Cruising Alaska on Norwegian Encore, Pt 1 | Whales, Scenic Train Rides, Hiking in Juneau & More!

[@EmmaCruises]

"That was a mistake" ha ha ha. I love the pace of these videos, my attention span is so short but these keep my attention the whole time. Thank you!!

[@CruiseHabit]

Never trust a Canadian telling you it's good weather for going into the water! We may have made that mistake a couple times. Thanks for much for your note on the pace - that's high praise coming from the person that has *mastered* pace! You always time things just perfectly to make us wonder what's happening in the next couple seconds.

[@jerriphillips2446]

Thanks, Billy! We really enjoyed watching. Skagway and the White Pass railroad was my favorite. It was what I always imagined Alaska would be. So beautiful!!

[@CruiseHabit]

It really is gorgeous. Just wait until you get to see the day we spent in Glacier Bay! Should be out this coming weekend.

[@paddlegal3097]

Thanks for the great tour and info. We’ll be onboard Encore in June.

[@CruiseHabit]

Enjoy! Reach out with any questions.

[@elnamayberry]

Thanks for all this - I will be on that ship next Spring! But on the NCL Epic for a Caribbean cruise, they also had a place to leave our bags (The Bliss) from boarding to cabins being ready. :)

[@CruiseHabit]

Have fun! I suspect the bag thing is something NCL does on all ships, but it'd been a while since we took a longer sailing with them, so it's not something we'd noticed. Nice feature!

[@jeis1121]

We’re sailing to Alaska on the Encore in August. Can’t wait! We’ve been on the Epic 3 times. Great ship.

[@vanessawyndham8791]

Sailed on Encore to Alaska in June. It was magnificent and the weather was perfect!

[@CruiseHabit]

Glad you enjoyed! Was it the same route?

[@vanessawyndham8791]

@@CruiseHabit Exactly the same.

[@mrscandyt]

Wonderful video! Thank you for sharing your experience with us.

[@CruiseHabit]

Glad you enjoyed it, thanks for watching! The second half/pt 2 video is up now as well: kzbin.info/www/bejne/kIDPiq2umLaoqbc

[@lorigrimaldi194]

Love it! I'm planning an Alaskan cruise with NCL either August or September 2024. Maybe I'll look at October too.

[@CruiseHabit]

Our sailing left October 8, 2023. We'll aim to be back soon, for sure. Take a look at the Freestyle Daily collection from our cruise to get an idea of what events and such you might expect on a similar sailing: www.cruisehabit.com/daily-programs-menus/norwegian-encore-norwegian-cruise-lines-norwegian-encore-7-night-alaska

[@lorigrimaldi194]

@@CruiseHabitThanks!

[@2seeatnite42]

Great video. Thanks for sharing your adventures. Planning a family trip for May 2025 on the Encore.

[@CruiseHabit]

Glad you found it helpful! Be sure to check out part 2 as well. Enjoy your trip and reach out with any questions.

[@michelleb749]

Beautiful views from Mount Roberts

[@CruiseHabit]

It was really spectacular - we'll definitely be back again sooner than last time. So much of Alaska is just taking in the widest view of what you can see and relaxing.

[@henockak1]

Love it. Thanks for sharing.

[@CruiseHabit]

Thanks for watching! Stay tuned for part 2/the rest of the cruise. That should be out this coming weekend.

[@jackredmond6023]

Fun!

[@CruiseHabit]

It was! We're already plotting a return...but first we have to edit the second half of the vlog 😜

[@jackredmond6023]

@@CruiseHabit We went to Alaska last year - almost same itinerary as yours - on Discovery Princess. Missed Skagway due to the rock slides at the port. Went to Icy Straight Point instead. It was very cool, however the White Pass Scenic Railway was one of the excursions we missed and we really wanted to do. We are going back next August on same ship - same itinerary (a do-over) with Glacier Bay instead of Endicott Arms as last year. Glad you got to sail with friends and celebrate. We will be looking forward to your second half vlog! Thanks!

