My brother and I booked our family of 5 (our parents and 3 siblings) on an Alaskan cruise for our parents' 30th wedding anniversary. Why Alaska? Well, location was a big draw. With us living in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, the departure point of Vancouver is only an hour-long flight away. We figured this would be a great "starter" cruise for our family to get a feel for cruising and spend some time together.

Ballantyne Pier was a bit of a shock for me after expecting something more along the lines of Canada Place. Perhaps other cruises depart from shipyard docks, in my rookie state how would I know, but it felt a bit clandestine as if we were going to meet up with the big boss for a drug shipment or the like. But what a sight to see when we turned the corner and saw the Serenade of the Seas for the first time! I knew cruise ships were big but until that moment I literally had no idea just how big these boats could be.

The staff were fantastic and attentive. They knew us by name almost instantly and left me a tad embarrassed when it took me a night or two to remember their names in return. They were especially fabulous with my younger sister who has Down's Syndrome. She was greeted by name wherever we were on the ship (even in the Casino! But then again she's 21 now and she found the slot machines to be a blast) making her a bit of a superstar compared to the rest of the family. Read more