Our first cruise ever, to Alaska (May 2019) - updated through Day 6

So far my favorite itinerary by far was Norway. We were lucky enough to book the Inaugural 9 night sailing in 2015- also on the Magic. It was absolutely gorgeous and amazing. We've sailed all four ships, concierge and non- and there isn't a cruise that's come close. We're looking forward to our TA because we haven't been to Spain yet, and we're looking for some downtime to knock around on the ship.

We've had really rough waters a couple times that I can remember, once on the Wonder where we were skirting a hurricane, the North Sea heading back to Copenhagen, and on our British Isles Cruise. The waves in the North Sea were mammoth, but I remember during the hurricane being kept up all night because the boat was rocking hard enough that the closet doors kept slamming open and closed.
Norway looks like an amazing cruise to do! That seems a logical one for us to try sometime, since we enjoyed Alaska so much. We were just amazed at how much we enjoyed the time just enjoying the amenities and entertainment and dining on the ship... I can see how no matter where a Disney cruise goes, we would probably love it.

Yikes about that movement you described, though!

Animator's is always my favorite, but I really enjoyed Tiana's Place as well!
I can see why. Animator's was excellent!

Loving the report so far, especially seeing your Skagway adventure because you did exactly what we had originally planned to do, but we changed our minds about two weeks before the trip and picked something I thought would keep our little ones more entertained (ziplining + glassblowing). It's great to still get to see the parts that we missed out on. Emerald Lake looked beautiful.

Thanks for sharing that tidbit about the missing cold-setting on the washing machine. That's so odd! I hate the thought of doing laundry while on vacation, but we just booked a trip on the Magic for next summer that will have us gone for a while and I may have to break down and give in. But cold-setting is a must for me!!!
Thanks so much for reading! :goodvibes

It sounds like you chose great excursions. Those both looked like good options to me, too. My oldest son would have loved the ziplining, I bet. We didn't really tell him it was an option, because my husband wanted to do something together that everyone would like.

Regarding the laundry, what happened exactly was that I was hurrying, so I just started a load on a setting I thought was most likely cold (I think it was "delicates") and after the cycle had started I looked closer at the cycle descriptions and realized it wasn't all cold, so I tried to cancel the wash. It would not let me stop it, so I went to Guest Services and they had someone come up to try to help, but he told me it was not possible to cancel it. So, I just had to hope the laundry in progress would not suffer by being washed that way. It all turned out okay and the clothes looked fine when I folded them later. When I washed additional loads, I looked closely at the tags an as much as possible did not wash "cold only" items.
 
Day 6 (May 25, 2019) – Ketchikan, Alaska

Saturday morning started early, with an 8am character breakfast reservation in Animator’s Palate. One of many reasons I had been looking forward to this meal was the special hats made from napkins that I had heard so much about. The menu was bright and festive.
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The meal began with an assortment of pastries, muffins, and croissants placed in the center of the table. I captured a chocolate chip muffin. Yum.
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Glancing at the menu, my choice was obvious. Mickey’s Delight (Chocolate Chip Pancake, Fresh Fruit Salad, and a Mickey waffle).
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This is the Very Very French Toast (Batter-soaked Brioche griddled until golden brown, served with Whipped Butter and Cinnamon Sugar) with Pork Link Sausage on the side.
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Sam - or should I say "Captain Jack Sparrow?" - ordered two entrees: the French Toast and DCL Express (Scrambled Eggs, Crisp Bacon, Grilled Sausage, Hash Brown, and Grilled Tomato). He adored his hat. He smiled all through the meal and even asked for pictures at the end, before reluctantly leaving it at the table.
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Kevin had an elaborate hat, too. He was an Indian Chief, they declared. Jeff was Peter Pan.
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And we even had another Peter Pan. The hat went well with Benji's green shirt.
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We enjoyed eating our breakfast while the characters stopped by to say hello.
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Mickey is always our favorite! (I am supposed to be Jasmine.)
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When we finished breakfast, we headed outside for some shuffleboard on Deck 4. We enjoyed it so much that we played for about an hour. Chip ‘n’ Dale stopped by while we were playing and joined us. What a fun surprise!
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It was exciting seeing Ketchikan come into view as we were outside, playing.
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Eventually we had to stop. We paused at the room where I found the tip receipts and envelopes waiting for us, as well as a reminder that clocks would be moving forward one hour overnight, all of these things cruel and unwelcome reminders that our cruise was nearing an end.

