Just back from Alaska! Notes from the Encore 8/14 - 8/21 voyage.

[NikiPinkston]

Shout out to @BirdTravels who just did a fabulous review of the 8/7 Alaska sailing of the Encore, and to @drumexpert510’s fantastic live review of the current voyage!  We just returned from the 8/14-21 sailing & I thought a couple of take-aways from our experience might also be helpful to someone.  First, let me say, that we love NCL and It was thrilling being back onboard.  The Encore is an amazing ship and the crew was the friendliest that we’ve ever encountered.  It was obvious that they were all as glad to be there as we were.  We sailed with a passenger cohort of 2,500 (half of full capacity) and there was never a wait for anything.  DH says that we are now ruined for future cruises!  We stayed at the Seattle Marriott Waterfront and, after reading a tip in @BirdTravels’ review, we went downstairs for our covid test at 8:30 a.m., where a Marriott staff member told us that NCL had moved the testing to the pier.   So, we went back up to our room & retrieved our bags for the short trek across the street, where there were porters taking bags & putting them on a conveyer belt right next to the ship.  We gave them our carry-on as well as our two large pieces of luggage so that we were unencumbered when we went upstairs for our tests.  (There were a few passengers with small pieces of luggage but there isn’t much room in the area where you wait for your test results.)  Our check-in time (which was our testing time) was 9:30 and it was about 9:00 a.m. by then, so an NCL employee had us wait at the bottom of the stairs until our scheduled time.  (There’s an elevator on the front of the Pier 66 building for anyone who can’t climb the stairs.)  The view from our room at the Marriott….

[NikiPinkston]

Testing went very smoothly.  They didn’t ask for our QR code, just our passports & boarding passes.  There were plenty of testing stations and the technician we saw was very sweet & friendly.  He GAVE US THE SWAB SO THAT WE COULD DO THE TEST ON OURSELVES – 5 swirls in each nostril.  Easy-peasy.  We then went to a large conference room and waited for our number to appear on the board or to receive a text or email.  After about ½ hour, we each received a text that our test results were ready, so we got in line for our results.  An NCL employee about half-way down the line was asking everyone if they had received a text, which apparently meant that you had a negative result as he gave us our pink wristbands and we were off to check-in!  Note: we also needed our passports for CBP at disembarkation even though the ship hadn’t called at a foreign port.  Check in was fast and we were then sent to another waiting area for about 40 minutes, where we sat by the windows & watched the Encore being loaded with supplies for our voyage.  Our group was called and we boarded about 11:00 a.m.   Reporting to our muster station was first on the agenda and, as it was right next to Taste, after stopping at the Social to make entertainment reservations & at Teppanyaki to change a Cagney’s dining reservation from 4 to 2 people, we went in & had lunch.  (We could only make Cagney’s reservations for 4 online at the time we wanted, but it was super-easy to change it to 2 once we were onboard.)  We had a mid-ship balcony cabin on deck 13, and it was ready at 1:00 p.m.  Harry, our wonderful cabin steward, knocked on our door with our bags at about 4:00.  We had a great view of the Seattle skyline from our balcony.

[NikiPinkston]

Everything felt blissfully normal once aboard and there was definitely a party atmosphere.  It felt great to remove the masks we had had to wear all morning and there was no social distancing once aboard.  The buffet was self-serve & there were washing stations at the entrance, with a helpful crew member (Jerli was always at the port entrance with a big smile) reminding everyone to washy-washy, and it seemed that everyone was happy to comply.  We dined at Cagney’s, the MDR, the Local and the buffet.  All were excellent, but I think Cagney’s was our least favorite.  My filet mignon & crème brulee were delicious, but DH’s rib-eye & apple pie not so much.  The sides were meh.  Maybe we just ordered the wrong things, as most of the food onboard was excellent.  No Kinky Boots yet, but we really enjoyed Choir of Man, the Beatles Invasion, and the Company Men, all of which were outstanding.  Everyone in all of the ports appeared delighted to see us, and we indulged in a little retail therapy to help the local economy whenever we could.  We got into Icy Strait Point late due to a head-wind, so our tickets to the Ziprider with a revised time were delivered to our stateroom.  Disembarking in Icy Strait Point was quick and orderly.  We met our tour guide at the end of the pier and he took us to a separate line to get on the gondola to the Ziprider base, but we then had to wait about 45 minutes to board the bus as there were a couple of tours ahead of us due to our late arrival.  The Ziprider was amazing and a lot of fun but, after an entertaining ½ hour bus ride to the top, there was a 15-minute downhill, muddy hike to get to it.  If you, like us, are no longer in your 30’s, it’s just something to be aware of that could be a little challenging.  The bus driver told us to converse loudly & make noise as we were walking as we were part of the food chain for the bears once we left the bus!  She also told us that she will be out of work in a couple of years as they’re starting construction on a gondola this year, which will eliminate that short hike.  

