Jackets and Shoes for Alaska

[Set2travel]

Jimcat...your folks must be from the south. I live in the south and those temps are cool to me. DH does not wear a sweater ever and a jacket rarely. He keeps the air on 75 which is cool to me so I am in a sweater year round! I have packed for our trip which we depart for in 10 days. I am a little nervous about leaving my beloved dogs. Other than that I am ready. It ought to be a great trip. Hope you have a great trip!:)

[Set2travel]

Hi Swan...you can get cuddle duds from JC Pennys. If you don't have one where you live they have a website. I know what you mean about obsessing with the post. It is addictive, and especially when it is a fun thread. I have not been on in a few weeks but I don't have time to catch up either! You will have to read the post as we return!!

[mmo]

Jimcat--I'm looking forward to seeing any posts from you after the cruise, I think my DH and I are on the same one only a couple weeks later-we take the Island Princess on June 19th, going in 5 days early to do some exploring on our own--in fact I think we rented our car from Harley's after you mentioned it once! Happy and safe traveling! Now, of course I will be embarrassed to find out you aren't on the Princess, etc but I swear I read a post once from you mentioning it! :D

[tinkerme1]

SETtoTravel: Did ya bring a bathing suit for the spa and the pool? How about flipflops too?

[katpaul]

Hey, what happened??? Did we scare everybody away or are all of you on the same cruise????

[kaylahszoo]

So far, on all cruises (like I have so many under my belt!.) I bring dress slacks (2 pair), several shirts, maybe a dress or two, and a hooded sweatshirt (gets cold in dining rooms and casinos.) That way my room key and any money can go in my pocket. I always pack a pair of flip flops- to wear with my shorts and t-shirts-that I change into immediately after dinner- so I can breathe- to go see any shows. These outfits are wearable in any climate- on any cruise- I might dress up for dinner, but that only lasts an hour or so. The Disney cruise was great- after dinner we'd go see a movie with our pillows and jammies on. Oh, by the way- I am that 'middle aged female', too. Comfort first!! I'm on vacation- not here to impress anyone- overly much.:p

[emarismom]

I've finally gotten together my clothes for my trip, I think I have overpacked but I can't figure out what to get rid of. I'll be gone for 10 days, what do you think:

 

3 pair of jeans (1 black, 1 blue, 1 capri)

6 tees

6 long sleeve shirts

1 fleece sweat shirt

1 water proof lined jacket

3 pairs dress pants (black, brown, tan)

6 dressy tops

1 black dress with cover up

2 dressy pantsets

2 pairs of shorts

1 bathing suit with cover up

1 pair black heels

2 pairs of loafers (brown/black)

2 pairs of sandals (pink/tan)

 

All of this, plus the clothes I'll be wearing on the plane, a sweat pant set with a tee and a pair of sneakers. At least I'm not packing 9 pairs of shoes this time!!

[sea_u_onboard]

Alright Ladies - you are going to LOVE this. I was just watching the news and they had a report about some new shoes called ONE SOLES. You buy the sole - and then you get tops that snap into place to change the look. Some of the tops are made of neoprene (sp) and they have some cute ones called strappies. You can even get them personalized with pictures. I went to the web and found this website - http://www.onesole.com/ - they are a little pricey but would eliminate taking so many pairs. Just think - pack one sole and all the tops you want.:)

 

There are shops that also carry them. Click the Retail Stores link.

 

These could really save my hubbys back :D

[Set2travel]

Very cool shoes!! Thanks for the website...a little late for me...We just shipped our luggage to the hotel today. We leave in less that 2 days. I am very excited!!:D

[emarismom]

Very cute shoes!! A little pricy, but think of all the space to save in the suitcase. It's too late for me to order them now as I leave in 8 days!!!

Today I will pack for the kids. This weekend I'll have my husband pack.

I might have to take the packed luggage to the grocery store to weigh them as I can't see the numbers on the scale if I weigh them at home. :eek:

[Graycee2]

WE are going on Coral Princess Aug. 14th, 2007. We live in N. Ala. Let me know all about it.

