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Luly

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  1. Thanks
    Luly got a reaction from StuckInOhio in Quantum of the Seas May 29-June 5 2023: Quantum Vision of a Christmas Gift Part 2   
    Day 7 half sea day half port day since we didn’t arrive in Victoria until 5pm. We started the day with Laser Tag. The other day when S12 when to checkout laser tag it wrapped around the seaplex, up the stairs, and around again. I guess everyone decided to sleep in because we were nearly first in line at 9:30. The kids had a blast and there was still no line so they went again. After two round they thought they might starve to death so we ate. I ate a small breakfast because I wanted to eat in the MDR for lunch. 
     
    For lunch I ordered the caprese salad, mozzarella sticks, chicken sandwich, and some sort of floating meringue dessert. The caprese salad was not great. It needed some balsamic vinegar and way more basil. It was just so bland. The mozzarella sticks were top notch. I removed the bread from the sandwich just because I didn’t want to be so stuffed and it was delicious. The dessert was weird. Usually meringue is either cooked like a pavlova or on top of something with flavor like lemon curd. This was just…meringue. Not super flavorful. For some reason the waiter brought S12 a carrot cake so I stole that and it was very good. 
     
    Then we went to the “talent show.” The cruise planner said there would be guest and crew talent. So we thought maybe you show up early and sign up; D16 can solve a Rubik’s cube in about 15 seconds and wanted to show off her talent. Apparently they pulled the best of the best from karaoke nights so 3 people performed karaoke and 2 crew performances. One sang and two did some sort of bar act flipping bottles and such. Cruise director Mike kept saying don’t leave don’t leave we have a surprise for you. The surprise was a bunch of the crew coming out so we could clap for them. Don’t get me wrong, I love the crew and they work crazy hard, just not my or my kids definition of a surprise. 
     
    Then it was time to pack. Since Victoria was 5-10pm and luggage had to be out by 10 we needed to pack before getting off the ship. We had a private bike riding tour booked for 5:30. By the time we got through the crazy long line and walked the The Pedaler we were 20 minutes late. She was kind enough to wait for us. The only disappointment is I specifically booked two trail-a-bikes with the owner, NOT trailers so that D5 could see without a mesh screen surrounding her and so that I felt safer with S8 riding a bike. The girl there had no idea what I was talking about so we got one trailer and had to trust S8 could ride safely on the road. We also provided everyone’s heights on the booking but no specific bikes were ready, she just started pulling random ones from the back and seeing who fit what. 
     
    The bike ride itself was beautiful. We went through beacon hill park, along the coast, way way up hill up to Craigdarroch castle, through a cemetery then back along the coast. Since I was riding a bike I couldn’t really take any pictures. 
     
    We then booked it back to the ship. Godfrey said he’d save our table as long as he could but that after 8 tables were released to my time dining. We arrived at 8:20. As we approached the ship I could tell not many people had returned yet and didn’t feel so rushed. Our table was available. I had the seafood cake, steak, and dark chocolate brownie. The seafood cake was good, I liked the sauce, the Mediterranean steak with the chimichurri sauce was good but not as good as the other nights with the herb butter. The brownie was just a nice normal brownie. 
     
    MIL and FIL went to Butchart Gardens through Royal and didn’t get back to the ship until 9:20 so they ate in the Windjammer. MIL was not impressed, particularly with the taco bar. 
     
    We went back to the room to get our luggage out and my parents went to the 18+ comedy show. I know from past experience that I do not enjoy the adult comedy shows. They’re generally too raunchy and crude for my taste. I had warned my parents but they went and regretted it. They wanted to leave the moment they sat down but they had climbed over many people to get to their seats and the comedian was heckling people as they left and they didn’t want to be singled out too. 
     
    And so ends our Alaska cruise. We used our free Diamond pictures to get the family pictures. I was a little confused because the kids got papers in their rooms saying they each get a free photo, but at the photo center they said only people 21+ can get one. It was the final day and they were going to be closing so it wasn’t worth arguing but there was one specific picture I was really hoping to get but unwilling to spend $25. Does anyone have experience getting a free photo under their kids’ accounts for my future reference?
    Since I’m late writing this I’ll finish up that we have now arrived home. We used a hotel day use site to get a hotel for the day for $150 for all of our luggage and to just come and go from the room as we pleased. We had the room reserved from 8-6. It was the Renaissance in downtown Seattle. In the 6 hours we were actually there they changed up the snacks by the elevator bank three times so we had granola bars, Oreos, and pretzels as well as some juice and water. We walked to Pike Place and had lunch at The Crab Pot. I got the halibut fish and chips and it just didn’t compare to the ones I got in Ketchikan. My parents really liked their seafood Louie salad and hubby liked his clam chowder in a bread bowl. I couldn’t even get through a second piece of fish it was pretty flavorless and so disappointing after such amazing food in Alaska. We vegged at the hotel for a couple of hours then went to the airport to veg some more.  I dread leaving cruises but I’m so happy to be home with my puppies and in my own bed. 

  2. Like
    Luly got a reaction from Bazza in Everglades Eco-Adventure with airport drop-off (MIA) - anybody done this before?   
    The company also picks up at hotels so you could go to the hotel and have them pick you up later in the day to avoid the post cruise crowd.
  3. Thanks
    Luly got a reaction from Bazza in Everglades Eco-Adventure with airport drop-off (MIA) - anybody done this before?   
    Three weeks ago I booked with Everglades holiday park directly. It may be the exact same place royal takes you but provides a bit more flexibility. They picked up at the port (very easy to find, bright orange van with lots of communication) and dropped off at the airport an hour or two later than the excursion through royal. You’ll still be very early for your flight. If you call them and nobody else has booked that date then you can also add on the animal encounter which is what makes the excursion longer. We had private transfer in a wonderfully air conditioned van and a guide that stayed with us and gave us water bottles. 
  4. Love
    Luly got a reaction from deButler in Best shore excursions for Cabo, Puerto Vallarta & Mazatlán cruise!   
    You’ll be there during whale season, I think you should definitely do a whale watching tour in puerto Vallarta and/or Cabo. We’ve done one in both places. Saw whales in both, but in PV we were lucky enough to see the female flapping her fin to call the males to her and a couple of males showing off their breaching capabilities. One of the most incredible experiences in my life. We just sat and watched for an hour or so while being served snacks and lunch. I believe that was through Vallarta tours and there were only 12-14 of us on the boat. In Cabo we used pez gato. Pez gato was great, also food and drinks, but it was a much bigger boat with a ton of people, as in a hundred or so. We fell in love with PV and flew back 6 months later where we used jets private boat tours for a bioluminescence tour. I assume they also do whale watching and their boats had a smaller capacity of 8-10 people as well. 
  5. Like
    Luly got a reaction from FloridaMac in RC private tours   
    I have used this service. It was back in the day when you couldn’t get off the ship unless you were vaccinated and kids couldn’t vaccinated. So then kids couldn’t get off the ship unless it was with a royal excursion. What I did was found the exact excursion I wanted through a third party, then emailed the private shore excursions desk and told them exactly what I wanted to do. They quoted it for me and confirmed all the details. The day was perfect and it was JUST US! Worth every penny. Honestly I can’t remember the price tag but I remember thinking the price wasn’t bad, and was totally worth my kids being able to get off the ship and not be with hundreds of people on a stuffy chartered bus.
     
