Leaving on the Spirit in 2 Weeks!

[cm24]

WE'RE OFF TO ALASKA:

We're quite excited (as you can imagine) - Any last minute tips & suggestions for us? And any ideas for economical shore excursions we can put together on our own?

 

Thanks!

-cm24

[brunolvr]

WE'RE OFF TO ALASKA:

We're quite excited (as you can imagine) - Any last minute tips & suggestions for us? And any ideas for economical shore excursions we can put together on our own?

 

Thanks!

-cm24

Just relax and have a good time! Enjoy all the beautiful scenery that Alaska has to offer!

[cruise pup]

Hi, as I think you already know, I'll be on the same cruise. It's my third cruise to Alaska. For some economical suggestions consider these for sightseeing:

 

In Kethchikan you can go to the visitors center right at the cruiseship docks and get a map. The places in town you would want to see are Creek Street, the salmon ladder, the salmon hatchery with bald eagle center and the totem heritage center. There's also a good museum. Lastly, the lumberjack show isn't too costly and it can be fun.

 

In Juneau you can take a bus from the cruiseship dock to Mendenhall Glacier for $5. each way (don't buy a roundtrip. there's no savings and this way whatever bus comes first when you want to return you can board and pay for the ride back). In town there is the State Museum which is pretty good. MGT also offers a pretty reasonable tour of Juneau which includes a visit to Mendenhall. You'll find them at the cruisehip dock as well. Our ship isn't docking at the main cruiseship dock, so I'm talking about where the shuttle bus will leave you off, not where you'll disembark.

 

In Skagway you can go to the Goldrush National Park visitor's center on Broadway and sign up for a free walking tour. There are also presentations there at 10 and 3, I believe. Also, an alternative to the expensive White Pass train is to take a bus tour of virtually the same route for about $40. Chilkoot Charters offers it or you'll find places to sign up for it in town.

 

Hope that helps.

[RM0312]

CM24,

 

We just returned from our trip on the Spirit a week ago. I agree with CruisePup - MGT (Mendenhall Glacier Tours or Mighty Great Trips) is very affordable when compared to the on-ship excursion prices. We purchased the "Best of Juneau" trip for almost half of what it was offered through NCL. This excursion included a city bus tour, a 45 minute visit to Mendenhall Glacier and a salmon bake at the Thane Ore House (both the salmon and the halibut were great). We booked online through MGT's website (can't remember the address but it will pretty easy to find by searching "Mendenhall Glacier Tours") and told them how long we were in port and they scheduled a tour that worked perfectly in getting us back to the ship om time. As far as the other ports, we just did our own sight-seeing and shopping expeditions. We had a great time at all the ports.

[Bookish Angel]

WE'RE OFF TO ALASKA:

We're quite excited (as you can imagine) - Any last minute tips & suggestions for us? And any ideas for economical shore excursions we can put together on our own?

 

Thanks!

-cm24

 

 

We are sailing 9/11/04 from Seattle. You too? We are coming all the way from Virginia!

 

You might check out http://www.virtualtourist.com to find out about "on-your-own" activities in the different ports. I always check that site before I go anywhere new as I like stuff off of the beaten path such as funky bookstores, etc.

 

Have fun!

[bbcruiser]

In Ketchikan, you can walk to many of the areas that the tours take you. We got off the ship early, walked down Creek Street, then took the funicular up to Cape Fox Lodge (where you can get a view of the ship). We got on that early in the mornig (before 9 am), and didn't have to pay for the ride. I'm not sure if it's always free, because we saw a sign that said it was $4, but no one ever collected money from us. We just rode it like we would an elevator. From the lodge, we took a walk to the hatchery (that was where we saw the most salmon in the creek). You can tour the hatchery for $5, but we didn't go on the tour. Then we walked down to the salmon ladder and back to Creek Street. After that, we mainly shopped (the stores are pretty fun).

 

In Juneau, we took the $5 bus out to Mendenhall Glacier and did a short hike. It was a nice ride. We just walked around town after that.

 

In Skagway, it took us almost 2 hours just to explore the town. There is a walking tour of the town you can take (get a map at the visitor center). Also, there is a national historic museum that costs about $5 that gives a lot of history about the area. They also offer free tours of the city (about 90 minutes) led by park rangers. If you have a toddler, stop by the Mollie Walsh park. We went there with our 20 month old son and I think that was the highlight of the trip for him! There were lots of other kids there too.

 

Shopping wise, I think Juneau was the best for us since we're not into the jewelry stuff.

 

Have fun on your trip.

[cm24]

Well, I think ALL of your suggestions and comments were GREAT!

But probably the MOST useful was "just relax and have a good time" (lol) - I have to admit I have a tendency to over-plan every single little thing --- But you know what? I think I just go and keep my mind open to new experiences and not really plan anything real specific this time, (which is difficult for me :eek: )

 

But I think that would be the best thing for me to do, I'll take all of your experiences into consideration and then just GO and have fun!!! Besides, this trip was for me to go and RELAX and really not have anything pressing to do...

 

-cm

[brunolvr]

Well, I think ALL of your suggestions and comments were GREAT!

But probably the MOST useful was "just relax and have a good time" (lol) - I have to admit I have a tendency to over-plan every single little thing --- But you know what? I think I just go and keep my mind open to new experiences and not really plan anything real specific this time, (which is difficult for me :eek: )

 

But I think that would be the best thing for me to do, I'll take all of your experiences into consideration and then just GO and have fun!!! Besides, this trip was for me to go and RELAX and really not have anything pressing to do...

