North to Alaska: Glaciers, Small Towns & Travel Dreams Come True

Join me as I relive one of the most breathtaking trips of my life—an 8-day Alaskan cruise on the Celebrity Solstice. We were celebrating our anniversary, and the journey delivered everything from glaciers to wildlife. I also discuss life in a small southern town. 

 ✨ Travel Tip: What to pack for Alaska (and what I wish I had packed!) 

🚢 Ship: Celebrity Solstice 

📍 Ports: Ketchikan, Skagway, Victoria BC, Dawes Glacier 

 If Alaska’s on your bucket list—this one’s for you. 

#Celebritycruise #Adamsville #Alaska #Ketchikan #Skagway #Dawesglacier #KlondikeDoughboy #Alaskanfrybread #Whitepassrailway #cruises 

Disclaimer: Names of persons mentioned in this story are fictional and any resemblance to actual names or persons is purely coincidental.   

https://www.belltown-inn.com/

https://www.mediterranean-inn.com/

https://biscuitbitch.square.site/home

https://lamkintravel.cruisebrothers.com/cb/ 

https://wpyr.com/ 

https://customcruisewear.com/ 

Email: lamkintravel@gmail.com

https://lamkintravel.cruisebrothers.com/cb/

Transcript

0:02

Hi everyone and welcome back to Travel Time Stories. If this is your first time tuning in, I invite you to go back and check out my previous episodes. On this week's episode, I talk about my first Alaskan cruise and the first time cruising on celebrity. Share some more about myself and offer a travel tip. I am your host Shannon from Texas, and thank you for tuning in. So grab your favorite beverage and let's get into it. An Alaskan cruise is one that people usually have the most questions about and is also on a lot of people's bucket list. I know it was on mine Alaska is one of the most expensive cruises that you can do. However, if you plan, you can catch some great sales throughout the year to help make this trip affordable. Most people book this cruise one to two years in advance, so keep that in mind as the balcony cabins book up quickly. The Alaskan cruise season runs from May through September each year with the busiest times being June and July, and the prices reflect this. The departure ports for Alaska vary by cruise line, but generally there are five departure port options. Seattle, Whittier, Alaska, Vancouver, British Columbia, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. One thing that Alaska Cruises offer is an option to book a cruise tour, which combines your cruise with a pre or post cruise land tour where you can spend a few nights in Alaska exploring by land and train. And this includes your dedicated local guide. Transportation, lodging, and meals during an Alaskan cruise. When you get to the glaciers, a naturalist will join the ship and talk about the history of the glaciers and some of the wildlife in Alaska. The weather and what to pack are the top two questions people have about cruising Alaska. When you travel to the Caribbean, you know what to expect, sunny weather and pack your swimsuit. But what about Alaska? Prior to our trip, I had been told to expect cold, wet weather and to pack rain gear, layers, binoculars, and if our ship had an indoor pool, a swimsuit. The weather in Alaska can be unpredictable and you can experience rain for one minute and sunshine the next, so plan accordingly. Depending on the month, it could be cold weather, but we went mid-June and it was very hot, and I wish that I had packed some shorts. The pools and hot tubs were packed every day. We did have a couple of rain showers that stopped as quickly as it started, and the only time it was cold was while we were near the glaciers. But even then, I only needed a hoodie jacket. Check the weather forecast before you travel. Plan to dress in layers. Take a rain jacket, bring your swimsuit, and I recommend binoculars. Jeff and I took an Alaskan cruise for eight days on the celebrity solstice out of Seattle in 2022. We were celebrating our 29th anniversary. It had always been his dream trip, so I made it happen. In my opinion, nothing beats an Alaskan cruise. In Jeff's words. It is the motherland. Everything is stunning. The mountains, wilderness, wildlife, whales, otters, sea lions, dolphins, bald eagles, bears, waterfalls, icebergs, glaciers, and the list goes on. We stopped in Ketchican, Dawes Glacier, Skagway, and Victoria, British Columbia. We flew into Seattle the day before our cruise so we could have time to rest and explore a little before our cruise. The flight to Seattle from Texas is a longer flight and it was cramped sitting in economy class. My legs were killing me by the time we arrived, and I was thinking to myself, was the money we saved really worth it? After we collected our luggage, we made our way to get a taxi to our hotel, the Belltown Inn. I chose this place for location as it was within walking distance of Pikes Place Market and the Space Needle. Plus they also offered shuttle service to the port and it apparently is a popular hotel with cruisers, as most of the people staying there bordered a ship the next day just like us. The next morning we got up early as I wanted to check out a popular breakfast spot called Biscuit Bitch. It did not disappoint. They have great coffee and their biscuits are the best, just like mama used to make. After breakfast, we walked down to Pikes Place Market to check it out. I wanted to see them throwing the fish. The market is incredible with lots to see, and if I lived