  6. Love
    Luly got a reaction from Stephanie in RC private tours   
    I have used this service. It was back in the day when you couldn’t get off the ship unless you were vaccinated and kids couldn’t vaccinated. So then kids couldn’t get off the ship unless it was with a royal excursion. What I did was found the exact excursion I wanted through a third party, then emailed the private shore excursions desk and told them exactly what I wanted to do. They quoted it for me and confirmed all the details. The day was perfect and it was JUST US! Worth every penny. Honestly I can’t remember the price tag but I remember thinking the price wasn’t bad, and was totally worth my kids being able to get off the ship and not be with hundreds of people on a stuffy chartered bus.
     
  7. Like
    Luly got a reaction from DDaley in Juneau excursion-Tracy Arm Fjord and Glacier Explorer   
    I’m not the original poster but I did go on this excursion early June. It actually ended up being about 8-9 hours! The boat lost an engine so we had to go quite slow and we were two+ hours late getting to Juneau. We spent quite a long time at the glacier and there was some calving, so I would’ve happily stayed longer. We saw seals and a few pups, but no whales even on our lengthy boat ride into Juneau. One big thing to know is there are ONLY snacks for sale, like goldfish and fruit snacks. No actual lunch items like sandwiches and no free water so bring water bottles. Imagine how famished we felt upon arriving to Juneau at 4pm. At some point I really thought maybe they’d start handing out free food and drinks due to the significant delay but nope. A few people missed out on helicopter and whale excursions in Juneau due to the boat arriving late. So if your trip is soon just make sure they’ve fixed the boat! It’s through allen marine tours. Despite the few issues, being that close to the glacier was incredible and I do highly recommend it. 
  8. Love
    Luly got a reaction from WAAAYTOOO in Juneau excursion-Tracy Arm Fjord and Glacier Explorer   
    I’m not the original poster but I did go on this excursion early June. It actually ended up being about 8-9 hours! The boat lost an engine so we had to go quite slow and we were two+ hours late getting to Juneau. We spent quite a long time at the glacier and there was some calving, so I would’ve happily stayed longer. We saw seals and a few pups, but no whales even on our lengthy boat ride into Juneau. One big thing to know is there are ONLY snacks for sale, like goldfish and fruit snacks. No actual lunch items like sandwiches and no free water so bring water bottles. Imagine how famished we felt upon arriving to Juneau at 4pm. At some point I really thought maybe they’d start handing out free food and drinks due to the significant delay but nope. A few people missed out on helicopter and whale excursions in Juneau due to the boat arriving late. So if your trip is soon just make sure they’ve fixed the boat! It’s through allen marine tours. Despite the few issues, being that close to the glacier was incredible and I do highly recommend it. 
  9. Like
    Luly got a reaction from Va4fam in Cruise Planner Advice and Confusion-Puerto Plata or San Juan   
    We also did the Cosol tour in st Lucia. I have a post about it and our st kitts excursion in my vision of the seas live blog earlier this year here in this forum. The tour itself is good and involves a lot, but there isn’t much snorkel time if that’s what you love. There’s about 3 hours of driving with constant hair pin turns and myself and two of my kids were quite car sick. My mother in law went to st Lucia afterward and did an excursion that took her straight to sugar beach on a boat, which was much faster with more snorkel time. I think I recall the name Spencer’s? Whatever you do, I highly recommend doing the volcano mud bath, not the volcano tour. It felt so amazing on my skin. It st kitts we used my island tours with Javin and he brings his monkey peaches on all the tours, I included lots of pictures in my live blog posts. I really wanted to do the volcano hike but didn’t think my young kids would make it. We hope to go back to both places for the volcano hike and to hike the pitons.  
  10. Like
    Luly got a reaction from MaryS in Quantum of the Seas May 29-June 5 2023: Quantum Vision of a Christmas Gift Part 2   
    Day 7 half sea day half port day since we didn’t arrive in Victoria until 5pm. We started the day with Laser Tag. The other day when S12 when to checkout laser tag it wrapped around the seaplex, up the stairs, and around again. I guess everyone decided to sleep in because we were nearly first in line at 9:30. The kids had a blast and there was still no line so they went again. After two round they thought they might starve to death so we ate. I ate a small breakfast because I wanted to eat in the MDR for lunch. 
     
    For lunch I ordered the caprese salad, mozzarella sticks, chicken sandwich, and some sort of floating meringue dessert. The caprese salad was not great. It needed some balsamic vinegar and way more basil. It was just so bland. The mozzarella sticks were top notch. I removed the bread from the sandwich just because I didn’t want to be so stuffed and it was delicious. The dessert was weird. Usually meringue is either cooked like a pavlova or on top of something with flavor like lemon curd. This was just…meringue. Not super flavorful. For some reason the waiter brought S12 a carrot cake so I stole that and it was very good. 
     
    Then we went to the “talent show.” The cruise planner said there would be guest and crew talent. So we thought maybe you show up early and sign up; D16 can solve a Rubik’s cube in about 15 seconds and wanted to show off her talent. Apparently they pulled the best of the best from karaoke nights so 3 people performed karaoke and 2 crew performances. One sang and two did some sort of bar act flipping bottles and such. Cruise director Mike kept saying don’t leave don’t leave we have a surprise for you. The surprise was a bunch of the crew coming out so we could clap for them. Don’t get me wrong, I love the crew and they work crazy hard, just not my or my kids definition of a surprise. 
     
    Then it was time to pack. Since Victoria was 5-10pm and luggage had to be out by 10 we needed to pack before getting off the ship. We had a private bike riding tour booked for 5:30. By the time we got through the crazy long line and walked the The Pedaler we were 20 minutes late. She was kind enough to wait for us. The only disappointment is I specifically booked two trail-a-bikes with the owner, NOT trailers so that D5 could see without a mesh screen surrounding her and so that I felt safer with S8 riding a bike. The girl there had no idea what I was talking about so we got one trailer and had to trust S8 could ride safely on the road. We also provided everyone’s heights on the booking but no specific bikes were ready, she just started pulling random ones from the back and seeing who fit what. 
     
    The bike ride itself was beautiful. We went through beacon hill park, along the coast, way way up hill up to Craigdarroch castle, through a cemetery then back along the coast. Since I was riding a bike I couldn’t really take any pictures. 
     
