Tgianco

This past winter was the wettest and coldest winter we've ever had in California. It was an outlier. If you want a better chance for warmer weather, see if you can push it out until April-ish.

no, just Ocean Blue. I heard some rave reviews of Cagney's while on board, but many seemed a little disappointed in the specialty dining.

Didn't see many. We saw some on our first "Sea Day" on the way up from Seattle to Juneau. We actually saw the most in Skagway while we were in docked at port. There was a pod putting on a show. Sorry, no pics, though.

Was on the Encore last week (5/7-5/14), and that list looks correct.

Not sure how much longer he will be on Encore. I thought he mentioned something about a different shop (maybe the Viva) soon. Hope he's still there for your sailing.

If you have more patience than me (not a tall order), you will probably have the time of your life.

He played Iris by Goo Goo Dolls, a great version of Hallelujah & many other very good songs. He did some Ed Sheerhan, Neil Diamond & so many other great songs. We went out of our way to find where he was playing... well, either the District or the Observation Lounge.

This ship sounds cool. I was told it was a smaller ship that is supposed to deliver more personalized service/ value, which I think is awesome after just getting off the Encore (a HUGE ship).

My wife & I celebrated our 25th Anniversary this past week & marked it with our 1st cruise to Alaska. Here's my review of the NCL Encore to Alaska as well as recommendations of things to do or changes I would make if I was going again. Day 1: Embarkation in Seattle Embarkation was actually a breeze. We were amongst the 1st onboard & went straight to the cruise staff to book our specialty dining (Ocean Blue) as well as a reservation for the show, Choir of Man. After that, went to our room, but no luggage yet, so we went up to the 16th floor to the Garden Cafe (the buffet restaurant)... can't remember what I had, but it was "ok." We went out on deck, grabbed a couple of chairs (nice, sunny day) & had a few drinks around the pool. We also met some nice passengers and the asst. cruise director, Bren, who is one of only about 10 Americans working on board. She is great & will be a great cruise director some day... so high energy. Went to one of the dining rooms that night, and it was pretty good (beef medallions). We went to Mandara Spa, since we had purchased spa passes (since this was forecast to be a cold weather cruise, made more sense to us to get the spa pass for the week as opposed to the Vibe Beach Club, which we would have done on a warm weather cruise). Day 2: Sea Day My wife was taking a while to get ready, so I went to one of the dining rooms for breakfast, as I love eggs benedict. They were pretty good. I went from there to the fitness center (so busy that 1st morning), grabbed a workout & then hit the spa. The spa is very relaxing. It has a hot tub, a therapy pool where you can hit just about every muscle, a salt room, steambath, sauna (dry heat), a "snow room," heated recliners, rain showers and offering total relaxation. It wasn't as warm, so not many by the pool. We spent a lot of this day in the observation lounge and managed to see quite a few whales. This was the night of our specialty dining, and we went to Ocean Blue, which was very good. If you go, the tuna avacado tower appetizer is amazing. I also liked the scallops served on pork bellies. Another passenger I had met had the same but didn't like the scallop appetizer. For my entree, I had the cioppino, which was very good, albeit pretty light. Day 3: Juneau We did the Mendenhall Glacier hike excursion, which, per my Strava, ended up at 5.1 miles. It was a great hike w/ a very good guide, amazing visuals (the moss in the Tongass Natl Forest is magical) & the views of the Glacier were awesome. The cruise calls it strenuous, but hiking is my thing so it wasn't strenuous to me. It was, though, an awesome excursion that I would recommend. Day 4: Skagway In Skagway, we did another hiking excursion (did say it was my "thing"), the Skagway Adventure Hike. It was a much shorter hike (2.2 miles-ish), but there was over 1,000 feet elevation gain. I would have called it strenuous, but we went pretty slow for some people not used to this much activity. Still, it was a lot of fun although not nearly as pretty as the Mendenhall hike. Using ropes to climb up & down the trail made it fun & a little challenging. Not being satisfied w/ a 2.2 mile hike, I did another afternoon hike (Skagway was our longest day in port), taking the Lower Lakes Trail, which was a butt-kicker of a hike. It was pretty much straight up for about a mile... whew! The views were a nice payoff, though, so I'd actually recommend doing this hike & skipping paying for the excursion. The Lower Lakes hike was much nicer, is free and starts just past the area where the little shuttles drop you off past the rockfall zone. Skagway was really nice. I'd like to visit there again. Day 5: Glacier Bay National Park Well, we didn't get up early enough to snag a decent seat in the Observation Lounge, but, as the rangers said themselves, the best way to view the glaciers was by getting outside & seeing them without glass in the way. My wife & I took in the sites from the 17th floor outside area (by the outside hot tubs). The weather was a mixture of snow & rain at this point, but the