Cruise Tours

[quiltchick78]

I'm beginning to research a cruise tour of Alaska. I have no idea where to start. Can anyone tell me which works better, a guided land tour through the cruise line or a land tour on our own? Any other suggestions will be appreciated. I'm looking at going in May, 2016 and possibly 10-11 days total.

Edited July 29, 2015 by quiltchick78

[AKStafford]

I'm beginning to research a cruise tour of Alaska. I have no idea where to start. Can anyone tell me which works better, a guided land tour through the cruise line or a land tour on our own? Any other suggestions will be appreciated. I'm looking at going in May, 2016 and possibly 10-11 days total.

I personally recommend using a rental car to put together your own trip. The rental car gives you more flexibility with lodging, dining and activities.

Does the 10-11 days include the cruise? Or is it 10-11 days of land stuff then the cruise?

[quiltchick78]

The 10-11 days is for the land tour and the cruise.

[pizzalady1]

We did it all ourselves:

disembarked in Whittier, rented a car from Avis;

drove to Seward for a Kenai fjords boat trip, SeaLife Center, Iditirode wheeled dog sled ride;

Drove to Anchorage, stoping at the Wildlife Conservation Center, then Turnagin Arm;

We stopped at the Anchorage airport to dump our expensive rental car with Avis and picked up a less expensive rental from Enterprise.

overnight in Anchorage;

drove to Denali, stopping at Waisilla, for the Iditirod headquarters and the Museum of Alaska Transportation;

stayed two nights in Healy

Shuttle to Eielson;

drove back to anchorage for a 2am flight, stopping at Talkneeta

 

All in all, we had a 7 day cruise and a 5 day land trip. It was fairly easy to plan and we would not change a thing.

[Budget Queen]

The 10-11 days is for the land tour and the cruise.

 

That is a pretty short time. I would suggest you need to read Alaska travel guides and get ideas what you want out of your time.

 

With a May cruise- and IF you are thinking about going to Denali- then you need to look at an end of May cruise going northbound, so you are at Denali June 1 or later. Going independent will allow to see and do more. The problem with short cruisetours- is they are marathon transit trips and most always don't get into Denali park. (a significant point you need to educate yourself on)

 

Time is your friend in Alaska, go for as long as you can afford.

 

Alternatively with your time, I would suggest enjoying Seward and spend your time there and on the Kenai Peninsula. http://www.seward.com

[geoherb]

We took a cruise tour because it was cheaper than booking things on our own. (It was a last-minute deal, not at full price. The price was actually cheaper than our previous week-long roundtrip cruise out of Seattle for booking the same type of cabin.)

 

Read as much as you can to decide what places you want to see on your land portion. I would have loved to have had a full day in Denali. We did get to upgrade from the Natural History Tour to the Tundra Wilderness Tour and saw a lot of wildlife plus a glimpse of the mountain.

 

I wasn't as happy about the itinerary as I would have been if I had done it on our own. We had some wasted time. But we did a few things we would not have done that we ended up enjoying, such as the riverboat cruise and gold dredge excursion in Fairbanks. The biggest waste of time was our night at the Mount McKinley Lodge, but in hindsight it was a great day for us to recuperate from our first two days full of activities plus the long flights to get to Fairbanks.

[donaldsc]

I'm beginning to research a cruise tour of Alaska. I have no idea where to start. Can anyone tell me which works better, a guided land tour through the cruise line or a land tour on our own? Any other suggestions will be appreciated. I'm looking at going in May, 2016 and possibly 10-11 days total.

 

I personally would not recommend a cruisetour to my worse enemy as I do not want to spend a week in a bus w 40 of my newest best friends being told what to look at, where to stop, where to eat, etc., etc. I want to be in charge of my own vacations. However, lots of people take them and lots of people like them so there must be something to them.

 

You need to go to your local library and take out some books on AK and do some of your own research. Just remember that when you take cruise tour vacations, the cruise lines only take you to places where they get a kickback. Also, they are very good at making the tour descriptions seem like you will see more and have more time at a site than you will really have. You have to learn to read cruise tour descriptions very very carefully.

