Don't Know Where To Start!

[newbie cruzer]

I am looking at booking an Alaskan cruise for my family for June 2005 (my husband and myself - in our mid-40's - and 2 sons, ages 9 and 13). We are looking for about a 7 night cruise, with a few days in British Columbia as well. We have never taken a cruise anywhere, so I don't even know where to start! We generally like more upscale hotels/resorts...also, I don't think we're looking for one of the very small ships. Also, my younger son is very into animals and wildlife, so any that might be better for either land excursions or viewing of such would be a plus.

What are some cruise lines that are well -rated? What should I be looking for? Any and all help from you experts would be much appreciated!:)

Lee

[jrask]

You'll find that Alaska is a research-intensive trip, but getting an initial structure will make this a lot easier for you. I too enjoy more upscale resorts, but how that manifests itself in the cruise world depends on your needs. Princess and Holland America (HAL) are not as upscale as Celebrity, so if the primary concern is the very best amenities and food that may guide your decision. But we found Princess to more than meet our needs for amenities (pool, spa, cabins, entertainment, etc.) and food. Alaska is a destination cruise, and many here would suggest you focus your attention on the itinerary to decide which cruise to take.

 

The major itinerary considerations are: (1) round-trip v. 1-way; (2) which ports and the length of time in each port; (3) glacier viewing locations; and (4) start/stop of the cruise.

 

Round-trip will usually leave out of Seattle or Vancouver and usually saves you money, at least on airfare. 1-way would take you between Vancouver and either Seward or Whittier. 1-way gives greater touring options, including the possibility for glacier viewing in College Fjord and touring interior Alaska. If wildlife is a priority, I highly recommend touring interior Alaska (at the expense of the time you were thinking of spending in Vancouver perhaps). On the cruise itself, you'll have a chance to see dolphins, whales, seals, and otters, but all from significant distances and usually this sort of viewing requires dumb luck or significant time up on deck (which can be quite cold). Real wildlife viewing will require (often costly) shore excursions. Such shore excursions will give you a shot at these same sealife + bald eagles and they also have bearwatching excursions. Interior Alaska gives you a different range of wildlife -- moose, caribou, grizzly are easily viewed up close in Denali NP and your chance at a variety of other animals is very good as well. Touring the interior is very very very easy by rental car.

 

As to which ports, you'll find that most of the ships go to Ketchikan (good kayaking, fishing, native culture, flights to Misty Fjords, small town environment), Juneau (tons of excursions including glacier landings & whale watching), and either Skagway (gold rush history) or Sitka (Russian history). Some lines have just added Icy Straits (small town that is less touched by commercialism, whalewatching, native culture). Read a little about the ports and look at the shore excursion offerings in the various ports (largely the same between lines, so just look to get a feel for each port). Decide where you want to go and where you want maximum time. For instance, we wanted max time in Juneau because we wanted to do so much while we were there.

 

Glacier viewing isn't something you do very often and is always a highlight. The preference is typically a Glacier Bay NP & College Fjord combination. Those who go to Hubbard enjoy it and it is much bigger, but doesn't give you the diversity in glaciers.

 

Start/Stop: Vancouver is usually preferred to Seattle for quality (time spent in Alaskan waters and the route in the southern end of the trip) although Seattle flights are usually cheaper. If going 1-way, the choice between Seward and Whittier depends on your touring priorities. Seward has more to do the Whittier, but if you prefer to spend your touring time elsewhere Whittier is a bit closer to Anchorage and Denali.

 

I also prioritize the onboard naturalist ... HAL and Princess typically get strong reviews in this area.

 

As an aside, expect that shore excursions are going to be expensive. In Alaska, these are necessary though to get the full experience. They will shape your trip around your interests...culture, wildlife, hiking, etc. Without them, the ports can get very touristy and shopping oriented.

[MichTraveler]

Newbie: Welcome to the CC boards. This is an excellent place to start your research. Jrask provided an excellent overview of where to start.

 

I would especially agree with the recommendation to tour interior Alaska. Denali Park (with Mt. McKinley) is not to be missed -- not just for your young son but for the whole family.

 

If you chose to do a one-way cruise, most CC'ers recommend doing the land tour first, then the cruise. That would have you doing an Anchorage (Whittier or Seward) to Vancouver cruise. I have cruised on Princess twice to Alaska and am booked to go again May/2005.

