brienc Posted June 23, 2023 Report Share Posted June 23, 2023 I've been on the fence as to whether or not I wanted to try to live blog my first cruise, but I figured I'd give it a shot. We booked this cruise through a TA we've worked with on land-based vacations over the past few years. We basically had no idea what to look for (cruise line or ship) other than the fact that we wanted to see Alaska. Thanks to the whole Royal Caribbean Blog community for helping me get at least a little bit knowledgeable on what to expect. I've devoured live blogs, forum questions, and blog posts to try to learn more, and I really appreciate everyone who shares their experiences! There will be 5 of us on the trip - my wife and our 3 kids (16, 13, 12) in connecting balcony cabins. I didn't try for RU, because we wanted to keep the cabins together. Hopefully the kids don't kill each other sharing a room. We fly out of Philadelphia at 9:30 tomorrow morning, which is going to require a 5:30am departure from home. That's actually better than it was when we booked the flights - originally it left at 6:30am! We have a night in Vancouver before the cruise, and then two nights after we debark. Hoping to get a chance to see some of the city! I didn't end up booking any excursions in the three port stops (Sitka, Juneau, and Ketchikan) - the ones we were interested in were crazy expensive for all 5 of us. We're planning to walk around the towns and maybe do some hiking. We have the 3-night specialty dining package, so we're looking forward to trying out Chops, Giovanni's table,and Izumi. We also booked the sushi-making class for the 16yo, my wife, and I (the other two don't eat sushi). I'll try to update this regularly during the cruise, but no promises! PPPJJ-GCVAB, Sweety, Neesa and 15 others 15 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asquared17 Posted June 23, 2023 Report Share Posted June 23, 2023 have a fantastic time! can't wait to hear about your trip Neesa and brienc 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brienc Posted June 25, 2023 Author Report Share Posted June 25, 2023 It’s always a good sign for a trip when I feel simultaneously like I’ve over-packed a crazy amount and also like I’m probably forgetting a bunch of important things. We woke up this morning to a text from Air Canada that our flight was delayed 40 min. That extra sleep would have been nice, but we still had plenty of time to make our connection. I did get a pretty cool picture of the F1 circuit as we landed in Montreal for our layover. Once we finally landed in Vancouver, the taxi queue was really long, and several of the minivan cab drivers said they couldn’t fit all 5 of us and our luggage. Finally one guy said he could do it, and we ended up having plenty of room. We haven’t seen too much of Vancouver, as we were completely beat and just wanted to get dinner and crash. From what we did see, it is truly beautiful, with mountains and water everywhere you look. The cruise terminal is right downtown, and it’s only a few blocks from our hotel. I think we’re going to try to walk our bags down there tomorrow morning for boarding, rather than messing with a cab again. I may just be tired from the long day of travel, but this cracked me up. MaryS, Robert M, PPPJJ-GCVAB and 7 others 9 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted June 25, 2023 Report Share Posted June 25, 2023 We almost booked Brilliance to Alaska for July 2023 but then decided to do a 9-night on Liberty instead. Following along on this one! brienc 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brienc Posted June 26, 2023 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2023 Day 1 - Embarkation Last night we stayed at the Le Soleil hotel. It wasn’t anything to write home about, but it was fine. Both rooms had a king bed and a pullout couch, so there was enough room for the kids. We started off the day at Tim Horton’s as it seemed like an appropriate thing to do our first morning in Canada. The walk to the cruise terminal wasn’t bad at all, but it was a little difficult to figure out where we were supposed to go at first (turned out it was one level below the main level). There were two other ships anchored with us - Holland America’s Noordam and Celebrity Eclipse. Despite some huge crowds, things moved impressively quickly. We were on the ship about an hour after arriving at the terminal. Lunch at Windjammer was pretty good - it surpassed my low expectations. We had some time to kill, so we played the general knowledge trivia game in the Schooner Bar, and we won! The prize was a fairly nice bracelet from one of the shops. After that, we went to the helipad to watch sailaway I got some pretty good photos of the other ships leaving Also got a pretty good family photo while sailing under the Lion’s Gate bridge. Dinner tonight was in the MDR. