JULY 2024: 7-Night Cruise TO alaska
out of seattle, washington
on royal caribbean
quantum of the seas 
july 15-22, 2024

ITINERARY:

• Day 1: Depart Seattle
• Day 2: Cruising at Sea
• Day 3: Sitka, Alaska
• Day 4: Skagway, Alaska
• Day 5: Endicott Arm and Dawes Glacier (by Sea), then Juneau, Alaska
• Day 6: Cruising at Sea
• Day 7: Victoria, British Columbia
• Day 8: Arrive Seattle

COST paid directly to the cruiseline: This cost varies based on your stateroom selection and when you book. You can see the latest rates and room types on the Royal Caribbean website or you can ask a travel agent. This cost will cover your lodging, meals at the buffet and our assigned dinner location, shipboard entertainment and activities, taxes, and fees.

COST paid to Beth directly: $100/person. This is what connects you to the rest of our group and includes daily retreat activities like our welcome meet-up, nightly group dinner seating, a teeny tiny exclusive gift, access to our full schedule so you don’t miss any “Butt-Sitting with Beth” or mocktail/cocktail hour opportunities, a get-to-know-everyone Facebook group ahead of the retreat, and other fun little surprises.

OPTIONAL COSTS: Approximately three months before our departure, we will also plan group activities for an added fee. Examples include activities on board like Afternoon Tea and excursions on shore like the White Pass Railway trip in Skagway. You can choose whether to opt in or forego these in order to curate exactly the type of trip you want.

RETREAT GROUP SIZE: 35 maximum retreat participants

HOW TO REGISTER FOR THE RETREAT: Contact me at beth@bethwoolsey.com. Put ALASKA CRUISE RETREAT in the subject line, and send me a message with your name and any questions you may have.

HOW TO BOOK THE CRUISE: You can book your cruise directly with the cruiseline or contact a travel agent for a free quote. My agent is Sharon Mitchell at World Travel, smitchell@wtpdx.com.

GOT ANY OTHER TIPS, BETH?
As a matter of fact, I do!

• The cruise cost does not include gratuities, wifi, alcoholic beverages, soda, or specialty coffees, but you can pre-pay for any of those you wish. Just let your booking agent know.
• Speaking of cruise cost, I always just let Sharon, my travel agent, know I want to book the “cheapest available” stateroom, so if you’re concerned about price like me, feel free to say so!
• Aaand, speaking of travel agents, they can help with a huge number of details–air and ground transportation to the cruise ship, hotels before and after the cruise, travel insurance (inexpensive and recommended), specific cabin requests, etc. For some bookings, there is a nominal fee paid to the travel agent (i.e. airfare), but they provide many services TOTALLY FREE (i.e. cruise bookings).

Looking forward to seeing your face, friends,

A BRIEF BACKGROUND ON RETREATS
{minus the part about being brief}

So. We here at BethWoolsey.com (which is Just Me, Beth Woolsey, plus whoever else I can drag into my orbit) have, FOR YEARS, offered small retreats specializing in COMMUNITY, INCLUSION, and TAKING A FREAKING BREAK from lives that are often relentless and overwhelming. We’ve done these primarily in our own backyard on the Oregon Coast, and we expanded to international retreats to Tuscany, Italy in 2019 with plans for more in 2020 (HAHAHAHAHAHA!). Then, like the rest of the world, we took a 2+ year hiatus. Then we (I) tried to figure out how to add retreats–life-giving, people-building, love-mongering retreats–back into the schedule in a way that’s healthy and responsible given the current environment. Locking everyone into a house, even on the expansive, gorgeous Oregon Coast where we could become delightful superspreaders seemed Less Than Ideal, especially without a reliable way to verify infection status. So I was flummoxed. As eager to open retreats as I was reluctant.

But then. Then! Then I went on a lovely Alaskan cruise in July 2022. A cruise where medical protocols are updated as new information is available. A cruise where the food is beautiful and plentiful. A cruise where the scenery is extraordinary. A cruise where the adults-only pool, hot tub, and bar area is serene and where I can excel at my Best Talent which is Butt Sitting. And I thought, THIS! This, please! We can gather where all these wonderful things are arranged. And if this is an outcome of the After Times–that I thought out of the box for new ways to commune together–then I am here for it. Let’s do this.