So you’re thinking about Hawaii…

By Carol Watts, Co-Owner/Travel Planner
The Aloha Tower greets cruise passengers in Honolulu Harbor


We often have people ask us about Hawaii. Since it’s one of our favorite destinations, we are always happy to talk about what to see and do in Hawaii. As with many destinations, it helps to do a little research to determine what you want to do. There are so many different experiences and excursions in Hawaii, that it helps to decide if you want to see the cultural and historical Hawaii, the adventure side, like snorkeling with manta rays, the scenic side, like a helicopter or zodiak tour of the Na Pali coast on Kauai, the shopping side of Honolulu, or just want to get into the back country to see how “real Hawaiians” live.

Likewise there are several ways to travel and see Hawaii, and this choice might well depend on what you want to see and do once you get there. Let’s examine the different travel options and a cost comparison of them.

By far our favorite way to see the islands is to cruise both ways round trip from Los Angeles. We have done this trip 4 times, most recently last month on the Golden Princess. More about that trip next month. If you have the time, 2 weeks, this is the least expensive and most relaxing way to travel to Hawaii. (Some cruise lines offer a 10 day trip which involves one way air fare to or from the islands. ) On this 14 day cruise you have 4 sea days crossing the Pacific before landing in Hilo on the Big Island in the morning of the 5th day. This is the island with the active volcano, Volcano’s National Park, orchid farms, and Macadamia nuts. After a full day in Hawaii, you sail over night and arrive in Honolulu the next morning. The ship stays Hawaii’s capital city until late in the evening, allowing you plenty of time to go to an evening show or luau. The next stop if Kauai, the Garden Island, then finally Lahaina on Maui. Then it’s four more days back across the Pacific to the fifth and final port of call in Ensenada. Non-US registered ships sailing between US cities must make a call in a foreign country; this is because of the Jones Act, and you might recall that this same act prohibited foreign ships from assisting in the gulf oil spill clean up efforts.

The biggest objection to this cruise is the 8 sea days. But to us, that is part of the attraction. You have 4 days to relax and unwind before you hit the islands, touring every day, then 4 more days to relax and recuperate on the way home. And there is plenty to do on the ship to keep you occupied. More on that in my next article.

Price for an ocean view cabin for end of April beginning of May is $3783 for 2 people. This includes all your food and drinks, other than alcohol and carbonated beverages, and entertainment throughout the day and evenings.
Two people couldn’t stay in a hotel and eat out daily in Phoenix or San Diego for that amount!

The other cruise option is NCL’s 7 day cruise that just circles the islands. The cruise begins and ends in Honolulu, so if you want to see this city, you really need to go a few days before or after the cruise. This 7 day cruise prices out at approximately $2930 for 2 people in an ocean view cabin for the same time period as above. Additionally there is the cost of air fare, about $1369 for 2, plus additional hotel and meal costs if you want to spend any time in Honolulu. It’s worth mentioning that the 5 hour return flight from Honolulu is either an overnight flight arriving early a.m. after a change in a California airport, or if on Hawaiian airlines direct, it lands in Phoenix at 11:59 p.m. So why pay approximately $500 more for 7 fewer days and 2 long airplane flights?

The third option is to fly to Hawaii and spend a few days in a hotel. Unless you spend all your time on one island, flights to the other islands are an additional cost. Since the 14 day cruise that we are using as a base comparison spends only 4 days actually in Hawaii, one day in four different islands, lets compare a 4 night stay with airfare at a hotel on Maui. We usually book these type of vacations through Apple Vacations, since they have the best air and hotel combined discounts. So for 4 nights in a 3 star hotel and air the cost is approximately $2044 for 2 people. This does not include the cost of eating out, figure $150 per day for 2, and limits you to one island. And again you have the joy of a long flight. But if your time and budget are limited, this is the way to see Hawaii, or at least one island. But for the inconvenience of the air travel and the limitation of one location, I would take the cruise any day.

Think of a cruise to Hawaii as a sampler box of chocolates. You get to try different cities or islands, then decide which one you want to return to and spend more time exploring. Whatever your destination or type of travel, Cruise Port Travel can assist you to make the best choice for your desires and budget. Our first hand cruise ship and sightseeing excursion experience costs you no more than booking on the web.

Going for the Gold (Golden Princess) The second time.

If you go hungry, it's your own fault!

By Kelly Watts A.C.C.
We last sailed the Golden Princess in December of 2007, before dry dock and was less than happy, BUT in fairness when we had the chance to take the 14 night round trip Hawaii again we jumped at it. This was our fourth cruise round trip to Hawaii with the first two on Celebrity Summit and the last two on The Golden Princess. While this trip was better than the first their were still some “bumps” along the way, so I'll share both the good and not so good with you.

We arrived at LAX, (via Southwest Airlines, on time and nice people as usual) we had moved our flight up after all the press coverage of the new T.S.A. Security procedures in case of a delay. We arrived at Phoenix Sky Harbor, our departure airport, almost 3 hours ahead of flight time, however we were through check-in and security and at our gate in UNDER a ½ hour. No body scan, no pat downs, and actually some quite friendly T.S.A. Staff. OK, now on to the Princess portion of my review!

The Good:

Dining: You really get a feel for a ship and how it is run on a 14 night cruise, and the outstanding things in my mind about “The Golden” includes our Waiter Rico and Jr Waiter Adam. Without a doubt this one one of the best combinations I have ever seen on a ship. Even though we had Anytime Dining, we sat 13 of the 14 nights at their table with basically the same table mates. Both Rico and Adam went out of their way to make our dining experience enjoyable. Little things like giving me a chair with no arms, without asking for it after the first night, making sure out water glasses never went dry, answering questions about the menu items, and their interaction really set them apart. I might also point out that we were served lunch by a waiter named John in the dining room, was was also very good. I felt on this cruise that Princess has really gotten it right with food. The menu had a good variety, with alternate choices to the main menu. This is great for me as I do not care for fish (except seafood) or fowl. The prime rib and Fettuccine Alfredo were outstanding and even mashed potatoes were good. Breakfast and lunch were split between the Donatello Dining Room and the Horizon Court Buffet. In most cases the offerings were very good there as well with a good selection. I did also get a hamburger twice and pizza once from the Trident Grill and Prego (strange name) Pizzeria, both offerings were served quickly and were good.

Stateroom: We opted for a “partially obstructed” Ocean view state room and were pleasantly surprised to find the the obstruction was less than 25%. The beds were comfortable, the room clean with everything in good condition. The bathroom was as usual SMALL, I wish Princess would change to hand showers with the size of the shower stall it would make rinsing much easier! As a side note, I noticed mattresses being offloaded at Los Angeles both coming and going which leads me to believe that Princess runs an ongoing replacement of them. Our state room attendant Jun did a fine job, although we never saw much of him, but towels were replaced, trash emptied, beds made and turned down and ice bucket filled in a timely manner. Princess is one of the many cruise lines who have started using a Duvet instead of more traditional bedding. After the first night I asked our stateroom attendant to change my bedding to a sheet and blanket, which he did.

Enrichment series: The Scholarship@Sea series with Rachel Dunham was excellent. Rachel is a 23 year old lady who does a great presentation on a variety of topics. Also on board was Historian Gary Shahan, a retired history teacher, with a series of talks about battles of the Pacific and of early settlers heading West. One exceptional program was his Route 66 talk, lots of great memories. I had a chance to talk with both and found them to be very nice persons very interested in my opinion of their presentations. (BTW I was on stage once during one of Rachel's talks and played a Barnacle, I think it matches my personality well)

Entertainment: the Princess Production shows for the most part were good with extremely talented singers and dancers and orchestra. I did not see the British Invasion show on the ship as I had seen it before and felt it was a bit weak, an opinion that several people I talked with shared. The guest artists were generally good with Comedian Dan Bennett and Singer Tony Pace being the best of the single acts. The Halau Hula Olana Show features local dancers (age 5 to 16) from Honolulu, this is the third time I have seen this show and the kids really work hard and are a delight!

The “Not So Good”:

Embarkation: Being Elite status we took advantage of the special Elite Class line at check in and were through that very quickly, however the line to board was LONG as there was only one gangway being used. I am guessing boarding meant probably 30 minutes in line. Dis-embarkation was not extremely well organized, we could have waited in the Bernini dining Room, but that would have meant fighting for an elevator as I don't do stairs well, especially with luggage, but instead chose the Explorers Lounge. When the time to dis-embark came, we were lead to the forward gangway. That meant that we had to walk nearly the full length of the ship to Customs. Again the lines were long and that probably took over 30 minutes till we were at the luggage area.

The Ship: The Golden was in dry dock in 2009, and several major changes were made one of which was the addition of the Piazza. This area was nice, but seating was limited for the events they had there. I'll have more to say about the ship later.

Princess C.R.U.I.S.E. Policy: This is a standard set for staff and training by Princess but to me it is not being enforced. One policy is that English ONLY is to be spoken in public area's by crew, as usual I heard HUNDREDS of violations of this policy. Another factor of the training is “never say no, find a way. One asst head waiter and I about came to terms as he told me “I am too busy to help you.” when I requested to make reservations for the following night. Another incident occurred when I complained about the temperature of the water in the Calypso Pool to a group of Deck Attendants who brushed off my comments and made me feel that they felt I was an IDIOT. On this one I filed a complaint! They tried to tell me that that pool was 80 degrees, if I had to guess it was more like 60.

Entertainment: I felt I had to also make some comments here as well, I do not care for most of the comedians today as they tend to be R rated and even the “PG” rated comedians do some in-appropriate humor. I heard several passengers comment that they were surprised at the language used. The ventriloquist Dan Horn was fair, but had a very annoying laugh, and the audio in the Vista lounge was way too loud that accentuated his laugh. As I have said in other postings, there are a LOT of good entertainers from the 50's and 60's who have large followings that are looking for “gigs” and would be more in line with the age of the guests on many cruises. Princess and the other lines need to examine their pool of entertainers and weed out the bad ones. My opinion of the Princess “Movies Under The Stars” is still not completely formed as I only saw a couple of things on the screen. The quality of the picture is good, but the audio for a large part of the cruise had a very loud hum. Being an old audio guy I am pretty sure they had a bad ground. Most days it was too hot and evenings too rough to watch movies, so I'll reserve any further opinion till I see another one.