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, as I’m fairly particular (my wife would say snobby) about food. Being from Maryland, I had to try the crab cake. It wasn’t really a crab cake, but it was still pretty good. I really liked the Old Bay cream sauce too. I had the Chicken Saag for the main, because I love Indian food, but I rarely get a chance to eat it. The dish was very good - it had a spicy kick to it that wasn’t overpowering. After dinner we pressed our luck with another trivia game (in the Colony Club this time) on world landmarks. We got 19/20 correct (because I couldn’t remember what country Rapa Nui/Easter Island was part of). Another team got them all correct, so we finished in second place. Overall we had a great first day on the ship, and it was a fantastic way for my wife and I to celebrate our 18th wedding anniversary! wordell1, MaryS, Xaa and 12 others 15 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted June 26, 2023 Report Share Posted June 26, 2023 9 hours ago, brienc said: We started off the day at Tim Horton’s as it seemed like an appropriate thing to do our first morning in Canada. Definitely appropriate! PSA: Tim's in Canada is not the same as Tim's in the US. It is very, very different. I got Tim's once in the US, never again. I hope that you liked it! WAAAYTOOO and brienc 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brienc Posted June 26, 2023 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2023 22 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said: Definitely appropriate! PSA: Tim's in Canada is not the same as Tim's in the US. It is very, very different. I got Tim's once in the US, never again. I hope that you liked it! It was really good! We had described it to the kids as a Canadian Dunkin Donuts, and I’d say it was a little better than Dunkin. The hash browns were excellent! Lovetocruise2002 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnK6404 Posted June 26, 2023 Report Share Posted June 26, 2023 Have an amazing time in Alaska! brienc 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asquared17 Posted June 26, 2023 Report Share Posted June 26, 2023 happy anniversary!!!! loving the pics and trip so far and also i feel vindicated that we know someone who actually won at trivia!! PPPJJ-GCVAB and brienc 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brienc Posted June 27, 2023 Author Report Share Posted June 27, 2023 Day 2 - Sea Day Today was fun - didn’t take a ton of pictures though. Started the day with breakfast in the MDR, which was very good. Need to remember to ask for the pastry basket next time. We tried our luck at another general knowledge trivia game and came in third this time. Got some coffee from cafe latitude. I bought the coffee card prior to sailing, and I just assumed it would be added to my sea pass card like the kids’ soda package. Nope, there was a physical card in our cabin that we had totally ignored. The guy at the cafe was super nice and gave us a new card after looking us up on the list. Had a nice relaxing time reading in vintages and watching out the window. The younger kids have had a blast in the Optix teen club. They’ve mostly been playing video games with other teens. There was a slot pull event for the Facebook group, which was a lot of fun, even though we picked the coldest machine in history. $420 in a wheel of fortune game and no one got to spin the wheel! Everyone walked away empty handed, but it was a great time. We played bingo in the Colony Club - three rounds without sniffing a Bingo! I sat in the Centrum and watched the classical guitar player for a bit while the rest of the family did their own thing. Towel animals in the cabins were awesome. The plushie behind the towel animal is named Catthew (get it,? if Matt is short for Matthew than Cat must be short for Catthew). Got dressed up for dinner and went back to the Colony Club for flag trivia - we got 18/20 and finished around fourth. On the way to dinner, we got some professional photos taken. Then we saw a family taking mirror selfies, which looked like a good idea. It didn’t work so well, though.Someone from the crew saw us attempting this and offered to take our picture the old fashioned way. As he took a bunch of family photos for us, I noticed he had a bunch of stripes on his sleeve. He was probably much too important and busy for that, but I really appreciated him offering to help us out. He wasn’t a great photographer, but the picture did turn out substantially better! Dinner was at Chops, which was very good. The lack of vegetarian options was disappointing though. It would be nice if there was one main without meat. The onboard show, Now and Forever, is kind of weird. It’s a jukebox musical, but without any plot and with some very strange song choices. The ending medley from Mama Mia was entertaining though. It left me wishing they’d just put on that show. Another weird thing that surfaced yesterday - there was only body wash in our shower. No shampoo or conditioner. Is that normal? We ended up buying some from the hair salon, but I was shocked not to have it in our cabin. Tomorrow is our first port stop in Sitka! Jax, MaryS, Skigoofy and 8 others 11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asquared17 Posted June 27, 2023 Report Share Posted June 27, 2023 10 hours ago, brienc said: Another weird thing that surfaced yesterday - there was