all cabins on Nieuw Amsterdam or just in suites? Thanks in advance for your reply.

Thanks!

Thank you very much!

We are staying at Westmark Fairbanks and will be there one day before our tour begins. It appears the Morris Thompson Cultural Center is within walking distance. Do they have shuttles from there to the Univ of AK museum, the Antique Auto Museum, etc., or will we need to use a taxi?

Thank you very much Northern Aurora! You went to a lot of trouble to give me that information. I have made a reservation at Pikes Waterfront and can now relax and quit worrying. Their check in time is anytime between 4 pm and 4 am, so they must get a lot of people who are arriving on late night planes. Appreciate your clarification about the Riverboat Discovery being a stern wheeler! Hope we can do this excursion! Again, many thanks!

We (two Floridians) are arriving at the Fairbanks airport around 1:00 or 1:30 in the morning on August 31. Our cruisetour hotel reservation at the Westmark is for August 31. Of course we aren’t going to be able to check into our room until much, much later that day. Our bodies will think our arrival time is our normal Florida time to get up. So, we don’t want to spend $500 on a different hotel room that we will use for only a very few hours. (That was the cost of a hotel room I reserved and then canceled after having buyer’s remorse) Can anyone advise if there is a safe place to “layover” at the Fairbanks airport for a few hours during those wee early hours? Or, if there are places near the Westmark (cafes, coffee shops) that are open all night? And, does the Westmark have a baggage holding service? We hope to take the Discovery Steamboat excursion which begins early in the day. Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks! Terrific information. I will plan on visiting some of these these Vancouver gardens for sure. I really appreciate the suggestion for QE Park, lunch there, etc.

👍. Will do!

Thanks to ALL of you! Seeing Butchart Gardens was my aim for a day trip, but I think Vancouver will provide plenty of great things to see and do on this particular trip. The garden would likely be prettier in mid summer anyway.

I’m afraid my budget won’t allow float plane or helicopter, but thanks very much for that information. Vancouver is beautiful and interesting too, so I will just concentrate on making the most of that city. And, not seeing Victoria this year must surely mean I will have to take another trip out west some day. 😁

Thank you. Knowing it is 4 hours each way pretty much rules Victoria out. Thanks again for taking the time to answer my question.

We are staying in Vancouver for one additional day after our cruise in early September. We fly back home at 10:25 pm that night. Is it possible to visit Victoria on that day? Are there excursions to do that? Apologies if this is a stupid question, but any guidance would be appreciated.

👍

Thank you!

Has anyone worn Crocs on an Alaskan cruise? How do they fare on rainy excursions?

Thank you all very much!

I am trying to decide if it is worth purchasing the Have it All package for a 7 day voyage on Nieuw Amsterdam. My daughter and I are not heavy consumers of alcohol, but do have interest in the WiFi, excursions and dining option in the package. What are the costs of individual soft drinks, coffee, an average glass of wine etc? Any advice would be appreciated.