    We then booked it back to the ship. Godfrey said he’d save our table as long as he could but that after 8 tables were released to my time dining. We arrived at 8:20. As we approached the ship I could tell not many people had returned yet and didn’t feel so rushed. Our table was available. I had the seafood cake, steak, and dark chocolate brownie. The seafood cake was good, I liked the sauce, the Mediterranean steak with the chimichurri sauce was good but not as good as the other nights with the herb butter. The brownie was just a nice normal brownie. 
     
    MIL and FIL went to Butchart Gardens through Royal and didn’t get back to the ship until 9:20 so they ate in the Windjammer. MIL was not impressed, particularly with the taco bar. 
     
    We went back to the room to get our luggage out and my parents went to the 18+ comedy show. I know from past experience that I do not enjoy the adult comedy shows. They’re generally too raunchy and crude for my taste. I had warned my parents but they went and regretted it. They wanted to leave the moment they sat down but they had climbed over many people to get to their seats and the comedian was heckling people as they left and they didn’t want to be singled out too. 
     
    And so ends our Alaska cruise. We used our free Diamond pictures to get the family pictures. I was a little confused because the kids got papers in their rooms saying they each get a free photo, but at the photo center they said only people 21+ can get one. It was the final day and they were going to be closing so it wasn’t worth arguing but there was one specific picture I was really hoping to get but unwilling to spend $25. Does anyone have experience getting a free photo under their kids’ accounts for my future reference?
    Since I’m late writing this I’ll finish up that we have now arrived home. We used a hotel day use site to get a hotel for the day for $150 for all of our luggage and to just come and go from the room as we pleased. We had the room reserved from 8-6. It was the Renaissance in downtown Seattle. In the 6 hours we were actually there they changed up the snacks by the elevator bank three times so we had granola bars, Oreos, and pretzels as well as some juice and water. We walked to Pike Place and had lunch at The Crab Pot. I got the halibut fish and chips and it just didn’t compare to the ones I got in Ketchikan. My parents really liked their seafood Louie salad and hubby liked his clam chowder in a bread bowl. I couldn’t even get through a second piece of fish it was pretty flavorless and so disappointing after such amazing food in Alaska. We vegged at the hotel for a couple of hours then went to the airport to veg some more.  I dread leaving cruises but I’m so happy to be home with my puppies and in my own bed. 

  11. Thanks
    Luly got a reaction from new2cruzing in No Ramen or Yaki Udon for Izumi's on Quantum Class, Why?   
    Just got off quantum on Monday and ate at Izumi. No ramen or noodles. 
  12. Like
    Luly got a reaction from OCSC Mike in Dining room dress code for kids   
    My kids wore tshirts and shorts, not even khaki ones, every night on our Caribbean cruise and not a word was said and I never felt like I was getting weird looks. 
  13. Thanks
    Luly got a reaction from KristiZ in MDR Cheese and cracker platter?!?!?   
    Just got off quantum. The cheese plate was available every night on the dessert menu but I ordered it as an appetizer everyday without issue. Definitely nothing fancy but I love that fig jam with cheese. There were always three cheese options, rotating between bleu and Brie usually with a cheddar and provolone. Always had grapes, didn’t ever have veggies. Sometimes had crackers or the bread pictured above and sometimes no carbs. 
  14. Like
    Luly got a reaction from PPPJJ-GCVAB in Dining room dress code for kids   
    My kids wore tshirts and shorts, not even khaki ones, every night on our Caribbean cruise and not a word was said and I never felt like I was getting weird looks. 
  15. Like
    Luly got a reaction from ScottD in Dining room dress code for kids   
    My kids wore tshirts and shorts, not even khaki ones, every night on our Caribbean cruise and not a word was said and I never felt like I was getting weird looks. 
  16. Like
    Luly got a reaction from BD1157 in Things you miss from Royal...   
    I miss the fruity soup appetizers that tasted like a smoothie. I also miss getting the dessert menu AFTER dinner was over. I like ordering later based on how full I am. I miss the teen club cruise compass. It seems like there used to end more late night entertainment. I used to be up until midnight seeing a comedian or late night activity and now I’m content to be asleep by 9:30 knowing I’m not missing anything. The only thing I stayed up late for (besides waiting for my child to come back from teen club) throughout my entire 10 night cruise a few weeks ago was the Quest. 
  17. Love
    Luly got a reaction from WAAAYTOOO in Quantum of the Seas May 29-June 5 2023: Quantum Vision of a Christmas Gift Part 2   
    Day 7 half sea day half port day since we didn’t arrive in Victoria until 5pm. We started the day with Laser Tag. The other day when S12 when to checkout laser tag it wrapped around the seaplex, up the stairs, and around again. I guess everyone decided to sleep in because we were nearly first in line at 9:30. The kids had a blast and there was still no line so they went again. After two round they thought they might starve to death so we ate. I ate a small breakfast because I wanted to eat in the MDR for lunch. 
     
    For lunch I ordered the caprese salad, mozzarella sticks, chicken sandwich, and some sort of floating meringue dessert. The caprese salad was not great. It needed some balsamic vinegar and way more basil. It was just so bland. The mozzarella sticks were top notch. I removed the bread from the sandwich just because I didn’t want to be so stuffed and it was delicious. The dessert was weird. Usually meringue is either cooked like a pavlova or on top of something with flavor like lemon curd. This was just…meringue. Not super flavorful. For some reason the waiter brought S12 a carrot cake so I stole that and it was very good. 
     
    Then we went to the “talent show.” The cruise planner said there would be guest and crew talent. So we thought maybe you show up early and sign up; D16 can solve a Rubik’s cube in about 15 seconds and wanted to show off her talent. Apparently they pulled the best of the best from karaoke nights so 3 people performed karaoke and 2 crew performances. One sang and two did some sort of bar act flipping bottles and such. Cruise director Mike kept saying don’t leave don’t leave we have a surprise for you. The surprise was a bunch of the crew coming out so we could clap for them. Don’t get me wrong, I love the crew and they work crazy hard, just not my or my kids definition of a surprise. 
     
    Then it was time to pack. Since Victoria was 5-10pm and luggage had to be out by 10 we needed to pack before getting off the ship. We had a private bike riding tour booked for 5:30. By the time we got through the crazy long line and walked the The Pedaler we were 20 minutes late. She was kind enough to wait for us. The only disappointment is I specifically booked two trail-a-bikes with the owner, NOT trailers so that D5 could see without a mesh screen surrounding her and so that I felt safer with S8 riding a bike. The girl there had no idea what I was talking about so we got one trailer and had to trust S8 could ride safely on the road. We also provided everyone’s heights on the booking but no specific bikes were ready, she just started pulling random ones from the back and seeing who fit what. 
     
    The bike ride itself was beautiful. We went through beacon hill park, along the coast, way way up hill up to Craigdarroch castle, through a cemetery then back along the coast. Since I was riding a bike I couldn’t really take any pictures. 
     
