Denali before Jun 1 with SB cruise vs NB with Denali after June 1

[bluewater1298]

We are currently booked on NorthBound Coral Princess May 28, 2016. Now I’m not sure about our decision. After reading all the great reviews about SouthBound cruises, I have thought about changing to Star Princess SB May 28, 2016. We can’t change the dates because it works best with everyone going. I’m the researcher of the group, so no one really has an opinion about which one.

 

Here is the dilemma - If we decide to do the SB, we would go to Denali before June 1 and not be able to do the Eielson Visitor Center shuttle. We could only do the Toklat River shuttle. Also, NB goes to College Fjords and SB goes to Hubbard Glacier. All other ports are the same and times don’t effect shore excursions. Since this is our first Alaska cruise, I'm not sure which I would rather do.

 

So please, I need opinions from experienced Alaska cruisers -

 

Would you do the SB over going further into Denali?

 

College Fjords vs Hubbard Glacier?

 

Coral Princess(after changes) vs Star Princess? Or possibly another cruise line?

 

Any thoughts or opinions would be greatly appreciated. I know everyone will have different opinions, but it will help to compare. Thanks for your help!

[mapleleaves]

Have you looked at trip reports from last summer ... in a STICKY near the top of the page? Just as many people rave about NB cruises, primarily because the scenery continues to get more beautiful as you head north, and the daylight hours increase.

 

Are you planning a cruisetour or DIY for the land? If it's a cruisetour, be sure you have enough time at Denali to get INTO the park. Those short cruisetours only allow enough time for the Natural History Tour which goes to mile 17 of the 100 available miles of park road.

[Budget Queen]

What is the reason for your "second thoughts"? EVERY Alaska trip is a compromise. Depends what compromises you want select?

 

Without giving any indication "why", =based totally on the itinerary- getting INTO Denali Park is significant, with my minimum being Eielson. It is that good to get at least that far.

 

I find it the "value" of an Alaska trip. Denali Park is a large investment in time, just to get there, so, I feel the balance of time with the transit and activities is important. Reason, why I will label some itineraries, as "poor planning" and pretty worthless, since the round trip Anchorage time is at least 10 hours. :)

 

I have cruised both directions repeatedly.

[azevedan]

My $0.02: Stop worrying about whether you're taking the perfect trip; that's pretty much a guarantee you'll be dissatisfied no matter what you're doing.

 

Alaska has wonders no matter how you do it.

[portiemom]

 

So please, I need opinions from experienced Alaska cruisers -

 

I only have one experience to draw on, so keep that in mind. But I'm willing to share my opinion.:)

 

Would you do the SB over going further into Denali?

 

I would want to go further into Denali. It was our priority to go all the way to the end of the road, so that's what we did.

 

College Fjords vs Hubbard Glacier?

 

Actually seeing a glacier from the cruise ship, while certainly impressive, was not as meaningful to me as actually walking on a glacier. Because I walked on Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau, it became my favorite. Plus I got pretty darn close to it by hiking the easy trail out to Nugget Falls. So that was it for me. Now I'm smitten with that one. Whereas I saw Hubbard Glacier, only from the ship, of course, and everyone says how wonderful it is. Well, actually, I don't even remember it.:rolleyes: However I do have photos to refresh my feeble memory.:o

 

Coral Princess(after changes) vs Star Princess? Or possibly another cruise line?

 

We sailed with Princess and were happy enough with the experience to want to return on Princess. I think you've made a sound decision.

 

We sailed on the Island Princess, sister ship to the Coral Princess. Don't know what changes are in store, but we were very happy with the ship. It was comfortable and we loved the front deck. Sure, this was the only ship we've been on, but we liked it!:)

 

Any thoughts or opinions would be greatly appreciated. I know everyone will have different opinions, but it will help to compare. Thanks for your help!

 

You're going to be fine! Enjoy your cruise!:)

[bluewater1298]

Have you looked at trip reports from last summer ... in a STICKY near the top of the page? Just as many people rave about NB cruises, primarily because the scenery continues to get more beautiful as you head north, and the daylight hours increase.

