Trip Log Day 4: 9-Night Alaskan Cruise on Disney Wonder – Icy Strait Point

Trip log, day four. Icy Strait Point
9-Night Alaskan Cruise from Vancouver
July 27, 2017
Personal Navigator – Day 4

Wonder Stateroom Map Day 4 Icy Straight Point 20170727

Ooops, I did it again… I always thought this waking up and doing to the gym on a cruise was for the birds, but I’m really digging it. Now I know why Em works out on vacation.

Wonder Gym Icy Straights

However, the early wakeup requires a double espresso to get in gear.

Cove Cafe Double Expresso

Today, we called on Icy Strait Point, or as it shall be known as the Castaway Cay of Alaska (without the cabanas). This was the Disney Wonder’s 2nd visit this newer, opened in 2004, Alaskan cruise destination. We also learned that up until 2 years ago ships visiting the port had to tender since there was no pier.

Icy Straight Point Gangway Family Photo

I want to be crystal clear out of the gate, I am in no way knocking this port. We had an enjoyable day walking around. Icy Strait Point is only operational when a cruise ship is in port a la Castaway Cay, except that locals are permitted to visit the area whenever it is open for a cruise ship.

Icy Straight Point Welcoming

We disembarked at 8:45am. The port is boasts a staff of over 85% locals and is not overrun by your typical cruise stores like Diamonds International and Del Sol.

Icy Straight Point Adventure Center Duck Point Smokehouse

Everyone we encountered was welcoming & friendly.

Icy Straight Point Disney Wonder Beach

The walk from the ship to the cannery is a bit of a hike. We spotted this golf cart to assist guests with limited mobility.

Icy Straight Point Limited Mobility Tram

We started off exploring the nature path. It was a very clearly marked path just over a half mile in length. We saw plants & birds, but that’s it.

Icy Straight Point Nature Trail Icy Straight Point Nature Trail Wonder Pano Icy Straight Point Nature Trail Wonder BenchesIcy Straight Point No Guests Beyond Sign Icy Straight Point Nature Trail

Icy Straight Point Flora

We continued on along the shore and stopped at the Friendship Fire. The fire was lit and there was a bucket of wood chips to throw in while making a wish. Very nice touch. Plus, bonus – the girls had campfire hair (yes, they like the smell). As we continued along, Emily spotted a cat, and Isabelle was instantly smitten. We pet the cat, and it reminded us of our cats waiting for us back home. This cat was super friendly and loved the attention.

Icy Straight Point Cat

We suspect the cat lived at one of the few private homes along the beach.

Icy Straight Point Private Homes

The next stop was the Cannery museum & shops.

Icy Straight Point Cannery

We enjoyed walking around and familiarizing ourselves with the history. It was a very nice and informative set-up. There will eventually be some video posted. We spent a good bit of time looking around.

Icy Straight Point Cannery Museum Icy Straight Point Cannery Museum Canning Line

At one point, a one of the shopkeepers came up to me and asked if I ever watched the ‘Deadliest Catch’ and then pointed to a crab boat that was sailing past Icy Strait Point. It was the Brenna A, which we were told was tied up overnight and just leaving. She said they were a cool group and were taking photos with everyone the previous night.

Icy Straight Point Deadliest Catch Brenna A Icy Straight Point Deadliest Catch Brenna A

We ran into our friend who shared a mini doughnut with Isabelle, so of course we had to get them. It was an amazing donut shop. The proceeds benefit the Salvation Army and the doughnuts are made to order and fresh. They are also a perfect size!

Icy Straight Point Donut Shop

We ordered a split dozen – Isabelle wanted hers tossed in cinnamon sugar, and Em chose apple cider for us. Delicious! Worth every penny.

Icy Straight Point Donut Shop MenuIcy Straight Point Donuts

We continued to walk around and found some old fishing boats, crab pots, and all sorts of neat stuff.

Icy Straight Point Scott Crab Pots

You could rent bikes and make the 1.5 mile trek to Hoonah to see the town.

