Wonderful experience for the most part. The staff were great, the sights were awe inspiring, and the excursion were great for us.
The only downsides were the ramps to the ports, the size of the ship with respect to elevators, and the room service.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
It was very busy but my mom is handicapped, so she made sure they knew before hand. Very smooth other than the people moving around us.
My brother has a bad back and has special boots we got at the local Renaissance festival that are molded to him so his back gets better support from his legs. They made him remove because of the buckles. The person from the port helping us said if she had known, she would have made sure he went same way as my mom through the pat down. His boots take about 15 minutes to put on properly.
The ship chair people dropped us at bionic and the people there let us complete safety there.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
The restaurants were great, the buffet was ok, but room service was a NIGHTMARE. It took 2 hours for us to get lunch and it wasn't piping hot which we expected because we had called 10 minutes before and they said it was just being made.
Also, if you have the glacier excursion, do not expect to get your food beforehand from room service. My brother and mother had it and breakfast was finally about to be delivered after they had left the boat. We told them to remove charge and keep the food. I suggest you get some snacks for that day if you have the excursion.
Windjammer Marketplace
3 out of 5
Lots of different options depending on the day. Breakfast is EGG HEAVY. The omelet stations are decent and they give you a number and it is delivered to you. That part can take awhile as there are a lot of tables. Go after you have found your table. They have 3 woks they use at lunch for the station of the day. Expect long lines at that. Never went for dinner, only lunch and breakfast.
Concierge Club
5 out of 5
We had wonderful service from Bani and Rosario! They remembered what we liked to drink and were great at making sure we liked our food. The one time I had a problem with the food, Bani made sure I got a new dish fast. The food was great. You can order as much as you want. The portions can be small to some, but just order more! I had a problem with the taste of the spaghetti bolanaise. It was my backup choice too as I love pasta. It was not something I liked though. On the nights with rough seas, I did get some motion sickness and he was great at making sure I was ok. He also did quite well on the night I ordered all appetizers for my meal (all soups because of the motion sickness) and kept them with each course. The French Onion Soup is also one of the biggest appetizers and is DELICIOUS!
The Cafe @ Two70
5 out of 5
Good food, small portions, easy to get more at non peak times.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
Solarium
4 out of 5
So the whirl pools are not ADA friendly and the bubbles run constantly, but are very nice. The views are beautiful too. On glacier day the place can be packed. The side balconies are great for the view, but remember there will be lots of people trying to get selfies there. The right balcony is less crowded though.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
Most of the stuff I went to was great. The only exception was Starwater. It was in two70 and really did not live up to hype of the cruise director. The singing and dancing were wonderful, what I could see of it that is. This show is not good for the main viewing area. The theme is confusing, the individual parts too long, and the lighting was painful. The lights kept hitting my eyes! I had a better spot than the rest of my family and they didn't like it at all. I also knew the dance styles, which helped me appreciate it more.
The showgirls show was much better, although I did notice kids in the theatre. This show was noted to be for older audiences, but I guess people didn't read far enough. Several families walked out. READ THE NOTES AT BOTTOM OF THE APP! It is extremely helpful so that you don't traumatize your kids or yourself.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Staff was wonderful! Definitely a plus to the ship. Joan, our room steward, was one of the nicest people I have met. She remembered things about everyone! She always made sure she could clean if we saw her in the hall, which was great because my brother spent a lot of time in either our room or our parents room, which had the balcony, because of his back.
Bella from China who ran the trivia the last couple days at schooner bar was HILARIOUS! Make sure you return her pencils!
The wait staff in main dining was great. The bars were not as great, but they were busy a lot. If you order a drink from the non-alcoholic section of the menu, expect to explain or shoe them the drink. They don't make them a lot.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
Layout was nice, but too big of a ship for me and my mom. Lots of walking and she has bad knees. Get a walker/rollator if you have walking issues. Or better yet, a scooter, if this is your ship. I recommend a smaller ship otherwise.
Common areas were well maintained for the most part. There are definitely some things that can be done better, but overall good.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Cabin was an interior with virtual balcony. The beds could have been softer, but pillows were amazing.
They did mess up on bed type when we got there, but easily fixed. They just separated the 2 mattresses. My only problem was the power outlet situation around the beds. There are 3 plugs in the whole room, including bathroom. 2 on the vanity in main room and 1 by the bed. So my brother had the plug. This caused issues with my phone charging because his head was right next to it. His pillow would knock it, his head, etc. Also in the twin bed configuration you're right up against your closet. If you roll around a lot, you will hit it. Thankfully I am not a big mover in my sleep and only hit it once while awake because I rolled into it.
The virtual balcony was cool. It definitely helped make the room feel bigger. But our remote didn't work. They do have curtains there, so it isn't a problem, but I would have liked to see if I could have changed the view to other side of ship, etc.
Ship tip
Don't use this ship if you have a hard time walking unless you get a mobility assistance device that isn't a cane. There are few places to sit in certain areas and it can be painful.
We had the best excursion here! We did a sea otter and wildlife search here through Allan Marine. They did an AMAZING job! We saw several rare sights on this trip. 2 male orcas together, a minke whale, harbor porpoises, Grey whale, sea lions, bald eagles, sea otters, and the best to my mom, 2 Humpback whales. We found the Humpbacks near the end of our time frame so the captain of our boat called the captain of the cruise ship to tell him what we had found and to get permission to stay out a bit longer. We were already cutting it close to gangway up. Cruise captain said yes and we spent some extra time with the Humpbacks. It was the best!
We did a non-royal excursion here. The ship had issues with its engines the night before, so we were 3 hours late. Many of the royal excursions were canceled.
We managed to get ahold of the company we had booked for a carriage ride tour and they were very nice and let us push the reservation back to 8pm before we got there.
Zeke(percheron horse) and Lydia did a wonderful job. Zeke was very nice when I pet him and gave him a carrot.
I highly recommend Victoria carriage Company for your tour!
We did the Totem pole excursion. Beautiful sights! The port had very few issues for us other than the ramps to and from the ship having to change height. Some of the time the ramp was really steep and we had to leave my mom in the port because it was too much. It almost felt like I was going up a roller coaster hill, without the steps, chain, or train. This was due to the tides.
The shopping was good here, although the jewelry shops extremely pushy.
The permanent concrete ramp to the ships was extremely steep. But the port authorities were quite helpful and got ahold of our ship so they could bring us a wheelchair to get my mom back on the boat.
The best sightseeing part of the trip. It was amazing to see these icebergs floating past us. We couldn't get as close as they have in the past, but it was still awe inspiring.
Not as good as embarking. The ship was good. The port, not so much. It was hard to get my mom a chair after the ship dropped her.
The bags are all lined up by the number you are given. My parents had a different number than my brother and I, so we had to search several rows for all the bags.
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