RubyReview - Alaska: May 22-29

[snoopy5386]

Lovely review!! One of the big questions - how to dress? How formal was formal night? What were most passengers wearing for formal night and for the cruise casual nights?

[socaljo]

Thanks for the great review! And not too long! So informative & full of detail!! I wrote one this spring after our Panama Canal cruise, in installments, over several days...talk about LONG! :p When DS asked, "so how was the cruise?" I sent him the link to the review...his comment was "holy *&%^$, motherrrr, I can't believe it, but I read the whole thing!" :p:D So of course, that made me feel good when he couldn't stop reading it...thanks for sharing with us!

 

Happy sailing!!

[LHARTWICK]

Glad everyone enjoyed my review! I'll try to answer the questions submitted. Sorry for the delay - my notifications haven't been coming through.

 

Cruise Director: his first name is Peter; sorry I can't remember his last name. I can't find it when I do a Google search either. His is from England. Hilarious!

 

Comedians: Steve Moris, who played with The Beach Boys; you can read more about him here. http://hypnotism.com/performers/comedians/steve-moris/

I apologize - I do not remember the name of the 2nd comedian. Wish I would have kept my Princess Patters!

 

Rain: We actually had good weather in Ketchikan: a sprinkle or two but mostly sunny. Skagway was gorgeous with sun all day! Juneau - rained most of the day, but not a down pour. You'll definitely want to pack a water proof jacket, preferably with a hood unless you want to carry around an umbrella all day. Or do what I did and buy a good jacket with "Alaska" on it for cheap in port. I bought a good one - double layered w/hood - for $20. Layers are the key. Weather in AK can change on a dime.

 

Puppies in Piazza - yes. This happens around 3:00 PM while in Skagway. You can also have your picture made with them for purchase later.

 

Naturalist's Name - Shari Newitt (may have the spelling wrong). Very good! She also gives several talks in the theater. Be sure to catch those - they are very interesting and really added to the cruise, especially the on one the last sea day before arriving into Victoria.

 

Health Form - go to this thread and scroll down to PierlessCruisers post - the form is posted there.

 

Tracy Arm Excursion - Princess is the only cruise line that does this type of excursion directly from the ship, so you'll book directly through them. If you haven't already done so, you need to log into your cruise on the PCL website and go to the excursions page. to book This excursion usually sells out prior to sailing. There are 2 boats that come up to the ship while still at sea to pick up the passengers. It's operated by Allen Marine in Juneau. The small boats meet the ship back in Juneau after the excursion. The excursion is about 6 hours long, so when we got back on the ship, we had some lunch. We then went back into Juneau and walked around the shops for a little while. I was tired, but kept going (I had been fighting a migraine all morning, but insisted on it not ruining my Tracy Arm experience!). As far as timing, since the ship stayed late in Juneau, there's ample time to book another excursion.

 

Princess@Sea app - go ahead and load it on your phone prior to boarding. Once you're on board, you can begin using it AT NO CHARGE. It's great! Just put your phone on airplane mode and connect to the PCL Wi-Fi on board. All of the activities are listed on there along with dining information, deck plans, and a ton of other stuff. And yes - you can message other passengers who also have the app on their phone at no charge. All cruise lines should take notice and do this!! On a similar note, I noticed several passengers using their cell phones for texting and phone calls while we were at sea (not in port). They may be in for a huge surprise when their bill arrives!

 

Formal night dress: I saw very few who actually went all out for formal night (tux, cocktail dress/gown). Most guys wore a nice dress shirt/slacks; some wore coat/tie. Most women were in nice dresses or black slacks/blouse. I did observe the dining room staff enforcing the dress code. A couple of gentlemen walked up to the door to get a table - they were dressed in shorts and hoodies. The maitre'd promptly, but politely, told them that it was formal night and advised them of the suggested attire. They understood and went elsewhere.

 

I hope these answers are helpful! :)

[traceye]

Thank you for the @sea response....That is so helpful when traveling with a group and my teenagers. I need to try and find the app...

 

A couple of other questions. We did this same cruise (on The Star princess) 7 years ago so I'm having trouble trying to decide what to do in the ports.

