We just got back from the second (and most likely last) of our amazing trips for this year. We spent a week on an Alaska cruise and an extra couple of days visiting Seattle. We had an awesome time, and I would highly recommend this trip for anyone looking for a family-friendly vacation.
We booked our cruise on the Norwegian Pearl, sailing round-trip out of Seattle. A few things influenced this decision. I've heard that a one-way itinerary is the best way to get the most bang for your buck on an Alaska cruise, but with kids, a round-trip itinerary is much more convenient. We chose Seattle (instead of Vancouver), because Violet is still young enough to fly free domestically. For us, seeing Glacier Bay was a priority. After doing lots (and lots) of research, we settled on Norwegian because it fit all the criteria and is also pretty well-known within cruising circles for being very family friendly.
The Pearl is a beautiful ship. One of the biggest attractions, at least for me as the mother of small children, was the big water slide and pool area. It boggles the mind the things that we humans are able to think up: a water slide on a ship? Brilliant.
We flew into Seattle on Saturday night and spent the night in a hotel near the airport. The next morning, my parents flew in. The car they hired brought us all from the airport area to the pier, where we checked in and boarded the ship. Our little family booked a mini-suite with a balcony, and my parents booked the inner cabin across the hall.
Our stateroom was very comfortable. Aside from the balcony, one of the best things about it was that it had a blackout curtain separating the sleeping area from a little sitting area so that the adults could still have the lights on after the kiddos went to bed. The only downside to our room was that it was located directly under the Kids Club, which was open until 10:30 PM. Needless to say, it was pretty loud while we were all trying to sleep.
That first evening, we basically hung around the pool area, watching Seattle recede into the distance as our boat set sail. The ship put on a welcome aboard party, and Violet had a great time walking all around with the wind whipping through her hair and dancing to the music. Jack decided to try to the pool, but by then it was getting too cold for him. We had our first of many buffet dinners in the Garden Cafe and then settled in for the night.
The next day was an at-sea day. We signed Jack up for the kids club, and he seemed to have a really great time. The one thing I will say that gave me pause about the kids club, though, is that they are very strict about it being an "adult-free zone." Meaning no parents are allowed to even set foot in the club at any time. This was a little disconcerting for me, because of course I wanted to make sure that Jack was all right and having fun. Any time we went to check on him, though, it was a major deal for them to call the room where he was and have someone report back to us how he was doing. We couldn't see him, and if we wanted to talk to him, they had to pull him out and bring him to the front where we were. It really does seem like they could do a better job with that.
While Jack was doing his thing, the grown-ups and Violet did theirs. I found the gym. My mom went to a ballroom dancing class, cheered on by my dad, Tom, and Violet. Then they all stayed and watched other people play bingo. After we picked Jack up for lunch, he and I got to play a little Wii tennis, which he loved. That afternoon, my mom and I attended a wine and cheese tasting while Tom took the kids to a cupcake decorating workshop. And then Tom and I went to a martini tasting before dinner. After dinner, we attended a show called "Oh What a Night!: A Musical Tribute to Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons." I love the Four Seasons, and it was a really fun show.
We sailed into Juneau the next day. Jack spent the morning in the kids club while the rest of us explored the ship some more. The gym was packed, so I got my exercise that day by walking around the promenade deck. Juneau was misty and rainy when we came into port. Our excursion for that day was going on a whale watching tour, so we all bundled up in our rain gear and headed out.
Our whale watching tour was through a company called Orca Enterprises. Even though they are called "Orca," the tour guide told us that orcas are usually only sighted 10 percent of the time. It must have been our lucky day, because we saw a pod of orcas within a few minutes of the start of our trip. We chased them for awhile, and then we spotted a group of humpback whales on the other side of the boat. They were bubble net feeding. I had never heard of this phenomenon prior to doing research for this cruise, but here is a good definition:
[Bubble net feeding] is a co-operative feeding behavior of Humpback whales that is seen in very few places... A group of whales working together will dive under schools of herring, one whale will swim in a circle while blowing bubbles under the herring. When the bubbles rise they form a net and scare the herring into a tight ball in the center. The whales then come up through the middle with their mouths open, capturing large amounts food. from http://www.alaskapassages.com/bubblnet.htm
Day 4 saw us docked in Skagway. This was going to be a busy day for us. My parents had been on an Alaska cruise before, and my mom really recommended that we take the White Pass and Yukon Route Scenic Railway train ride. Even though I knew the scenery was going to be beautiful, I had a feeling that Jack in particular wasn't going to be able to sit through a nearly four-hour train ride without getting antsy. We brought along our laptop and a couple of DVDs, as well as snacks, to help keep the kids occupied.
The scenery was indeed spectacular. Although it was cold, Violet, Tom, and I had a good time standing on the outside platform taking pictures and all the natural beauty. Violet loved the wind and the noise, and she laughed and laughed throughout. We got to the end of the journey up the mountain and then turned around. A few minutes into our descent, the train stopped. We were told that it would just be a couple of minutes before we started up again. Well, it turned out to be a lot longer than that.