 

Are you planning a cruisetour or DIY for the land? If it's a cruisetour, be sure you have enough time at Denali to get INTO the park. Those short cruisetours only allow enough time for the Natural History Tour which goes to mile 17 of the 100 available miles of park road.

 

The land tour will be DIY (at least 7 days). Thanks for pointing out the Sticky. I have spent the last couple of days reading them. I really appreciate your help.

 

What is the reason for your "second thoughts"? EVERY Alaska trip is a compromise. Depends what compromises you want select?

 

Without giving any indication "why", =based totally on the itinerary- getting INTO Denali Park is significant, with my minimum being Eielson. It is that good to get at least that far.

 

I find it the "value" of an Alaska trip. Denali Park is a large investment in time, just to get there, so, I feel the balance of time with the transit and activities is important. Reason, why I will label some itineraries, as "poor planning" and pretty worthless, since the round trip Anchorage time is at least 10 hours. :)

 

I have cruised both directions repeatedly.

 

Thank you for your thoughts on Denali. I have read a lot of your post and I value your opinion. You should write a book on an Alaska Cruise. Do you have trip reports posted?

 

You are right about compromise. Reason for the second thoughts - seeing Hubbard and all the changes to the Coral (losing some of the viewing decks).

 

To give you more insight - I have never been on anything like an Alaska cruise, so I guess that is why I am so focused on the cruise part. I have seen a lot of beautiful mountain ranges in America and Europe, which I loved every minute of. Never seen Alaska. Not sure how it will compare to the Canadian Rockies and the Swiss Alps, but I know I will love it for it's own beauty and uniqueness. I just feel like the cruise part will be more fascinating to me, but maybe not.

[bluewater1298]

My $0.02: Stop worrying about whether you're taking the perfect trip; that's pretty much a guarantee you'll be dissatisfied no matter what you're doing.

 

Alaska has wonders no matter how you do it.

 

I’m an obsessive planner and can’t help it. This will be our only Alaska trip and there are too many choices. But once I do make a decision I will forget about the other choices and never look back. I know it will be a great trip. I’m always like this when it comes to planning. Even though I struggle with decisions, I always enjoy our trips.

 

 

You're going to be fine! Enjoy your cruise!:)

 

Thank you for your thoughts. I know I will enjoy it. I need to read more about the land part. Sounds crazy but I love to plan a trip as much as I love going on one. Thank you again.

Edited April 2, 2015 by bluewater1298
read post wrong

[portiemom]

I’m an obsessive planner and can’t help it.

 

Sounds crazy but I love to plan a trip as much as I love going on one.

 

Yep, so am I. So am I...:rolleyes::)

Edited April 2, 2015 by portiemom

[mapleleaves]

The land tour will be DIY (at least 7 days). Thanks for pointing out the Sticky. I have spent the last couple of days reading them. I really appreciate your help.

 

7 days is a good amount of time. You might enjoy JozieRhodes report ... they started off with a land tour but didn't go as far as Denali. However they DID go ice trekking at Matanuska, hiking at Independence Mine and visited a sled dog kennel all of which you could easily fit into your 7 days.

 

 

 

There are also trip reports posted under TOP Questions in the Alaska forum of tripadvisor. Several years worth. Also under Top Questions is a RESOURCE THREAD with useful web sites for people planning land trips.

Edited April 2, 2015 by mapleleaves

[bluewater1298]

There are also trip reports posted under TOP Questions in the Alaska forum of tripadvisor. Several years worth. Also under Top Questions is a RESOURCE THREAD with useful web sites for people planning land trips.

 

Thanks again! I really enjoyed JozieRhodes report. We are thinking about getting an RV. I will begin looking more in that area when I can actually make reservations.

 

Yes, thanks for reminding me. I love tripadvisor forums. I use them for all our trips. Not sure why I haven't thought of looking on their site before now. I guess because I'm more interested in the cruise part right now (since it's the only thing I can book) and Cruise Critic is the best site for planning a cruise.

 

Thank you for all the time you take to answer questions and help people with their vacations. It is very much appreciated!