Tuesday, June 24, 2025

The Last Frontier- Day 6

High Flying Fun
June 4, 2025
Sea Day #2 

Flying high on the Open Seas! 

Morning
I woke up around 7:45AM after having decent sleep on the terribly hard beds. TIP- Royal Caribbean is known for awful mattresses and beds and this was true on the Anthem of the Seas; even Luke complained. The boys already ate breakfast in the Windjammer and were at the indoor hot-tub when I passed by so I changed to join them. As I mentioned on a previous blog day, this indoor pool and hot-tub were NEVER busy in the early morning hours. Water Aerobics started at 9AM and it was dead prior to that. 


Hump-day on the Anthem of the Seas!

We got out shortly after 9AM and I went to change and wake up Sleeping Beauty- Natalie. Then I went to 270 for Starbucks and freshly squeezed OJ while the boys went to Schooner Bar. Natalie and I met them at Schooner Bar for the morning Sudoku Puzzle and Morning Trivia. Once again, we did not win this trivia but came in second place so getting closer. 


Morning Sudoku... This is new for us but we enjoyed this "brain" time each morning! 


Time for morning Trivia! Luke really LOVED playing these each morning!

The kids and I then went to the Royal Esplanade to shop for ship souvenirs. Chris then met us in 270 for the Captain's Corner, which is a Q&A session with the Captain, the Cruise Director and other higher level officers onboard. They usually have great questions and give out any info they may have about upcoming Royal projects. We actually learned about Icon of the Seas on our 2018 Liberty of the Seas cruise. This session didn't share any gossip but we learned a lot about the ship and the officers. 


Our CD was a little "lame" but our Captain had a great sense of humor! 

After the Captain's Corner it was lunch time so the kids went to the Windjammer while Chris and I went to the MDR when they opened at 11:30AM. TIP- We love this dining experience and it seems it is getting faster and more efficient the more we dine here. Plus the full service option and food options are better than the Windjammer. (Lunch is typically when I miss the Guy's Burgers and Shaq's Big Chicken of Carnival... but that's it). We really enjoyed this lunch and we were in and out within 45 minutes. 


The Main Dining Room Lunch Menu
TIP- The MDR offers lunch on Sea Days ONLY (11:30 to 1PM)


Seafood Risotto- 4.5
This is always a favorite of mine! 


Mozzarella Sticks-5.0
I don't know why we like these so much but we LOVE them! 


Quesadillas- 3.5
The salsa was TERRIBLE but overall decent entree! 


White Chocolate Raspberry Mouse- 4.5
I wish I could order this nightly! 

Afternoon
After lunch Chris went to take a nap while the kids enjoyed the indoor and outdoor pools and hot-tubs. I opted to lay out in the indoor area of Deck 14. Despite not being in the adult only section, this was very peaceful and not a lot of kids. Our entire sailing we hardly ever noticed kids. Being that this was the last week of May, I think most US school were still in session or our Embarkation Day was the last day of school. Even the kids we did see on our voyage were incredibly well behaved; and for me to say that as a teacher is saying something. 


Unlike our first sea day, these seas were CALM and smooth as glass! 


Another view of Celebrity Edge. 
We sailed with her from Seattle and saw her in Juneau and Skagway. 


Luke in the outdoor pool living his best life! 


Anthem of the Seas Main Pool Deck (Deck 14-15)

The FlowRider was actually open with a temperature of 50* and light winds so Luke made his way to there at 2PM. He did VERY well and really enjoyed this activity. After he did a couple of tries on the FlowRider, Luke and Natalie went back to the outdoor pool and hot tub while Chris and I went up to Deck 15 to the North Star Bar. The vibes at the North Star Bar were our favorite on the ship and the bartenders were some of the best and funniest on the ship. 


Luke was pretty impressive on the FlowRider. 


He was able to get up and ride 2-3 times in his 3 minute try! 


I would call his FlowRider session a success. Next Try- Harmony of the Seas, February 2026!


#LuketheDuke killing it on the FlowRider! 


The North Star Bar- A Davis Favorite! 

Luke also LOVED the North Star Bar as the bartenders would make him just about any weird "mocktail" he would ask for. We stayed up here for quite a while! 


Again, Luke double fisting it with ice cream- living his best life! 


We LOVED the North Star Bar- Check it out! 
Great views, great vibes and OUTSTANDING Bartenders! 