in Seattle, I would be buying fresh fruit, vegetables and meats daily from here. The flower vendors were amazing too, and a lot cheaper than your local florist. Funny story Jeff told me after we left the market that at one of the booths I had stopped to look at some handmade jewelry. The lady was trying to flirt with me and was even staring at me as I walked away. I told him he was being silly, that the lady was just being nice and he said, Nope. As a man I know and she was into you. I laughed so hard and said, good to know that some women find me attractive. After scoping out the market, we headed back to our hotel to wait for our shuttle to the, port. As our shuttle pulled into the port and we got our first glimpse of the celebrity solstice, I was so excited. She was a real beauty. Anytime I will be flying to a new airport or cruising from a new port, I research prior to going so I know the layout, where to go and what to expect. Doing this helps keep my anxiety level low and helps make things go smoothly upon arrival. Seattle was a new port for me, so I had researched where to go when we arrived and what to expect with the boarding process. There were many YouTube videos from other content creators discussing how post COVID, the Seattle port was still not at a hundred percent and they were short staffed. The check-in process was having delays, and the list went on. We found this to be accurate during our trip. There was no clear signage directing you where you needed to go. There were multiple ships in port that day and no clear direction for anyone. And when you asked, you received different answers depending on who you asked. The drop off and luggage situation was chaos. The weather in Seattle is unpredictable, and we arrived at the port and it was nice and sunny. But as we waited on the covered sidewalk outside for our check-in time, because we had arrived at the port two hours prior to our check-in time, and we were not allowed to enter the building until our Check-in time, the weather turned stormy and the floodgates opened. It was horrible. Severe rain with high winds was literally blowing sideways, and we were all trying to huddle together under the covered sidewalk to keep from getting wet. My jacket was in my suitcase, which had already been taken away by the porters. I was literally freezing and Jeff was doing his best to try and help protect me from the elements and share his jacket. We were stuck out in this mess for over an hour. It was beginning to stop raining when it was time for us to make our way inside to check in. Thankfully, the check-in process was very quick, and we were upstairs seated in a warm, dry area while we waited for our group to get called to board. This would be our first time with celebrity, and we were both super excited to see what they had to offer that was different from Carnival. One thing which was different during the booking process is that I discovered celebrity gives you the opportunity to bid on an upgrade. Once you book and pay for your cabin, you can then place a bid for an upgraded cabin, and you are allowed to place more than one cabin of bid, and then you are notified closer to your sail time if your bid is accepted. If a bid is accepted, you can then choose to upgrade or not. If you choose yes, you pay what you bid and get assigned to your new cabin prior to sailing. I love this and think all the cruise lines Should offer it. For this cruise, we have booked a standard balcony cabin, but then I put in a bid for the concierge balcony cabin and the aqua class balcony cabin. You get different perks with these two types of cabins, which you don't get with the standard balcony room. When you place your bid, it shows you suggested amounts and the likelihood that they will be accepted. But I actually bid less than the suggested amounts and honestly didn't think we would get accepted. But figured it cost nothing to try, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Right. Well, our bid was accepted a couple of weeks prior to our cruise, and I was ecstatic. Okay, we moved up to the aqua class, balcony cabin. This gave us a cabin that was slightly bigger with a private veranda, premium bedding and bathroom amenities. Massaging shower head, a complimentary fitness class. We had unlimited access to the Persian Garden with a personal spa concierge, daily canapes delivered to our room. And complimentary dining at Blu Restaurant instead of the main dining room. We also received two bottled waters daily in our cabin, and complimentary use of umbrellas and binoculars. First impressions boarding the celebrity Solstice. It was another jaw dropping moment as we stepped on board. Both Jeff and I were blown away at how fancy this ship was compared to Carnival. It was on another level. We immediately noticed there were less kids on this ship, and the average age for passengers was more in line with us. So these were both a plus in our books. The immediate vibe was laid back and chill. Everyone, both staff and passengers were so friendly. Yes, the music was going and people were still having fun, but it was not chaotic. We did purchase the drink package for this trip because at the time Jeff was a drinker, and so the package was worth it. I can tell you that the drinks on celebrity are amazing and not watered down. Like on Carnival, the bars and bartenders really know how to put on a