only body wash in our shower. No shampoo or conditioner. i am not sure if this what was in your cabin, but typically there is some kind of three in one — body wash/shampoo and conditioner — in the “space tube” showers we usually bring our own preferred hair products and various other toiletries for this reason but it really just depends on what you prefer to use love the family photos!! brienc 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PPPJJ-GCVAB Posted June 27, 2023 Report Share Posted June 27, 2023 Actually I do believe the body wash can also be used as shampoo…I’ve seen this in some hotels. It usually says it on the bottle. Not that I would use body wash as shampoo (or conditioner!) but I do think it’s meant to be multifunctional! Since I use special products for my white hair, I typically bring small travel sized bottles with me…. I know you purchased some from the salon but you should ask your room steward if there is any single shampoo and conditioner bottles available. Im enjoying your blog so far…thanks for taking the time for this! I’d love to see pictures of the cruise ship…Brilliance was the first ship my husband and I sailed on together! brienc 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted June 27, 2023 Report Share Posted June 27, 2023 Yep, you can use the body wash as shampoo. I have no-fuss hair. I use it all the time. PPPJJ-GCVAB, brienc and Ampurp85 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJsMrs Posted June 27, 2023 Report Share Posted June 27, 2023 On 6/24/2023 at 8:31 PM, brienc said: I may just be tired from the long day of travel, but this cracked me up. Pro Tip - heed this warning... it's dive-bombing season for crows (they're guarding their babies)- so if you see these signs when you're back in VanCity. It's a news story every spring and people are often walking around with umbrellas on bright sunny days to keep their head safe - they are serious about guarding their littles! Have a GREAT cruise! WAAAYTOOO and brienc 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brienc Posted June 27, 2023 Author Report Share Posted June 27, 2023 As you can tell from the family photos, I’d be fine using the combo body wash/shampoo/conditioner/dishwasher fluid/engine degreaser, but the rest of the family has hair that requires a bit more care! The seas were a bit rough last night and early this morning as we are exposed to the open Pacific en route to Sitka. I have the sea sickness patch, and that really seems to work well. The biggest worry I had coming into the cruise was sea sickness, but we’ve all done ok so far! Currently hanging out in Vintages before we get into port. @PPPJJ-GCVAB I’ll try to take a few more pictures of the ship! PPPJJ-GCVAB, She Sails Away, FloatyBoaty and 8 others 9 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brienc Posted June 28, 2023 Author Report Share Posted June 28, 2023 Day 3 - Sitka We got off the boat right at 12, and then took the shuttle buses downtown. It’s about 6 miles from the cruise terminal to the main town area. The buses were quick, convenient, and efficient. After getting dropped off, we walked to Harbor Mountain Brewery, which is about a 25 min walk from the drop off point. They have a pizza place (campfire pizza) in the same location. It was such a cool place, and both the pizza and beer were excellent. That’s corn, goat cheese, and pea shoots on the pizza. Not a combination I ever would have thought of, but we loved it! After lunch, we walked over to the Raptor Center, which was really cool. I’ve never been that up close to a bald eagle. From the Raptor Center, we hiked the Totem Trail at the Sitka National Historical Park. It was very pretty, especially out on the beach looking at the snow capped mountains. We walked back to town and stopped in a few shops along the Main Street before heading back to the ship. Pub Trivia was about to start, so we grabbed a roast beef sandwich from Park Cafe and went to the pub. We won our second round of trivia, but there were only two other teams playing. Dinner tonight is back in the MDR at 8:45, which is really tough for us, because we normally keep a senior citizen (or as I learned from @Ampurp85 live blog, the correct term is “vintage”) schedule for dinner. I wasn’t sure what to expect from Sitka, but I was blown away by the natural beauty of Alaska. We had an awesome day, and tomorrow is another busy one. We sail up Tracy Arm Fjord in the morning and stop in Juneau in the afternoon. DDaley, Ampurp85, DJsMrs and 8 others 11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs. Regular Posted June 28, 2023 Report Share Posted June 28, 2023 Popping in now so I can catch up later. I'll be sailing this itinerary next May so I really appreciate your time sharing about your trip! brienc 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brienc Posted June 29, 2023 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2023 Day 4 - Tracy Arm Fjord and Juneau Woke up at 6:30 this morning to the most amazing views I’ve ever seen. Tracy Arm Fjord is just incredible. My words and pictures won’t do it justice. When we arrived at the