[hopelea]

I have been talking to the Assistant Cruise Director on the Sun by email, (well, my daughter has been.) He said that the temperatures are warming up nicely, but still rainy!!

[Set2travel]

Hello Friends! I just got back from my two week Alaska Journey. The only place that was cold was at the Glacier (Hubbards and when we landed on the Glacier in Juneau. I understand why everyone says Layers are it. You can peel them off which I did. I wore different jeans for most of the trip and was very comfy. The only time I wore my big coat was at hubbards glacier out on the deck. I really could have layered and gotten away with the raincoat. Gloves and hat were a must there. The ports were warm. We really luck out with the weather. I will post a review and pics next week.:D

[Set2travel]

Oh Michelle the weighing the luggage is funny. We shipped ours to Anchorage to the Captain Cook, so we would not loose it between the two flight to get there. On the way home we were 16 pounds over on one bag and 9 on another. The lady at check in made us rearrange our luggage so the bags were not over. We offered to pay extra but it was a full capacity flight. This was Delta and they were pretty strict at SeaTac on carryons too! Weighing them before might be a good idea. You should have seen us rearranging our dirty laundry!! Quite comical!!:)

[pooflady]

Oh Michelle the weighing the luggage is funny. We shipped ours to Anchorage to the Captain Cook, so we would not loose it between the two flight to get there. On the way home we were 16 pounds over on one bag and 9 on another. The lady at check in made us rearrange our luggage so the bags were not over. We offered to pay extra but it was a full capacity flight. This was Delta and they were pretty strict at SeaTac on carryons too! Weighing them before might be a good idea. You should have seen us rearranging our dirty laundry!! Quite comical!!:)

 

I'll be flying Delta from SeaTac in August. There's a weight limit on the carryons? Do you know what it is?

[Set2travel]

Hello! Yes on the carryon they told us 40 pounds and a total of 45 inches...For example 22"X14'X9 or any variation just so it does not add up to bigger than 45 inches. I don't remember in the past them being so strict. My Dh and I were in 1st class and had a weight restriction of 70lbs and the boys were in coach and theirs was 50lbs. The laundry shuffle was a site!

[Scrumpy]

Set2travel- So, did you have a good time???

We had similar weather to yours (5/27-6/3). Hubbard was chilly. It got cool toward the end of the dog sledding on the glacier, but then again I did dump over the sled, LOL, and falling in the snow isn't usually a warm experience!;) At one point in Juneau, I was down to a short-sleeve t-shirt. We did have rain and cool weather all day at Ketchikan, too, but it was not COLD at all. That was the only day we didn't have to take off layers. (Interesting about the weight limit being different in first class; we registered as 52 pounds on two bags, but they never said a word. Guess it was because we were in first class. I thought we just got lucky). Last weekend, DH brought home a 3-in-1 jacket for me that he picked up. I am glad I didn't take a big coat to Alaska this trip, but if we went earlier or in the fall, I think I'd take it. I took one fleece pullover too many this trip. I did end up several things I didn't wear, including a cocktail dress, but it worked out pretty well. I figure if I always take one thing less the next trip, eventually I'll get it on the nose.

 

sea_u_onboard - Very cute shoes!!! Now, that is something I will be investigating. Did you get any? How do they fit? You basically get three pairs of shoes for $90, if I'm understanding the website. Would love to hear more about these if you got some. Thanks for the link!!!

[suelars]

OMG, what a great thread, I've been trying to go to bed for hours and couldn't quit reading! Scrumpy, I'm in Georgetown! We visited New Zealand and Australia 2 years ago - NZ was fantastic!!! I do think the layering we do on a day to day will help with the whole packing thing. I never would have planned on packing gloves and fleece, tho - DH had it on his mental list - he's always cold and I'm always hot.

 

We leave for Seattle on the 4th of July, and sail on the 9th for 7 days. I'm so excited! It's our 25th anniversary and first cruise. We're on the Westerdam, Holland America. We kayak every weekend, and are getting ready to book shore excursions. We've got 3 furry children, but are VERY lucky to have them all figured out for any vacations! How to leave my only grandaughter, only 4 months old!!!! She'll grow a foot while we're gone!!!

