Date:

Type:  Theme Story

RE:  Alaska Cruise

By:  Toni Barnett


If you have ever thought about an Alaska Cruise, it's time you packed your bags and head to the last Frontier, it's a beautiful ride, jam packed with amazing scenery.  

We had always looked forward to experiencing Alaska and found it all we had hoped.  We (my husband Rick and myself) traveled with our children LeeAnne (20 years old) and Brittany (13 years old) and all of us agree it was a fantastic family vacation.  

We started with a few days in Anchorage; the city is set between two mountain ranges and the Cook Inlet.   A half-day walking tour is a great way to start.  We then rented a car and were off on some exciting expeditions, we hiked around Independence mine and cuddled husky puppies at the Iditarod center.  Portage Glacier is a beautiful setting with crystal blue icebergs everywhere; we took the hour boat ride that allows you to get within 100 yards of the glacier!

Then we headed west to Seward where we would soon be boarding our magnificent cruise ship the Dawn Princess.  Seward is a quaint seaside city and the drive from Anchorage is just gorgeous.

As we set sail it was time to get acquainted with our floating hotel.  It is a beautiful, large ship, only four years old.  With 1,950 passengers and yet you rarely felt crowded. The four-story atrium is quite a grand entrance, with a string quartet or grand piano playing throughout the day.   There are several bars throughout the ship and they all offer wonderful views, what a great place to unwind at the end of the day.   The main restaurant was gorgeous, service exceptional and meals were in "Grand Princess" style.  There were several other restaurants for passengers to enjoy as well.  The pools were heated for those brave enough to enjoy a swim (and trust me we saw plenty of children having a great time), there were several hot tubs to soak off any pains we experienced from our hikes or super work-outs.  And speaking of workout facilities they have a large gym with state of the art equipment and we had  a chance to try out some new aerobic classes.  We actually had our best view of humpback whales while enjoying a class, I'm sure glad we opted to workout instead of eating a second dessert.   We were actually happy to have our inside cabins; the 24 hours sunlight we experienced was getting a little tough to handle.  The truth is I would have changed it for a balcony cabin in a minute.  What a way to start the morning with an incredible view from your veranda and the beautiful end to each day.   The production show "Pirates Hi-Jinx on the High Seas" featured the talents of an international troupe of acrobats, jugglers, trapeze artists and contortionists, it was spectacular evening.  We had to miss many of the other shows because we found the best entertainment was simply sitting on the desk each evening with a drink in hand enjoying the enchanting scenery.

Well, I didn't even get a chance to talk about the exciting itinerary "Voyage of the Glaciers", so check in next week for more or even better join us on the 31st of January for a special presentation from 6:30-7:30pm.  Judy Pippin from Princess Cruises will be here to answer all your questions and offer a great presentation.  To RSVP call LaRue Hadden our Cruise Specialist 303 442-2340.