Mountaineer0313

Alaska is such a crapshoot weather wise. We’ve been both at the end of august and beginning to mid September, and both times we had incredible weather. Literally almost no rain, and when we went in august it was tshirt weather. When we went in September it was pretty chilly at night but daytime was light jacket or a sweatshirt and you were fine. We’re going next year the last week of august. That time and into September is just better because of my husbands business being slower then, so it’s hard for us to go in mid summer. But I’ve been totally happy with our choices both times we’ve gone.

right now, I really could extend the time. I just know me and I know I’ll be anxious to get home to my dogs lol. i definitely don’t want to base in or near anchorage. Cities don’t do anything for me, no matter how pretty the view. I’d rather be out closer to Denali.

so would doing Denali be best to wait until after 2024?

We are booked on Radiance Northbound next August. We have done Alaska twice already, once northbound and once southbound, but neither time did we venture north of Anchorage. We stayed on the Kenai peninsula, which has plenty to do and see and I would be totally okay with doing it again, but I would like to go further north. With that said, if 3 full days is all we had, what would you suggest for a couple, myself 40 and my husband 36. We are not hikers, but enjoy seeing the beauty Alaska has to offer. We don't fish either. We like to sight-see, eat great food, see wildlife on both land and water, and I'd love to go into Denali National Park but I'm turned off by the fact that the only real ways you can are to take a tour that involves many hours on a bus, which is 100% not our idea of a good time. Also, best way to get from Seward to Denali (or closer to Denali), best place to stay, best places to eat, etc.

I have done both, and loved both. Pros of northbound, as you stated, are that the scenery just gets better and better as you go along. What I liked about southbound was that we could do our land portion before the cruise instead of after. We're booked on another northbound next year, because it has Sitka as a port and I have always wanted to go (and I got a great price on an aft balcony). Basically, either way, you can't lose.

I can see sharing data between us as a sure way to divorce lol. We will always be together, so no need for staying in touch.

So, it's cheaper to just select one person, and 2 devices, than it is to select both travelers in the cabin, with one device each. Am I missing something? If I just select myself and the 2 device option, then myself and my husband can both use our phones for internet, correct?

While I would love to do any of those cruiselines, even I, the big spender I am, cannot justify spending that much on a cruise lol, if the ports are largely the same as the big name cruiselines.

We did a northbound from Vancouver in 2018, a southbound from Seward this year, and looking to book again in 2024. I see that the only cruises that offer Sitka as a port are northbounds. I'd prefer southbound, so we can spend time on land before the cruise, but I suppose we could do it after the cruise also. I've never been to Sitka, and I have no idea why I really want to see it, but I do. So is booking a cruise that has Sitka as one of the ports a great idea, if I've already been to the other ports?

We have gone the last week of august into the first week of September and this year we did September 5-16. We had really incredible weather both times. This year, we had little rain, temps were in the mid 50s. It was cold near Hubbard Glacier but otherwise, a light jacket with long sleeves under it was all I needed.

That's fine, but having seen Hubbard glacier in person more than once, I won't base my cruise around a glacier. I'll base it around the itinerary and the ship. Hubbard is phenomenal.

Having been to Alaska twice, and having not seen Glacier Bay, I say no. Pictures are subjective, but pictures of Glacier Bay don't impress me any more than Hubbard Glacier in real life does (which was a lot). The cruise lines I prefer don't go to Glacier Bay, so I may never see it, and I'm okay with that.

Yes, that's plenty of time. We've been out with Jayleen twice, and she will pick you up right at the port, and drop you off wherever you want. So she can drop you off at the port and you can get directly on the ship.

The season is over now I believe, but it was not closed previously. We were just there.

You mean exactly like the bag of milk chocolate morsels that everyone alive uses to make chocolate chip cookies? To the OP, they'd be perfect for smores or break them up and use them in cookies.

Currently onboard Celebrity Millennium sailing southbound to Vancouver after a fantastic 12 days in Alaska. We’ve done this cruise before, only did the Northbound the first time. Now I’m looking for possibly a small ship choice, that visits the more obscure ports, instead of the typical Juneau, Skagway, Icy Strait, and Ketchikan. Any recommendations for something like that?

a circus performance would be seeing it at Sea World. You aren’t guaranteed to see whales from the ship. You almost always are from a whale watching vessel. We sailed Radiance on Royal Caribbean last time, I’m currently on Celebrity Millennium, a few hours at from Hubbard Glacier right now.

Lol. Oh well. Hopefully the premium internet is premium enough.

Is it espn from another country?

It’s on ESPN, so unless there’s some sort of regional blackout, it should be ok. Google says ESPN is one of the channels available in the rooms.

Oh well. Maybe the wifi will be okayish enough to watch online.

Luckily, our second college football game coincides with our sea day, so I will be needing a place to watch the game. Where is the best place to watch sports onboard Millennium? I know I can stream it from my ipad possibly, but would rather watch on a bigger screen with a drink in hand.

My personal opinion, but round trips out of Seattle are a waste of money. Either a north or southbound one way is the way to go. If you go northbound, the scenery just gets better and better each day. If you do southbound, you can add on some land days in Alaska before you get on the ship.

It sounds like you chose the wrong cruiseline. I'm assuming since you were on Carnival, you did a round trip out of Seattle. IMO, there's a reason Carnival is the cheapest cruiseline and round trips have significantly shorter port times. We were docked in Juneau from 9 am to 9 pm, giving us plenty of time to do absolutely everything we wanted to do, plus we still had extra time for browsing the shops and getting something to eat. But, it makes me wonder, if you think watching a whale breach is just a fish jumping out of the water, how much you could enjoy Alaska anyway?

Not as far as I know. My husband grudgingly got vaccinated, since I told him I was heading to Alaska with or without him, his choice. So he got it done with a month to spare and we leave Monday.