 

I've got to head for bed!!

 

Thanks for all the laughs, hope there are more posts soon! I'd love to hear about people's trips.

[Scrumpy]

Suelars,

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!! Hope you have an excellent cruise:)

 

You will LOVE Alaska! It is so beautiful. I could go again and again. Okay, don't laugh - is there a Georgetown near me? Sounds familiar, but gee, I couldn't place it. My Colorado geography is not good. I try to go into Colorado Springs as rarely as possible, make it to Denver a couple of times a year, and generally am clueless about where things are located, LOL! Anyway, we were on Oosterdam, which sails on Saturdays. We toasted the Westerdam when it sailed out of Seattle on Sunday after we got back :) We were on Maasdam in 2003 out of Vancouver. We had good experiences both times and really like HAL. (I posted a review last week that was very honest on the HAL board; unfortunately, it came out more negative than I intended). It is wonderful that you have been down to Australia and New Zealand - I love it when I hear of people having a good time down there. Parts of Alaska look a lot like parts of the South Island in NZ. So glad you enjoyed your trip there!!! It's lovely, isn't it?

 

You probably won't need gloves unless you do something on a glacier and the weather gets drizzly and/or windy - or unless you dump over in the snow like I did and get your hands wet. I took insulated, waterproof boots just in case and they did come in handy with all the rain, but it's questionable whether they are actually needed. When I wore the Land's End Sport Shoes (like tennis shoes, but they are thin and quick-drying), I wore the fleece socks with them because they aren't as warm as the boots. That was the only day we weren't peeling off layers like crazy as the time passed. We were in Ketchikan and it rained pretty much all day and was a little cool. I was walking around in town as soon as they let us off the ship and I didn't get too cold or too wet. My hat saved me. It was the greatest and it was a little, cheap gardening hat I picked up at Target. I wear glasses, so I didn't want them wet because then I'm blind!

 

It's always a relief to have the fur children sorted out and taken care of. Knowing they're in good hands is really important. I understand about your granddaughter, though! Hope she doesn't grow TOO much while you're gone! Request a five-minute daily tape to watch when you get home, LOL!

 

Glad you enjoyed the thread!!! Chat again later - bye! :D

[tapia]

Isn't Georgetown in DC??

 

Or not that one?

 

*sorry to cut in here --very interesting!*

[Set2travel]

Hi Scrumpy! Glad you had a great time...we had a BALL!!! The fleece socks were a must. I could not believe how quick some of the ports could wam up. Skagway was the only port we had light rain and we drove out to Emerald lake and went horseback riding, and it was Beautiful up there. Jonie our guide was a real treat. The whale watching in Juneau with Cap't Larry was my favorite. The boys loved the helicopter up to the dogsled camp. We all were crazy about Whistler and will probably retun for a week there in the fall.

I only wore one of my two formals and that was for the pictures only. We have our family photo. Sometimes I get bored on the days at sea but there was sooo much to see that those days flew by too. The time difference has been hard on the whole family...we finally went and bought some tylenol PM because we were all still awake at 2 and 3am...talk about some red eyed workers! I am going to post some pics today.:D

[suelars]

Georgetown is off of I70 near the Eisenhower tunnel, we've only got about 1000 people, but it's really something to see! It's one of the only towns in Colorado that never burned during the gold mining days. We're at 8500 ft elevation, and can certainly go from 80 degrees (our absolute high temp) to 40 and snowing the next day - we've seen snow on the 4th of July!!!

 

If I could bring my entire closet, I'd be fine! I'm thinking smartwool socks, tennis shoes, (I may check out Sears for the shoes you mentioned if Denver cools down) merrell sandals, dressy sandals to go with the only dressy pantsuit I own (Only because my daughter got married last year at the Bellagio in Vegas). Otherwise, I'd skip the dressy nights for the Lido Grill. We dress for the elements up here, and comfort, sounds like my wardrobe fits better in Alaska than on a cruise ship!! hehe. My weight goes up and down (mostly up:D), so I've got to dig out that pantsuit and see if it fits! Capri pants for Seattle and on the ship, black waterproof pants i wear for hiking 14ers, and assorted layerable tops, a fleece and my wonderful winbreaker that goes everwhere with me (it loved Queenstown!) BTW, in NZ, Queenstown reminded me of home! but, without the elevation!

