My boss recently took a trip on a sail boat to the BVI's and used the patch w/ great results. All was fine except for a bit of a dry mouth which is a common side effect. However a British MD on the Tahitian Princess told us the patch was not in use in Europe due to bad side effects. This was 2006 and she prescribed a small dose of phenergan for my wife which also worked well. I think if you get something and it doesn't work its a good idea to have a back up plan. Prescription drugs from the ships MD are expensive and if you have a medical paln which covers meds its good to get them B4 you go. Some people swear by ginger capsules which are found OTC in health food stores and other use OTC bonine. Just a thought. Cheers, Larry

I too am in the planning stage of my first Alaska cruise so I am looking forward to your trip report as well.

Our travel agent recommended travel insurance and also letting Holland America arrange flights. This was good advice, since our original flight was delayed (after we got to the airport), so Holland America arranged another flight, which got us to Alaska in time. On each of our two Alaska cruises, a passenger has been injured, and had to be airlifted by helicopter to either Vancouver or Seattle. The hospitals in Alaska are not equipped to deal with some types of situations. And although Holland America has an onboard clinic and doctors and nurses, they wouldn't be able to handle every type of medical emergency.

Travel agent recommended to use the cruise ship for flight arrangements? For me, this would be a red flag.

Utah, check travel insurance on InsureMyTrip website, they give good comparison. It's not just for medical coverage, it's for delays, lost luggage, etc...

We bought the travelers insurance thought Holland America. It's for both having to cancel because of medical and also has medical if you have to be airlifted off. Since this was our first time and wasn't that expensive, we decided to buy it.

We are driving up, so not worried about flight

We have booked our excursions...WOOT!

Tracy Arm: Tracy Arm Fjord & Glacier Explorer to see the glaciers up close! Glaciers are top on my list of things to see. It was a really hard choice between this and whale watching. We still might do the evening whale watching from Juneau, we just have to decide if that's to much for one day since we are in Tracy Arm and Juneau the same day.

Skagway: Yukon Expedition & White Pass Railway. It's been 18 years since we made it up to the Yukon, so want to go there again, even if it's for just a short time. Who knows if we will get to Alaska again.

Ketchikan: Misty Fjords & Wilderness Explorer

I wasn't that worried about being sea sick. Do you think it's something we really have to worry about? I guess I still have time to contact my doctor.

Utahtea

Good choices all around. What did you decided on Juneau? Mendenhall obviously, and anything else?

Sea sickness should not be a problem but better safe than sorry. Get some meds just in case.

Juneau and Tracy Arm are in the same day. Tracy Arm is in the morning and we will get to Juneau about the same time as the ship, approx 2 PM. We are now torn between a whale watching tour later that evening or making it on our own to Mendenhall Glacier. There's no way we could possibly fit all three into one day. Don't want to over book ourselves and be to rushed so this is very hard to decide.

Utahtea

I have a new question, let me know if you think I should start a new thread.

We have been told we can bring water and soda on board. Has anyone done this? Do you pack it in your luggage or can you just put your luggage tags on a case of water or do you carry it on?

Utahtea

Well Tracy arm is a scenic passage and not a stop so that brings it down to two things to do. I suppose you could book the glacier tour and the whale watch w/ the ship so really its their responsibility to take care of you after that. Normally the ship will block you from booking conflicting excursions so if they let you them the time frame must to possible. I must say that if you arrive at 2PM thats one very long day but Alaska is about the excursions so if you can do that by all means do so. I have heard of people bringing non-alcoholic beverages in checked luggage/ However these days the weight restriction on baggage is tough so the extra weight from beverages is alot. How about getting stuff in port, then bringing it aboard? I am pretty sure you can do that. I get the feeling you are really excited about your 1st cruise. Well I doubt it will be the last. Have a ball. Its a great vacation. Cheers, Larry

jacketwatch,

We're driving to Vancouver so I though we'd buy the water and soda in the states before we crossed the border so I don't have to worry about weight restrictions on a flight. I didn't think there was weight restrictions on the cruise ship. We don't plan on brining on wine or booze of any kind.

I'm sure we could book both the Tracy Arm and Whale watching which would happen immediately following Tracy Arm...I'm just not sure we're up to all of that. We're still thinking about it.

Utahtea

OK. I thought you were flying. Thats the wt. restriction I meant.

I am not clear what you mean about Tracy Arm. For us this was a scenic passage which had no stops or tours. The ship simply went through it. Is this different for your cruise?

I am curious as to why you need to take bottled water. We have found the ship's water just fine to drink.

Does your ship offer the soda card? Everybody's different but I can't see lugging water and soda onboard.

Some folks, many actually, simply prefer botled water.

Larry, some crusie lines offer a small boat tour close up to Tracy Arm as part of a shore excursion.

Utahtea, If you are going to be at Juneau at 2 pm, it's too late to do both. Pick Mendenhall. You can always do whale watching some other time or some other place. It's not the same as the Alaska but you can do whale watching all the way along the North America Pacific coast from Mexico Baja all the way up to Alaska.

We have done whale watching in Cabos, California and Tofino. Different time of year and different location offer different type of whale sighhtings.

In terms of bottle water, why are you buying it in US and bring it into Canada? Buy it in Canada and less lugging around. How much water and pop are you bringing with you? If the stuff is not insde your luggage, they may get damaged or misplaced.

For all the trouble lugging them around to save a few bucks. Not worth it. My DW always accuse me of buying too much junk food and drinks for our road trip / hotel stays that we always ended up lugging everything back to the car and drove home with bags of chips, chocolate bars, peanuts and drinks.

We always over estiamted our consumption and ended up with extras. Typically they charge $3 for a large bottle of water on the ship. If you drink a bottle a day, it is $21 for the week. Even if it is free in the store, it is $20 you are saving.

Thanks Eschew.

Our cruise is offering the Tracy Arm Fjord & Glacier Explore excursion. We board a high speed catamaran directly from the cruise ship and get closer to the South Sawyer Glacier and go to the North Sawyer Glacier that the cruise boat won't get to. The catamaran takes us back to Juneau where the ship will be.

We lived 50 miles from the California coast so I could take a whale watching trip at any time. Besides, we have to save something for next time!

I've done a lot of reading any everyone says bring your own soda and water. If it's not convenient, I'll probably skip it. I don't know if Holland America has soda cards. I haven't seen anything on it.

Thank you one and all for your help. I've been busy packing!

Utahtea

And don't forget to post a trip report back here and share your wonderful experience.