ALASKA CruiseTour Luggage Plan

We are booked on a CruiseTour on June 30th this year. We will be doing the 4 day tour portion first, starting in Fairbanks. How do you plan for packing & luggage for this type of cruise? How will Princess handle our bags? I assume we may need an extra bag each for the tour portion? Any help and advice on this will be most appreciated as we have never done this type of cruise in the past. Thanks!

You are allowed one carry on bag each. As the name implies, you will keep it with you while be transport from place to place. It should include medicines, valuables, etc.

You are each allowed on suite case that will be delivered to your hotel room. It will travel in the luggage compartment of the bus or train and NOT be accessible while in transit.

Any additional bags will be sent to the port and delivered to your cabin on embarkation day. You will not have access to this during the tour portion of your trip

As mentioned you should have your important stuff in a tote with you at all time

You can pack one suitcase with stuff you need for your land tour and the other bag can go directly to the ship. You'll receive tags to identify your luggage that way.

Or you can have your luggage delivered to your hotel room each night with none going to the ship until it goes with you on the bus.

Keep in mind that your luggage may not get delivered to your room for a couple of hours. We had a small rolling tote that went under the bus but we handled it to and from the room. In it, the night before we were leaving the hotel (we had an 8-night tour), we would put what we needed for the next evening so we didn't have to wait for the larger suitcases to arrive with change clothes or whatever.

We each traveled on the land tour with a small wheeled carry on bag that we checked and had delivered to our room each night. We also each had a backpack with personal items in it. We brought one large suitcase that we shared and had sent to the ship. Worked very well for us.

We kept one suitcase that traveled from lodge to lodge with us (on train or bus) and the other suitcase went to the ship and was there when we boarded. Daily we carried a backpack on buses and train with things like meds, jewelry, camera, I Pads etc.

Chris

Only one carry on and one checked bag allowed per person on land portion, I have done the Conn. Tour twice. Your checked bag (on the land portion) actually leaves on another truck and not the bus or train you will be traveling on. You are allowed to send more luggage to the ship, without traveling with you on the land portion. That works for people who like to dress formal.

I highly suggest checking out the Alaska board as well as this link https://www.princess.com/learn/faq_answer/cruisetours/cruisetours_alaska.jsp

You'll have a great time.

My report on the land part of an Alaska cruise tour describes how luggage is handled and may be found at https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1727858

Unfortunately the photo hosting service will no longer allow the photos to be displayed, but the text is still there.

We used day packs to carry the essentials with us and sent the checked bag ahead. Much easier for us.

Only one carry on and one checked bag allowed per person on land portion, I have done the Conn. Tour twice. Your checked bag (on the land portion) actually leaves on another truck and not the bus or train you will be traveling on. You are allowed to send more luggage to the ship, without traveling with you on the land portion. That works for people who like to dress formal.

 

I highly suggest checking out the Alaska board as well as this link https://www.princess.com/learn/faq_answer/cruisetours/cruisetours_alaska.jsp

 

You'll have a great time.

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Thanks so much everyone for your responses! They will make it a lot easier to plan!

Regarding luggage. We will be departing Denali on the train at 4:00pm but hotel checkout is 11:00am. We would like to do a tour, or whatever in Denali in the morning. What happens to our luggage after 11:00??

Regarding luggage. We will be departing Denali on the train at 4:00pm but hotel checkout is 11:00am. We would like to do a tour, or whatever in Denali in the morning. What happens to our luggage after 11:00??

you put your luggage out in the am and it is picked up and taken to the train depot

There are a lot of rules/guidelines on the Princess website- some are more flexible than others. The hand held day bag is not too flexible. It has to be able to fit under the seat or in overhead on the bus. Your large suitcase is sometimes not even on the same method of transportation you are using. Train- usually your large bag goes by Truck. Bus- sometimes on your bus but for us it has not always been. Carry on- basically its like gate checking for a flight- on a train you leave it outside the train just before boarding. Same with Bus in our experience.

Make sure you plan ahead- if you arrive to the hotel and have a shore excursion immediately- you want to have everything you need on you or in your carry on and not in the large suitcase as others have stated.If you have more than one large suitcase I have seen people having more. I have also asked on one cruise tour because we ended up scrambling last minute with wanting to pull out heavier clothes one year for colder weather. Debated do I have time to repack a little and transfer things form bag to bag and the tour guide/representative said here is another tag you can either send to ship if you move things around or use the extra meet me at the hotel tag and just not bother repacking. I ended up repacking quickly because I didn't want a bunch of bags in each of the stops but it was a nice gesture to not have to if I ran out of time.