[NikiPinkston]

We had been to Alaska before on the Jewel, so we planned pretty low-key tours this time.  In Skagway, we were able to walk from the pier to the area where the tour buses parked.  We took the Skagway Streetcar tour, which took us around town and to the cemetery (where we heard the story of Soapy Smith & Frank Reid).  Victoria, our guide, told us some great stories about the early days of Skagway, but the streetcar was built in 1910 and the seats were very narrow.  Thank goodness the tour wasn’t full & everyone could spread out, as the men were all hanging out into the aisle.  I guess people were skinner 100 years ago!  We stayed in town for a while after the tour and took the non-NCL shuttle bus back to the ship for $2 each.  Next stop was Juneau, which was cold, rainy & foggy.  (Being from Southern California, we loved the rain!)  Once again, disembarking was non-problematic and we took a short (free) shuttle ride into town.  Our two favorite shops were within the first block of Franklin Street.  The staff at Miner’s Gems was incredibly kind and friendly, and we found another small shop (sorry, don’t have the name) that sold Alaska-made items, where I bought an Eskimo nativity set.  We also popped into Red Dog Saloon and bought a t-shirt for our grandson.

[NikiPinkston]

View of the Encore from the lookout in Skagway and Victoria, our guide, in the Skagway Cemetery.

[NikiPinkston]

We had purchased shore ex tickets for the Lumberjack Show in Ketchikan, but NCL changed the tickets for our show time from 12:45 to 2:45, so we took the shuttle from Ward Cove into town in the morning to do a little shopping/sightseeing.  Disembarking was again very easy & quick.  Passengers disembark into an old warehouse that has been nicely renovated inside, with some vendors and, at the far end, signs indicating where to meet for each excursion.  There were plenty of shuttle buses into town and we didn’t see anyone waiting.  The shuttle ride was free and only about 15 minutes each way.  We had already bought souvenirs for everyone, so we just window shopped, bought some fudge and took a walk to Creek Street.  It was still early, so we took the shuttle back to the ship and had lunch, reporting back to the warehouse in time for our excursion.  And this was where things went a bit wrong.  The shuttle driver dropped us off at the pier with no instructions, so we asked a local how to get to the Lumberjack Show.  Turns out it was just a block away & around the corner, but our show didn’t start until 3:45.  It was starting to rain so we were glad we were wearing our rain jackets as we waited on the benches outside.  It was well worth it, though, as the show was fantastic.  (If we had stayed in town until our show time, we could have just taken our tickets and gone directly to the show.)  We didn’t see any whales this time, but this eagle was posing for us just outside the show venue!

[NikiPinkston]

We were sad to have our voyage come to an end, as we felt it had truly been a once-in-a-lifetime experience.  We hadn’t heard of any cases of covid onboard, but there was one code alpha (a medical emergency) about midway through the week, although there was no detour for a medi-vac or anything of that nature.  We opted to sign up for the Port Valet program for our luggage, so we completed the form with our airline info and number of bags and turned it in to Guest Services by noon on Wednesday.  The charge of $30 per bag (one for each of us) was the same that Alaska Airlines would have charged and we didn’t have to worry about being overweight.  (At least where our luggage was concerned LOL!)  A big plus was that DH didn’t have to shlep our bags through the airport.  Special Port Valet luggage tags and boarding passes for our flight were delivered to our stateroom Friday afternoon & we just put our luggage outside our stateroom by 11:00 p.m. Friday night & it was like magic.  Port Valet was a great option for us and we so appreciate NCL offering this wonderful service!  Our group disembarked at 8:30, and disembarkation was orderly and easy.  Customs had stations set up inside Pier 66, but we just had to show our ship card and passport, and the CBP agent looked at them (and us) and waved us right through. We had previously reserved the NCL shuttle to the airport which we felt, at $25 each, was quite reasonable.  There were at least 6 shuttles parked in a designated area outside Pier 66 (not on Alaskan Way) and we walked right out the door and boarded one of them with no waiting.  We are now in the throes of serious cruise-withdrawal but with many happy memories, and we are so looking forward to our POA cruise in February!  Time to start counting down the days (179)!

[BirdTravels]

@NikiPinkstonThank you so much for sharing your cruise! Sounds like you had great time on the beautiful Encore. 

[karatemom2]

What a great review and photos!! We were on the same cruise with you as well and really had a great time. Totally agree that the crew was the nicest and friendliest crew we have ever had on any cruise. And we had a similar experience with Cagney's - definitely a disappointment. We loved Le Bistro though! We are going through the cruise withdrawal right along with you - it went too fast!

