KJones

I'm pretty sure Cococay has beach wheelchairs that are able to traverse sand 

If booked through Royal, you board the train right at the dock. If booked through WPYR, you'll board at the station just a couple blocks beyond the dock. Recommend booking through RC if mobility is an issue (although I'm pretty sure the town shuttle can pick up at the dock and stops by the train station).

We didn't book the VIP and choose to sit in the last car. It was great to be able to stay out on the bridge/coupler at the end of the car and not have another car blocking any of the views. A guide made frequent rounds to the non-VIP cars, but food and drinks were additional cost .

You can also book White Pass Rail tickets directly from WPR, plus it's cheaper than through RC.

We booked a small group Ephesus tour with Viator, highly recommend 10/10. It ended up being just our group and one other couple. We added the Terrace Houses to our ticket, which was one of the highlights of the site for us. Lunch wasn't included, but our guide asked if we wanted to stop somewhere and we all agreed (additional cost, maybe like 15euro/p). Food was delicious, but it was a part of a government-sponsored carpet/rug making shop. Which was generally fine, just odd... We watched some of the workers at various stages of production, then sat through the obligatory sales pitch. Just stay looking and acting uninterested and they'll give up.
https://www.viator.com/tours/Kusadasi/5-Hour-Small-Group-Shore-Excursion-to-Ephesus-from-Kusadasi/d582-10390P3?m=63070&nid=VR.4be7f67f-2e49-4d4a-8d5d-51e4605755cd.VT_EMAIL_TRV

The bus will take you back to Athinios port after the Fira stop. You also have the option of not returning with the bus and making your own way to the Old Harbor port to catch the tender back to the ship.

You can call RC and ask to be added to the traditional dining 5pm waitlist as well. Or ask to switch onboard.

Utilize the wheelchair service, that's what its there for! Plus, not sure which port you're leaving out of, but at Ravenna terminal all "carry-on" size luggage has to be carried on - you can't check it in with the porters. So you may also need to account for walking the pier with luggage if sailing out of Ravenna.

I think it's a YMMV, but I had success using leftover punches on a later cruise. The original sailing didn't have the ship written on it, which may have helped. But I crossed out the original stateroom number and wrote the new one for the 2nd cruise.

Juneau: we rented a car to visit Mendenhall Glacier, Salmon Bake & downtown. Much cheaper (at least in 2022) than booking via RC or third-party.

Skagway: White Pass Train - we booked this through RC, it wasn't much more than booking direct. But if you book through RC you board the train right by the dock, rather than farther into town. We had someone with some mobility limitation so definitely worth the few extra dollars for us.

Icy Strait: whale watch, booked through Hoonah travels

Seward: we only had a couple hours between our train arrival & embarkation. We used the free shuttle to get around town. I've read good things about the sea life center.

Credit card without foreign transaction fees (some will charge additional 3% on top of conversion) + a few hundred cash from a bank atm once we've landed.

Re: RC Shuttles - I think they run about every 30min -1hr or so, depending on how quickly the buses fill. If taking the shuttle from the train station to the port, you can reserve ahead of time, or just show up and they'll bill it to your room (12.50 euro/person). For port to train, you can also reserve before the sailing or while on-board.

I will also recommend arriving a day or two early to visit Ravenna.

I agree that's a bit early. The ship might dock at 5am, but I don't know if anyone is getting off before 6am. I think you're best bet is not waiting for a Royal airport transfer bus to fill up with passengers, and just getting a cab.

Half the time when we upload a photo in the app for express check in, we have to retake the photo at the port anyways. You can definitely skip doing it ahead of time.

Yes, they'll eventually get added to the Cruise Planner. I'd keep checking weekly but they probably won't be fully loaded until 4-6 months out from sail date.

3 hours ago, steverk said:

One of the c&a benefits is a priority wait list.

I think it's an on-board waitlist, meaning you can't join it until you're onboard. I could be wrong.

I think it is only available on Alaska sailings via Royal Gifts/ Cruise Planner. It was not in the Gift Shop onboard.

It's a pretty good blanket, but I also got it for $25. Not sure I'd pay $50 unless it was going to be my only souvenir from the trip. (Also I found the mini pillow it came with fairly useless and left it behind...)

Mendenhall parking is $5-10 I believe, but the pay stations are easily missed so most think it's free.

We're opting to pony up for the Oia On Your Own excursion, so we can get off the ship early and go straight to the most popular part of the island before the crowds arrive en masse and it gets too hot - though we have an early morning arrival in port, not in the afternoon as is your case.

One of our group is booked on this as well, not sailing til September though so can't offer advice. Sounds very non-strenuous - getting off the bus to take photos from the outskirts, then hopping back on to the bus...
Hoping for others to reply with their experience.

I think with that many extra people, you may have to get a 2nd cabana.

Alaska shore excursions are expensive, and significantly more so when booked through Royal. I think there are very few excursions here where I would not consider going through a 3rd party / on our own - primarily anything that takes up 70% of hours (give or take) that the ship is docked, or if it starts late in the day.

Juneau: we rented a car and drove to Mendenhall glacier + stumbled upon the Gold Creek Salmon Bake. Significantly cheaper than through the cruise line, and we were able to go at our schedule not having to wait around for other people. Even had time to browse the shops along the way.

Skagway: White Pass Train: we did book this through RC - it was only maybe $10/p difference than booking direct. We opted for this because when booking through RC you board the train right by the dock; direct bookings board at the train station, which could be a bit of a walk if someone needs mobility assistance which part of our group did.

Icy Strait: Booked 3rd party whale watching through Hoonah Travel Adventures. Best excursion of the trip. Icy Strait is a very small port owned and operated by the local tribe, with limited shore excursion options both through RC or 3rd party.

I'd just do the extra keys route, even though you'd have to carry both around. There's no cost for extra keys. Extra keys are only for room access, no charging permissions so use the original seapass for purchases. I don't recall what was printed on them, may have just been guest name and room number.

Looks like there's a municipal shuttle that could take you to the cemetary

https://www.skagway.com/listing/skagway-municipal-and-regional-transit-smart-bus/126/

1 hour ago, Bob Burd said:

I am thinking of getting this for my wife.  Does it go on your seapass card or do you get a card in your stateroom?  

You'll get a physical card - it is not loaded to the seapass.