Gimli, Manitoba (Interlake Region), Canada - Travel Tips and Things To Do

Things to do in Manitoba’s Interlake region:

Tourism in Manitoba:

Manitoba is probably best known to tourists for its polar bears, whale watching, and northern lights in Churchill on Hudson Bay and the Canadian Museum For Human Rights at The Forks Market where the Red and Assiniboine Rivers meet in Winnipeg.

However, a big part of international tourism comes from hunters and fishermen that like to take advantage of Manitoba’s wild and beautiful lakes and forests. There are many hunting and fishing lodges and guides that cater to these mostly wealthy tourists, who even come in the dead of our famously cold Manitoba Winters for ice fishing.

Manitoba has over 100,000 freshwater lakes, including 3 of the top 33 biggest lakes in the world (according to Wikipedia https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_lakes_by_area ), and surface water covers 16 percent of the province.

When I was growing up in Winnipeg, I often heard people say that almost everyone either had a cottage near a lake or had a close friend or relative that would let them use their cottage.  Manitobans know how lucky we are, which explains why 85 percent of Manitoba’s 11.4 million pre-pandemic tourist visitors come from within the Province (according to Travel Manitoba’s 2017 data https://assets.simpleviewinc.com/simpleview/image/upload/v1/clients/manitoba/Value_of_Tourism_2017_final__3471cf99-467a-4e12-b66d-15b163146608.pdf )

It’s time for the rest of Canada to get in on the hidden gem that is Manitoba, especially now that travel restrictions and self-quarantining requirements have ended for travel within the area from British Columbia to Western Ontario (according to this Global News article https://www.google.ca/amp/s/globalnews.ca/news/7106284/coronavirus-provincial-travel/amp/ ).

Please note that the attractions and events listed below were researched prior to the shut-down due to Covid-19 and I cannot say if or when they will resume.

What is the “Interlake”?

I want to give you some travel ideas about things to do in a beautiful area called the Interlake, which is the land between Lake Winnipeg and Lake Manitoba, the 12th and 33rd largest lakes in the world respectively.

A lot of tourism and cottage living occurs in the southern part of the West shore of Lake Winnipeg.  I know this area well because we bought a cottage there 3 years ago and are very glad that we did.

Gimli, Manitoba:

A great travel hub for your stay is a town called Gimli, which is central for the nearby attractions, and is only a 1 hour drive North from the Winnipeg International Airport up Provincial Highway 8.

Gimli has the largest population of people with Icelandic heritage outside of Iceland and is home of the Icelandic Festival of Manitoba, called Islendingadagurinn (try to say that out loud), during the August long weekend with a street market, art exhibits, concerts, and a midway with amusement rides. The festival also has live re-enactments of Viking battles.

That is the busiest and most crowded time to visit Gimli.

Gimli has a very large and popular public beach with a boardwalk and water-sport rental that can be quite busy on a hot summer day. It is great for family fun.

 

Be sure to take a walk to the end of the pier where there is a small lighthouse and viewpoint.  As you walk along the sea wall, you will see dozens of paintings by local artists that depict local landmarks or stories, many people fishing, and dozens of boats in the marina.  

 

At the start of the Pier, you will find a luxury resort hotel called Lakeview Gimli Resort that has a Robin’s coffee shop, several stores, a lakefront patio bar, and a fine dining restaurant called Seagulls that also has a great patio facing the lake.  If you stay there, they also have both an indoor pool & hot tub and an outdoor pool and hot tub that faces the beach and lake. 

Across from the resort is the main retail and restaurant district (1st Avenue and Centre Street).

There you will find 5 great little restaurants serving fresh pickerel caught in Lake Winnipeg with Greek salad and french fries. We have that for dinner on our way home after most of our cottage visits. The Greek salad (one of the best I have ever had), french fries and portions at Europa Restaurant are excellent, but they only deep fry the fish, which can be too greasy or overcooked for some people. The other restaurants have smaller portions, but offer 3 ways to enjoy your pickerel: deep fried, pan fried, or grilled.  You will also find a few ice cream shops and a large famous local clothing, gift, and souvenir store called Tergesen & Sons.

For family attractions, Gimli has the New Iceland Heritage Museum (with a massive statue of a Viking nearby), Lake Winnipeg Visitor Centre (like a local fishing museum), Gimli Motorsports Park & Go-Kart Track (with Interlake Dragway races every second Sunday), Gimli Aquatic Centre (with a pool and 2 large waterslides), a bowling alley, a tennis court, and a movie theatre.