[NikiPinkston]

1 minute ago, BirdTravels said:

@NikiPinkstonThank you so much for sharing your cruise! Sounds like you had great time on the beautiful Encore. 

Thank you, @BirdTravels!  That means a lot coming from you!

[NikiPinkston]

Just now, karatemom2 said:

What a great review and photos!! We were on the same cruise with you as well and really had a great time. Totally agree that the crew was the nicest and friendliest crew we have ever had on any cruise. And we had a similar experience with Cagney's - definitely a disappointment. We loved Le Bistro though! We are going through the cruise withdrawal right along with you - it went too fast!

We'll definitely have to try Le Bistro next time!

[BermudaBound2014]

What a lovely review. Thank you for sharing. All these reviews make me ache to get back onboard 🙂

 

[zdcatc12]

1 hour ago, NikiPinkston said:

We stayed at the Seattle Marriott Waterfront and, after reading a tip in @BirdTravels’ review, we went downstairs for our covid test at 8:30 a.m., where a Marriott staff member told us that NCL had moved the testing to the pier.   So, we went back up to our room & retrieved our bags for the short trek across the street, where there were porters taking bags & putting them on a conveyer belt right next to the ship.  We gave them our carry-on as well as our two large pieces of luggage so that we were unencumbered when we went upstairs for our tests.  (There were a few passengers with small pieces of luggage but there isn’t much room in the area where you wait for your test results.)  

Isn't it odd that they take your luggage before you get tested? I wonder how long it would take to retrieve if you are positive and can't cruise?

[albingirl]

Thank you for your great review.  

[NikiPinkston]

39 minutes ago, zdcatc12 said:

Isn't it odd that they take your luggage before you get tested? I wonder how long it would take to retrieve if you are positive and can't cruise?

Yes, that would be about as much fun as a root canal!  I think that possibility is tucked away in the back of everyone's mind, but we had had a negative PCR test a few days prior and then self-quarantined, and I guess that's about all one can do.

[portofrome]

Thank you for the review and great photos!

[Baxter68]

Thank you for your review and breakdown of each stop!

[alohayall]

Thank you.  I’m adding this to Bird’s review and getting an even clearer picture of my upcoming cruise.  
 

I appreciate your information on access - stairs, muddy trails. Now I will reconsider my shoe needs for the ZipRider.

 

Glad to hear you had a great time.  All reports so far are so positive (well, that’s my takeaway, except for the person who had to be medevac-ed).

[NikiPinkston]

20 minutes ago, alohayall said:

Thank you.  I’m adding this to Bird’s review and getting an even clearer picture of my upcoming cruise.  
 

I appreciate your information on access - stairs, muddy trails. Now I will reconsider my shoe needs for the ZipRider.

 

Glad to hear you had a great time.  All reports so far are so positive (well, that’s my takeaway, except for the person who had to be medevac-ed).

You're going to have a blast on the ZipRider!  It truly was the best cruise ever & I'm sure your experience will be the same!

[ChiefMateJRK]

Thanks for the great review!  We'll be experiencing this soon.

 

BTW: based upon NCL's published double-occupancy capacity, it appears that the ship was approximately 63% full.

[NikiPinkston]

47 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

Thanks for the great review!  We'll be experiencing this soon.

 

BTW: based upon NCL's published double-occupancy capacity, it appears that the ship was approximately 63% full.

Thanks for the stats.  Have a great cruise!

[NikiPinkston]

1 hour ago, Baxter68 said:

Thank you for your review and breakdown of each stop!

So glad it was helpful!

[NikiPinkston]

The name of that shop in Juneau where I bought some Alaska-made items is Caribou Crossings.  The staff is very friendly & helpful and they have quite a few unique items.

[Nataly1982]

On 8/24/2021 at 5:06 PM, BirdTravels said:

@NikiPinkstonThank you so much for sharing your cruise! Sounds like you had great time on the beautiful Encore. 

Hi @BirdTravels Could you please direct me to your Alaska cruise review that Niki mentioned. Just booked cruise for this May on Encore, and gathering as much info as possible atm. Many thanks 

[NikiPinkston]

Hi, @Nataly1982Thank you for reminding me about our Alaska cruise! Your timing is perfect as we'll also be cruising Alaska again this May, this time on the Bliss, and this brought back so many happy memories. The Encore and the Bliss are virtually identical (we took our first Christmas cruise aboard the Bliss in 2021) and I know that you'll have an amazing time! This time around, the only excursions we've scheduled so far are the Duck Boat in Ketchikan and the Fortress of the Bears & Silver Bay Homestead Experience in Sitka, but it seems that NCL is offering a nice variety of shore excursions right now. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to find @BirdTravelsreview via the search function, but I bet he'll be chiming in soon. Have a fabulous cruise!