Best Cruise Line for Alaska?

[jplee3]

Hey guys,

 

So my family is planning another cruise this time to Alaska (previous ones we've done together have been two Disney Cruises one along the West coast down to Cabo and the other in the Western Caribbean). My parents are considering doing a different cruise line for Alaska just because of the logistics with Disney Cruises leaving out of Vancouver. For me though, this isn't really a big deal since we had to fly to Orlando for the Caribbean cruise.

 

In either case, their preference I think is to be able to leave from the Bay Area/SF since that's where they live and it would be easier for everyone because the rest of my family is up there. Some suggestions such as Princess, Celebrity, and Royal Caribbean have been mentioned.

 

Keep in mind, I have four young nephews who all have been spoiled by the "Disney standard" so I sense there could be disappointment if we don't do DCL lol...

 

Any opinions?

Edited January 13, 2015 by jplee3

[CruiserBruce]

"Best" is strictly a subjective personal. What is best for you might be worst for me.

 

If you do some research on the Alaska board, here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=55

 

you will see many threads on this topic, with the common recommendation that the itinerary is very important, and ones that include Glacier Bay to highly desirable. HAL and Princess have the most permits for Glacier Bay, with NCL a distant third. A few are sprinkled amongst the rest of the cruise lines.

 

As far as I know, only Princess sails to Alaska from SF.

[SuiteTraveler]

Are you going to do a cruise plus the land portion? Princess does this incredibly well and I highly recommend you do both if at all possible. The other thing - be sure to do a cruise that goes through Glacier Bay as it is a HUGE highlight of any Alaska cruise. Another thing I loved was taking a Helicopter and landing on a glacier. Whale watching and also dog sledding are incredible options for shore excursions. Ketchikan is such an picturesque town, we just like going to the river and taking photos. We've seen salmon spawning - really amazing and also a seal eating a salmon he had caught - really adorable and the buildings of the town are really photogenic.

 

Yes, your kids will have Disney withdrawal, but this really is a completely different kind of cruise. If your kids are not used to seeing snow, flying in helicopters, going dog sledding, I think they will be enchanted by the uniqueness of this cruise as it is so drastically different from anything they have done before.

 

Now about the departure terminal - besides Vancouver, you can also depart from Seattle and of course, there is SF but another option would be to fly to Alaska, do the land portion first then cruise terminating in Vancouver.

[Talisker92]

I second Suite Travelers' post. If possible, do the Princess land portion to Denali. It is not to be missed

[jplee3]

Thanks all! Princess sounds like a great option. I'll have to research it more.

[Krazy Kruizers]

With 4 little ones, you might be happier staying with Disney.

[jplee3]

With 4 little ones, you might be happier staying with Disney.

 

Yeah, they really loved the Disney cruises we've been on (so have I LOL) so we'll see. Missing out on some of the landmarks like Glacier Bay, etc would stink though. I think they might be at the age where they'd be able to appreciate things like that a bit more anyway. Plus, per this thread, someone mentioned that Princess has a really great program for kids:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2100390&highlight=disney

[SuiteTraveler]

The main difference you will notice as an adult going on Princess is that you are not allowed to carry alcohol on like you can on Disney. Each passenger of drinking age is allowed to bring 1 bottle of wine or champagne. If you bring more than 1 bottle, you are charged $15 per bottle corkage fee. Of course, all the alcohol you could want is already available for purchase onboard the ship anyway and typically people cruising Alaska are there for the scenery and outdoors excursions, not to party.

 

This is the information I found about Princess kid's club in Alaska:

 

"For Alaska cruises, Princess' National Park Service Junior Ranger Program teaches kids about glaciers, endangered wildlife & other animals native to the region. Park Rangers provide special presentations and activities for kids & teens, giving them an opportunity to earn a Jr. Ranger badge."

[jplee3]

The main difference you will notice as an adult going on Princess is that you are not allowed to carry alcohol on like you can on Disney. Each passenger of drinking age is allowed to bring 1 bottle of wine or champagne. If you bring more than 1 bottle, you are charged $15 per bottle corkage fee. Of course, all the alcohol you could want is already available for purchase onboard the ship anyway and typically people cruising Alaska are there for the scenery and outdoors excursions, not to party.

 

This is the information I found about Princess kid's club in Alaska:

 

"For Alaska cruises, Princess' National Park Service Junior Ranger Program teaches kids about glaciers, endangered wildlife & other animals native to the region. Park Rangers provide special presentations and activities for kids & teens, giving them an opportunity to earn a Jr. Ranger badge."

 

 

Thanks! Nobody in my family really drinks and so I don't anticipate anyone wanting to bring their own alcohol onboard. And that was exactly my thought about cruising Alaska anyway: the sights and excursions.

 

Thanks for the info on the kids program! Sounds like something all my nephews would enjoy.

 

I'm just looking forward to opportunities for fishing: salmon and halibut :)

[Mary Ellen]

One of our Alaskan cruises was on DCL. We are DVC members and had points to 'use or lose'. So for us, this cruise was about trying DCL, not about Alaska. We really enjoyed DCL (and have done more since then), but the Alaska itinerary is awful. Frankly, they are probably our bottom recommendation for an Alaskan cruise purely because of the itineary being so pitiful.

 

We like HAL and Princess. For Alaska we prefer HAL because the ships are smaller and they have more open deck space so getting a great spot for viewing hasn't been a problem. Before DCL started cruising in Alaska, HAL was the cruise line where we could use our DVC points for Alaskan cruises. Other than the obvious "Disney" aspect, we find the HAL ships more comparable to DCL than Princess will be. The 'R' and 'S' class ships will be the most like DCL as they have larger cabins (with a few exceptions).

 

Club HAL link. One of our Alaskan cruises this past summer was with a family with three young girls. They loved Club HAL.

Edited January 13, 2015 by Mary Ellen

[Cruisin' Chick]

As stated above, the Alaskan cruises on Princess start in San Francisco, Seattle, Vancouver, and Anchorage (the last two are one-way ones -- can't remember if any RTs start in Vancouver on Princess, but the Princess site will have that info).

 

We took the RT from Seattle about ten and a half years ago on the Sapphire Princess when our girl was 7 (just a few days after her birthday). The kids made models of glaciers and solar systems in the tween/preteen program in connection with the California Science Center. I can't remember if they had a squid dissection (on some of her Princess cruises, this was the hit of the program).

 

I read on another thread this week that Princess has a new partner when it comes to science type activities. Here's some info: http://www.princess.com/learn/onboard/activities/discovery-at-sea/

 

Maybe you can show the kids this info, as well as this: http://www.princess.com/learn/onboard/activities/youth_teen/