The Longest Day EVER
June 6-7, 2025
Seattle, WA and Houston, TX
Alaska- It's been real... but it's time to GO HOME! Morning
Our alarm went off at 6:45AM and that meant the cruise was officially over. We got ready and packed our last few things before meeting the boys at the Main Dining Room for our last meal aboard the Anthem of the Seas. The service in the MDR was exceptional and the best we experienced at breakfast but you could tell this was because they were focusing on "flipping" the ship for the next sailing. Hats off to the staff as they work SO HARD the whole cruise but especially on "Flip Day".
Once we finished breakfast we went back to the stateroom to get all our belongings and make our way to our lounge to wait for our disembarkation group number to be called (32) since we were doing the "luggage assist" disembarkation. While we were waiting for an elevator our number was called so we went all the way down to deck 4 to get off of the ship. The line to get off was VERY long but seemed a little more organized that we originally thought.
We got in line to exit the ship around 8:28AM and we were off the ship and through customs with our luggage at 8:40AM. This process was flawless and so easy. The facial recognition software makes this whole process so much easier as well. Once out of customs and out of the terminal we walked way down to the Ride Share waiting area. TIP- This is about .5+ mile away from the exit of the terminal so be mindful if you have lots of luggage (we did) or have mobility issues.
We had a 10:40PM nonstop flight home on Southwest Airlines so this meant a very long day of waiting for our flight and we were not looking forward to it.
Once at the Ride Share waiting area we requested an Uber XL to take us to the Coast Hotel in Downtown Seattle for our dayuse.com room. The original Uber we requested was a Toyota Highlander with captains chairs and this would not accommodate our 8 suitcases and 4 bodies so we had to cancel once it arrived. I then saw a random man in a Suburban waiting so I asked if he could take us and he obliged and for about $25 less than Uber.
The traffic on a Friday morning was a lot heavier than I imagined and I am glad we did not have to drive that ourselves. We arrived at the Coast Hotel at 9:40AM for our 10AM reservation. We used dayuse.com to book this Day Room for $139 (plus taxes and fees) which allowed us to use this room 10AM to 5PM. We did have to call the hotel once we got off the ship to confirm 2 bed as the reservation was technically only for 1 bed. The hotel was very accommodating and the room was just what we needed. However, when we arrived the HEAT was on and we had to adjust a bit to get it to blow cold air in the room.
This was our 2 Double Bed Room at Coast Hotel. It was a very SMALL room but worked perfect for what we needed.
The bathroom at Coast Hotel was well appointed.
Another view of the 2 Queen room at Coast Hotel! We spent the rest of the morning taking naps as we were so tired from the trip. Once 11:30AM rolled around we decided to go downstairs and walk across the street to the ORIGINAL MOD Pizza. We love Mod Pizza and being able to dine at the very first one was an added bonus and a nice surprise for our day. After lunch we opted to go back to Pike Place to get a few of our favorites once again and buy some salmon to take home before going back to the room to try and get some rest before our late flight home.
The ORIGINAL Mod Pizza in Union Square in downtown Seattle.
I LOVE Mod Pizza and the specialties we can each order exactly what we want!
Our last views of Pike Place!
I seriously LOVE Seattle and could live there... The weather is PERFECT and I love the scenery!
But these Houston babies were ready to be home! Afternoon
We got back to the hotel room and laid down to try and fall asleep. Chris and Natalie were able to get some longer naps in while Luke and I barely dosed off but it was still beneficial to us for the long day of travel ahead.
We checked out of our Day Use room at 5:20PM and then had the hotel concierge call us a "Van Taxi" to take us to the Sea Tac airport. Unfortunately, the taxi that arrived was a "large Prius" but believe it or not, we were able to fit all 8 suitcases and all 5 people in this tiny purple car. Luke had to hold a suitcase but it was worth it. The traffic was awful at 5PM on a Friday and what should have taken 40 minutes took about 1 hour and 15 minutes. This taxi was standard $60 and with tip cost $72.
We "may" have overpacked!
Thank you Gigi Shirley and Poppy- You gifted ALL this luggage!
Making memoires... One Uber at a time!
This was CRAMMED and a LONG ride but memories WERE made! Evening
We arrived at SeaTac at 6PM but we were not able to check in our luggage until 4 hours prior to flight time so we waited 40 minutes in the Southwest Check-in area until it was time to turn in our luggage. Once we turned in our luggage we went to find our gate and it was the furthest gate in a very dirty and trashy airport. We have flown in and out of here before and never noticed but the trash was out of control. Almost as if the trash had not been picked up or floor swept in many days. It was filthy and absolutely disgusting!
We grabbed dinner at a Re'lish Restaurant (burgers) just to try and take up some of the time as we waited for our flight. These burgers were "good" but not worth the money we paid. This meal cost $128 with tip.
Why on earth would ANY burger need to be priced this high? But of course, our flight was delayed and then our pilot and flight crew did not arrive on time so we did not depart Seattle until 11:10PM.
We are locked and loaded... Ready to get back to God's Country!
Houston we are headed for you! The flight was 4 hours 50 minutes BUT only had 71 passengers on board so we were able to spread out and try to enjoy this flight. We had early bird check in so we were in group A #31-35 and got to sit on row 6. Despite being exhausted, we couldn't really get comfortable to fall asleep so it was an anxious flight but we made it to Houston at 5:15AM. We grabbed all 8 pieces of luggage and got to our car around 5:45AM. We were back home and taking showers by 7AM. We all crashed for a few hours before getting our puppy, Rockefeller, back and facing the day!
Everyone was so happy... Back together again!
This trip was so INCREDIBLE that we need another vacation from our vacation!
I am so glad we got to celebrate the kids milestone birthdays with a cruise and trip such as this! This is a trip they will surely never forget. We love you Natalie and Luke... I hope you enjoyed Alaska!
Up Next... Back to Back cruises on the Jewel of the Seas (no kids) SUMMER 2025!
God is Good... ALL THE TIME!
Carnival Conquest- 2006
