Alaska Family Cruise 2023

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We managed to find a cheap $700 Alaska cruise deal so fit in an extra summer vacation this year. The cruise only went one way so we used Aeroplan points to fly up to Anchorage Alaska. We got there a day early which gave us time to look around town and get a special bus out to Whittier with a bonus stop – the Alaska Wildlife Park.

But to back up a bit, we had a short 3 hour flight to Anchorage, Alaska. We stayed at a cheap hotel, Ingra House with creaky beds, a separate washroom and tons of security – oh well. We walked into town down 6th street, past the cemetery, the Sheraton, the museum, the mall and made it to Resolution Park (which was under construction). We followed a trail around the coast and saw a cool rooftop patio. We went over to the 49th State Pub and put our names down for a 1.5 hour wait. No worries, as we fit in a sushi dinner and large Asahi beer first. Perfect timing to arrive back at the patio for cider, a beer flight, a whiskey flight, a larger loaf and mac & cheese. It was after 9pm on the patio but still light out. We all got all our Alaska souvenirs at a gift store on the way back to the hotel.

The next morning, we headed out for a walk to see Ship Creek. We didn’t see any fish but there were lots of fishermen on the banks. We also saw the dam and walked the trail to the Alaska Railroad Train Station. We came back up the hill, past tent city and into downtown. We had breakfast at the Crêperie, then headed back to the hotel, checked out, and took our bags to the Sheraton for our shuttle pick-up. The restaurant was closed so we got Arby’s from Uber Eats.

The shuttle picked us up on time and we stopped at several hotels to get other guests. We headed south along the highway and stopped near Beluga Point. We looked out at the water and the mountains. Next stop was the Alaska Wildlife Park where we saw many animals – bison, elk, bears, moose, wolves, porcupine, but couldn’t see the lynx. We drove on to Portage and took more photos, then took a long tunnel to Whittier where we saw our cruise ship – The Majestic Princess. After taking our bags to a bag check, and waiting in line to check in, we got our medallions (i.e. credit cards for the boat) and went aboard. We found our room but had to wait for our bags. Fortunately, they let me in the Symphony Restaurant in shorts. I had prawns, seared cod and baked Alaska, then we headed over to the Tahiti drink event. We put Riley to bed and headed to the outside top deck to wave goodbye to Whittier. We attended the Canada Day Celebration on the Piazza where they played Bryan Adams, Alanis Morrissette and Spirit of the West. Cloudy tonight so no chance for northern lights.

We woke up and went for a small breakfast before going to see the ship naturalist present on whales. Then it was time for Riley to get a swim in the pool while we read, then headed back to the theatre for a glacier talk. I spotted some whales as we approached Hubbard Glacier. We dressed up for a formal meal and saw the the Sweet Soul show that was pretty good. Early morning tomorrow for Glacier Bay!

Today was a big wildlife spotting day! We arrived at the entrance to Cross Sound around 8am in the morning. We were up on deck to watch a whale mother and calf playing near shore. We also saw lots of sea otters and a humpback whale near the entrance to Glacier Bay. We saw a Minke whale briefly near Barlett Cove. The rangers came aboard to give presentations and we saw the underwater one. We spotted mountain goats at Gloony Knob and another Minke whale going towards the glacier. We stopped for an hour at Marjorie Glacier, saw some ice carve off and a bald eagle sitting on an iceberg. Riley went for a swim in the pool. I managed to get a video of the larger carving at Marjorie Glacier when most people had given up. We also stopped at John Hopkins Glacier.

There was no party on the boat for US Independence Day. We went on shore at the Icy Strait Point tourist centre. We skip all the costly expeditions but do catch the free gondola to the Cannery. We walk along the beach, see some First Nation houses, then start walking along to the nearby town of Hoonah. We see a sea otter, some bald eagles, lots of brightly coloured starfish, sea cucumbers, mussels, ravens, and slugs on the way to Hoonah. We get within 30 feet of a bald eagle at one point. We wandered through town and at the edge, saw some people looking across the river. There was a mother and bear cub a long way away in the distance. We grabbed some snacks and walked back to the Cannery, had half a crab at the Crab Shack. Riley got mini-doughnuts and Ann had chilli. Then we walked along the beach and forest trail, spotting an eagle nest and arrived back at Icy Strait Point. We got a tender back to the cruise ship as two other cruise ships had taken the berths. We tried the buffet for dinner and Riley spent two hours at the pool. I go see the ‘Fantastic Journey’ show. We had wifi and cell coverage so I checked work emails and called Mum and Dad. I woke up at 2am to see if the northern lights were visible but still no luck.

The next day, we had breakfast and got off the ferry in Juneau. We walked along the boardwalk into town and find the bus station. We had to run to catch the first bus after getting groceries at Foodlandia. We took the bus out to Dredge Lake Road then hike 2 kms along the Powerline Trail to the visitor centre. We had a great view of Mendenhall Glacier in the distance. Then we hiked the Nugget Falls Trail to see the great waterfall. We ate our grocery lunch and took a leisurely walk back along the Steep Creek Trail, then the main road to the bus stop. The bus took 45 mins and $5 for three of us back into town. We saw the First Nations Veterans Memorial, Saint Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church, the Alaskan State Capitol Building, some bookstores, Ann’s coffee store and wandered through the tourist district. I got a half hour at the Red Dog Saloon. I managed three beers and a ‘duck fart’ shot, chatted with a couple from Sacramento, took a photo with Wyatt Earp’s pistol and had a generally good time. I met Ann and Riley afterwards and we headed back to the cruise ship. I took Riley swimming in the glorious sunshine, then we headed to a formal dinner of seafood puff pastry and rack of lamb, followed by an ice cream sundae. It was our best formal meal yet! Afterwards, we went for a walk, spotted over a dozen whales and Riley had a second ice cream.

We woke up a bit later today and took a tender into Ketchikan. There was not much to do there. We crossed the bridge over Ketchikan River and walked the shoreline / boardwalks as far as we could go. We came back to Creek Street where the ‘houses’ were all perched over the river. We saw salmon swimming upstream and then a harbour seal swam up chasing them. Due to the low tide, there was not a lot of room in the river and he was easily catching them. We stopped at a 1950s diner for Riley to have a reindeer hot dog. We also stopped for a drink at the Arctic Bar, home of the happy bears. Back on the cruise ship, we had steak and lobster at the Symphony Restaurant. Riley and I played a manners game with Pokemon card rewards. We came up to the pool for Riley to have a swim. We also saw whale spouts on either side of the ship.

Our last day was an at sea day. Unfortunately, the ship did not take the inside passage per the itinerary, but went around Vancouver Island in a fog. At noon, we saw the Dolphin presentation, then Riley went swimming. I saw a white fish that may have been an Ocean Sun fish. Ann and I went to High Tea in the afternoon. There was a Baked Alaska parade at dinner. In the evening I saw whale spouts, a Canadian navy ship and a US submarine. It was an active waterway. I gave my Dad a call as we were rounding Victoria and had cell coverage.

The cruise ship arrived at Canada Place the next morning. After breakfast, we carried our bags off, went through customs and caught the skytrain to New Westminster, then got an Uber home. Nice to be returned practically to our doorstep.

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