 

Gimli also has a hospital and many stores and restaurants. For nightlife, try the Ship and Plough for a large selection of local craft beers and live entertainment such as bands and stand up comedy or the bar at the Viking Inn.

Other events in Gimli include the Gimli Ice Festival in March, Craft Market Sales in April and July, Beach Car Show in July, Sandcastle Contest in August, Gimli Model Plane Fest in August, and free concerts on Harbour Stage at 7 PM on some Sundays with beach bash concerts on select weekends in July & August.

Besides the Icelandic Festival, the most popular and well-known event is the Gimli Film Festival in July each year. This year, they converted it to an online digital film festival with 200 unique films from around the world. Normally, they have movie venues all over town, masterclasses with writers and directors,  and special film screenings on a giant inflatable movie screen that floats on the lake so you can watch from the beach on a lawn-chair.  

A short day trip North of Gimli:

If you do one excursion when you are not relaxing on the beach in Gimli, be sure to drive 10 minutes North up Provincial Road 222 to Arnes Market. This is a farmer’s market and more which is open from 9 AM – 2 PM on Saturdays, Sundays, and some holidays from May to October.

On your way to the Arnes Market, you will pass the Diageo distillery that produces all of the world’s Crown Royal Canadian Whiskey.  The warehouses here contain more barrels of whiskey than there are people in Manitoba. Unfortunately, they don’t do tours or have a tasting room because the bottling occurs near Toronto, Ontario.

The next attraction you will pass 8 kilometers North of Gimli is Camp Morton Provincial Park, which has an ornate functioning Ukrainian Catholic Church, 19 camp sites (for camping, RVs, or camper trailers), 14 rental cabins with running water (sleeping 4 to 6 people) and 6 Yurts (sleeping 4 people). There are several really interesting things about Camp Morton.

The first is that you can sleep in accommodations called Yurts that are mostly right on the water with lake views.  They are like camping in a little hut instead of a tent, so you have to use the shared public showers and bathrooms.

The second interesting thing is that this park started in 1920 as a summer camp for Roman Catholic children, so there are several abandoned buildings near the main entrance of the park, including old residences as well as a chapel, school, dining hall, water pump building, and water tower.  These buildings either have ornate architecture and decorations (in a Ukrainian style) or they demonstrate a unique, old outdated building method called “stackwall” which looks like a bunch of round holes where there is or used to be wood surrounded by a type of mortar or concrete.  

This park is popular for hiking in Summer and cross-country skiing in Winter. Hikers will find a mixed boreal forest with white spruce, aspen, oak, ash, balsam poplar and Manitoba maple trees as well as shrubs such as Saskatoon berry and high bush-cranberry. If you go hiking here, beware of a three-leaved shrub called poison ivy that could leave you with an itchy rash.

Near the water, you will see and hear frogs, songbirds, seagulls, osprey, and American white pelicans. During Spring or Fall, you might get lucky and see a Bald eagle taking a break from its migration.

Keep driving North for 5 minutes past Camp Morton and you will discover the Arnes Market. I can’t emphasize enough how unique and whimsical this market is.

 

The booths are made by a very creative artist and woodworker who also makes and sells great statues at the park next door, so they look strange and misshapen as if you are in another country or on another planet.

He also made a miniature church that is really photo-worthy.

 

At the market, you can buy farm fresh eggs, local and organic fruits & vegetables, crafts, jewelry, clothing, books, antiques, and foods like famous donuts and cinnamon buns from a Mennonite bakery, butter tarts, homemade fudge, jams, jellies, pickled foods, and shaved ice.

Inside the market, there is a petting zoo that is also free and great for families. You will see rabbits, chickens, pigs, sheep, and goats plus the young ones and babies. You can purchase appropriate food to feed many of the animals.

 

 

There is a children’s playground next to the Arnes Market, where kids can go on homemade swings & teeter-totters, and play bowling as well as sit in cars, trains and planes made by the property owner from tree trunks (many of which are based on the Flintstones). There are also many sculptures carved from tree trunks and painted like aliens, minions, & bears to admire (or purchase). And best of all, it is all free.