    We then booked it back to the ship. Godfrey said he’d save our table as long as he could but that after 8 tables were released to my time dining. We arrived at 8:20. As we approached the ship I could tell not many people had returned yet and didn’t feel so rushed. Our table was available. I had the seafood cake, steak, and dark chocolate brownie. The seafood cake was good, I liked the sauce, the Mediterranean steak with the chimichurri sauce was good but not as good as the other nights with the herb butter. The brownie was just a nice normal brownie. 
     
    MIL and FIL went to Butchart Gardens through Royal and didn’t get back to the ship until 9:20 so they ate in the Windjammer. MIL was not impressed, particularly with the taco bar. 
     
    We went back to the room to get our luggage out and my parents went to the 18+ comedy show. I know from past experience that I do not enjoy the adult comedy shows. They’re generally too raunchy and crude for my taste. I had warned my parents but they went and regretted it. They wanted to leave the moment they sat down but they had climbed over many people to get to their seats and the comedian was heckling people as they left and they didn’t want to be singled out too. 
     
    And so ends our Alaska cruise. We used our free Diamond pictures to get the family pictures. I was a little confused because the kids got papers in their rooms saying they each get a free photo, but at the photo center they said only people 21+ can get one. It was the final day and they were going to be closing so it wasn’t worth arguing but there was one specific picture I was really hoping to get but unwilling to spend $25. Does anyone have experience getting a free photo under their kids’ accounts for my future reference?
    Since I’m late writing this I’ll finish up that we have now arrived home. We used a hotel day use site to get a hotel for the day for $150 for all of our luggage and to just come and go from the room as we pleased. We had the room reserved from 8-6. It was the Renaissance in downtown Seattle. In the 6 hours we were actually there they changed up the snacks by the elevator bank three times so we had granola bars, Oreos, and pretzels as well as some juice and water. We walked to Pike Place and had lunch at The Crab Pot. I got the halibut fish and chips and it just didn’t compare to the ones I got in Ketchikan. My parents really liked their seafood Louie salad and hubby liked his clam chowder in a bread bowl. I couldn’t even get through a second piece of fish it was pretty flavorless and so disappointing after such amazing food in Alaska. We vegged at the hotel for a couple of hours then went to the airport to veg some more.  I dread leaving cruises but I’m so happy to be home with my puppies and in my own bed. 

  18. Like
    Luly got a reaction from Ampurp85 in Quantum of the Seas May 29-June 5 2023: Quantum Vision of a Christmas Gift Part 2   
    Day 7 half sea day half port day since we didn’t arrive in Victoria until 5pm. We started the day with Laser Tag. The other day when S12 when to checkout laser tag it wrapped around the seaplex, up the stairs, and around again. I guess everyone decided to sleep in because we were nearly first in line at 9:30. The kids had a blast and there was still no line so they went again. After two round they thought they might starve to death so we ate. I ate a small breakfast because I wanted to eat in the MDR for lunch. 
     
    For lunch I ordered the caprese salad, mozzarella sticks, chicken sandwich, and some sort of floating meringue dessert. The caprese salad was not great. It needed some balsamic vinegar and way more basil. It was just so bland. The mozzarella sticks were top notch. I removed the bread from the sandwich just because I didn’t want to be so stuffed and it was delicious. The dessert was weird. Usually meringue is either cooked like a pavlova or on top of something with flavor like lemon curd. This was just…meringue. Not super flavorful. For some reason the waiter brought S12 a carrot cake so I stole that and it was very good. 
     
    Then we went to the “talent show.” The cruise planner said there would be guest and crew talent. So we thought maybe you show up early and sign up; D16 can solve a Rubik’s cube in about 15 seconds and wanted to show off her talent. Apparently they pulled the best of the best from karaoke nights so 3 people performed karaoke and 2 crew performances. One sang and two did some sort of bar act flipping bottles and such. Cruise director Mike kept saying don’t leave don’t leave we have a surprise for you. The surprise was a bunch of the crew coming out so we could clap for them. Don’t get me wrong, I love the crew and they work crazy hard, just not my or my kids definition of a surprise. 
     
    Then it was time to pack. Since Victoria was 5-10pm and luggage had to be out by 10 we needed to pack before getting off the ship. We had a private bike riding tour booked for 5:30. By the time we got through the crazy long line and walked the The Pedaler we were 20 minutes late. She was kind enough to wait for us. The only disappointment is I specifically booked two trail-a-bikes with the owner, NOT trailers so that D5 could see without a mesh screen surrounding her and so that I felt safer with S8 riding a bike. The girl there had no idea what I was talking about so we got one trailer and had to trust S8 could ride safely on the road. We also provided everyone’s heights on the booking but no specific bikes were ready, she just started pulling random ones from the back and seeing who fit what. 
     
    The bike ride itself was beautiful. We went through beacon hill park, along the coast, way way up hill up to Craigdarroch castle, through a cemetery then back along the coast. Since I was riding a bike I couldn’t really take any pictures. 
     
    We then booked it back to the ship. Godfrey said he’d save our table as long as he could but that after 8 tables were released to my time dining. We arrived at 8:20. As we approached the ship I could tell not many people had returned yet and didn’t feel so rushed. Our table was available. I had the seafood cake, steak, and dark chocolate brownie. The seafood cake was good, I liked the sauce, the Mediterranean steak with the chimichurri sauce was good but not as good as the other nights with the herb butter. The brownie was just a nice normal brownie. 
     
    MIL and FIL went to Butchart Gardens through Royal and didn’t get back to the ship until 9:20 so they ate in the Windjammer. MIL was not impressed, particularly with the taco bar. 
     
    We went back to the room to get our luggage out and my parents went to the 18+ comedy show. I know from past experience that I do not enjoy the adult comedy shows. They’re generally too raunchy and crude for my taste. I had warned my parents but they went and regretted it. They wanted to leave the moment they sat down but they had climbed over many people to get to their seats and the comedian was heckling people as they left and they didn’t want to be singled out too. 
     
    And so ends our Alaska cruise. We used our free Diamond pictures to get the family pictures. I was a little confused because the kids got papers in their rooms saying they each get a free photo, but at the photo center they said only people 21+ can get one. It was the final day and they were going to be closing so it wasn’t worth arguing but there was one specific picture I was really hoping to get but unwilling to spend $25. Does anyone have experience getting a free photo under their kids’ accounts for my future reference?
    Since I’m late writing this I’ll finish up that we have now arrived home. We used a hotel day use site to get a hotel for the day for $150 for all of our luggage and to just come and go from the room as we pleased. We had the room reserved from 8-6. It was the Renaissance in downtown Seattle. In the 6 hours we were actually there they changed up the snacks by the elevator bank three times so we had granola bars, Oreos, and pretzels as well as some juice and water. We walked to Pike Place and had lunch at The Crab Pot. I got the halibut fish and chips and it just didn’t compare to the ones I got in Ketchikan. My parents really liked their seafood Louie salad and hubby liked his clam chowder in a bread bowl. I couldn’t even get through a second piece of fish it was pretty flavorless and so disappointing after such amazing food in Alaska. We vegged at the hotel for a couple of hours then went to the airport to veg some more.  I dread leaving cruises but I’m so happy to be home with my puppies and in my own bed. 

