Follow along as our clients share details of their 12-Day Alaska Cruisetour. It includes a 5-Day land tour on the front and 7-Day cruise at the end. This is the Princess 12-Day Connoisseur Escorted Tour. Alaska Post #3 - Mt. McKinley Wilderness Lodge - Day Trip to Talkeetna They awoke to their last full day at Mt. McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge. They started with another great meal at the North Fork Restaurant that included Crab Cake Benedicts and Baked French Toast for breakfast. But, the best part of their morning… they became members of the 30% Club. The 30% Club is made up of the people who are fortunate enough to catch a glimpse of Denali, the tallest mountain in North America. They didn’t just catch a glimpse, they got some wonderful photos with an incredibly clear and beautiful blue sky! After taking in the sights and fresh crisp morning air they decided to check out the view from a different vantage point. They took the $10 shuttle from the lodge to the city of Talkeetna, a small town located where the Talkeetna, Chulitna, and Susitna rivers meet. The name comes from a Native American word literally meaning "where the rivers meet". The three rivers join to form the Big Susitna River, which eventually empties into Cook Inlet. At the Talkeetna Riverfront Park, which is close to downtown, not only can you see this unique confluence but the location offers views of the Alaska Mountain Range including the majestic peaks of Mount Denali, Foraker, and Hunter, on a clear day. And, a clear day it definitely was! They rocked their 30% club membership all day! They ended their day with a photo show back at the lodge and another trip to North Fork Restaurant but, this time for dinner. The connoisseur part of the tour is really proving to be an excellent added bonus. The food was outstanding yet again! Here is their description of dinner: “I had coconut shrimp as an appetizer, prime rib, Yukon gold mashed potatoes, and steamed fresh green beans for dinner. That was some of the best prime rib ever! Everything is large portions. We just can’t eat it all. He had a side salad that was the size of a chef salad. That was just his first course. Then reindeer meat loaf with mashed potatoes and green beans. Dessert ( we only got one this time) was a blueberry swirl cheesecake with white chocolate ganache with dried blueberries. Absolutely amazing, is was the most creamy cheesecake I think I’ve had. This is such a foodie’s delight! Oh, and every night the value of our meals have ranged between $125-150, and this in included! We’re sure getting our money’s worth!” Tomorrow morning they head to Denali Princess Wilderness Lodge. Join us again to see if they stayed in the 30% club! #princesscruisetour #alaskacruisetour #therhodestravelled #30percentclub #princesswildernesslodge #talkeetnaalaska
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Follow along as our clients share details of their 12-Day Alaska Cruisetour. It includes a 5-Day land tour on the front and 7-Day cruise at the end. This is the Princess 12-Day Connoisseur Escorted Tour. Alaska Post #2 - Mt. McKinley Wilderness Lodge
This morning the luggage had to be outside their hotel room by 6am. If you’ve heard of the pink and blue tags, “Met me tonight” and “Met me on the ship”, this is where they get used! (Tip: You can send luggage ahead to the cruise instead of taking everything on the front tour portion. With a 7-day cruise, it’s a good idea to pack as if you’re going on two vacations!) Today is the drive to Mt. McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge. First activity of the day was to meet the tour guide at breakfast and get a debriefing of timing and next steps. Afterward they were told to head outside and await the arrival of a blue Princess motorcoach. When the green Holland bus showed up they did a quick double take but the tour guide confirmed it was the correct bus. Princess and Holland are sister companies and utilize mutual equipment. (Tip: Sit on the right side of the bus, all the “pretty mountains” are more easily visible from the right.) On the way to Mt. McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge the bus stops in Talketna. This is where they got their packet with room key, food vouchers, itineraries and other details. They mentioned that almost everyone got off the bus at Talketna except them and another couple. Most had excursions and others were just getting off for lunch. The shuttle between Talketna and the lodge runs every hour on the half hour, except at 1:30. (Tip: If you book an excursion at Talketna keep your backpack light and send everything else in your luggage to the hotel.) They enjoyed the afternoon at the lodge including a short ten minute hike up Hill Trail Loop to enjoy the treehouse. Yes, Mt. McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge has it’s very own custom built treehouse, as seen on Animal Planet’s Treehouse Masters! For those interested, the lodge does have two smoking