Icy Straight Point Shuttle Terminal

There were also kayak & boat tours, as well as zip lining adventures. Unfortunately, to zip line you have to be age 10 and a minimum of 75 lbs, and Isabelle does not make weight.

Icy Straight Point Family Photo

As it was nearing 11am, we made our way to the Crab Station, where I got a specially brewed beer called the Cannery Red ale brewed by Icy Strait Brewing. It was good and hit the spot.

Icy Straight Point Cannery Red Ale

After that, we walked down to the rocky ‘beach’ where the salmon were jumping out of the water. Very cool to see. Also, the sun came out for about 15 minutes! It was incredible. After spending some time here, we started making our way back to the port area.

Icy Straight Point Family On Beach

Icy Straight Point Disney Wonder Beach Icy Straight Point Disney Wonder Ducktail Fog

We walked in to check out the Duck Point Bar & restaurant & found their free one hour wifi, which I took advantage of. I even FaceTimed my mom so that we could all say hello. Since it was getting close to noon, Isabelle was telling us that she was getting hungry. At the same time, the rain began to fall, so we decided to go back to the ship for lunch. As we walked upstairs, we found ourselves in front of Triton’s, and we went in for a sit down lunch.

Triton’s was not busy at all, which made for a fastidious lunch. I was really impressed with the turkey burger which came with freshly made chips.

Triton's Lunch Bar Grilled Turkey Burger

Triton's Lunch Shrimp Ceviche Triton's Lunch Lemon Marinated Spiced Cod Filet Triton's Lunch Dessert Citus Almond Cake

Our dining room head server found us, and during the course of the meal, our server came by as well. They both did my favorite thing – napkin folding. Yes, I know it sounds lame, but I enjoy the napkin folding. I can make a mean napkin candle.

Moët & Chandon Ice Imperial Promenade Lounge

 

After a quick lunch, we stopped by the Promenade Lounge for Em to grab a glass of Moët Ice. We headed up to the room and Isabelle glanced at the Navigator, and realized that it was time to make buttons. I decided to go back into the port, and the ladies went to make buttons. We planned to meet back up for the afternoon movie, “Guardians of the Galaxy 2,” which started at 2:45pm.

Back on shore, I went back to the bar Duck Point Smokehouse and ordered the Beer Tour, which was three 10oz local beers for $15.95.

Icy Straight Point Duck Point Smokehouse Beer Tour Icy Straight Point Duck Point Smokehouse Beer Tour

The Beer Tour includes the Icy Strait Cannery Red and a choice for the other two. I picked the Alaskan Brewing White and their Kicker Session IPA. Loved the pineyness of the IPA.

Icy Straight Point Duck Point Smokehouse Free WiFi

I also discovered the the free 1 hour of wifi just like a parking meter. The clock starts when you first connect. They were logging mac addresses & I was no longer able to connect with my phone, but had no issues connecting with my laptop for exactly 60 minutes.

Icy Straight Point Free WiFi 1 Hour

More than likely, this is more than enough for 99.9% of the port visitors. Just keep this in mind if you are considering connecting when you first arrive and want to get back online after spend time in port or on an excursion. The speed was decent which was good because AT&T service was very poor unlike the awesome LTE service yesterday in Ketchikan.

Icy Straight Point Duck Point Smokehouse Cruise Blogging

I boarded the ship and joined the ladies (late) in the theater to catch some of the movie. Afterwards, we headed to the room, as it was just after 5pm. We decided to forgo main dining tonight and have room service. We wanted to be in line to meet Koda from Brother Bear and then Isabelle had plans for an activity that started in the kids club at 7:30pm.

Room service was good. Em had a greek salad, 1/2 of a margherita pizza, and a sliver of key lime pie.

Room Service Greek Salad Room Service Margarita Pizza Room Service Key Lime Pie

Isabelle had tomato soup, part of a Caesar salad, and some cheese pizza.

Room Service Tomato Soup Shrink Wrapped Room Service Ceasar Salad Room Service Cheese Pizza

I ordered the wings, plus I had the rest of Isabelle’s salad and the balance of Em & Izzy’s pizzas.

Room Service Buffalo Wings

We were able to enjoy our meal with the bottle of nice red wine that we brought while enjoying Ratatouille playing on our stateroom TV.