The BAD:
The ship: With all the money that Princess spent on the Golden during dry dock I was surprised of the things that did not work properly the most prevalent being the elevators. They were extremely slow, doors slow in opening and closing and they seemed to bypass floors on a regular basis as if they were possessed. In addition the elevators were always uncomfortably warm and several smelled of lube. Most days at least one or two were out of service for most of the day. The A/C in our cabin was at best, POOR. I recently bought a neat little travel alarm unit that displays the temperature, the entire cruise the cabin NEVER got below 69 degrees and most days was in the mid 70's, and that was keeping the drapes closed. I reported it to maintenance twice both times they came, plugged in their laptop to the thermostat, and “made some adjustments to the airflow.” Regardless of that the hall way in our section of the ship was cooler than the stateroom.

The Princess Theater did not appear to have had any upgrades at all. The seats are small with aisle seats uncomfortably close to the hand rails. In general the temperature was un comfortable. To get any seat you needed to be there at least 30 to 45 minutes early, I think that maybe Princess needs to consider passing out tickets for the shows as I saw many people standing in the aisles or sitting on the steps both un-safe. The Vista Lounge is more comfortable, but with the way it is laid out unless you sit in the first few rows your view of the stage is limited. Again shows there were crowded and I feel tickets should be used to assure seating.

The Cruise Director: On most cruises the Cruise Director is high profile and while they are usually a bit over the top for me, I understand the tough job they have. This cruise the Director was David Bradshawe, I was not impressed with him at all. During the welcome on board presentation the term “as well” seemed to be his fall back line. After a while I began to count the number of times he said it and in one approx 3 minute period it was 15 times! Anytime I mentioned him after that, I referred to him as “Mr. As Well.” The rest of the cruise he was low profile, I am guessing he may have been sick as I only saw him at trivia once and seldom heard him on the daily announcements. I heard that he was subbing for the regular Golden Cruise Director who was on vacation, maybe that explains why he appeared to be so uncomfortable on stage.

The voyage: The itinerary was very good, too bad the outdated “Jones Act” makes it a requirement to stop in Ensenada, as another day in the islands would be nice. The crossing was rough five out of eight days. I wonder if the Golden's design makes it rough as I did not experience such conditions on Celebrity Summit. I also wonder if speed was a factor as we were making 21 knots on those rough days and, to me, I felt it caused more motion in comparison to similar sea conditions I have experienced..

Synopsis: If I had to give a letter score to this cruise it would be a “B”. Of the three Princess ships I've been on, Coral, Sapphire, and Golden this is definitely in third place over all. Would I sail the Golden again? Maybe, but probably not to Hawaii. Will I sail Princess again? Yes, I do feel that for the most part they are a good cruise line but do suffer from some consistency problems.

UNIQUE ALASKA CRUISE OPPORTUNITY

The picture taken on an Alaskan Cruise.
By Carol Watts, Alaska Expert

Perhaps you’ve had the pleasure of cruising to Alaska before. But I’ll bet there are still some ports of call that you haven’t experienced. I’m thinking of the ports of Kodiak, Homer, Anchorage, and Sitka. Holland America is now the only cruise line visiting these ports on a 14 day round trip sailing from Seattle. That means no long air flights to Anchorage, and less expensive flights, especially if you fly Southwest.

Of course this cruise also visit’s the main Inside Passage ports of call, Ketchikan and Juneau, as well as cruising in Tracy Arm Fjord and Hubbard Glacier. There is a full day stop in Victoria as well.

Sailings start on May 13, 2011 and continue through Sept. 2, 2011. Cruise Port Travel has arranged a group sailing on June 10 - June 24, 2011. Not only can you expect a reduced group rate on cabin fares (up to $360 on an ocean view cabin), but you will also benefit from the following group amenities: $100 on board credit and a dinner in Holland’s specialty restaurant, the Pinnacle Grill. A category E ocean view cabin fare is $2299.00 per person based on double occupancy. (Cabin fares for 3rd and 4th passengers in a room are substantially less, however the amenities apply only to the 1st and 2nd passenger in a room.) Additional charges are $157.27 government taxes and fees and $56.00 airport to pier transfers. Deposit is $600 per person. Not included in the above prices are air transportation to Seattle, gratuities, shore excursions, alcoholic and carbonated beverages, and travel insurance.

Now that all the boring stuff is out of the way, lets look at the fun stuff, i.e. what can you see and do in these unique ports of call. Alaska offers opportunities for adventure, nature, cultural, historical, and wildlife excursions in every port of call. Kodiak Island shore excursions range from deep sea to river fishing, marine wildlife cruises, nature hikes, historical and city tours. Kodiak Island was the site of a Russian settlement in the late 1700‘s, and a city tour offers visits to the Baranov Museum, with its Russian exhibits, the Alutiiq Museum with its Native American exhibits, Fort Abercrombie State Park, a World War II historical site, and a cultural performance of the Kodiak Island Drummers. The Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge offers a protected habitat for Kodiak brown bears, and can be easily reached by boat. Kodiak’s Russian Orthodox Church is the oldest Alaska parish.

Sitka, once called New Archangel, was the Russian capital of Alaska from 1808 - 1867. The waters surrounding Sitka teem with sea birds, and wildlife viewing opportunities for humpback whales, sea otters, eagles, harbor seals, and sea lions abound. Shore excursions offer salmon and halibut fishing, rainforest hikes, Russian history and native cultural tours. Sitka is the site of two wildlife rescue centers. The Alaska Raptor Center is a rehab facility for bald eagles and other raptors. Fortress of the Bear rescue facility is a created habitat for bears caught in conflict with humans, and it offers up-close bear viewing. If you crave adventure, you can explore a volcano by 4x4 and ocean raft, or go ocean kayaking. Russian history abounds, with St. Michael’s Cathedral, the first Russian church built in America; the Russian Bishop’s House, once the residence of the Bishop with refurbished living quarters and Chapel of the Annunciation with its lavish icons; and Castle Hill, where the Russian flag was lowered and the American flag raised in 1867. The Sheldon Jackson Museum is the largest collection of Native artifacts in the state. The New Archangel Dancers, an all-female troupe, perform throughout the summer.

Homer is known as the halibut fishing capital of the world, and is a unique combination of location, commerce, natural resources and wilderness. Located on Kachemak Bay on the southwestern tip of the Kenai Peninsula, Homer’s most notable landmark is the Homer Spit, a 4.5 mile long gravel bar that can be seen from space. The natural beauty of the area has inspired many artists to make Homer an arts center for painters, potters, jewelers, weavers and woodcarvers. A must see attraction is the Pratt Museum with its varied exhibits and artwork. One exhibit called “Darkened Waters’’ is a pictorial of the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill and its effects on the environment. Native artifacts as well as those from 1930’s and 40’s homesteaders are on display. Many species of Alaskan birds and mammals, including several full skeletons, are on display. Visitors can stroll through the botanical garden featuring over 150 native plants. The museum also houses one of the finest quilt collections in Alaska. A little ways from town is the Norman Lowell Gallery with its impressive collection of paintings done over the artist’s 50 years of Alaska residence. The Islands and Oceans Visitors Center offers the Alaska Maritime Wildlife Refuge exhibit.

Ketchikan and Juneau have already been discussed in this column, and those articles can be found in “the blog spot” on our website, www.travelpayson.com. Attractions in Anchorage will be featured in a future article. It’s not too early to plan your Alaskan vacation, whether it be a cruise, combination cruise and land tour, or independent travel. Brochures are arriving daily at Cruise Port Travel, 900 W. Driftwood Dr. in Payson. Contact us at 472-7878 to set up a consultation. We are your certified Alaska experts.

Holland America Cruise Line

By Carol Watts, Alaska Expert.

We recently returned from our first Holland America cruise. Celebrity had always been our favorite cruise line, but Holland is threatening to take over first place. We have many clients who won’t sail anything but Holland. So we decided to see for ourselves what they were all about.

Holland America, like Celebrity, is a premium cruise line. What does that mean? Sometimes it’s the little things that make the difference. For example, Holland still had china dishes in the buffet area. (Even our beloved Celebrity has switched to plastic.) There is plenty of room between tables in the buffet area. One Princess cruise ship I was on barely left enough room between tables for you to push your chair back to leave the table. In the evening, the buffet tables have table cloths, candles, and fresh flowers. Even the staff uniforms are nicer, slacks and a tunic, rather than the shorts and tropical shirts you find on Royal and Princess. The food was excellent, with a definite leaning toward gourmet dining. Sometimes we found the food a little too rich.

There was one thing Holland offers that we appreciated, since we do not bring formal clothes to wear in the dining room on formal nights. The buffet dinner menu had several dishes that were the same as those served in the dining room. You could have the same meal in the buffet that formal diners were enjoying in the dining room, you just had to bring it to the table yourself, a concession we were glad to make. There was another dining option for those of us who want to avoid dressing up, and that was the Canaletto restaurant on the lido deck. We enjoyed their Italian fare twice on this last cruise. This is the training ground for waiters aspiring to positions in the main dining room. Celebrity used to do the same thing with their “casual dining”, but alas they have discontinued this dining option. So we had excellent service from waiters eager to please the ever present maitre d’ and excellent cuisine, while still in our comfortable “day” clothes.

The ship’s décor can be classified as ‘understated elegance” as opposed to the glitz and glamour of 10 story atriums. I chuckled while listening to one fellow traveler commenting on the ride to the airport after the cruise. She was telling someone that she liked Royal Caribbean better because they had this big street of shops and lounges, obviously referring to the Mariner, whereas Holland only had a few shops. And there wasn’t as much to do. No rock climbing walls, no miniature golf, no water slides, no ice skating rink and show, etc. I thought to myself, she obviously booked her own cruise online, because if she had spoken with a reputable travel agent, they would have advised her of the difference between Royal Caribbean and Holland. Young families might not enjoy a Holland cruise, but for those of us over 55, we don’t participate in many of those other activities anyway.

