First Cruise - How to Find the Right Cruise Line for Us

[Cruisin' Chick]

We were on a RT out of Seattle in 2004 on the Sapphire Princess when it was brand new (but I think it's just doing Asian cruises now). It was a wonderful experience, and as many others have pointed out, will be a great choice for you.

 

We had an inside cabin and I can assure you that during the glacier viewing, you can go up on the outside deck and see everything. From what I understand, if you're on a balcony, you will only get a view when your side is facing the glacier. The captain will turn around at some point, but if you're viewing it from the outside deck, you won't have to wait til then.

 

A big decision to make if whether you go on a RT (out of Seattle, Vancouver, or SF) or on an one-way (between Whittier/Anchorage and Vanouver). Those wanting to do a trip into the interior (Fairbanks, Denali, etc.) will usually opt for the one-way and tack on the land tour on the Anchorage end. If you're not (and we didn't because our daughter was at that age of not wanting to tour...and she saw plenty of scenery on the train coming up the west coast), sailing in and out of the same port will save you on air fare.

 

No matter which type you choose, get to your embarkation city at least a day ahead. This is incredibly important if starting in Vancouver on a northbound: if you don't get on the ship on time, and this is a port that requires sailing with the tides, you can't board at a future port due to a law call the PVSA, and you won't get a refund.

 

One reason I suggest Princess is that you don't have to go to the formal dinners. There's plenty of other venues: the Horizon Court (the buffet), a specialty restaurant (that has a cover charge), the International Cafe (not an enclosed eatery but a set of display cases with yummy food and desserts...you can have them make you a plate and you can take it back to your cabin or eat on the pool deck (between mid June and late August, you may actually get mild weather) and watch a movie on the giant screen. A few ships will have an indoors pizzeria, but all of them have one by the main pool, next to a grill (if you're in the mood for a hamburger or chicken sandwich -- my hubby love those).

 

On formal nights in the main dining room, there will be a wide range of dress. My hubby brings a suit (but not a dark suit) and festive ties. I'll wear a cockatail dress, usually. But again, you can eat elsewhere and walk around the ship in dockers or nice jeans and not be feel you should have stayed in your cabin for the night.

[Cruisin' Chick]

They have a tour called Alaska Wildlife that I am looking at, but still comparing.

 

I do have a question. How do you find out about the optional excursions (pay extra) that are available on a cruise line?

 

Each cruise line's websites will list the shore excursions they offer. Once you've decided which line and ship, just find the board for that cruise line and ask where to find the excursions. Princess will send you emails about the entertainment, etc., including a link to the excursions, but you should be able to go on the web site and scout them out ahead of when you can actually book them.

 

for example, I selected one cruise on the Princess site, and then clicked on view details. You should be able to see a series of tabs, including "ports and excursions." From there, you can view the excursions by each port.

[jasbo49]

Hello Pixitrix:

 

I've been to Alaska just twice, both round trip from Seattle. I found a huge difference between Princess and NCL in that Princess went out of its way to educate and enlighten. There must have been 10-15 lectures, films and presentations about the land, wildlife, dog mushers, etc. While cruising through Glacier Bay, there was a naturalist on deck explaining everything we saw.

 

NCL, on the other hand, had almost nothing educational to offer and almost nothing tailored to Alaska. I found two things I liked on the NCL ship (the Jewel): the entertainment and the buffet were the best we've experienced. Most other things, including the furniture, felt kind of cut rate.

 

A few other things to add to your information overload:

 

-- If the Inside Passage is important to you, you should look for a cruise that uses Vancouver, not Seattle, as a departure or arrival port. Seattle cruises head for the open ocean quickly, while Vancouver cruises amble up through the passage.

 

-- All the mainstream cruise lines are accused of nickel and diming these days, not just NCL (though the room service charge seems particularly annoying). Keep in mind all these charges are for things you can live without: drinks, wine tastings, extra-cost restaurants, spa treatments. It's a safe bet you'll want to do a few things in ports, though, since it's your first time there. So whether it's excursions through the cruise line (more expensive) or things you do on your own, you'll want to spend a few bucks here.

 

-- I agree with the poster who said Carnival's party reputation is mostly undeserved. It probably has a younger demographic than most, but we've had a great time on every Carnival cruise we've taken, and we're in our 60s. We had more loud-mouth drunks on Celebrity than any other cruise we've taken, but to be fair, that was a shorty and they're more likely to draw a party crowd.