  19. Like
    Luly got a reaction from Sweety in Quantum of the Seas May 29-June 5 2023: Quantum Vision of a Christmas Gift Part 2   
    Day 7 half sea day half port day since we didn’t arrive in Victoria until 5pm. We started the day with Laser Tag. The other day when S12 when to checkout laser tag it wrapped around the seaplex, up the stairs, and around again. I guess everyone decided to sleep in because we were nearly first in line at 9:30. The kids had a blast and there was still no line so they went again. After two round they thought they might starve to death so we ate. I ate a small breakfast because I wanted to eat in the MDR for lunch. 
     
    For lunch I ordered the caprese salad, mozzarella sticks, chicken sandwich, and some sort of floating meringue dessert. The caprese salad was not great. It needed some balsamic vinegar and way more basil. It was just so bland. The mozzarella sticks were top notch. I removed the bread from the sandwich just because I didn’t want to be so stuffed and it was delicious. The dessert was weird. Usually meringue is either cooked like a pavlova or on top of something with flavor like lemon curd. This was just…meringue. Not super flavorful. For some reason the waiter brought S12 a carrot cake so I stole that and it was very good. 
     
    Then we went to the “talent show.” The cruise planner said there would be guest and crew talent. So we thought maybe you show up early and sign up; D16 can solve a Rubik’s cube in about 15 seconds and wanted to show off her talent. Apparently they pulled the best of the best from karaoke nights so 3 people performed karaoke and 2 crew performances. One sang and two did some sort of bar act flipping bottles and such. Cruise director Mike kept saying don’t leave don’t leave we have a surprise for you. The surprise was a bunch of the crew coming out so we could clap for them. Don’t get me wrong, I love the crew and they work crazy hard, just not my or my kids definition of a surprise. 
     
    Then it was time to pack. Since Victoria was 5-10pm and luggage had to be out by 10 we needed to pack before getting off the ship. We had a private bike riding tour booked for 5:30. By the time we got through the crazy long line and walked the The Pedaler we were 20 minutes late. She was kind enough to wait for us. The only disappointment is I specifically booked two trail-a-bikes with the owner, NOT trailers so that D5 could see without a mesh screen surrounding her and so that I felt safer with S8 riding a bike. The girl there had no idea what I was talking about so we got one trailer and had to trust S8 could ride safely on the road. We also provided everyone’s heights on the booking but no specific bikes were ready, she just started pulling random ones from the back and seeing who fit what. 
     
    The bike ride itself was beautiful. We went through beacon hill park, along the coast, way way up hill up to Craigdarroch castle, through a cemetery then back along the coast. Since I was riding a bike I couldn’t really take any pictures. 
     
    We then booked it back to the ship. Godfrey said he’d save our table as long as he could but that after 8 tables were released to my time dining. We arrived at 8:20. As we approached the ship I could tell not many people had returned yet and didn’t feel so rushed. Our table was available. I had the seafood cake, steak, and dark chocolate brownie. The seafood cake was good, I liked the sauce, the Mediterranean steak with the chimichurri sauce was good but not as good as the other nights with the herb butter. The brownie was just a nice normal brownie. 
     
    MIL and FIL went to Butchart Gardens through Royal and didn’t get back to the ship until 9:20 so they ate in the Windjammer. MIL was not impressed, particularly with the taco bar. 
     
    We went back to the room to get our luggage out and my parents went to the 18+ comedy show. I know from past experience that I do not enjoy the adult comedy shows. They’re generally too raunchy and crude for my taste. I had warned my parents but they went and regretted it. They wanted to leave the moment they sat down but they had climbed over many people to get to their seats and the comedian was heckling people as they left and they didn’t want to be singled out too. 
     
    And so ends our Alaska cruise. We used our free Diamond pictures to get the family pictures. I was a little confused because the kids got papers in their rooms saying they each get a free photo, but at the photo center they said only people 21+ can get one. It was the final day and they were going to be closing so it wasn’t worth arguing but there was one specific picture I was really hoping to get but unwilling to spend $25. Does anyone have experience getting a free photo under their kids’ accounts for my future reference?
    Since I’m late writing this I’ll finish up that we have now arrived home. We used a hotel day use site to get a hotel for the day for $150 for all of our luggage and to just come and go from the room as we pleased. We had the room reserved from 8-6. It was the Renaissance in downtown Seattle. In the 6 hours we were actually there they changed up the snacks by the elevator bank three times so we had granola bars, Oreos, and pretzels as well as some juice and water. We walked to Pike Place and had lunch at The Crab Pot. I got the halibut fish and chips and it just didn’t compare to the ones I got in Ketchikan. My parents really liked their seafood Louie salad and hubby liked his clam chowder in a bread bowl. I couldn’t even get through a second piece of fish it was pretty flavorless and so disappointing after such amazing food in Alaska. We vegged at the hotel for a couple of hours then went to the airport to veg some more.  I dread leaving cruises but I’m so happy to be home with my puppies and in my own bed. 

  20. Love
    Luly got a reaction from PPPJJ-GCVAB in Quantum of the Seas May 29-June 5 2023: Quantum Vision of a Christmas Gift Part 2   
    Day 7 half sea day half port day since we didn’t arrive in Victoria until 5pm. We started the day with Laser Tag. The other day when S12 when to checkout laser tag it wrapped around the seaplex, up the stairs, and around again. I guess everyone decided to sleep in because we were nearly first in line at 9:30. The kids had a blast and there was still no line so they went again. After two round they thought they might starve to death so we ate. I ate a small breakfast because I wanted to eat in the MDR for lunch. 
     
    For lunch I ordered the caprese salad, mozzarella sticks, chicken sandwich, and some sort of floating meringue dessert. The caprese salad was not great. It needed some balsamic vinegar and way more basil. It was just so bland. The mozzarella sticks were top notch. I removed the bread from the sandwich just because I didn’t want to be so stuffed and it was delicious. The dessert was weird. Usually meringue is either cooked like a pavlova or on top of something with flavor like lemon curd. This was just…meringue. Not super flavorful. For some reason the waiter brought S12 a carrot cake so I stole that and it was very good. 
     
    Then we went to the “talent show.” The cruise planner said there would be guest and crew talent. So we thought maybe you show up early and sign up; D16 can solve a Rubik’s cube in about 15 seconds and wanted to show off her talent. Apparently they pulled the best of the best from karaoke nights so 3 people performed karaoke and 2 crew performances. One sang and two did some sort of bar act flipping bottles and such. Cruise director Mike kept saying don’t leave don’t leave we have a surprise for you. The surprise was a bunch of the crew coming out so we could clap for them. Don’t get me wrong, I love the crew and they work crazy hard, just not my or my kids definition of a surprise. 
     
