diamond alaska questions

[bbrabozo]

We're sailing this saturday on the Diamond and I was wondering what the weather was like on last weeks cruise. What did people wear onboard the ship during the day and at dinner on casual nights? Would you bring the ankle sporto boots for excursions? Do they provide binoculars in the cabins and on excursions or do we need to bring our own? How are the hair dryers in the room, should I bring my own? Does anyone have a recent copy of the patters? I saw some from '04 but wondered if the schedule is the same or has it changed? Thank you. Mary

[lbcrosby]

We just got back on July 2nd and had a wonderful trip. Plan on rain and you won't be disappointed. We were told that Ketchikan is in a rain forest (not a tropical one) but a rain forest nonetheless. We did not do any major hiking excursions so boots were not needed. It would be nice to have shoes that might either dry quickly or not absorb water as there was a little bit of rain in a few of the ports. We did appreciate having our Columbia jacket which had layers so no matter what the weather was we had the proper level of warmth and rain protection. Nothing extreme and both Skagway and Ketchikan had covered sidewalks for the most park. I cannot recall if Juneau did or not but it wasn't raining there when we were there. No binoculars in the cabins but you can buy some on the ship if you find you need them. We took Captain Larry in Juneau and they had binoculars we could use. However, the whales were pretty close so we didn't need them. The hair dryers are the typical hotel hair dryers. Not worth bringing your own, however. I do have recent Patters and am in the process of scanning them. Right now the only ones I have scanned are the Princess Pelicans 3-7 Patters. http://community.webshots.com/album/386652428MLpfXx. Keep checking this and hopefully I will have more up in the near future.

[lbcrosby]

I am new to Webshots so I don't know if the link I gave you before automatically updates or not. Just in case. Here is the information for all the kid's items, the Log of the Cruise and the Princess Patter for Seattle (Departure Date). I hope to get the rest of these completed by tomorrow or Thursday. http://community.webshots.com/scripts/editPhotos.fcgi?action=viewall&albumID=386652428

[lbcrosby]

Ok, that didn't work. Give me a little bit of time and I will figure it out.

[sunprincess]

We're sailing this saturday on the Diamond and I was wondering what the weather was like on last weeks cruise. What did people wear onboard the ship during the day and at dinner on casual nights? Would you bring the ankle sporto boots for excursions? Do they provide binoculars in the cabins and on excursions or do we need to bring our own? How are the hair dryers in the room, should I bring my own? Does anyone have a recent copy of the patters? I saw some from '04 but wondered if the schedule is the same or has it changed? Thank you. Mary

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mary, Bon Voyage, hope you have an excellent cruise.

On both of my 2 cruises to Alaska I was not blessed with great weather. Do go prepared for rain. Umbrella & slicker for sure. You could wear ankle sporto boots.

The dress for during the day time is casual. Key : LAYERS.

Casual nights for dinner is a variety. You will not see jeans though in the dining rooms. Dresses, skirts, pants sets, etc.

Princess does not supply binoculars for you to use. They do sell them.

The hair dryers in the rooms are not that great. I have short hair & still do not like them. I always bring my own along.

Sorry I do not have Patters for you.

 

Again, enjoy your cruise :)

[lbcrosby]

Sorry, can you tell I am new at this. Hopefully, this one will work. http://community.webshots.com/user/loricrosby

[critterchick]

LLBean sells some waterproof hiking shoes that look like and can double as gym shoes. I wore them in Juneau during the Guide's Choice Nature Hike in the pouring rain, and my feet stayed dry during the entire 3-hour adventure. I highly recommend them. The guide recommended hiking boots, but that would be overkill, IMHO. Even our guide didn't wear them.

 

As others have said, plan for rain, dress in layers and bring your own binoculars. We saw lots of jeans in the dining room (Radiance of the Seas), and even shorts. I suspect you will, too. The table next to us came to dinner on formal night in jeans & sweatshirts . Although it didn't bother me, I did notice, as they were among the few who didn't at least put on a jacket & tie (men) or a nice outfit (women). Oh, well.