[@CruiseHabit]

@@jackredmond6023 We've not sailed Princess in a couple years, so who knows, maybe we'll see you there 🙂 I'd love to check out Icy Straight and Endicott so that we can compare them to Glacier Bay and Hubbard Glacier. I suspect they're all spectacular in their own ways.

[@edvaira6891]

White Pass Railway was the only short excursion we actually took the entire cruise (and got a nice $110/pp deal on Cyber Monday) and, although my wife and daughter initially thought I was Nuts for blowing $300 plus on a train ride, about twenty minutes in, they both turned to me and were like, “Yeah, we GET IT now! This was Totally Worth the money!”…Easily the Highlight of the whole week (well, maybe Tied with Butchart Gardens in Victoria…but we had an emotional attachment to that, since we went there on our honeymoon in 1991)…(Excellent choice of restaurant, by the way! We LOVED The Station!)

[@CruiseHabit]

White Pass was definitely a highlight. I worried it had been over hyped a bit but found it lovely. I think one of our friends found the station reading restaurant reviews. While it doesn't look like anything special, it def punches above it's weight in quality of food!

[@mitchellbarnow1709]

I’m so happy to see you’re back on a cruise, but it’s a habit!

[@CruiseHabit]

35 days until out next adventures. We can't stop!

[@mitchellbarnow1709]

@@CruiseHabitIt’ll be here before you know it!

[@bogarteyou]

Great video, I enjoyed it.

[@CruiseHabit]

Awesome, thank you!

[@LifeWithChuey]

Yeahhhh🎉😂❤ Lil-Bo!!,..U both doing a Walkthru again!...Finally!! Glad u are all doing well!..& makes us SOOOO-HAPPY to see u both again!! Take-Care & we'll see u out there soon to get our R.V. as we Retire in a year or so!!❤🎉😂 Luv to u all!! From the Smiths Las Vegas,NV.

[@edvaira6891]

How does this ship compare to the Bliss? We’re taking the Bliss in late March on its “Pacific Coast”/repositioning cruise and, after only having been on RCL so far, are really looking forward to trying Norwegian (also love the fact we’re visiting two of the cities from our Honeymoon (San Francisco and Victoria) and disembarking in a third (Vancouver)

[@CruiseHabit]

Bliss and Encore are the most similar of the Breakaway Plus class ships, so for the most part, what you see in these vids will mimic Bliss. The main difference, that comes to mind, other than art, and the labeling of certain spaces, is that the go-kart track on Bliss is a bit larger. We actually sailed SF to Vancouver for our first AK cruise, but that was on Oceania Regatta (670 pax, ultra-premium), so it was quite different than this experience, of course. If your sailing goes to Astoria, check out the Columbia River Bar Pilot Museum - cool place in a neat little town!

[@fongcubano4354]

great video...I have a reservation to go out in August and your video helped me understand...if you have more suggestions, thank you

[@CruiseHabit]

Thanks so much for watching! We just caught up on some other comments on this video, so check those out and reach out with any questions!

[@TheOriginalMarimoChan]

how much did the king crab lunch cost? looked fabulous!

[@CruiseHabit]

We ordered a lot of different things. You can see their menu at the link below. AK is expensive in general, b/c it's so far from everything, but this meal was definitively worth it. www.skagwayhotelandrestaurant.com/station-bar-and-grill-menu

[@spirittravelers9606]

Thanks for the video! Billy, I want to know where you get all of your festive glasses please!?

[@CruiseHabit]

Thanks for watching! My glasses are from Pair Eyewear. They're not a sponsor, but I love their stuff. You can choose from a variety of frame shape and colors and then add toppers with different colors, patterns, etc. They have new ones coming out all the time. If you want to save some money on them and help me get more toppers you can use this link :-) rwrd.io/wgmjr6q?c I also buy little glue dots to help the toppers stay on. They don't fall of by themselves, but sometimes I knock them off when changing, taking a bag off, etc, and these help: amzn.to/3XPXSQ4

[@BerryinHI]

Wow! You got to ride the train going up and coming back down? My excursion only included one-way trip, going down. Found cabin mate rode it only going up.

