Full Circle in Alaska: Adventure and Awe on Our Multigenerational Cruise
Some places are hard to describe. Alaska is one of those places. It lives up to every bit of the hype and takes your breath away over and over again in ways you don't expect. Matt and I fell in love with it on our honeymoon, and we always dreamed of bringing our boys back one day so they could experience how amazing Alaska is for themselves. This trip was our chance to finally make that happen.
We flew into Vancouver a day before embarkation, which is highly recommended for any cruise, and it was one of the best decisions we made. A private transfer took us from the airport to our hotel, and that evening we walked down the street to Malone's Taphouse for dinner. The next morning, before boarding, we wandered around downtown, checked out the Gastown Steam Clock, and viewed our ship from Granville Square, then stopped for brunch at a local spot called The Hard Bean Brunch Co. (highly recommend the tiramisu waffles) before heading to the ship. By the time we boarded, I was already planning another trip back to Vancouver to explore the city more.
This cruise was our second time sailing Star Class with a Royal Genie, and I'll admit, once you experience that level of service, it's hard to imagine cruising any other way. Having someone anticipate what your family needs before you even ask it, especially when you're traveling with a multigenerational group, changes the whole rhythm of the trip. Less logistics, more actually being together. Our Genie met us right in the terminal and walked us straight onto the ship and to our cabin, which was already prepared and waiting for us. After popping some champagne, we spent the rest of the afternoon exploring the ship, and that night had an amazing dinner in the main dining room and watched the ship sail under the Lions Gate Bridge toward our week of adventure.
The next day was a full day at sea, and we made the most of it. There is so much to do aboard Ovation of the Seas that it's hard to ever get bored, and the ship itself turned out to be only part of what made this trip so amazing. Between bumper cars, roller skating, sports courts, and video games in the SeaPlex, plus an arcade for the kids, comedians, and bingo, there was always something going on. That day, we rode North Star for the view and tried indoor skydiving, and while the boys headed off to bingo, the girls and I snuck away for a wine tasting. We ended the day with dinner at Chops, where us girls made sure to put our new wine knowledge to work.
Our first port was Ketchikan, where the family split up for the day. My oldest son and I went on a photo safari, exploring parts of Ketchikan many visitors never see, including Creek Street, the Totem Heritage Center, the Ketchikan Public Library (for an amazing view), and Potlatch Totem Park and Museum. Meanwhile, the rest of the family did a wildlife cruise, explored downtown Ketchikan, and grabbed a bite to eat to try some of the local fare before hiring a private boat captain to take them back to the ship. While they took their private cruise back, our tour guide dropped my son and me off at Wards Cove, where the ship docked, and we did a little shopping while we waited for everyone else to return. That night, while the rest of the family enjoyed dinner at Giovanni's, Matt and I celebrated our 18th wedding anniversary with dinner at the Chef's Table, an intimate, multi-course private dining experience hosted by the ship's Chef de Cuisine and a dedicated sommelier. If you ever have the chance to experience the Chef's Table, we highly recommend it.
From there we sailed to Icy Strait Point near Hoonah, where the family split up again for whale watching. Our oldest two boys and our oldest's fiancée took a different tour than the rest of us, and then followed it up with some lunch at the Duck Point Smokehouse Restaurant, where they tried the most delicious reindeer chili. On our whale watching excursion, we watched for that first breach, which never gets old no matter how many times you've seen it, and were lucky enough to catch the whales hunting using their bubble-net feeding strategy, which is always mesmerizing. We were also fortunate to spot seals hanging out on a buoy and a coastal brown bear on a beach before ending the day with a seafood boil. Eating incredibly fresh Alaskan seafood outdoors, surrounded by that scenery, is one of those experiences that's hard to beat. Afterward, Jim (Matt's dad), Kathy, and I took the gondola back to the dock, while the rest of the family followed the Nature Trail.
Sitka came next, and it had a completely different feel from the rest of the trip. We booked a semi-private, small group excursion that ended up being made up of our entire family and one other person, who we basically adopted for the day. We visited the Alaska Raptor Center and Fortress of the Bear, both of which are rescue and rehabilitation centers. Seeing American bald eagles and bears up close, and hearing the rescue stories behind each animal, was a different kind of Alaska experience than the ports built around adventure and adrenaline. Back in downtown Sitka, we explored the city and took in the history. Jim even found an old-school arcade, where he proceeded to revert back to a child and relive his youth, playing pinball and other games alongside his youngest grandchild. After exploring, we headed back to the ship, where our Genie had pizzas and other food waiting for us since it was a late return day. After dinner, most of us were exhausted and headed to our cabins for some sleep, but Matt, Kevin, and I headed to one of our favorite things aboard Royal Caribbean, the adults-only Crazy Quest game show, to close out our day.
In Skagway, we went all in on adventure. Here, we took a helicopter ride up to a glacier for a sled dog experience. Ethan even got to push some buttons and help fly the helicopter, while Jim, who'd been nervous about the ride at first, ended up having the best time once we were in the air, pointing out everything he saw out the window to the boys. We could see the dogs from the air as we came in to land, and once we were on the ice, we got to learn all about what life as a sled dog musher was like. Then we got to pet the dogs and watch them do a short run, before cuddling with the puppies, and of course we had to watch everyone closely to make sure no one tried to sneak one back home. It's one of those excursions that's hard to describe and easy to never forget.
After Skagway came Hubbard Glacier, the largest tidewater glacier in North America. Unlike most glaciers, this glacier is actively advancing and thickening rather than shrinking. The ship treats the day almost like its own sea day, and we spent the morning out on our balconies, curled up in extra blankets with coffee and hot chocolate brought to us by our Genie, admiring the color of the ice and the sheer scale of it, while keeping an eye out for our chance to see the glacier calve. No excursion, no agenda, just being together and taking it all in. The rest of the day was spent wandering the ship, playing arcade games, and of course more bingo. That night we had one last family dinner together at Giovanni's, before disembarking the next morning.
We disembarked in Seward and boarded the Alaska Railroad for the ride to Anchorage, which might be one of the most underrated parts of an Alaska cruise. After a week of seeing Alaska from the ship, watching the scenery roll by from the train gave us a completely different perspective on the state, and at one point we even watched an avalanche roll down a mountainside, which is not something you see every day. Since we had a later flight out, when we arrived in Anchorage we had time to grab lunch downtown at a local Latin restaurant called Tequila 61, then hopped on a trolley tour with Anchorage Trolley Tours that took us to Ship Creek, Earthquake Park, Point Woronzof, and the Lake Hood Seaplane Base, where we even spotted a young female moose before heading to the airport.
Looking back, this was the trip we'd been dreaming about since our honeymoon, and it didn't disappoint. It was a mix of big, bucket-list moments, like the helicopter and sled dogs, and quieter ones that ended up mattering just as much, like watching the glacier from our balcony or Jim rediscovering his inner child in a Sitka arcade. That's the thing about multigenerational travel: it's rarely just one kind of moment that makes the trip. It's all of them together.
If a multigenerational Alaska cruise has been on your family's list, I'd love to help you build one. Star Class suite, Genie service, and all.