 

-- I haven't been on Holland America, but I understand it's really sedate, more so than Princess. But I think I'd really like their ships because most are smaller and more intimate than industry standards with a more nautical look.

 

-- Denali sounds great, but it would add quite a bit to the cost. Land time and transportation, plus more complicated air arrangements, could add up to double the cost of a simple round trip. Might be better to use just a few of those dollars for a room upgrade. A balcony is important to us in Alaska. Sometimes it's chilly and you just want to duck outside for a few minutes to see the sights rather than go up on deck with all the elements.

 

-- Whatever you choose, I think you're going to have a really good time. Raising five kids with hardly any real vacation time should make you really ready for the combination of relaxation and adventure you'll have.

 

Jim

Edited September 7, 2015 by jasbo49

[Alaskanb]

Don't worry about formal nights --DH takes dark pants, shirt, and tie: I take a long black dress and a necklace. There is a whole range of what is worn and if you are at a table for two there is no-one else to critique what you have on. Many ladies wear black pants and dressier tops.

We have always ruled out Holland America due to their smoking policy so if that's an issue for you check it out.

Edited September 7, 2015 by Alaskanb

[Alaskanb]

They have a tour called Alaska Wildlife that I am looking at, but still comparing.

 

I do have a question. How do you find out about the optional excursions (pay extra) that are available on a cruise line?

http://www.princess.com/learn/excursions/index.jsp

[Alaskanb]

They have a tour called Alaska Wildlife that I am looking at, but still comparing.

Check to make sure that your tour has a full day in Denali National Park. The Natural History Tour has the least chance of viewing wildlife http://www.nps.gov/dena/planyourvisit/visiting-denali.htm just scroll down the page.

[Cruzaholic41]

lol! I stumbled on this quiz:

What is the best cruiseline for you

 

It told me Celebrity. That was NOT what I was expecting.

 

Actually, based on your first post, Celebrity was exactly the line I was going to recommend to you.

 

Let me first say this. People tend to spread the Princess misnomer that they are so much better in Alaska because they have been there longer. Think about that for a second. Not only does it not make any sense, it's flat out wrong. In fact, I've done the Denali tour twice and I thought Royal Caribbean had much nicer train cars than Princess.

 

Don't get me wrong - Princess isn't bad. I'm just saying you should consider several lines and not give them preference.

 

My advice - avoid NCL and Carnival. I know you said you want casual and I think that's why NCL came up, but it's not worth it. Their service and their nickel and diming is the worst in the cruise industry. And as for Carnival, there's something about being on a ship whose interior design looks like the vomit from a psychedelic unicorn that does not fit in well with the beautiful Alaskan scenery.

 

I also recommend you avoid cruises out of Seattle. They skip the Inside Passage and you lose a lot of good cruise that way. The obligatory stop in Victoria to satisfy the PVSA is also one less day in Alaska.

 

Do a one-way and add on the Denali trip. I highly recommend Royal Caribbean's Radiance Class ships and Celebrity's Millennium Class ships. If you do go with Princess, try to pick a smaller ship like the Coral Princess. It's not much smaller than their other ships, but my biggest complaint about Princess is their crowded ships. Coral seems less crowded.

 

Just my two cents. Enjoy whatever you choose.

[MOcruiserman]

This might be a dumb question, but how do I find out which cruise line is most suited to our personality? Someone I know made a comment about one line being a "partier" line compared to another, so it made me wonder.

 

I am not really a partier...I am more of a quiet to myself person. lol! Well, myself and my husband.

 

My husband and I are planning our 25 year anniversary trip. We have been on road trips, and to Las Vegas, but we have NOT traveled anywhere else - no honeymoon even. We have been busy with 5 children, so not time and no money. The older ones are now old enough to watch the younger ones, so we are finally going to go somewhere.

 

Also, I am a teacher AND earn more than my husband, if that tells you anything about our budget. I understand that some lines give a teacher discount. We are looking at Alaska or Alaska cruise tour.

 

My wife and I are in our 60's and we've had two lovely cruises on Holland America, the most recent to Alaska. Holland America attracts an older crowd but there were plenty of passengers younger than us on both cruises (especially to Alaska). What I particularly like about Holland America is that its ships are very elegant, like a first-class hotel.