glaciers were magical. The blue color they project is breathtaking, and the thought that the water held there is thousands of years old is mind-blowing. We did get into the Observation Lounge & found seats after we exited Glacier Bay. The rest of the day was cold & wet, so we relaxed, read, drank and listened to music in the observation lounge. Ryan, a guy who was on the British version of The Voice, apparently, was awesome on piano, on guitar & vocally. Day 6: Ketchikan We were in Ketchikan from 7:00am-12:30pm, so not much time. We didn't do an excursion, which, in hindsight, we regret. Ketchikan seems like a cool town, but, after seeing SOOOOO many jewelry shops, I came away calling it the Ensenada of Alaska (not a compliment). By day 6, my fellow passengers were wearing on me, especially those who treated cruise staff not much better than indentured servants. I will not make a general comment about east coast people here... I won't do it! Day 7: Sea Day & Victoria, BC We were only in Victoria from 8pm-11pm, so you couldn't really do anything. We did get off ship to hit a small bar at the pier, which was actually very cool w/ good drinks, great music and a great vibe. The good: The ship is very nice (maybe too big?). The staff is amazing. Our stewards were all over things. Choir of Man was awesome (saw it twice!). The drinks, for the most part, were very good. The mud slides were like candy & went down WAY too easy. The food is alright in the buffet, but it was very good at the specialty dining. We really liked the Observation Lounge & listened to Ryan on piano, guitar & vocals several times. He was soooo good. Juneau was very cool. Skagway was awesome. Ketchikan was disappointing but feel it would have been cool if we had done an excursion, which we might have done if we had been in port longer. Glacier Bay was very cool. Victoria is an amazing town (had been there before on another cruise), so would have been nice to be there longer, too. Actually, many of my fellow passengers were great. The treats in the observation lounge, especially their scones, were always very good. The drink package was very good, and there really wasn't much reason to upgrade from the Free at Sea one. The bad: BUT, while many passengers were awesome, when 20%-25% of them are kind of jerky, on a ship that large, can really get to a guy by the end of a 7-day cruise. I'm NOT a patient person, so, if you're not patient, cruising might not be for you. Again, the food was alright. The eggs were always runny in the morning, although didn't find out until late that we could have ordered eggs done any way at the omelet station. The burgers & hot dogs were under heat lamps & didn't look too appetizing. The salad bar didn't offer too much selection. The soft serve was pretty tasteless (comparing it to memories from Carnival 10 years or so ago). Disembarkation was a hot, HOT mess. Comparing it to RV'ing (which we do often), it takes so much less time for us to set up & tear down that getting on & off ship. The crowds, especially in the Garden Cafe, were overwhelming. All in all, we had a good time, even if this review doesn't come across that way. I was just DONE by day 6. This was my 5th cruise overall (1st on NCL) but 1st since 2012. I expected a higher class passenger on NCL than Carnival (my previous 4 cruises), but it didn't seem any different. People pigged out (all you can eat & drink means you can, not that you should) & made a$$es of themselves the same as the only east coast cruise I experienced. The realization hit me that cruising is just not my cup of tea, although it probably is the best way to see some areas, and I wish that the port stops were longer. Will I cruise again? Yes, some day, but I'll be more careful when booking. Oh, and make sure you push NCL as to when you would like flights. They put us on the earliest flight into Seattle (so tired, it cost us a day) and then put us (and a lot of others I spoke with) on the latest planes out on Sunday evening.

You could probably get it there, but getting it on Amazon would be better. Out here in CA, our Costco's are loaded w/ bear spray right now (probably anywhere near bears).

Thank you. (wish I didn't have to quote the whole thing to @ you to thank you).

We embark NEXT Sunday on the Encore to Alaska. The weather forecast calls for pretty cold and wet. My wife & I discussed Vibe, but, since those facilities are outside, it doesn't seem worth it for an early season Alaska cruise. The Thermal Pass seems that it might be worth it. Is that hot tub(s) inside? Would it make for good viewing of Glacier Bay? The only other reasons I could see for Vibe on this particular cruise (cold & wet) will be more privacy (but outside) and access to more food & drink (maybe). Any advice?

Ginny, we purchased a couple of hiking excursions for our trip, which embarks next Sunday. Before that, though, I check on All Trails (quite a few options), and there were quite a few options, especially since you'll be with a friend. I would HIGHLY recommend bear spray, though... HIGHLY. Also, consider whether you want to pack your trekking poles. We're hiking the Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau and then the Tsongas National Forest in Skagway. In Ketchican, we're just going to do our own thing & check out the town. Have fun with whatever you choose.

Did you purchase on your own or via the cruise line?