The kids got out of the pool and got dressed for their 4PM reservation at iFly. TIP- The Anthem of the Seas offers iFly sessions for $59/ pp and extended sessions for $79/pp. We did get ours on sale in the Royal app for $42/pp and this is a bargain compared the land prices. This whole excursion took just over an hour and included training, briefing and 2 one-minute flights for the kids. They both did really well and both really enjoyed this. 


He seemed SO nervous as he approached the air tower. 


But he settled down and was ready to FLY! 


Natalie was cool, calm and collected the whole time! 


Luke's first flight was wild! 


But he did SO WELL! 


Natalie loved both of her flights and it seemed as if she had done this countless times. 


Luke did better the 2nd try! 


Natalie- LOVE THIS! She did so well! 


iFly was a HUGE success and money well spent! 


This was worth the money and the kids LOVED it! 
I won't tell them the land version is 2 miles down I-45 from our house- I may go broke! 


Natalie's Band Director was on this ship sailing TOWARDS Alaska! 
Hello Mr. Wimberly- Have a great trip! 

After iFly I went to get ready for dinner and the kids and Chris went to the Sea Plex to play ping-pong and Xbox. This is when we learned you have to check out a controller from the Sea Plex desk for a 30 minute time slot. Chris and Luke enjoyed playing Xbox at sea and Natalie enjoyed the Open Play Volleyball on the lower deck. 


The boys enjoying Xbox in the Sea Plex. 

The all went to shower and get ready for dinner and then we all went to get a Johnny Rocket's Shake to hold us over until dinner. TIP- These shakes are included in the Ultimate Beverage Package and as a Platinum member with Crown and Anchor, we all got 1 free shake as well. We drank our shakes as we made our way to Vintages to play cards before dinner. 


The Anthem of the Seas offered a Johnny Rocket's EXPRESS. (a la carte pricing)
This was not full service but most options were available. 


The Oreo Milkshake was yummy! 


We really enjoyed the MASSIVE Vintages the Anthem offered. 
We had pre-dinner drinks here almost nightly! 

Evening
We sat in Vintages enjoying pre-dinner drinks and mocktails while we played spades. We played cards for over an hour before it was time to go to our Formal Night dinner in the Chic Dining Room. This meal featured Lobster and we were all excited for this menu overall. Luke actually ordered THREE entrees, and ate them all. We have a growing boy on our hands! 


Nightly Dinner picture! 


The Royal Night Menu
(only 1 Lobster per person) 


French Onion Soup (girls)- 4.5
Natalie was not a fan of the cheese but this is my FAVORITE soup! 


Onion Tartlet- 4.0
This was more of a quiche but it was very flavorful! 


Lemon Butter Baked Cod (Luke)- 4.0
He ate every bite! 


Maine Lobster Tail (all)- 5.0
We all loved it! 


Cheese Tortellini (C/K/N)- 4.0
This was RICH and flavorful. 


Warm Chocolate Cake (C/N/L)- 4.5
They all loved it! 


Strawberry Shortcake-4.5
Light and moist. 

After dinner we made our way to 270 for the Disco Inferno Party. This is always one of my favorite events on a Royal Caribbean ship and this party, while the vibe was different from a Royal Promenade party, was AWESOME. Even the kids liked dancing around to 70s music. We stayed for a little bit of the after party music but called it a night around 11:15PM as we would have to lose an hour due to time change. 


We LOVE the Disco Inferno Parties on Royal Caribbean. 


The 270 had a different vibe but it was still SO MUCH FUN! 

This was a great day spent aboard Anthem of the Seas and we were able to check every thing of our Anthem bucket list. 


Day 6 was a success- We love the Anthem of the Seas!

Did you miss day 5? Check out our BEST DAY HERE!  

Up Next... Another "half" Sea Day and Victoria, CANADA! 

God is Good... ALL THE TIME! 

Click on a link to see our past cruising adventures:
Independence of the Seas- June 2024







 


Carnival Conquest- 2006 

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Sunday, June 22, 2025

The Last Frontier- Day 5

 A Whaley Memorable Day
June 3, 2025 
Dawes Glacier and Juneau, AK 


This was my favorite day- The views were AMAZING! 

Morning
The Anthem of the Seas had a FULL day as we would be visiting both the Dawes Glacier and the capital city of Alaska, Juneau. Dawes Glacier viewing was scheduled for 5 to 10AM so we planned on getting to the upper decks at 5:45AM as the Windjammer opened at 6AM. We got to the Windjammer early and it was already open so we got breakfast. It was SO COLD (36*) but that didn't stop us from sitting in the back of the Windjammer at the outside tables. The view was phenomenal and so picture perfect. Remember- You only live once... LIVE IT UP! 


