My Worst Trip Ever!

For as long as I can remember, I have always wanted to go to Alaska. While I am not a fan of cold weather, the photos always make the state look magical. After doing some research and talking to a few friends and colleagues, I decided that I was going to see Alaska for my birthday by way of Carnival Cruise Lines. Now, before I get too far into this story, I must say that Carnival is in no way responsible for making this my worst trip ever. I knew the risk when I decided to take this cruise, and it was a risk that I was more than willing to take.

This was a seven-day Alaskan cruise departing from Seattle. The stops on this itinerary were Tracy Arm Fjord, Icy Strait Point, Juneau, Ketchikan, and Victoria, BC. Departing from Seattle was absolute chaos. There were people everywhere. There were also two Carnival ships leaving from the same cruise terminal on the same day. That just added to the confusion and chaos. It took about an hour to work through the lines and security to finally make it onto the ship.

I had a balcony room, which was perfect to watch the beautiful scenery of Alaska as we cruised. I highly recommend a balcony cabin when cruising to Alaska. If you are not able to get a balcony cabin, an Ocean View cabin would be the next best thing. This is certainly not the time to save a few dollars on the interior cabins. Especially if you prefer not to be around large crowds. It is so nice to sit in the privacy and comfort of your cabin and enjoy the majestic scenery.

The first day of this itinerary was a sea day. Day 2 was essentially a sea day with the excursion to the Tracy Arm Fjord. I did not purchase the excursion because, in all honesty, I was being cheap. I just did not want to spend the money. Looking back, I really wish that I had decided to splurge on this excursion. I talked to a few of the passenger who went, and they said that it was absolutely amazing. The excursion puts you on a smaller boat and takes you right up to the glacier. Obviously, the ship is too large to get very close, especially when there is a lot of ice in the water. Nevertheless, I did enjoy cruising the Fjord from the comfort of my balcony.

The next day was spent at Icy Strait Point. There are restaurants and stores just a short walk from the pier. There is also a gondola that will take you up the mountain to do some sight-seeing. The gondola from the port area to the first stop was free, but you did have to pay to take the gondola from the first stop to the top of the mountain. Unfortunately, I cannot recall the price of the second gondola, but I do remember that the price was reasonable. The gondola rides and the top of the mountain offered spectacular views. I also spent some time exploring the trails because I love getting close to nature through hikes and nature walks.

View from the pier at Icy Strait Point.

Day 4 was a day in Juneau. I opted to purchase a hiking excursion in Juneau, which offered amazing views of Mendenhall glacier, waterfalls, and wildlife. My group even encountered a bear while we were hiking. Don’t worry, we were not in any danger. As soon as the bear saw us, it ran up the mountain and disappeared into the trees. I must admit that it was a pretty cool experience though.

Day 5 is when my trip started to go downhill. We ported in Ketchikan that morning and I had an excursion booked for a nature walk. Unfortunately, that morning everyone in my travel party woke up feeling absolutely awful. I made the decision to pass on the excursion and sleep the day away. I brought some at home COVID tests with me and we all tested negative, but we made the decision to quarantine ourselves anyway. I was very upset that I had to miss the port in Ketchikan, but it is always better to play it safe. When I returned home and logged into Facebook, I learned that there were several cases of COVID on board, many that were not diagnosed until after debarkation. Looking back, I really believe that I had COVID, but for some reason I was testing negative.

Day 6 was a very short stop in Victoria, British Columbia. We were only scheduled to be in port for 4 hours and, based on the announcements, it took about an hour to get everyone onshore. I was still feeling pretty bad, so I again decided to just stay onboard the ship. Based on the comments of other cruisers, this was a wise decision. The town was pretty much shut down while we were there as we docked in the evening. From my understanding, the cruise ship is required to make an international stop in order to offer duty free shopping on board, so this is the solution.

As you can tell, the trip itself was actually wonderful. The experience on the ship itself was great. The staff was welcoming, the food was amazing, and the service was spectacular. The destination was also amazing. The reason this ended up being my worst trip ever is because I became ill and was not able to enjoy the experience that I had wanted for years. On the bright side, I have received some great offers from Carnival, and I already have another Alaskan cruise planned for next spring. This time I will be leaving out of San Francisco on a 10-day itinerary. I have definitely learned a few things from my first attempt. This time I will definitely be booking the Tracy Arm Fjord excursion. The ports are a little different on my upcoming trip, and I am excited to make another attempt at experiencing Alaska from a cruise ship.