The two engines that were pulling us for some reason stopped working - we never did find out what went wrong - so the train behind us coupled up (I know all this terminology from Jack's Thomas videos) to us and pushed all 15 of our train's passenger cars down the mountain, all the while pulling its own 11 cars. When we got to an area of the railroad that had a siding, the three engines of the train behind us came around the front of our train's two non-functional engines so that they could pull us all down the mountain. This new train comprised three working engines, two non-working engines, and 26 passenger cars. Our tour guide said this was the first time in her eight years of working for the railway that she had seen such a thing.
This entire adventure added an extra two hours to our excursion. This was worrisome on a few different levels. We actually had another excursion planned for later in the afternoon, and obviously we didn't want to miss it. Also, the kids were starting to get tired of being on the train. Thank goodness for our DVDs. There was something strangely poetic about seeing Jack watch a Thomas movie on a train. Unfortunately, ours were not the only children on our particular car, and one little boy was very vocally unhappy about being stuck on a non-moving train. The one good thing I can say about that whole situation is that I was so thankful it wasn't either of my children screaming for 20 minutes.
When we finally got off the train, we dashed back to the boat to grab a quick lunch and to get ready for our next excursion. The next one was the one I had been most looking forward to but was also the most nervous about. We had booked a helicopter/dog sledding tour. A helicopter was going to take us to a dog sledding camp on a glacier, where we could meet the doggies, pet some puppies, and then take a ride on a real dog sled. Jack didn't love the idea of getting in a helicopter, but I was able to convince to try it with the prospect of getting to meet puppies. We bundled ourselves up in the snow gear that I was able to borrow from friends and headed to the helicopter company's headquarters.
Imagine our disappointment when we arrived and were told that this tour had been canceled due to poor visibility. I knew this excursion was the one that is most often canceled due to weather, but it had been a beautiful day and I was hopeful we would be able to go. In exchange, the company offered to take us on a Glacier Discovery tour that would involve a 20 minute each way helicopter ride and a 40-minute hike on a glacier. Well, with no doggies to see, this excursion immediately lost all its appeal for Jack. He refused to go. My dad also didn't feel like he could go because he had blown out his knee a few weeks prior to the cruise, and he didn't want to risk injuring it further. I wish my mom had still been able to go, but she didn't want to leave my dad and the kids. In the end, only Tom and I went.
I have to admit, I really don't like heights at all. As much as I was trying to convince Jack to go on the dog sledding tour, I personally didn't love the idea of a helicopter ride myself. But I felt this was one of those once in a lifetime experiences that I would always regret not doing. As the helicopter was lifting off, I was actually secretly glad that Jack had opted not to come. I was getting a little freaked out, and I think he would have been terrified.
There were two helicopters on this tour, and the pilots chose to fly over the Sawtooth Mountains. We were behind the other helicopter, and it was a little scary to watch some of the maneuvers the lead helicopter was making. I wondered if what we were doing would have looked equally as frightening to a helicopter behind us. At one point, the lead helicopter got really close to a hanging glacier in order to let the passengers get a good look at it. I almost had to cover my eyes, because it looked for all the world as if it was going to crash into the cliff. And then I felt our helicopter make the same move. Admittedly, it didn't feel as scary as it looked. When we finally landed, the helicopter in front banked a little bit on its side before it landed. Again, it looked much scarier than it felt when our helicopter did the same thing just a few minutes later.
We landed on Meade Glacier. It was beautiful. The ice of a glacier is a beautiful shade of blue that you never see anywhere else. The pilot told us it's because the ice absorbs all the colors on the spectrum except blue. You could hear a river rushing under the glacier and see the water through some deep crevasses. This was another time I was glad that we didn't end up bringing the kids. I would not have enjoyed myself nearly as much if I had to worry about either child falling through one of those crevasses into the rushing water beneath. As you can imagine, the water tasted amazingly clean and cold with just the slightest mineral-y taste. I wished I had brought a bottle with me to bring back some of the water.
The 40 minutes we were allotted for this tour went by way too fast. On the way back, the helicopters took a different route to return to their offices. Whether it was because I was more experienced by then or just exhilarated from the glacier walk, I was a lot more relaxed on the return flight than I was coming out. However, I've decided I really don't need to take another ride in a helicopter again. I'm glad I did it that one time, but I think that will do me just fine for quite a long while.
That night, my parents and I watched the first showing of the Second City's comedy/improv act while Tom put the kids to bed. Tom was able to catch the second showing later that evening. I've heard a lot about this comedy group over years. I'm glad I saw them, but I don't know that I'll be rushing out to see them again.
Still reading? I still have three more days left of the cruise and then two days in Seattle. Stay tuned.
As always, a note about my photos, or lack thereof: Blogger is so cumbersome about uploading photos that I've pretty much stopped bothering. Is Wordpress any better? There are more pictures of this trip than anyone would care to see on Facebook.
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