 

The land tour can be booked with Pricess directly, or with a little research, you can easily do on your own -- fly into Anchorage or Fairbanks, rent a car, do your land tour, leave the car in Anchorage, and then shuttle down to Whittier / Seward on the train or bus. Princess has the closest thing to "upscale" hotels near Fairbanks and DP, and there are many other hotel and lodging choices recommended on this CC Alaska board.

 

If you log to Princess.com, they have a shore-excursions section that let you see what excursions are available via Princess. You can do other excursions on your own, but this will give you an overview of what is available at each port.

 

Have fun with your first cruise!

[jrask]

I too went with Princess and thought the cruise was great. The only weakness for me was the Whittier issue. As for the direction of the cruise, people here differ and I prefer northbound. There are pros and cons each way and it comes down to your preferences. We don't need to get into that debate until you decide whether you want the 1-way.

 

As for the land touring, I highly recommend independent touring over a cruisetour. I don't care for being dragged around on a fixed schedule. I like to stop off as I like at little gems along the way and to have the flexibility to change up the schedule to suit my mood (whether that means adding some extra time for sightseeing of a particular type, hiking, or relaxing). Cruisetours often also force you to spend time in places and doing prepaid activities that you might not choose for yourself. I haven't seen Princess' hotel in Fairbanks, but I was underwhelmed by the Denali Princess...the price is upscale, but the facility doesn't match the price. The room was fine, but had a motel feel to it. The restaurants and lobby were nice enough. Definitely shouldn't be a decision-making factor. If doing a cruisetour to Denali, make sure it includes the Tundra Wilderness Tour as opposed to the Natural History Tour (extreme difference in the distance into the park, the topography and the wildlife that you will see ... we basically saw no wildlife in the portion of our tour that is in the area of the NH tour).

[Budget Queen]

With a one way cruise you need to add another week for interior touring. Not to be disrepectful, but I don't believe jrask has cruised southbound??? The big bonus for the southbound sailings are Vancouver during daylight. As for a cruisetour- there is NO way I would recommend this with a family group especially young kids, first off extremely costly for what you get and a fixed schedule just won't cut it with a 9 year old. They probably would be the only kids as well because kids just aren't on these tours. Consider a RV ideal for families- ready bathroom and fridge and space. Easy to drive in Alaska and just nice set ups available for rental. Consider Great Alaskan holiday. So read back and spend some time with trip reports, head to your library and research, look at cruise brochures for ideas- but realize the photos are GREATLY enhanced and they NEVER make mention of the times in transit. I would take a one way cruise to/from Seward- just excellent touring opportunities there. Don't underestimate time for interior travel, if you can't invest the time, then do a round trip Vancouver and the added days touring Vancouver. ANY wildlife will require tours and a good pair of binoculars. Don't set your sights too high. A must will be a whale watch out of Juneau 100% sightings for humpbacks, spend a few days in Victoria BC and take a whale watch that will be for orcas. Land animals are rare on the inside passage, without big buck tours.

[jrask]

BQ, you're correct I haven't done southbound. I was just saying that there are pros and cons either way you go and everyone decides for themselves which way suits them best.

 

I understand your position about the advantages of daylight cruising in Vancouver and I think this is probably the best arguments in favor of southbound. Its just not the argument that is made by most people here - instead they talk about how tiring the land portion is and how they want to relax on the tail end of the vacation. I think we have similar sentiments about that reasoning and don't find an appropriately planned land tour to be tiring at all.

 

People need to look for the cruise that's right for them. Neither way is innately superior. Even without knowing what vancouver cruising is like, I was willing to go northbound to get the advantages of going that way...particularly a sense that the trip was buidling in drama and level of scenery and that I learned about Alaska via ship programs and guided shore excursions before I explored independently (ie. with far less narration). But that's me.

 

So, I didn't perceive any disrespect. I was only saying that there are different perspectives on northbound/southbound and different reasons to choose one over the other...in fact there are entire chains of posts debating the relative advantages/disadvantages. I didn't want a first time cruiser to eliminate northbound options at this early stage in the planning process based on a simple comment that "most" people here choose southbound...especially since they haven't yet determined that they want a 1-way or that they will do any touring on the interior.