We cruised to Alaska in May on Celebrity. Normally, we sail Royal Caribbean, but I wanted to see Sitka and Victoria and that was why we selected Celebrity. I was not happy with that cruise line and would not sail with them again as it appeared that most of the staff was in training and service, food, and entertainment were not good, which was a surprise.
Alaska was amazing and we did not take a tour at every port. We sailed out of Vancouver, a cruise terminal that was not prepared for three cruise ships to be in port. It took 4 1/2 hours to board. Vancouver, however, was a very nice city; but, if I had known that we would spend most of the day trying to board our ship, we would have done our sightseeing differently.
Our first port, which is probably the first port of any Alaska cruise, was Ketchikan. We had a delightful day just walking around, going to Creek Street, and visiting the Totem Heritage Center. We also did not take a tour in Sitka, but we did stop in at the Sitka Pioneers' Home, which is an assisted living center right in town. They welcome visitors and with that, shopping, and picture taking, it filled most of the day.
We did whale watching and the glacier in Juneau, the White Pass Railway in Skagway, and Butchart Gardens in Victoria. Not too expensive and gave us an opportunity to see more of Alaska.
Our cruise ended in Seattle and we did a tour that included the Space Needle, Pike Market, and many areas of the city.
We did meet people that were on the Noordam, which I think is Holland America, and they said it was just okay--sort of how we felt about Celebrity.
When we arrived at our hotel in Seattle, I met several people who had taken their Alaska cruise on Royal Caribbean, and they had excellent food and great entertainment that included ice skating and Dancing with the Stars. On Celebrity, we had a talk on the Titanic and a band from Victoria. Definitely not what I was expecting.
I will say that no matter the cruise line or ship, Alaska is a wonderful experience. The food and entertainment, while I had hoped for better, were not a reason not to go on any cruise line. Most of the people who I met on the cruise had taken the Alaska cruise many times and they did different tours or no tours each time. I think to see Alaska for the first time, that a cruise is probably the way to go. We are already thinking about going back but not on a cruise. The people are lovely and the scenery is spectacular.
The next time that I hear salt and ice together, it better be in a margarita!
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