Our call on Victoria - a technical requirement to satisfy the United States' Passenger Vessel Services Act - was only three hours, from 8 to 11 p.m., when most things in the city were already closed. (The wait for the return was so bad that enterprising locals offered to drive passengers to the ship in their personal vehicles for $20 a person.) We also waited 55 minutes in line to catch the return shuttle, so cumulatively, travel from and back to the ship wasted more than 90 minutes of the mere five hours we had in port. In Ketchikan, the ship docked seven miles outside of town, so because we didn't book an excursion, we spent 40 minutes on shuttle buses to get to the main area and back. We didn't dock in Juneau until after 2 p.m., which meant anyone hoping to schedule a full day of salmon fishing - a popular excursion in Alaska - was out of luck. However, the scheduled arrival times and some of the related logistics had me scratching my head. The ports themselves are great and absolutely on many cruisers' bucket lists. My seven-day cruise traveled round trip from Seattle and visited Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan in Alaska and Victoria in Canada's British Columbia with a scenic Glacier Bay sea day thrown in. Of the Norwegian ships sailing Alaska voyages, Norwegian Encore has one of the least desirable (and, therefore, most affordable) schedules, both in terms of when it arrives in port and where it docks. What I didn't love about Norwegian Encore The extra feesĪ local man offers rides back to the ship in his personal vehicle while passengers wait an hour for a shuttle in Ketchikan, Alaska. If you're having trouble making reservations, tell the person working the desk that you're happy to skip the VR part if they can squeeze you in. However, the room can hold up to 10 players. Tip: There are only six sets of VR goggles, so reservations are usually capped at six people per time slot.

You can still listen to the story without the VR headset. If you're prone to motion sickness, opt out of that part. Note that the experience begins with a quick virtual-reality primer that gives you the backstory. (You will be grouped with other passengers if your party isn't large enough to fill the room.)

Sign up in advance at the front desk in the Galaxy Pavilion on Deck 17 aft, and you'll be placed into a room where you'll have 45 minutes to complete a series of puzzles to save a sunken ship from its watery grave. ASHLEY KOSCIOLEK/THE POINTS GUYĪlthough it costs $15 per person, Norwegian Encore's escape room experience, 'Bamboozled,' is a terrific way to spend an hour of your day, especially at sea.

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