Gardyloo

Are the stores open on a Sunday? And if we stay near airport, is there a mall close by?

There's a big mall, Southcenter, a fairly short distance from the airport, but like most malls in the country it's seen better days.  

One thought I had for the Sunday is to stay in the University District, specifically at the Hilton Graduate Hotel - Graduate by Hilton Seattle Hotel near University of Washington

This is a lovely art deco highrise (around 100 years old) that's located a half block from the U-District light rail station, which offers direct light rail trains to downtown and to the airport.  

While I agree MoPop is a good idea, the U District also offers quite a lot - the marvelous Burke Museum of Natural History is a couple of blocks from the hotel on the spectacularly beautiful University of Washington campus.  The campus is terrific for a stroll, with the Suzzallo Library looking like Hogwarts, the Henry Art Gallery with a revolving collection of fine art, and lovely views of Mount Rainier past the fountains.

If you want to go shopping, the VERY upscale University Village outdoor shopping center is walkable (or probably more comfortable in an Uber as its at the bottom of a rather steep hill.)  There are also numerous funky shops and MANY affordable cafes along "the Ave," aka University Way, the district's main drag.  Note there's a fair amount of street life at night on the Ave, but the level of unsavory behavior is way down from years past.  

Home - University Village® (uvillage.com)

Map - https://maps.app.goo.gl/QotwTzRZXKLXFZTN9

When will this visit take place?

Check out business class fares departing Vancouver BC instead of (I presume) LAX.  The savings might be worth the positioning flight to YVR.  

I know this will probably be about as aerodynamic as a brick, but after reading this I had to throw it out there just to see if it had any chance of flying.  (Okay, enough with the strained metaphors.)

What if - just what if - you scrubbed a couple of the planned days from your land tour and substituted them with something completely off the beaten tourist path?  It would be a first for you as well as your family.

Alaska Airlines flies nonstop from Anchorage to Kotzebue, an Inupiat Eskimo community located on an inlet of the Arctic Ocean.  The flight takes around an hour and the return airfare is around $300 - $325, so considerably less than, say, most glacier flights or some other excursions you might be planning.

Kotzebue is above the arctic circle, and in early July the sun will be over the horizon for 24 hours per day.  There's a comfortable Native-owned hotel located across the street from the ocean, a fascinating cultural center where you and your kids can learn about the remarkable people who occupy this remarkable part of the world, and you could visit a local fish camp or just get a feel for the arctic.  You wouldn't need a car as there are no roads out of the town.

I don't know if this has any appeal, but I thought I'd mention it as a way to spend, say, 24 or 48 hours seeing a face of Alaska the vast majority of visitors never experience.  Maybe worth a ponder.  

It's illegal to sell wild game or game products.  Reindeer, which is commercially raised and subject to the usual food and drug regulations, is probably the best you can hope for.  

I've had a variety of Native foods while visiting Native families in the bush, including seal blood soup and Old Fish (title tells all.)  You're not missing anything.  

The UK border at T3 can be hit or miss in terms of congestion and hassle; sometimes it can be a major PITA, one that you could easily avoid.  Frankly, I'd just take the airside connector bus to T5 and lounge hop around the various BA lounges there.  You'd have plenty of time for showers, and ought to be able to find someplace quiet if you want to catnap.  Your 8 hour layover will be more like five hours net by the time you've changed terminals and gone through T5 security, plus an hour or so preflight for the FCO hop, so eroding that further with some landside adventures doesn't seem all that good an idea.  Just me of course.  

2 hours ago, dabear said:

SelectSys, great advice. Interestingly, I was still under the assumption that a good miles offers occurs when the flights first become available as described in my first post. In the past I was able to get business class seats at  reasonable miles. As award miles increased we started to fly PE. As you described, I now will begin to monitor award miles  flights.

 

It's a commonly held notion that the early bird gets the worm with mileage redemption.  Nope, in fact the early birds can get cats instead.

Airlines release seats into award "buckets" when their very complex and very secret revenue management algorithms decide that the sales trends for specific flights indicate that there will be unsold seats (for money) at the end of the day.  The robots are constantly monitoring and updating the data used to make these decisions, and as a result seats can come open at any time during the (typically) 11-month booking window.  In fact, it's not uncommon for premium cabin seats (PE, business) to be MORE available a couple of weeks before the flight than they are/were earlier in the season.  In these cases, the robots have decided it's unlikely that somebody is going to show up and pay thousands of dollars for the last few seats available on the flight. 

