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COMMENTS AND PICTURES FROM OUR CLIENTS ON ALASKA!
Gayle,
We had an amazing time. Definitely a trip of a lifetime. We saw SO much wildlife (whales, orca, grizzly bear, moose, caribou, Dall sheep, puffins, black bear, eagles, seals, sea lions, and I’m probably missing some). Weather, as you know, was outstanding, and the scenery – well, that was simply awe inspiring. And the variety of excursions, experiences, etc.
Kathy and Doug
FIRST TIME CRUISERS AND ALASKA TOUR
The Zielke, Zelechowski and Logan family loved their Alaska Cruise and Tour package! They all agreed it was their best vacation ever!!!
Family Alaska trip on Royal Caribbean
Hi Tana,
The trip was terrific! We enjoyed both the cruise and the wild Alaska frontier. We are an active family and picked excursions that were fairly physical. The favorites were the float plane/fly fishing and Mendenhall Glacier Canoe and Hike. We’d highly recommend both! We also enjoyed kayaking and did a lot of hiking into the mountainside. I’d say our least favorite stop was Icy Strait Point as it was seemed geared toward tourists and shopping, although there were excursions we could have elected. We would recommend the trip to others!
Thank you again for your customer service! We enjoyed working with you and appreciate you making it easy to via email!
Niebler Family
TRIP OF A LIFETIME!
Gayle,
ALASKA BY LAND AND AIR....NO CRUISE
PRINCESS CRUISE ALASKA ADVENTURE FOR THE BUSALACCHI AND GANNON FAMILY
Gayle, Alaska was the most beautiful of any cruise we have been on. Princess was very nice. Brenda Busalacchi
Gayle,I really enjoyed it! Alaska was gorgeous! My only complaint is that we weren't able to stay longer in a couple of the ports.. we got there- did our excursion and left.. it would have been nice to sight see on our own a bit. But overall the ship was nice (service wasn't as top notch as it used to be). Food was EXCELLENT and they catered to my nutrition needs very well. If I had to rate it from a 1-5 (5 being highest) I would give it a 4.2. LOL
ALASKA FUN ON CELEBRITY CRUISE
Gayle and Mary,
Thanks so much for all your work setting up our trip. We had a very good time and have a lot of great memories. If you need an unusual picture here is on of us at the Musher’s camp. Our favorite part was playing with the Alaska Husky puppies at the end.
We toasted you and enjoyed the wine.
I forgot to thank you - the Captain Cook upgraded us to a Junior Suite which made a great finale to the trip.
Thanks!!
Cindi and Jim DeBruine
FAMILY ALASKA TRIP ON CELEBRITY CRUISES!
Celebrate a 30th Anniversary in ALASKA!
Hey Gayle,
We had a very nice time on the cruise. They did not upgrade our room on the ship. I was informed that just because we were celebrating a 30 yr anniversary, that it wasn’t cause for an upgrade. The room that we had with the obstructed view was nice though.. it was our first time cruising with a window! It was nice to have the natural light. We really enjoyed the open dining option. We met many nice people this way and learned to try things we had not in the past…like afternoon tea and wine tasting- both were lots of fun. I got some awesome photos…I will send you some. Our ports of call were very interesting. We really enjoyed them.
I would recommend this cruise to anyone. The scenery was just beautiful!
Thanks for your help,
Kerry
NCL ALASKA CRUISE
Good morning Gayle,
We enjoyed Alaska tremendously and are already talking about a return trip. We have mixed feelings on the excursion question.
We went on a whale watching/glacier excursion and it was incredible. We got to see multiple whales surfacing but no breeches. We were close enough to hear them and it was very special. The glacier tour was also wonderful.
Unfortunately, our helicopter ride was cancelled the night before due to lack of people signing up. This was a pretty big disappointment and left us scrambling to find something else to do.
