JOURNEY WITH JACKIE:
Cruising Alaska with NCL from Vancouver to Seward: Norwegian Jewel. May 1-8, 2023.
My cruise left Vancouver on May 1 from the Canada Place Cruise Terminal in downtown Vancouver. If you can swing it, arrive a day or 2 early to see Vancouver - a world class city with fantastic natural beauty and a thriving food scene.
The Canada Place Cruise Terminal is easy to get to and easy to navigate once inside. I recommend getting the Sky Train from Vancouver International Airport. The train takes ~30 mins from airport to downtown and is both cheap and convenient.
I paid for NCL's priority boarding, which turned out wasn't recognized at the terminal and a waste of ~$250 for our cabin. It is, however recognized during debarkation, which if you have a tight flight connection, could be worth the money. Once on The Jewel, I headed to the Garden Cafe buffet for lunch and then on to explore the ship. The food on the buffet was very good and plentiful (as, um, you would expect at a buffet :-). The staff is both welcoming and knowledgeable and the ship itself is well appointed and easy to get around.
For those of you considering a drink package for yourself or your kids, unless you get it as part of the Norwegian Free at Sea program, you do need to consume a lot to make it worth your while; so give it some thought before you invest.
One of the advantages of travelling with NCL is their 'free style' dining program where you are not tied to any particular dining time or restaurant. This is a departure from most other cruise lines and I really enjoyed the flexibility of being able to eat (and dress) the way I wanted. Norwegian has specialty dining, but again, think about it before you invest the money. I found the food in all the complimentary restaurants to be excellent, with plenty of variety.
Our first port of call was Ketchikan - home of breathtaking scenery and the world famous lumberjack show. I took some time here to hike the famous Rain Bird Trail - the scenery in this deciduous rainforest is not something you find in many parts of the world and is well worth the effort. TIP: take a taxi from the port to the trail head as it is quite the walk to get there. The lumberjack show is fun for all ages and the kids in the audience really related to the antics of the lumberjacks on stage.
Juneau, our next port of call, is home to the Mendenhall glacier which is sadly melting at an alarming rate. One of the reasons people travel to Alaska is to see these natural wonders. Unfortunately, you'll need to travel sooner rather than later if you want to get a real sense of how big and beautiful the glaciers are, but it is so worth it. Bus trips and fly overs are plentiful and can be booked through the ship or through offsite companies (usually cheaper).
By far the highlight of the trip is Glacier Bay National Park. Park rangers board the ship and provide commentary on the glaciers themselves. The scenery is more than breathtaking and worth the price of admission :-). We spent the final 2 days of the trip cruising the waters around Glacier Bay and its natural wonders. We lucked out with the weather which no doubt contributed to the beauty of the scenery. But, don't let the weather deter you. Rain or shine, Alaska is not something to be missed.
NCL has the advantage of being one of the only companies that are contracted with the National Park Service to be able to sail to Glacier Bay. Access is extremely limited and you should consider this element when booking your trip. A lot of companies cruise Alaska, but not all go to Glacier Bay.
As a travel agent, I can help you both with the planning of your cruise and booking your trip and shore excursions. Many people don't know that booking through me doesn't cost you any extra (yay!) but does give you the advantage of my knowledge and experience (yay again!)
Happy Travels
Jackie@windwaveswands.com
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