We spent 10 days away, first on a 7-day Alaskan cruise with Royal Caribbean to Juneau, Skagway, and Victoria, B.C., and then three days in Seattle. It was a combination of celebrating our third anniversary and celebrating law school graduation + the Bar exam being over + Jeff's Masters degree being done. LOTS to celebrate around here!
Jeff had never been on a cruise before, so he wanted to do that for our big trip. We picked Royal Caribbean because I've been on cruises with them before that I loved (and I get special perks as a repeat cruiser), and we picked Alaska because I've already done Caribbean cruises and we wanted something different. We heard Alaska is beautiful in August (so true!), so that's what we picked.
The cruise left out of Seattle, so we flew in the night before, spent the night at a hotel with shuttles to/from the airport and the cruise ship terminal, and then boarded the ship around 11:00am on embarkation day.
Thanks to a cruise ship terminal in Seattle that is MUCH more organized than the one in Galveston, as well as my repeat cruiser privileges, boarding the ship was really quick and simple. We were on the ship and eating lunch by noon!
After lunch we explored the ship a bit. I've actually been on this exact ship before on a Caribbean cruise, but it's been renovated since then so it was a bit different.
Here's our stateroom, which had a big window over the bed. Every morning, we could wake up and pull back the curtains to see the ocean, all without getting out of bed!
We had dinner in the formal dining room every night. We were assigned to an 8-person table, but the other 6 people never showed up (I guess they were casual buffet people?), so it was just us and our two waiters and a big table all week! Three course meals and excellent service!
In the afternoon, the ship pulled away from the pier and we watched as Seattle faded away in the distance. We walked around the top deck of the ship and enjoyed the beautiful views (the first of MANY we'd see that week!).
On Day 2 we were at sea all day, so we slept in then grabbed a couple of lounge chairs by some big windows and spent the day watching the scenery go by and reading books. So relaxing. It was a perfect day, complete with a sunset out our stateroom window and a towel elephant courtesy of our stateroom attendant.
Day 2 was the first "formal night" on the ship, so we got all dressed up and went to the Captain's Welcome Party, where we sipped champagne and listened to the Captain talk about the ship and introduce his staff.
On Day 3, we woke up to find the ship pulling closer and closer to Juneau, Alaska!
Thanks to a cruise ship terminal in Seattle that is MUCH more organized than the one in Galveston, as well as my repeat cruiser privileges, boarding the ship was really quick and simple. We were on the ship and eating lunch by noon!
After lunch we explored the ship a bit. I've actually been on this exact ship before on a Caribbean cruise, but it's been renovated since then so it was a bit different.
Here's our stateroom, which had a big window over the bed. Every morning, we could wake up and pull back the curtains to see the ocean, all without getting out of bed!
We had dinner in the formal dining room every night. We were assigned to an 8-person table, but the other 6 people never showed up (I guess they were casual buffet people?), so it was just us and our two waiters and a big table all week! Three course meals and excellent service!
In the afternoon, the ship pulled away from the pier and we watched as Seattle faded away in the distance. We walked around the top deck of the ship and enjoyed the beautiful views (the first of MANY we'd see that week!).
Day 2 was the first "formal night" on the ship, so we got all dressed up and went to the Captain's Welcome Party, where we sipped champagne and listened to the Captain talk about the ship and introduce his staff.
On Day 3, we woke up to find the ship pulling closer and closer to Juneau, Alaska!
At Port in Juneau!
We arrived in Juneau around lunch time. We scheduled a "Photo Safari by Land and Sea" (the only shore excursion we did through Royal Caribbean) for Juneau, and it started with whale watching in a boat with big open windows.
It was windy. Haha!
Bald Eagle!
Sea Lions!
The tour continued with a hike past salmon streams, waterfalls, bear tracks, and wildlife.
Salmon!
Bear trail on the right!
The hike ended at an overlook with a beautiful view of Mendenhall Glacier.
After the tour, we asked the bus driver to drop us off downtown rather than back at the ship because it was Sunday and we wanted to go to Mass at the cathedral in Juneau. We walked the rest of the way to the church, which was the teeniest, most unassuming cathedral ever!
The church was so small that the priest walked around and introduced himself to each person in the pews before Mass. There were about 30 people there. I love visiting different churches when we travel, and this one was totally unique!
After Mass we rushed back to the cruise ship terminal so the ship wouldn't leave without us, and we set off for Skagway!
I've always wanted to visit Alaska. This cruise looks great. And I also really enjoy attending other church services on vacation.
ReplyDeleteWow! Beautiful photos! My husband and I have talked about taking a cruise to Alaska...and these pictures are definitely convincing me!
ReplyDeleteAmazing photos.
ReplyDelete