As far as cruises go, it was good but there were a few things we didn’t like. We struggled with being “on the clock”. This started with the scheduled dinners which were a big challenge for us. I guess we realized we don’t like schedules on vacation. We also struggled with the stops. We really enjoyed each of the stops and always had to rush to get back on the ship. We understand the importance of the ships needing to depart but it really wasn’t our cup of tea. In the next couple of years we want to go back and research the land and sea options.
All in all, it was a great trip and we both agreed it quickly became one of our favorite places. We viewed the cruise as necessary to get where we wanted to go. Don’t get me wrong, the cruise has a lot of nice entertainment and activities which we enjoyed. We just like to be less structured and scheduled.
Thank you again for helping us with this trip. You’re now 2 for 2 with Jamaica and Alaska. J Have a great day! Tim
SISTER TRIP IN ALASKA!!
Tana,
Thanks for allof your help with our Alaska trip. Here is a photo of Sue and I in Ketchikan.
It was a great sister trip!
Carol and Sue
An amazing 5th Anniversary trip in Alaska!
Gayle,
Here are a few pics of Brett and I in Alaska.
The one at the bar is when we were at Skagway Fishing Co. enjoying some amazing food and great beer. There are 2 of them when we were at the Buchart Gardens taking in the beautiful scenery and amazing gardens.
The other pic is when we were in Juneau checking out the Mendenhall Glacier...it was breathtaking!
Hope these help :) Thanks for planning such an amazing trip for us.
Regina St. John.
ALASKA CRUISERS!
Hi, Lisa.
Our cruise was awesome! The junior suite was just the right size for us, giving us room to move, sit together and make plans, and nicer bathroom facilities than I expected. The itinerary was perfect, since we wanted a few 'down' days to just enjoy the experience of being aboard, as well as a few 'get out and do stuff' days like we had in the ports. I was pretty impressed by Icy Straits/Hoonah. A teacher friend of mine taught on a nearby island for a few years, but she never got to visit this area. It's beautiful, and the opportunity to meet the people who actually live there instead of those brought in to run the tours in other ports was lovely. We also took the opportunity of visiting Ketchikan to meet up with a few teacher friends who live there now. They showed us a few things that are on tours, and a few things that aren't, so it was a busy day!
Overall, I'd recommend this cruise to anyone who wants a good time on board and just enough time to see a few things in port. We're even considering using this as our every-other-year mode of transport from Anchorage downstates.
This might be a lengthier review than you were expecting, but we both had a great time, and wanted to rave about it a bit more before we put the experience away for the coming year.
Thanks very much, and we look forward to working with you in the future!
Mary Ellen and John
Hello Gayle,
Our trip was awesome. Weather was great, couple days Mark worn shorts it was that nice. Just a couple days of light misty rain,(one day on the bus to Denali, one day while on the ship sailing.) Saw lots of animals on land and in water. Glaciers were awesome.
Thanks for helping us plan a great vacation.
Wendy and Mark
Adventure anyone?
Gene and Pat Bialzik and Ron & Jane Rollinger were very adventurous on their Princess Alaska Cruise. These river rafting trips are very popular for our Alaska clients. Thanks again for all your help. We will surely recommend you to everyone who is interested in going to Alaska. Pat Bialzik
INNER PASSAGE OF ALASKA
Hi Sheri,
Thank you for helping set up our cruise of the inner passage in Alaska. All the arrangements you made for us were great, since this was our first cruise it was nice to have someone that understand the industry make them. We had a wonderful room on the back of the ship in a great location and thanks for suggesting the assigned dinner time, it worked out great for us. We both really enjoyed cruising the inner passage and seeing Glacier Bay along with the towns we stopped at. We did not go with your suggests of execution, we did a float plane that viewed 5 glaciers, the views that we saw were awesome. But talking to others on the ship that did the excursions you suggested they said they were wonderful to see and experience.
Working with you was a great experience, any questions we had were answered or you were able to get the answers back to us right away. When we go again on a cruise we will book it through you again.
