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Hi Marty! I just wanted to take a moment to THANK YOU so much for all that you did for our family/friends cruise on Royal Carribbean's Legend of the Seas.  My family loves the RCCL line....and as concerned as I was that we had little ones coming on this vacation, I was SO impressed with the Ocean Adventure's Club.  My two little ones wanted to be there all the time.  I now have no reservations about bringing them on another RCCL cruise, the staff is just fabulous! When I originally started to research cruises and Travel Agents to help with the process, I was overwhelmed (Let's face it, sometimes the internet can be a good thing and sometimes it can be a bad thing).

Marty
Just returned from our honeymoon cruise... thanks, it was wonderful.  You and your staff do a amazing job in arranging everything.  Looking forward to working with you again.  I am keeping your  email address for future needs.  Also, my wife and I have a large adult family.  We discussed taking all of them including ourselves on a cruise... Would you please make some suggestions...for a total of 12 adults.
 

Again, thanks,

                             - Jim Page

                               Enchantment of the Seas

                               January 2007

Marty:

We had a fabulous time on our Cruisetour!  We were very impressed with the Princess organization and the way that we received packets of materials for each of our hotel stays and bus/train trips one day at a time. Luggage was delivered efficiently and we loved not having to hassle the check-ins at the hotels along the way. The weather was awesome, and we understand it has not been so for most of the Summer. We were able to see Mt. McKinley in all her glory and also saw whales outside of Juneau on Stephens Passage—just beautiful to behold as we saw probably a total of a dozen arch and dive, showing those magnificent muscular tails.

Our stateroom with balcony was awesome, and we loved being able to bundle up and park out on the deck chairs, taking in the incredible vistas. The land tours we picked suited us to a tee. My favorite was the Klondike Scenic Highlights with the train trip up to Fraser, visit to a suspension bridge, return bus trip including a tour and lunch at Jewell Gardens. I think Skagway shopping was actually the most pleasant for me – small, quaint shops. I’m not real big on all the jewels being promoted on the ship!

The cruise ship is quite a floating city. We marvel at how well they entertain and accommodate over 2000 people!

I guess my least favorite day was the cruise ship passage from Ketchikan through the Queen Charlotte Sound with 50 knot winds!! Things were quite rocky for about 10-12 hours.

We thank you again for all your assistance in securing our staterooms and assisting us with paperwork and questions. You were most patient and helpful.

Now we can enjoy and sharing our photo memories of a very special trip!!

Best regards,

                    - Martha and Ron Parriott

                      Island Princess

                      Princess Alaska Cruisetour

                      September 2006

Hi Marty and Raye,

Just wanted to let you know what a great Princess Cruisetour we enjoyed in Alaska this month. We flew to Seattle and visited family for three days and then to Fairbanks and more visiting while sightseeing. We went to the University of Alaska's beautiful Museum there and to Creamer's Field Sanctuary where the Sandhill Cranes were migrating by the hundreds(August 28). We saw both Fort Wainright and Eilsson Air Force Base and 1 moose by the road. We shopped at the Bowl Factory and the Knotty Shop as well as Santa Claus House in North Pole.

Downtown Fairbanks had some gorgeous flowers and parks along the Chena River. We did the Riverboat Discovery ride and learned a lot about the native Athabascan Indians. Weather was warm and somewhat cloudy but not bad in Fairbanks. One highlight was the Visitor center at the Pipeline north of town.

Finally we checked into the Fairbanks Princess Lodge which was very nice and right on the river. If this had been our only night in Fairbanks as the the Tour had scheduled, I would have been disappointed as we had to be up and out of there by 7AM. ( editor's note: Always schedule 2 days in Fairbanks for this very reason ) There were people who did not get in till 11 PM and had to deal with the time change, too.

All our luggage handling by Princess on the whole trip was superb, as was the scheduling for bus and train connections. From Fairbanks we took the train to Denali. We had eaten at the hotel so we did not need to waste time doing that instead of watching the scenery from the domed cars and from the open back landing. Our hosts on the train pointed out Dall sheep and other sights. Weather was cloudy when we arrived at the Denali Lodge but we explored the gorgeous property, shopped nearby and took the free shuttle to the Park Visitor Center which was very nice. We ate at the Pizza Place at the Hotel - nothing special but good service and good food. Our friends went in the outdoor Hot Tubs by our room which was overlooking the Nenana River.