    Then it was time to pack. Since Victoria was 5-10pm and luggage had to be out by 10 we needed to pack before getting off the ship. We had a private bike riding tour booked for 5:30. By the time we got through the crazy long line and walked the The Pedaler we were 20 minutes late. She was kind enough to wait for us. The only disappointment is I specifically booked two trail-a-bikes with the owner, NOT trailers so that D5 could see without a mesh screen surrounding her and so that I felt safer with S8 riding a bike. The girl there had no idea what I was talking about so we got one trailer and had to trust S8 could ride safely on the road. We also provided everyone’s heights on the booking but no specific bikes were ready, she just started pulling random ones from the back and seeing who fit what. 
     
    The bike ride itself was beautiful. We went through beacon hill park, along the coast, way way up hill up to Craigdarroch castle, through a cemetery then back along the coast. Since I was riding a bike I couldn’t really take any pictures. 
     
    We then booked it back to the ship. Godfrey said he’d save our table as long as he could but that after 8 tables were released to my time dining. We arrived at 8:20. As we approached the ship I could tell not many people had returned yet and didn’t feel so rushed. Our table was available. I had the seafood cake, steak, and dark chocolate brownie. The seafood cake was good, I liked the sauce, the Mediterranean steak with the chimichurri sauce was good but not as good as the other nights with the herb butter. The brownie was just a nice normal brownie. 
     
    MIL and FIL went to Butchart Gardens through Royal and didn’t get back to the ship until 9:20 so they ate in the Windjammer. MIL was not impressed, particularly with the taco bar. 
     
    We went back to the room to get our luggage out and my parents went to the 18+ comedy show. I know from past experience that I do not enjoy the adult comedy shows. They’re generally too raunchy and crude for my taste. I had warned my parents but they went and regretted it. They wanted to leave the moment they sat down but they had climbed over many people to get to their seats and the comedian was heckling people as they left and they didn’t want to be singled out too. 
     
    And so ends our Alaska cruise. We used our free Diamond pictures to get the family pictures. I was a little confused because the kids got papers in their rooms saying they each get a free photo, but at the photo center they said only people 21+ can get one. It was the final day and they were going to be closing so it wasn’t worth arguing but there was one specific picture I was really hoping to get but unwilling to spend $25. Does anyone have experience getting a free photo under their kids’ accounts for my future reference?
    Since I’m late writing this I’ll finish up that we have now arrived home. We used a hotel day use site to get a hotel for the day for $150 for all of our luggage and to just come and go from the room as we pleased. We had the room reserved from 8-6. It was the Renaissance in downtown Seattle. In the 6 hours we were actually there they changed up the snacks by the elevator bank three times so we had granola bars, Oreos, and pretzels as well as some juice and water. We walked to Pike Place and had lunch at The Crab Pot. I got the halibut fish and chips and it just didn’t compare to the ones I got in Ketchikan. My parents really liked their seafood Louie salad and hubby liked his clam chowder in a bread bowl. I couldn’t even get through a second piece of fish it was pretty flavorless and so disappointing after such amazing food in Alaska. We vegged at the hotel for a couple of hours then went to the airport to veg some more.  I dread leaving cruises but I’m so happy to be home with my puppies and in my own bed. 

  21. Like
    Luly got a reaction from PPPJJ-GCVAB in Quantum of the Seas May 29-June 5 2023: Quantum Vision of a Christmas Gift Part 2   
    Day 6 was a sea day. The day started early with more pickleball. My boys love getting up early to play with their grandpa (my dad) and both grandmas joined them. For some reason pickleball has always been at 7am. Then we got breakfast at the windjammer and went back to the seaplex for more bumper cars. The two littlest just love being able to drive around and crash into each other. Luckily MIL was there and saved my back from having to do those again. 
     
    After bumper cars we went to the cake decorating contest. It was between cruise director Mike, the head chef, and the director of food and beverage. They took their time and Mike asked them questions about the ship and what it’s like to stock it etc. They said that for Australia cruises they have to stock 5 times more alcohol than when they come to Alaska! Mike won the contest because the winner got dinner at Jamie’s Italia “and two people here get to eat there whenever they want.” So the audience had pitty and voted him the winner. 
     
    Hubby and I enjoyed Izumi on our Vision cruise but the kids did not. So with in-law approval to watch the kids we booked lunch at Izumi for Day 6. Izumi on quantum is small and has a much smaller menu but all we wanted was sushi anyway so we were happy. We ordered a la carte and got the dynamite roll and the spicy tempura shrimp roll. I don’t do sashimi or raw fish. We kept going back and forth between the two and neither could decide which we liked best they were both so delicious! And way cheaper than paying $40pp! I also got the mochi and hubby got the chocolate lava cake which was not lava but just a little gooey. 
     
    MIL still had the kids at the pool and they would not leave. We were going to take them to adventure ocean but she didn’t mind sitting and watching them so I brought them some pizza then hubby and I went to the fitness center. Afterward we had to drag the kids out of the pool after 3ish hours of swimming because Disneynature Bears was showing in 270. What a cute film! Highly recommend and the kids were enthralled. 
     
    We had an hour to get everyone ready for formal night before the next show. So everyone quickly showered and got ready then went to Sonic Odyssey. This is for sure my favorite show I’ve seen on Royal. It was so entertaining. No story line, but the music was so well done and everyone had so much talent!
    Then time for lobster night! I got the onion tart appetizer and was not a fan. Lately I’ve also been ordering cheese plate dessert as an appetizer instead. Sometimes it has bleu cheese which I give away and sometimes it has delicious brie. It usually has three cheeses, and the harder cheeses like a cheddar and provolone are so so good dipped in the fig jam. We ordered a lobster per person then divvied out the ones the kids didn’t want, except S8. He loves lobster and ate 1 then shared D5’s with me. S12 was brave enough to try it and that was a no go. Nobody minded that he didn’t want it. It found a place in MIL’s tummy. Most of us also got steak; the herb butter they put on it is so good! I got the vegan banana custard dessert. Ew. I also got the warm chocolate cake. Meh, not gooey enough. I tried the baked Alaska, not my thing. 
     
    Side note, the first night my mom discovered she enjoys the pumpkin seed bread. It’s always been my favorite. It was not given to us a day 2 so my mom asked about it. They said they’d make a note and the next night we had a plate with 8 or so rolls. The next night we got THREE BASKETS of them. Mind you there are three of us at the table that like those rolls. After that it kept just being a plate full when really we only needed 3 and had let them know but oh well. 
     
    Tomorrow is our final day and we don’t arrive in Victoria until 5pm so it’s practically a sea day. 
  22. Love
    Luly got a reaction from WAAAYTOOO in Quantum of the Seas May 29-June 5 2023: Quantum Vision of a Christmas Gift Part 2   
    Day 6 was a sea day. The day started early with more pickleball. My boys love getting up early to play with their grandpa (my dad) and both grandmas joined them. For some reason pickleball has always been at 7am. Then we got breakfast at the windjammer and went back to the seaplex for more bumper cars. The two littlest just love being able to drive around and crash into each other. Luckily MIL was there and saved my back from having to do those again. 
     
