Our 2024 Alaska Adventure--including planning!

[no1racefan1]

3 hours ago, Incredimom said:

 

I have 15 days until we board the plain for Vancouver and I am so excited! It can't get here soon enough. Thank you for sharing your planning and started this thread. It has helped me so much. I do so love rubbing shoulders with planners like me! Have so much fun - wish we were on the same cruise but I'll be boarding a week earlier than you but still on the Sapphire!

I'm so excited for you and can't wait to hear about your trip! Thanks for delivering the ship to Whittier for us 😉

[SirTomster]

49 days until we fly to Anchorage to start our Vacation.  I am almost to the "printing out everything stage".  I got the folders.   Next week starts the "ordering the misc cruise items" I have on my wish list.  I keep reviewing items to look for any updates I want to make.  We are still just winging it in Ketchikan at this point.  But Skagway and Juneau are set.

 

Let the adventure begin!  I want it to be tomorrow but then also do not want it to be over either.

[Editrix]

9 hours ago, no1racefan1 said:

19 days until we're headed to AK!

 

Which means 17 days until vacation begins... 12 work days.... I don't think I've ever been so distracted by vacation before but this one has been a LONG time coming!

 

 

Thank you for starting this thread. It has been a joy to share your excitement along the way. My cruise leaves in three weeks and I can't wait. You have added so much to my planning decisions. AARP gift cards? You were the first to mention them (to me) and now I'm a buyer!

 

I hope you and your husband have a wonderful vacation! I can't wait to read all about it.

[no1racefan1]

Part of the reason I started this thread was to help people (and myself!) figure out how to budget for Alaska. This will be my last pre-cruise budget update! All the other categories are estimates that I won't really know until we get there. No, I will NOT be tracking every expense as we go during vacation, but I will do an accounting when we get back.

 

Column on the left is with estimates, column on the right is what we've actually spent so far. I copied/pasted this from Google Sheets and I'm sorry I can't figure out how to make it less ugly!

 

 

$1,000.05	Plane tickets		$1,000.05	Plane tickets
$219.07	Rental car		$219.07	Rental car
$80.00	Gas in rental car			Gas in rental car
$1,161.74	Cruise fare+protection		$1,161.74	Cruise fare+protection
$0.00	Lodging at Alyeska Resort		$0.00	Lodging at Alyeska Resort
$27.00	Parking at Alyeska Resort			Parking at Alyeska Resort
$192.00	Lodging in Anchorage		$192.00	Lodging in Anchorage
$512.94	Lodging in Seward		$512.94	Lodging in Seward
$178.00	Alyeska Nordic spa		$178.00	Alyeska Nordic spa
$100.00	Wifi on board			Wifi on board
$224.00	Onboard gratuities		$224.00	Onboard gratuities
$848.60	Shore excursions		$848.60	Shore excursions
$80.00	Anchorage bike rentals		$80.00	Anchorage bike rentals
$280.71	Orca quest tour		$280.71	Orca quest tour
$196.54	Seward kayak tour		$196.54	Seward kayak tour
$650.00	Dog sitting			Dog sitting
$120.00	Guide tips			Guide tips
$60.00	Extra ship tips			Extra ship tips
$650.00	Meals			Meals
$202.00	Train to Whittier		$202.00	Train to Whittier
$60.00	Taxi/Ubers			Taxi/Ubers
$150.00	Miscellaneous			Miscellaneous
$25.00	Fishing license			Fishing license
$30.00	Laundry			Laundry
$35.00	Bear spray			Bear spray
$400.00	Shopping			Shopping
$7,482.65			$5,095.65

 

My original goal was to do the trip for under $7,000 and it doesn't look like we'll make that. However, when I first started planning I thought we were looking at around $10K so I'm pleased with the areas we've been able to save.

 

Splurges: our only real splurge so far was upgrading the 2 longest flights to economy plus for extra legroom

 

Saves: booked cheapest cruise cabin possible, DIY land tour instead of cruisetour, AARP gift cards to pay off the cruise, early bird promos on most of our land tour excursions, credit card points to book hotels

[yesornocruising]

How did you get the gift cards from AARP? I just checked my app and didn't find gift cards.

[no1racefan1]

1 hour ago, yesornocruising said:

How did you get the gift cards from AARP? I just checked my app and didn't find gift cards.

They are through AARP Rewards, which is free to sign up for. Don't know about an app, I just use their website. https://www.aarp.org/rewards/?intcmp=GLOBAL-HDR-LNK-CLK-AARP_REWARDS-UXDIA

 

If you search CC boards for AARP gift cards you'll find lots of threads about them.

[no1racefan1]

I've been reading about Princess doing Alaska shore excursion 'sales' the last few weeks and I finally got the offer! Up to 20% off shore excursions. @Ken the cruiser mentioned in his Live review that one of his excursions actually became cheaper than when he booked it (yeah!!) so of course I had to check 'em out:

 

Chilkoot Trail Hike & Float--originally booked at 164.95, was 239.95 before sale and currently 189.95 with the sale

Bike & Brew Glacier View--originally booked at 139.95, was 169.95 before sale and currently 154.95 with the sale

Alaska Fishing & Wilderness Dining--originally booked at 369.95, was 504.95 before sale and currently 419.95 with the sale

 

So, no deals for me yet, but happy for Ken that he saved some cash and a reminder to all of us to periodically check on reservations. Deals can be sneaky!