 

 

A long day trip North of Gimli:

If you have energy and gas to burn, you should consider visiting Gull Harbour on Hecla Island. If you keep going North of the Arnes Market, you will find more fantastic destinations.

There are several towns, camps, camp sites, housing developments, mobile home communities and RV parks on Provincial Road 222 North of Gimli. Each one has its own beach on the lakefront and they are fun to explore.

Very near to the Arnes Market, Camp Newstadt is a “private” German beach community with a nearby mobile home and trailer community called Mordens Meadows Campground and Trailer Park.  They share a small, secluded and cute beach.

A few minutes North of the Arnes Market, Spruce Sands is another small cottage community that has a public beach, restaurant, ice cream shop, and convenience store.  They also have an RV park. The beach at Spruce Sands is my favourite for swimming (even better than Gimli) because it has knee-deep water on fine sand for 50 meters out from the shore.

A few minutes North of Spruce Sands, you will find Silver Harbour Marine Resort, which is the largest private marina in Manitoba.  If you have a boat, you can launch it here for a small fee or you can launch it for free in Gimli or Riverton.  Spruce Sands also has around 15 RV sites.

The Arnes dock is very close to Spruce Sands and has a place where you can go fishing or purchase fresh-caught pickerel in season for a very good price ($7 per pound). Pickerel makes a memorable and tasty souvenir and you can also get it in Gimli for $9 per pound at Smith’s, which vacuum packs it for you or will sell you frozen fish that will travel better.

Less than 10 minutes North of the Arnes Market, you will find the Hnausa Beach Provincial Park, which has a beach and camp sites as well as a cool store and ice cream shop called Hnausa General Store that sells groceries, snacks, drinks, and some household and camping-related items.  

 

Just a few minutes North of Hnausa is a long concrete pier that is very popular for fishing, so bring along your fishing rods if you like to go fishing. Be sure to get your provincial fishing license first. Last time we stopped there, we saw close to 70 people fishing.

 

When leave Hnausa, you have to travel West to get back to Provincial Highway 8.  Once you reach Highway 8, you can take a short detour (less than 5 minutes each way) to visit Arborg, which has a library, hospital, Co-op grocery store & pharmacy, several restaurants, and a nice picnic area next to the river. Some events and attractions to visit in Arborg include Silver Western Days on the third Saturday in May, Arborg Fair & Rodeo in July, and the Noventis Aquatic Centre & Water Park that has a pool and waterslide. 

The Arborg & District Multicultural Heritage Village is a 100-year-old town that has been preserved for you to walk or drive through on a self-guided tour. Or, during the daytime, you can pay $10 per person for a guided tour and go inside the buildings. The Village also has a campground and RV park. 



For us, the reason to visit Arborg is the Arborg Bakery, which has been named to some lists of the best donuts in Canada, but also sells great cinnamon buns and Vinarterta, which is an Icelandic cake with thin layers of pastry dough, date filling, and icing sugar that you must try.  

 

From Arborg, head back to highway 8 and travel North 5 minutes to Riverton, which has stores, restaurants, a lounge, and a grocery store and pharmacy. If you stop here, you should take a short walk across the Icelandic River Walking Bridge for some pictures of a serene river and riverbank and take a picture with the nearby giant moose statue.

 

 

Now you are getting close. Drive another 20 minutes North to reach Hecla Provincial Park on Hecla Island.  At the entrance of the park, there is a giant sign and a lighthouse on the lakeshore that present a great photo opportunity while you stretch your legs. Near here, you will see dozens of cars parked on the side of the road where people are fishing.

 

Near the tip of Hecla Island, there are several attractions.

You can get off the main highway and take a road that winds through a historic Icelandic settlement. We recommend stopping and taking the self-guided tour on around 1 kilometer of paths to take pictures and read about the buildings and equipment they used to fish and live a few hundred years ago. You can also go fishing on a pier in this historic settlement.

 

If you haven’t had lunch or dinner yet, there is a very scenic picnic and rest area just past the historic settlement.

 

The road will eventually take you back to the main highway and you will end up in Gull Harbour, which is a small fishing town and marina that has a luxury resort called Lakeview Gull Harbour Resort. The resort also has a scenic, lake-front, world-class golf course called the Hecla Golf Course where you will likely see lots of wildlife as you golf. While driving to Gull Harbour, we saw swans, pelicans, ducks, and deer.

