Our Fabulous Alaska Cruise Picture Review!! NCL Pearl - June 2016

[VegasChic]

Thanks for the review.

 

Thank you for reading!:)

[VegasChic]

I'm loving your review. We went 10 years ago and saw whales and sea lions as well. We would love to go back again. You can't see it all in one trip! Your pictures are awesome!

 

Thanks! I really want to go back too I feel there is so much I really didn't get to see and do.

[VegasChic]

These pictures dull?? Not at all, they are gorgeous and are making me so excited! I've read every Alaska review on this board so it's so nice to have a new one!

 

Well it was a dull day I had to enhance the pictures to give them more life, lol! Thank you for reading:)

[katfer]

Amazing photograpy...what kind of camera did u use? I can hardly wait to get to my computer to see what ypu've posted. Did u take a land trip to get to Emerald Lake? U Rock!

[Roharmi]

Great trip report. You are making me want to do another Alaska trip. If you go again and do the rental car in skagway be sure to lookup Reid Falls. it is right outside of town back behind the train yard. Last time we were there the bus tours were passing us like crazy and nobody stopped at Reid Falls/Cemetery. It was a great walk through that old place which rewards you in the back with a small but beautiful falls area.

 

I highly recommend renting a car to anyone that wants to make that trek to Emerald Lake.

 

You can also get a passport stamp in Carcross.

[VegasChic]

Driving back to Skagway, I dozed off for a few minutes when I hear Eddie telling me to get my camera. I had been on the lookout all day long and had given up hope on seeing a bear. However, when I opened my eyes it was there on the side of the road!!! I brought up the camera but it was raining and my husband had the wipers on (couldn’t focus). I yelled at him to turn off the wipers but when he did the cub crossed over and a tour bus was coming from the opposite direction fast and wasn’t slowing down. The bear ran quickly into the bushes. I was so upset I wanted Eddie to go back so I can look for the bear but he convinced me it was a waste of time. Next time, I’m going bear watching instead of whale watching!

 

We got back to Skagway returned the car and walked down Broadway street back to the ship…

 

 

 

 

 

 

[VegasChic]

I had seen many pictures of Skagway but nothing comes close to seeing it in person. So grand and lush it was everything I had imagined and more. If I could have done anything differently, I would have prepared better for the points of interest in Murray’s Guide and made more time to check out some of the shops in Skagway. Regardless, I couldn’t have asked for a better day! That evening, we had dinner at Indigo’s (main dining room) and saw the headliner, Comedian Tim Kaminski. He uses audience participation for the show and all I can say is that it was hilarious!

 

 

 

Next Up:

Cruising through Glacier Bay (one of my favorite days of the cruise!)

Pool Fun

Dinner at La Cucina

[Longstockingpippi1]

Vivian

Very nice, keep it coming!!

[mickeysgal]

Fantastic trip report. Skagway is so dramatic...the ship against those mountains! Brings back memories of our first Alaska cruise and helps me get ready for our upcoming one in May. Thank you!

[cruisingbajan]

Great review and photos.

 

Alaska is a bucket list item for my wife and I and your pics have made it abundantly clear that we need to make that trip ASAP.

[VegasChic]

Thank you guys for following along and being patient!! I will be back to finish up on Wednesday. I was in Disney with my daughters class. I have an all day photo-shoot tomorrow so Wednesday I will be writing on Glacier Bay.

 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Forums mobile app

[Orangefan]

Thanks Vivian ! I enjoyed following your adventure. Having been to Alaska, you have captured the beauty that is Alaska.

I have not been on NCL but on many Princess cruises. NCL is one of two cruise ship lines on my radar for Bermuda. Princess doesn't stop in Bermuda.

Hope many happy adventures are indoor future.

Sali

[CaliTravels]

Your Alaska photo journal is awesome! Your photos are the best I've seen. I am sailing with my 10 y/o GD on the Pearl in July. She is as excited as I am. I am so looking forward to Skagway. Thank you for sharing, inspiring, and keeping the anticipation high! I look forward to the next segment.

[PhillyTravelBug]

Absolutely stunning photos!!!! You have me dreaming and wishing. Norway and Alaska are at the top of my list. I turn 40 in 3 years and it will be one of those for the trip.

 

What a vacation of a lifetime!!!

[nana&poppy2526]

I am patiently waiting for the "favorite part of your cruise" to appear here! Okay, maybe not so patiently, since I log in 3-4 times a day, just to see if you've added anything!

 

 

DH and I are on the Pearl July 2-9 this year. We've been on the Pearl before and have done Alaska on her, too, but I've never seen such gorgeous pictures of the trip!

 

 

No pressure; just letting you know we're waiting with bated breath! :D

[BostonGal35]

awesome pics. we did the Sun this past september and it poured rain every day. it was very disappointing, we didnt really see mountains, emerald lake didnt really look that green, everything was foggy, etc. going to try again this september.

[shadowmeboy]

Great review so far! I love seeing other people's reviews of Alaska.

 

I sailed last June on the Sun and loved it. Here is a link to my review http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2376089

 

Can't wait to see Glacier Bay through your lens!

Edited February 17, 2017 by shadowmeboy

[VegasChic]

Hey!! I'm back, it's been quite hectic - so sorry and thanks for being here!

Thursday, June 2, 2016

Cruising Glacier Bay, Alaska

Weather: 40 cloudy with scattered light rain, sunny (bipolar!)

I had been looking forward to Glacier Bay day more than any other, it was a such a blissful day. I was up bright and early as I didn’t want to miss a thing. I left the cabin at 7:30 am and headed to the Spinnaker lounge which is where the Alaska Park Rangers were. I skipped breakfast, just grabbed a coffee and told Eddie and Olivia where I would be. I picked up a park map where the rangers set up their table filled with brochures, maps and memorabilia. I stepped outside and the audio commentary over the PA system was announcing that they spotted some white mountain goats (a mother and baby). They told us where to look but honestly, it really wasn’t visible unless you had binoculars. I just snapped a few pictures at 200mm in the area where they were spotted I zoomed in and saw it in the picture below which is not very clear and cropped in. Binoculars are a must for this trip, my hubby had his but many passengers did not. There was a day on the cruise that I remember them selling binoculars and cameras near the pool area.

 

This is the original photo of the Mountain Sheep

 

Same photo cropped in and there you can see mom and baby…

 

Here is the map of Glacier Bay I got from the Park Rangers….. we were headed to Marjerie Glacier at the top tip of the bay…

 

 

 

 

 

[mamasylvia]

I have a 15-50 zoom and a 75-300 zoom for my Nikon. On Glacier Bay day, I don't expect to even keep the shorter lens handy!

[cuterlmt]

Thank you so much for your wonderful review and pictures! We are heading out there in August 2017 on the Sun for our Alaska adventure. Wonderful pictures.

[Linsuesue]

Thank you so much for your elaborate review. Your whale photos are so much better than anything I ever took on my 2 previous trips to Alaska! We are going back in 2018, and this will be our first NCL cruise to Alaska. I loved seeing the dailies to get a feel for what is offered onboard. I appreciate all the time you spent to post all of your lovely photos!

[VegasChic]

I believe we arrived at Marjerie Glacier at 9:00am and the ship parked in front of it and continuously turned in place for about 30 minutes so that no matter where you were on the ship, you could see it. I was on deck 7 for the duration of our visit to Marjerie Glacier.

From National Park Service Website: Margerie Glacier

“A highlight for any Glacier Bay visit, Margerie is big, beautiful, and very active. Watch closely, because this glacier calves regularly, producing abundant icebergs.”

 

Length: 21 miles

Width: 1 mile

Height at Face: 250 feet

 

 

 

 

 

 

[VegasChic]

I have so many pictures of this day it’s so hard to narrowit down!!

View to the right of the Glacier….

 

 

 

 

 

 

[pattyj 1204]

Thanks for posting brings back memories of our 2 cruises to Alaska. Being from the Midwest I never saw "real" mountains and believe me I was impressed. Never knew where to look first. Hated to go to sleep in case I might miss something beautiful. Your photos are gorgeous.

[mamasylvia]

Trying to figure out how many tripods to take along! Will certainly want video camera on one and Nikon on one continually while we are in Glacier Bay!