areas, outside at each end of the main building. Dinner is also included in this tour, tonight was at the North Fork restaurant. They enjoyed prime rib and delicious desserts. So far, they can’t say enough about how amazing the staff has been. From the team members that met them at the airport, those at the hotel, on the bus, at the lodge and even the Denali State Park Rangers, everyone has been very nice and knowledgeable. Join us tomorrow to see what they did during their second day at Mt. McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge! #princesscruisetour #alaskacruisetour Princess Cruise Ship #mtmckinleyprincess #connoisseurtour Follow along as our clients share details of their 12-Day Alaska Cruisetour. It includes a 5-Day land tour on the front and 7-Day cruise at the end. They start in Anchorage and end in Vancouver. They are adding an extra day by flying from Vancouver to Seattle to enjoy Pike Place Market before returning home. This is the Princess 12-Day Connoisseur Escorted Tour. Our client was supposed to catch their first connecting flight in DFW at 12:35 today but a delayed flight afforded them an opportunity to visit Pappadeux’s next to their gate for a lunch time Bloody Mary and Crab Dip with chips. A four and half hour flight turned into three hours and forty five minutes as the pilot gained back their delayed time. In Seattle, thanks to another short delay they were able to catch their third flight heading to Anchorage. (TIP: Most of the flights booked through American Airlines are actually operated by Alaska Airlines out of Seattle. If using a boarding pass on your mobile app, you will need to use the Alaska Airlines app to access your boarding pass OR print it off at the airport or before leaving home.)
Traveling by train is a classic, nostalgic experience that has captivated the hearts of adventurers for centuries. In the United States, Amtrak offers a unique way to explore the country’s diverse landscapes and vibrant cities. If you’ve never considered taking a train journey, here are several compelling reasons why Amtrak should be your next travel adventure.
One of our favorite local get-a-ways to enjoy good seafood, walking on the beach, and a nice relocation of activity for the kids is Galveston Island, Texas. It's a quick five hour drive. For this trip we took time to visit Moody Garden's. If you haven't heard of it Moody Garden's is an educational tourist destination, with a golf course and hotel in Galveston, Texas which opened in 1986. The non-profit destination, established by The Moody Foundation, uses nature to educate and excite visitors about conservation and wildlife.
During spring break they host special camps and spring adventure tours. Spring Adventures are an exciting way to start your day at Moody Gardens! During the week of spring break in Texas, they start the preceding Sunday and go through Friday, alternating between their Rainforest Pyramid of Amazon Animals and their Aquarium Pyramid of Aquatic Sea Life. You receive early entrance in the corresponding attraction prior to other guests with a private tour. The adventure includes a focused educational program and Ambassador Animal presentation. For both adventures there were less than 25 people which allowed us ask as many questions are we walked along the tour. Our favorite story from this trip includes an encounter with a King Penguin named Athena... At the end of our Aquatic Sea Life Adventure a King Penguin named Athena visited our group. She walked in proudly and presented herself with a trumpet. We learned that Athena was actually the nestling of two penguins that decided they didn't want children. After a week of hoping they would love their new chick, keepers watched as they ignored and refused to care for her. Ironically, within the same waddle (yes, I had to look up what you call a group of penguins) another penguin couple desperately wanted a chick. In fact, they wanted one so badly they would steal the eggs of other couples. The keepers noticed this behavior and gave them a "fake egg" to incubate. After monitoring Athena's lack of care by her birth parents they decided to slip her in place of the fake egg. The new penguin couple took to her right away and became her foster parents! They were overjoyed to have a baby chick and adopted Athena as their own! What an incredible moment for our foster and adopted children to see and hear! This will be a memorable trip for all of us and definitely a story to remember!! Two on One trips, have you heard of these?In families with more children than caregivers, it's easy to feel like the odd one out. I've always said that with two caregivers and two kids, it's easy to play man-to-man; imagine a drawing on a whiteboard at a basketball game where each defender finds a person to cover. It's easy to divide and conquer when the ratio is equal, but once that kid-to-adult ratio rises, you're forced to move into a zone. No matter how hard you try, someone can always feel left out.