 

-cm

Sounds great and remember, "it's okay to do nothing"!

[kb996]

We just got back today from our trip to Alaska on the Spirit. In Skagway we took a bus tour through Frontier Excursions (located next to the post office).

 

For $25 you can take the Summit tour which paralles the trains route and goes a little way into the Yukon territory. It was about 1 1/2 hours long with 5 or 6 picture stops along the way. I can't remember our guides name but he was VERY informative about the area and gave us the history of the gold rush during the tour.

 

For (I think) $37 you can do the Summit/City Tour. This adds on a trip to an overlook to see the entire city and also to the grave yard to see Soapy Smiths grave.

 

The city part of the tour was ok, but I'd stick with the summit part and leave the extra hour to shop in town. Don't forget to stop at the Alaska TShirt Company. They have lots of little $1 trinkets to bring home and great deals on TShirts (with hat only $9.99).

 

Enjoy the Spirit. I'd go back today if I could!

[Cruisin' granny]

Back from Spirit earlier this month. Our second trip. Would have done another whale watch in Juneau with Capt. Larry, but the rest of my group chose another excursion. In Ketchikan, we rented a car and drove as far as we could north and south. Great scenery! Leisure day and still had some time to shop. Skagway we splurged on the dogsledding adventure with Temsco. Unbelievable!

 

But, since I really wanted to go on a whale watch tour again, I checked the excursion desk on ship early in the week and put our names on a waiting list for the excursion out of Prince Ruppert, $99. We were advised late the evening before that tickets were available. Prince Ruppert really does not have the offerings for cruisers as the other ports. The whale watch - wildlife excursion is a whale watch. Four hours. A wonderful trip. A tribal family runs the particular trip we were on. Took us about an hour out to find the whales. We followed a mother and calf (humpback) for two hours, then headed back to the ship. The provided snacks (water, cheese & sausage, chips, granola bars) and they carried many pairs of really good binoculars on board for those who might not have had any with them. Janeen (daughter) is very knowledgable and willing to share and answer questions. An unforgettable trip!

[mommiemudd]

Pack casual! The Spirit dining room allows jeans as long as they were in great shape-no holes, tears, etc. This was actually brought about in response to a cruise critic posting. They really do read this, as we found out in our meeting. Not sure if the other ships are following this or not. If you are going whale watching, bring your warmest clothes if you want to hang out on the observation deck. It was very comfortable downstairs but I froze up top! Did not need warm clothes for the seaplane. The train ride in Skagway wa s a little chilly but not bad. Try to plan something in Prince Rupert. The day we arrived it was rainy. We got off the ship and went to Safeway and then right back on the boat! Maybe we should have rented a car or something. Although, we took advantage of some down time. Not many shops, etc. We could have take the shuttle to Cows Bay but it really started to rain so we just headed back to the ship.

[cm24]

On some posts I read (or at least I think that I read) that a person could get on the ship early or something like that? Or be invited to a meeting of Cruise Critic Members?

 

On our sailing coming up (Sept.11-18) does anyone know if there will be anything like that?

 

Thanks!

-cm24

[cpayne]

I would recommend arriving at the port around 10:30 - 11:00. I believe we were able to board around 11:30. Our cc.com group had been added to the VIP list so were the first group to board and were able to wait in the VIP lounge between checking in and actually getting on board. For instructions on how to get your name(s) on the VIP list please see the following post on the Norwegian thread:

 

"Preparing for Spirit Cruise for 09/04"

 

If you still have questions please don't hesitate to email me.

[phoenixlady]

We rented a car in Skagway and drove the Yukon Hwy. to Emerald Lake. It is beautiful and we thought, well worth the drive to see it. The entire drive (an hour and a half each way) is absolutely beautiful. In Juneau we went on the $5.00 (each way) bus to Mendenhall Glacier. The tour companies are right at the dock. Then we did the the ship's tour to the Misty Fjord. Although it's a nice tour, I would have saved the money if I had to do it again. In Ketchikan we did the Tracey Arms tour to Sawyer Glacier. It was well worth the money. The catamaran can get you up very close to the glacier, much closer than the ship can bring you. In Prince Rupert, we rented a car again and drove on Rte. 16 to Terrace, but I wouldn't do that again either. Prince Rupert is a very small touristy town that is just starting to prepare for tourists. The Spirit is the only ship that has gone there since May and they're readying their pier to, eventually, dock 4 ships at once. The ship itself is wonderful - the food is good, the entertainment is great, the restaurants are very nice, the wait staff is very attentive and the crew is extremely courteous and friendly. My husband and I enjoyed the Spirit we just booked a 9 day cruise to the Southern Caribbean in March. Not only did we decide to go on the Spirit again, we even managed to get our same cabin which we loved. You're going to have a ball whatever you decide to do. Good luck.

[Laura4cruise]

Go on a whale-watching excursion and enjoy the scenery! :)

[cm24]

Anyone else going on the Spirit to Alaska on 9/11-9/18:

 

I found how we can get put on the VIP List and be given priority for boarding and disembarking...If you are interested PLEASE post your email address and cabin # as I am currently compiling a list to send off to NCL so that we can be VIP'ers!!!

 

Or you can email me at: alegria_25@myfastmail.com with that info as well

 

Happy Sailing - Just a couple of days to go!!!

-cm24

 

* TO CPAYNE:

Thanks a million for the info! You're Great!