Thanks
Debbie & Randy
FAMILY REUNION IN ALASKA!
It is not every day you have a family reunion cruising in Alaska. This was a wonderful Alaskan trip for this family.... coming from all over the US just to experience the wilderness. They loved the white pass train trip, helicopter on the glaciers and just being together to enjoy this adventure!
We liked the Mendenhall glacier!!!
- from left to right -
Paulie and Brian Haugen of Morrisville, PA
Mark and Carol Haugen of St. Peters, MO
Peggy and Paul Haugen of Hubertus, WI
Kathy and Keith Tracy of Mequon, WI
The Gehrmann Family just returned from Alaska
"Thank you for your help in arranging our trip to Alaska. The entire family returned with many lasting memories. The ship was great, the crew outstanding, & the suites worked well for us. This cruise made our 50th Anniversary very special.
Ralph & Betty Gehrmann and Family"
Hi Tana,
Thank you for the follow up e-mail. We thoroughly enjoyed the cruise. We saw a lot of wildlife(whales, eagles, otters, sea lions, dolphins & even brown bears, one with 3 cubs) and were amazed by the glaciers. We saw quite a few calvings, that was amazing. Unfortunately our helicopter excursion was cancelled in
A glacier was the backdrop for this beautiful photo of Scott and Jan Gray, Kathy and Jim Murphy and Pat and Roger Benway’s trip to Alaska. Get your group of family or friends together and call us so we can help you start making memories like these.
From left to right are Scott and Jan Gray, Kathy and Jim Murphy and Pat and Roger Benway.
Judy Wendt, Barbara Isleb, Janet Wickersham and Mae Jean Kanters finished their Alaskan cruise in Vancouver and took a day tour to Victoria to see Buchart Gardens.
Joe and Mary Ann Mundwiler from Mukwonago said the Princess Alaska Cruise and Tour they went on was "Totally Cool!" The personal choice dining was the best. We met so many nice people with that dining option. We loved the wildlife preserve and the whole trip. I will send in some pictures soon!
Mary Ann & Joe
Gayle helped the Bucholtz's on their anniversary trip of a lifetime in Alaska!
Rick and Margo Bucholtz from Oconomowoc cruised to Alaska on Celebrity Cruise Line. Rick and Margo both loved Alaska. Margo didn't think she would like it because she was used to the Caribbean. Once they got there they both thought the glaciers calving was breathtaking!! Rick said he would go again tomorrow.
Thanks for your help in this matter. We had a great time on our vacation, the weather co- operated and Alaska is just so beautiful.
Thanks again.
Jerry
All of our tour guides everywhere were the best! What a treat. We learned a lot. We saw Mt. McKinley clearly 2 days in a row!!! Yup, we have LOTS of pictures! Then in Denali we saw almost every animal there -- black bear, grizzly, many moose, dall sheep, caribou, wolves, artic ground squirrels, a rare falcon . . . The bus driver was equipped with a camera that could zoom in on the animals in the distance for those who had trouble spotting them & there were pull down TV screens that would show what she was recording. VERY COOL! The fall colors were brilliant. It was cool to be there in fall too because the moose & caribou had antlers.
About the B&B (Denali Touch of Wilderness) -- it was very nicely decorated & it was nice that she provided a bag breakfast for those of us who wanted to eat earlier than she was serving breakfast. (We needed to be at the Denali bus by 7 a.m. & she served at 8 a.m.) I had what was basically an egg McMuffin, banana, juice & yogurt. We used her microwave to heat the egg mcmuffin. The downside was the building was not well sound-proofed when it was built. No one was noisey -- it was when someone walked upstairs, it was loud on the first floor -- not real normal.