 

D ON

[DentoAlaska]

I disagree with Don and Budget Queen. We just completed a 7 day cruise tour with Princess and it was perfect for us. We chose cruise tour LB7. We spent 2 nights in Anchorage, 2 nights in Copper Center, 2 nights in Fairbanks, 1 night at the Denali lodge and 1 night at the Mt. McKinley lodge. We did multiple Princess sponsored excursions and felt we had plenty of time at each location. No muss, no fuss. Our luggage was handled and we had a wonderful time.

 

We met some very nice people and did not feel trapped or herded at any time.

 

This was our first trip to Alaska and this was the best choice for us. We had plenty of time in Denali and did do the extended tour.

 

To each his own but I thought you should hear a positive comment about the tour.

[emeraldcity]

For me the big question was "Do I want to drive, or do I want to let someone else do that." I saw the lower 48 by motor home ... and my husband was happy to do the driving. Now that it's just me and my DD, I want to see the passing scenery, not the white strip in the middle of the road while everybody else in the car says "Wow! did you see that?"

 

I loved my cruise tour ... and I chose what I wanted to do in each of the stops.

 

Only you can decide what's right for you. I did a lot of research ahead of time and I made the decision that worked out best for me.

 

I'm currently posting my review if you want to get some idea of what it's all about, but it will probably be several days yet before I get the land tour portion written.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2240436

[diane.in.ny]

Simply because I do all the driving now, we took a cruise tour and do not regret it one bit.

 

You can read my report here.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2215001

 

On the other hand, if I had a driver to share the driving with, AND had the time to just mosey along, I would do it self-drive.

[Alayne]

The first time I went to Alaska I was travelling with a friend the same age as myself so being two senior ladies we decided to take an escorted cruise through Princess Cruise Line. It was the best decision we ever made. We flew to Anchorage and when we got off the plane we were met by our tour guide. She took all our baggage claim checks and gave them to people with her who then retrieved our luggage. We only had to look to see that each of our bags were there then got on a bus to go to the hotel. That night we were on our own so we went out on the town for a while, dining and exploring.

 

The next morning we had breakfast in a private dining room where we met our guide and the other people in our group. After breakfast we got on a bus and toured different places in and around Anchorage. We had a full size bus but there were only 14 of us in the group. After spending another night in Anchorage we went to the train station and got on headed to Denali and Mt McKinley. We ended the land portion in Fairbanks and flew back to Anchorage, got on a bus to Seward to board the ship.

 

On the cruise portion of the trip we had stops in Skagway, Ketchican and Juneau. The cruise ended in Vancouver and we flew home from there.

 

Most of the excursions were paid as part of the cruise tour. The only thing extra we had to pay for was a helicopter tour. It was amazing.

 

Our guide was with us 24/7 on both the land and ship portions. The last day of the cruise she even made all arrangements for us to the airport and also seat assignments.

 

Sorry this is so long but I could go on forever. If you have any questions feel free to ask and I will try to answer. I've been back a 2nd time and would love to go again.

 

Cyndi

[Nancyquilts]

If you drive, be sure to get a copy of the Milepost. It doesn't have to be the one for this year.

[agabbymama]

OP, only you can decide if a cruisetour would work for you or DIY. Like you I only had 10 or 11 days for our 2nd trip to Alaska. I had done the 7 day cruise, and knew I wanted to see more of Interior Alaska and the Yukon this trip.

 

I started looking at an RV rental but one of our friends announced he slept in the nude, so quickly changed to van rental with B&Bs each night. I bought a Milepost (but it has no prices, only names of places) so still had hours and hours of phoning soooooo many places. Prices were high for two rooms. When I started totaling the costs, it was comparable to the cruisetour.

 

I found a cruisetour on HAL that went to the places I wanted to go and was only 3 days on the ship with 8 days on land. We actually had two buses of 40 each following in tandem. We would lead one day, and the other bus the next day so it wasn't the same bus into town first every day.

 

I would have liked 2 days at each stop but that was way over the vacation days I had. And I understand they fly you to Dawson City now instead of the bus. But our trip was awesome. The only additional excursion we paid for was at Denali, I wanted to see 4 time winner of the Iditarod Jeff King, and his Husky Homestead. I had told my companions I was going there if I had to walk, but HAL accommodated and it was one of their excursions.

