The cruise was great and I would do it again. But be sure to spend some time in the interior of Alaska before or after, to really appreciate what it has to offer. We spent two days on our own before the cruise, and it was time well spent. We hiked a little, and saw a huge bull moose, a brown bear, and other wildlife, which we did not see on the cruise.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Quick and easy
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
The buffet was great (lots of variety, fresh, and delicious)! Though the set-up was awkward.
The main dining rooms were good, with one or two disappointments (e.g., overcooked fish, and surprising inability to make a decent martini). The specialty restaurant Harmony was awesome (best meal on the ship). The Crown was good, but not great.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
The fitness center met our needs, and was not too busy at the time of day I used it (early am). We didn't use the pool.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
The shows were okay, but the comedians were a little disappointing. However, the enrichment programs (i.e., Naturalist, Native Alaskan guest, Musher) were outstanding. I learned a lot about whales, glaciers, and Alaska natives.
Children's Programs
No children. Did not use.
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
Service was very good. The room steward was great, though he did not make the fun towel animals we've seen on other cruises. The Customer Service desk tried to be helpful, but were not always effective in resolving our issue.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
The design was good, but a little inconvenient. You had to hop up or down a floor sometimes to get to where you needed to go.
The buffet was poorly laid out, and you had to walk around the entire service area to see what was available. Usually, you would expect to find the same food on each side, so you didn't have to take laps. Not here.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
The stateroom, bathroom, and balcony were a little small. But we had everything we needed and the bed was comfortable.
We participated in the shore excursion to get up close to the glacier. I'm glad we did, because the weather was foggy, and the people on the ship could not even see the glacier from where they were. But we had a great time watching and listening to the glacier!
We did the whale watching trip, which was great (lots of whales). However, there is very little to do at the port. And we had a lot of extra time after our excursion, but didn't have a lot to do there.
We did another whale watching trip, and again saw lots of whales, and also a large group of Stellar Sea Lions. The excursion also included a 'hike' (i.e., walk) to Mendenhall Glacier. The walk was lovely and the glacier was nice, but not as awe inspiring as Hubbard or Glacier Bay. Unfortunately, the excursion took a while, and we didn't have time to walk around Juneau afterwards. I wish we had an extra hour or two in port, so we could have toured the town.
We skipped our shore excursion so we could walk around town (which we missed in Juneau). It is a fun little town and I'm glad we spent some time there. I wish we had more time in port so we could have done both the excursion and walk/shop in town.
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