For those of you taking care of more than three, well... God bless you! I once thought I'd have my own basketball team, hoping that the higher the odds, the more likely one of them would be to take care of me later in life. This third child has convinced me that I'll be lucky to live long enough to get him out of high school! LOL As a foster and now adoptive parent, raising children with trauma-induced ADHD who are near the autism spectrum can be difficult. Knowing how to handle every situation is not something you can easily prepare for. Sometimes, it's overwhelming, but thanks to an excellent support team, our little guy has made huge strides to overcome his delays. At 18 months, he had his first trip to Disney, just 6 months after surgery for his gastrostomy button. Like his mom, he fell in love with Magic Kingdom! (I'll save what it's like doing Disney while tube feeding for another post) Okay, back to my basketball game analogy.... with three kids and two adults, you're always in a zone. But what happens when two defenders set a trap on the player with the ball. The offensive player is typically forced to comply with the direction of the trap. It leads to reasons that might work with kids, too! (Yes, we love our sports analogies) So, we decided to create Two on One Trips... Each kid gets to pick a destination, and two parents take one child on vacation! Special time where they don't have to share attention, snacks, or space with another child. This was our littlest's trip... he picked Walt Disney World, and I couldn't have been happier! Each day he was surprised with notes from his favorite friends (these are available FREE to our clients) and tiny treasures for the day. He was given time where he could control snack choices and ride decisions. The best part is he has his VERY own photo and storybook of the trip that he doesn't have to share, that is, unless he wants to! If you're a single parent with multiple kids or a two caregiver home with more than two children, I encourage you to consider a one on one or two on one trip! We can help you plan a memorable vacation and share our tips on how to sieze these moments of time with your loved one. Animal Kingdom safari from the INSIDE!!!Wild Africa Trek at Animal Kingdom - Do IT!! We did ours on Sunday September 4th at 8:45am. This was such an amazing add on experience for our adults only trip! (Kids 8 and over are welcome to go as long as they are 48" tall) We arrived at 8:15 but the check in location didn’t open until 8:30 so we enjoyed breakfast at Tamu Tamu a few steps from the Safari entrance. Don’t forget to bring an ID for at least one person in your group as that will be required when you check in.
The hiking was fairly easy. They put you in a harness and provide a chest vest. You can take your phone but do add straps on your phone case (so your phone must be in a case) and on your sunglasses. They give you a water bottle that is also connected to your vest. You get to keep the water bottle, added bonus! You wear an earpiece for the first half of the trek to hear the guides as you walk. You step out on a ledge to see the Hippo feeding and you walk across rope bridges over crocodiles! You have your own personal truck (different than the regular safari ride) through the safari areas and stop at a Boma (cabin with big porch viewing area) for lunch. The description said you’ll get a “snack,” it was more lik a meal! I didn’t have time to finish it all as I got caught up in looking at the wildlife! The guides were amazing and very knowledgeable! I always felt super safe. It was very much like a VIP look at the safari. After the bridge crossing you get a cooling towel (another bonus you can keep) and refill your water bottle. They take pictures during the entire excursion of animals and you! You get a photo pass card at the end and can download them all without having to purchase memory maker. The total trek is 3 hours! Started at 8:45 and finished at 11:45 right on time to make it to the 12pm Lion King show!!! All for a little over $200 per person, We thought this was a great “extra” at a great price. Excursion to Nachi Cocom with snorkeling, just a taxi ride from the port.For this vacation we did not book our excursion through the cruise company. Instead Jill researched in advance to find the best location for our family. Knowing and planning in advance helped us move quickly through the port vendors and performers to the taxi line out the left gate, allowing us to get a taxi quickly in order to maximize our shore excursion time!
A short ride from the ship and we checked into Nachi Cocom for the day. The day pass included lunch and drinks with access to towel service, beach chairs and a fabulous white sandy beach. We secured snorkeling services from a local vendor, trusted by the resort owner. They provided snorkel gear and life jackets and the view was spectacular. We swam on top of the water for over an hour in three different locations. The water was incredibly clear and we saw hundreds of fish and beautiful coral. When arriving back at the port we visited the shops at the cruise ship port. Took a photo in front of the Cozumel sign and scurried back on board. You might notice Jill was not in any of these pictures as even with the scopolamine patch, on this trip she was feeling a bit sea sick. Here are a few of the things I do for motion sickness:
Sometimes you can't plan for everything... but I swear that staying hydrated kept my motion sickness at bay on this trip. If you're interested in a cruise and get motion sick easily I suggest looking to book on one of the largest vessels possible, select a room in the mid-ship and of course, consult your doctor before booking! Ships are constantly evolving their technology to withstand wave motion and for cruising, bigger IS better! |
Shannon D. Rhodesmom, author, adventure seeker, avid traveler turned travel advisor, faith believer, and optimist... more than half the time! Archives
June 2024
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