The Kenai River Retreat in Soldotna was AWESOME! Even Mariel Hemingway has stayed there. The hosts are so nice and share lots of information and ideas about the area. The suite we had was well equipped & had lots of nice touches including a coin washer & dryer available. Tom asked if I found the softsoap in the bathroom -- I hadn't -- it was in such a cool lantern dispenser, it looked like part of the décor. It had a full kitchen including dishwasher, plenty of closet space, etc. and wonderful view of the Kenai River. The one thing if you send people there -- it is above the garage, so you need to take stairs to come & go. The property is very well maintained.
We enjoyed the boat tour of the Kenai Fjords National Park & the glaciers there. The weather was good while we were on he Kenai. Seeing the mountains across the Cook Inlet were not a problem. We have LOTS of pictures of them too. We also saw the oil platforms from Captain Cook State Park. We did get to Homer. And we rafted on the Kenai River.
We did stop at the animal refuge on the way back to Anchorage too. That was neat. When we drove from Anchorage to the Kenai Peninsula I felt like we were driving thru a relief map. The mountain ranges were amazing!
The weather was pretty consistantly in the mid-50s & we had packed what we needed for that.
All of our luggage followed us & flights were all on time!
Thanks for all your help in making this the trip of a lifetime!
Denise Kopitzke from Wind Lake
The trip was great. Your services enhanced our experience. We will stop
in to fill you in. Attached are the only pictures of the two of us out of 978 pictures. (I had
the camera!)
Carol & Buck Houston
This Family Alaska Vacation must have been great. We got the picture the same week they came home. I know they loved it.
Dear Friends,
Back from the "Upper One" (Alaska) and had a great trip. The boat kept us plenty entertained but the scenery and animals were amazing. we saw... black bear and brown bear feeding on the running salmon, huge salmon, Minke Whales, Humpback Whales and Orcas, Sea Otters, Moose and tons of Bald Eagles. The glaciers were amazing and even saw them calving. I recommend this cruise to everyone. And I can't wait to go back and explore some more. Attached just one picture of us, the pictures just don't do the memory justice, but here we are awaiting our ride back (in the background) to Ketchican from our Bear experience in Anan Creek. Elizabeth Marquardt
This is Jerry and Linda Steinmetz, Charlene and Jerry Curtis and John and Sandra Demo. Charlene and Jerry Curtis stopped by to tell me what a wonderful time they had on their cruise tour to
M
Bill and Barb Lannan want to thank Tana Kubricky for setting up our MAY 23 – JUNE 6, 2009 ALASKA/TOUR Trip. We had a great time. The ship, DIAMOND PRINCESS, was great. The land portion of our trip was beautiful. The Princess lodges were better than we expected, especially the Kenai Princess.
Thanks again, TANA
BILL AND BARB LANNAN OF
Mary Malsch, Operations Manager at First Choice Travel and Cruise returned from a trip to Alaska with her family and a group of adventure seekers. Check out this picture of Mary, Brooke and Harry Malsh standing on a glacier.
Mary was thinking that her daughter who just loved Alaska so much...probably wanted to stay there! She met so many new friends there.
Almost all of the First Choice Travel agents have been to Alaska. Sara has put it on her list for sure and recently made it there with Mary Malsch who has been to Alaska many times!
You can see more pictures under Meet our Agents pages.
Our whole office will agree that State Certified Alaska Specialists know Alaska inside and out. Some of us have been to Alaska many, many times along with numerous trips to Canada back and forth. Gayle has been all over the state of Alaska from Anchorage, Seward,the Kenai, Copper River, Denali and Fairbanks. Mary has been there on land and cruise visits! She trys to visit often to keep up with all the changes and updates. Call for an appointment if you want to see the BEST that ALASKA offers! 262-542-5955/
CALL FIRST CHOICE TRAVEL AND CRUISE'S ALASKA SPECIALISTS WHO HAVE BEEN TO ALASKA ENOUGH TO KNOW THE INSIDE SECRETS!!!
You can give the GIFT OF ALASKA to someone you love! YOU will be a HERO!
Travel with the Experts and enjoy "YOUR ALASKA ADVENTURE"! Call 262-542-5955 / 800-896-4360 or email us at: