Trans-Atlantic Cruise Aboard Celebrity Reflections - April 26-May 12 - Sea Days Across the Atlantic

Balcony is perfect - Starboard side is perfect for going from USA to Europe; Port coming the other direction

"I've never seen such a beautiful crossing in my 25 years as a Captain..."  We didn't know what to expect in terms of weather for our crossing.  What we got is reflected in the quote from our Captain when we chatted with him on one of his walks around this ship.

So other than weather, what's important on a long crossing?
1. A Veranda or Balcony for room service breakfast and sunset sun-downers each evening.
2. Well prepared food with good variety of dining experiences
3. A good gymnasium
4. Good Entertainment
5. Plenty of seats around the ship to sit in - around the pool or other nice outdoor areas

Celebrity Reflections Restaurant Ratings and Tips

1. Qsine - best variety of food choices with great personality.  Staff is fun and into serving something new and different.  Located Starboard side aft with great view during dinner. (3 dinners)
2. Murano - Best reason to dress up.  Served with panache and flames. (2 dinners)
3. Tuscan Grill - Food is quite good; service was spotty - location aft is perfect sunset view location for dinner when you are heading east. (3 dinners)
4. Lawn Grill - mediocre food at best but beautiful outdoors location (1 dinner)
5. Blu - special dining for Aqua Class passengers - food spotty, often had to wait, could never get a window seat for two. (3 dinners)  Honestly, we wouldn't pay extra for Aqua; Concierge class is good enough.

Travel Intelligence Tip - When to buy additional dining...  We did not book any of the restaurants pre-cruise nor did we buy a multi-dinner dining package.  Turns out this was the right decision.  Almost every night, we would get a phone call informing us about 30-50% off dining at one or more of the speciality restaurants.  On two occasions when we didn't get a call, we just went to the restaurant ahead of time -- usually outside the main cafeteria dining room at lunch time - and asked if we could get a break.  We did each and every time - really enjoyed the speciality dining experience.

You spend a lot of time around the ship - lots of seats are important

75 Degrees and smooth as a lake

Blu Dining Room (for Aqua Class passengers)

Steak and Veggies in Blu

Caprese Salad in Tuscan Grill

Murano Grill - Super Classy with great food

Lawn Club - Beautiful vista - average food

Beautiful Theater with great shows

Our Favorite of All - Qsine - such fun food

More Qsine goodies

Presentation in Murano is everything

If you love the ocean, you'll love a crossing

Next Up...  Port Call visits

NCL Pearl - Seattle to Alaska - Reggie's towel critters

Had to share the best towel critter creations we have seen on our cruises, courtesy of Reggie aboard NCL Pearl.

Lobstah

Monkey

Puppy

Frog - notice the creamers used for eyes

Mouse peeking out

Family photo

Swans on our last evening

Trans-Atlantic Cruise Aboard Celebrity Reflections - April 26-May 12 - Travel and Embarkation

We were looking for a nice cruise and ran across a Trans-Atlantic offering from Celebrity.  When we did the math, it worked out to $88/per person/per day for the 16 day trip.  For two people who love their sea days, love cruising, and are newly retired, what more could you ask for? Oh - you get off the ship 16 days later in Italy...

So what did we learn on the run up to our cruise?  Well, since the fares were so good, we upgraded to an Aqua Class (A2) Balcony.  We live in Naples about 2 hours from the Port of Miami.  So how do we get there?  Shuttle (cheaper), Limousine (get to pick your seat mates) or...  Rent a car one way for 24 hours - just right.  Cost us $48 plus the 4 gallon fill up before turning the car in.  Picked it up at Naples Airport (APF) the day before our departure and had it all packed up and ready to go that evening.