 

The resort has lots of amenities such as an indoor pool and waterslide as well as a nice restaurant that overlooks some man-made ponds and Gull Harbour Beach, which is the private beach connected to the resort through one of many walking paths. This beach is on a very beautiful harbour and is a nice place to relax or take pictures on the last stop of your long day trip. If you don’t feel like driving back to Gimli, have dinner and book a hotel room at Gull Harbour Resort.

 

Day trips South of Gimli:

You can stop at Winnipeg Beach on your way to Gimli, visit as a day trip, or stop on your way back to Winnipeg. Winnipeg beach is only 10 minutes South of Gimli and used to be the big party destination and beach town in Manitoba.

One hundred years ago, people used to take a train from Winnipeg to Winnipeg Beach for a day of swimming and suntanning followed by dinner and dancing at a huge dance hall. They even had arcades and midway games on the boardwalk and a massive wooden roller-coaster near the boardwalk back then.

The only things left from that era are a few small arcades and a relatively small beach area compared to Gimli Beach. The arcades are super cool because it feels like you have gone back in time and they have some really old games. 

There are some restaurants, ice cream shops and stores (check out Candies and Curiosities) close to the beach and park. There is also a bandstand where they have special events and free concerts on select dates.

Winnipeg Beach has a big Whispering Giant statue that s a tribute to the Indigenous people of Manitoba and a symbol of brotherhood. It is part of a bigger trail project of Whispering Giants, which began in 1970 and reaches throughout most of North America.

You can rent a bike to explore the town and Winnipeg Beach Provincial Park or take your kids swimming. It is definitely worth a visit if you have time.

Day trips West of Gimli:

I am just scratching the surface of what you can experience in and around Gimli.  

For example, it is just a ten-minute drive West to Fraserwood, which has events such as the Craft & Garden Sale in June, Fraserwood Family Pancake Breakfast, Parade & Picnic in June, Perogy & Kolbassa Dinner Feast in August, Western Hoe-Down in September, and Karaoke on the first Friday of each month at the Fraserwood Hotel.

Golfer’s paradise:

Gimli is within a 30 minute drive to 7 golf courses, including Links at the Lake, Northmaire Golf Course, Sandy Hook Golf Club, Netley Creek Golf & Country Club (which just added some RV spots), Winnipeg Beach Golf Course, Inwood Golf and Country Club, and Teulon Golf & Country Club.

Or, in less than 1-hour you can be golfing at the spectacular Hecla Golf Course on Hecla Island.

Fishing, boating, hiking, nature-watching, sightseeing, swimming, suntanning and playing on a beach, relaxing by the water while listening to the waves, festivals, shopping, and dining are some of the reasons that I love the Interlake and I think you will love it too.

I even wrote a poem called Lake Life about this region, which you can find using this link:  https://retirestyletravel.blogspot.com/2020/04/poem-about-relaxing-life-at-cottage.html 

I have a travel blog to showcase some great places to travel for older travellers. I have also been researching and writing a book about the best places in the world to retire and how to retire abroad. If it wasn’t for the long Winters in Manitoba, I wouldn’t have to leave to find a perfect retirement home.

Happy Travels,

Kev

P.S. Here are links to my other social media accounts, in case you want to connect that way:
Kevin's Instagram
Kevin's LinkedIn
Kevin's Facebook
Kevin's Pinterest
Kevin's YouTube (You should check out my YouTube Channel for related travel videos)

Introduction to Cruising and Our Retirestyle Travel Experience (Cruise Hacks)

Retirestyle Introduction to Cruising - Overview and Our Cruise Experience (Cruise Hacks):

We love taking cruises and we think you will too. Below, we will share some of our cruise experiences with you and give you an overview of how cruising works and why it might be a great way for you to vacation. Think of this as Cruising Basics or Cruising 101. 

The picture above is from Paradise Point in Havensight, St. Thomas in the Caribbean. We have not been there yet. The picture below is from George Town in the the Cayman Islands, where we went in 2014 as part of a Caribbean Cruise. 



Why you should go on a cruise:

For us, being pampered is what sets a cruise vacation apart from other ways to vacation. 

The staff are all so friendly, including the entertainment staff, the restaurant staff, and even the cabin stewards. 

They make you feel special by putting towel animals on your beds and turning down your bed after dinner.  