 

When we were in Skagway last time we rented a car and drove up to the Yukon making lots of stops along the way. We LOVED it. So beautiful and majestic traveling through there. We went to Caribou crossing but did not do the dog sleds. The excursion you mentioned, was it at Caribou Crossing? I recall that being quite a drive and didn't want to make the trek again. You mentioned your excursion was about a 30 minute drive so I thought it might be different. Can you give me a few more details about the length of the day, the drive, the sled ride, and the total time at the camp? Sorry for all of those questions.

 

I also have a few questions on your Tracy Arm excursion. We did Mendenhall glacier last time in Juneau and I don't know what to do. You mention it's very cold near the glacier. I'm assuming the small boat you are inside? Is the entire 6 hours freezing cold? Or just when you are nearest to the glacier. Sorry to sound like a whimp...but we are from California, so freezing to us is....well in the 50's.

 

Thanks for taking the time to answer all of these questions. I just finally came on CC last night. Planning this stuff does not excite me, but I must say reading your review and others has gotten me in the mood to finally figure this all out.

 

Oh and the health forms, There wasn't a link to a thread, which thread were you referring to?

 

Tracey

[LHARTWICK]

Traceye: Glad to help! For our Musher's Camp excursion in Skagway, we used http://www.alaskaexcursions.com. They have a video on their website that gives more information. To get to the camp, we went through what's left of the town of Dyea. The camp was on a mountain. We were picked up at the pier at 9:45 AM. The sled ride itself was about 15 minutes or so. Then there was an information session re: the Iditarod race. Then it's puppy time! There are also beverages and bathrooms available at the camp. We also stopped at a couple of beautiful overlooks for more photos on the way back. You have the option of being dropped off in downtown Skagway or be taken back to the pier. Total time was about 10:00 AM - 1:30 or so. I'm familiar with the Caribou Crossing area - we've done that excursion before, which was wonderful!

 

Tracy Arm Excursion - The boat has a large heated inside area on the first level (complimentary coffee, tea and cocoa - snacks available for purchase). The top level consists of a small indoor seating area and a large outdoor area. We spent most of our time up on the top deck outside. You'll miss the whole experience if you stay inside the whole time. And yes - it's chilly up on deck. I wore a sweatshirt with a long sleeved shirt underneath, thermal underwear and jeans on bottom. I also had on a windbreaker and an ear band. I stayed warm except for my hands. I tried wearing my gloves but I couldn't operate my camera with them on. I recommend the gloves that have the fingertips open for that purpose. I would have rather had a little heavier coat than a windbreaker I will say. In the glacier/iceberg areas, it was probably in the 40s and it's windy because the boat is moving. BUT IT'S SO WORTH IT!!

 

Oops - looks like the link won't post. If you visit the "Ruby Princess May 22, 2016 - ALASKA!" Thread on these boards (under Princess Roll Calls), you'll find it on the last page about half way down. It's posted by PierlessCruisers.

 

Planning is part of the fun for me!! Let me know if I can be of further help.

[traceye]

Thank you! Since you have done both the Caribou one and the one you just did, if we've seen the Yukon is the one you just did "Good enough" so to speak? My kids were 7 and 9 when we went last, and my daughter who was 7 doesn't remember much of it. My kids are now 14 and 16. I would love your recommendation since you have done both.

 

Was the Tracy Arm smooth sailing on the boat? I would assume it was since the waters are like glass in there.

 

Tracey

[dianef]

I was asking about the comedians.Was the second one a Hispanic man? If so,it might have been Carlos Oscar.He is great.Was hoping he would be on our cruise on July 3,though we will have to wait and see.

[brian310]

We will do it!

 

Brian310, we are on this cruise in July with 5 kids and I would appreciate it so very much if you could bring the kids patters back with you so we can know what to expect for the kids clubs. I am especially interested in knowing which nights are the "kids dinners" in the Horizon Court, as we want to plan an adult night at the Crown Grill the same night the kids get their special dinner with the clubs. If you could help us out when you get back I'd really appreciate it!

[LHARTWICK]

I was asking about the comedians.Was the second one a Hispanic man? If so,it might have been Carlos Oscar.He is great.Was hoping he would be on our cruise on July 3,though we will have to wait and see.

 

It wasn't Carlos. Sorry.

