BTE

2 ?s for Michelle..  

In my opinion unless it's truly a service dog it shouldn't be allowed around food at all

In my opinion unless it's truly a service dog it shouldn't be allowed around food at all

In my opinion unless it's truly a service dog it shouldn't be allowed around food at all

In my opinion unless it's truly a service dog it shouldn't be allowed around food at all

Thumbs up for Michelle at MEI

In my opinion unless it's truly a service dog it shouldn't be allowed around food at all

In my opinion unless it's truly a service dog it shouldn't be allowed around food at all

True but if your sitting around the pool or just lounging around on sea days it's well worth having in my opinion

Michelle @ MEI is my superstar.

Ovation on Aug 9th

I can reply to the Allure WJ as I was on it wk 1/27. Had breakfast & lunch there. As for the food it was good at least what I tried. My general thoughts is it's a little hetic sometimes with everyone running around trying to find a table & getting food. Now when they had staff seating people it was great & things went more smoothly as everyone wasn't going helter skelter as all they had to do was go get food & not worry about where they were sitting. In my opinion they need to do this all the time when it's busy.

I can reply to the Allure WJ as I was on it wk 1/27. Had breakfast & lunch there. As for the food it was good at least what I tried. My general thoughts is it's a little hetic sometimes with everyone running around trying to find a table & getting food. Now when they had staff seating people it was great & things went more smoothly as everyone wasn't going helter skelter as all they had to do was go get food & not worry about where they were sitting. In my opinion they need to do this all the time when it's busy.

Personally, we prefer interior rooms.   We don't spend much if any extra time in the room other than to sleep, shower, change clothes, whatever so even though we have been in more upgraded rooms before it just isn't worth it to us to spend the extra money.  I'd rather either save the extra cost for another cruise or use it to pay for excursions at ports.    Also, I'm one of those people who wakes up and cant sleep as soon as daylight comes so the darkness of an interior room allows me to actually enjoy sleeping in past 6:00-7:00am which is great!   We have done several ocean views in the past and once a junior suite because we were offered a reasonably priced upgrade and it was nice but I'm perfectly content with an interior cabin.

I can reply to the Allure WJ as I was on it wk 1/27. Had breakfast & lunch there. As for the food it was good at least what I tried. My general thoughts is it's a little hetic sometimes with everyone running around trying to find a table & getting food. Now when they had staff seating people it was great & things went more smoothly as everyone wasn't going helter skelter as all they had to do was go get food & not worry about where they were sitting. In my opinion they need to do this all the time when it's busy.

Always wanted to due an Alaska cruise so I pulled the trigger this week & booked an August cruise. Can't wait!

Always wanted to due an Alaska cruise so I pulled the trigger this week & booked an August cruise. Can't wait!

Try using a flight search engine that provides fare advice.  Kayak.com does, I've heard Google will as well.  
Strategy differs between low cost carriers and the legacy airlines and it differs for domestic versus international.  
LCC's (Low Cost Carriers) tend to be cheap far in advance but only a few seats are cheap.  Once they are gone, the next cheapest seats are offered.  Once those are gone, the next cheapest flights are offered and so on.  
Legacy carriers like American, Delta and United tend to be high far away, then start adjusting rates as some point, then if sales are good the prices rise.  If a hundred people suddenly search for the same flight, their computers raise the rates (supply and demand). If none of those people actually buy, prices slowly fall over the next day or two.  
If you go with Southwest, once you book and pay for your flights, you can check daily for price drops.  If the price drops, you can get the difference in the form of a credit for a future flight within one year. 
Consider checked bags fees.  Most US airlines charge for bags, except Southwest.    Some like Sprint or Frontier can also charge for certain carry on bags.  Buyer beware. 

Agree  Board as early as possible. I skipped the Windjammer & ate at Park Cafe in Central Park also & explored the ship. My opinion is the extra time you get is a bonus before you leave port

We did the same one but with Holland America I recommend it, if you go, tell Gouda we said hi.  She is a retired sled dog whos only job is to lay around and get belly rubs... 

@BTE we did this excursion last time in Juneau: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2018/07/17/excursion-focus-alaska-sled-dogs-mushers-camp-juneau-alaska
After, we took a cab to Mendenhall and explored on our own.

Yes, but you have to call them.  

MIAMI, February 18, 2019 – Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL) today announced that it has entered into an agreement with French shipbuilder Chantiers de l’Atlantique to order a sixth Oasis-class ship for delivery in the fall of 2023.
https://presscenter.rclcorporate.com/press-release/25/royal-caribbean-orders-sixth-oasis-class-vessel/
https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2019/02/18/royal-caribbean-orders-sixth-oasis-class-cruise-ship
 

Are you looking for a purchased excursion or do your own thing?
Mendenhall Glacier is awesome and a frequent stop on many purchased tours.  It's also possible to do it on your own where you'll have more time to explore the visitor's center and area at your own pace.  I find the visits that are part of a tour tend to be rushed and just hit certain highlights of the park.  
The Mt. Roberts tramway will provide awesome views on good weather days and it's right there by the ships.
Whale watching is popular in Juneau.
Float plane excursions are also popular and the float plane base is very close to the ships.
One time I did a helicopter to Mendenhall Glacier and we walked in it.  That was expensive but so worth it.  Years later on return visits I still remember what it was like actually trekking across the glacier.  
 

In this continuing series of how weather can change in Alaska, I present you Ketchikan in blue skies.



Time for a scope:
https://www.periscope.tv/thetwangster/1MYxNqyPegbJw
Time on the clock says 5:30pm.  All abroad!

With that our sail away began.





























Sunset scope:
https://www.periscope.tv/thetwangster/1BdGYoOeOZQxX