You might not believe it, but they bring you as many appetizers or main course items from the menu as you want at no extra cost. 

It is like a floating high-end all-inclusive resort that takes you to multiple exotic and interesting destinations (ports of call). 

As an added bonus, you generally get Broadway-quality entertainment with live musicians, singers, dancers, and acrobats. You might even get an actual show from Broadway or Las Vegas. We saw the Blue Man Group and Second City Comedy shows on the Norwegian Epic and loved it. 

Cruising also saves you the hassle and stress of checking in, unpacking, packing and checking out several times.  You check-in once to your floating hotel/resort.

Cruising is a good way for senior citizens to explore exotic places. They go out of their way to accommodate people with mobility issues and they can arrange much of your exploration for you in a stress-free way.

Our first cruise:

Tina and I were looking for things to do on our first trip to Florida with our 1-year old daughter, who was too young to really enjoy the theme parks. Tina suggested a short 3-night cruise with stops in Nassau, Bahamas and Cocoa Caye on the Carnival Ecstasy. 

Since we thought the price was good, we invited Tina's family to join us and they all did except her brother, who had to work. So, it was 3 of us plus Tina's parents and Tina's 2 sisters.

We flew in to Orlando and then drove in 2 rental cars to the port in Miami. 

We had 2 ports of call: a private island called Coco Caye and Nassau, Bahamas. Coco Caye was a beach day and we explored the artisan markets and the Atlantis Resort in Nassau. 

To be honest, the time on the cruise was just as fun as the time in the ports.  

The food was top notch and the entertainment was very professional.

The cruise experience was like paradise (especially the food) and we were hooked. 

We were not aware until we arrived back in Miami that they had to speed up our arrival because we were just in front of Hurricane Floyd. 

We had extended our vacation with another 5 days in Orlando after the cruise, but we were stuck in traffic driving to Orlando because the coastal cities were being evacuated. When we got to Orlando, we were stuck at our hotel for 3 days due to the hurricane and they actually closed the theme parks for a few days for the first time ever due to bad weather. We managed to spend a few days at Disneyworld and then had to come home. 

Thank goodness for the cruise that was the highlight of the trip.

Our cruise adventures:

We have mostly cruised with our kids (who are now 19 & 21), so we have focused mainly on family fun for selecting our cruise ship and destinations up to this point.

We have not been fussy about our cabin type as long as we have an ocean view (window). Ideally, we like to be close to the main restaurants and close to a main stairwell.

We used to pick shorter, less expensive ships & itineraries with good kid’s clubs and family entertainment and ports that are more family friendly and mainstream. 

Up to this point, the ship was more important than the itinerary. We didn’t do a lot of expensive excursions because we had kids and many ports look the same from place to place.  We also love to explore the ship and take advantage of all of its amenities.

The most important factor that influenced our cruise selection has been price. Once we book the cruise for a good deal, then we start searching for the other travel needs like the hotel accommodations before and after the cruise as well as the flights. We sometimes wait a while to book our flight to see if we can get it on sale. 

The next most important factor is the departure terminal port, ports of call, and itinerary. We want somewhere convenient to fly & interesting ports of call. 

The day before we cruise, we always try go to bed early if we can. On the day of the cruise, we like to get to the port really early to get on board early and to ensure we don’t miss the cruise due to some unforeseen delay. On the night before the cruise, we also like to read about the things to do in the ports of call so that we know what we want to do on the cruise and it also builds the excitement. 

On the departure date, we get to the cruise terminal several hours before the suggested time to try to beat the crowd.  When we get on the ship early, we have a chance to explore and familiarize ourselves with the ship, get an extra meal, and get a seat for the departure party on the pool deck. 

We usually cruise from southern Florida to the Caribbean and Mexico. Our reasons are as follows:

1.       It is a great winter escape from the snow and Winter.

2.       The cruises are relatively inexpensive.

3.       It is convenient for us to fly with inexpensive direct flights to Miami, Fort Lauderdale or Orlando from our home in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

4.       We almost always booked up to a week extra at the end of the trip to go to the theme parks in Orlando.

5.       The laid-back Caribbean atmosphere is very relaxing.

Sea days:

Cruise ships are like floating cities and amusement parks. There is so much to see and do on the cruise ships and they are a destination in themselves.

The 6 ports of call on our 7-night Mediterranean cruise felt like too many. The 3 ports of call on our 7-night Caribbean cruise felt much less hectic and much more relaxing. 