glacier face, there were seals everywhere! On the way out of the fjord we grabbed breakfast at Windjammer (and braved a crazy line). We lucked out with an outdoor seat where we could watch more of the scenery. This was absolutely the highlight of the trip so far. We’ve seen some beautiful scenery, but nothing even close to the snowmelt waterfalls and blue ice in the water. We really lucked out with the sunshine in the fjord, but as we got closer to Juneau the clouds and rain came in. We had great plans of hiking in Juneau, but the hike up Mt. Roberts didn’t seem like a good idea in the rain. We also didn’t want to pay $45 a head for the bus to Mendenhall glacier, especially with poor visibility. So we ended up just walking around Juneau. We did some shopping and climbed the hill to the Wickersham House where a very sweet lady told us all about its history with the gold rush. We also did a self tour of the Alaska State House (pictured is the house chambers). Dinner tonight was later in the MDR again (taste of Asia). I’m horrible at taking pictures of the food, but both the spring roll and dumpling appetizers were excellent. We’re all pretty worn out from all the walking in the last two days, so a sea day tomorrow is just what we need. Sweety, MaryS, KristiZ and 2 others 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brienc Posted June 29, 2023 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2023 Also, this cracked us up. We assumed that Maryland had a monopoly on state flag + crab shirt designs, but apparently not! Sweety, WAAAYTOOO, Mrs. Regular and 4 others 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brienc Posted June 30, 2023 Author Report Share Posted June 30, 2023 Day 5 - Sea Day I forgot yesterday to include pictures of our latest towel animals. Today was a sea day, but we sailed up to the face of Hubbard Glacier around lunchtime. Unfortunately it was rainy, foggy, and cold, so we couldn’t see much. The ship also had to stop fairly far away from the glacier itself. We passed by Celebrity Eclipse on the way into the glacier. The kids had been looking forward to Simpsons Trivia since the schedule was published, so we had to do that today. We ended up tying with two other teams for first. The lady playing on the team next to us kept loudly saying she had never watched the show. Participating in trivia for a show you’ve never seen is certainly A Choice. Dinner tonight was Izumi, and they did a fantastic job taking care of the vegetarian 12yo. The rest of the restaurants so far have been only so-so on vegetarian options or accommodations. All the food was great. I started with the gyoza, and then all of us who eat sushi split a bunch of rolls. Dessert was mochi ice cream. After dinner we watched a game show in the centrum where you had to finish the lyric. Then we ended the night with the headliner show, the Las Vegas Tenors. The singing was great, but all of the banter and crowd conversation stuff fell flat for me. I wouldn’t go see them again. Tomorrow is our final port stop in Ketchikan. KristiZ, MaryS, WAAAYTOOO and 7 others 9 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MLH Posted June 30, 2023 Report Share Posted June 30, 2023 Thank you! We head out August 13th on Brilliance and this is so great to follow along. Have you seen any whales from the ship? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brienc Posted June 30, 2023 Author Report Share Posted June 30, 2023 2 hours ago, MLH said: Thank you! We head out August 13th on Brilliance and this is so great to follow along. Have you seen any whales from the ship? We’ve seen a few whales spouting, but I’ve never been quick enough to grab the binoculars. You’ll have a great time, let me know if you have any other questions!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DDaley Posted June 30, 2023 Report Share Posted June 30, 2023 On 6/28/2023 at 11:04 PM, brienc said: Wow! How close was the ship to get this picture and what type of camera are you using? I hope we get lucky with pretty skies like this in September! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brienc Posted June 30, 2023 Author Report Share Posted June 30, 2023 17 minutes ago, DDaley said: Wow! How close was the ship to get this picture and what type of camera are you using? I hope we get lucky with pretty skies like this in September! I think the captain said we were about a mile away, and that was the closest they’ve ever been able to get. I took the pictures with an iPhone 13 Pro. That shot used the 3x optical zoom. We really lucked out by having our best weather for Tracy Arm! Sweety and WAAAYTOOO 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DDaley Posted June 30, 2023 Report Share Posted June 30, 2023 15 minutes ago, brienc said: I took the pictures with an iPhone 13 Pro. That shot used the 3x optical zoom. Awesome news! I have an old gal iPhone 11 Pro that is (expectedly) showing some signs of aging and am now thinking replacement will need to be in the works before we go. It only has 2x zoom and OBBBVVIOUSLY I need that 3x! Gorgeous photos! brienc 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brienc