We are 50 somethings and have visited Alaska four times; twice on our own (flying to Fairbanks and traveling by car as far south as Seward), and once with Holland America (similar itinerary). This was our 5th cruise and our 4th with Celebrity. We were traveling with 6 other family members.

We flew in a day early and booked a 4-star hotel through Hotwire. Upon arrival at Seatac, we took a cab to downtown Seattle - it was very expensive...around $45.00 We found out later that we could have taken the light rail and arrived within 2 blocks of our hotel for less than $3.00 per person.

Day of Departure - At 5:30am, from the Westin Seattle, we watched our ship pull into the harbor to dock. Even though embarkation time was stated to be 1pm, we arrived at 11 am. As we expected, they were ready for us! Baggage drop-off and check-in were painless, no crowd or lines. Our room was ready around 1pm. Our balcony cabin on deck 7 was pretty standard; however our cabin steward, Santana, was outstanding! We had service as good as or better than prior bookings with Concierge class staterooms. Sailaway was beautiful with clear skies and Mt. Rainier in the background. Read more