StuckInOhio

Hi all, I'll be in an Ocean View Balcony room on Quantum of the Seas going to Alaska. Is there a way to make coffee in my room in the morning. I'll want some coffee at an early hour before others are awake. I don't want to wake them up with room service or leaving the room. I've seen different answers depending on the room type and ship. Thanks again!

Thank you all for the good responses! Now that the flights (Delta) are booked, planning packing is the next thing on my list. I'm going to sound like a noob, but I think I'll do a test pack to see how much luggage space we'll need. You've all brought up good points about packing for Alaska and managing the bags on the plane and at the port. Guess a need a packing list, or better yet, a spreadsheet. Thanks again.

Hello more experience travelers. Our family of four (2 adult sized teenagers) will fly to Seattle for an Alaska cruise. Checked bags are $30 each way. We'll have 2 backpacks (counts as personal items for flying) for excursions. Should we take four carry-ons and two checked bags to save $120 (2 bags * $30 * 2 flights) for a total of six bags? Or should we just take use four checked bags and have less luggage to deal with? Is carry-on luggage treated any differently at embarkation? BTW, it's possible I'm my luggage math is off, I'm not yet sure how much we'll need to pack. I'd just like to hear some opinions on carry-on luggage with a trip like this I guess. Thanks!

Hi. In Sitka we are going to "Discover Fortress of the Bear" then walk/hike the Totem Trail Loop. Here's a cool walking map I found on a live blog post: https://visitsitka.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Visit-Sitka-WalkingMap.pdf If you don't mind a more challenging hike, the Mount Verstovia Trail sounds really cool. The Sitka Sound Science Center and Baranof Castle are also options. In Victoria I think we will just walk the town (Waterfront Wharf, Government, and Lower Johnson streets) and maybe do a water taxi harbor tour. Enjoy!

Thanks for the link @Gadget Hackwrench It doesn't sound good.

Things to Do | Quantum of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises Currently (as of 12/28/23) says "NORTH STAR CURRENTLY NOT IN SERVICE The North Star onboard Quantum of the Seas® is not available for guests to enjoy at this moment. But don’t worry! We have tons of thrills onboard." Anyone know what's up?

Oh wow. Thanks for the great information. I'll book what I can now and re-check every week or so.

Hi all, I'm cruising to Alaska in exactly a year from now. I started looked at excursions a few weeks ago and it seems like the list of options keeps changing. I started a list of options that I liked and at least one of those is no longer listed and I'm sure there are others now that weren't there originally. Will the list of options continue to change over time? If I book something now and later see something different that I would prefer, can I book the new one and cancel the old one? I also see one that has jumped in price already, but I'm less surprised by that. What do you all do? Do you book early and continue to watch the site for other/better options? Thanks for any help and advice.

@wordell1 Thanks for the great live blog! Your pictures are amazing.

Hi All, I'm going to Alaska for the first time a year from now (Aug. 2024). I would love to hear suggestions for Sitka (7.5 hrs), Skagway (10 hrs), Juno (7 hrs), and Victoria (5 hrs) excursions. There will be four of us, kids are 19 and 16. I could see doing one excursion that was $150-200 per person with the others being less expensive. I really think we'd like to go to Mendenhall in Juno. There has been posts about limiting the trips there and I don't want to be rushed with some of the combo packages being offered. Any help is appreciated.

Yikes, good to know. Our family is meeting this weekend to discuss excursion plans. I won't delay in booking once decisions are made.

Hi all. Also sailing to Alaska on Quantum (Aug 5 - Aug 12). First Alaska and first RC cruise. Doing lots of excursion research as some of them are already filling up.