show, especially at the martini bar, which is my favorite, and I spent most of my time hanging out there. The martini bar is very cool and a popular hangout spot. The bar top is made of ice, so it keeps your drinks cold, and they have cool little sitting areas with curtains for privacy, and the bartenders put on a show each night that is not to be missed. There are many different martinis on the menu to choose from, and you can also order a martini flight to sample. I tried everyone on the menu by the time our trip was over. Now, usually my go-to is always a cosmopolitan. However, my favorite was the candy apple martini. Oh, just talking about martinis is making me wanna book another cruise on celebrity. We were blessed with beautiful weather on this trip. In fact, I was upset that I had not brought any shorts with me for this trip, and I was burning up in pants. The days were sunny and nice pools and hot tubs were full every day. Once again, we met some amazing couples on this trip and spent our free time hanging out with them. As we cruised along, we saw otters, dolphins, eagles, and a couple of times a whale was spotted from the cruise ship. We would see small islands with the house out in the waters, mountains with beautiful waterfalls running down and goats up on the sides of the mountains. When you travel through the straits heading toward the glaciers, you pass big chunks of ice in the water. Some with sea lions laying on them and the ice is not white, as you would imagine. It is a beautiful shade of blue. It was spectacular to see. Our first stop was Ketchican and we had booked a rainforest canopy and Zipline adventure for this stop through celebrity, and it was with Kawanti Adventures. So we boarded our bus and headed to the Tongass National Forest. I would find out once we arrived that this one was not for the faint of heart, as it wasn't just zip lining, but there were rope bridges involved, and at the end there was a 55 foot repel or free fall. The towers were a hundred foot high and the longest line was 600 feet. The views were like nothing I had ever seen. And even Eagles were soaring by and you could see deer and other animals roaming below. We even spotted a bear. Our guides were amazing and turns out one of them was from our neck of the woods in Texas. There was a lady in our group who was there due to losing a bet and was deathly afraid of heights worse than me because she couldn't get past it and hated every minute of the trip. There were many tears and screams from her, but she made it through a couple of times. One of the guides had to go out and tow her back in because she wouldn't follow instructions on how to keep your feet tucked to keep your momentum, so you would make it all the way across the line. I faced my fears crossing those rope bridges and was super proud until we got to the end and I found out that I had to do a 55 foot repel or free fall. I didn't think I'd be able to do it, but Jeff told me, just look straight ahead out at the beautiful trees. Take a deep breath, and as you let it out, just step off the edge and you'll descend. Descend steady, but not fast. Our guide who was at the bottom was singing songs and cheering everyone on. So when it was my turn, I didn't think I just walked up, stared straight ahead, took a deep breath, and stepped off. It was so much fun, and Jeff was right. It wasn't a fast drop, but a steady pace. After our Zipline adventure was over, we bought some souvenirs at the gift shop and got back on the bus to return to port. Back at the port, we opted to get some food at a restaurant called Annabelle's, which I had seen great reviews about having the best chowder, so we had to try it. It did not disappoint. Be prepared though. Food in Alaska, even at lunch is very expensive. After lunch, we walked around exploring the town and saw the salmon ladder, but unfortunately the salmon weren't running yet during our visit. We did walk over to Creek Street and saw Dolly's House Museum, which is a 19th century brothel house that has period furnishings, and tells the story of the former owner, Dolly Arthur. The museum is open 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM during the summer. After this, we returned to the ship. Our next stop was in Juneau, the capital city. This time we booked a well watching excursion again through celebrity, and we were guaranteed to see whales or get our money back. I learned a lesson for this excursion and will pass that along to you. Now, if you wanna do whale watching book this excursion independently rather than through the cruise line. I say this because all the groups who do whale watching tours guaranteed to get you back to the ship on time. And by booking independently, you will be in a smaller group where you can enjoy the trip and have a better viewing experience. Our group and several independent groups all left from the same docks. And their groups had 12 or less people, whereas our group was at minimum 30 or more people, and we were packed in the boat like sardines. It was raining when we first started out in the boat, so everyone was packed into the covered, lower level, and this made it so hot inside the boat that we were literally sweating and all the windows were fogged over by the time we reached our first sighting. We had to use towels to wipe the fog from the windows in the hope of getting to see the whales, and