Of course that uncertainty isn't comfortable for people wanting to make a cruise sailing, so the airlines' use of "dynamic pricing" (i.e. unpredictability) for award seats comes into play.  Sure, you can fly in the pointy end on July XX, but it's going to cost you.

Some airlines DO release seats into award inventory earlier than others. British Airways is one of these, because their extreme fees added to the miles needed makes for a profitable outcome regardless.  As suggested above, the best approach is to treat the miles/points as a form of currency, and look for deals that equate to the best value for "money."

How many days before and after?  Where are you staying?  Would you be willing to rent a car for a day or two?  Help us out here; we're not mind readers.

This should probably be on the "West Coast Departures" board, not Alaska.

"...and right across the street from the Space Needle where we can get on the light rail..."

No.  You can get on the monorail next to the Space Needle, which will (only) take you to the Westlake area in the city's commercial core.  The Link Light Rail system is separate from the monorail.  There's a light rail station at Westlake.  

Once my wife and I started buying business class round-the-world tickets it was game over for longhaul economy, or even PE, for us.  This is a topic I keep raising (I probably should add it to the "FAQ" thread but that thread doesn't get a lot of traffic it seems.) But it might be of use for cruisers who (a) like to ride in the pointy end but not spend the family fortune to do so and (b) do more than one trip a year, cruise or not.  

The idea is you buy a "RTW" ticket that's good for up to 16 flights (takeoffs and landings) over the space of 12 months.  You have to cross both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans in the same direction - east to west or v.v. - and end up back in the same country where you started.  

The tickets are sold by member airlines of the two biggest alliances, Star Alliance and Oneworld.  (The third alliance, Skyteam, dropped their RTW program during Covid and haven't resumed it.)  You have to fly on member airlines of those alliances and on routes they fly, but each alliance has a lot of members, so it's not difficult to get pretty much anywhere.  

The main Oneworld ticket, called the Oneworld Explorer, is priced based on (a) the number of continents touched in the course of the ticket, from 3 to 6, and -very importantly - (b) the country where travel begins and ends.  The Star Alliance RTW tickets are priced on (a) how many miles are flown, with tiers ranging from 26,000 to 39,000 miles, and also (b) where travel begins and ends.

It's this second feature (where to start/end) that really holds potential for travelers who can plan a year or two ahead, and who want to save a bunch of money, because the tickets are priced VERY differently depending on where that is.  Mind, it's not where you LIVE, it's where you START the trip.

For example, a four-continent Oneworld Explorer business class ticket (say, Europe, North America, Australia/NZ and Asia) has a base price of US$11,071 if travel starts in the USA.  If travel starts in Canada, it's US$7,928.  But if you start in Norway, it's US$5,489.  Or if you start in Japan, it's US$4,839.  

Star Alliance RTW pricing tends to be higher than Oneworld's, but for example a 29,000-mile Star RTW starting and ending in Japan has a base price of US$4,375 vs. US$10,426 if starting in the USA.  

So here's where some additional value comes into play.  Let's imagine that you have an Australian cruise planned for this coming February, but you're also thinking about an Alaska cruise next summer, or maybe a Mediterranean cruise next autumn.  Maybe all three.  

The tickets are good for 12 months from the first flight, so let's say you buy a 4-continent RTW with a start in Norway a couple of weeks before the Australia cruise.  (You can purchase the ticket as soon as flights are made available, but you can change dates for free after purchase.)  

Sometime in, say, late January, you fly one way to Oslo.  It's winter, so affordable one-way fares can be had, or use some purchased frequent flyer miles.  Collect the ticket, and head east. Maybe you stop over in, say, Singapore or Kuala Lumpur for some of the world's best food, but then it's off to Sydney and the cruise.  

Cruise over, maybe it's up to Hong Kong or Tokyo (or Bali) then it's over the Pacific back to the USA and home.  Back to work, poor devil.

But wait.  The ticket allows up to six flights within North America, which includes Alaska, Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean.  Use it to get to Vancouver or Anchorage for an Alaska cruise, or to someplace in the Caribbean or maybe San Diego for a Panama Canal cruise, whatever.  Or maybe not a cruise - Montreal or Quebec City, or Monterey for the jazz... what's on your list?  It's all possible, and all in the front of the plane.  

Late summer or autumn, you cross the pond and go on that Mediterranean or Baltic Sea or Norwegian fjords cruise.  Or maybe hit the Edinburgh festivals or Oktoberfest or... You end up back in Norway before the ticket turns back into a pumpkin 12 months after the first flight.  You'll have earned enough frequent flyer miles to fly home in business class, or maybe you pop for a new RTW, this time one that includes Africa or South America.  