[@CruiseHabit]

How did you get to the top? Was there a bus/tour portion?

[@justcallmecrazy1]

be on that boat soon

[@CruiseHabit]

Enjoy!

[@susiecollins1276]

I see you are wearing a short sleeve shirt so not too chilly - 60’s

[@CruiseHabit]

Yep, I'd say the times you see me looking warm it was the mid to high 60s. I put some other info on weather in your other comments :-)

[@wbrown2481]

What month was this trip

[@CruiseHabit]

This was in October.

[@smcgrew93]

Sorry if you mentioned this but what month did you go?

[@CruiseHabit]

This sailing was early October - one of the last of the season.

[@cbnsoul]

How was the WiFi? We were on Grand Princess last year (brand new ship) and it was terrible. Wasn’t sure if that was a ship/line thing or more due to the latitude

[@CruiseHabit]

Previously, AK cruises had poor connectivity b/c SES and other legacy providers of satellite connectivity don't cover well past the 49th parallel. Starlink, fortunately, is significantly better in that regard. Encore has Starlink, and it's being deployed across the NCL fleet - as well as pretty much all others (in part b/c it's much cheaper for cruise lines). It seems like NCL restricts device to about 4mbps down/2.5mbps up, but that's still adequate for most tasks, and latency is reasonable. We found it totally usable with the premium internet plan. So, next time you sail AK, you're likely to have much better speeds and reliability.

[@edvaira6891]

We were on Ovation in June (with StarLink) and it was quite Crappy…decent in port, terrible everywhere else

[@CruiseHabit]

@@edvaira6891 Interesting. I wonder if there is/was an implementation problem on that ship, if they'd fallen back to SES for some reason, etc.

[@michellec.9852]

Going on this cruise in August. Pretty sure I am going broke. 😂

[@billmcdonald9115]

Could you add what month/day you took this trip? I'll watch again maybe you mention in the beginning

[@CruiseHabit]

Embarkation day was October 8, 2023. The dates for each port can be found by checking our Freestyle Daily scans for that sailing. www.cruisehabit.com/daily-programs-menus/norwegian-encore-norwegian-cruise-lines-norwegian-encore-7-night-alaska

[@susiecollins1276]

What temperature can we expect at the different places in October?

[@CruiseHabit]

Pasting from my other comment to ensure anyone asking about what temps to expect see the info, too :-) We were there in October. I'd use WeatherSpark (or a similar site) to check the average historical temps for the cities you're visiting. Just know that AK can vary a lot (even within the same day), so there were times it was in the upper 60s while we were there, and other times it was in the lower 50s. The link below will show you Weather Spark data for Juneau. weatherspark.com/y/13526/Average-Weather-in-Juneau-Wisconsin-United-States-Year-Round#Figures-Temperature

[@kristingroce6609]

Can you tell me the dates of this cruise?

[@CruiseHabit]

We embarked on October 4th, 2023 for a seven night sailing.

[@edvaira6891]

Curious about something….we did this itinerary (well, a similar one at least..it was Ovation) in mid-June and we averaged about 55 degrees (and drizzle) most of the days…how was mid-October, weather-wise?

[@CruiseHabit]

We really lucked out. For most of the cruise it was pretty clear after the morning fog burned off and the temps during the day were usually in the upper fifties. Skagway was cooler (and at night at sea of course, it was cooler). Juneau was very warm, in the sixties. We had one very cold and wet day, which you'll see in part 2 of the vlog coming out next weekend. Overall though, we were thrilled.

[@jennifers6845]

When did you go?

[@CruiseHabit]

October 8, 2023. Had to check our Freestyle Daily collection to be sure :-) www.cruisehabit.com/daily-programs-menus/norwegian-encore-norwegian-cruise-lines-norwegian-encore-7-night-alaska

[@susiecollins1276]

What month is this and give me some specifics temps- unseasonably warm isn’t enough info for me to know how to pack!