My breakfast views... PERFECT! 


The aft view from the Windjammer (AFT) seating area. 


It was 6:15AM and we were already seeing icebergs! 

After breakfast we went up to Deck 15 to walk on the open decks as we approached the Dawes Glacier. The Anthem of the Seas was supposed to reach the actual glacier around 7:15AM so we walked around until then. Once at the Dawes Glacier, we started on the Starboard side but then made our way to the aft of the ship as the captain would literally turn the ship 360* TWICE before leaving the Dawes Glacier inlet. The views were INCREDIBLE. We were able to see tons of icebergs, water falls and even some wildlife; although not as much wildlife as our 10 Year Anniversary Cruise in 2016 much later in the summer. This viewing IS EARLY (7AM at the latest) but you MUST GET UP! You can sleep later... GET UP AND SEE THE GLACIER! If you miss it, you will regret it! I promise you it is WORTH IT! 


Making the turn into the Dawes Glacier inlet. 


Making our way to the glacier, the views were picture perfect! 


We saw countless waterfalls! 


And so many icebergs


I always wonder how far down the iceberg goes as you only see the top 10% or so! 


This was so special for all of us. 


And once again, the weather was cooperative and we could see the Glacier clearly! 


This was the LIVE view (not zoomed in) 


This was the .5 view from my iPhone. 

Dawes Glacier 

Another view of the glacier! 


This was taken as we were starting to exit the glacier. 


My whole heart is in this picture! 


Looking as we started to exit! 


I LOVE YOU LUKE AND NATALIE! 


Be still my heart! 


This was taken about 30 minutes after we started to exit! 


One last view of the Dawes Glacier before making our way to Juneau! 


On our way out... 


Classic Mini-Me! 


Time needs to stop! 


Goodbye Dawes Glacier inlet! 

Once the captain made several turns around the Dawes Glacier, he began the trip back out the Dawes inlet towards Juneau as we were supposed to dock in Juneau at 2PM. It took about 2-3 hours to get out of the inlet and headed to Juneau. Luke and I went to the indoor hot-tubs and watched the mountains go by from the glass roof. Chris and Natalie went back to get ready for the day as they literally rolled out of bed to see the glacier.  


The Indoor Pool Deck on the Anthem of the Seas is AWESOME! 

Afternoon
Luke and I spent over an hour in the hot-tub before changing to meet Chris and Natalie at the North Star Bar to enjoy the fjords and look for wildlife. We were able to see some harbor seals along the way but did not see any whales. 


Luke and I had the hot-tub all to ourselves and the views were EPIC! 

All changed and ready for the day! 


And now it's time for a mocktail- This was a frozen peach/ strawberry Slush! 


A view as we entered open waters headed to Juneau! 


The fog started to roll in but it wasn't going to "rain" on our parade! 

We all grabbed our own lunch and then met in the Main Theater for our Royal Caribbean shore excursion- Whale Watching and Wildlife Quest. This Excursion was $249/ pp ($219/ under 12) and guaranteed whale sightings May- August or your money back. We realized when we got to the Main Theater that this was a MASSIVE excursion and we were not the only ones who booked this tour. We got off the ship around 1:45PM for our 2PM tour and loaded onto 3 busses that would take us out of Juneau to Auk Bay for our Whale Watching tour. 

Once at our tour start, we noticed we were the LAST of the now 4 busses to get to the boat. I was SUPER upset but knew we would have to be on the outside decks and standing in order to see any whales anyway so I did not let the crowds bother me. We got to the starboard side of boat and sat on a bench that was covered in water and my pants were soaked... But I didn't care, I was going to have a good time no matter what! Reminder- A Cruise (and an experience in general) is what you make of it! 

Our boat started to move to open waters and the views were spectacular and stunningly beautiful. The captain stopped a few times for a far off whale sighting. We would see the spout and wait for the whale to come back up to the surface but the first 2 whales seemed to stay down for a long time. I started to get that feeling that this was going to be a bust (much like our Pacific Whale Watching Tour in San Diego- April 2022). 


This proved that we would NOT get our money back as we did in fact see a whale. 
At this point, I was a little worried this was going to be the best we would get! 
OH LITTLE DID WE REALIZE- Thank you Jesus! 


A view of the Mendenhall Glacier just outside of Juneau on our way to the open waters of Auk Bay! 