Edited April 25 by no1racefan1
Tagged the wrong Ken, doh!

[yesornocruising]

22 minutes ago, no1racefan1 said:

So, no deals for me yet, but happy for Ken that he saved some cash and a reminder to all of us to periodically check on reservations. Deals can be sneaky!

What stops are each of these excursions in?

[no1racefan1]

2 hours ago, yesornocruising said:

What stops are each of these excursions in?

Skagway, Juneau, and Ketchikan, in that order.

[no1racefan1]

On 4/24/2024 at 7:13 PM, SirTomster said:

49 days until we fly to Anchorage to start our Vacation.  I am almost to the "printing out everything stage".  I got the folders.   Next week starts the "ordering the misc cruise items" I have on my wish list.  I keep reviewing items to look for any updates I want to make.  We are still just winging it in Ketchikan at this point.  But Skagway and Juneau are set.

 

Let the adventure begin!  I want it to be tomorrow but then also do not want it to be over either.

I printed everything out today! I had to search CC to figure out where to go to print luggage tags. 

[no1racefan1]

Gathering has begun! I've started making a pile of the things from around the house that I want to bring but might be easy to forget. 

[no1racefan1]

I've never considered myself an overpreparer when it comes to medicine-y stuff but after the last four years, you just never know. I put together this little kit and hopefully having it means we won't need it. (Not pictured: zicam nasal spray and thermacare heat wraps)

 

[no1racefan1]

Have I mentioned I'm a terrible millennial? I posted those last two posts (with pics!) from my phone so I could practice before our trip 😅

 

I hate typing on my phone. And sideways pics? Yep, get ready for those!!

[donaldsc]

4 hours ago, no1racefan1 said:

Gathering has begun! I've started making a pile of the things from around the house that I want to bring but might be easy to forget. 

 

I doubt that it is going to be so cold that you need the chemical hand warmers.  If you get cold hands just take a pair of gloves.  I am sure that you have checked the long range weather forecasts for the posts you will be visiting at least once,  If not there are many good sites that have long range forecasts.

 

DON

[no1racefan1]

3 hours ago, donaldsc said:

 

I doubt that it is going to be so cold that you need the chemical hand warmers.  If you get cold hands just take a pair of gloves.  I am sure that you have checked the long range weather forecasts for the posts you will be visiting at least once,  If not there are many good sites that have long range forecasts.

 

DON

You're right, I probably won't need them. I'm bringing gloves and I'm not too worried about weather. So far it seems pretty comparable to what we're used to in WY.

 

I'm thinking the places that might get cold are when we're out on the water on small boats. And since DH has a big pack of these that he uses for hunting, I just grabbed a couple. Definitely wouldn't have bought them special for the trip though! 

[no1racefan1]

We're attending an outdoor dog training event this weekend and it's supposed to be chilly (40's) and raining all day. DH says we can practice dressing for Alaska! 🤣

 

17 days to go...

[BBGrace273]

23 hours ago, no1racefan1 said:

Gathering has begun! I've started making a pile of the things from around the house that I want to bring but might be easy to forget. 

Ah, the "start to gather trip items pile" on the extra bed. I 💯% do this too. I already have a pile going, and I don't leave until Sept. Have a blast. I can't wait to hear how your trip goes!

[disneyochem]

On 4/25/2024 at 11:42 PM, donaldsc said:

 

I doubt that it is going to be so cold that you need the chemical hand warmers.  If you get cold hands just take a pair of gloves.  I am sure that you have checked the long range weather forecasts for the posts you will be visiting at least once,  If not there are many good sites that have long range forecasts.

 

DON

I still bring hand (and foot) warmers on every Alaskan trip!  I recently bought rechargeable hand warmers that I will be bringing instead.

 

And, yes I bring gloves but I’ve found putting those foot warmers in my shoes and using hand warmers allows me to stay out on deck longer on glacier viewing days!

 

(I embarrass my family when I use had warmers—born and raised in the Colorado Rockies!  But have lived snow free for many years in California.)

[AmyJA]

Well that was a way to pass a Sunday.  😄

 

OK, OK I didn't read it all, but I did have fun as I will be going on an AK cruise this September. Nice to read about another detailed traveler gleanings.

 

I didn’t see if anyone gave you the info about the visitor’s center in Ketchikan (131 Front Street, on Berth 2 dock and at Berth 3{seasonal}). They have a map that has two different walking tours of the town. You can also get it online.

[no1racefan1]

Two weeks!!!!!!

Somebody posted this in another group:

[no1racefan1]

10 days to go!! Only 6 more work days counting today....

DH had his series of cardiology appts on Wednesday (first since his emergency pacemaker surgery last spring) and got a clean bill of health!

We're just working on our list of things to do before vacation:

-Lawn care & getting our drip irrigation going

-Finishing spring cleaning the house

-Setting up the ring cam so we can keep an eye on our pup

-Buying travel snacks

-Meal planning to use everything perishable

-Starting to pack!!

 

I've still been checking excursions, cruise prices, etc. every day even though it's unlikely anything will change at this point. The price of balconies has gone down so it would now be cheaper to call and rebook than it would be to bid on an upgrade. It's still about $500pp more so haven't jumped on that. 

 

Photo of our precious spoiled girl we'll be leaving alone for two weeks 😭