 

Dawson City was our favorite town (almost like going back 100 years) they still have wooden boardwalks, dirt roads, and old buildings still standing from the Goldrush days. No Diamonds International here. Then on to the small towns of Alaska (Eagle, Chicken, Tok). Then on do Fairbanks and Denali. It was truly an amazing trip.

 

I like bus tours, I've done them from Australia to Europe and even here in the lower 48 (New York City, Washington DC). It's just WHAT YOU WANT. If you would be more comfortable lugging your bags, driving yourself, trying to find the sites you want to see, finding lodging each night, trying to find places to eat and gas up, then DIY may be for you.

 

Go to your library and pick up a couple of guide books (Frommer's, Fodor's, Milepost) do a little research before you make the decision on DIY or cruisetour. Have fun planning, then taking your trip to our last wilderness.

Alaska is an awesome destination!

Edited August 1, 2015 by agabbymama

[donaldsc]

I personally would not recommend a cruisetour to my worse enemy. For me, spending a week on a 40 passenger bus being herded around like a bunch of sheep would be an excruciating experience. I always take DIY trips.

 

That said, the cruisetour companies must be doing something right as lots of people take them and lots of people love them.

 

You need to decide whether you are willing to trade the freedom of a DIY for the convenience of a cruisetour.

 

I have made it clear what my opinion is.

 

DON

[DentoAlaska]

I personally would not recommend a cruisetour to my worse enemy. For me, spending a week on a 40 passenger bus being herded around like a bunch of sheep would be an excruciating experience. I always take DIY trips.

 

That said, the cruisetour companies must be doing something right as lots of people take them and lots of people love them.

 

You need to decide whether you are willing to trade the freedom of a DIY for the convenience of a cruisetour.

 

I have made it clear what my opinion is.

 

DON

 

Don, You have made your opinion on cruisetours perfectly clear on this thread and many others. You are entitled to your opinion (which no one is trying to change) but I am also entitled to mine.

 

IMHO it is best for the OP to hear opposing views on these tours. We loved our cruisetour and if I had the choice I would do it again.

 

I have made it clear what MY opinion is.

[donaldsc]

Don, You have made your opinion on cruisetours perfectly clear on this thread and many others. You are entitled to your opinion (which no one is trying to change) but I am also entitled to mine.

 

IMHO it is best for the OP to hear opposing views on these tours. We loved our cruisetour and if I had the choice I would do it again.

 

I have made it clear what MY opinion is.

 

No problem. The world would be a boring place if everyone had the same opinion. The OP is certainly entitled to hear all opinions and to decide based on what is best for their needs.

 

DON

[Alayne]

As I tried to explain in an earlier post our cruise tour was wonderful. We had 8 days on land but were not on bus the whole time. We were on a train, paddlewheel boat, airplane and a full size bus but there were only 14 in our group and we were the only ones on the bus and had our own private car on the train.

 

On my second cruise to Alaska we went on RCCL and it was two week repo cruise from Vancouver to Alaska then down to San Diego. We had stops in Juneau, Skagway, Ketchikan, Sitka, Icy Strait Point, Victoria B. C. , two days in San Francisco then down to San Diego, where we visited with family a couple days before flying home.

 

I can honestly say that I enjoyed each trip immensely and would hate to have to pick one over the other.

 

Cyndi

[Budget Queen]

I disagree with Don and Budget Queen. We just completed a 7 day cruise tour with Princess and it was perfect for us. We chose cruise tour LB7. We spent 2 nights in Anchorage, 2 nights in Copper Center, 2 nights in Fairbanks, 1 night at the Denali lodge and 1 night at the Mt. McKinley lodge. We did multiple Princess sponsored excursions and felt we had plenty of time at each location. No muss, no fuss. Our luggage was handled and we had a wonderful time.

 

We met some very nice people and did not feel trapped or herded at any time.

 

This was our first trip to Alaska and this was the best choice for us. We had plenty of time in Denali and did do the extended tour.

 

To each his own but I thought you should hear a positive comment about the tour.

 

There is a BIG difference to what the OP is asking and what you took, with 3/4 vs 7 days. Sorry, I don't think a short cruise tour is the best use of time in this case. They also ASKED about independent touring, so they must be open to it.

Edited August 2, 2015 by Budget Queen

[Alaskanb]

I'm beginning to research a cruise tour of Alaska. I have no idea where to start. Can anyone tell me which works better, a guided land tour through the cruise line or a land tour on our own? Any other suggestions will be appreciated. I'm looking at going in May, 2016 and possibly 10-11 days total.

