7 day Itineraries from Seattle or Vancouver?

[zanzibargirl]

Hello everyone - I have tried searching the forums, but I cannot seem to find any comparisons between the 7 day sailings from Seattle or Vancouver. Is there much difference? The ships I am most interested in (newer and larger) seem to sail from Seattle, but if there is a significantly better itinerary from Vancouver I would be happy to explore further! Thanks in advance :)

[Kamloops50]

Hello everyone - I have tried searching the forums, but I cannot seem to find any comparisons between the 7 day sailings from Seattle or Vancouver. Is there much difference? The ships I am most interested in (newer and larger) seem to sail from Seattle, but if there is a significantly better itinerary from Vancouver I would be happy to explore further! Thanks in advance :)

 

Most cruises to/from Vancouver are tied into cruise tours to Alaska.

HAL has the most 7 day return to Vancouver cruises for Alaska.

Most Alaska cruises from Vancouver actually spend more time in Alaska because don't have to stop in Victoria.

There are some luxury cruise lines that seem to do a good job both from Vancouver and Seattle. Regent sails from both Seattle & Vancouver with stops in some of the smaller Alaska port like Wrangell & Sitka.

You'll find small cruise lines that operate exclusively in Alaska as well.

[Tweedy]

Another point to Kamloops50 post is that the Seattle ships sail on the west coast of Vancouver Island before moving to the inside passage (open water) where the sailings from Vancouver are between the mainland and Vancouver Island (protected water).

[Gardyloo]

There are no one-way (Seattle to Alaska) cruises departing Seattle, due to US maritime law. Except for a very few that either end in Canada or some other country, all Seattle departures are round-trips, and only travel to Southeast Alaska, not beyond. Vancouver departures can be either one-way or round trips.

[chipmaster]

Vancouver = true inside or east of the island sailing

Seattle = roundtrips for the most part but equally beautiful

 

Given a choice take one way out of Vancouver, less for the "inside" but for the extra scenic crusing once in alaska.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Vancouver -- round trip -- HAL's Amsterdam -- check out that itinerary.

[Putterdude]

A 7 day Vancouver return itinerary is Superior to that of a Seattle one as the ships sailing from Vancouver sail entirely in the Inside Passage where the scenery is non stop. A ship departing Seattle sails on the west side of Vancouver Island in the open Pacific where there is nothing to be seen for the better part of a day in either direction plus you are subject to the sea conditions of the open Pacific. Celebrity and HAL offer 7 day returns from Vancouver.

[bonvoyagie]

This topic has been discussed several times recently.

 

Seattle is only for roundtrips (exceptions first and last cruises of the season). NCL, HAL, Carnival, Princess, Celebrity, and RCCL all sail out of Seattle and visit as far north as Skagway. Some visit Glacier Bay while others do Tracy Arm. Most all visit Juneau and Ketchikan and of course Victoria BC (the govt mandated foreign port). Yes you travel out through the Strait of Juan DeFuca on your first evening - there is scenery on both sides of the ship and usually a pod or two of Orcas to see you off. All of your next day is spent along the coast of Vancouver Island in open ocean. The following day you will arrive in either Juneau or Ketchikan - then on to one of several destinations before making the trip back down the Island and to Victoria BC and then to Seattle the next morning.

 

Vancouver is the only spot for the one way cruises to depart from - although there are some RTs from there as well namely HAL, Celebrity, and Disney - the rest offer one way to either Seward or Whittier AK. The cruises that leave from Vancouver travel on the eastern or leeward side of Vancouver Island - it is still a large body of water, but not the same as the open ocean. On your first evening again there will be scenery on both sides of the ship. During the first night you will pass through the Seymour Narrows and Johnstone Strait (google them for more information). By the next morning you will be near the north end of the island and going into a streach of open ocean before reaching the inlet to either Juneau or Ketchikan. At this point you are now on the same track as the folks who left from Seattle. On your return trip you will once again traverse the strait and narrows in the dark of night.

 

As far as the rest of the logistics go - for US citizens - RT Seattle means going through customs once while coming off the ship in Seattle. Vancouver you will need to pass Canadian Customs at your entry port into Canada and US Customs when you return back to the US. I have stood in line for an hour waiting to clear customs in Vancouver's airport. It has also been reported that airfare to Vancouver BC is much higher than to Seattle. It takes only 3-4 hrs to drive, bus, or train between the two cities - and the cost is minimal - the train is only $20.00 pp and the customs at the other end is quicker than the airport.