    After bumper cars we went to the cake decorating contest. It was between cruise director Mike, the head chef, and the director of food and beverage. They took their time and Mike asked them questions about the ship and what it’s like to stock it etc. They said that for Australia cruises they have to stock 5 times more alcohol than when they come to Alaska! Mike won the contest because the winner got dinner at Jamie’s Italia “and two people here get to eat there whenever they want.” So the audience had pitty and voted him the winner. 
     
    Hubby and I enjoyed Izumi on our Vision cruise but the kids did not. So with in-law approval to watch the kids we booked lunch at Izumi for Day 6. Izumi on quantum is small and has a much smaller menu but all we wanted was sushi anyway so we were happy. We ordered a la carte and got the dynamite roll and the spicy tempura shrimp roll. I don’t do sashimi or raw fish. We kept going back and forth between the two and neither could decide which we liked best they were both so delicious! And way cheaper than paying $40pp! I also got the mochi and hubby got the chocolate lava cake which was not lava but just a little gooey. 
     
    MIL still had the kids at the pool and they would not leave. We were going to take them to adventure ocean but she didn’t mind sitting and watching them so I brought them some pizza then hubby and I went to the fitness center. Afterward we had to drag the kids out of the pool after 3ish hours of swimming because Disneynature Bears was showing in 270. What a cute film! Highly recommend and the kids were enthralled. 
     
    We had an hour to get everyone ready for formal night before the next show. So everyone quickly showered and got ready then went to Sonic Odyssey. This is for sure my favorite show I’ve seen on Royal. It was so entertaining. No story line, but the music was so well done and everyone had so much talent!
    Then time for lobster night! I got the onion tart appetizer and was not a fan. Lately I’ve also been ordering cheese plate dessert as an appetizer instead. Sometimes it has bleu cheese which I give away and sometimes it has delicious brie. It usually has three cheeses, and the harder cheeses like a cheddar and provolone are so so good dipped in the fig jam. We ordered a lobster per person then divvied out the ones the kids didn’t want, except S8. He loves lobster and ate 1 then shared D5’s with me. S12 was brave enough to try it and that was a no go. Nobody minded that he didn’t want it. It found a place in MIL’s tummy. Most of us also got steak; the herb butter they put on it is so good! I got the vegan banana custard dessert. Ew. I also got the warm chocolate cake. Meh, not gooey enough. I tried the baked Alaska, not my thing. 
     
    Side note, the first night my mom discovered she enjoys the pumpkin seed bread. It’s always been my favorite. It was not given to us a day 2 so my mom asked about it. They said they’d make a note and the next night we had a plate with 8 or so rolls. The next night we got THREE BASKETS of them. Mind you there are three of us at the table that like those rolls. After that it kept just being a plate full when really we only needed 3 and had let them know but oh well. 
     
    Tomorrow is our final day and we don’t arrive in Victoria until 5pm so it’s practically a sea day. 
  23. Like
    Luly got a reaction from PPPJJ-GCVAB in Quantum of the Seas May 29-June 5 2023: Quantum Vision of a Christmas Gift Part 2   
    Day 5
    Today we cruised through Endicott arm to Dawes Glacier then on to Juneau. We went to the glacier on the cruise ship and arrived around 6:30 then it turned around to come out of endicott arm and at 8:30 we got off the ship and onto an excursion boat through Allen’s Marine Tours. We then turned around and went back to the glacier and got within 1/4 mile of it. We were told that’s unusual for this time of year because it takes a while for the ice formed during winter to break up this early. An ice sheet develops for a mile or two from the glacier each winter. We watched lots of calving from the glacier and saw a few seals. They go into the arm to pup. Due to all the silt in the water there is no fish or anything to eat so the moms don’t eat any food for a few months while the pups grow then they head out to the ocean. We saw one little tiny guy he was so cute! At the glacier the boat went back and forth for at least half an hour, maybe an hour. D16 loved the glacier calving. 
    As we left the glacier we enjoyed some drinks (not included) poured over glacier ice. The only things included on this excursions were hot drinks, a few donut holes, and crackers with salmon spread. This ended up really being a problem. The ship got to Juneau at 1, and the excursion was supposed to have us back at the ship at 2 and specifically said to plan excursions after 2. Luckily my in laws cancelled their 2:25 helicopter excursion because they felt we’d be cutting it too close. The boat ended up having a fuel leak and had to cut some engines so we didn’t explode in a fiery ball. That put us back 90 minutes, then when we got to the ship there was a life boat in the water. For some reason they couldn’t drop us at the pier, we had to get on the ship like a tender. We didn’t end up getting on the ship until 4. There were tears from one woman whose helicopter tour waited 15 minutes but just couldn’t wait any longer and left her. I think tension was high because we were all SO hungry. The only food for purchase were goldfish, granola bars, peanuts, a few candy options and fruit snacks. They didn’t even offer water for free which was really quite shocking to me. 
    We got the kids some pizza then went ashore to eat at Tracy’s Crab Shack. That king crab was heavenly. 5 of us shared 3 lbs which was plenty to curb our hunger until dinner but not enough to fill us up. 
    We then went to the Alaska fudge shop and got all varieties of brittle. I haven’t tried my coconut pecan one yet to report on it. I also bought a dark chocolate sea salt caramel and it was delicious. 
    We went back to the ship and had a bit of time to play some ping pong before our northstar reservation. 
    My parents’ helicopter and dog mushing on a glacier excursion got cancelled 5 minutes before meeting due to weather. Weather in Juneau was very nice but I guess not on the glacier. They were so disappointed. Because they were supposed to be on an excursion I didn’t include them in our northstar reservation but there ended up being room for them to join us. 
    Afterward it was time for dinner. Tonight was taste of USA. The most commonly ordered food was the fried chicken and steak. The fried chicken inside was a good texture but not crispy at all and didn’t have a ton of flavor as described. For dessert I tried the royal cheesecake and warm apple cobbler. The crust on the cheesecake is yummy so that’s what I ate. The apple cobbler was really good until I got to the raisin covered bottom of the ramekin. I don’t like cooked raisins and had no idea they’d be there. 
    There was no show tonight since all aboard wasn’t until 8:30. However they did have the love and marriage game show. Cruise director Mike really did a great job quickly pushing through the Q&A. Some cruise directors drag it on and on. It was entertaining yet concise. 
    Tomorrow (or today now because I was too tired last night) is a sea day. We have lots of activities we’re excited to participate in with plenty of rest time mixed in. 