We love sea days because the pace is slower and we can catch our breath. We sleep in a bit later and order breakfast off the menu at an a la carte restaurant. We read the daily itinerary & announcements to see what onboard entertainment and activities look fun.  When we are not doing an activity, we explore the ship, relax by the pool (Kevin reading a book if possible), and spend time in the pool and hot tub. 

Shore days:

We prefer to explore independently and hire our own driver or take taxicabs to the places and attractions that we want to see in the ports of call. We also like to walk around the port shops and see the sights in town. 

Local guides can be hit or miss and unreliable, but they will take you to the less popular and out of the way places. 

Cruise lines generally charge too much for excursions, so we do online research long before the cruise departure date. 

TripAdvisor is a great website because we usually try to plan our shore excursions ourselves. We also use the websites of the local tourism bureaus. 

The only question that remains after we board the cruise is whether the cruise line offers a port excursion similar to what we want for a reasonable cost. Even if it costs a little more, there is peace of mind booking through the cruise line because the tour operators are vetted and because the cruise will not leave if you are late getting back. 

If we haven’t booked anything before the cruise, we sometimes go to the shipboard presentation at the beginning of the cruise to see what excursions they recommend. 

To save money and inconvenience, be sure to bring a travel bag ashore including, at a minimum, bottled water, sunscreen, sunglasses, and maps or tourist attraction brochures. If you are planning a beach day, you might need a bathing suit and towel too. 

Our favourite cruise itinerary:

Our favourite itinerary so far was the Western Mediterranean cruise on the Costa Serena that included:

• Rome/Civitavecchia (Italy), 
• Palma de Mallorca (Spain), 
• Barcelona (Spain), 
• Marseille (France), 
• Savona (Italy), and 
• Napoli / Naples (Italy). 

The best part of that cruise was an excursion from Napoli to Capri, which is a very beautiful island with the "blue grotto" cave, which has crystal-clear, almost sparkling illuminated water. 

In Barcelona, the Ramblas market was bustling with beautiful people. There is also lots of magical gothic architetecure in both the gothic quarter and the cathedral of the Sagrada Familia. 

The beach day in Mallorca was perfect. Be aware that many European beaches are topless. Our 13 year-old son felt quite awkward and didn't look up from the sand very often. 

The church on the hill (Church of Notre Dame de la Garde) as well as the shopping in Marseille was unbelievable. 

Ornate churches and historic buildings and castles were amazing to see in every port and espresso was great everywhere. 

I could (and will) write another whole article about Rome, which is on almost everyone’s bucket list, and which is where we flew in and out from.

The only downside of this cruise is that 3 members of our family got sick from eating raw seafood at the main restaurant on the cruise ship.  The cruise ship denied that it was food poisoning even though 2 people at the table beside us who also ate the raw seafood appetizer also got sick. So, here is an early tip for you: Don't eat raw seafood on a cruise ship or even at an all-inclusive resort because it can ruin your vacation. 

Here are some pictures of the Mediterranean Cruise:

Our best cruise experience:

The best cruise was the Norwegian Sun on an 8-day round trip cruise to Alaska from Vancouver, BC with stops in Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway.

It is hard to find a round-trip cruise from Vancouver anymore. Now, they do a 7-night one-way trip to further north in Alaska and you have to book another cruise back or fly back to Vancouver. 

We went at the beginning of June. We were lucky that we got amazing weather (much warmer than usual. One downside for our kids was that there were very few families, so they had less kids to play with.  However, if you don't have kids, then having less families on the cruise can make it more enjoyable because it is not as noisy and there aren't kids screaming in the restaurants and pools. 

We loved the fact that we had land on both sides for much of the way, so we had beautiful, lush scenery with wildlife, mountains, huge trees and forests and giant waterfalls going hundreds of meters up the mountains. 

We also got pretty close to a huge glacier and were told that it is receding rapidly due to climate change

We also saw several whales surfacing, which was always exciting and they would announce it over the ships loudspeakers sometimes. Usually, we would only catch the whale tail slapping down as it went back under the water. It seemed that a lot of people were there for the wildlife and many had huge binoculars and fancy cameras. People took pictures of various birds, including bald eagles, and bears. 

The ports of call were cool little towns surrounded by mountains with an old gold-rush ambiance. 