For lunch, we grabbed pizza from Pinocchio’s and shawarma from Pete’s Boiler Bites and found a nice table outside. At 11:30 we found the gangway on Deck 4 midship and disembarked.

Normally Ketchikan is known to be a rainy city, but it was beautiful the day we visited! The sunny weather was perfect for the excursion we had planned that would begin at noon: The Bering Sea Crab Fishermen’s Tour. We exited the ship and were greeted by a friendly person holding a sign with the name of the tour. Several other people were positioned along the path to the boat we would be spending the next several hours in. It was an easy walk, and there was no way to get lost.
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The Aleutian Ballad is a 107 foot vessel that was used for fishing previously (as seen on the show “The Deadliest Catch”), but it has since been transformed and today accommodates large groups of tourists. The main, lower deck offers sheltered stadium seating, and there is additional seating in the open air on an upper level.

During our adventure, the crew shared many entertaining and educational personal stories about their lives as commercial fishermen. Our boat cruised around, pausing at various locations where the fishermen would haul up barrel pots and show us the catch of the day. We saw a variety of creatures, almost all of which we would have an opportunity to hold for ourselves.

One highlight of the outing was not anything from the traps at all. At one of the first stops we were treated to an amazing number of bald eagles flying around the boat. It was incredible to see. We paused for a long time and just enjoyed their constant flying and diving for fish. Most of us excitedly snapped photos. Everyone was in awe. Our guides wisely recommended putting our cameras/phones down and just enjoying them.
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Now onto the traps. First, they brought up box crabs.
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Snow crabs were next.
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I learned about a difference between prawns (pictured) and shrimp: prawns are meat eaters.
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I think the starfish was my favorite item to hold.
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Golden Alaskan king crabs and giant Pacific octopuses were held up for us to see.
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During the tour, there were hot beverages available, so I grabbed a coffee and the others enjoyed hot chocolate. There was also a store onboard that had souvenirs for purchase. Our son Benji got a nice polo shirt with the ship’s name stitched onto it. Toward the end of the tour, one of the friendly fishermen announced that the women in their group had been hard at work preparing a snack for us to enjoy, implying that it would be some delicious sea food sample. We had to laugh when they dramatically entered with a massive box of little bags of goldfish crackers for us. For me, that was just fine!

We were offered a couple of fun photo opportunities:

Throwing the hook
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...and a photo with the crew.
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I’d highly recommend this tour, especially for families. The crew was friendly; the ride was smooth and pretty; and the marine life and eagles were incredible to see. We had a wonderful time.

When we got back to town, it was exciting to see this view of the Wonder!
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It was a little disappointing that the area around the iconic Ketchikan sign was blocked off by wire fencing due to work being done.
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We were staying at the Pan Pacific on May 20, 2019 ( we had disembarked from the DVC Member Cruise that day) and I just HAD to take a picture from the CL as the Wonder was leaving....

Glad you had such a great cruise!

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We explored Ketchikan after the tour ended. We went to a shop called Ketchicandies that was recommended on the “Good Morning Disney Wonder” show. It took some extra searching, because - as was the case with the crepe place we were looking for in Juneau – the shop had moved recently. We got a box of a variety of different chocolates that we chose from the cases, as well as a couple bags of chocolate-covered Oreos.
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We of course had to see Creek Street, because it is so picturesque. My family photos with the sign are not well composed, because they really should have included many more of the colorful structures to the left. Whoops!
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We didn’t spend too much time in this area. We found the (former) brothel theme a little awkward (especially with three teen sons) and we are not big shoppers, so just didn’t need to linger long in the many shops that fill the area today. Honestly, maybe it is partly because it was our first cruise, but whenever we spent time ashore the ship just pulled us back after a while. We loved what we saw in Alaska generally. It is such a beautiful state with much to see, but we just felt so at home on the Wonder that we didn't want to stay away too terribly long.