[LHARTWICK]

Thank you! Since you have done both the Caribou one and the one you just did, if we've seen the Yukon is the one you just did "Good enough" so to speak? My kids were 7 and 9 when we went last, and my daughter who was 7 doesn't remember much of it. My kids are now 14 and 16. I would love your recommendation since you have done both.

 

Was the Tracy Arm smooth sailing on the boat? I would assume it was since the waters are like glass in there.

 

Tracey

 

Two completely different excursions. The Musher's Camp excursion we just did was just that - the sled dog training camp. If this is your first visit to Skagway, you might consider the Yukon trip. We did the Yukon Discovery Tour with Frontier Excursions on our last visit. You do stop at a sled dog training camp, but there is no ride or information session. You only play with the puppies, and it's a very brief stop. You can add on a sled ride for an extra charge. However, the remainder of the tour is really good - very scenic. It just depends on what you're more interested in: Seeing the Yukon or the sled dogs.

 

The Tracy Arm water was very smooth. However, you will definitely feel the boat hitting the pieces of floating ice. It's not horrible, but you will notice it. Once you've left the Tracy Arm area and head back to Juneau, there's no more ice so it's smooth.

[traceye]

Two completely different excursions. The Musher's Camp excursion we just did was just that - the sled dog training camp. If this is your first visit to Skagway, you might consider the Yukon trip. We did the Yukon Discovery Tour with Frontier Excursions on our last visit. You do stop at a sled dog training camp, but there is no ride or information session. You only play with the puppies, and it's a very brief stop. You can add on a sled ride for an extra charge. However, the remainder of the tour is really good - very scenic. It just depends on what you're more interested in: Seeing the Yukon or the sled dogs.

 

The Tracy Arm water was very smooth. However, you will definitely feel the boat hitting the pieces of floating ice. It's not horrible, but you will notice it. Once you've left the Tracy Arm area and head back to Juneau, there's no more ice so it's smooth.

 

Thank you!

 

We have been to Skagway and done the Yukon on our own, we rented a car making lots of stops along the way. It was so beautiful.

 

The only thing in the Yukon I was still interested in was the dog sledding. So it sounds like the excursion you just did might be sufficient for us. I just was t sure if we needed Caribou to get the full experience. It sounds like we don't right?

 

Tracey

[LHARTWICK]

Thank you!

 

I just was t sure if we needed Caribou to get the full experience. It sounds like we don't right?

 

Tracey

 

 

If you don't want the full Yukon tour, do the one we just did. It was 100% dog sledding oriented - plus some gorgeous scenery! And you get to visit with actual mushers who run or have run in the Iditarod.

[svend52]

Thanks very much for your wonderful review!

We're taking the same cruise/itinerary on the Emerald next year and are already getting excited about our first Alaska cruise after reading your comments.

Please help me with the logistics of the Tracy Arms excursion because we'd love to do it. Our itinerary shows being at Tracy Arms Fjord from 5AM to 9AM then Juneau from 12:30PM to 10PM on the same day. Assume you disembark to the small boats for the excursion sometime between 5-9AM while our ship is at Tracy Arms, do the excursion and then catch up with the ship in Juneau. Yes? If so, when do you disembark to start the excursion? Hopefully closer to 9AM that 5AM. Just curious and would appreciate any additional information regarding this.

Thanks ahead.

Virgil

[LHARTWICK]

Thanks very much for your wonderful review!

We're taking the same cruise/itinerary on the Emerald next year and are already getting excited about our first Alaska cruise after reading your comments.

Please help me with the logistics of the Tracy Arms excursion because we'd love to do it. Our itinerary shows being at Tracy Arms Fjord from 5AM to 9AM then Juneau from 12:30PM to 10PM on the same day. Assume you disembark to the small boats for the excursion sometime between 5-9AM while our ship is at Tracy Arms, do the excursion and then catch up with the ship in Juneau. Yes? If so, when do you disembark to start the excursion? Hopefully closer to 9AM that 5AM. Just curious and would appreciate any additional information regarding this.

Thanks ahead.