 

Cruise Lines - they are more alike than different - for a first time visitor I would reccomend a cruise that goes through Glacier Bay or Hubbard Glacier and hits the major ports of Skagway, Juneau, and Ketchikan. Save Icy Point Strait, Tracy Arm and Sitka for your second or third trips ;).

 

Beware of the HAL cruise that goes to both Tracy Arm and Glacier Bay - the Tracy Arm is simply a service call to drop off passengers who are taking the Tracy Arm Explorer small boat tour - a worthwhile tour, but you loose some of your Juneau port time.

 

To help you plan your tours see here: http://cruiseportinsider.com/index.html

 

Enjoy your vacation

[jessrose18]

thanks for the info, i was also wondering the main differences between the two cities. i have always wanted to go to seattle, so i was looking for cruises leaving seattle, but they seem to not have as long of port times etc.... will keep researching :)

[Gardyloo]

thanks for the info, i was also wondering the main differences between the two cities. i have always wanted to go to seattle, so i was looking for cruises leaving seattle, but they seem to not have as long of port times etc.... will keep researching :)

The typical solution is to fly into/out of Seattle airport (generally cheaper, sometimes very much cheaper, than YVR) and take the train or rental car up to Vancouver for the cruise. Twofer.

[laurasue]

The typical solution is to fly into/out of Seattle airport (generally cheaper, sometimes very much cheaper, than YVR) and take the train or rental car up to Vancouver for the cruise. Twofer.

This is what we are doing :)

[SoloNoMo]

We're ("old" friend, also recently divorced) doing the inside passage on the Volendam (HAL) leaving Vancouver on June 26th! Chosen for calmer waters, ports, midweek departure and smaller ship. I spent the summer of 86 in Alaska, hitting the main ports via the state ferry system and would trade Ketchikan for Sitka, but, oh, well! At least we're getting Glacier Bay, Juneau and Skagway! But wondering if the Tracy Arm excursion is worth it considering that we will cruise GB ...?

:confused:

[zanzibargirl]

Thanks everyone! We are Canadian, so it would be much easier to sail from Vancouver - yet my dilemma is that the ships I would want to sail on leave either from Seattle round trip, or only go one way from Vancouver to Alaska!

[dsw39]

Thanks everyone! We are Canadian, so it would be much easier to sail from Vancouver - yet my dilemma is that the ships I would want to sail on leave either from Seattle round trip, or only go one way from Vancouver to Alaska!

 

Check sailing out of Vancouver on a travel website! You will find that Holland America, Celebrity, Disney and NCL all have sailing roundtrip Vancouver. NCL is only one sailing but the rest are regular throughout the seadon. There are even a few luxury lines that have a few sailing out of Vancouver. Go tp *************.com enter Alaska and May -Sept 7days leaving from Vancouver will show you all the itineraries.

Eenjoy

Dave

[zanzibargirl]

Hi Dave, thanks - but unfortunately those ships are not the ones I want to try! :(

[Tweedy]

zanzibargirl - I'm not sure which ships you are wanting to try but if Vancouver does appeal to you, I would suggest checking out Holland America's Zuiderdam. It does go to Glacier Bay. We sailed on this ship in 2009. Pictures are in my signature below.

 

We also experienced the Celebrity Century last year and really enjoyed it. This one goes to Hubbard Glacier. Again, pictures are in my signature below.

 

Both these cruises are roundtrip Vancouver.

[zanzibargirl]

Hi Tweedy - the Century appeals to me more than HAL, I think - but she is the oldest of the Celebrity fleet! Is she in good shape? I am intrigued by the Solstice, wish she sailed from Van instead of Seattle :S

[zanzibargirl]

Hi Tweedy - the Century appeals to me more than HAL, I think - but she is the oldest of the Celebrity fleet! Is she in good shape? I am intrigued by the Solstice, wish she sailed from Van instead of Seattle :S

[Tweedy]

It sure would have been nice if the Solstice came to Vancouver but I suspect it may have to do with clearance problems under the Lions Gate Bridge.

 

The Century may be the oldest ship in the Celebrity fleet but I didn't think she felt that way. It was my first time sailing with Celebrity and it left me with a great impression. The crew were fantastic and the food good. It's a nice size ship. There is lots of indoor seating by windows. One thing that I saw on Celebrity that I haven't seen on the other lines I've sailed is that the officers were out and about. They always said hello and had a smile on their face. I'd sail on the Century again if there was an itinerary that interested me.