Need advice on which itinerary

Hello folks...I'm a long time lurker, first time poster. Thanks in advance for your insight. A large group of us are looking into an Alaska cruise, but none of us have been there. Its a wide range of ages from 3 to 73, and of course it will be impossible to find a perfect cruise for all of us, but with your help, I'm hoping to come close! Here is my wish list:

Newer ship (or recent major overhaul), nothing over 10 years old unless theres something spectacular I'm not aware of with older ships

Want to see glaciers...not just drive by them for an hour, but actually be seeing a lot of glaciers and scenery

Departure/arrival doesn't matter. Ports also don't really matter as long as scenery is great

Indoor pool (little kids will need something and I assume weather will be cold)

After the trip, some folks will go to Denali, so it would be nice to be in that area

We are thinking June 2018 (anytime after the 10th)

Any suggestions would be appreciated!

Evan

College Fjord or Glacier Bay are the only two locations with "lots" of glaciers, but generally you are there for 3-4 hours. Maybe a little longer. After that, glaciers are a good distance away, and are frequently visited on excursions. At Juneau you can actually go to a glacier.

Holland America is the only cruise that has a covered pool on all of their ships (exception Prisendam, which doesn't sail Alaska). Other cruise lines are a bit inconsistent. I think RCCL is probably the next most, but they don't sail Glacier Bay. Others will correct me on this, probably.

To see Denali, you will most likely need a Vancouver to Anchorage/Seward/Whittier route. Or see Denali before your cruise, and sail to Vancouver from Alaska.

There is very little difference in most cases between a 10 year old ship, and a 15 year old ship. That issue wouldn't even be on my list.

 

Holland America is the only cruise that has a covered pool on all of their ships (exception Prisendam, which doesn't sail Alaska). Other cruise lines are a bit inconsistent. I think RCCL is probably the next most, but they don't sail Glacier Bay. Others will correct me on this, probably.

 

There is very little difference in most cases between a 10 year old ship, and a 15 year old ship. That issue wouldn't even be on my list.

All of Princess's ships that do one ways have a covered pool (which is more then RCCL as they only have 2 ships in Alaska usually).

I agree, don't restrict yourself to newer ships. 15 year old ships are very well kept.

Princess has 2 glaciers on their North and Southbound routes. I recommend Glacier Bay as it is pretty much a guarantee - the other glaciers are not.

I would make sure you get setup with a Cruise TA. With a large enough group, you should be able to get some free births and group amenities.

June is a great time to cruise!

Is there a recommendation on a cruise TA? I never even thought about it since we book things online now like flights...haven't used a TA in over 10 years...thanks for the suggestion.

Is there a recommendation on a cruise TA? I never even thought about it since we book things online now like flights...haven't used a TA in over 10 years...thanks for the suggestion.

We can't recommend a TA on this board.

The reason you want to use a TA is that with a large group (8 cabins), you often get 1 birth free. They also can setup group amenities that you may not get otherwise. Lastly - some cruise lines allow discounting and others do not. For example - Princess does allow discounting (so you will pay less then what you would pay direct). Not all TAs discount. Good TA's will not only save you money IMO - but will also be one contact for the large group so you are saved from all the questions :). Honestly - I pay less with a real TA then I do booking online. There are some gems out there.

I still book my flights online but sometimes the cruise line air is actually a decent deal. You need to price it both ways. Sometimes with flying into one city and out of another, the cruise line air works well.