TMLAalum

We did our DIY self-drive Alaska trip in the pre-internet days! We rented our car in Anchorage and our northernmost point was here: Alaska Lodging | Camp Denali (which at the time stayed in its sister accommodation- North Face Lodge). I previously posted about the Hatcher Pass Lodge: Hatcher Pass Lodge – Alaska's Favorite Mountain Playground. We spent several days on the Kenai Peninsula staying in Seward, at a BnB, and Soldotna, where we stayed and played golf-Lodge Accommodations - Birch Ridge (birchridgegolf.com) DH fished a day and we also traveled to Homer while in Soldotna. From the Kenai Peninsula we headed to Valdez via auto train to the Alaska Marine Highway, but the auto train is no longer an option, instead there is a one-way road tunnel. Alaska Marine Highway System - The Alaska State Ferry With a shorter time you can focus on elements that interest you. The Kenai Peninsula alone would be worth spending your 4 extra days.

Our 2025 Apex cruise departs on August 25 which is a Monday U.K. bank holiday. Will transportation from London be affected that day? Would it be better to plan time in London after the cruise which ends September 6? Initially I was thinking of arriving August 21 or 22 and spending those nights in London but am having 2nd thoughts about the timing because of the bank holiday. I recall being in the Lakes District over a May bank holiday and encountering great difficulty finding lodging and restaurants that didn't require reservations. Thanks for any insights, advice!

Canned reply from cec@celebrity.com stated email would receive a response within 72 hours or sooner! One week later no response! My issue was that an onboard booking transfer request was made the day after booking and confirmed by email from transfers@rccl.com that indicated a 2-3 week turnaround didn't happen. The first Celeb rep I spoke with assured me that the transfer would be finalized within 36 hours. No. So call # 2 4 days later. Call # 3 which began with another issue (that couldn't be solved) and continued with the transfer problem resulted in nothing! So email sent 32 days after no resolution. However, MIRACULOUSLY last Friday received by email a Celebrity AGENT invoice with a different booking and cabin # and the amount of the commission the TA will be getting. Yet another call to Celebrity and got cabin changed back to the one we'd booked and the correct GUEST invoice sent with the booking finally transferred to the TA. At the very least a letter apologizing for the hassle of getting our booking transferred would be nice!

Remember the thread about the sewing machine?

@brzymom You have plenty of time to research DIYing. Depending on your schedule you might be able to add a few more nights to your Alaskan land trip, You might want to exclude Fairbanks and make Denali your furthest point. I recommend Hatcher Pass for a night in the lodge there- it's between Anchorage and Denali.

@sfpd3000 Thanks so much for the link to the free Presidio shuttle! From Pier 27, do you have advice on how to get to the closest Presidio shuttle stop via foot or public transportation? Thanks!

We are thinking of booking this service since our flight home from BOS doesn't depart until 6pm: Cruise Ship Special — Boston Water Taxi When looking to book, I noticed there is a box to enter a discount code. Would some kind Cruise Critic member be able to provide this magic number? Thanks!

@sheeng How long did it take you to hike back to Flam from Myrdal? Was the scenery different from that viewed from the Flamsbana?

I'll try that when I call Cap't Club! BTW, Fred's USMMA reunion is scheduled for the weekend after Labor Day when we are still aboard the Eclipse! Bummer!

No. But there could be a conflict in the tour Fred booked in Charlottetown PEI because it may end after 6:15. I will call Cap't Club tomorrow about this and the issue we have with our cruise not being transferred to our TA yet.

I have reserved the 6:15 time slot for the 6 of us traveling together on the 8/28 Eclipse sailing. Only one has been confirmed in an email, the others are "in the cart" and keep getting bounced back every time I attempt to confirm those. I did get a message saying there is a conflict with one of those reserved times, but the date isn't specified. Any hints?

@Indiana Rob What about a trip to Alcatraz? Alcatraz Cruises (Official Provider) | City Cruises (cityexperiences.com)

Thanks to the link provided on this thread, I signed up and watched while knitting! This should lead me closer to Zenith by only 2200 more points to go!

TL;DR BBTA Customer Service 9 out of 10 Celebrity Customer Service 4 out of 10 (would have been lower except for the 1st rep) Yes, there is no specific TA at the BBstore, but..... Based on my recent experiences trying to learn why a reservation transfer request submitted and approved by Celebrity the day after a friend booked the Apex while onboard the Constellation wasn't yet confirmed by the BBTA, Celebrity's customer service fell far short of that from the BBTA. The transfer still hasn't occurred despite being told by the 1st Celebrity rep that it would be within 48 hours. So I emailed the BBTA. Not only did I get an email reply, but also a phone call from them. Unfortunately, I was referred back to Celebrity. My second call to them was answered by an unhelpful, unsympathetic guy who told me to wait 5-7 days for my booking to be moved. It still hasn't been, although maybe that was based on my call to him and not the 1st rep on 3/15?.