 

I'm debating taking my laptop - Westerdam charges 50 cents a minute for the internet cafe - does anyone know if it costs the same to use the connection in the stateroom?

 

Counting down!! We leave 2 weeks from tomorrow!!!!

 

Sue

[Augnwil]

I think they are referring towards flannel and fleece with the pile. Sweatpants and tops are very popular. Lots of gift stores to buy t-shirts/sweat shirts to wear and have as souvenirs. I wear capris, tshirt and sandals all summer and have already put my warm winter coat away except for trips to Anch in case of car trouble on the road. Rainy days a light jacket.

 

Don't mean to offend anyone but I really crack up laughing every year with these people that show up looking like a white bunny belonging in some high class ski resort.

 

Do you really want me to go take some pics of the locals? lmao I guess it would give me something to. :)

So "parkas" are not needed? Just layers and loghtweight jackets?

[suelars]

Fleece are so soft and comfortable whenever you're cold, I just love them, and it's easy to pack a light windbreaker anywhere - we're not doing a glacier walk, just glacier kayaking, and don't feel a need for a parka there. This whole thread is fun reading, and you'll find lots of opinions about parkas, strange boots/shoes, even mickey and "pop" ears!

 

I've seen a few people recommending over the door shoe hanger things - what do people use them for? what do u put in them??

 

Thanks!!

Sue (15 Days to Seattle!!)

 

BTW, We will have 5 days presailing to play in Seattle, looks like there's lots to do!!! Any high points we must see (planning public transportation: Space Needle, Pike's Market, Underground Your, Duck Tour, kayak rentals on Lake Union? maybe the aquarium?

[Scrumpy]

Sue - okey doke - I have a vague idea where you are. I've been to Conifer, Golden, and Idaho Springs; you're out in that area, I'm guessing! In fact, DH just did a race up Mt.Evans on Saturday. It was too long a day for me. He left here at 5:15AM and think he got home about 3:30pm. We're at about 7300 - 7500 ft or so and near some divide (think it's Palmer Divide), so we get the goofy weather, too. I'm in and out regardless of the conditions, so fleece is my best friend. We are SO DRY here right now - and bloody hot! It rains in Colorado Springs, but the rain stops about 5-6 miles down the road from us. It is frustrating. Haven't seen any rain since we got home 6/5. I know there was ONE storm while we were gone because the housesitter said the dogs were nervous. Sure wish it would rain!!! Queenstown, NZ is great. We did the bungee jumping and it was a blast. Did you make it to Mt. Cook? We stayed there and it is so pretty. There's so much to do and see. We did the Misty Fjords floatplane in Ketchikan and it reminded me a little of a boat trip we took - think that was Milford Sound. NZ was nicer, though. I think the helicopter to the dog sled camp is way cooler than the floatplane. If/when we go back, I want to do that again - or just take a helicopter tour somewhere, maybe one of the glacier walks where you can see the rock underneath. I love Merrells; I have some closed shoes of theirs that I've worn in the barn for over three years. Didn't take them on the cruise; they are rank! It's official, though; they've finally sprung a leak and need to be replaced before winter. Sad... Yes, I think the price is the same in your stateroom and with or without your laptop in the Cafe. We took the laptop so we could download photos and watch the videos we took and we did use it at the hotel in Seattle, but we didn't do internet from the ship. We thought we might this time, but just didn't ever have the urge to get online at all. It wasn't strictly necessary to have the laptop, except for downloading the movies (or is it uploading?) because that had a small memory and it was self-contained (couldn't switch out cards because it didn't have a separate card). If you get a big memory card for your digital camera, you don't need to use your computer, though. We had a 1G card, took over 700 photos and still had some room left on the card. We just like to put them on the computer and do a slideshow at night to re-live the day. In Seattle, we didn't do the Aquarium or the Duck Tour - and we wish we had done both. We usually do that no matter where we go; we ran out of steam, but should have done it anyway. The Aquarium was across the street from our hotel, so that was walking distance. It depends on where you are staying, but a lot of Seattle is easy for walking and there is also a lot in the "free zone" on the buses. The time we went out of the free zone, it was very cheap. If you want to go out to Crittenden locks and see the fish ladder, I don't know if there is public transportation. We rented a car that day and it was a good choice, except the fish ladder wasn't open yet. It should be open now; they had it posted to open June 8. Anyway, from a downtown hotel, the cab fare to the airport is in the neighborhood of $35. It was only $45 to rent a car, so if you want to explore the last day, that might be a sensible option. There were a couple of little restaurants down by the park and locks, but we didn't try them. Our plane was showing late, but we didn't want to sit down for a meal, then get a call that the time had changed back to on-time. Been there, done that - and it's easier to sit in the airport than it is to try to race there when they change the time back. We're not always great about making it to the airport anyway, honestly. (We got an extra night in Ft. Lauderdale when we missed a plane last year. Stopped for lunch at a pub and thought we had plenty of time. We didn't...) I'm sure you'll have a great time in both Seattle and Alaska. They are so pretty. I love being by/on the water and we sure don't have any here at home! Oh yes - the Space Needle is fun. The restaurant was better than we expected and it's nice to watch the world go by. There was a festival at Pike Market when we were there; it was very crowded until late afternoon when the vendors were packing up. I got a cool hat there :D Someone on the HAL board asked about places to eat in Seattle and I had recommendations, along with some other folks. Ours were all in town and within walking distance. We walked to the Space Needle, too. If you're a hiker, you'll be fine in Seattle.