  24. Like
    Luly got a reaction from Ampurp85 in Quantum of the Seas May 29-June 5 2023: Quantum Vision of a Christmas Gift Part 2   
    Day 5
    Today we cruised through Endicott arm to Dawes Glacier then on to Juneau. We went to the glacier on the cruise ship and arrived around 6:30 then it turned around to come out of endicott arm and at 8:30 we got off the ship and onto an excursion boat through Allen’s Marine Tours. We then turned around and went back to the glacier and got within 1/4 mile of it. We were told that’s unusual for this time of year because it takes a while for the ice formed during winter to break up this early. An ice sheet develops for a mile or two from the glacier each winter. We watched lots of calving from the glacier and saw a few seals. They go into the arm to pup. Due to all the silt in the water there is no fish or anything to eat so the moms don’t eat any food for a few months while the pups grow then they head out to the ocean. We saw one little tiny guy he was so cute! At the glacier the boat went back and forth for at least half an hour, maybe an hour. D16 loved the glacier calving. 
    As we left the glacier we enjoyed some drinks (not included) poured over glacier ice. The only things included on this excursions were hot drinks, a few donut holes, and crackers with salmon spread. This ended up really being a problem. The ship got to Juneau at 1, and the excursion was supposed to have us back at the ship at 2 and specifically said to plan excursions after 2. Luckily my in laws cancelled their 2:25 helicopter excursion because they felt we’d be cutting it too close. The boat ended up having a fuel leak and had to cut some engines so we didn’t explode in a fiery ball. That put us back 90 minutes, then when we got to the ship there was a life boat in the water. For some reason they couldn’t drop us at the pier, we had to get on the ship like a tender. We didn’t end up getting on the ship until 4. There were tears from one woman whose helicopter tour waited 15 minutes but just couldn’t wait any longer and left her. I think tension was high because we were all SO hungry. The only food for purchase were goldfish, granola bars, peanuts, a few candy options and fruit snacks. They didn’t even offer water for free which was really quite shocking to me. 
    We got the kids some pizza then went ashore to eat at Tracy’s Crab Shack. That king crab was heavenly. 5 of us shared 3 lbs which was plenty to curb our hunger until dinner but not enough to fill us up. 
    We then went to the Alaska fudge shop and got all varieties of brittle. I haven’t tried my coconut pecan one yet to report on it. I also bought a dark chocolate sea salt caramel and it was delicious. 
    We went back to the ship and had a bit of time to play some ping pong before our northstar reservation. 
    My parents’ helicopter and dog mushing on a glacier excursion got cancelled 5 minutes before meeting due to weather. Weather in Juneau was very nice but I guess not on the glacier. They were so disappointed. Because they were supposed to be on an excursion I didn’t include them in our northstar reservation but there ended up being room for them to join us. 
    Afterward it was time for dinner. Tonight was taste of USA. The most commonly ordered food was the fried chicken and steak. The fried chicken inside was a good texture but not crispy at all and didn’t have a ton of flavor as described. For dessert I tried the royal cheesecake and warm apple cobbler. The crust on the cheesecake is yummy so that’s what I ate. The apple cobbler was really good until I got to the raisin covered bottom of the ramekin. I don’t like cooked raisins and had no idea they’d be there. 
    There was no show tonight since all aboard wasn’t until 8:30. However they did have the love and marriage game show. Cruise director Mike really did a great job quickly pushing through the Q&A. Some cruise directors drag it on and on. It was entertaining yet concise. 
    Tomorrow (or today now because I was too tired last night) is a sea day. We have lots of activities we’re excited to participate in with plenty of rest time mixed in. 

  25. Like
    Luly got a reaction from WAAAYTOOO in Quantum of the Seas May 29-June 5 2023: Quantum Vision of a Christmas Gift Part 2   
    Day 5
    Today we cruised through Endicott arm to Dawes Glacier then on to Juneau. We went to the glacier on the cruise ship and arrived around 6:30 then it turned around to come out of endicott arm and at 8:30 we got off the ship and onto an excursion boat through Allen’s Marine Tours. We then turned around and went back to the glacier and got within 1/4 mile of it. We were told that’s unusual for this time of year because it takes a while for the ice formed during winter to break up this early. An ice sheet develops for a mile or two from the glacier each winter. We watched lots of calving from the glacier and saw a few seals. They go into the arm to pup. Due to all the silt in the water there is no fish or anything to eat so the moms don’t eat any food for a few months while the pups grow then they head out to the ocean. We saw one little tiny guy he was so cute! At the glacier the boat went back and forth for at least half an hour, maybe an hour. D16 loved the glacier calving. 
    As we left the glacier we enjoyed some drinks (not included) poured over glacier ice. The only things included on this excursions were hot drinks, a few donut holes, and crackers with salmon spread. This ended up really being a problem. The ship got to Juneau at 1, and the excursion was supposed to have us back at the ship at 2 and specifically said to plan excursions after 2. Luckily my in laws cancelled their 2:25 helicopter excursion because they felt we’d be cutting it too close. The boat ended up having a fuel leak and had to cut some engines so we didn’t explode in a fiery ball. That put us back 90 minutes, then when we got to the ship there was a life boat in the water. For some reason they couldn’t drop us at the pier, we had to get on the ship like a tender. We didn’t end up getting on the ship until 4. There were tears from one woman whose helicopter tour waited 15 minutes but just couldn’t wait any longer and left her. I think tension was high because we were all SO hungry. The only food for purchase were goldfish, granola bars, peanuts, a few candy options and fruit snacks. They didn’t even offer water for free which was really quite shocking to me. 
    We got the kids some pizza then went ashore to eat at Tracy’s Crab Shack. That king crab was heavenly. 5 of us shared 3 lbs which was plenty to curb our hunger until dinner but not enough to fill us up. 
    We then went to the Alaska fudge shop and got all varieties of brittle. I haven’t tried my coconut pecan one yet to report on it. I also bought a dark chocolate sea salt caramel and it was delicious. 
    We went back to the ship and had a bit of time to play some ping pong before our northstar reservation. 
    My parents’ helicopter and dog mushing on a glacier excursion got cancelled 5 minutes before meeting due to weather. Weather in Juneau was very nice but I guess not on the glacier. They were so disappointed. Because they were supposed to be on an excursion I didn’t include them in our northstar reservation but there ended up being room for them to join us. 
    Afterward it was time for dinner. Tonight was taste of USA. The most commonly ordered food was the fried chicken and steak. The fried chicken inside was a good texture but not crispy at all and didn’t have a ton of flavor as described. For dessert I tried the royal cheesecake and warm apple cobbler. The crust on the cheesecake is yummy so that’s what I ate. The apple cobbler was really good until I got to the raisin covered bottom of the ramekin. I don’t like cooked raisins and had no idea they’d be there. 
    There was no show tonight since all aboard wasn’t until 8:30. However they did have the love and marriage game show. Cruise director Mike really did a great job quickly pushing through the Q&A. Some cruise directors drag it on and on. It was entertaining yet concise. 
    Tomorrow (or today now because I was too tired last night) is a sea day. We have lots of activities we’re excited to participate in with plenty of rest time mixed in. 

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