The key to this is to have a plan of where you want to go, what time of year, and which year.  An RTW trip doesn't have to be one long continuous schlep, it can be a series of trips with work or "normal" life in between, if you have a plan.  Cruisers are notorious for thinking long-term compared to other travelers, so the idea is not a stretch, it seems to me.

Maybe worth some thought experimenting, no?

On the AA ticket, assuming you'd be changing planes at LAX, yes, you'd have access to the AA lounge (Admiral's Club) at LAX.

Can't speak to Delta but would imagine you'd have access to the DL lounge there too.  

12 minutes ago, happy cruzer said:

It just sunk in about the Schengen countries.  We hold US passports.  If we fly BOS to OSL via Keflavik, we will do customs in Kefalvik?  then all the other countries (Norway, Finland, Czechia, Austria, Hungary, and Spain ) are Schengen so no more customs until we re-enter the US?  Also no ESTA or visas needed?  Thanks again.

You will go through immigration (people) at KEF and customs (stuff) in Oslo. Customs is a non-event; just walk through the green lane. 

Should I gather this is a Regent cruise and your business class airfare is included?  None of my business, of course, but I just looked up business class fares for Florida - Tokyo for next spring (April, right?) and wowie, ouch.  How much flexibility do you have in declining or modifying the included air tickets?  If you don't take Regent's air, do you get a credit against the total cost?  

The reason for asking is my usual and repetitive suggestion about round-the-world fares for persons who travel long distances for cruises (or other reasons) annually or perhaps more often.  "RTW" fares are sold by member airlines of the Star and Oneworld alliances (Skyteam no longer since Covid) and allow up to 16 flights over the course of a year, starting and ending in the same country and requiring that the Atlantic and Pacific both be crossed in the same direction (east > west or v.v.)

The thing is, these products are priced very differently depending on where the travel begins and ends, and at present, business class RTW fares using Oneworld airlines (American, British, Japan, Qantas, Qatar, others) that begin and end in Japan carry the lowest base prices for any country.  For example, a 3-continent ticket (Asia, North America, Europe) in business class from Japan has a base price of US$4,141.  (The same ticket with travel originating in the US has a base price of $10,426.)

So imagine you ask Regent to sell you a one-way ticket to Tokyo rather than the round trip.  You do the cruise, then start the RTW with a trip home.  You spend some time at home, or maybe you use the ticket to get to Alaska and back for a cruise, or for a non-cruise holiday in California, or Canada, or someplace in the Caribbean or Central America (all considered part of "North America" for the ticket's purposes.)

Then maybe later in 2025 you use the ticket for a European or Middle Eastern cruise (the Middle East and Mediterranean Africa are part of "Europe") or it's back to Asia - the Maldives, Sri Lanka, Singapore...? - before ending back in Japan.   Or for around $750 more in base price, add a fourth continent - Australia and the South Pacific?  South America?  Africa? to the plan.  Here's an imaginary map of a 3-continent trip that would comply with the Oneworld rules.

You'll have earned enough frequent flyer miles in the course of the year to cover the "cost" (in points) for a one-way business class flight home, or just buy another RTW ticket and keep going around and around, as it were.  

Put "RTW" into search box at the top of this board and you can see all the (boring, repetitive) times I've brought up this idea.  Maybe it could work for you or maybe not, but thinking about it is free.  

The only issue is that early in the season (like June) there can be so much ice in the bay in front of the Hubbard Glacier that the ships can't get very close, or on rare occasions skip the call entirely.  When it's accessible, however, it's pretty spectacular.

16 hours ago, Glaciers said:

Arctic Roadrunner on Old Seward Hwy would work. It’s a 10 minute drive from the airport and on your way out of town. It’s a favorite locals spot.

I was going to suggest the same.  Kodiak Islander burger and onion pieces.  Sit outside next to Campbell Creek.  Maybe pick someone to eat light so they can avoid food coma on the stunning drive down Turnagain Arm.

Map - https://maps.app.goo.gl/kg8dDCG2QRLJXVCC8

Swan Lake.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/mRbY2SVjd833rwPi9

Can I suggest that before you go through the expense and logistical hassle of visiting Vancouver Island for the purpose of seeing Butchart Gardens, that you look instead at some garden alternatives within Vancouver (city) itself?  

1.  Queen Elizabeth Park gardens.  These are free (compared to $$$ for Butchart) and while not as big, can rival Butchart in terms of beauty, particularly the quarry garden (similar to one at Butchart.)  Plus, there are water features and terrific views of the city.

