RCCL and Celebrity people: We want Southbound w Cruisetour first-BUT...which line??

[pauly]

We just recently went on Celebrity, after being longtime Royal Caribbean fans, and really enjoyed it. Now we are torn and getting ready to book our 2012 Alaska cruise. If RCCL does Alaska better, we will switch back to them. I think we want to to do the southbound tour, as we want to do the cruise-tours first, before getting on the ship. Any ideas, comments, thoughts, or suggestions would be welcomed. We have been so spoiled living in Florida, we want to do this right, since its so much time money and travel involved.

 

THANKS

[ArtM]

As a committed Elite cruiser on Celebrity, my answer is HAL.

 

I was sufficiently impressed by our Alaska cruise tour on HAL last year that we have another one scheduled with them next year. Not only was the tour excellent (as Celebrity's would probably also be), but HAL's customer service was incredible in dealing with weather caused disruptions in the tour schedule. This was both in terms of finding work arounds for problems and in providing on the spot compensation when a planned event had to be skipped.

 

If one goes by scale of operations, where we saw one Cel/RCL bus in an area, there were 8 to 10 HAL buses, and about the same number of Princess buses. This multiplicity of tours also means that there is a greater likelihood of finding the itinerary that is of most interest.

 

Art

[Sun 4-ever]

We are doing the Celebrity Millinnium this June. We are first doing tour #11 then boarding the ship in Seward to Vancouver. I love the the long port times so you can do lots of things. I would rather be with the cruise line that only has one or two buses then 8 to 10 buses.

[Budget Queen]

I would rather be with the cruise line that only has one or two buses then 8 to 10 buses.

 

What is this in reference to???

[Budget Queen]

We just recently went on Celebrity, after being longtime Royal Caribbean fans, and really enjoyed it. Now we are torn and getting ready to book our 2012 Alaska cruise. If RCCL does Alaska better, we will switch back to them. I think we want to to do the southbound tour, as we want to do the cruise-tours first, before getting on the ship. Any ideas, comments, thoughts, or suggestions would be welcomed. We have been so spoiled living in Florida, we want to do this right, since its so much time money and travel involved.

 

THANKS

 

There are many different itineraries to choose from. Both RCI and Celebrity, sail Hubbard Glacier. Problem they only do one glacier sailing, where Princess and HAL, do two. Princess and HAL, have the superior Glacier Bay permits, RCI and Celebrity do not, and won't. :) Hubbard certainly is impressive. And if going with this itinerary, I suggest looking at mid June and later. Which can have closer access.

 

But way more important, before you get into any booking, DO your homework on cruisetours. Be certain you understand everything fully, most people DO NOT. Go for as long as you can afford, avoid short cruisetours. The main point of interest is Denali Park, and getting INTO it. Never book the Natural History tour, if wildlife and scenery are important for you.

 

Another negative, is most cruisetours, completely bypass Seward, which is a gem, loaded with touring. If you are in Anchorage the night prior to sailing, I always recommend dumping the cruisetour and taking the Alaska RR and getting yourself into Seward at a decent time, for some touring.

 

It's a lot of time and money involved with Alaska, be sure you are getting what you think you are, and avoid making costly mistakes with poor planning. :)

[pauly]

There are many different itineraries to choose from. Both RCI and Celebrity, sail Hubbard Glacier. Problem they only do one glacier sailing, where Princess and HAL, do two. Princess and HAL, have the superior Glacier Bay permits, RCI and Celebrity do not, and won't. :) Hubbard certainly is impressive. And if going with this itinerary, I suggest looking at mid June and later. Which can have closer access.

 

But way more important, before you get into any booking, DO your homework on cruisetours. Be certain you understand everything fully, most people DO NOT. Go for as long as you can afford, avoid short cruisetours. The main point of interest is Denali Park, and getting INTO it. Never book the Natural History tour, if wildlife and scenery are important for you.

 

Another negative, is most cruisetours, completely bypass Seward, which is a gem, loaded with touring. If you are in Anchorage the night prior to sailing, I always recommend dumping the cruisetour and taking the Alaska RR and getting yourself into Seward at a decent time, for some touring.