Not that there was a lack of things to do. The enrichment program on Holland is outstanding. The daily activity sheet had the many offerings of their 4 different enrichment programs prominently displayed. The travel expert gave presentations on the ports of call, Mexican history and culture, available shore excursions, and even a few courses in basic Spanish. The technology expert had 6 - 7 daily hands-on presentations on computers, digital cameras, uploading and sharing photography, Windows 7, and more. The health and wellness experts had many daily activities from tai chi, yoga, water aerobics, back pain management, sleep seminars, make-up tips, dance lessons, as well as trivia. But by far my favorite were the food and entertainment presentations, held in the culinary arts center. There we observed the master chef from the specialty restaurant prepare several dishes for us to sample. Other offerings were bar mixology, wine tasting, edible bouquets, kitchen tours, and even the daily high tea featured teas and baked goods from different world regions. Much more interesting than the same old scones and finger sandwiches offered on other cruise lines.

Our ocean view stateroom had a bath tub, and therefore the largest shower we have seen at sea. Larger than normal bath towels and robes were thoroughly enjoyed. The room service menu had many more items than the usual salads and sandwiches we have seen on other lines. Every stateroom had a DVD player, and there was a vast DVD library where you could request movies that were delivered to your room. I thought that this would be very nice if one were confined to their stateroom because of a norovirus. It must be noted that in an effort to prevent a norovirus outbreak, the first 2 days you are served everything in the buffet, thus eliminating cross contamination of serving utensils.

On this particular Mexican itinerary, there were over 2,000 guests on board, over 1,100 of whom were repeat cruisers with Holland. I now understand why Holland enjoys the largest number of repeat cruisers in the cruise industry. While onboard, we took advantage of the future cruise deposit program. A reduced deposit of $100 per person can be used on any future cruise and will get us a $100 per cabin onboard credit for an ocean view cabin, more for a balcony. This can be combined with any group reduced rates and group amenities. What a great way to get extra benefits on a cruise that we were planning to take anyway, namely the 14 day Alaska round trip Seattle cruise that includes ports of call in Homer, Kodiak, and Sitka.

Cruise counseling is available at Cruise Port Travel at no extra charge. Bring us your best online price, and we will try to match it. Many times we can do better, by taking advantage of the many group benefits available to us through our affiliation with Americas Vacation Center, or by looking at a different sail date. We will gladly share our first hand knowledge of cruise lines, different ships, and itineraries.

Ride a Harley in Ketchikan

By Carol Watts, Alaska Expert

Ketchikan is Alaska’s 4th largest city, and depending on whether your cruise is going north or south, it may be either your last or first Alaskan port of call. Hence, one of its many names is “The Gateway City” or “The First City”. Its less dubious claim to fame is the country’s second wettest city, with over 13 feet of precipitation yearly. (The wettest spot in the US is on the island of Kauai.) Ketchikan is located on the southwest coast of Revillagigedo Island, west of British Columbia, in the middle of our largest national forest, the Tongass National Forest. At 17 million acres, the Tongass encompasses most of the Inside Passage. Naturally lumber was a major industry until recent logging restrictions, and now Ketchikan’s main industries are commercial fishing and tourism, which includes sport fishing, whether from shore, wilderness lodges, or charter boats.

Also known as the Salmon capital of the world, Ketchikan is known for huge trophy salmon that flood the streams every summer to spawn. The first salmon cannery opened in 1886, and the canning industry reached its peak in 1936 with seven canneries putting out over 1.5 million cases of salmon for worldwide distribution. But like the logging industry’s mills, the salmon canneries have grown silent over the years.

Just because it lies in the middle of a rain forest doesn’t mean that it always rains in Ketchikan. Although it probably rains a little every day, there are some glorious sunny summer afternoons to be enjoyed. The last time we visited, the morning started out sunny but progressed to a steady rain by afternoon. So throw on your rain poncho, and enjoy all that Ketchikan has to offer.

For the adventurous at heart, you can enjoy a 3 ½ hour tour on Harley XL883 Sportsers or Softails on the 55 miles of paved roads surrounding Ketchikan. Like most towns in Southeast Alaska, Ketchikan can be reached only by air or water. But there are many local roads that offer views of eagles and bears, totems and wilderness rain forests.

Since Ketchikan is built on a Tlingit native village site, many totems are still preserved, mainly in Saxman Native Village and Totem bight State Historical Park. At Saxman you can see native singers and dancers perform in the Beaver Clan House and watch a native carver pass his skill on to appretice carvers at the Village Carving Center.

Creek Street is the historical and former red light district. You can tour an actual house of ill repute at Dolly’s House Museum. Of course you can see salmon swimming upstream in unbelievable numbers. The Lumberjack Show offers pole climbing, sawing, axe throwing, and chopping competitions. The show goes on rain or shine, but spectators are protected in covered and heated grandstands. There are duck tours of the small ship harbor and horse carriage tours of town.

Ketchikan is the starting point for Misty Fjords National Monument tours whether by boat or plane. Misty Fjords is 2.3 million acres of coastal rainforests and glacial fjords, 3,000 ft tall cliffs and 1,000 ft tall waterfalls. Of course Ketchikan also has sea kayak adventures, sport fishing tours, a zip line, float plane trips, snorkeling, jet boat adventures, backcountry hummer and jeep excursions, a Bering Sea crab fisherman’s tour reminiscent of Deadliest Catch, and tours of the fish hatchery and cannery. You can even take a float plane excursion in a classic De Havilland Beaver or Otter.

Wildlife viewing opportunities exist for black bear, mountain goats, timber wolves, seals, sea lions, humpback and killer whales eagles, shore birds, and of course salmon. Shopping opportunities abound. Native crafted drums, masks, totems, hand carved ivory and whalebone figures are available as well as jewelry stores, art galleries, and of course a very nice quilt shop.

Sailing Celebrity's Solstice

By Kelly Watts A.C.C.

I don't often write much myself on this BLOG, I just for some reason got out of the habit, but recenly I had the pleasure of sailing on Celebrity Cruise Lines Solstice. I have been a fan of Celebrity's Millennium Class ships since my first cruise on The Summit in 2006. My last Celebrity cruise was on The Constellation (High Conde' Nast Ratings) in 2007, so the Solstice had a LOT to live up to. The Solstice, the first of this class, is a great ship, well designed sort of like the Millennium Class on steroids!

Before I talk about the cruise let me throw a few barbs at US Airways, one of my favorite targets. As usual US Air managed to jamb even a red eye flight to the brim, the Airbus 321 is not the most comfortable of aircraft, the flight crew was however nice, but not overly so. Being packed in to US Air's incredible shrinking seats is NEVER a good experience but when one hope to grab a few winks it is even worse. My route through Charlotte, was not my first choice as it adds about 1-1/2 hours to the trip. After this trip, if I NEVER go through Charlotte it will be too soon. The distance between gates was quite extensive and the moving walkway was OUT OF SERVICE! Had I known I would have asked for assistance as I have knee problems.

The cruise was a 7 night Eastern Caribbean, well it is not exactly my favorite itinerary, even though I had only done a part of it before, but as they say “a bad day at sea is better than a good day at work.” Departure from Ft Lauderdale was quick being on the ship within 20 minutes of arrival at the pier. The one fluke in boarding is that cabin's would not be ready until about 1:30 PM meaning that I had to slug my luggage around with me at the buffet area. I have been spoiled by Princess who will let you take your luggage to your cabin even if it isn't ready. Well anyway, there was an attendant in the buffet are that did help me by carrying my plate. Oh yes, did I mention that Celebrity no longer has trays in the buffet? As a replacement they have various size square plates meaning that if you want more than a main entrée, such as a salad you need to make multiple trips. I did meet some very nice people in the buffet and we took turns watching luggage and holding the table as we each in turn went for additional items. I would hope that Celebrity might figure out how to accommodate passengers with carry ons either letting them drop them off at the room OR having a secure area.

After lunch the cabins still were not available so I went to my deck and hung out in the Internet Cafe until the announcement was made that the cabins were ready. The cabin was as nice as the Millennium Class ships, but with a bigger bathroom, however the extra bathroom space comes with a price. Celebrity has shrunken the closet space and moved it to the stateroom end of the bathroom with the closet doors facing the room. Since I was traveling along this trip, I had plenty of space using the closet and the extra drawer space. I learned that there is also some additional storage space over the bed, but I did not use it and I really don't think it was all that handy. The layout of the bathroom has given a much larger shower with sliding doors, very nice, my one fault is that it had a fixed shower head, I like the hand showers much better. The commode was wedged in between the shower and the vanity area, not all that roomy. The sink is a raised design with a long faucet, I did hear a couple of people complaining that it got in the road. The bathroom has a decent amount of shelf space and a couple of drawers as well. My cabin on deck 6 was directly above the Solstice Theater, and there were times I could hear music but it was not a major problem.

On to the cruise: The first two days out of Ft Lauderdale were rough, not as bad as some days I have spent, but with all the tropical storms and hurricanes around it made things a bit choppy.

The ports of call for this cruise were San Juan, Charlotte Amalie, St Thomas, and Philipsburg, St Maarten, I can't tell you anything about these ports as I stayed on the ship in all port days. For me it was just too hot and humid to consider a shore excursion. I went out on my balcony to take some pictures and had to wait several minutes for my camera lens to unfog.

To me, the ship is always the HIGH point of the trip, the cabin stewards were exceptional and the food in both the dining room and the Oceanview Cafe was very good. I did note that there are certain times when the Oceanview does completely close unlike a lot of other lines that have 24 hour buffet's.

All my evening meals, except one, were eaten in the Grand Epernay Restaurant, there I had a fantastic Waiter and Asst. Waiter and an Asst Maitre' De who were friendly and very efficient. Celebrity 's menu is pretty diverse however if the main menu doesn't suit you, the left side of the menu has a good variety of items available at every meal.

On board there are three specialty restaurants available at an extra cost, the Tuscan Grille, Silk Harvest, & Murano. I did dine at Tuscan one night and had the Veal Parmiggiana, it was fabulous! A large portion served over Linguine actually more than I could eat, especially after consuming some of the fantastic breads before dinner.

Entertainment on board was good with the Solstice Orchestra one of the best and the Great Ideas Party band, the West Side Strings, Kelly Broadway Quartet, and individual artists all very good. The activities staff, headed by Maria, (who was finishing her contract) all seemed very capable and a good sense of humor. One of the most fun times I have had on a cruise ship was the 60's night held in the Grand Foyer! This venue, right next to the Passport Lounge is a great place and Maria and crew had the ship rockin' with lots of great music, I was tired and hoarse after the party! Celebrity is putting the Grand Foyer to good use with musicians appearing especially during the cocktail hours and after dinner a definite thumbs up for this!