When we looked at the map we noticed that Tamiami Trail (Highway 41) essentially goes straight to the Port of Miami from East Naples.  So next morning about 0900, we took off on the very scenic and tranquil drive to Miami.  Weather was perfect and driving through the Everglades at 55-60mph with little or no traffic gave us a chance to reflect on how beautiful South Florida is.  Two hours later I was dropping Valerie off at our pier.  While she was getting our bags and herself checked in, I drove back to Miami International (MIA) to drop off the car.  It was a little difficult to find the signs for Rental Car return but once located, everything went smoothly.  There is a free shuttle from MIA to the Port of Miami that stops at each of the terminals -- all told from the time I dropped Val off until I got back to the ship was about an hour (15 minute drive, 5 minutes to fuel, 5 minutes in-processing car, 5 minutes to walk to shuttle and 30 minutes on the shuttle to ship).  This was our first experience with one way rentals between East and West coasts of FL and is the subject of our first Travel Intelligence Tip for this cruise.

Travel Intelligence Tip:  If you are taking a cruise from Miami or Ft Lauderdale and live on Florida's west coast, consider doing a one way rental.  Your car stays in the garage at home, no parking fees while you are away, and the cost for two one-way rentals is equal to or less than a shuttle van and half the price of a round trip limousine ride.  We had a one way rental from Miami International back to Naples, and we have used one-ways for boat trips originating in Stuart and Cruise Planners class in Ft Lauderdale.  We have paid as little as $42 and as much as $52 for each one way rental.  One caution though - all of our trips were in "off season"  your costs may be higher "in season".

Embarkation was generally good.  As Aqua Class passengers, we were behind Suite embarkation but before the majority of the 2800 or so other folks boarding.

Travel Intelligence Tip:  Do you have to ask other folks to take your picture only to have them cut off your head or not get the beautiful scenery in the background?  Our TA cruise was our first run with a GoPro.  Now I know that GoPro is not news to someone below the age of 50 - but for those of us who are, and not planning any extreme sports - you wonder why you would want one.  If you like to take couple selfies with a broad view of the background, a GoPro on an extendable pole, is the perfect solution.  Why?  Because it takes a very broad background picture but the point of focus is perfect for getting you both.  It also comes with a remote control, so you extend the pole out, hold the remote in one hand, adjust your angles (our pole came with a little mirror on it which makes it easier to get you centered up, and snap the picture, video, or photo sequence.  The pole also allows you to change your perspective - hold in up and you can take pictures above the action.  They are very small cameras, you can get a nice water proof case so you can take them anywhere in any weather.  Why not?  GoPro doesn't allow detailed pictures so it isn't good for portraits and it doesn't have a built in flash,  So take it along as a supplement to a normal digital camera to catch those special background shots or night time shots.

GoPro Selfie - notice how nicely the background is captured

Catches background action in good focus

Met a nice lady from Vancouver, BC at the Sail Away party

Held the camera up on the pole to give a bird's eye view

The wide angle helps capture the entire scene

We left the dock with two other cruise ships in perfect weather.  

This is what Miami's South Beach looks like during Spring Break - looks like a lot of fun for the young people; I like our view and the adventure across the Atlantic more. 

We closed out our first night heading due west with the sunset behind us.  This made it easy to choose the Tuscan Grill as the place to eat since it is all the way aft (back end of ship) and had a wonderful view of the sunset.  The Italian food was pretty good too...


Entrance to the Tuscan Grill

Lucky guy with the beautiful lady who happens to be my wife.

Sharing the sunset from the Tuscan Grill

Seattle to Alaska Aboard Norwegian Cruise Lines Pearl - Day 7 & 8 out of Seattle - Victoria, British Columbia and Disembarkation in Seattle

Late afternoon arrival in Victoria -- hailed in by an older gentleman in official looking garb from the 18th century.  Clearly Victoria is a replenishment port for NCL Pearl - fuel and food trucks were lined up and waiting for us when we pulled in.  Additionally, our crew -- separated by their duty station -- cabin stewards, food service, and entertainment are out on the pier dancing for guests as they disembark.  Hadn't seen this on other cruise lines before - music playing and people dancing - nice mood setting.  Didn't know it at the time but this was really the crew's send off for their passengers...  Tomorrow morning - disembarkation day - the crew is doing required semi-annual Customs and Border Protection immigration check - so they are lined up by the hundreds at 0600 waiting to get their documents stamped.  No time for music and dancing then...

