As the boat neared the town of Ketchikan, “Salmon Capital of the world,” we were still at a loss as to what we should do there once the boat docked. Normally, we have our activities scheduled out for our trips, but on this one, we just could not decide. The shore excursions offered through the cruise were pricey and did not sound too exciting, so we broke out our trusty guidebook. There were a lot of totem poles in the area and that was something »

Alaska’s Glacier Bay National Park was something we were looking forward to seeing. When we initially booked this trip we had envisioned ourselves kayaking the frigid glacial runoffs and dodging calving glaciers. But as it turned out, the cruise line did not offer kayaking excursions in Glacier Bay. Although we would not have a chance on this trip to kayak there, we would see some of the most amazing untouched scenery in the world. There was also »

We awoke on the morning of the 4th day of our cruise to find the Volendam docked in Skagway Alaska, the “Gateway to the Klondike.” A town we were excited to explore. During the great Klondike gold rush in the late 19th century, Skagway had 80 saloons and was known as “the roughest town on earth.” But now the small town is filled with souvenir and jewelry shops and caters to the cruise ship tourists. We still had no idea what we wanted to »

“This is the capital of Alaska?” I asked as our cruise ship prepared to dock along Juneau’s wharf. “I expected it to be bigger.” But with a population of 30,000 and being completely landlocked with no roads in or out, it made sense why it was so small. Once docked, we made our way down the gangplank and into the rain. The guidebook didn’t offer much to do in Juneau, other than going to see Mendenhall Glacier, exploring the small downtown »

After departing Vancouver on Holland America’s cruise ship, the Volendam, we headed north through the inside passage on our way to Alaska. The first day and a half would have us at sea and on the morning of the third day we would venture into Tracy Arm fjord to see some natural beauty, or something, and then stop in Juneau, Alaska’s capital city. We spent the first couple of days touring the boat and looking for family members. We had a large »

The night before leaving for our 7-day Alaskan cruise we packed up about half of our house to bring along with us. While most trips have us packing light, a cruise is a license to over pack. Especially cruising to an area with cold weather. Not only did we need to bring our regular clothing to wear, we also had to bring clothing for “smart casual” dining most nights and formal clothing for two formal dinners. And then there were the sweaters, »

After one of history’s deadliest maritime disasters, the Titanic, one would think that passenger ships would want to avoid going near icebergs. But nearly 100 years after the sinking of the Titanic people actually pay money to go to areas with icebergs. Why would anyone want to go where it is cold, dreary, and there exists a potential for sinking? Whatever the reasons, we are about to find out. Tomorrow morning we drive to Vancouver British Columbia »