The Solstice is easy to navigate, good signage and an adequate number of elevators most going to every deck unlike some other ships. Other high points on the Solstice are the Adults Only Solarium with Pool Butlers, the Lawn Club, and of course the Hot Glass Show from Corning Glass. I also attended the Cooking Challenge hosted by Chef Panagiotis, who has a great sense of humor and was very accessible on the ship as I saw him most every day.

Other nice things on the Solstice were “On Demand” free movies on your stateroom TV, the Movie Theater at Celebrity Central on Deck 4, The Solstice Theater, (beautiful with a great sound system) and Captain Dimitrios daily announcements with a great touch of humor!

In all this was a great cruise, Celebrity has done a good job with the Solstice class ships.

Departure was smooth and seamless, one glitch I could not locate may bag, but I received instant help and was soon on my way. My return was on Southwest Airlines through Tampa WHAT A DIFFERENCE! Great planes and exceptional crews and not a killer walking distance between gates! Well done Southwest!

Juneau - Alaska’s Capitol City

By Carol Watts Alaska Expert

Juneau is Alaska’s largest city, in area, not in population. The over 3,200 square mile area of Juneau is larger than either Rhode Island or Delaware, and almost as large as both these states combined, The population is just over 31,000, most of whom work for the government. Tourism is the second largest industry in Juneau, followed by fishing and mining. Juneau has been the capitol of Alaska since 1906 when the territorial government was moved there from Sitka. It is the only state capitol that can not be reached by car. It is located on the Gastineau Channel at the base of steep Mounts Roberts and Juneau. Atop these mountains is the Juneau ice field, which is the starting point of 30 glaciers. The town was named after gold prospector Joe Juneau, who was guided by local Tlingit Indians to the head of Gold Creek where he found gold nuggets the size of peas. Juneau marked a town site in 1880, which soon became a bustling mining camp. And the rest is history.

North of downtown is the Mendenhall Valley, where the airport and ferry terminal are located. Juneau is known for its 16 foot tides, weather caused cancelled flights, torrential rains in summer and avalanche hazards in winter. Twelve miles from downtown is the retreating Mendenhall Glacier, one of the state’s most visited attractions. The face of the 200-300 foot tall and 1.5 mile wide glacier is visible across Mendenhall Lake. A Forest Service Visitor Center, built on the bedrock of the retreating glacier, is accessible by ramp or elevator. The glacier itself is the site of many tourist attractions, from helicopter guided hikes to dog sled rides.

Mount Roberts Tramway is another top tourist attraction. Located across from the cruise ship docks, the tram takes only 6 minutes to transport you over 1700 feet to the mountain top. The view from there is breathtaking. Your cruise ship looks like a bath tub toy. Alaska Native owners have established a center which shows a film on the Tlingit culture, a shop where you can see native artisans at work, and a bald eagle enclosure. (She was injured while hunting and has lost the use of one eye, so she can not be released back into the wild.)

The Alaska State Museum’s large art and historical artifacts collection is displayed in its functional setting. There is an Alaska Native clan house, the Lincoln totem pole, whose native carver used a picture of Lincoln to represent his clan’s contact with the white man, and a 2 story high eagle nesting tree. The museum gift shop carries quality Alaska art and books.

A great place for inexpensive souvenirs is the Alaska Shirt Factory, across from the cruise ship docks. Here you will find Alaska logo shirts and outerwear, as well as books, DVDs, postcards, smoked salmon in tins.
The Alaska Brewing Company offers free guided beer tasting, as well as unique Alaska apparel and souvenirs.

Juneau is closely situated to both Tracy Arm Fjord and Glacier Bay National Park. If your cruise ship does not sail to these spectacular natural wonders, a side excursion would be worth while. Tracy Arm Fjord is within the Tongass National Forest, off the Stephens Passage south of Juneau. Steep Granite walls rise from the waters surface. The arm is full of calving glaciers, icebergs, and wildlife. Glacier Bay is a larger marine park. The number of daily cruise ship visits are limited to preserve the ecosystems, and most spend the whole day cruising the bay. The scenery and sunsets are fabulous. A Park Ranger will board your cruise ship for an educational presentation and to offer hands on displays including the fur of many of Alaska’s native animals, from sea otter, to seal, to bear.

Juneau is a great place to go whale watching in the calm waters of the Channel. There are also opportunities for jet boat tours, sea kayaking, hiking, ziplines, mining and salmon hatchery tours. The Pack Creek Bear Viewing area on nearby Admiralty Island has a platform for viewing bear as they feast on salmon in July and August. Of course, there are numerous jewelry and art shops lining Franklin St, as well as the Red Dog Saloon with its frontier atmosphere and unique décor. Farther up the street in the historic Senate Building there is a wonderful quilt shop. History, culture, adventure, and wildlife are all available from Alaska’s capitol city.

The often bypassed Seward, Alaska

by Carol Watts, Certified Alaska Expert

Many who have cruised to Alaska are familiar with Seward as either the embarkation or disembarkation point for most 7 night Alaska cruises that sail to or from Vancouver. If you fly in or out of Alaska, you board a bus for transfer to Seward from the Anchorage airport. Sadly, many tourists pass through Seward, without stopping. If you are taking an Alaska cruise, I urge you to spend a day in Seward either before or after your cruise. If you don’t stop to see what this city has to offer, you are really missing the boat!

Seward is located on the shores of Resurrection Bay, on the east coast of the Kenai Peninsula, approximately 125 miles south of Anchorage, at the foot of 3,000+ foot tall Mount Marathon. It offers many recreational opportunities and the bay teams with sea life. It is also the gateway to Kenai Fjords National Park. Resurrection Bay got it’s name from Alexander Baranof who found shelter there from a storm on the Russian Sunday of the Resurrection in 1791. Seward, of course, was named for William Seward who helped arrange the purchase of the Alaska Territory from Russia in 1867.

Seward was officially founded in 1903 by surveyors for the Alaska railroad, which needed an ice-free port to serve as an ocean terminus. The Alaska Railroad facilitated travel between Seward and Fairbanks in the 1920’s. You can walk past Millionaires row to see houses built around 1905 by bankers and railroad officials. Before then, prospectors passed through in the late 1880’s on the way to find gold in Hope Alaska. The Iditarod Trail was used by sled dog teams to transport goods and supplies to towns in the interior and as far as the gold rush town of Nome. Seward was not spared by the Good Friday Earthquake in 1964 which caused tidal waves and fires, destroying much of the town. The Resurrection Bay Historical Museum features photos of the earthquake, as well as artifacts from the Russian era, and Seward’s role in the Iditarod Trail.

Today the Seward Highway between Anchorage and Seward and the corresponding railroad route, are considered to be some of the most scenic routes in the state. Some of the activities in and around Seward are: birding, charter fishing, full or half day whale watching cruises on Resurrection Bay, flight seeing, hiking, kayaking, river rafting, sled dog kennel tours and rides.

One of the main attractions is the Alaska Sea Life Center, where you can see marine wildlife at a leisurely pace. The Center is the only facility in the world dedicated to the study of northern marine wildlife. It’s construction was funded in part by the Exxon Valdez oil spill settlement. Many programs cover public education, rehabilitation, and conservation for marine life and sea birds. The center is open 7 days a week summer and winter, and has several “touch tanks” for getting up close and personal with marine wildlife.

Kenai Fjords National Park covers approximately 1700 square miles, and includes the Harding Ice Field. At 300 sq. miles, it is one of the largest ice fields in the US. Harding ice field is the source of 38 glaciers, of which is Bear Glacier is the largest. The national park includes mountain fjords, tidewater glaciers, and of course wildlife. Bears and sheep can be seen on land, and the rocky coast provides haul outs for Stellar sea lions. Rookeries for sea birds abound, including puffins, bald eagles, gulls, murres, kittiwakes, oystercatchers and cormorants. The waters team with sea otters, porpoise, Orcas, humpbacks, salmon and halibut. Cruises in the national park range from 5 to 10 hours, and some are accompanied by Park Rangers.

One part of the Kenai Fjords National Park can be reached by road. Exit Glacier is 8 miles north of Seward, and is a retreating glacier that you can actually hike to the face of. Signs along the way testify to the reach that the glacier once had. There are several trails to choose from, a ½ mile, a 1 mile, and a challenging 7.7 mile with steep elevation. This is bear country. The trails are thick with salmonberry bushes, a favorite with bears. Kenai Fjords is home to both black and brown bears, although the black bears are much more common. And supposedly more timid. Both species will avoid human contact, unless they are protecting their cubs or a “kill.” Take precautions, and above all do not feed the bears. They will lose their fear of humans as they seek more food handouts. Eventually they will be shot by people who are protecting themselves or their property. As the park service says, “A fed bear is a dead bear.”

Is there any safe place?

By Carol Watts Alaska, Group Travel, & Small Ship Expert,

That seems to be a question that is implied, if not asked outright lately. With volcanoes stranding people in Europe, social unrest in certain European cities, and robberies, kidnappings, and worse in Mexico and the Caribbean, it’s no wonder that people are concerned about their safety while traveling.

Two of our favorite destinations are Hawaii and Alaska, but anywhere in the US is not only safe but more affordable than overseas travel. We have seen an increase of bookings for Disneyland this year. Canada is safe also, now that the G20 summit in Toronto is over.

Following are some interesting destinations and unique vacations here “at home” and in our northern neighbor: Mackinac Island, San Antonio’s Riverwalk, New Orleans Chrsitmas, Churchill’s polar bears.

A lovely 7 day excursion to Mackinac Island and the Grand Hotel can be enjoyed in September and October. Leaving from Chicago, you will stop at Traverse City to see the sand dunes along Lake Michigan, as well as the Soo Locks, built in 1791 to connect Lake Superior with the other Great Lakes. You can step back in time on Mackinac Island, since transport is by horse drawn carriage, since no cars are allowed . Fort Mackinac was originally built during the Revolutionary War when the island was a fur-trading outpost. Of course, the highlight is a 2 night stay at the Grand Hotel, known for its 600 foot front porch and beautiful gardens. Take afternoon Tea at the Grand, or just relax in a rocking chair. Frankenmuth is known as Michigan’s Little Bavaria, where you can stroll over a 239 foot long authentic 19th century replica of a covered bridge. Charming shops line the streets, the most famous of which is Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland.