Long ramble of discontent.... On February 22 a friend of mine made an onboard booking for us, them and 4 other couples on an Apex Fjords cruise next year. On February 23 I submitted the mandated form to Celebrity and received their confirmation email that day: Please be advised that your request to transfer reservation #xxxxxxx to be serviced by xxxxxxTRAVEL located at xxx,xxx,xxx was received. Please allow up to 5-7 business days for processing. We look forward to welcoming you onboard! Sales Administration Dept. When no confirmation from the BBTA had arrived by March 11 I contacted them. They were unable to retrieve the reservation and suggested I call Celebrity. I did and was relieved to hear from the Celebrity rep that my booking should be transferred no later than the following day. Guess What? It wasn't. I emailed the BBTA on March 15, received an email and a call that day from their cruise help representative who gave me a different Celebrity # to call, which I did. The Celebrity rep who answered my call informed me that # was for TAs only, so I asked if he could please transfer me. Instead, he "handled" my call, referenced my previous call, tried resubmitting the Celebrity transfer form himself and ended the conversation by telling told me to be patient and referring to the "5-7 business days" for processing. When I expressed concern that the 30-day timeline for a booking to be transferred was fast approaching, he told me not to worry as there was a log of my calls. Has anyone had a similar experience? If so, how was it resolved? When would be a reasonable amount of time to lapse before I call Celebrity yet again if transfer hasn't happened? Thanks, and please be kind.

If booking a non-Celebrity tour, go with a company that guarantees they will get you to the next port if they cannot get you back before the ship departs. For example, we used this company out of Naples: Shore Excursions Private Tours Naples Amalfi Coast Sorrento (aptours.it) Luckily, I do not have any actual instances of being left behind on a private excursion to share!

A kind poster provided this link to obstructed view cabins on E-class ships: 02_15_23_FLY_Obstructed_Cabins_EG.pdf (rccl.com) After the list there are photos of the obstructions as seen from each cited cabin! You might want to bookmark this to favorites for future reference.

To put your mind at ease here are a few photos from our round trip out of Seattle in September 2021! IDK why upside down.

@Nikita4 Please consider the advice of @AKStafford and @oaktreerb! You are 16 months out from your intended cruise. A rental car for your family would provide the flexibility that a cruisetour cannot possibly allow. With 2 teens along, perhaps they can do a little online research and come up with plans that interest them! For example, they might enjoy an overnight here: Hatcher Pass Lodge – Alaska's Favorite Mountain Playground which is next to an abandoned gold mine. Or this: Summer Hiking Tours Anchorage Alaska | Go Hike Alaska. And this: Visit - Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center Happy Planning!

I am hoping we can book the Flam railway independently- up and down without time in Myrdal. @Nodrog2024 One thing to consider is how much time you will spend on the bus for each excursion. From your excursion time in Alesund, it seems you haven't booked the Troll Road- that's probably a good thing! Even though I thought it would be wonderful, when I read the details it seemed there were limited brief stops along the route. Most all your ports except for Flam will give you free time to explore on your own. One thing I wish we had booked in Geiranger was the rib boat excursion, but unfortunately that is not one of the ports on our 2025 itinerary.

Our May 2015 Fjords cruise was mostly gray days. We were drenched in Bergen thanks to heavy rains, and it was so early that the Dalsnibba viewpoint out of Geiranger was blocked by snow. Hoping late August/early September next year on the Apex will be better weather. Like you, Mr. Click, DH is an avid photographer, which is why we booked a porthole veranda vs. an infinite veranda. So much easier to access the open-air view to quickly take advantage of that perfect photo op!

@georgiaguy 6303 reminds me of the last 8 cabins port and starboard sides of the S-class ships Deck 6. Those verandas jut out over the blue roof of the dining areas below but have an advantage of several square feet more space.

@8mma Thanks. We are still nearly 18 months out, but I will call Martins next spring JIC.

Oh great! We have this cabin booked for the Apex. Was there a worker there often? And was the equipment permanent? I would love to hear opinions of the BEST choices in porthole verandas. The most forward DPVs have the window washing equipment blocking the view, so I thought 7123 would be far enough bag to be safe from obstructions......

Our friends were on that cruise and overall enjoyed it except for difficulty dining early in the MDR, which they solved by finding the OV grill, taking their meal outside and developing a good relationship with the bartender!