Alaskan Cruise

[Isletime]

OK we just got home from the Caribbean this past weekend and we are already thinking about our next cruise. Thinking we might do Alaska. What ship does everyone reccommend and what time of the year is best to go? Please advise.

[mscloyd]

It was awesome. We like to try new destinations for our vacations so don't typically go back somewhere twice, but this may be an exception. The scenery was spectacular and I still daydream about the trip. You'll probably spend more $ on a trip to Alaska because of the transportation to get there and the excursions are more costly, but it was definitely worth it!

[myrtle0116]

Keep reading. You'll get various responses about lines and ships. We're going for the first time in June on RCCL'S Radiance. Have heard great things about this boat. We just went with the boat that had the itenerary we wanted and that was best suited our family of three.

 

Had narrowed it down to Princess and RCCL. Have heard great things about both.

 

Good luck in your decision!

 

Myrtle

[Budget Queen]

Yes do spend some time reading reviews and this board. Things to consider with Alaska cruises- ports, time in ports, glacier, route, price.

 

For first timers a ship naturalist is a big plus. Also Glacier bay is my top pick.

 

Budget fully for costly excursions, you get only half a trip without them.

 

 

 

 

You need to do some more homework before getting recommendations- do you want a one way or round trip???

[etoile]

Definitely book a balcony if it is within your budget. Unlike the Caribbean where there is just water everywhere you look as you go between ports, in Alaska there is always something pretty to see while you're sailing.

[Love Cruis'n]

We were on the Coral Princess this past summer, and highly recomend her.

We had a "AB" mini-suite, with balcony. Again, we were totally happy. :) Princess goes to Glacier Bay, and as Budget Queen suggests, it is "the best."

You've got a lot of reading and research to do, and as you develop specific questions, the folks on this board will provide a lot of answers.

 

Yes, the excursions are very important, and they are costly, but well worth it. This was out first trip, and I took a helicopter to a glacier for a walk about, and a whale watch (Juneau). In Ketchikan, took a float plane to the Misty Fjords where we landed ona mountain lake that was beautiful and peaceful beyond words. Took a ride on the White Pass RR in Skagay. There is sooo much to do and see, I know we will be going back. The one thing I learned is that Alaska is not a once in a lifetime trip - it take more than one trip to really drink it all in. Next time, we will do a land portion as well as the cruise.

 

The folks on these boards showed me how I can use independants rather than cruise line sponsered excursions, and get a better excursion in the process.

 

Read on, and ask questions. You're going to love Alaska. :)

[Sheilanne]

We were also on the Coral Princess in August this year.Alaska was my dream destination and really lived up to it - loved every minute . A balcony is a must have.Glacier bay was my favourite part.We went bear watching in Ketchikan, whale watching in Juneau and did a glacier landing by helicopter in Skagway - all fantastic trips.

We had breakfast on our balcony while entering Glacier Bay and saw two humpback whales breaching, even managed to capture them on camera.

We also did a landtour staying in Princess lodges.

Alaska is really beautiful.

[shipl0ver]

I know this is a hard choice but did you prefer the helicopter or the float plane? I would like to do one, but can't afford to do everything that I would like.

[smdubowsky]

Our helicopter tour was cancelled because of poor visability in Juneau (not uncommon) but we did the floatplane in Ketchikan and it was terrific. My wife who is not fond of flying loved it.

[smdubowsky]

You should first pick your itinerary and then see which ships fill your needs. We opted for the Vancouver r/t because of time constraints. We were on the Celebrity Infinity. It was a fantastic cruise in spite of only so-so weather. Infinity goes to Ketchikan, Hubbard Galcier, Juneau, and Sitka, but not Skagway.

 

I would agree that a balcony is more important on an Alaska cruise. The Infinity had a terrific naturalist, Brent Nixon, on board. He gave several interesting and entertaining lectures as well as being on deck to point out important stuff. When we were at the Hubbard glacier he was on the PA.

[Sheilanne]

I know this is a hard choice but did you prefer the helicopter or the float plane? I would like to do one, but can't afford to do everything that I would like.

That is a difficult choice I guess the helicopter trip and landing on the glacier that was amazing. But as I really wanted to go bear watching the float plane trip there was a bonus.

I have to say I was lucky as I sat up front next to the pilot on the helicopter and I had a great view. My sister was in the middle, at the back and did not get such a great view. On the float plane everyone had a window seat.