[bbrabozo]

Hi everyone. Thanks for your quick replies to my questions. I have a much clearer picture now of what I need. I was at Costco today and found a jacket that is perfect for the trip. It's nylon on the outside and fleece on the inside with a hood. It only cost $31! I couldn't believe the price. In case anyone is interested it's Pacific Trail outdoor wear and reminds me of the Columbia Jacket I bought for my daughter. I love this kind of bargain. They also had thermal long sleeved t shirts for men for $15. My husband and I are so excited about this cruise. Thanks for the well wishes and I'll be sure to post a review when I get back. Mary

[gg3]

We're sailing this saturday on the Diamond and I was wondering what the weather was like on last weeks cruise. What did people wear onboard the ship during the day and at dinner on casual nights? Would you bring the ankle sporto boots for excursions? Do they provide binoculars in the cabins and on excursions or do we need to bring our own? How are the hair dryers in the room, should I bring my own? Does anyone have a recent copy of the patters? I saw some from '04 but wondered if the schedule is the same or has it changed? Thank you. Mary

 

Just returned 7/2 on the Diamond and you are in for such a treat !!! Prepare for rain and sun - jeans, capris, tees, flannel shirts, light wt. jackets, sweatshirts, or jogging suits during the day with tennis shoes - on casual nights we wore slacks, shirts and sweaters and loafers. No jeans, please. I have short hair, so the room hair dryer was fine - better than our Westin Hotel one. I would not bring my own unless you have long hair. I saw only tourist (and then only a few) carrying umbrellas - bring a waterproof rain jacket with hood - good to go. Have a great trip. gg

[carma7007]

We brought our own binoculars, found them on sale at Big 5 sporting good store. We also bought a camera case with a climbing clip (at WalMart) and attached it to our belt loops to save carrying it and it was always handy. I am attaching a clip to our binocular case because I liked it so much.

I wish I had brought my backpack with me to carry our layers in. Sometimes after walking for a while the kids would take off their jackets and not want to wrap them around themselves.

Next time I will also bring a second pair of tennis shoes, as mine got damp and they were my only pair.

 

On our way to Mendenhal glacier our bus driver pointed out a tree loaded with Eagles. It was beautiful and no binoculars were necessary. If you are on the right side of the bus you may see them as you leave the main part of Juneau.

Carm

[Hulagirl]

We were also on the same cruise as those that answered you. The absolutely only day we were cold was Tracy Arm. Other than that, I didn't think it was cold at all there. Yes, it rained in Ketchikan, but it wasn't really cold. I had a light weight jacket that I almost didn't bring, but glad I did. Left the really warm one at home and would have only worn it that one day.

 

We had Nike type tennis shoes on and they were fine for most excursions unless you were really going to be doing some hiking. My friend who sailed with us kept asking me if she needed heavy boots and she was so glad I talked her out of them. Remember, you are going two weeks later than we did and it could be warmer up there. Right now in Seattle we are getting some rain that is being pushed down from the Gulf of Alaska, so it could be a bit wet that direction. But the forecast for next week here is sunny, so it could well be nice up there also.

 

I always bring my own hair dryer with me on the cruises. Can't stand the ones they have in the cabins. We would still be there trying to dry my daughters hair if we used theirs. I know others use them, but to me they are a total pain. Truly a personal choice on that.

 

We did have umbrellas that we used in Ketchikan. Had to buy my husband a cheap one because he got soaked. Too hard to try and share there with all the people around. It was worth bringing it with us.

 

Have a great cruise. You will love the Diamond. It is a beautiful ship.

[bbrabozo]

thanks for sharing your experience on the Diamond everyone. One last question do you think I could wear summer skirts with sweater sets and sandals or will I look out of season. Thx, Mary

[sooner2]

We were on the Diamond Princess cruise that returned July 2. The coldest day will likely be the day in Tracy Arm. Be prepared for some misty cool days. Casual during the days....a sweat shirt...light jacket are normally needed if one is on deck much. We spent lots of time on our blacony and the robes felt great! Ask for the robes when you get to your cabin.

 

Daytime dining is very much casual attire. There are two dress up evenings. The other evenings are are slacks or dockers and polo/sports shirts for men. My wife insisted I bring some extra loafers for those nights to avoid wearing tennis shoes.

 

Ron/Sue

[gg3]

thanks for sharing your experience on the Diamond everyone. One last question do you think I could wear summer skirts with sweater sets and sandals or will I look out of season. Thx, Mary

 

I guess it all depends on where you live and what you are use to. We live in Texas and are acclimated to hot, hot, hot - so would have been too cold in skirts. Last week I wore jeans, or jogging outfits all the time. Inside the ship I would just wear a tee with these - on desk it is windy and cooler (air temps were around 52-55), so I added light jacket or sweater or flannel shirt. gg

[bbrabozo]

When I was asking about the sweater set and skirt with sandals I forgot to mention that I wanted to wear those to dinner onboard the ship. It's warm enough inside, and it is summer, but I wasn't sure if people wore fall clothing or summer clothing to dinner with the outside temps being in the 50's to 60's. I would feel weird walking around in my floral springy skirt and see everyone else in sweaters and fall like clothing. Thx again. Mary