We have something extra special for you today — a little peek into my Alaskan Cruise aboard the Disney Wonder!

My family and I booked a multigenerational family trip to Alaska on the Disney Wonder last summer (one of my dad’s bucket list items). And I couldn’t resist the chance to share some of what I found.

A Disney Cruise is an amazing experience. The service, ports, and accommodations are simply unparalleled IMO. PLUS — there’s a hefty dose of Disney magic, which always makes an adventure just a little brighter.

If you haven’t had the chance to go, then I hope you do sometime soon! Find out more about them by ordering the free Disney Cruise Line video. I get one whenever they have them available.

But there’s more to cruising than just bein’ on the boat. And when we were in port in Skagway, Alaska, I took a few hours to tour the tiny city in search of goodies! And I found PLENTY!

I hope you’re hungry. If you’re not, you probably will be very soon!

Atmosphere, Scenery — and Characters!

To give you a little background, we sailed out of Vancouver, then visited Endicott Arm and stopped in port at Skagway, Juneau, and Ketchikan.

The views from the ship were truly amazing throughout the week. The white-capped mountains were all the more beautiful against the back drop of those blue skies.

Of course, we weren’t the only ones clamoring to catch a glimpse of the natural wonders. Minnie and Mickey were on hand too, and sporting their truly adorable duds.

Donald was waddling around as well, lookin’ prepared in his Klondike-wear. 😀

From the ship, Skagway looked like a post card…and kind of reminded me of one of my favorite old-school TV shows — Northern Exposure. For those who don’t know, Skagway really became a thing when prospectors poured in to try their luck during the Klondike Gold Rush.

Sweets and Shops

My self-guided sweets tour of Skagway was quite a success! Note that this is NOT a port adventure or anything like that. I was just wandering around Skagway with my camera. So you’re welcome to follow my footsteps and it won’t cost you a penny in terms of cruise fees.

My first stop was Lemon Rose Bakery.

The cute little shop boasted some pretty heavenly-sounding options. Scones! Pie! Tarts! And alledgedly, even a chocolate chip cookie better than my momma makes. (Not hard. My mom doesn’t cook.)

But since I love me some lemon, and I was already in the mood for lemony goodness because of the shop’s name, I went for their signature Lemon Lavender Cookie.

The soft cookie was covered with a generous layer of vanilla bean-flecked icing. COVERED. I was already feeling pretty good about this.

Inside, the cookie revealed a tender crumb, and I found a good balance of the tart, refreshing lemon and the floral, herbal notes of the lavender.

Our next stop was Sugar Mamas. With its eye-catching pink and brown facade, we were curious to see what we’d find inside.

Cupcakes! We found cupcakes inside. Score!

But not just any cupcakes — these little gems featured a local Skagway ingredient — rhubarb. The crop grows abundantly in the town, and has a long, rich history there.

So I was psyched to try a true taste of local flavor here in the form of the Rhubarb Cupcake with Cream Cheese Frosting.

While the moist cake featured a light flavor, the tart rhubarb (my Grandma used to grow it!) was a flavorful addition. And you know that I was totally in love with that amazing cream cheese frosting. This was pretty awesome.

Next, I headed over to the Alaskan Fudge Company. You’ll find these stores in pretty much all of the Alaska ports, but I still love that they make their fudge right on the premises.

A quick peek at the menu shows you all of your options. You can have boxes shipped home, too.

Want proof that your fudge is made right in the shop? Here you go — a look right into the fudge kitchen, with a giant log of fudge cooling on the marble slabbed table.

With options like Motherlode Maple and White Pass White Out, it wasn’t an easy decision…

Oh, wait. YES IT WAS. You Guys. Inside Passage, with chocolate fudge and peanut butter oozing from the center, might as well have been called The AJ Special.

I mean, just LOOK AT IT. You just can’t argue with this setup. It’s fudgy perfection.

But, if you prefer, there are also other kinds of candies as well.

But we weren’t quite finished. I also decided that we needed a stop in Kone Kompany, the local ice cream shop, to see what was happening there.

Apparently, I was not alone in this brilliant idea. The small space was fairly crowded.

A look at the menu showed scoop and sundae options as well as a few interesting milkshakes.

Most of the ice cream on offer was Dreyer’s, but there were also a few selections by Oregon’s family-owned Umpqua Dairy, including one of their most popular flavors, Moutain Blackberry Revel.

Ultimately, drinks won out here, and of course, I had to try the Peanut Butter Shake, with vanilla ice cream, creamy peanut butter, and chocolate sauce.

But the sign for the Lemon Wedgie (I still laugh.) also intrigued me, so we had a go at one of those too. It was light and refreshing, with its blend of freshly squeezed lemonade and Cherry Sierra Mist.

After a bit of a stroll to work off a few of those treats, I headed back to the ship. It was almost time for Palo! ;-D

Overall

Skagway was my favorite of the ports that we visited because it’s the least commercialized and developed. Ketchikan and Juneau both have lots of chain souvenir shops, and it was much harder to find locally-owned spots.

Skagway had that “Northern Exposure” feel to it, which really made the difference here. I felt like I was actually getting a little more of the genuine Alaska feel, instead of a show put on for tourists (although since Skagway’s primary trade is tourism, I totally know I was getting a show put on for tourists). I also really enjoyed chatting with the shop owners and bakers, who were friendly and eager to talk about their specialties.

If you have the chance to do a Disney Cruise to Alaska, GO. And if you’re thinking about a Disney Cruise, don’t forget to click here to get the COMPLETELY FREE Disney Cruise Line Planning Video today. It’s really, really free. And it’s so much fun to watch. Plus there’s tons of info in there.

So go. Book it. And if you can stop in Skagway, even better. 😀

Have you had the chance to visit Alaska on a Disney Cruise? Leave a comment and let us know what your favorite part of the adventure was!