[Budget Queen]

I know this is a hard choice but did you prefer the helicopter or the float plane? I would like to do one, but can't afford to do everything that I would like.

 

 

I give an edge to a glacier helicopter landing. Cheapest is with Coastal, about $ 185 this year, Misty Fjords floatplanes around $200. For clairifcation the scenery on the Misty Fjords trips vs the Neets Bay or Anan is NOT the same nor nearly as scenic compared to Misty Fjords.

 

With your trip almost a year away, perhaps if family asks, have them contribute to a "excursion" fund at Christmas, brown bag it, eat out less, do some overtime etc etc, etc. These tours are well worth the expense.

[Isletime]

I've been doing a little research. Still so much to do. We are currently looking at the week first 2 weeks in Sept. Have it narrowed between RCI Radiance of the Seas, Princess Diamond, and RCI Serenade of the Seas. Radiance goes to Hubbard Glacier and Princess goes to Glacier Bay. Ugh. Which one is better? I also know that I want to do the Helicopter walkabout on a glacier and the White Pass RR in Skagay. And we are definitely booking a balcony. Does it matter whether it is port or starboard? Anyway, that's where we stand so far. Still researching and doing more homework. Thanks to all for the advice and suggestions.

[OnlyMe]

Isletime, We just got back from RCCL Radiance September 17th sailing. There were definate pluses and minuses.

We booked GS 1556 - MAJOR plus - Cabin, location, balcony all Awesome. Concierge fantastic - would book it (GS) again in a heartbeat.

Motion was bad on our first sea day - a LOT of people were sick and being that high up on the ship doesn't help, however we discovered seabands which releived the problem.

Radiance is an amazing ship with all that glass - just beautiful. It is definately a major plus on an Alaskan cruise.

One BIG minus was the food - We sailed RCCL previously in 2000 and the food then was fantastic. This time it left a lot to be desired, in both the dining room and Windjammer. The windjammer menu hardly changed throughout the cruise and we got VERY bored of it, while in the diningroom I struggled to get something to eat - I'm a vegetarian who doesn't eat cheese and this seemed to be a major problem for the kitchen. My waiter tried his best to accomodate me but when you don't have the backup of the kitchen that's very difficult. This was not even an issue on our previous RCCL cruise.

RCCL seem to be cutting corners wherever they can for example: diningroom menu is much shorter than our previous cruise, only one midnight buffet which had a limited selection - lots of seafood, no chocolate buffet. Food is a priority for DH and I so this was a big issue for us - it may not be a big issue for others.

RCCL service was mostly fine except we had one issue with an excursion we booked. We booked Glacier Point Wilderness Safari (AWESOME excursion) in Skagway and when we arrived at the dock at 10.17am for a 10.30 departure the RCCL guy had sent the tour off without us!!!!!!!! He had miscounted and then he tried to blame US for not being there in time!!!!! We were supposed to meet on the pier at 10.15am BUT the tour wasn't scheduled to depart until 10.30am. Long story short we got on the tour - no thanks to him AND no apology!! VERY unprofessional.

 

Hubbard Glacier is AMAZING - so beautiful. Best place to view it is on your balcony as the helicopter pad gets SO crowded.

 

One minus of going when we did is that there really isn't any chance of seeing bears as it's too late in the season.

 

My advice is to research fully taking into account what excursions you would like to do versus how much time (and daylight hours) you have in port. We found we would have liked to have done the White Pass AND Glacier Point Safari in Skagway but we didn't have enough port time. Also in Juneau we did Whale watching and a Helicopter flight and landing. We had just enough time to do both but if we had more time we would DEFINATELY have done the longer helicopter landing.

 

Consider all factors carefully and if there's anything else I can help you with don't hesitate to ask.

[elleluv]

We're going for the first time in June on RCCL'S Radiance.

 

Myrtle

 

We are going on Radiance on June 3... which sailing are you going on?

[Majesty Fan]

What is the Safari? I have been to Skagway before and did the train. So i was wondering about this. RCI has pulled on their Alaska info so would like first hand info. How much did it cost?