Posted July 1, 2023 Author Report Share Posted July 1, 2023 Day 6 - Ketchikan We woke up today to beautiful views from the balcony of the approach into Ketchikan. Where we had some rough seas last night, being back in the Inside Passage calmed things down wonderfully. On the way into port, we passed by a cruise ship that wasn’t at the dock. I’m not sure what this is. Anyone know? My wife and the 13yo were pretty tiered and didn’t feel up to exploring Ketchikan, so it was just me and the other two kids. Ketchikan is pretty, but there’s a lot of the standard tourist shops. We checked out the Southeast Alaska Discovery Center (run by the US Forest Service). It was $5 to enter for anyone over 16, and free for kids. There were a few really interesting exhibits on the forest lifecycle, indigenous people, the Alaska ecosystem, and the ways people interact with it. It was centered on the Tongass National Forest, which is the largest national forest in the US. It’s nearly the size of Ireland! After the museum, we walked over to Creek Street, which was actually really pretty. The shops were touristy but more interesting than the standard t-shirt fare. We were ready to walk back to the ship at that point. We stopped by Jellyfish Donuts right across from our berth, because I had to try a salmon donut. I’m happy to report that it was excellent. I’d definitely eat one again. It wasn’t too sweet - think salmon spread on a Hawaiian roll. After dinner in the MDR (Italian night, nothing to write home about), I’m hanging out in the Schooner bar. I’m listening to Jayne on the piano, who has an incredible voice. I don’t know if she’s on this ship often, but she’s really great! One more sea day tomorrow and then it’s over. There’s apparently a longshoreman strike in Vancouver scheduled to start tomorrow. Hopefully we can still disembark ok since we’re doing self assist. Lovetocruise2002, Sweety, MaryS and 4 others 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MLH Posted July 1, 2023 Report Share Posted July 1, 2023 I think the longshoreman strike has been averted for cruise ships. brienc 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted July 1, 2023 Report Share Posted July 1, 2023 9 hours ago, brienc said: We stopped by Jellyfish Donuts right across from our berth, because I had to try a salmon donut. I’m happy to report that it was excellent. I’d definitely eat one again. It wasn’t too sweet - think salmon spread on a Hawaiian roll. I love specialty doughnuts, but oh my, I don't think I could stomach that one lol WAAAYTOOO and brienc 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brienc Posted July 1, 2023 Author Report Share Posted July 1, 2023 18 hours ago, brienc said: On the way into port, we passed by a cruise ship that wasn’t at the dock. I’m not sure what this is. Anyone know? I found the answer. Apparently NCL has a separate cruise pier called Ward Cove that is 7 miles from Ketchikan proper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brienc Posted July 3, 2023 Author Report Share Posted July 3, 2023 Day 7 - Sea Day Day 8 - Disembark day We kept things pretty chill for our last sea day. Everyone was exhausted. 16yo and I did the sushi making class which was a ton of fun. I made the mistake of eating breakfast right before. You end up with a good amount of sushi to eat. The raw materials: The finished product: The kids thought they had done pretty well with the scavenger hunt to get crew signatures from every country. They ended up with 23 but the winning team has 43! Our final dinner was at Giovanni’s Table. I forgot to take pictures (again) but my arugula salad and carbonara were very good. Overall I’ve been a little disappointed in the vegetarian options for 12yo. Izumi was fantastic with a vegetarian, and Windjammer of course has tons of veg options. Main dining room, Giovanni’s, and especially Chops though are really tough for a vegetarian. It would be nice to see every menu have at least one or two vegetarian mains. This morning we woke up, finished packing, and walked off the boat without much trouble. We’re in Vancouver for another 2 nights, and of course our hotel room wasn’t ready at 9:30am. We got some breakfast and then checked out the Vancouver Art Museum, which was pretty cool. After getting into the hotel and crashing for a few hours, we got dinner at Little Bird Dim Sum, which was fantastic. Definitely recommended if you like Chinese food and find yourself in Vancouver. One more day in Vancouver and then we fly out first thing on Tuesday. It’s been a great trip, but I think we’re all ready to get back home and sleep in our own beds. FloatyBoaty, DDaley, Ampurp85 and 6 others 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted July 3, 2023 Report Share Posted July 3, 2023 I enjoyed this blog! I would love to sail this ship again. The last time we were on her was in 2005. Thanks for blogging and have a safe trip home. Making note of the dim sum place for the next time I end up in Vancouver..... brienc 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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