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We wandered back to the ship by 4:45pm. Kevin and Benji went to Vibe and then to a “Sports Deck Fun” event with the group on Deck 10. They played dodgeball.

We were excited to see the evening show in the Walt Disney Theatre: The Magic and Illusion of Kyle Knight and Mistie. It was a good show, but unfortunately my viewing of it was interrupted. No, I didn’t fall asleep this time! The show was early enough that I was wide awake (it started at 6:15). The problem was that someone sitting behind me spilled beer on the back of my hair and shirt. It was a dad who had a child on his lap who was probably squirming around and somehow caused the drink in his hand to get jostled. I was soaked, so had to leave.

Back in our stateroom I changed my clothes and then dried my hair and re-curled it. Whoa… alcohol-soaked hair does not smell good after cooking it with a curling iron! No, it really does not. I obviously should have washed it, but I was too focused on hurrying back for the end of the magic show, so wasn’t thinking straight.

After the show, the man who spilled the drink made a point of coming over to me and kindly apologizing again. I was glad to have a chance to connect about it, because I would not have wanted him to worry about it or think it was a big deal (I had left quickly when it happened, so we didn't really talk then beyond a mumbled "it's no problem" or something). He was on vacation, too, so I wanted him to enjoy his evening! I of course said it was okay. It was just an accident, and accidents happen.

We checked out the Marvel and Frozen areas in the Oceaneer Lab, because they were having an Open House. I had been a little sad that the Marvel offerings were in an area of the ship not normally available to my sons, but honestly after seeing them found it okay. They were targeted toward younger guests and the guys didn't mind at all. It was still nice to take a peek. I got a couple of them to even play a quick game of Frozen-themed "Spot It!" Not a small achievement.
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We were staying at the Pan Pacific on May 20, 2019 ( we had disembarked from the DVC Member Cruise that day) and I just HAD to take a picture from the CL as the Wonder was leaving....

Glad you had such a great cruise!

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Thank you for the photo! I bet you enjoyed staying at the Pan Pacific! Looks like a lovely hotel, and certainly can’t beat the view/location. I trust you enjoyed your cruise as well? :flower:
 


The twins then went back to Vibe and the rest of us participated in the Silent DJ Party in Azure. Then we were off to “Who Wants to be a Mouseketeer?” in the D Lounge. At first we liked it, but then the game slowed way down (the sweet cast members were helping some younger guests correct their wrong answers, which took lots of hinting). We moved along, and paused in the room before dinner, where we found this fun crab waiting for us and everything looking great.
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We stepped out onto the verandah to enjoy the view.
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Dinner was in Triton’s. It was the Captain’s Gala Dinner.
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Kevin and Sam had the king crab and liked it. Sam said tasted like lobster.

I started with the Aged Prosciutto appetizer (served with Sun-dried Tomatoes, Parmesan Cheese, and Roasted Garlic).
Next was the Beefsteak Tomato and Vidalia Onion Salad (with Baby Greens, Spring Onions, and a Cabernet Wine Vinaigrette), pictured below.
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My main course was the Fettuccine with Parmesan Crusted Chicken (Chicken encrusted in Parmesan Cheese, with Sweet Peppers, and Mushrooms in a Cheddar Cheese Sauce). Very good. Yeah, I know it isn't adventurous, but I don't do seafood.

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Sam and Jeff had the Oven-baked Lobster Tail (with Sun-dried Tomato, Lemon Pesto Mash, and Roasted Asparagus). David kindly cut Sam’s lobster tail apart so they would be easier to handle. Sam commented that the lobster tasted like crab.
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And here is their second entrée: Roasted Red Snapper (served on a bed of Fennel, Olives, Sweet Peppers, and Yukon Gold Potato Ragout with Saffron Broth).
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We managed to save a little room for dessert. The Captain’s Table Sundae (Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream topped with Chocolate Sauce, Whipped Cream, and crunchy Meringue) was delicious.
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Beside it was the Raspberry Vanilla Crème Brûlée (with Lemon Madeleines). Not thrilled with that one.

We got some photos taken in the atrium. I think it was kind of fun that this enabled us to get a clean photo with the Ketchikan sign (without the fencing up).
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This shot cracks me up. The brothers hug all the time like this.
;)
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We saw “So You Think You Know Your Family” at 10pm in the D Lounge. It was fantastic. Derrell is such an entertaining host and had us all laughing. We enjoyed everything he was a part of during the cruise.