 

People like the over-the-door shoe holders, especially when they have a lot of small items to store in them - they are great for travelling with kids. The pockets are big enough for your camera, too, and for shoes, of course. Okay, we took a miniature version of one of them. Not big enough for shoes or cameras. It's like a toiletry organizer. We kept our little embroidery scissors in them. That was it. But, we always knew where those scissors were. In hindsight, I could've put our extra batteries in there, but I carried those with us every excursion and needed them. Would hate to have forgotten them in the organizer... I bought a flat tray that snaps together to form a little bedside catch-all. It's from Magellan. It has a little narrow channel where I put jewelry, then a larger area for change, eyeglasses, etc. Gosh, this makes no sense. Oh well. It packs flat, then snaps together and it was great for me to keep my daily stuff in when I went to bed. I collected my pillow chocolates in it, too. (It's about time for one of those; I hoarded them the whole trip and brought them home, LOL!)

 

Set2travel - Hey!!! We did Capt. Larry in 2003 and it was AWESOME. We got the best whale photos. Glad you had as much as fun as we did! I was surprised at how wonderful it was. I would do it again in a heartbeat; there are so many great choices in Juneau. I wonder about going up there and staying several days sometime. It'd be cheaper than cruising up there and doing a couple of things each time we go, LOL! I'm glad you and your family had such a great time. I am envious of ya'll doing the horseback riding! We were in Skagway in 2003, but had my MIL with us and didn't get to do that :( We'll just have to go back! How were the horses? I would love to do a trans-atlantic. I cannot get enough sea days! We were exhausted the whole trip and didn't sleep well, so the joke about needing a vacation after our vacation was serious business. We got off the ship in Seattle, went to the hotel and I crashed for 2-3 hours immediately. Good thing they had a room for us that early. Otherwise, I'd have been sleeping in the lobby, LOL! I hope you and your family get back on your normal sleep schedule and get some rest. I think it'd be nice to do a B2B in Alaska and maybe stay on the ship in a port to rest... Oh - yeah - I was so glad to have those fleece socks. I am sure I will be even more glad come this winter here at home when I am outside. Can't believe it took a vacation for me to find something that useful!

 

Hmmmm, we've had helicopters buzzing for hours. I am half-afraid to leave the house to run errands (but have been out to the barn, LOL!). Wonder if there is some fugitive loose or something. We have had a couple of sexual assaults in town, but nothing out by our place. I hope they find what/who they are looking for. It's starting to freak me out!

 

Ya'll take care :)