this wasn't good for trying to get photos either. The front windows of the boat were large and not fogged, so everyone was rushing to the front and trying to squeeze in to see which for those of us already sitting in the front, made it very uncomfortable. The rain had stopped halfway through our trip, so a lot of people then made their way to the top observation deck. However, only so many people at a time can fit and per usual people did not want to take turns. Jeff was able to get up to the deck once and got a couple of good shots of the humpback whales. All the photos I took from inside the boat were not very good, but seeing it with your own eyes is a site I will never forget. It truly is breathtaking when they break the water. If we ever go back to Alaska, I will book an independent tour so that we can have a better experience with less people. We returned to the ship after the whale watching rather than getting off in town to explore, as it wasn't made very clear to us how the bus system worked and we felt uneasy about being able to get back to the port on time. Plus we were both exhausted and sweaty and just wanted to get cleaned up and relax. Next up was Skagway and we had a recommendation from my niece that taking the white pass train tour was a must. And so that is what we did where we docked, the train was right there at the port and we simply got off the ship and walk straight over to the train and lined up to board. My niece was right. We loved the train tour. You go from Skagway all the way up to the Canadian summit before returning to the station in Skagway. As you travel along, you see beautiful scenery, including many waterfalls, crossing rivers, and once you get towards the summit, there is gorgeous white snow covering everything and gorgeous frozen lakes and ponds. It is about 40 miles round trip and takes approximately two and a half hours. You can get many great photos on this tour. At the end, you're dropped off at the depot in the heart of Skagway so that you can take time to explore the town or go for a nice hike on one of the surrounding trails. We couldn't miss out on trying one of the Alaskan fry breads from Klondike Doughboy. It was messy, but so delicious. They are very large so people can eat off of one. Alaskan fry bread is different than fry bread down south. Instead of being made with baking powder, water, flour, and salt, it is made with yeast flour, dry milk, water, and salt, and usually some sort of sweetener. It's just like a yeast bread recipe. Traditionally, I've seen it served with a drizzle of honey or with jam made from local berries. The one we tried had cinnamon sugar. When we finished checking out the town, it was a short walk on a clearly marked path back to where our ship was docked. A funny story that happened on our cruise, we were up at the pool deck bar having drinks with some of our friends, and this guy came over to order a drink. Someone in our group recognized him and said, Hey, how did you make out at the casino last night? The guy started laughing and said he had no clue because apparently he had gotten so drunk, the bartenders had cut him off and they had to bring in a wheelchair to take this guy back to his cabin. He didn't even remember any of this himself, but said that is what his friend who was traveling with him told him, and several people who had seen it happen, confirmed it. I'm all for having fun, but please drink responsibly and don't be like this guy, and if this does happen to you, don't tell people about it. This guy thought it was funny, however, everyone he was telling it to was stating how embarrassing it was and that they would never have told it. Our final stop before returning to Seattle would be Victoria, British Columbia. On our way to this port, we encountered a storm at sea. It was a bad one, and the temperature dropped significantly, and this was the first time I wished I had a heavy coat, but thankfully I had brought thermal underwear and had gloves, a beanie and scarf. We arrived in Victoria at night and our hours for the port were supposed to be 5:30 PM to midnight. However, due to the storm we encountered on the way. Our arrival was delayed and only left four hours in port, and those who had excursions booked were canceled and their money was refunded. Due to the loss of time and the weather, we chose not to get off at this port as most things were already closed, and we heard from those who did get off that it wasn't worth it. When we disembarked from the ship in Seattle, we had a full day to kill as our flights were not until 11:00 PM that night. So I had booked us a room at the Mediterranean Inn so we could get some rest and relax before heading to the airport. We checked into our hotel, took a much needed nap, and then went out to see some sites before we headed to the airport that evening to catch our flight. Final thoughts on my first experience sailing on celebrity celebrity ships are a step up, a more elevated experience in terms of service style. Food and shows. The average age for celebrity cruisers is more mature, 30 to 50, and the vibe is a more relaxing and chilled atmosphere. The shows are phenomenal and more in line with Broadway level. The food in the buffet, the main dining, especially Blu for aqua guest and specialty restaurants are high end compared to Carnival. Celebrity also offers a non-alcoholic drink package, which