Choosing a Cruise - June 2018

Hi All,

I am beginning to plan an Alaskan cruise for myself (f, late-20s) and my parents (mid-50s) in June 2018. I think we've settled on a 7-day northbound cruise with a 3-day tour in Denali afterwards. I would love some advice on which cruise lines/itineraries folks would recommend. We're not too fussed about onboard amenities, as we're more excited about seeing Alaska, and we don't have our hearts set on any particular excursions yet. The only major thing on the list is to see glaciers.

This will be the first cruise and trip to Alaska for all of us. So any advice or suggestions would be much appreciated. I'm feeling a little overwhelmed by all the different options.

Thanks a bunch!

As you are looking at a one way cruise, that limits your departure port to Vancouver.

I am not sure that all cruise lines do land tours, so that might limit your choices. But many do, like Holland America and Princess, who have the most ships in Alaska, and the most access to Glacier Bay. Some reading down the board will help you understand the value of Glacier Bay.

A travel agent would be very beneficial.

As for your cruiseline question, look down the page a bit and you'll find a similar question. Hopefully the responses will help you.

As for a 3 day land tour; i suggest renting a car and going diy. 3 days isnt a lot of time and those short land tours spend most of their time in transit, with little time at Denali. Keep in mind that the cruiseships dont arrive to Anc, they dock in Seward or Whittier. Seward is about 3 hrs south of anc, then its another 240 miles to Denali . They often break up the trip by sticking you in talkeetna for a night.

(If you go with a cruisetour make sure you have 2 nights in denali. The one nite stops arrive mid-day and leave at noon the next, which doesnt leave you enough time to actually get into the park.)

There are numerous trip reports posted in STICKYS near the top of the forum page. Several of them include diy land travel, from 3 days to 7 days. Those reports will be very helpful to you.

If glaciers are a priority, it's good to have a cruise with 2 glacier visits and/or have an excursion that visits glaciers. Sometimes fog or sea conditions interfere with a glacier visit.

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Another vote to include Glacier Bay if you are glacier seeker. Holland America and Princess offers the most trips for Glacier Bay.

Vancouver is a great bonus port that deserves extra days to enjoy all the activities.

My opinion is to do the land part yourself. You can easily transfer from Seward or Whittier to Anchorage then rent the car there without the expensive fee with doing a one-way car rental. Then you'll be able to get to Denali at your own pace instead of whizzing past everything in the tour bus. I would probably spend the first night on land in Anchorage - you'll be able to look around town a little there. Then take off for Denali the next day. Devote a whole day to getting there because you will absolutely see a lot of things you'll want to stop and investigate - eat lunch in Talkeetna, a cool little town. Then spend at least two nights at Denali. It will probably be cheaper to do it this way too; maybe not a lot but you'll get a better "value". All of this is MY opinion...I could be 100% wrong.

Enjoy your trip!

Hubby and I did a one-way northbound cruise from Vancouver with his parents in June. We did the "Voyage of the Glaciers" that ended in Whittier. Everyone loved it. We saw lots of glaciers and had long port days in Juneau and Skagway with a half-day in Ketchikan. Holland America is another great line to consider.

We did our own DIY land tour. We didn't go to Denali but would have if we had had at least one more day (4 nights total minimum) and again, we would have done it ourselves. If you feel more comfortable doing a cruisetour through a cruise line, Princess does offer it.

My opinion is to do the land part yourself. You can easily transfer from Seward or Whittier to Anchorage then rent the car there without the expensive fee with doing a one-way car rental. Then you'll be able to get to Denali at your own pace instead of whizzing past everything in the tour bus. I would probably spend the first night on land in Anchorage - you'll be able to look around town a little there. Then take off for Denali the next day. Devote a whole day to getting there because you will absolutely see a lot of things you'll want to stop and investigate - eat lunch in Talkeetna, a cool little town. Then spend at least two nights at Denali. It will probably be cheaper to do it this way too; maybe not a lot but you'll get a better "value". All of this is MY opinion...I could be 100% wrong.

 

Enjoy your trip!

A way it could be done on a north bound cruise would be disembark in Seward, do a Kenai National Park glacier and wildlife cruise and connect to the train (dome trains would be nice) that goes to Anchorage. You could spend that night in Anchorage and drive first thing in the morning to Denali, taking into account this post above. If your cruise ends on a Friday, you would be on the road Saturday for the scenic drive and you could explore the park on Sunday and 1/2 of Monday and fly home out of Anchorage late on Monday. We thought about this plan, but didn't have enough time, so we're just spending two days in Seward. If I had another day, SuperCrewBear's plan would have been something we would do.

Hi All,

 

I am beginning to plan an Alaskan cruise for myself (f, late-20s) and my parents (mid-50s) in June 2018. I think we've settled on a 7-day northbound cruise with a 3-day tour in Denali afterwards. I would love some advice on which cruise lines/itineraries folks would recommend. We're not too fussed about onboard amenities, as we're more excited about seeing Alaska, and we don't have our hearts set on any particular excursions yet. The only major thing on the list is to see glaciers.

 

This will be the first cruise and trip to Alaska for all of us. So any advice or suggestions would be much appreciated. I'm feeling a little overwhelmed by all the different options.

 

Thanks a bunch!

I was on Holland America Line for this exact itinerary June 2017.

Here is a link to my photos of the Denali land portion of the cruise/tour:

http://www.rogerjett-photography.com/place/alaska-2/denali/

Here is a link to the daily activities brochures for the cruise:

http://www.rogerjett-photography.com/specialty-2/on-locations-specific-cruises/alaska-2017-noordam-when-where-daily-activities/

Note that Denali is not open until the first week of June so book your cruise to accommodate that opening date.

Hope this helps in your planning.

We booked exactly the same cruise in reverse. We booked a 3-day land tour followed by a 7-day Southbound cruise on RCI Radiance of the Seas. Good luck with your search. We are excited to see Alaska.

I never recommend the 3 day add on tours, My opinion only, minimum is 5. 3 simply is way too short. All your time is in transit, and with your "glacier" priority you are missing the opportunity for spectacular boat tours in Kenai Fjords and Prince William Sound that are far superior to anything seen from a cruise ship.

As noted time is essential for Denali and getting INTO the park. Unfortunately many simply don't realize it's further details that are essential for Denali. with the Tundra Wilderness tour being the minimum. I would absolutely encourage you to add all the time possible. If you can't, then consider going on your own, at the least you can see and do much more with your short time. Touring is very easy to plan independent.

I suggest you find out more details about mainland touring, cruise ports and glaciers. It woud benefit you greatly for trip planning. Perhaps do that before jumping into a cruise selection. Then you will be able to know the facts and details of the itineraries. Determine now- what activities you want to include.

Budget Queen's advice is very good, especially when you work out the logistics.

If you disembark on a Friday in Seward, you basically use all of first day in transit. It's a long drive, even if scenic. At the end of the day, you check in and eat dinner. That's it.

On day two, on Saturday, you get your one and only day in Denali Park.

On day three, on Sunday, you would check out and do a 1/2 day event in Denali on Sunday and then spend the rest of the day in transit to the airport.

This is all for only one free day at Denali. So much of it is driving. If you take the 3-day add on with a rail tour or with cruise line, it's even tighter.

For that reason, Budget Queen makes so much sense in advising to do 5 days (you could do 4, but not easy) or look to some great alternatives in Seward and Prince William Sound. Once you really start planning details is when you find that out.