It was a wee bit chilly. My phone said it was 37* with a 33* wind chill. 
And the wind was BLOWING HARD... Not gonna lie, It was BRUTAL! 

We sat back down and the captain sailed about 20 more minutes then I saw something. A spout again so we all stood up. Before we realized it a humpback whale had swam towards our boat and started putting on a show. The captain turned off the engine and she (and her baby) were within 20 yards of our boat. The show these two put on was nothing short of INCREDIBLE! Even the captain said in all his years of doing this had never had a whale so close. 


This video features each of the smaller videos I took while on this tour! 
Seriously, you could take a thousand whale watching tours and never see this type of show again! We were so BLESSED! 

We had our very own Prudential Commercial happening LIVE right in front of us and thanks to not being able to get a seat inside the boat, the 4 Davises had FRONT ROW SEATS. You could go on a THOUSAND whale watching tours and never see anything like this. The mama whale even swam under the boat to give the other side viewers a show as well. We stayed and watched her and her pup for 30 minutes before the Captain had to push back to get us back to the ship on time. 


A initial view of the mama as she approached the boat! 


The mama started showing off for us! 


She was just flopping all over the place! 


A whale tale... One of the only shots I got! 


But she was not shy at all... She just gave us a GREAT SHOW! 


Another dance she performed for us! 


And we spotted baby for the first time! 


Mama and baby showing off for us! 


Another whale tale! 


A money shot... 


Is this the Prudential Commercial or my experience???

As we were sailing back we realized just how lucky we were as many people on the inside of the ship didn't get the show or were able to see the show like we were. In fact, before we got back to the ship I saw people already complaining about this excursion online and in many Facebook groups. And while this excursion WAS packed with well over 200 people, we still got the SHOW OF A LIFETIME because we braved the elements and did whatever it takes to get our money's worth. Let this be a lesson, you will have to put out effort to get what you want. You may have to stand the whole time- check. Or you may have to brace the freezing wind-chill the whole trip- check. But IT WILL BE WORTH IT! 


A humpback whale TOOTH... Almost as tall as Natalie (5'8"+) 
It felt SO WEIRD! 

This excursion cost a total of $966 but it was worth EVERY PENNY! We will never be able to experience anything like this again in our lifetime, I'm sure! 


THE Money Shot! 


And another MONEY shot taken by Natalie! 

Evening
Once back on dry land, we board our bus with the masses and got back to downtown Juneau. We had planned on going to Tracy's Crab Shack for dinner but the line was too long and the boys were HUNGRY so they walked back to the ship while Natalie and I explored around town. I really regret not waiting in the line for Tracy's as it really is THE BEST! Natalie and I spent way too much money around town but got back on the ship just in time for Evening Trivia in the Schooner Bar. 


We loved shopping in Juneau! 

After trivia we went to the Chic Dining Room for dinner and the service and food were exceptional once again. We really love the Taste of Italy menu that Royal offers and it did not disappoint. 


We love eating dinner in MDR, even at 8:30PM! 

The Royal Caribbean Taste of Italy Menu in the MDR! 


The Arancini Balls (all)- 4.0
These were YUMMY and crispy! 


Caesar Salad- 4.5
Royal does this REALLY well! 


The Lasagna- 3.5
It is REALLY meaty (if you like that). Luke loved it but it was "little much" for me! 


Mushroom Risotto- 3.5
This was GOOD but not as GREAT as I remember! 


Tiramisu- 4.5
WOW... it was SO GOOD! 

After dinner we went back to the room and Luke decided to just go to bed since he was so tired. Natalie went to the Sea Plex for the Teen Dodgeball while Chris and I headed to 270 for the Adults Only Quest Gameshow. TIP- This is such a FUNNY event and should not be missed; but know it can get a little raunchy and not for kids at all. Usually RCCL checks Sea pass cards at the door but did not on this ship. This Quest was also a "little lame" as the crowd was so much older but we still had fun! Natalie went to bed after Dodgeball so Chris and I closed out the night in Vintages. We shut down the bar at 1AM and we loved it! 


Day 5 was LOADED but OH SO FUN! 

It was a FULL day and SO MANY MEMORIES were made! 

Did you miss Day 4? Catch up HERE!

Up Next... Another Sea Day aboard Anthem of the Seas! 

God is Good... ALL THE TIME! 

Click on a link to see our past cruising adventures:
Independence of the Seas- June 2024







 


Carnival Conquest- 2006 


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