[smyliecruising]

Awesome that you have been married so long! We also have five children and took our 20 year anniversary on a cruise. We had never even seen the ocean! We booked a carnival 7 day port hole room. Same size as a balcony room with the interior price. We are so easy to please and so thankful to be doing something exciting and alone! We had the time of our lives! We prepaid gratuities and spent $68 on board. We didn't have to spend that! You are taken care of! We did do one excursion but our second cruise we didn't do any. You can have fun on the cheap. Our second cruise we are at the steak house and really loved it. We take our max of pop and our two bottles of wine. We booked a cove balcony the second cruise but our 25th anniversary cruise sept 2016 we have booked back in porthole. We would rather spend extra dollars on the chefs table, steakhouse, and ports. I booked in March of 2015 for Sept 2016 cruise so I can spread it out in little payments. I book early saver and have already gotten a price drop and $50 on board credit. I enjoy carnival. They treat me so good. We entertain ourselves by sitting on the deck and watching the water,reading, visiting, and listening to music etc. we are not gamblers or heavy drinkers so our cruise costs are minimal. We have gone to the shows but we are more into just dining watching the sea. Busy all year long so doing nothing is incredibly relaxing! We drive 12 hours to our port the day before and have always stayed in an inexpensive hotel with a free breakfast that I have booked and paid for in advance. I paid for my parking in advance also. The first time we stayed at a hotel that kept our vehicle for the week as a perk but taxi to and from was about as much as parking across the street from terminal. We carried our own bags off the ship and were headed back home before 8 am as we just walked off and across the street.

You will have a wonderful time reconnecting and romancing. I am hooked on cruising now! Someday I hope to take our kids for fun but for now it is a luxury we enjoy alone. We go in the off season(September and January) when no kids are on board and the rates are dirt cheap. I forgot you are a teacher so you will probably cruise in summer or Christmas break?

Enjoy!!

[smyliecruising]

Well I missed your post about going to Alaska. Summer will be perfect. I always book online to find the best price and directly with the cruise company. I have taken two cruises with Carnival and have loved them. They are inexpensive. Maybe the more expensive lines are better, I wouldn't know but my ships were beautiful, the food was good enough, the specialty restaurants, were excellent, free pizza is great, and the addition of guys burgers and blue iguana are free food choices are getting rave reviews. The ports and scenery will be beautiful no matter what line!! Btw my husband doesn't own a tie. We bought a couple of pairs of dress slacks and a couple of polo shirts for the occasion. He wore his deck shoes. We were in the Caribbean so I always wore sundresses but that so only because I like to. You will be fine wearing the clothes you teach in to dinner. You don't need to dress up. Just don't wear shorts and you will fit right in:)

Edited September 27, 2015 by smyliecruising

[PixiTrix]

I booked on Celebrity for next July for a southbound cruise, no land portion. We are going to plan the land stuff on our own preceding the cruise. I decided that the land tours are too whirlwind, and I wanted something more relaxed and personal for my anniversary - like a cabin. We chose Celebrity simply because they have a good deal going on right now. Had to book oceanview to get the deal - drink package, gratuities, some onboard credit, free wifi.

 

Now, how to get more OBC and figure out the excursions and land visit on a budget. I have been checking out cabins. I want to go to Denai and Kenai peninsula mostly.

[LuckyStar]

We went on Norwegian for our Alaska cruise and it was very different from Caribbean cruises I have taken. They were more laid back and not so much into parties. People were up on deck all day looking for whales, seals, etc. It was a blue jean crowd with a lot of men on these cruises that you wouldn't catch going on a Caribbean cruise. It was great and I love Caribbean cruises!

 

I have come to the conclusion that there is no bad cruise. You can always find some way to have fun your own way. Pick the ports you want and go for it.

Edited September 27, 2015 by LuckyStar

[Steviemk14a]

'Keith 1010' gives out good advice, get the Berlitz book: my head is spinning after reading only half the good advice you've already been given.

 

Just as important as looking or discounts on the quoted fare, is what does the fare include/exclude? Can make a big difference to total outlay.

 

Even if you pick a ship with formal nights, individuals can still do their own thing, eat casually or have room service. You will be staying in the equivalent of a mobile 4* or 5* hotel with choices, your choices. And don't try to do much, plan too much in advance. Treat day 1 as zero day and build up from there...

[zoncom]

I usually cruise Celebrity too. Best line until you get into luxury group. How about this? 11 night Celebrity Infinity out of SAN DIEGO 11 May,16 doing Pacific Coastal reposition to Vancouver. Than stay on for a 7N Alaska cruise. Only one way air back required too. Book an Inside at half the price of balcony and do both.