[@CruiseHabit]

We were there in October. I'd use WeatherSpark (or a similar site) to check the average historical temps for the cities you're visiting. Just know that AK can vary a lot (even within the same day), so there were times it was in the upper 60s while we were there, and other times it was in the lower 50s. The link below will show you Weather Spark data for Juneau. weatherspark.com/y/13526/Average-Weather-in-Juneau-Wisconsin-United-States-Year-Round#Figures-Temperature

[@Mayasons98-ie6te]

Great video. We are planning the same cruise but have seen other videos complain about the wait times on the Norwegian. Is there truth to this, one can expect some wait with 4k passengers om board but I been seeing wait times of over an hr, the crew not being interested in serving in the main hall etc, could you please enlighten me. Thanks very much

[@CruiseHabit]

We experienced a couple of meals in the MDR where things were moving a bit slowly. We never felt ignored - it just took a while. Again, those were exceptions. As best as I can recall the majority of time on onboard we found service very quick an attentive. MDR was the only slow down - and even that wasn't constant. Now, the flip side is that if those slow downs were timed in a way that we were waiting for our meal before going ashore, it'd have been annoying.

[@icedteamama176]

Interesting…new sub here. We plan to take Alaskan cruise mid next year. Audrey is your wife? Which balcony cabin (which deck & side) were you on please? Such nice views! How long was the train ride? Thanks for the (slightly terrifying) humor!

[@kdlev4903]

Wife & i took a Alaska cruise on the Encore in September 23, we had a mini suite on deck 14. It was great, we loved it so much that while on board we booked another cruise for September 25 on same ship. I highly recommend you book through a travel agent, they can get you perks you otherwise may miss.

[@icedteamama176]

@@kdlev4903 what did you like most about the ship or cruise? I saw some complaints about short port time, especially in Ketchikan where the ship is docked far away from town. Thank you for the information on cabin. We always book with TA. 😊

[@CruiseHabit]

Sorry for the delayed reply! We were in 12246 - and I should have posted a room tour. What a whirlwind trip! It is a category BA, mid ship, port side, deck 12. The train ride was about 2.5 hours. It usually is a tad longer, but due to maintenance, our ride turned around a bit earlier than normal (which we were notified of longer before the cruise). Now, what's terrifying about my sense of humor?! 😆

[@CruiseHabit]

The way NCL does Ketchikan is...annoying. The little ride into town would be fine if not for the long wait we had for the shuttle. How normal that wait is I can't say - but I'd hope our experience was an outlier in that sense. With Oceania we've docked right in town in Ketchikan and it's magical - but again, not a big deal if they sort out the shuttle wait time, as it really cut in to our overall time in Ketchikan. The port time in Victoria is, to me, a bigger issue, but I also understand that was b/c of some relatively last-minute regulations, and I hope to see that adjusted. It's something other lines had to do as well. A shame given how much I loved our previous visit there. Our favorite part (other than just a vacation with great friends) may have simply been relaxing and watching the scenery pass by. I can't overstate how pretty it is, even if you're just sitting on your balcony.

[@icedteamama176]

@@CruiseHabit thank you! It wasn’t an inside passage cruise so not super calm I guess…

[@anniemao2247]

What month did you guys go?

[@CruiseHabit]

This was in Oct 2023.

[@Cowboyfromfrance]

Hi, Did it takes too long to get off the NCL encore in Juneau disembarkation ?

[@CruiseHabit]

Juneau was very simple. Just walked off. Perhaps if we tried to get off right when they lowered the gangway there'd have been a brief wait? When we did there was zero delay.

[@UberManTampa]

A word to the wise, if you book your excursion through the cruise line and their is any sort of delay they will wait. If you book through anyone else they will leave you in a new York minute

[@CruiseHabit]

It's a consideration, however it's really about using a tour company (via the cruise line or otherwise) and going on your own. If you're exploring on your own, you simply need to pad your time to make sure you're back in plenty of time. If you use a third party tour company, their business is done if they arrive to the port late, so they're going to make sure to get you back in time. We've used third parties in many ports, often from Viator or other brokers recommended by our agent, and found MUCH better prices, smaller tour groups (often private) and a greater variety of options.