Alaska..May or September?

[matondo]

One more year of college for DD and DH and I are going to start cruising again!!! DH mentioned Alaska and HAL is the only cruise line he will go on. Due to budgetary constraints we are big on cruising in the off season. Alas, that leaves May or September for Alaska. I would love to hear from my HAL friends their thoughts.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

I have to say that I like both months :) But have only sailed to Alaska once in September. Over all I would probably pick May. The snow is pretty on the mountains, everything is fresh and new for the season, (Including Tour operators, crew and officers of the ship, they have a different fresh outlook about Alaska cruisers ;) ) We have found less rain in May. And the best part..... May prices especially early May are lower than September :D

[garydm]

May.

[jlrob]

September if you are into getting bargains in the stores, but I love May because the mountains are still covered in snow. I found the weather a sunnier in May, the couple of years we lived in southeast Alaska. We were in Fairbanks one May and it was over 80.

[Assateague Island Princes]

Been to AK four times - the first was in late Sept. of 2006, then late May of 2008 and 2010, then first two weeks of June in 2011. May gets my vote! While we LOVED that first AK cruise, and it really set the bar for us as far as visiting the Great Land, the weather wasn't the best - mostly rain, fog, and cooler. But the biggest detriment for us sailing in Sept. was the early nightfall. You miss all that spectacular scenery! I certainly would take another Sept. trip to AK again, just because I love it that much, but if I had my druthers (what exactly does that word mean, anyway:o??), I'd go in mid-to late May into June - enjoying every second of daylight I could!:D

[CowPrincess]

May. More daylight hours, and the locals aren't burned out from an entire season of tourists. :) BUT I went once in Sept, and the weather was spectacular, and the salmon were still spawning. (Okay, Ketchikan at 75 F with spawning and dying salmon smells a bit "odd" :) )

[Assateague Island Princes]

Whoops! Just re-read my post. Sorry, memory overload has obviously set in....my fourth trip to AK was the first two weeks of AUGUST in 2011 (which by the way was outstanding! Lots of salmon and therefore, lots of bears!!:D), not first two weeks of June. Duh..... But still - given a choice between only May and Sept., I'd still choose May!

 

CP - I know exactly what you mean about warm temps. and dead/dying salmon in Ketchikan - yikes!

[IRL_Joanie]

MAY!! More precisely the 1st and 2nd cruise weeks of the season, for the reasons given by others:)

 

In 2008 we went the 1st cruise week and absolotely loved it so went the next year, 2009, the 2nd week of the season and loved it also.

 

This past year we decided to try the Inside Passage for the last 2 weeks of the season, September. The next to last week was gorgeous and spectacular, but the 2nd week was stormy as Hades!! I loved it, but the ship and passengers did not fare as well or seem to enjoy the rough seas and weather.

 

We have booked the 1st and 2nd weeks in May 2013 on Zuiderdam doing the Inside Passage again and are really looking forward to it:)

 

Joanie

[matondo]

Thanks for the information. Two years from now, hopefully, I will be getting ready to head to Alaska. I am struggling with the whole cruising and not getting palm trees and warm weather but sometimes it just isn't about me.:rolleyes:

[RuthC]

Make it late May. You'll be closer to the Summer Solstice, so long days and even longer, lingering sunsets. Just beautiful to sit in the Crows Nest and wait for the sky to get dark.

It takes forever!

I have to say, though, that the time I went in early September, the weather was just fabulous! The staff said it was the best weather all season. Sunny, and temps in the 80's all week.

[janmcn]

Ditto for May. Mountains are snowier and May is usually their best weather month according to my d-i-l who lived there for several years. We love sailing there in May. (However, less wildlife sightings.)

[PathfinderEss]

Another vote for May here.

[Krazy Kruizers]

We have done quite a few Alaskan cruises -- all months -- including May and September.

May and September -- we will never cruise Alaska during those months again. We had a lot of rain, winds and it was cold most days.

[EagleRocker]

We have done quite a few Alaskan cruises -- all months -- including May and September.

May and September -- we will never cruise Alaska during those months again. We had a lot of rain, winds and it was cold most days.

Wow, sorry to hear about your May/September experiences. We have gone on Alaska cruises twice in May and once in September. The first May cruise was in late May - the schlep up and back from Seattle was grey and miserable, but once we hit the ports in Alaska, we had sunny and beautiful weather (probably the most glorious weather I have ever experienced was our day in Skagway that trip). The second May trip left on May 5 (also a Seattle roundtrip) and we had glorious, mainly sunny weather. It was cool at times, but enjoyably so, and there were times I did not need a jacket. The September trip was in late September (maybe third week) - a southbound Seward to Vancouver - and the weather was fantastic, with the exception of our Skagway stop, which was rainy and miserable. It was so sunny and beautiful on the Inside Passage portion at the end of the cruise that most everyone spent the time outside and ended up with sunburns.

 

I would happily pick either early May or September, but agree with those who note that, in May, the snow on the mountains is something to consider. Glacier Bay in early May 2010 is something I will never forget - so spectacular.

[Bill S]

We've been to Alaska 7 times: once in August, once in September and five times in May. We had spectacular weather on our one September cruise, but saw very few bald eagles. We prefer the last two weeks of May by a long shot. Weather has been very good, lots of fresh snow, and good amounts of wildlife. :)

Of course, past weather experience on a given cruise is not a predictor of weather on a future cruise. You should expect rain, and that way you will not be disappointed if it doesn't come to pass.

[DaveOKC]

As noted - Mid Sept has some great shopping bargins. Weather was nice both times for us.

 

DaveOKC

[startwin]

Another vote for September here. We've done 3 September cruises, had bad weather once (last year).

[kjw869]

May has my vote. This May will be our third trip to Alaska. Only 1/2 day of rain for the 14 days on our two prior cruises. In 2009, the weather was sunny and in the low 70's for a great portion of the trip. I had to buy two short sleeve shirts in Juneau.

 

We have a good friend who has lived in Juneau, Alaska for 30 years and he suggested early May unless we wanted to see a lot of rain.

[TheCalicoCat]

Out of those two options - May (closer to June than April. wink.)