San Antonio’s Riverwalk, once described by Ernie Pyle as “America’s Venice”, is beautiful any time of the year, but especially so when it’s all lit up for Christmas. From late November on, you can be serenaded by carolers while enjoying a dinner cruise on the river. Visit the historic Mission San Jose, or shop in the authenticate Mexican Marketplace. Remember the Alamo? The chapel and the Long Barracks are all that’s left of this famous place where Davy Crockett fought the Mexican army and died for Texas liberty. Tour the museum and watch the IMAX movie, Alamo - the Price of Freedom. You can also visit the LBJ Library and Museum in Austin, and the “Texas White House” at the LBJ Ranch. Don’t forget the German village of Fredericksburg.

Christmas New Orleans style can be experienced in late November or early December. Oaks Alley Plantation, located along the Mississippi and featuring a quarter-mile long canopy of 300 year old oaks, will be all decorated for the holidays. You can have a hands on cooking class at the New Orleans School of Cooking , located in an old molasses warehouse in the French Quarter. Also worth a visit is the National WWII Museum, with interactive displays and artifacts. But the main attraction has to be the Celebration in the Oaks, with its choirs, dance performances, seasonal displays, millions of lights, and real snow, set in the ancient oak groves of City Park.

If you want something a little more on the wild side, don’t pass up a trip to see the polar bears of Churchill, Manitoba in October. You can fly to and from Churchill from Winnipeg, once a 1920’s boomtown. Safely and comfortable view the polar bears, and possibly also Arctic foxes, ptarmigan, caribou, and ringed seals from the Tundra Bus. The large over inflated tires do not harm the Tundra ecosystem. The buses are well heated, have washroom facilities, and an outdoor viewing platform for that up close photo op. Polar bears can stand 10 feet tall and weigh over 1300 pounds. They return to the seal feeding grounds along the Hudson Bay every October in anticipation of the winter freeze. Enjoy true Northern ambiance and cuisine at Churchill’s newest accommodation, the Lazy Bear Lodge. You can also have an opportunity to witness the spectacular light show of the Aurora Borealis.

All about Alaska Part 5 - Denali

By Carol Watts Alaska & Small Ship Specialist

Approximately 400,000 visitors go to Denali National Park and Preserve every year, most between late May and early September. The park can be reached by car or tour bus on the George Parks Highway, or by the Alaska Railroad from Anchorage or Fairbanks. There is a park entrance fee as well as a fee for park buses and tours, camping and mountaineering permits. As far as weather, you can expect, rain, sun, clouds, and wind, and all on the same day. Summer temperatures average around 55- 60 degrees, with the record being 91 degrees. Winter temps average around 2 degrees, with the coldest being minus 54. And yes, the park is open during the winter.

The park has one road, and only the first 15 miles are paved and open to private vehicles. Visitors are recommended to take the park buses, which are school buses, without facilities. The dirt road winds along cliffs and mountain passes, so driving is best left to the professional guides and drivers. Mt. McKinley can be seen as early as mile 9, weather permitting. Guides tell you that the mountain creates its own weather system, and can be seen only 25 - 33 percent of the time. The park offers both shuttle and tour buses that make several scheduled stops, and always stop for photo ops if wildlife is spotted. The shuttles go all the way to the end of the 92 mile road, with stops at Wonder Lake and Eielson Visitors Center, where you have great views of the Alaska Range and Mt. McKinley, weather permitting. You can get off the shuttle buses any where along the way to go hiking, then flag down a returning green bus for a ride back to the entrance. Wonder Lake at mile 85 is approximately a 11 hour round trip, and offers full base to summit views of Mt. McKinley. Last on the road is Kantishna, once a gold mining town, that offers exhibits on early settlers, and air strip, and 4 private properties. This trip is about 13 hours long, round trip.

The park also offers tour buses with narration by a certified driver-naturalist on its tan school buses. The Denali Natural History Tour, approximately 5 hours long, is the one that is included in most cruise tour packages. It stops along the way at Savage Cabin, a ranger cabin that is still used today, and that provides a living history on park ranger encounters with poachers. At Primrose Ridge, a Native Alaskan does a presentation on the 10,000 year history of land use in Denali. The Tundra Wilderness Tour is an 8 hour excursion that goes 53 miles to Toklat River and provides a more in depth history of the park with opportunities for wildlife viewing and photography. The Kantishna Tour goes the full length of the park road, leaving around 7 am and returning at 7 or 7:30 pm. Park buses and facilities are wheelchair accessible. Prices for shuttles and tours vary according to destination.

The park offers FREE courtesy shuttles from the Visitors Center to 3 different destinations. The Savage River courtesy shuttle is a 2 hour round trip and great for people short on time, wishing to hike, or for access to the Savage River Campground. The Riley Creek Loop courtesy shuttle goes to the Riley Creek Campground. The Sled Dog Demonstration courtesy shuttle goes between the Visitors Center and the kennels. There is no private vehicle parking at the kennels, so this is the only way to see them. You can pet and visit with friendly sled dogs, and see a demonstration of their speed. The Park sled dogs are still used in winter by rangers patrolling the park.

Every bus trip into the park offers views of Mt. McKinley, weather permitting. It may be clear and sunny on the ground, but the summit can be shrouded in clouds. The most photographed image of Mt. McKinley is from Reflection Pond, just beyond mile 85. You will need the Kantishna shuttle or tour bus for this photo op. Mt. McKinley is the highest mountain in North America. From its 2,000 foot lowlands to its 20,320 foot summit, the mountain’s vertical relief of 18,000 feet is greater than that of Mt. Everest.

Mt. McKinley National Park was established in 1917. In 1980 the park size was increased to 9,410 sq. miles and renamed Denali National Park and Preserve. For comparison, Denali is larger than either Massachusetts or New Hampshire, and just slightly smaller than Vermont. It’s wildlife consists of one amphibian (the wood frog), 14 fish (including 3 salmon species), 166 birds (including the endangered Peregrine Falcon and the ptarmigan, the Alaska State bird), and 39 mammals (including Dall sheep, grizzly and black bear, moose, caribou, wolves, lynx, red foxes, and hoary marmots). Black bears live in the taiga, forested areas, and grizzly, or brown bear, inhabit the open tundra. Ninety percent of a grizzly’s diet is vegetation. Any bears seen by park visitors are most always grizzlies.

Glaciers cover 17% of Denali’s land area. Ruth Glacier is the deepest at over 3,800 feet, and it moves approximately 3 feet every day. The park also includes 12,000 lakes and ponds, and 18,600 miles of streams. In 2005 a dinosaur footprint was found in Denali. It belonged to a Cretaceous Theropod.

Cruise Prices and Hidden Costs of Cruising

By Carol Watts Small Ship & Alaska Specialist

It happened again today. Someone called with a price they had seen online and asked if we could match it. He had a real low ball price from an ad he had seen on the internet. To his credit, he had the courtesy to ask what our price would be. So he at least tried to keep some money local by booking with us. When I gave him “our price,” it was substantially higher. That’s because we always quote the full price, including port charges, government taxes and fees. We also advise people that the price we give does not include gratuities and trip insurance. I explained to him that the “lead-in” prices you see in ads are always for the lowest price interior cabin. Sometimes they are for resident or senior rates that you might not qualify for. They seldom include the port charges and government taxes. So since we try not to mislead people, our prices appear to be higher. Once last year someone came in with a price that we really could not match. When Kelly asked if he could travel 2 weeks later, the price we had was actually $600 less than the online sale price he came in about. So it pays to shop around, and yes, that means calling a local travel agent. (By the way, the cabin price without the port charges and government taxes and fees, is what agents are paid commission on.)

So what are the hidden costs of cruising? As stated above, prices we quote do not include gratuities for your room stewards and waiters. These run approximately $10 per person per day. Then there is the fuel surcharge, which runs around $7 - $9 per person per day. As yet the cruise lines have NOT reinstated the fuel surcharge, although they reserve the right to do so at any time. And once one line says they are going to do so, the others all follow like dominos. They can impose the surcharge even after final payment has been made.

Naturally transportation costs/air fares to the embarkation port are not included, although we can certainly quote you a figure. You can book air through the cruise line, generally more expensive but guaranteed to get you to the ship or they foot the bill. You can book air with us for a $30 service fee, since no airlines pay agents commission now. Or you can book air yourself on the internet. A word of warning: all airlines with the exception of Southwest will charge a hefty fee to change a booking, whether it be date or a misspelling on a name. Our air prices through the consolidator are often less expensive that some internet sellers of travel, and most people would rather give us the $30 service fee than deal with the hassle of booking air themselves.

That brings us to the “optional expenses” that you can incur on a cruise. By all means, you do not need to purchase any of the following:

l. Alcoholic, carbonated beverages, specialty coffees, bottled water. Tea, iced tea, coffee, water, juice are available at no charge. Or you can purchase a soda or alcohol package with some cruise lines to lower costs if you are a cola-drinker.

2. Specialty dining. While this is a nice 3-4 hour experience, we always felt that the food in the dining room was very good.

3. Bingo and the Casino. These are the biggest money makers for the cruise lines. Payouts are not regulated as they are on land. Some cruisers believe that the slot machines pay out at the start of a cruise, then when you are hooked, they dry up toward the end of the cruise.

4. Photos. These are taken at every opportunity. You do not have to buy anything.

5. Internet packages. These are priced by the minute, and connection times at sea are very slow.

6. Laundry. You can rinse out your own in the sink if needed. Most Holland America and Princess ships have coin operated laundry services.

7. Gift shop purchases. Logo clothing, trinkets or forgotten toiletries, medications, and other necessities are all pricey.

8. auctions. These are the biggest rip off at sea. Should you get a steal on a reproduced “masterpiece”, there’s always the frame and shipping home to pay for.