Our first Alaska cruise, northbound from Vancouver, was in 2012. We were in a fairly unique situation as we wanted to visit newly-found cousins in Palmer in addition to Seward, Turnagain Arm, the Glenn Highway, and Matanuska Glacier. We made the decision not to visit Denali at that time. It was a fabulous DIY trip with lots to see and do. Next year our focus in on visiting Denali and, as we have aged and do not want to drive long distances, have decided on a cruise tour, Princess DB4. This tour gives us a full day at Denali to do the Eielson shuttle, a night at McKInley lodge to hopefully see the mountain (Denali) and eat in Talkeetna, and the train back to Whittier (we love train rides) for our southbound cruise.

We will fly to Anchorage on June 6 and begin the cruise tour on June 7. We arrive in Vancouver on June 18 and fly home on June 20. It is a very compact two week adventure!

[oaktreerb]

I'm beginning to research a cruise tour of Alaska. I have no idea where to start. Can anyone tell me which works better, a guided land tour through the cruise line or a land tour on our own? Any other suggestions will be appreciated. I'm looking at going in May, 2016 and possibly 10-11 days total.

 

If you are planning the trip for May and you only have 10-11 days you would be best to skip Denali since the road into the park will not be open till early June. You could plan to spend your time in the Anchorage/ Seward/ Girdwood area with Kenai Fjords National Park, Exit Glacier, Alyeska, Portage Glacier, etc. There is so much to see. You can even take the train from Anchorage to Seward or reverse. Start looking at some travel sites like the Alaska Railroad information and Travel Alaska and Gray Line Alaska for ideas. Save Denali until you have time for two to three nights sometime June to September. You can rent a car in Seward or Anchorage if you want to drive.

 

Most cruise line tours go to Denali but if you check the Seward visitors site or the Alaska Railroad site you may find package tours that you could connect with that give you a great Alaska experience without including Denali.

Edited August 3, 2015 by oaktreerb

[SBJB8184]

I'll throw in my 2 cents.

 

We did the HAL D7L 11-day Denali Cruisetour on June 4th this year, starting in Fairbanks and doing land portion to Denali, Anchorage and Seward, then 7 day cruising to Vancouver.

 

We flew into Fairbanks and the next day took a 3-4 hour bus ride to Denali. As we had less than 24 hours in Denali, there were no excursions scheduled as part of the package. We were able to arrange the Toklat shuttle departing at 5:00 p.m. and going to about 62 mile post in the park. We did see some limited wildlife, and a view of Denali. It was a short night in the Lodge, and then an 8 hour train ride to Anchorage on day 2. Day 3 was a 4-5 hour bus ride to Seward to board the cruise ship.

 

Therefore on this part of the cruise tour, we spent lots of hours on packed buses / trains, and changing hotel rooms 3 nights in a row. We needed the 7 day cruise to re-invigorate.

 

We would not do a combined cruise tour unless we had more time to spend at each land location. Again... my 2 cents.

[kathy306]

My first trip was only a cruise (on HAL), as I had my elderly father with me. It was a good decision for him to do only the cruise. It would have been too much gogogo for him, never mind, too much walking. My second trip, my husband and I went on HAL and took a 7 day cruise and 5 day land tour (3 days in Denali and a day or 2 in Anchorage). We loved it so much we, are doing a very similar trip this month. I personally do not want to be driving. We had the luxury of someone else driving while we were able to enjoy the Alaska scenery. Now we actually were only on the bus from Seward to Denali, but it was a very relaxing trip. We took the train into Anchorage.

Edited August 7, 2015 by kathy306

[Okie1946]

Have been reading a lot of different opinions from a lot of different people.

 

You need to research, check out all of the various cruise tours and the land tours that you find. Decide what you want to see and what suits you and your traveling companions.

 

That is what DH and I did before we chose to take the HAL 14 day Land/Sea cruise that gave us 3 nights in Denali - (which was our primary goal). I did a review of our entire trip. You might be interested in it - and then maybe not.

 

Just remember it is your choice and don't let anyone push you into a trip that you might just hate.

 

What ever you decide, I hope you have a wonderful trip.

 

Okie1946