 

It's a lot of time and money involved with Alaska, be sure you are getting what you think you are, and avoid making costly mistakes with poor planning. :)

 

 

Thanks for the great info. I did not know about the other cruise lines and the glaciers. I have been to Alaska (Anchorage) and did a lot of day tours, but my traveling partner has not even seen a glacier, so its great info. I am trying to do as much homework as possible. THANKS

[Budget Queen]

Thanks for the great info. I did not know about the other cruise lines and the glaciers. I have been to Alaska (Anchorage) and did a lot of day tours, but my traveling partner has not even seen a glacier, so its great info. I am trying to do as much homework as possible. THANKS

 

Actually the jackpot and "must do" tour for glaciers is a boat tour out of Whittier. I really encourage you to consider it. :) Just superb!!!

[ArtM]

We are doing the Celebrity Millinnium this June. We are first doing tour #11 then boarding the ship in Seward to Vancouver. I love the the long port times so you can do lots of things. I would rather be with the cruise line that only has one or two buses then 8 to 10 buses.

 

I did not say that very clearly. There were not 8 or 10 busloads on our tour. Each bus was a different tour itinerary. That 8 to 10 number was an exaggerated way of saying that HAL and Princess offer a lot more ways to get to see exactly what one wants to see.

 

Incidentally, if crowding is a concern, whether if it is one HAL bus in a group of 4 HAL (or Princess) buses visiting an area, the single RCL or Celebrity bus just makes it a group of five buses visiting an area or staying at hotel overnight.

 

As BudgetQueen has pointed out, doing homework and selecting the right tour and then choosing the cruise line is better than picking a cruise line and then choosing its tour that comes closest to being what one really wants.

 

As an example last year, we wanted to see the Yukon as well as Denali, so HAL was our choice. Next year, we want to see Glacier Bay, so again HAL is our choice. Yes, I love the free things Celebrity gives me as a Captains Club Elite, but that is only a tiebreaker after we have selected an itinerary.

 

Incidentally, even an imperfect cruise tour of Alaska is wonderful :)

 

Art

[joanne2]

We did the Millennium southbound with tour #1 in 2008 and are doing it again this year. It includes the long tour at Denali (2 nts. in the area) and the wonderful train from Anchorage to Seward. The cruise does Hubbard glacier and got really close, closer than other ships which turned around much sooner.

[Yvie]

We just recently went on Celebrity, after being longtime Royal Caribbean fans, and really enjoyed it. Now we are torn and getting ready to book our 2012 Alaska cruise. If RCCL does Alaska better, we will switch back to them. I think we want to to do the southbound tour, as we want to do the cruise-tours first, before getting on the ship. Any ideas, comments, thoughts, or suggestions would be welcomed. We have been so spoiled living in Florida, we want to do this right, since its so much time money and travel involved.

 

THANKS

 

I don't know how the cruises themselves differ between RCI and Celebrity, but I believe the cruisetours are the same. I recently booked my cruisetour through the cruisetour department and the representative gave me that information.

[Budget Queen]

I don't know how the cruises themselves differ between RCI and Celebrity, but I believe the cruisetours are the same. I recently booked my cruisetour through the cruisetour department and the representative gave me that information.

 

Yes, the Interior Alaska land tours, are exactly the same.

[LinAli55]

 

Does anyone know when the 2012 sailings will be out in a brochure. I have a 2011 Alaska brochure, however, when I looked on the Celebrity website, noticed that the cruisetours they show for 2012 are quite different than what is in the brochure for 2011.

 

Thanks so much for any advice or assistance anyone can give.

 

Linda and Alan

[psyfi]

Of all the cruises we have been on, our Alaska cruise was the only one that the ship just did not matter. It was ALL about the destination and went spent all our time enjoying the scenery, glaciers and ports. more glaciers were important to me, so we did a small boat tour in Whittier into Prince William Sound and spent a day at Hubbard and at Glacier Bay. It was fantastic. We were on the Island Princess. That being said, we would always choose Celebrity for equivalent itineraries but they just didn't go where I wanted to go. as everyone has said, really do your research BEFORE you book to make sure you get to do what you really want.