Lexi

[ladysheri]

We just returned from Alaska on the Inside Passage from Seattle. Sapphire Princess on 9/18 -- 9/23. A dream trip....I am already recruiting friends and family to take another one up to Alaska, perhaps next May. The weather in September was cool, but easily handled with layering. We did have a couple of very nice days, low 60's (those are nice for us Northwesterners) and only a little rain in Ketchikan. The trees were just beginning to change colors and it was very beautiful. If you are wanting to see a lot of wildlife, I don't think September is the best time. We saw whales, porpoises, and eagles, but not very many of any. As far as excursions, I can highly recommend the Yukon Jeep Adventure out of Skagway. Each group gets to drive a Jeep up through White Pass into Yukon territory and then offroad up a mountain. The views were incredible, the guide was very knowledgeable, and the trip was lots of fun. One of the best parts about going late in the season is that the sales were incredible....many things were 75% -- 90% off.

ladysheri

[gvre]

Ladysherri,

We will be on the inside passage next May on the Sun Princess. Which side of the ship is best to be on?

Thanks,

Debbie

[Budget Queen]

Ladysherri,

We will be on the inside passage next May on the Sun Princess. Which side of the ship is best to be on?

Thanks,

Debbie

 

 

You do realize you have 2 days of open ocean sailing??? It really won't matter with your itinerary going to Tracy Arm, it's a very scenic narrow fjord with the twin Sawyers at the end. In May however, you may not get any viewing of the glaciers since they are frequently iced out. So plan other glacier tours if a priority.

[gvre]

I'm beginning to realize that it won't make too much difference which side of the ship we're on. Excursions are going to be the big thing.

Thanks,

Debbie

[OnlyMe]

What is the Safari? I have been to Skagway before and did the train. So i was wondering about this. RCI has pulled on their Alaska info so would like first hand info. How much did it cost?

Lexi

 

Majesty the Glacier Point Wilderness Safari was definately the highlight of our trip to Alaska (it beat a helicopter glacier landing and that was spectacular). With the Safari excursion you are picked up at the pier and driven the few minutes to a boat which takes you out past Haines. The boat trip is about an hour or so. You get off the boat at Glacier Point where you get on a bus that takes you on a short ride through a wooded area to a 'camp'. At the camp you get kitted out in wet gear and boots and lifejackets. From there you take a short walk through a wooded area to a lake. There you get into what they call kayaks (boats to the lay person). There are about 10 people and 1 guide to each boat and on our trip there were 3 boats. These boats have motors but you need to paddle the first bit to get into deeper waters in order to use the motors. They take you right up to Davidson Glacier and you paddle between the ice. It is really awesome. There are only about 35 people there in the middle of real wilderness and the glacier is beautiful. We were there in September and with the foliage colours on either side of the lake on the way to the Glacier it really was beautiful. I really cannot praise this excursion enough and I know that my description does not do it justice. I found out about this excursion through another post on this thread a few months back and it was the deciding factor in us booking it. If you do a search under safari you should find it. Also, when RCCL's website gets the excursions back up, they have a good description. The cost per person was $216 which is evpensive but worth every last penny in my opinion. If you have any questions feel free to ask.

[ladysheri]

Debbie,

I think you are right about either side being nice on a round trip...We were on the Port side and it was nice to have Sunsets on the way up and Sunrises on the way down, but vice versa would probably work as well. Once you get up past Vancouver Island and into the islands, it is all extremely gorgeous from both sides. I found it difficult to go to sleep because I was afraid I might miss something beautiful. In Ketchikan & Skagway, we docked facing the water, but in Juneau we docked facing the town. I believe in Tracy Arm, starboard might have been nicer as far as seeing more of the "prettier" Sawyer glacier. But the captain turned the ship so that all got great picture opportunities.

 

Oh, and by the way, since I last posted, I have booked that May cruise for the DH and DDs....still working on getting my sisters to go as well. We're doing a one-way this time (southbound from Whittier) and I am looking forward to being there again!

 

ladysheri

[OutdoorsPro]

It's great to hear all the good reviews on the Glacier Point tour. I worked as a guide for that company (Chilkat Guides) for three years and many of the GP guides are good friends. I've stayed out there many, many times and kayaked around the area. I can highly recommend the tour if you're in Skagway or Haines.

[travbee]

We just got back off the Island Princess and must tell you we absolutely loved Alaska. Don't know why we waited so long to do it but have already started planning our next trip there. Regarding which cruise line, I don't want to say anything bad about any of them, BUT Princess and Holland America are the two big established ones there. They would be our first choices, and we liked the option of anytime dining on Princess since we were in port late most days and then didn't have to rush for dinner.

 

Regardless, we will just love Alaska I am sure.