At 6 AM the next day we were on the Natural History Bus Tour of Denali Park which was part of our Tour (no extra charge). It was a grey morning about 45 degrees but the sun came out eventually and the tour was fine but left you wanting more as it only went about 25 miles into the Park. We had time to take more photos before leaving Denali Lodge about 1 pm having not caught any glimpse of Mt. McKinley yet.

Finally on the bus to Mt. McKinley Princess Lodge, the clouds parted and the view was gorgeous with the fall foliage in the foreground and the Alaska Range in the distance. Soon we saw most of the big mountain and when we arrived at the Lodge it was completely out! We ate chicken strips at the lodge bar and sat on the open deck in the 60 degree sunshine admiring the view. We were thankful to have two days here and would highly recommend it if you are going in to Talkeetna at all which is a 1-hour shuttle ride.

Once we saw how nice the weather was, we signed up for a jet-boat tour at noon the next day, took the early shuttle in and had breakfast in town and bought a print by a local artist before boarding the boat and flying up the Susitna River. There were eagles and some salmon but we did not see any bears or other wildlife. The view of the mountains from the boat was fantastic and our driver said it was one of the best days of the year!

We enjoyed the deck/bar at the lodge again for dinner and saw a nice Photosymphony show. Next morning we hiked the two short trails at the lodge and took more pictures before our 1PM Shuttle to the Train which took us to Whittier. That was a long and not too picturesque ride. We did enjoy the Turnagain Arm section just before reaching the ship. Some people saw Beluga whales from the beautiful train cars.

Finally about 7 PM we arrived at the ship and got into our room for the duration. Our balcony cabin was just as we had expected although our stateroom was pretty remote from most ship activities! Our steward was great and we always enjoyed spending time at the room. The bathroom was small but adequate and there was plenty of closet space for our stuff. We had definitely over packed as we had only been on Caribbean cruises before and this was not as formal. Nice slacks and a few different tops would have been fine for all but the two Formal Dinner nights and some people didn't bother with those! Food at the 24-hour Horizon Court was terrific. We did all our lunches there enjoying the views and the company of other guests. Dinner food was also excellent and we learned to enjoy meeting new friends every night as we tried Anytime dining. We had been on the waiting list for first seating and would have preferred it. At least we were able to dine early every night so that we could get seats at the early shows which were always crowded and were always very good. Princess performers are the best!

As for the scenery of the Inside Passage, we had to skip College Fiord - too rough seas; we spent a grey day in Glacier Bay but still had good views; Skagway was misty until we got to the top of the Pass on the Railway, an excellent tour; Juneau was also rainy - all we did was go shopping; and, even though Ketchikan was grey, we enjoyed the Lighthouse Totem Tour by boat where we learned a lot from our crew and saw lots of eagles and their nests; we even saw a nuclear Sub which was coming into the base near there. There were a couple of times when we saw the tails and spray of Orka whales near the ship, this and the glacier were the best times for having our own balcony. The rest of the time I would not say it was as necessary as on a Caribbean Cruise - we never just sat out there as it was cool and the scenery was just grey.

When we arrived in beautiful Vancouver, the sun finally came out for good and we had a nice day of sightseeing with our family from Seattle who drove us back for our flight the next day. All in all we had a wonderful time and were thoroughly pleased with the arrangements you made for us. The $363.00 we saved over our local agency's quote paid for some of our great shore excursions. Everything went smoothly and I will definitely contact you for our next Cruise. Let me know if there is anything else you would like to know about our experiences on this trip of a lifetime!

Thanks,

                     - Peggy and Ed Koenig

                       Coral Princess

                       Alaska Cruisetour

                       August 2006

Hi Marty, Just got back from our cruisetour to Alaska on Princess. Everything was excellent. The hotels and the ship was rated tops by all in our party. The help with the 8 month old was fantastic and the excursions were great. Thanks for all of your help. We are looking forward to another cruise next year, possibly the Mediterrean and working with you. Thanks again.

                       -Richard & Dolores Duarte

                        Sapphire Princess

                        July 2006