We left the room early to queue for Koda’s meet and greet which turned out to be a good decision. Koda’s line continued to grow by the minute. Koda was adorable.

Koda Meet & Greet Koda Meet & Greet Family Photo

Isabelle headed to the Oceaneer Club for ’S.H.I.E.L.D. Secret Agent 101 featuring Black Widow.’ There was a laser obstacle course of sorts with bungie cords. The goal was to move through the laser field without sounding the alarm was you made your way to opening the door for the rest of the team. Isabelle says she had a lot of fun and glad she did not miss out on this experience with her favorite Avenger.

While walking around the atrium there seemed to be a flurry of activity near the porthole behind guest services. WHALE SIGHTING!!!! We made a b-line to deck 4 and spotted to whale off in the distance. This time it is actually on video and not just a picture with a circle saying that there is a whale. Only problem is that the video will not be uploaded over the ship’s wifi. Emily and I tried to look for more whales, but we were heading out into the open Pacific Ocean on our way to Hubbard Glacier and with the wind picking up, were were not dressed for the cold.

Disney Wonder Sailing Icy Straits

We moved back in to a porthole in Crown & Fin which was are original plan as we wanted see if we could do any better at Villains Trivia. Each question can earn you two points if you correctly name the villain and the movie. It is getting easier and we did improve our score, but we still failed with a 52%. I really, really need to commit to memory Colonel Heller from Bedknobs & Broomsticks.

During trivia Emily, ordered the Bourbon Fizz, which was OK, but could’ve used less orange juice. Em is not a huge fan of juices in her drink unless it is a freshly squeezed lime or lemon.

Crown & Finn Bourbon Fizz

I took a sip and thought it was rather tasty. However, in the future, we’d probably just go over to Cadillac Lounge and get a bourbon or whiskey neat from their beverage cart.

While making our way back to the room, we passed Lloyd, the Hotel Director who was kind enough to introduce us to Captain Zvonimir who was standing nearby. I think it is safe to say that we are all looking forward to the morning when we arrive at Hubbard Glacier.

We stopped by the Oceaneer Club and we could see from the entrance that Isabelle was still in training, so we continued to walk down the hall and guess who appears… Black Widow!!! She had just finished with the recruits and was headed back to her secret hideout; or who knows, maybe even a mission. You never know with these Avengers.

Black Widow On The Move

We ended the night watching a bit of Iron Man 3 before retiring for the evening. Tomorrow is another big day and it will be starting early around 8 o’clock when we near Hubbard Glacier.

Wonder Stateroom Map Day 4 Entering The Pacific 20170727

One last note about Icy Strait Point, for the health of their guests and the safety of the historic buildings, Icy Strait Point is a designated Non Smoking property.Icy Straight Point Signage No Smoking Icy Straight Point Bear CarvingCheck out the video below of our walk around the port as well as the Icy Strait Point Cannery Museum.

Complete Trip Log Index

25 Replies to “Trip Log Day 4: 9-Night Alaskan Cruise on Disney Wonder – Icy Strait Point”

  1. Jennifer

    I just wanted to let you know that I have followed your blog for a while and love it. It really brings us back to the cruises when we are not there and we miss it. So last year, you blogged your 7day Caribbean about two weeks before ours and it was such a great insight and heightened the anticipation. Well would you believe you are in Alaska and we are departing on the 5 day on the day you return! You are making me realize that 5 days will not be enough but I do appreciate the info and can’t wait!! Thanks!

    Reply
    1. Brian

      We’re doing the 5 night Alaskan cruise next year, which seems like forever from now. Please consider sending in your Personal Navigators if you keep them! I’m curious to see what’s scheduled each day. Thanks.

      Reply
  2. Nicole

    Random question – were the wings from room service traditional buffalo style? Much to our son’s disappointment and frustration on our last two cruises (2015 and 2016 – Magic and Wonder) they were nothing like the ones in your picture. We left comments so maybe DCL listened!

