This was my first time of the Vision of the Seas, my 5th cruise with Royal Caribbean. The cruise was beyond my expectations.

We ran into a storm front that forced us to miss Skagway and visit Icy Straits Point instead. While I was a bit disappointed with the change, I felt the Captain made a wise decision. The seas were so rough I was being tossed like a feather in my bed. [I weigh approx 200lbs.] Please keep in mind this was a repositioning cruise and did not include the Inside Passage. We sailed from Vancouver to Victoria then West of the coastal islands while heading North to Skagway. Because of the wind speed and 10-12 ft swells, the ship was forced to slow down for safety and comfort reasons. Because of the time factor we would not have made Skagway on time and may not have been able to dock when we got there. Ketchikan and Juneau already had several ships in port so we were unlikely to have gotten any shore excursions in either city.

Icy Straits Point turned out to be exactly what I had envisioned Alsaka to be like. It was refreshing to visit a place that lacked the commercialism of the bigger destinations. Read more