Norwegian always has a "white party", which is like a big dance party where everyone wears white clothes and the decorations are all-white. Tina had a lot of fun at the white party and brought back lots of delicious chocolate and desserts from the midnight chocolate buffet. 

This was the first time we had flexible dining where we didn’t have set dining times, which was great with kids.  We also loved the little extras like free cappuccino after dinner each night.

Here are some pictures from our Alaskan Cruise:

Cruise incentives:

The best incentive for us to choose one cruise ship over another was when extra guests (usually the 3^rd & 4^th guests) were free because we travelled as a family of 4.  

Sometimes this was because they had a "kids sail free" promotion or discount on kids pricing. However, once, we got a deal where the 3^rd & 4^th guests were free regardless of their age. 

Many cruise lines have similar incentives such as free beverage or alcohol packages or free gratuities, especially if you book early in the year. These are good if you can get them, especially the free gratuities, which can cost close to $100 per person for a 7-night cruise.

We are not big fans of cabin upgrades, onboard credits or free wifi as incentives. 

However, a cruise is not nearly as enjoyable if you can't at least see the water through a window, so keep in mind that the cheap advertised promotional cruise fare probably is for an interior cabin with no window. 

This leads me to "additional charges".

Additional Charges:

If you don't get them included with your cruise fare as a promotion, many cruise lines (excluding most luxury cruise lines) charge extra for the following items, so you need to include them in your total cruise cost and cruise budget:

- Port charges: Port charges are included in the cruise fare you are ultimately charged, but they may not be included in some original advertised prices online.

- Customs charges: Customs agents in some ports of call charge you a fee just to enter their countries, while others may charge duties if you exceed certain purchase limits. 

- Internet access and WiFi: The cost is coming down, but many cruise lines still charge a lot for WiFi  and the speed is not great. 

- Gratuities: Many cruise lines add daily gratuities per passenger for many of the people who serve you onboard, such as the porter, room steward, head waiter, waiters, and others. Most major cruise lines automatically add gratuities to your onboard account and automatically charge your credit card on the last day of your cruise. The fee is usually around USD$15 per passenger, per day, and the cruise line then splits up that money between all service-oriented crew.

- Beverages: Cruise ships from major cruise lines generally charge extra for alcoholic beverages (USD$10-15) and non-alcoholic drinks (USD$5).  You can pay for each drink, but if you drink more than 5 a day, it might make sense to purchase their pre-paid beverage packages that provide unlimited drinks. Comprehensive drink packages (including both non-alcoholic and alcoholic drinks) generally cost between USD$60 and $100 per day and must be purchased for all guests in your stateroom for all days of the cruise, so can end up being very expensive. We were surprised to find that we had to pay for pop or even bottled water on all of our cruises, however we found that many cruise ships brought free juice or milk if we asked for it at any meal (maybe because we had children with us). Another work-around is to just bring your own pop and alcohol with you when you board and purchase more to bring back from the ports of call as needed.

Cruising in the future:

Now that our kids are adults, I think we are going to lean more towards longer, luxury accommodations, fine dining, and destinations we always wanted to see.

In the future, the itinerary will be just as important as the ship, although there are several new mega-ships that we really want to experience regardless of the itinerary. 

Our next cruise will probably be to the Eastern Mediterranean.  Our second choice would be South America.  There are still some Caribbean islands we want to experience too.  However, if we find a last-minute deal on an Alaskan cruise, we’d do that again in a heartbeat.

We have not tried river cruising, but we would love to explore Northern Europe that way someday.  It seems very luxurious, efficient and convenient, but it is very expensive. 

Related blog posts:

I have 2 other cruise related posts for you to read for more information:

1. How Cruising Could Change Post-Covid-19
https://retirestyletravel.blogspot.com/2020/04/how-cruising-could-change-after-covid-19.html

2. Retirestyle Cruise Tips
https://retirestyletravel.blogspot.com/2020/04/cruise-tips.html

Happy Travels,

Kev

P.S. Here are links to my other social media accounts, in case you want to connect that way:
Kevin's Instagram
Kevin's LinkedIn
Kevin's Facebook
Kevin's Pinterest
Kevin's YouTube (You should check out my YouTube Channel for related travel videos)

If you are still reading, perhaps you want to watch the video from my YouTube channel from the Western Mediterranean Cruise below...