Alaska first timer

[sassysuzi]

Hellow fellow cruisers. We are taking an Alaskan cruise probably in late August 2010 as a present to our daughter who is graduating from law school. So we will be a family of 4 adults. I can't wait to see the glaciers. I'd love to hear from you Alaskan cruising veterans about the best places to see and any tips you might have. We haven't booked yet but are still in the research phase. Happy New Year and happy 2010 cruising to one and all. Sassy Suzi:);):D:)

[Budget Queen]

You need to do your homework. There are several decisions you need to make before any cruise ship selection. First is time, how much do you have?? Second- what route, round trip or one way. Head to your library and take out Alaska travel books, find out about each port- they are vastly different and unique. Take a look at shore excursion lists online. Make a list of your priorities.

 

For your glacier preference, then only consider itineraries with Glacier Bay, Hubbard Glacier, College Fjords, NOT Tracy Arm.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

 

Also when you get to picking itineraries -- check to see the length of time you will be in each port.

[alpal1993]

Happy New Year to you and welcome to CC.It can be a bit confusing to select your first cruise to Alaska so many ships and itineraries,

There are several generic things to consider.

1.How much time do you have for your cruise?

2.How much can you afford to spend?R/T airfares are usually less expensive.What type of room fits your budget etc.

3.Itinerary-Where and what do you want to see?

I don't think Cruiseline or Ship are as important in Alaska.It is all about the scenery and the entire experience being awsome.

Good Luck picking your cruise.You will have fun doing it and Enjoy your cruise.

[sassysuzi]

Thank you. I have done quite a bit of research already and plan to do more. I am really thinking about the juneau embarkation point. Thanks and I'll update

[sassysuzi]

Thanks. I have done quite a bit of research already. We are looking at 7 days cruise. What is th deal with Tracey. I understand it has retreated?

[luvlake]

Tracy Arm is a narrow fjord. It is the one glacier that is hard to access by cruise ships because of the ice. Consequently cruise ships sometimes have to turn back or not enter at all.

 

We were fortunate this summer to have enough time in port to take the Adventure Bound excursion out of Juneau. It was my favorite on our B2B. The fjord is truly beautiful and there were huge icebergs but we were able to reach within a several feet of the face of Sawyer Glacier and saw some wonderful calving.

 

You just never know what each year will bring.

 

Happy Cruising!

[psyfi]

Welcome to Cruise critic and happy planning. We will also be on our first Alaskan cruise this summer. If you want good glacier viewing, you probably want to do a one way. We booked a Southbound Whittier to Vancouver with Princess because it goes to both Glacier Bay and Hubbard Galcier as good glacier viewing was important to me. We are also doing a Prince William Sound glacier tour for 6 hours prior to getting on the ship in Whittier for a different perspective from a small boat. As far as I know, no ships embark from Juneau although that is a common stop on the route. Most go from Vancouver/Seattle/Whittier/Seward.

[sassysuzi]

Yes I probably meant Whittier. Have you checked airfares? i know the one ways cuase increased air. I guess some of it depends on where you live. We are on the east coast. Thanks.

[alpal1993]

Yes I probably meant Whittier. Have you checked airfares? i know the one ways cuase increased air. I guess some of it depends on where you live. We are on the east coast. Thanks.

 

I live on the East Coast as well,We booked our R/T Seattle back in August with Delta for a really great price.Delta cancelled our connecting flight and rebooked us into LAX.NOT GOOD! We had to reroute through ATL,which turned out to be a better flight for us.The price for that R/T Flight is 3 x what we paid.

Just keep in mind that the airlines have cut back on the number of flights that they schedule as well.My friends flight was changed to a latter time and she now misses her connecting flight.Delta only has one flight a day scheduled for her so she now has to spend an extra day post cruise.

[hansonsk20]

We took our first cruise to Alaska the first week of September in 2009. We flew to Seattle and spent a day there. We then took the Amtrak up to Vancouver and went northbound on the Island Princess. It was our first cruise and first time to Alaska. The Amtrak ride was great, goes right up the coast. Going north was also great because the scenery got better every day. It probably added to the 'adventure' feel of the trip. For our excursions we took a whale watching our with Harv and Marv and in Skagway we booked the railroad and trip to the Yukon with Chilkoot Tours. Both excursions were fantastic. We were going to skip out on the excursions due to the $$ but are so glad we didn't. The excursions get you into Alaska. Without them the ports are pretty much shopping stops. Have a great time planning your trip. There is a wealth of information on this site for any aspect of your trip. You will have a great time. It is an unbelievable place!

[vbmom87]

Thanks. I have done quite a bit of research already. We are looking at 7 days cruise. What is th deal with Tracey. I understand it has retreated?

 

Tracy Arm is a very beautiful fjord. BQ meant that if you have a priority of seeing glaciers, a cruise that just goes to Tracy Arm is not a a good choice. As mentioned, it has been reported that cruise ships do not often get all the way to the Sawyer Glaciers at the end of the fjord due to icing. However, HAL has a round trip itinerary out of Vancouver that goes to both Glacier Bay and Tracy Arm. With this itinerary you get to the beautiful Glaicer Bay and you get the gorgeous scenic sailing through Tracy Arm. For someone after scenery and glaciers, this is a great itinerary.

[sassysuzi]

THanks for the tip. THat sounds like a really good idea training up to Vancouver. I understand the two cities are not that far apart.

[laurieb]

we're looking at cruising in Alaska this summer too. Our future DIL is from Ketchikan and suggested we get an Alaskan Airlines CC so that we can get a free ticket and a companion ticket for 99.00. We haven't decided if we want to get another credit card or not, but it may be a way to reduce your airfare. We will be flying out of PDX or SEA and it's still very expensive.

[sassysuzi]

Hi Yeah the airfare is daunting. We are coming from the east coast. A friend did the Vancouver to Whittier in 2005 and her rt air was 1200. THat's expensive. and we have 4 going. THat Princess line cruise sounds so wonderful though. THe other thing I was thinking about was the cruisetour where you go to Denali. Wish it wasn't sooo expensive.

[Budget Queen]

Hi Yeah the airfare is daunting. We are coming from the east coast. A friend did the Vancouver to Whittier in 2005 and her rt air was 1200. THat's expensive. and we have 4 going. THat Princess line cruise sounds so wonderful though. THe other thing I was thinking about was the cruisetour where you go to Denali. Wish it wasn't sooo expensive.

 

Be very informed and read this board on cruisetour choices/selections. It is important for you to know ALL the details, which most people just do not.

 

An alternative is an independent tour to Denali Park, very very simple to do on your own, with cost savings. So price out and compare what will be the best option for your group.