2.  Bloedel Conservatory.  Located within Queen Elizabeth Park is the Bloedel Conservatory, which contains a huge collection of tropical plants and free-flying tropical birds.  There's a small admission charge, worth every penny.  You might recognize the building, which has appeared in numerous films and TV shows shot in Vancouver.

3.  Van Dusen Botanical Gardens.  Located close to Queen Elizabeth Park, the Van Dusen gardens include a proper maze, concert areas, waterfalls, lots of secluded garden paths, sculpture, a fine dining restaurant and a nice cafe for afternoon tea... It's a very special place.

4.  Dr. Sun Yat Sen Classical Chinese Garden.  Located in Vancouver's huge Chinatown, this is an oasis of fabulous Chinese garden design.  

5.  Stanley Park.  What can be said?  It's in the top tier of the world's great city parks.  There are gardens, old growth forest, ponds, beaches, a terrific aquarium, wildlife... 

Just sayin' - a couple of days park hopping in Vancouver can make for a fabulous, low-stress time of things.  

15 hours ago, kajasmin said:

Question- we live in Florida, gators on a trail no big deal- bears?! Eek. We are considering doing some hiking. What should we bring with us to be prepared for bears? We are flying in and also cruise security so I feel like bear spray is a no no? 

Where and when will you be hiking?  

Sorry, my bad.  You can access domestic US lounges only when you're on an itinerary that day that includes an intercontinental origin or destination.  So for example if flying LAX-JFK-LHR with JFK only being a connection, you'd have lounge access in both LAX and JFK.  If you're stopping over in New York for a day or two, you wouldn't have access at LAX.

Yes.

This would be in August, Finnair Oslo, Finnair Helsinki, IB Budapest, AA MAD then later AA DFW and AA (CUN)

Yes to all the European airports (not sure which lounge you'd use at BUD.)  You can only use lounges at US airports or at Cancun if arriving or departing as part of a continuous set of flights that begin or end overseas.  So for example if you flew through DFW on the way home from Europe, or on the way TO Europe, you could use the lounge.  If the trip starts and ends in North America, then no.  Hope that makes sense.  

For years the Admiral's Club (AA) in T3 was miserable but was updated a few years ago and is now much more pleasant.  I haven't been in it, but the new-ish Qantas lounge has gotten terrific reviews, especially for the food and service.  I'd also see what the crowds are like in the Cathay Pacific lounge, which has always been a personal fave.  Your business class ticket or Sapphire or better OW status will get you into any of them.  

If you mean free shuttles from the airport to airport-area hotels, yes.  If you mean free shuttles from the airport or airport hotels to the cruise terminal, no.  If you mean shuttles from city hotels to the dock, no.  There are cabs and rideshare services, of course, but not free.  Taxi and rideshare (Uber, Lyft) fares from the airport or airport-area hotels to downtown hotels or Pier 66 will run around $50; cab rates from most downtown hotels to Pier 66 will be under $20.

Hotel prices in Seattle during the cruise season are very high, so be prepared.  If you want a hotel that's very convenient to Pier 66, the Marriott Waterfront is right across the street; the famous Edgewater Hotel (where the Beatles stayed) is a couple hundred yards from the cruise terminal, on the same (water) side of the street.  

20 hours ago, Pearl64 said:

 Also, is it better to get air now or wait? I can’t imagine prices coming down that much and seats may be sold out.

 

I'd wait, for quite a while, actually.  When airlines open the booking window, usually around 11 or 12 months before the flight date, they can't be certain of how their operating costs are going to change over the interim year, so it's typical that they set prices higher in order to hedge against their costs going up (fuel costs, labor costs, etc.)  

As the year/booking window progresses, the airline computers get a better read on things and so prices can typically come down.  They'll go back up as the flight date approaches on the assumption that people booking late don't have a lot of choice in their schedules.  

It's never certain when the cheapest prices will turn up in the course of that booking window; only Hogwarts graduates can fathom the airlines' pricing algorithms, but you're not likely going to be hurt by waiting for a few months.  Use the time to shop for good deals, either in PE or business.  

I should ask because I'm a broken record... Do you have any other international travel/cruise plans for the rest of this year (before Japan) or next year following the Japan cruise?  Because if so, you might benefit from a round the world ticket that would let you fly in business class at a more affordable price than individual PE round trips.  

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g1-i10702-k7409073-About_round_the_world_RTW_tickets-Air_Travel.html

Here's a video review of a Delta Premium Select flight from Seattle to Tokyo.  Note SEA-HND is 10h 40m flight time; a nonstop from Atlanta would be around 3 1/2 hours longer.