9. Shore excursions. Cruise lines use the same vendors that you can book with online. Or you can be really adventurous and grab a tour on the dock. This is ok for Alaska and Hawaii, but I would not recommend it for foreign countries that might not have as stringent vehicle inspection laws as the US or might not have English speaking guides. One good thing about booking shore excursions through the cruise line: if you are delayed returning because of a breakdown or accident, the ship will wait for you, and all the other passengers booked with you on that tardy excursion.

10. Travel Insurance. This is one addition cost that we strongly recommend. You can purchase this through the cruise line, but if you need to cancel your cruise, you might only get a future cruise credit. If you can no longer cruise, or if the cruise/tour company goes bankrupt, you are out of luck. We always recommend third party trip insurance. And yes, they did pay for re-booked flights, delays, hotels and food for passengers stranded in Europe because of volcanic ash. And did you hear that Iceland expects the neighboring volcano, Katla, to erupt at any time, and this one will be huge. We have had customers who were hospitalized the day before their booked cruise was set to sail. The one lost everything. The one with travel insurance got a cash refund for the total cost of her trip. Which would you rather be?

When cruise lines were discounting fares like crazy last year, we often wondered how they could afford to sell cabins so cheap. The truth is that cruise lines rely on you purchasing many of the above optional items. The cabin fare makes up only 10 - 25% of the cost of a cruise.

We recently came back from a 7 day cruise to Mexico. Because of the turmoil in that country, we had decided not to get off the ship while in port. It was just a totally relaxing vacation, good food, good shows, played a lot of trivia, watched movies, and borrowed books from the library. No cost for any of the above. We met two couples who were on the same cruise, round trip from Los Angeles, for a total of 2 and 3 weeks. That might seem strange, until you consider the cost. There’s no way you could book 3 weeks at a hotel in a major city and eat for what they paid for discounted back to back cruises. They could choose to get off in ports of call or not, as the mood struck them. While they had to disembark in Los Angeles at the end of each cruise, they could leave their luggage in the room. I admit clothing for 3 weeks would be a problem, but on Princess and Holland America you can use of their coin operated laundry facilities. Gee, I can’t wait until I’m retired to cruise for 3 weeks at a time. The only thing better would be 3 weeks cruising to Alaska.

Give us a call before you book anything online. We will give you our best price. Our affiliation with host agency Americas Vacation Center provides us with access to many group rates, which provide discounted pricing and possibly on board credit.

Fall in New England by Carol Watts

The Canada/New England fall cruises offer a variety of lengths and ports of call. Prime cabin location is selling out fast. Since all these cruises stop in several Canadian ports, like Halifax and Quebec City, passports are required.

However, a more economical and in-depth tour of New England, without Canada, can be booked for as low as $1095 per person, or approximately $1575 including airfare to and from Boston. These fully escorted, leisurely paced tours of 44 people maximum travel by deluxe motor coach and stay in quality hotels like Hilton and Radisson. Every breakfast and several dinners are included in the price.

You will see the standard Boston attractions, stopping at the Old North Church and Fanueil Hall Marketplace, a true Boston experience for over 250 years, and driving past the state capitol and Boston Commons before proceeding to Lexington. Here the “shot heard around the world” was fired on the Battle Green where the Minutemen had their first skirmish with the British, the start of the American Revolution. Along Paul Revere’s route from Lexington to Concord, you will stop at the North Bridge. Next is a stop at Plymouth Rock, where the Pilgrims from the Mayflower landed in 1620. Drive to Hyannis where you will stay 2 nights on Cape Cod.

A morning ferry takes you across to Marthas Vineyard, a haven for poets, artists, and celebrities. An island tour visits Oak Bluffs and Vineyard Haven.
The historic whaling town of Edgartown affords you an opportunity to wander its narrow streets, visiting art galleries and quaint shops.

Leave Hyannis for the sailing capital of the world, Newport Rhode Island. You will visit the Breakers, a 70 room Italian Renaissance palace which was the “summer cottage” of the Vanderbilts. Drive to Mystic, CT and visit Mystic Seaport, home of the nation’s leading maritime museum and tall ships.

The following day you will drive through the beautiful Berkshire Mountains of Massachusetts and stop in Stockbridge at the Norman Rockwell Museum and studio, which is preserved as it was when Rockwell painted there the last 25 years of his life. Overnight will be in the scenic Green Mountains of Vermont.

Fall colors reign on a scenic drive to Plymouth Notch, birthplace of President Calvin Coolidge. Next you stop in Woodstock, VT, known as the prettiest small town in America. There will be a photo stop at a covered bridge. Drive over Quechee Gorge, the Grand Canyon of New England, then through the White Mountains of New Hampshire to Franconia Notch. A notch is a narrow pass through steep mountain cliff walls. Follow the Kancamagus Highway, known as the best fall foliage trip in the US, through the White Mountains National Forest to Conway, NH.

The following morning your coach passes Maine’s lakes on the way to Portland on the rocky Atlantic sea coast. After viewing the waterfront, you continue to Kennebunkport. You will have time to explore this quaint resort before your farewell Maine lobster dinner. The next morning your coach transfers you to Boston’s Logan Airport.

Having grown up in Albany, NY, my family always traveled to Vermont to view the fall foliage. The time for peak fall color may vary from year to year because of temperature and moisture. The above circular route through 6 New England states ensures that you have many fall foliage viewing opportunities. Now is the time to start thinking about a New England land tour, or Canada/New England cruise.

Found Money

If you are like me, you have a bunch of reward points sitting around on various credit cards. Unless you have been using one card exclusively for a long time, the rewards usually don’t amount to much. But for those of you that use an American Express card, those points can be found money. Maybe even enough to pay for a cruise.

All About Alaska Part 4 by Carol Watts Alaska Expert

A few months ago I wrote about the various itineraries for seeing Alaska with an escorted land tour. But maybe you are one of those people who would rather not see the same 40 or so faces on a bus every day. As I explained, an escorted tour is a good value because you have the advantage of group pricing for hotels and attractions, plus the convenience of a guide and driver. But if you want to see Alaska on your own schedule, we can help you plan a vacation that puts you in the driver’s seat. From a completely customized vacation to a yachting tour, to an RV tour, to bear camps, to fishing lodges, we are your Alaska experts.

One thing that is hard for us who live in the lower 48 to understand is the sheer size of Alaska, and what that means for the time needed to travel from one place to another. Most flights come into Anchorage, and that is a good hub to use for exploring the rest of the state. Heading north from anchorage, the first place of interest is Talkeetna, 113 miles away. Next is Denali National Park, 154 miles north of Talkeetna, and finally Fairbanks, which is 125 miles north of Denali, or roughly 358 miles from Anchorage. It is possible to drive from Fairbanks through Coldfoot and on to Prudhoe Bay on the North Slope, but the road is not completely paved (some rental car firms make you sign a contract that you will not drive to Prudhoe Bay with their vehicle) and you don’t even want to know how far it is. Going south from Anchorage, you can drive to Seward, 125 miles, and on to Homer, 167 miles from Seward, at the end of the Kenai Peninsula. Skagway and Haines can also be reached by car, but the route is round about. First you need to get to Whitehorse in Canada, 724 miles from Anchorage, then turn south.

So you can see that a lot of time is spent just getting from one attraction to another. The Alaska Railroad is an option, but their route generally follows the highways, with the exception of a wilderness route from Talkeetna to Hurricane Gultch. The Alaska Marine Highway, the state ferry system, is another option for getting to ports that have no road access, but their timetables may not always fit your schedule; in other words if you take the ferry to Kodiak or Sitka, you may need to spend a few nights there before going on to your next planned stop.

Self drive tours allow you the flexibility of spending more time at an attraction that is of interest to you, and possibly skipping another that does not interest you. The providers we work with offer several different self drive itineraries, which include the car rental and hotels. For example one itinerary features a round trip Anchorage, 7 days and 6 nights, with hotels in Anchorage, Denali, Talkeetna, Fairbanks, and Anchorage again. Cost for peak season (June - August) is $1399 per person plus taxes and fees, based on double occupancy. Included in the above price is a jet boat ride, a salmon dinner, and a sternwheeler river ride. Other self drive itineraries are 8 days from Anchorage to Homer, including a half day halibut fishing excursion or a whale watching cruise across Kachemak Bay, the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward, a cruise in Kenai Fjords National Park, and a float trip on the Spencer River. Or a 10 day self drive tour from Anchorage that goes to both Denali and Wrangell-St. Elias National Parks, Valdez, and includes a ferry ride to Whittier, and a cruise of Kenai Fjords National Park. These self drive vacations are great for families with young children, who would not do well on an escorted bus trip. Again, any tour can be customized to suit your desires. As I tell customers, anything is possible in the travel business; it just comes down to how much you are willing to spend.

There are winter tours that include the Northern Lights and Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race start and restart. There are several fishing excursions for halibut, salmon, that include a guide, equipment, cleaning and freezing of your catch. There’s a van trip from Fairbanks to Prudhoe Bay with a flight to Barrow, the northern most city in the US, and also a flight trip just to Barrow. On this “top pf the world” tour you will join a traditional Eskimo blanket toss and witness their heritage ceremonial dances. Or you can enjoy a flight trip to Nome, the end point of the Iditarod race and home of one of Alaska’s gold rushes. Even Wyatt Earp came to Nome in 1897 and found his “gold mine” operating a saloon during the height of the Nome gold rush where you could pick up gold off the beach. If you are really adventurous, take a flight to a bear camp for a full day of guided bear viewing. If you want to be a little safer, take a 200 mile all day flight in Katmai National Preserve or Lake Clark Wilderness Preserve to view bear from the air as they fish for salmon or roam the coast.

Of course, tours to Dawson City, the Yukon Territory, Victoria and Vancouver, and the Canadian Rockies are also available. There’s a self drive tour from Calgary to Banff, where you board the Rocky Mountaineer train to Vancouver, or escorted tours from Vancouver to Jasper that include a Rocky Mountaineer train ride and a Snocoach icefield excursion.

The Pacific Northwest by Carol Watts

The Pacific Northwest

Would you like a 7 day vacation that combines travel by rail and water, and starts with a fairly inexpensive direct air flight? If so, then you might like an escorted tour to the Pacific Northwest, specifically Seattle, Vancouver, Whistler, and Victoria.