includes soda and specialty coffee, making it a better value for the money than carnival's drink packages. Plus their alcohol package is also a better value offering you two different tiers to choose from, and there is no daily limit versus carnivals 15 per day limit. My travel tip is to get a door banner for your cabin door. I have gotten one for each of my cruises that are customized with our names, the date and the ship. They look cute on your cabin door, and it helps to make your cabin door stand out and easier to find. Your doors are metal, so they attach to the door with magnets. I order from custom cruise wear and have placed the link in the description below. They also do custom t-shirts. Let's continue with my story. Life in a small town is completely different from living in the city and even living in a suburb of the city. Everyone knows each other, and I am not exaggerating In a town with roughly a thousand people, it isn't hard. In Adamsville, the people who live here can be tracked back generations, and a lot of them come from old money and own most of the businesses in town and hold the elected offices. Most don't ever leave this town, or if they do, it is only temporary to go to school and then return. This is also the Bible Belt. So there are churches on every corner, and most everyone attends services on Sunday and Wednesday. Faithfully the kids grow up together, attending Sunday school and vacation Bible school in the summers, then move on to kindergarten and all the way through high school graduation. Very few outsiders move to this town. It can be a wonderful place to raise a family or retire, but it is hard to break through the walls and gain trust and inclusion. Your family's name depicts your status. How you look counts as beauty pageants rule here. Being from Texas, I know all about Friday Night Lights and it's huge, but I think Adamsville has them beat. And it isn't just about football, it is about the band too. The last thing, which was new for me was Country Club Life. Yes, it is a real thing. And in Adamsville, the haves all belong to the country club, and in the summers this is where they hung out with their kids at the pools and golfing. I wanna be clear that while life in Adamsville started out scary, once I was able to adjust to this new world, it became my favorite place. This small town has a lot to offer in terms of charm, safety, excellent schools, wonderful people, and easy living things you don't appreciate as a seventh grader, but recognize as you get older, I would love to live in Adamsville again. I was petrified when mama took me to register for seventh grade. I learned that the junior high and high school were all located in the same building, unlike in Texas where they were separate schools. It was very overwhelming, and then I found out that this new school didn't even have a choir, so I would have to find a new elective, which turned out my only option was Band. I had never played an instrument and had no desire to learn one, but discovered that the band had a color guard, which consisted of rifle, twirler, and flags. So that is where I ended up. I was going to twirl a rifle in the marching band. It turns out joining the band was the best thing for me. I made some great friends, those who have been in band, understand there is a great comradery that forms amongst band members and you become a family. It turns out that my former neighbor, Lynn, was the lead for the rifle twirler, and she is the one who taught me. There is a lot of work that goes into being in the guard early morning, late afternoon, and weekend practices. You must learn a lot of choreography, and I sustained many scrapes, bruises and jammed fingers, not to mention sore feet from all the marching. I still remember my first football game, halftime show. I was petrified and stepping onto the field for the first time. My mind went blank as I stared at the crowd and the bright lights. As our routine began, I quickly recovered and made it through with just a couple of stumbles. Mama was the typical band mom attending all the events and picking out our ridiculous costumes. Christmas parades are huge in Tennessee and every town has one, and the band marches in each of them. I was not prepared to march in snow and ice, but it was a lot of fun traveling to away football games was fun too. The first year in the band, I met two people who would become my closest friends, and they were Sarah and Keisha. Plus I also met who I call the Merry Trio, Alicia, Lori, and Tracy, who would also become great friends. A special thank you to these guys for being the first ones to make me feel welcome in my new school and town. This new world was starting to shape up to not be so bad, at least that is what it seemed. But life is not always as it seems. My hope is for everyone to make memories for life through travel. So reach out and let me help you make your next travel memory. Tune in again to learn some more about me, hear more about each of my trips, and meet other people in my life as they share their travel experiences. Please don't forget to hit the like button, subscribe and share so you can help me grow my channel. Leave a comment below to let me know your thoughts about this episode and what you wanna hear more of, or tell me about your travel story. I might just read it on the podcast or invite you on as a guest. Until next time.