J-Ro

Or our “local” airline Alaska Air. Far from a legacy carrier. But, they fly in and out of nearly every city in Alaska with an airport. 

It was thru RCI.  There are several to pick from on how many days/nights that you want.  We picked the 3 due to having to return to work.  It included transportation and lodging but not any food.  It was an awesome experience and we want to go back and stay longer.

We have sailed twice starting with a land tour in Fairbanks and cruising to Vancouver, and once rt from Seattle. We liked Seattle much better, but if you have never done the land portion, it is awesome, but you will want to do it first.
 

As a man that lives in Seattle, I'm partial to our city. I would base it on Ship/itinerary vs. city. For instance, Ovation sails out of Seattle, while Radiance and Serenade sail out of Vancouver. Radiance is N/S, while Ovation and Serenade (typically) are round trip. Though this could change in 2021. 

Sea-Tac to Downtown Seattle is 13-15 miles, depending on what part of downtown. So let's just call it 14. To compare to others, it's not that far out:
Lower Manhattan to JFK is 20 miles; LGA is 11 miles, EWR is 14-15 miles. YYZ to Downtown Toronto is 16-17 miles. O'Hare to Downtown Chicago is 17-19 miles. LAX to Downtown LA is 18-20 miles, and Burbank to Downtown LA is 16-17 miles. DEN to Downtown Denver is 24-25 miles. Houston Bush to Downtown Houston is 20-22 miles.
I'll stop there, but with the exception of some ridiculously convenient exceptions (Boston, Washington Reagan, things like that) SEA is relatively close to downtown, and has a good rail link between the airport and city center. 

I chose to sail from Seattle because it was a US port.  My thinking was that there would be less hassles with immigration.  Was my reasoning valid?

We sailed out of Vancouver, one of the top reasons was that the port fees and taxes were significantly lower. However, we flew into Seattle (from the East coast) as those flights were significantly lower. We did a one-way car rental up to Vancouver.  The drive up was so scenic - unforgettable.  We had a great time sight-seeing in Seattle.  

Vancouver tends to be one way itineraries while Seattle has the round trip option.  I would choose based on ship and itinerary more that Seattle vs. Vancouver as both cities are great. 

I loved Seattle as a teen. I would visit my Aunt and Uncle in Washington and Seattle was always the highlight for me so when I booked an Alaska Cruise in 2017 for Sept of 2018 Seattle was a no brainer for me. I have never been or want to go to Vancouver.
As an adult I still love Seattle BUT a couple grown up things that turned me off a little bit.  Airport is WAY outside Seattle and even a Lyft was pricey. Speaking of Pricey, Seattle in a whole is expensive. $40.00 for two for lunch is not out of the question. I'm talking sit down restaurants for burgers. Hotels are expensive... use the EXPRESS DEAL option on Priceline.com like @Matt always suggest (single greatest suggestion ever)
If you plan on Seattle a get in town a few days early...get the City Pass to save cash on sightseeing.

Capilano Bridge Park in Vancouver is a must see. 

We sailed out of Vancouver and loved it.  Sailing up the inside passage, we had AT&T cell service the entire time with the exception of and hour or two at the most.  We also did a 3-day inland tour with RCI at the end of our cruise.  It was the perfect ending to a perfect cruise. 

The room service carafe hold two cups of coffee, so if you want more than that just order 4 coffees and you will get two carafes. I do not like the Windjammer coffer-it always tastes burned. I do however like the coffee from the MDR-don't know why the difference.
I plan to buy a coffee card for our 12 night Transatlantic on Anthem. Does anyone know when the coffee shop is open in the morning and also does the price ever change on the coffee card? Right now it is $31.00.

So the coffee that comes with room service is pretty hot...I haven't had an issue so far with it.
 
As for quality, I don't find it great..but I enjoy a light and mellow coffee....and with Baileys!

The room service coffee comes in an insulated carafe.  You will have to select a quantity when ordering and that will mean how many mugs you want delivered with the carafe.  If you need sweetener and/or creamer you have to specify that as well.
No clue what brand the complimentary coffee is but the additional cost specialty coffee (espresso based drinks) I have seen as Seattle's Best, illy, Cafe Bustelo, or Starbucks.  Depends on which ship you are on.

Room service coffee will be the same "no name" variety served in the MDR. It's hot, it's OK while it's hot flavor-wise after adding a splash of milk... and once it gets cool it's disgusting. So if you order the carafe, make sure to keep topping off your mug to keep it hot.
Otherwise I'd strongly recommend purchasing a coffee card, especially if you will mostly be drinking coffee and are fine with the other complimentary beverages.

Seattle's Best was the house coffee on Harmony last week.  I bought the coffee card to get espresso or cappuccino in the morning (the iced latte is charged two punches but the caps are just one). 
PS. I found the decaf in the MDR and specialty restaurants outstanding and perhaps better than the Café Promenade.  Their decaf tended NOT to be hot.  

I don’t believe Matt was trying to be sarcastic. He was trying to point out that people’s taste in mattresses are indeed subjective. And I would be careful about being rude to him because he is the creator and maintainer of this entire site and blog. He may not get offended but others trying to offer you advice might. I myself am already upset at your response to him.

From Catalina Insider
 

We are sailing on the Adriatic and Italy on Rhapsody of the Seas, sailing on Halloween night! 

Although a lot of info in the older ones is no longer relevant, it's still nice to see things that have changed.  For example @Matt wasn't always Team DX (Deluxe Drink Package), where now he is!  Or @Matt and  @mpoole3 debate which is better, Labadee or Coco Cay (well before Perfect Day was even a thought!).  One thing that hasn't changed is Matt picking on @monorailmedic, haha!!  Although, I've met them both and they have a great friendship!  

Oh great! Thanks!! Yes, that’s how I was listening to the podcasts- on ITunes. Glad to know they are available on the blog. Excited to hear the other episodes. 

That's correct. All the episodes are available via that link

I assume you're referring to iTunes when saying episode 219 to present?  If you go to the "Podcast" link at the top of this page they are all there starting with number 1.  I did the same thing, listened to all that were available on iTunes, then had to listen to the rest (I'm listening in reverse order and I'm down to episode 37) using the above link.  
https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/podcast

Welcome!!

Welcome!