The tour begins and ends in Seattle, so a direct flight on Southwest airlines won’t break the bank. And as yet, Southwest does not charge for checked luggage, and even provides a complimentary snack. All transfers to and from the airport are included in this tour. So you can take a late morning or early afternoon flight from Phoenix for the 3 hour trip to Seattle, arriving in time to check into your hotel, meet your tour director, and choose a place for dinner. Five breakfasts and three dinners are included in the tour, which is available June - September.


After breakfast at the hotel, day two starts with a sightseeing tour of Seattle with a local guide, including Pike Place Market, the Pioneer Square-Skid Row Historic District, Chinatown and the Seattle Space Needle. Pioneer Square is where Seattle founders first settled in 1852, and later became famous for its collection of “box houses”, part theater, part brothel, part bar, and part gaming house, as well as hash or dope houses and pawn shops. Today it is considered the center of Seattle’s night life, with art galleries, cafes, sports bars, bookstores, and one part of the Klondike Gold Rush National Historic Park - the other part being in Skagway, Alaska. Pike Place Fish Market is home to the famous flying fish. Up to 3 feet long salmon are thrown by employees across the counter, much to the delight of spectators. You can also see the market’s unofficial mascot, Rachel the brass pig. She weighs 550 pounds and brings in between 6 and 9 thousand dollars in donations every year to the 100 plus year old market. Take time to enjoy street musicians, including a virtuoso spoon player, jazz, folk, blues music and comedians at the market.

Next on the itinerary is a visit to Seattle’s iconic Space Needle, which was built for the 1962 World’s Fair. At that time it was the tallest structure west of the Mississippi at 605 feet. It was built to withstand earthquakes up to 9.1 magnitude, 220 mph winds, and has 25 lightning rods. It houses a revolving restaurant and an observation deck from which you can see the Olympic and Cascade mountains, Mount Rainier, Mount Baker, and Elliott Bay. The afternoon is taken up with a 3 hour bus trip along Washington’s rugged coastline to Vancouver, British Columbia. Yes, passports are needed for this trip. Dinner is included on the first of your three nights in Vancouver. In the morning a local guide takes you through the 1,000 acres of Stanley Park, Chinatown, and the historic streets of Gastown. Stanley Park has forests of cedar, hemlock, and Sitka spruce, as well as a collection of statues, memorial plaques and totem poles. The historic Gastown now is home to fashion boutiques, coffee shops, art galleries, and native art stores. But it is most famous for it’s steam powered clock. The afternoon is free to explore Canada‘s most cosmopolitan city independently. Perhaps you would wish to take in the Capilano Suspension Bridge, Grouse Mountain, the VanDusen Botanical Garden or Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Garden.

After breakfast the next morning, board the Whistler Mountaineer for a scenic three hour train trip to Whistler, site of several 2010 Olympic Games events. Travel along Howe Sound, pass the Stawamus Chief, the second largest granite monolith in the world, then wind through canyon habitat of bald eagles, climbing 2000 feet for breathtaking 195 feet tall Brandywine Falls, Alpha Lake, and Whistler Village. Return by coach for an included dinner in Vancouver.

The next morning, you will take a ferry ride from Vancouver to Victoria, the historical capital of British Columbia. Included is a city tour of the beautiful harbor district, the incredible parliament building, and a visit to 100 year old Butchart Gardens. You will be captivated by views of its Sunken Gardens, Rose Garden, Japanese Garden, and fountains. During your free time in Victoria, stop at the Empress Hotel. You will spend the night in Victoria, and the Parliament building lit at night is a sight worth seeing.

Day six starts with a ferry trip from Victoria across the Strait of Juan de Fuca to Port Angeles, Washington. Be on the lookout for eagles, gray whales, and otters. You will drive through the glacier carved valleys and temperate rainforest of Olympic National Park before returning to Seattle for your farewell dinner. Schedule your return flight to Phoenix after noon the next day.

River Cruises By Carol Watts

What do the Galapagos Islands, Machu Picchu, the Upper Amazon, Moscow and St. Petersburg, Beijing and Shanghai, Luxor and Aswan, Bucharest and Budapest, Paris, Lyon and Nice, Cologne, Basel, and Oberammergau have in common? No, it’s not a geography question. These countries are all over the map!

All these cities, and many more, can be visited on various river cruises, either directly or as an extension before or after the cruise. River cruising is growing in popularity for many reasons. One is, obviously, the varied itineraries. Second is the smaller size; most river cruise ships in Europe carry 130, and in China up to 400 passengers. Third, is the ability to customize your river cruise with various extensions.

Shortly after we bought the travel agency, someone came in looking for a trip to the Galapagos, the Upper Amazon, and Machu Picchu. I knew how to get him to each of the destinations, and maybe two together, but not all three. Imagine my surprise when I opened the 2010 Globus River Cruise catalog and there they were. I could understand the Amazon, after all it IS a river, but Machu Picchu as an add on? And the Galapagos too? Yup, it’s all there. With air fares costing what they do, more and more travelers want to maximize their travel budget by extending their travel in a certain region. Having everything seamlessly tied together, air, sea, and hotels by one tour company is a big plus, and the best way to have a hassle free and stress free vacation. Your ship acts as your hotel, docking right in the heart of a different town every morning.

When you think of river cruises, you probably think of the Rhine or the Danube. And rightly so, since these rivers were the pioneer destinations for river cruises. Before there were roads, travel and commerce in Europe was conducted on the rivers. So it’s only natural that great cities would grow up along the river routes. Cities like Vienna, Salzburg, Cologne, Strasbourg, Basel, Antwerp, Amsterdam, and so many more are located right on the river. You step off the ship and are literally in the city center.

But China and Russia river cruises have evolved over the past years as the demand for river cruising in different locations has grown. For a Yangtze River cruise, you start in Beijing, then fly to Chongqing to start your cruise down the river to Shanghai. There’s also an optional extension to Hong Kong or Tibet! Egyptian river cruises start and end in Cairo, with flights to Aswan for a cruise to Luxor, followed by a return flight to Cairo. In Russia, Viking River Cruses offers several itineraries: from Moscow to St. Petersburg, Moscow to Volgograd (Stalingrad), or Odessa to Kiev. Basically, a river cruise can be as extensive or as compact as you want. I mentioned Oberammergau earlier, because in 2010 many river cruises are offering the once a decade Passion Play as an extension.

How does river cruising differ from mainstream ocean cruising? First is the cost. Because of the European or Asian destinations, air fare is a large chunk of your budget. The only other negative, I feel, is that river cruise ships are seldom equipped with elevators. So anyone needing a wheelchair is not a good candidate. Imagine also the quaint city centers you will visit, all with cobbled streets.

On the plus side, you experience a more intimate atmosphere on river cruises. There is one seating for dinner, and it is open seating. Some cruise lines included wine with dinner, some do not. Often you will see the ship’s chef buying local produce in the marketplace that later appears on your plate that evening in a regional specialty meal. No casinos or lavish Las Vegas style shows on the river. Here the entertainment might be a local dance troup, regional musicians, or lectures on the local customs, history, and attractions. No long lines for disembarkation, and no flooding of small towns with thousands of tourists. But alas, no doctors or sick bay on board either.

I would be remiss if I did not mention that there are river cruises in the US also. While we have seen the demise of the Mississippi barges and paddle boats, like the Delta Queen, there are still small ships that ply the Hudson River and Lake Champlain, the Great Lakes, St. Lawrence River and the Erie Canal, the Cape Cod, Maine, and eastern coasts, as well as Central America from Belize City to the Honduran Islands.

Warning: be prepared for sticker shock. But when you consider that tours with knowledgeable local guides in every port are included in the price tag, it’s understandable that the prices are higher than an ocean cruise, where optional shore excursions are at an additional cost .

The Pacific Northwest

The Pacific Northwest
By Carol Watts

Would you like a 7 day vacation that combines travel by rail and water, and starts with a fairly inexpensive direct air flight? If so, then you might like an escorted tour to the Pacific Northwest, specifically Seattle, Vancouver, Whistler, and Victoria.

The tour begins and ends in Seattle, so a direct flight on Southwest airlines won’t break the bank. And as yet, Southwest does not charge for checked luggage, and even provides a complimentary snack. All transfers to and from the airport are included in this tour. So you can take a late morning or early afternoon flight from Phoenix for the 3 hour trip to Seattle, arriving in time to check into your hotel, meet your tour director, and choose a place for dinner. Five breakfasts and three dinners are included in the tour, which is available June - September.

After breakfast at the hotel, day two starts with a sightseeing tour of Seattle with a local guide, including Pike Place Market, the Pioneer Square-Skid Row Historic District, Chinatown and the Seattle Space Needle. Pioneer Square is where Seattle founders first settled in 1852, and later became famous for its collection of “box houses”, part theater, part brothel, part bar, and part gaming house, as well as hash or dope houses and pawn shops. Today it is considered the center of Seattle’s night life, with art galleries, cafes, sports bars, bookstores, and one part of the Klondike Gold Rush National Historic Park - the other part being in Skagway, Alaska. Pike Place Fish Market is home to the famous flying fish. Up to 3 feet long salmon are thrown by employees across the counter, much to the delight of spectators. You can also see the market’s unofficial mascot, Rachel the brass pig. She weighs 550 pounds and brings in between 6 and 9 thousand dollars in donations every year to the 100 plus year old market. Take time to enjoy street musicians, including a virtuoso spoon player, jazz, folk, blues music and comedians at the market.

Next on the itinerary is a visit to Seattle’s iconic Space Needle, which was built for the 1962 World’s Fair. At that time it was the tallest structure west of the Mississippi at 605 feet. It was built to withstand earthquakes up to 9.1 magnitude, 220 mph winds, and has 25 lightning rods. It houses a revolving restaurant and an observation deck from which you can see the Olympic and Cascade mountains, Mount Rainier, Mount Baker, and Elliott Bay. The afternoon is taken up with a 3 hour bus trip along Washington’s rugged coastline to Vancouver, British Columbia. Yes, passports are needed for this trip. Dinner is included on the first of your three nights in Vancouver. In the morning a local guide takes you through the 1,000 acres of Stanley Park, Chinatown, and the historic streets of Gastown. Stanley Park has forests of cedar, hemlock, and Sitka spruce, as well as a collection of statues, memorial plaques and totem poles. The historic Gastown now is home to fashion boutiques, coffee shops, art galleries, and native art stores. But it is most famous for it’s steam powered clock. The afternoon is free to explore Canada‘s most cosmopolitan city independently. Perhaps you would wish to take in the Capilano Suspension Bridge, Grouse Mountain, the VanDusen Botanical Garden or Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Garden.