    Reply
    1. Jake Rambo

      On our May cruise on the Wonder we were pleased to see the wings had become true buffalo wings and not the former dry or BBQ type

      Reply
  3. beth

    It looks like they’ve improved that port a bit since I was there 2 years ago. If I’m back I’ll still probably make it a fake sea day, but it does look slightly better…

    Reply
    1. Scott Sanders Post author

      It has the potential to be a fake sea day port if you have been there before and you are not doing any port adventures. Although, the scenery is beautiful.

      Reply
  4. Pam

    Good Morning Scott. Looks like your family is enjoying a magical Alaskan cruise! That’s awesome. Just a moment to share this…. I noticed today that Marty Sklar passed away on Thursday. I looked back and didn’t see anything posted in your blog. This is such a huge loss for everyone who loves Disney. Marty worked closely with Walt and eventually became a great historian to the Disney legacy. He will be missed.

    Reply
  5. JP

    This is a great itinerary! Would have loved this port on our cruise – seems somewhat understated, which is nice. Impressed with the morning workouts!! 🙂

    Reply
  6. Francisco C

    Thank you for the informative report. Could you comment on the water activities on board. Is the pool open? Water heated? Slide operational?
    Thanks

    Reply
    1. Nicole

      The water was very warm when we did this cruise last year, we got in on our last sea day. It was however very cold when we got out!

      Reply
  7. caleb lloyd

    Hi Scott , I’m taking the alaskan cruise right after yours ,august 2nd , and usually me and my mom have a homemade gift for the captain , usually the same gift we give the men in our fish extender group. I was hoping you could give me the captains name so I coupled properly address the gift. Thank you! And enjoy the rest of your beautiful vacation!

    Reply
    1. Rosaline

      Caleb: Scott mentions in this blog that he and his family were introduced to Captain Zvonimir by Lloyd, the hotel director. It looks like the captain’s full name is Captain Zvonimir Vidak. Hope this helps!

      Reply
  8. Kate

    Can you weigh in what made you decide to not do excursions at these earlier ports? Trying to decide what to do where! Thank you!

    Reply
  9. sarahstl2014

    Thanks for the update! The nature walk looks beautiful. While we saw amazing scenery at the other ports, I wished we had more time to just walk and take it all in. I do see what you mean about only needing to explore this port once.

    Reply
  10. Lizette Esfeller

    Thank you so much for all the fantastic information and details. Reading your blog has convinced us we need an Alaska cruise. Can’t wait to see the next post!

    Reply
  11. Deann Fleming

    Thank you so much for your trip reports on the 9 day Alaska trip. You had notes on things we didn’t get to in Ketchikan that we will use for your next trip. After our 7 night trip this May we booked the 9 night for 2018. The 2018 trip will be the 3rd trip on the Wonder to Alaska–each trip is different event though we got to same ports. It will be good to go farther north as the 9 night trip will take us. The information about Icy Point and Hubbard Glacier will really helped us in our planning for next year.
    FYI, when you get to Skagway go early (8-9am) to the National Park Headquarters at 4th and Broadway. They have 3 separate walking tours scheduled and repeated through out the day that you can get tickets for. All three are free and tickets are issued on a first come first served for tickets. They only take between 14 and 30 on each walk depending which buildings they enter. Also don’t miss their museum talks and movie–all free, including the walks and you don’t need your National Park Pass to enjoy. We did all three in May and then took advantage of the ticket stub to get our discount on purchases at the National Park Book Store across the street from the headquarters. You can do all this and still have lots of time in port to see and do other things. Remember to use the city shuttle bus to get to and from the downtown area–for $5.00 you get an unlimited on off hand stamp this really cuts down on the walking.

    Reply
  12. Theresa

    We were also on this cruise and I commented to my husband that Icy Strait was the Alaskan Castaway Cay! It made me laugh to see that you made the same observation!

    Reply
  13. Judy Birchett

    When we visited Icy Strait Point in 2013 (different cruise line) the town buses had painted labels of “Hoohah” instead of Hoonah Bus Line. Did you notice if that typo has since been corrected?

    We went on a whale-watching excursion and as soon as we got back to shore a whale swam up close and personal to the tendering area.

    Reply

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