Virgil

 

We may also do this cruise on the Emerald next year....not sure yet, but would love to! AK never gets old - you will fall in love with it!! We met in the Theater at 6:45 AM. We boarded the small boat shortly after 7AM. (The tickets were misleading: they said meet in the Wheelhouse Bar, but no one was there. Some of us that had erroneous tickets finally determined we were supposed to meet in the Theater.) The small boats then proceed to go as far into Tracy Arm as possible. We were fortunate to get VERY close to both the North and South end of Sawyer Glacier. If the ice field is too thick, you won't go in as far. And if it's super thick at the "mouth" of Tracy Arm, the captain may take the ship elsewhere. We arrived at Juneau after the excursion around 1:30 and re-boarded the ship from the small boat. Hope this helps!

[svend52]

It does and really appreciate your quick reply!

My best....

Virgil

[EndersFoul]

Now that I'm finally recovered from my jet lag, I can post a review of the Ruby to Alaska r/t from Seattle. This was our third Alaskan cruise.

 

Flew in one day prior to cruise: Stayed at the Hampton Inn Southcenter. Wonderful stay! Airport shuttle was handy as was the shuttle to take us to dinner from the hotel. Room was clean, roomy and comfortable! Staff was great! Will definitely stay there again.

 

Embarkation: Used Seattle Express to get from hotel to cruise terminal. Excellent service! We arrived at the terminal around 10:30 AM or so. Thanks to someone on these boards who posted the health forms for us to fill out before we arrived AND our priority embarkation (Platinum w/PCL), we zipped right through the lines. (No Platinum/Elite/Suite lounge while waiting.) We were on board by 11:45 AM. If you have an aft cabin, you receive a blue sticker for one person in your party. This tells the crew at the boarding area to send you to the aft cabins. This way they avoid cramming everyone into the middle elevators. Made boarding SO much better! The Seattle cruise terminal crew really has their stuff together.

 

 

Thanks so much for your review! We are doing this cruise next May and can't wait!

 

How was your hotel in Seattle, did you go into the city for dinner or stay close to the airport? We are debating staying in the city center but hotels are $$$, how easy is it to get from an airport hotel into the city to see Pike's Place/SpaceNeedle etc

 

also, how did you get BACK to the airport upon disembarkation? was SEATAC crowded?

[LHARTWICK]

We stayed at the Hampton Inn Southcenter. They are considered an "airport" hotel. - not near downtown Seattle. You would need to take a cab or another means of local transportation. I think it's about a 20-30 minute drive into downtown, depending on traffic. We had been to downtown Seattle before, so we didn't have any desire to stay in that area, especially for the cost.

 

The Hampton Inn hotel shuttle picked us up at the hotel when we arrived in Seattle. For dinner their shuttle took us and some other couples to the restaurant of our choosing nearby. The front desk has a list to choose from - LOTS of options. There's also a large mall nearby all of those restaurants. We went to The Cheesecake Factory. If you are coming in on a Saturday, I recommend you do what we did and NOT wait until peak dinner time to eat. We were seated immediately at the restaurant - around 5PM. When we left, the wait was 1+ hours. We will definitely stay at this Hampton Inn again.

 

To get from the cruise port back to SEA TAC, we used Seattle Express - the same shuttle service we used to get to the port from our hotel. Highly recommend! Only $12/person each way and very efficient.

 

SEA TAC was busy as usual, but we had TSA Precheck - only took about 10 minutes to get through security. The non-precheck lines didn't look as bad as what the news has been reporting. Our shuttle driver told us that Sundays are good - Saturdays are really bad, as well as some weekdays. He indicated Saturdays are the most hectic both at the airport AND the cruise port.

[EndersFoul]

We stayed at the Hampton Inn Southcenter. They are considered an "airport" hotel. - not near downtown Seattle. You would need to take a cab or another means of local transportation. I think it's about a 20-30 minute drive into downtown, depending on traffic. We had been to downtown Seattle before, so we didn't have any desire to stay in that area, especially for the cost.

 

The Hampton Inn hotel shuttle picked us up at the hotel when we arrived in Seattle. For dinner their shuttle took us and some other couples to the restaurant of our choosing nearby. The front desk has a list to choose from - LOTS of options. There's also a large mall nearby all of those restaurants. We went to The Cheesecake Factory. If you are coming in on a Saturday, I recommend you do what we did and NOT wait until peak dinner time to eat. We were seated immediately at the restaurant - around 5PM. When we left, the wait was 1+ hours. We will definitely stay at this Hampton Inn again.