After breakfast the next morning, board the Whistler Mountaineer for a scenic three hour train trip to Whistler, site of several 2010 Olympic Games events. Travel along Howe Sound, pass the Stawamus Chief, the second largest granite monolith in the world, then wind through canyon habitat of bald eagles, climbing 2000 feet for breathtaking 195 feet tall Brandywine Falls, Alpha Lake, and Whistler Village. Return by coach for an included dinner in Vancouver.

The next morning, you will take a ferry ride from Vancouver to Victoria, the historical capital of British Columbia. Included is a city tour of the beautiful harbor district, the incredible parliament building, and a visit to 100 year old Butchart Gardens. You will be captivated by views of its Sunken Gardens, Rose Garden, Japanese Garden, and fountains. During your free time in Victoria, stop at the Empress Hotel. You will spend the night in Victoria, and the Parliament building lit at night is a sight worth seeing.

Day six starts with a ferry trip from Victoria across the Strait of Juan de Fuca to Port Angeles, Washington. Be on the lookout for eagles, gray whales, and otters. You will drive through the glacier carved valleys and temperate rainforest of Olympic National Park before returning to Seattle for your farewell dinner. Schedule your return flight to Phoenix after noon the next day. This and many more land tours are available through Cruise Port Travel, 900 W. Driftwood Dr. Payson.

All about Alaska, Part 3

All about Alaska, Part 3
By Carol Watts Alaska Specialist

Nenana Ice Classic

Last month we looked at the Iditarod Trail and some of the rather unusual activities that you can participate in when visiting Alaska, from the $25,000 Iditarod Trail Sweep tour to the Ice Road Trucker simulator.

Alaskans are very inventive about winter time activities. One unique thing to do is to wager on the exact time that the ice on the Tenana River will break up. It’s called the Nenana Ice Classic, and is run be a non-profit organization that benefits several Alaskan charities. Tickets can be purchased for $2.50 each throughout Alaska, but unfortunately can’t be mailed to the lower 48. Last year’s pay out was $283,723.00! The river “went out” on May 1st, even though the ice measured 42,7 inches thick 8 days earlier on April 23rd. A tripod is placed in the ice on the river with a line attached to a clock tower. When the tripod moves because of ice breaking up, the clock stops at the exact time, and the lucky person with the closest guess wins the jackpot. This has been going on since 1917, and was originally started by surveyors for the Alaskan Railroad. By the way, Nenana, originally an native Athabascan village, is a small town along the Tenana River between Fairbanks and Denali, mile 412 on the Alaskan Railroad, or about 300 miles north of Anchorage. Recently the 90 plus years of statistics on the ice break up have come to the notice of climatologists as one of the world’s most scientific indicators of the effects of global warming. You can see the preparation, celebration, and actual ice break up on You Tube.

The Alaska Railroad

While we can not distribute tickets for the Nenana Ice Classic, we can provide tickets for the Alaska Railroad and any of its 12, 10, 7, 6, or 5 day adventure packages or day tours. If you want to see Alaska independently, or at a more leisurely pace than the 4 day cruise tour add-on, come see us about the Alaska Railroad. Customized packages for pre- or post- cruise land tours can be based from Seward, Whittier, or Anchorage, and include glacier and wildlife viewing cruises and overnight Denali tours including hotel and rail service from Anchorage or Fairbanks. Tours are available for wheelchair travelers or passengers with limited mobility.

The Alaska Railroad is one of America’s last flagstop trains. The route from Talkeetna along the Susitna River and through the Indian River Canyon winds through a 55 mile stretch of wilderness that can only be reached by train. The Hurricane Turn runs Thursday through Sunday round trip from Talkeetna to Hurricane Gulch. You can get off the Hurricane Turn train anywhere along the way and stop the return train with a wave of a flag. Locals have been riding the train to reach their remote cabins or favorite fishing spots this way since 1923. There are three main summer routes: The Denali Star between Fairbanks and Anchorage with stops at Denali and Talkeetna, the Glacier Discovery leaves Anchorage for Whittier, but does not return to Anchorage, and the Coastal Classic which departs Anchorage early am for Seward and returns to Anchorage late evening that same day. By far this is the most scenic route, and the train of most interest for cruise passengers who would rather experience the slightly over 4 hour train ride than a 3 hour bus transfer. Trains run daily in summer (mid-May to mid-September). In the winter, the Aurora Train runs only on weekends between Anchorage and Fairbanks.

Additionally, a roundtrip flight from Fairbanks can be arranged through the Alaska Railroad that will take you above the Arctic Circle for views of the Brooks Range, Gates of the Arctic National Park, and a wilderness outpost landing. Or you can take a one-day guided tour on the rugged Dalton Highway above the Arctic Circle to a trading post across the Yukon River. For this trip you receive an official “Arctic Circle Adventure Certificate.”

The 40 Below Club

Alaskans jokingly say that they have four seasons: June, July, August, and winter. Last year when we did a Princess cruise tour, we became official members of the “40 Below Club.” This attraction, found both in Fairbanks and at the Denali Princess Wilderness Lodge, allows you to experience the extreme cold of the Far North. There are exhibits of how animals adapt, and how to winterize homes and vehicles to function above the Arctic Circle. You can see what happens to soap bubbles in this severe cold. 40 degrees below is the same temperature on the Fahrenheit and Celsius scale. Our official certificate attests that we have “survived life-threatening temperatures of 40 degrees below zero in Alaska and are entitled to full bragging rights as a Real Alaskan.” Needless to say, we didn’t stay too long in the “cold room”.

All About Alaska, Part 2

All About Alaska, Part 2
By Carol Watts Alaska Specialist

Most cruises sail between either Seattle or Vancouver to Seward or Whittier on a north or south bound journey. And while a cruise is the least expensive way to see most ports in Southeast Alaska, and the only way to experience Glacier Bay National Park and Hubbard Glacier, this is just a small park of a large and fascinating state. (Skagway is the only port in Southeast Alaska that can be reached by road. All other ports, Juneau, Ketchika, and Sitka can only be reached by ship or airplane.) My next trip to Alaska will be a 7 or 10 day land tour. Of course I could plan a completely independent trip with a rental car or RV, but a tour allows me to enjoy group price breaks on hotels and excursions, a knowledgeable tour guide, driver, and baggage handling. If you have only seen Alaska from a cruise ship, you might want to consider a longer land tour, as opposed to a 4-5 day cruisetour.

You arrive in Anchorage and transfer to your hotel after 6 plus hours of actual flight time, not counting lay over time in Seattle. The first day aboard an air conditioned luxury motor coach takes you through Palmer and the Mat-Su Valley, known for huge vegetables grown in the nearly 24 hours of summer daylight. From the Tahneta Pass you have wonderful views of Matanuska and Worthington Glacier. You have a photo stop at Bridal Veil Falls before a two night stay in Valdez, a commercial and sport fishing town called the “Switzerland of Alaska.”

The next morning you will cruise on Prince William Sound for an up-close look at the 3 mile long face of the Columbia Glacier. View marine wildlife like seals, sea otters, and whales from your excursion ship and see the southern terminus of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline where crude oil from Prudhoe Bay is loaded on supertankers. The following morning you will journey to Delta Junction, the northern terminus of the ALCAN Highway, built during World War II as a supply road for the interior Alaska military and airfields. You will see a historical homestead, museum, and original roadhouse before heading west on the Alaska Highway to Fairbanks.

You will spend two nights in Fairbanks, Alaska’s second largest city after Anchorage. You will visit the El Dorado Gold Mine and head down the mines permafrost tunnel via the narrow gauge railroad. You can try your luck panning for gold before boarding the sternwheeler Discovery for a trip on the Chena and Tanana Rivers. Stop at Chena Indian Village and learn about the native Athabascan culture. The day ends with a visit to an Iditarod sled dog camp to meet the mushers and their dogs, and learn about breeding and training for the race.

The next morning you board the Alaska Railroad for a scenic ride through the wilderness to Denali National Park. The afternoon is free to explore the park’s visitors center with its diorama and award winning natural history film. You can visit the snack bar and book store, or catch a free shuttle to see the park’s sled dogs, still used by rangers to patrol the park during the winter. That evening you will enjoy food, song, and dance at the Denali Dinner Theater. The following morning is free for an optional excursion, perhaps river rafting on the Nenana or flight seeing to Mt. McKinley. That afternoon you will enjoy a Natural History Tour into Denali National Park, keeping an eye out for moose, caribou, brown bears, ptarmigan, and Dall sheep. Fall comes early to Denali, and if your trip is scheduled for mid to late August, you will see the taiga and tundra landscape dressed in beautiful golds, reds, and greens.

The following morning you ride along the park and stop at the Iditarod Headquarters, home of the famous sled dog race. You arrive in Anchorage in time for a city sightseeing tour before your hosted dinner. A full day tomorrow features a beautiful drive along Turnagain Arm to Seward, and a cruise in Kenai Fjords National Park to view more wildlife and calving glaciers. You travel back to Anchorage for a second night stay before flying home .

This is a leisurely paced tour with four 2 night hotel stays in Valdez, Fairbanks, Denali, and Anchorage. Daily breakfasts, 2 lunches, and 4 dinners are included in the tour. If you haven’t already cruised to Southeast Alaska and the Inside Passage, a 7 day cruise can be added. This land tour starts at $2519 per person, with the optional 7 day cruise from $560 per person. Airfare is additional.

The shorter and less expensive (starting at $1389 per person) 7 day tour substitutes a cruise to Portage Glacier for Kenai Fjords, and skips Valdez, the gold mine in Fairbanks and the dinner theater in Denali, but still includes an Alaska Railroad trip from Fairbanks to Denali. You have three 2 night stays in Anchorage, Fairbanks and Denali, and the option of adding a 7 day cruise at the end. Seven daily breakfasts, 6 lunches, and 7 dinners are included. Airfare is additional. If these tours are too long for your taste, shorter tours through our many independent suppliers can be arranged alone or in addition to a cruise.