After the show, we grabbed ice water at the beverage station and went to our room to go to bed. I love this painting of the Wonder that was on the way.

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We did the same exact excursion in Skagway! I'm honestly surprised we didn't run into you guys but maybe it's because we drove straight to Michele's dog camp instead of stopping on the way up at the sights. We stopped on the way down instead, while the little one slept. Even with the sort of misty rainy day the views from her camp were just incredible. We would absolutely rent a green jeep again if we go back to Skagway. We didn't drive all the way to Emerald Lake because our kids were getting cold and tired. That's so cool that you got to play shuffleboard with Chip and Dale! We did the meet and greet with them by the Disney Theater on the last day and my little one still talks about it. We didn't go to any of the variety acts (caught up on movies instead, since we don't have a movie theater where we live) but they look great! Maybe next time.
 
You convinced is to do the diy jeep tour!! Thanks for the review! It was fantastic!
 
Here’s my shot with a little better sunlight. Your photo only missed a little of the color. Taken about the same time of the year as your trip (May 19 or so). We drove all the way to Whitehorse and had lunch there. The dog sled visit looks fun.

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I’ve enjoyed your TR; it brings back memories of the various cruises I’ve done in AK. And gives me some ideas for new excursions for a possible future AK cruise (hoping for 2025 or 2026.
 
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Hi, I was on your cruise! Same dining rotation too we just had early seating because my two boys are 3 and 7. Enjoying following along with your TR, it makes me want to take this cruise again when mine are teenagers, assuming the glaciers are still around.

What excursions did you do and how did the kids like them? I'm dreaming of an Alaskan cruise maybe in 2023 (we'll be cruising by then, right?) when our kids will be 4 and 7.
 
What excursions did you do and how did the kids like them? I'm dreaming of an Alaskan cruise maybe in 2023 (we'll be cruising by then, right?) when our kids will be 4 and 7.

On Glacier day, we did the Glacier Explorer tour by trading off the kids. I suspected my kids would whine about being cold (Juneau proved me right about that) and I didn't want to be stuck inside missing the glaciers on such an expensive excursion. My husband went first while I took the kids to meet Minnie in her Alaska outfit, and I went second. This was my favorite excursion of the trip.

In Vancouver we rented bikes including a double seater for my eldest and husband and one with a bike trailer for me and my youngest to bike around Stanley park. That was so much fun. We also visited the aquarium, which was just OK, and the suspension bridge park, which is awesome if you get there bright and early before the crowds. At that park, my eldest enjoyed completing challenges to get a special free explorer pin. We also did breakfast with the bears at Grouse mountain, which was great because we never did luck into a bear sighting in the wild during our cruise. We watched the lumberjack show at Grouse mountain which I imagine is quite similar to the one they do in Ketchikan, because we had other plans for Ketchikan. We took my eldest to see the Soaring above Canada or whatever it's called, which was nice.

In Skagway we rented a green jeep and drove it to the summer dog sled camp. It was cold and raining but the views were amazing. My eldest got to try his hand at gold panning there too. I packed some snacks in my Dreams Unlimited tote which kept the kids happy for the drive. The kids slept a bit on the drive back, then after lunch on the Wonder we did a helicopter glacier excursion. Originally we had hoped to do the dog sledding but it was too cloudy, so we went for the glacier walk one instead. The kids really enjoyed it especially getting to drink glacier water straight from the source.

In Juneau we did a whale watching tour on the Scania. No one else booked with them that day so we lucked into a private excursion at a fraction of the price. Not that I would have minded others on board, but that day my eldest whined about the cold a lot and I would have hated to have ruined someone else's day! I had them very layered up, long underwear, fleece, coats and rain jackets with hats, but the wind coming off the water when the boat was traveling was quite cold. Something to keep in mind. We saw a bunch of whales including a mom and her calf. It was cloudy but still a great day. We also took the tram to the top to see those views and walk around a bit after lunch at Tracey's crab shack, which I thought was too long a wait with hungry kids and completely overrated/overpriced. In Juneau I went to Alaska knife works to get my Ulu bowl and knife on the recommendation of others on this board. I will say that I have used it when cooking almost every single day since getting it these past 3 years and it's still as sharp as the day I got it. I do think paying slightly more at this shop versus getting the pre-packaged ones in other souvenir shops is worth it. They did confiscate it when I went on board and gave it back to be when disembarking.

