mellerswa

Something my daughter said at lunch today reminded me of a friend's experience, and as a result, I thought I'd post some information about a couple of restaurants on Pier 39.

Apparently, one of her friends (who is transgender) had an unpleasant experience in a single-sex bathroom, and I remembered another friend who was, at that time, a single father, having a problem taking his 3-year-old daughter to the bathroom.

If this is an issue for anyone on this board (or even if it's not), I'd recommend eating at either the Wipeout Bar and Grill (this is a perfectly fine place for kids, BTW, despite the name) or the Pier Market restaurants on Pier 39. Both are great places, have excellent food, are very close to the cruise terminal, and have fully unisex bathrooms with good, and generally very clean, changing facilities. The Wipeout has also, to our way of thinking, the very best breakfast on Fisherman's Wharf, particularly the Huevos Rancheros.

They also have very good wheelchair access and nice restrooms for mobility challenged persons--a necessity for my family.

Also, if you see an Asian gentleman who looks disgustingly ageless making incredible origami creations, a white woman in her well-worn mid-forties in a wheelchair or with a cane, a beautiful biracial teenaged girl, and, most likely, a couple in their early seventies in the restaurant, stop by and say hi. There won't be two such parties, and we go to the Wipeout every morning for breakfast whenever we're in SF.

If you have a CAA or AAA card, be sure to take it to the California Welcome Center as soon as you arrive at Pier 39. It gets you great discounts at both the Wipeout and the Pier Market, as well as most other businesses on the Pier. (If it's too early, tell the Wipeout you have the CAA/AAA card, and they'll usually give you the discount anyway.) If not, this usually isn't quite as good, but it will still get you discounts at almost all of the businesses on the pier: http://www.pier39.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Fun-Pack-Coupon-Web-2014.pdf

Thanks, Len & Paul, for pointing me to this roll call! I didn't know there were separate LGBT ones. See you onboard!

I should add a "thank-you" as well--I didn't know about the thread until Len & Paul posted.

Hi All,

I am mellerswa. I have been married to my husband for 20 years. We're straight, but not narrow.

Our daughter, whom we love very much, has come out as lesbian, is 18 years old, and will be traveling with us. She was wondering if there were any other young LGBTQ adults who will be on the cruise. She and I attended the LGBTQ meetup on the September West Coast cruise, and she was disappointed to find no lesbian couples to whom she could talk, and no young adults. (All of the adults were about my age--I had a wonderful time; her, not so much.) She's a sophomore at Seattle U. (Despite being a Catholic university, it has a sizable, and very much welcomed, LGBTQ community.)

I was wondering if any young people (and/or parents of young people) were planning to attend the LGBTQ meetup on the cruise.

I'd like to bring my own scooter on Princess to Alaska. How difficult is it to get one on board? My daughter will be there to help me but I'm feeling a bit nervous about bringing my own.

 

Thank you for any information anyone can give me.

 

Winnie

I've taken my own scooter on two different Princess ships, and the Disney Wonder, out of San Francisco, Vancouver, and Seattle. I did fine. The main issues you'll find are with the shore excursions--you'll want to book your own, and the ramps can be a bit steep. If your scooter is "low slung", you may have some trouble with bumps, but generally you can nudge it over.

On all three ships, I had a wheelchair cabin, and had plenty of room for my scooter--no trouble at all. The Princess cabin was a bit more spacious and pleasant.

If you have scheduled dining, be sure to allow plenty of time to get to dinner--the elevators do get crowded around mealtimes, and getting on in a scooter with that many people around is a challenge.

If you need transportation out of Seattle to Vancouver, I would go up the night before, but the QuickShuttle is marvelous for getting you and your scooter to the Canada Place area. I found the beds to be very hard at the Pan Pacific--we're going to try the Fairmont Waterfront in March, and we're hoping that will be more comfortable.

We are considering an Alaska cruise departing from Vancouver, Canada. We live on the east coast of USA. Are there advantages to flying Seattle vs Vancouver?

If you want to spend a few days in Seattle first, a good idea is to fly into Seattle and stay at the Best Western Executive Inn: http://book.bestwestern.com/bestwestern/US/WA/Seattle-hotels/BEST-WESTERN-PLUS-Executive-Inn/Hotel-Overview.do?propertyCode=48068&group=false&srcPage=SelectHotel&isMapOpen=false&selectedHotels=

and take the Quick Shuttle: http://www.quickcoach.com/

The QuickShuttle has two stops in Seattle--the first is Sea-Tac airport itself, and the second is the Best Western Executive Inn. It will take you from Seattle to the Vancouver Airport, many of the downtown Vancouver hotels, and the Canada Place cruise terminal. I recommend, however, that you spend the night before your cruise in Canada, so you don't have to deal with problems at the border.

If it's much cheaper to fly into Seattle, definitely fly into Seattle. You'll have no problem getting to Vancouver.

If you fly to Seattle, is there a Princess transfer to Vancouver?

Whether or not there is a Princess transfer to Vancouver, the QuickShuttle will take you to the Cruise Terminal. This said, I wouldn't do it the day of the cruise--you'd be better off going up the night before. Their website is available at http://www.quickcoach.com/ , but they won't have their fares and availability for the summer until the end of the month, so if you get an error, that's why.

There are a few things you should know about the QuickShuttle:

1. They are great for people with wheelchairs--I have to use one, and they are my transportation of choice when traveling to Vancouver. You'll need to let them know if someone in your party is in a wheelchair, but they have lifts and do a very good job for their wheelchair passengers.

2. There is a restroom on board, but no food or drink available for purchase. I would recommend bringing snacks and drinks, but I'd recommend packaged snacks, unless you plan to eat whatever you bring with you before you reach the border.

3. You will have to get off the bus and take your luggage through customs, but it isn't too bad--I've had to deal with Vancouver Airport customs, and of the two, I'll take the bus anytime.