Ah, and I forgot one other thing: the ship had a naturalist on board--for
the entire cruise--who provided information via the ship's PA system about
all kinds of things along the way. At Glacier Bay National Park, US
National Park Service personnel were brought aboard to provide additional
information. Neither entailed an extra charge of any sort.
On Sat, Aug 10, 2013 at 10:29 PM, Scott Gomez <sgomez.baja@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> What a difference your cruise was from ours, Nathan (I've just read your
> blog about it). I went with my wife and a number of her family on a
> Princess Lines Alaska cruise in 2009. We had a wonderful time. Some
> observations:
>
> Our ship was very small by today's standards. Only 600 passengers, total.
> Embarked in Vancouver, BC, Canada left the ship in Whittier, Alaska, USA.
> This meant that we could tie up to a pier in every harbor, rather than
> having to anchor off-shore and be ferried in as was true for the much
> larger ships used by other lines at the time we went. The ship provided
> easy access to numerous places to eat, only two restaurants were
> extra-charge affairs, if I remember correctly. The only time there was any
> wait at all was to be seated for dinner, and seats, as well as serving
> times, were prearranged. All we had to do was to show up on time, and there
> was more than ample time provided for each round of seating. Food was
> uniformly excellent.
>
> There were many opportunities to spend much more money, as you mention.
> However, we found that in Alaskan ports, there was no need at all to do so
> unless one wanted some sort of guided tour or "adventure". The ship had
> available for sale ($20) I believe copies of "The Alaska Cruise Companion"
> a medium format paper-back book written by a former Alaskan fisherman that
> had more information than I could have hoped for about the route, things to
> see while underway, and the ports of call. It also included a large,
> annotated, fold-out map to help you keep track of where the ship was and
> what to look for. The book is frequently available used, via the e- auction
> site and other sources, if one wishes to save a few dollars. My only regret
> is having waited a couple of days to buy the book, as it turned out worth
> every penny.
>
> Early risers were well rewarded on our cruise. You could easily get the
> best possible seating in one of the lounges to watch the incredible scenery
> pass by. The main lounge (with dance floor) was almost empty, most nights,
> believe it or not, and the singer(s) and band(s) were quite good. There was
> no pressure to purchase drinks.
>
> The coffee was very good, all things considered, although I have to admit
> that I'm not a really discriminating coffee drinker.
>
> Policy about alcohol one might want to bring aboard was the same as you
> mention.
>
> We also had a steward assigned to our room for the trip, of whom we could
> ask most anything within reason.
>
> Although we had some Filipino staff, the majority were, go figure, east
> Europeans, of which most were Poles.
>
> Unfortunately, I do not believe that any of the major cruise lines still
> offer a smaller ship like that we were fortunate enough to have, most now
> are 1500 passengers--or more.
>
> And a final note: if booking the northbound leg of an Inside Passage
> cruise such as the one we took, see if you can request a starboard side
> room (although even our port-side room's view provided plenty to see), and
> pay the money for an upgrade to a balcony room, because there is always
> something to watch as you cruise along! If booking the southbound leg, one
> would obviously want a port-side room for the same reason. My wife and I
> spent a significant portion of every cruising period just kicked back in
> our chairs on our balcony, enjoying the scenery and each other's company,
> and each night we could leave open the blackout curtains (provided because
> of the Midnight Sun; we went at the end of June/beginning of July) and
> watch the islands and harbors out the window when we went to bed.
>
>
>
> On Sat, Aug 10, 2013 at 12:10 PM, Moose <olymoose@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
>> On 8/10/2013 10:39 AM, Nathan Wajsman wrote:
>> > So far I have posted galleries from Italy and from Marseille resulting
>> from the cruise we did last week. Here is the last installment, in the form
>> of the weekly blog. Most of the pictures are from the ship, with a few from
>> land as well. There is all kind of strange stuff, but also a nice jazz
>> pianist, a couple of lovely ladies, artfully folded towels and much more:
>> >
>> > http://www.fotocycle.dk/paws/?page_id=1030
>>
>> Thanks Nathan, I've always thought cruises looked unappetizing.
>>
>> Having crossed the Pacific in both directions and served on US Coast
>> Guard cutters, I've seen enough ocean to last me.
>> The idea of being packed into a tight space with thousands of folks bent
>> on the sort of enjoyment such a place may offer
>> is rather horrifying. At least if I went to Vegas again (first and last
>> time, one night in 1969), I could escape to the
>> desert.
>>
>> It seems there are few harbors, from the tropics to the arctic, where one
>> does not see huge ships docked or anchored
>> with endless little boats shuttling folks to and fro to rush through town
>> and the tourist shops.When we are in Maine, we
>> always see at least a couple off Bar Harbor at any time. (Didn't Chuck
>> visit that way a couple of years ago?)
>>
>> Then we saw the QM2 docked in Portland. I find it hard to imagine
>> Portland Maine as a tourist destination. Nice enough
>> little city, but we only visit because we have friends there. Well, lots
>> of good food. I'm looking forward to a couple
>> of restaurants there in a few weeks. (Can we manage three breakfasts at
>> the Cajun Kitchen?)
>>
>> We too like independent, largely unstructured travel. Many of the nicest
>> parts of our recent road trip were places we
>> didn't know about when we started out, including some fabulous gems.
>>
>> My younger son and his wife enjoyed a mandatory cruise in the Caribbean
>> with her family, but their tastes and experience
>> differ from mine.
>>
>> I occasionally consider an Alaskan cruise, as the only practical way to
>> see much of that spectacular coast. And they are
>> a pretty diversion for those along the way. I was on the top of a hill at
>> night on Cortez Island a few years ago. In the
>> midst of the quiet, dark and endless stars, one could see what looked
>> like little, brightly lit birthday cakes moving
>> across the water in the distance. Too far away to hear them :-)
>>
>> Travelin' Loose Moose
>>
>> --
>> What if the Hokey Pokey *IS* what it's all about?
>> --
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>>
>
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