In Ketchikan we took a float plane to the Misty Fjords. It was a gorgeous, clear day and we had incredible views both in the air and when we landed in the water. We were hoping to see some early bears clamming on the shore but struck out. I'm not sure if I would do this one again. There was a tragic accident just a few weeks before with two similar planes, and while I know such tours are generally safe it does feel more like a roll of the dice. After my husband and kids went back to the ship I walked around to do some shopping (glacier silt soap, a leather purse for my MIL) and take photos. I can't recommend Ketchikandies, as the premixed box I bought to save time was all fruit creme flavors (blech). If you do go there, pick out specifically what you want.

One thing I'll say is that almost everything we did was on our own, and it wasn't necessarily more expensive than doing group tours booked through DCL. In some cases, (the Scania, the float plane, the helicopter) it was cheaper. It was important to me with two small kids that we be able to do things on our schedule, and be able to pull the rip cord and go back to the boat if one of the kids wasn't feeling well or got overtired. I didn't want to be trapped on a bus or train with kids having a meltdown. Alaska's a big adventure for little ones, and my youngest fell asleep at dinner (first seating) more than once just from being tuckered out.

I do wish we had pushed our trip forward my a few weeks, when it would have been warmer. Our kids enjoyed the excursions but I think they would have liked them better had it not been raining and cold. Their favorites were the helicopter to the glacier and the float plane, and all of the activities in Vancouver. My youngest was too little for the kids club but spent some time in the nursery, and my eldest loved the kids club and I had a hard time pulling him out. We took advantage of the child care to have a date night and date brunch at Palo. If you do go in 2023, definitely book yourselves some couple time!

Anyway, I've written a book, but I hope that's helpful, and you're able to have an awesome cruise when they finally start up again!
 
Anyway, I've written a book, but I hope that's helpful, and you're able to have an awesome cruise when they finally start up again!

I appreciate the book! It sounds like you did some great things (especially in Vancouver, which I wouldn't have thought of - breakfast with bears?!? my kids would be all over that). Alaska is so beautiful and my daughter has been asking to go after watching a Wild Kratts special and hearing our stories from our before kids days. I just wasn't sure how to balance the big adventures with the little kids and you've given me some great ideas.
 
I appreciate the book! It sounds like you did some great things (especially in Vancouver, which I wouldn't have thought of - breakfast with bears?!? my kids would be all over that). Alaska is so beautiful and my daughter has been asking to go after watching a Wild Kratts special and hearing our stories from our before kids days. I just wasn't sure how to balance the big adventures with the little kids and you've given me some great ideas.

Glad I could be helpful! One thing I will say is that I'm strongly considering Royal Caribbean if we return to Alaska in 2023. They also have kids clubs, but an itinerary that goes from Seward to Vancouver, including Hubbard Glacier, with the option of adding a pre-cruise land tour to Denali. And the stateroom would be half of what we paid for our DCL Alaska trip. Something to consider.
 
Also, I know that I'm late to the party, but I've been really enjoying your TR, MNtwinsplus1mom!
 
I just wanted to say thank you for this amazing trip report. After rescheduling our Alaska cruise for the third time (here's hoping third times the charm!) this was a fun find to read through and build some more excitement for planning.

Normally Ketchikan is known to be a rainy city, but it was beautiful the day we visited! The sunny weather was perfect for the excursion we had planned that would begin at noon: The Bering Sea Crab Fishermen’s Tour. We exited the ship and were greeted by a friendly person holding a sign with the name of the tour. Several other people were positioned along the path to the boat we would be spending the next several hours in. It was an easy walk, and there was no way to get lost.

This is my husband's only request for this cruise is to do this excursion. He's obsessed with Deadliest Catch! LOL. Did you book through Disney or direct? It looks to be significantly cheaper to book directly with the tour company.
 

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