We are experienced cruisers but this was our first time on Celebrity. We flew into Anchorage the day prior to our cruise, but due to the length of flight and timing we did not arrive at the airport until 10:05 pm. Thus, we chose to stay at the Fairfield Inn by Marriott (3 miles from airport and with free 24 hour shuttle). We found the Fairfield to be very nice (appears to be brand new) and the included breakfast was a good way to start the day.

We used the shuttle the next morning to go back to the airport and dropped our luggage with the Celebrity rep and were told to be back by 11 to check in for the train to Seward (as it turns out we could have been back later since the train did not even leave until 2 pm). We then took a taxi into the city center and walked around a bit. The weather was crystal clear and we were able to clearly see Mt. McKinley in the distance. Downtown was pleasant and we enjoyed our brief time there. We then used a taxi to return to the airport. We had been told by the Celebrity rep that we could simply ride the bus back from Egan center, but when we tried that we learned we would have to stand in a line for at least an hour to obtain bus boarding passes. It was simpler to use the taxi. The taxi fare from airport to city center is about $16.00 each way.

Once we arrived back at airport we went to the train departure lounge and were checked in for the cruise within five minutes. This was simple and painless and so much better than the crazy mess at Egan center. Read more