All Princess cruisetours include our hassle-free luggage handling service every step of the way. During the land portion of your vacation, we'll take care of transporting your luggage from one location to the next.

Important luggage reminders:

• Essential medicines, travel documents, valuables and breakables should be hand carried in your possession at all times.
  
• All Alaska luggage tags for the land portion of your cruisetour will be distributed by Princess Representatives in Alaska. Luggage tags for the cruise portion of your cruisetour should be printed prior to leaving home.
  
• Luggage fees imposed by airlines are the responsibility of each guest. Please check with each carrier prior to departure for specific guidelines.
  
• Many domestic airline carriers now impose baggage fees for one or more bags and bags weighing over 50 lbs., so check with your carrier regarding weight restrictions.
  
• Princess will make every effort to assist you in safeguarding your belongings. But remember, you are responsible for your things at all times. Princess is not responsible for money, jewelry, cameras, binoculars, documents or any other articles you retain in your personal control.
  
• All luggage should have a sturdy personal identification tag that will not be lost or damaged in the course of typical airport and trucked luggage handling.
  
• On journeys including air travel, luggage will be subject to a considerable amount of handling and we would recommend that your luggage be of sturdy construction.
  
• Princess recommends that your travel protection is adequate enough to cover any possible loss or damage which may occur. Any loss or damage caused by Princess or an airline must be reported immediately to the responsible party.
  
• For guests who have purchased an Air Advantage package, please refer to your detailed itinerary found in the Cruise Personalizer® for additional details regarding luggage.
  

Packing for your Land Tour

Cruisetours involve many modes of transportation including motorcoaches, trains and sightseeing vehicles so make sure you take only the things you need to ensure comfort for you and your fellow travelers. There are different types of bags to consider for the land portion of your cruisetour.

Hand-Carry Tote/Backpack

• You'll want this bag with you every step of the way, so include only the essentials.
  
• Items to pack in this bag include travel documents, photo ID, important medication, toiletries, camera, and any extra layers of clothing such as jackets or hats.
  
• Your hand-carry tote bag should be a size that is comfortable to carry and should be able to be stowed under your seat. We recommend soft-sided tote bags or backpacks no larger than 17" x 14" x 4" with a zip enclosure.
  
• Wheeled carry on cases that are used to carry-on luggage on airlines are too large and are not suitable as hand-carried luggage on motorcoaches and trains.
  

"Join Me Tonight" Luggage

You are allowed one piece of "Join Me Tonight" baggage per person on the land portion of your cruisetour. You will simply pack one bag and place luggage where instructed. Our handlers will pick it up and deliver it to your room at the next overnight location on your land tour.

• This bag will be transported separately from you and will not be accessible during transit.
  
• Items to put in this bag include clothing, sleepwear, nonessential toiletries, extra shoes and anything else you might need at your hotel but do not need access to during the day.
  

"Join Me Onboard" Luggage (for guests who cruise after their land tour)

• Guests who cruise after their land tour should pack a separate bag for items they will not need on land.
  
• This bag is perfect for the items you may need on your cruise but will not need on your land tour, such as formal wear, dress shoes, or dinner jackets. On the land portion of your cruisetour, the dress code is always casual so there is no need for any formal wear.
  
• All luggage is delivered to the first destination on your land itinerary. Upon departure from that city, the "Join Me Onboard" tagged bags will be securely stored until they are delivered to your stateroom onboard.
  

"Join Me in Fairbanks/Anchorage" Luggage (for guests who cruise prior to their land tour)

• Guests who cruise prior to their land tour should pack all the items they used on their cruise and will not need on land in this piece of luggage. After disembarkation from the ship, these bags will be inaccessible until delivered upon your arrival in the final destination of your itinerary.
  
• Please identify your chosen pieces of luggage (excluding the one "Join Me Tonight" bag) with the "Join Me" tags based on your final destination.
  

Thanks tamsocal. Very good info. We may be using Princess for our cruisetour in a couple of years. Still in the planning phase at this point.