We didn't partake of any shore excursions in Victoria although a couple of our family members did go to the botanical gardens.  We walked off the ship after dark and walked down to a floating village - house boats and businesses anchored along the bay - quiet when we got there with things mostly closed but beautiful none the less.  A place we'd like to come back and see in the day light.  One thing we noticed is that the sidewalks around the port are pretty dark - the 3/4 mile we walked back and forth was a bit dodgy because the sideway had frost heaves in several places.  But what's life without a few challenges, eh?

Next morning - we were up early and ready to go.  Our departure from SEA-TAC was 1000 - so we asked about early disembarkation - turns out that if you want to carry your own bags off the ship, you can get off about 45 minutes earlier (0730) so this is what we did.  We were second in line to get off and have never experienced a smoother or quicker disembarkation - we were at the curb 10 minutes after they started letting us off the ship; at SEA-TAC by 0815 - earlier than the first folks who had checked their bags even got off NCL Pearl.

Travel Intelligence Tip - While not true of other cruise lines we have been on to date, it clearly pays on NCL to get there early for Embarkation and to carry your own bags off at Disembarkation.  There was less traffic at the curb, fewer people in line for security and check-in, and no traffic on the way to the airport.  We will henceforth check with all ships about an option to carry our own luggage off the ship as a way to beat the crowds.  Additionally, if you travel internationally more than once a year, get a Global Entry card -- Customs and Immigration is so much faster when you come home and you are automatically enrolled in TSA-Pre check for domestic flights.

Summary:  We were pleasantly surprised with our cruise on NCL Pearl - highlighted by the exceptional service provided by our cabin attendant Reggie and the generally high morale and esprit d'corps exhibited by our crew and hotel staff.  Reggie's towel animals are the best my wife has ever seen and our cabin was spotless twice a day -- Val was Chief Purser on a cruise ship for three years so she is very picky when it comes to cabin cleanliness and service.  Our cabin - 8548 - was a sub-standard Veranda - but adequate since we could spend so little time on it due to our chain smoking neighbors.  Dining in either of the main dining rooms was good (but desserts were really weak) and the food choice in the buffet was better than average with good Indian food choices each day.  The only speciality restaurant (South American meat) we tried was ok - staff bent over backwards and really tried hard but if the kitchen is under cooking or over cooking  the meat, you are behind the power curve.  We liked the itinerary except perhaps for Juneau - boring and drab - and could have spent days exploring Glacier Bay.  Would we do NCL again on an Alaska itinerary?  Probably not - having done the inland passage, we would expand our horizons, select a smaller, more intimate ship, and do more shore excursions.  But if you haven't cruised to Alaska before and are looking for a reasonably priced itinerary, I would recommend the NCL Pearl experience.

Seattle to Alaska Aboard Norwegian Cruise Lines Pearl - Day 6 out of Seattle - Ketchikan, Alaska

We glided quietly into Ketchikan before dawn on our 6th day.  The decks were wet and the skies overcast.  We were set to meet with Capt Josh from Salty Sea Charters for a half day salmon fishing trip as soon as we docked.

Travel Intelligence Tip - Shore Excursions - stick to the ship or find one on shore?  If you take the excursions offered by the ship, you are guaranteed that the ship will wait for you - so this is the safe choice.  On the other hand, ship excursions tend to be a little more expensive and often involve larger groups.  In this case, we were fishing as a family of 4 and wanted a boat all to ourselves so we booked with a separate fishing charter company -- after checking with Trip Advisor and corresponding directly with the vendor.

We headed down the gangway shortly after docking and found Capt Josh at the top of the stairway.  It was a short walk down to his boat which was clean and very well maintained.

We were underway and heading to fishing within 5 minutes - while Josh guided the boat, we filled out our Alaska fishing licenses.  In a short 25 minute run - aided by the speed of Josh's boat - we were watching him rig up our lines and get them into the water.