 

To get from the cruise port back to SEA TAC, we used Seattle Express - the same shuttle service we used to get to the port from our hotel. Highly recommend! Only $12/person each way and very efficient.

 

SEA TAC was busy as usual, but we had TSA Precheck - only took about 10 minutes to get through security. The non-precheck lines didn't look as bad as what the news has been reporting. Our shuttle driver told us that Sundays are good - Saturdays are really bad, as well as some weekdays. He indicated Saturdays are the most hectic both at the airport AND the cruise port.

 

 

Thanks! Good to know about the shuttle!!

 

one more question for you if you don't mind... how was the weather the first couple days, we are thinking about a 20 May 2017 cruise, thinking it will be too cold and cloudy? I saw you did the seaplane, was there any risk of it not taking off due to fog?

[LHARTWICK]

how was the weather the first couple days, we are thinking about a 20 May 2017 cruise, thinking it will be too cold and cloudy? I saw you did the seaplane, was there any risk of it not taking off due to fog?

 

Seattle was a little chilly/gray - a windbreaker was nice to have during sail away on the deck. Tip: Sail away begins immediately after the muster drill. Instead of fighting your way back to your cabin in the hallways, elevators, etc., go out onto the open deck. Our muster station was on deck 7 so we just walked right out the first set of doors we saw. After a few minutes, people will clear out and you can find a nice seat. We sat there for a while as the ship left Seattle. We then went back to our cabin - no crowds to fight! Monday was a sea day. A jacket was handy if you went out on deck. I think it also rained a little. Remember - you're in the Pacific NW. Gray/rainy is the norm.

 

There's always a chance the seaplanes can't fly due to bad weather conditions. This was our third time to book this excursion in Ketchikan. The first time our flight was cancelled because the 9/11 attacks happened the day before. The second time we booked with Island Wings (who we used this time), but the weather was so bad they cancelled because it was too dangerous. Fine with us! Other pilots were cancelling as well. This time finally worked! Weather in Ketchikan this time was sunny with just a few sprinkles. I can't speak for all of the floatplane operators, but I know that Island Wings will NOT risk your safety if conditions are questionable. If your flight is cancelled OR for some reason your ship doesn't dock, you'll receive a refund. If you really want to do a seaplane excursion, go ahead and book it, but have a backup plan. Ketchikan is a great port to just walk around and explore. Creek Street is really neat!

[DRS/NC]

Thanks so much for your great review!

 

DD & SIL & I are booked on the Ruby for May 20, 2017. It'll be my 4th Alaska, but the 2nd for DD (she was 9!) & 1st for SIL. we're all excited!

 

I've copied/pasted your review & answers into my files and will save it for reference next year.

 

THANKS! :)

[LHARTWICK]

DRS/NC: Glad I could help! I think you'll enjoy the Ruby. This class of ship is our favorite - not too large AND we love, love, love Skywalker's Lounge during the day! Great crew as well. We may even end up on the May 20 cruise with you.

[EndersFoul]

Thanks so much for your great review!

 

DD & SIL & I are booked on the Ruby for May 20, 2017. It'll be my 4th Alaska, but the 2nd for DD (she was 9!) & 1st for SIL. we're all excited!

 

I've copied/pasted your review & answers into my files and will save it for reference next year.

 

THANKS! :)

 

Awesome! We were just told our May 27th cruise was cancelled so we will join you on the May 20th one!

[LHARTWICK]

Awesome! We were just told our May 27th cruise was cancelled so we will join you on the May 20th one!

 

Any idea why it was cancelled? Just curious.

[EndersFoul]

Any idea why it was cancelled? Just curious.

 

Someone chartered the whole cruise. The May 20th was cheaper than the week after. And it looks like the June 3rd cruise is the unofficial Ice Road Trucker's fan cruise.

 

We got the parting gift of $15 OBO. Better than nothing and good for a bottle of wine to forget our troubles! Hahah

[traceye]

I'm currently packing for our trip as we head to Seattle tomorrow. For formal night is it like most cruises these days and jacket is not required for men? Is a shirt and tie sufficient? Most of the recent cruises we have taken it's such a mix of what people wear.

 

Thanks,

Tracey