The weather was improving and Bald Eagles were swooping down from the tall trees along shore grabbing fish before heading back to their nests for breakfast.  But the fish weren't biting so we had to find out why...  Turns out, one of us had brought a banana on board -- this by fishermen's superstition, guarantees you won't catch a thing.  We can tell you this was our experience - once the banana went overboard and appropriate prayers were said, we had our first bite and pulled aboard a beautiful silver (Coho) salmon.

This was the first of four salmon we pulled in over the next 2 hours.  Lots of time waiting for the bites as we trolled back and forth but in the midst of such natural beauty, who could complain?

By the time we headed back to the ship with our prizes, the sun was shining yet again.  Josh said it had rained every day for the past two weeks - so I guess the slow fishing was a reasonable trade off for our beautiful weather.  Here's a picture of NCL Pearl taken as we headed back to our dock.  Josh took our fish with him for processing and shipping.  We received them as promised, perfectly packed, wrapped, and fresh frozen back home in South West Florida.

Here is a link to Josh's site - we highly recommend him if you are looking forward to fishing during your visit to Ketchikan.  http://saltyseacharters.com/

While we were fishing, the rest of our group was sight seeing in Ketchikan.  Here are a few pictures of the town and shopping area.

Totem poles are a highlight and art form in Ketchikan...

Our departure from Ketchikan along the Inside Passage was sublime - as beautiful as the river valley heading north out of Yellowstone National Park or the yellow fields of spring mustard flowers in the hills between Chesky Krumlov and Passau.  One of the most beautiful afternoons of my life.

Our cruise was rapidly drawing to a close - next up Victoria, BC.

Seattle to Alaska Aboard Norwegian Cruise Lines Pearl - Day 5 out of Seattle - Glacier Bay, Alaska

Glacier Bay - natural highlight of our trip.  In-bound from Skagway, the weather was cold and rainy with clouds low on the water.  Didn't bode well for getting close to the glaciers and seeing nature's magnificence.

Travel Intelligence Tip - At least on NCL Pearl - and probably on NCL's Jewel Class ships - security will open up the deck access door on deck 8 forward (at the bow) about 30 minutes or so before you get to the first glacier.  This gives you uncrowded access to the ship's bow and lets you see the view from both sides at the same time -- closer to the water than you will be on any of the higher decks.  There were only two other folks out there when we went out - but it was definitely cold and wet.  After 30 minutes, we went back to our balcony since we spent most of our time at the glacier with our port side towards the glaciers.

Travel Intelligence Tip - Have an interest in seeing how the ship runs from the bridge?  On NCL Pearl, 11 deck, forward on the port (left) side is an open doorway that leads to a glass wall separating you from the ship's bridge.  Haven't seen this on other cruise lines - if you want a bridge tour, you have to be a senior traveler on that line or something else.  But on Pearl, everyone could see the bridge in action.  Additionally, there was a model of the ship and two repeaters -- one for ship's navigation and the other for ship's radar -- in the little sitting area where the glass wall is.  Fascinating for those of us who are interested in how a 1000'+ ship runs...

Our weather luck - as it had the entire trip - held once more and the clouds began to lift as we approached the first glacier.

The farther up the channel we sailed, the better the weather got until we stopped about 300 yards from the main glacier.

We sat here for perhaps 30-45 minutes - motionless - as we watched the glacier calve on three separate occasions - each with a rumble, crash, and whoosh as part of the glacier slide into the emerald green water.  Then we moved away from this glacier to one we had by-passed earlier switching places with a Princess ship patiently awaiting its turn to watch nature in motion.

The naturalist for the Park Service noted that the glacier pictured above is actually growing - while the other two we had seen were retreating.  Nature never stops moving -- here in Glacier Bay, we could actually see her moving.

Just a few more pictures because the scenery is something to behold.  After our day at the glaciers, we headed on to Ketchikan...