First time to Alaska - overwhelmed!

[mpc863]

Hi -

 

We just decided to do an Alaskan cruise this summer. Group includes my family (husband, 3 kids - 8,6,3) and my parents. This will likely be my parents only time to Alaska. Timing is July.

 

In my initial research on these boards I would like to include Glacier Bay. I think we want to do a 1 way itinerary to maximize time in port.

 

Given that and the ages of my kids, is there a ship/itinerary you would recommend?

 

Thank you!

[xlxo]

I like July for dry weather too.

[duchesslt]

I am going to Alaska for the first time. I am going with mom 71, husband 50, me 48, kids 16 and 14. Also my 38 year old brother and his fiancée. My kids are more like going on 8 and 6 :)

 

I looked at the various options for multi-generation cruises and here is where I ended up:

 

Disney - would rather slit my wrists. I wouldn't want the distraction of hi ho and mickey this that for 7 days with all the natural beauty and sight seeing there is to do. I just think it's a square peg in a round hole.

 

Carnival - not my peeps. I went on a 3 day carnival cruise and felt like I was on a floating ghetto. Now, in full disclosure, I paid $199 to try cruising out so I had what was coming to me.

 

Royal Caribbean - good choice for families especially with kids club giving parents a break. You will likely be doing whale watching excursions, etc. during the day and nice to be able to leave kids at kids club and rock climbing, ice rinks, etc. and take some me time on sea days. Also leaves out of seattle so airfare was cheaper than leaving out of Canada or AK.

 

Princess - what I saw would've been great had we all been 50 and over. Seems to cater to older retirees.

 

Celebrity - I ended up picking Celebrity. Has a kids and teens club, leaves out of seattle, and with the go best package got drinks, tips, $300 onboard credit, and internet per stateroom. Liked the all inclusive feel and seems to have an atmosphere that will go from 14 to 71. I don't know why they call it a modern luxury cruise - what I see seems to be pretty regular cruise stuff. No rinks or rock climbing stuff but I planned tons of excursions in Alaska so figure my kids will be pretty worn out most days and won't mind chilling in teen club or room on sea days.

[jonsmom]

What about NCL?

[thinfool]

Hi -

 

We just decided to do an Alaskan cruise this summer. Group includes my family (husband, 3 kids - 8,6,3) and my parents. This will likely be my parents only time to Alaska. Timing is July.

 

In my initial research on these boards I would like to include Glacier Bay. I think we want to do a 1 way itinerary to maximize time in port.

 

Given that and the ages of my kids, is there a ship/itinerary you would recommend?

 

Thank you!

 

Glacier Bay choice helps whittle the choices. Neither Royal Caribbean nor Celebrity have itineraries that cruise GB. They have no permits to enter the National Park.

 

That leaves Princess, HAL, Norwejian and Carnival. All have great programs for children.

 

Ignore comments describing age groups on specific cruise lines. They may apply elsewhere, but in Alaska ships fill with families of all ages in abundance.

 

Personally I would go with Princess, but that's just me.

 

Whichever you choose, just verify that Glacier Bay is on the itinerary.

[jimsig]

Last summer we did the R/T on the NCL Pearl out of Seattle w our then 6yo DD which does Glacier Bay. She had a blast and loved the kids club, she loved it so much the last night she didn't want to get off the ship in Victoria BC. I know you said you are looking at a OW but I have a trip report that you can find in my signature below if you are interested in to give you ideas. The Freestyle Dailies are in there as well as the Splash Academy kids club schedule for the 6 to 9yo's in the report so that will give you an idea of what to expect for at least 2 of yours.

[Budget Queen]

I am going to Alaska for the first time. I am going with mom 71, husband 50, me 48, kids 16 and 14. Also my 38 year old brother and his fiancée. My kids are more like going on 8 and 6 :)

 

I looked at the various options for multi-generation cruises and here is where I ended up:

 

Disney - would rather slit my wrists. I wouldn't want the distraction of hi ho and mickey this that for 7 days with all the natural beauty and sight seeing there is to do. I just think it's a square peg in a round hole.

 

Carnival - not my peeps. I went on a 3 day carnival cruise and felt like I was on a floating ghetto. Now, in full disclosure, I paid $199 to try cruising out so I had what was coming to me.

 

Royal Caribbean - good choice for families especially with kids club giving parents a break. You will likely be doing whale watching excursions, etc. during the day and nice to be able to leave kids at kids club and rock climbing, ice rinks, etc. and take some me time on sea days. Also leaves out of seattle so airfare was cheaper than leaving out of Canada or AK.

 

Princess - what I saw would've been great had we all been 50 and over. Seems to cater to older retirees.

 

Celebrity - I ended up picking Celebrity. Has a kids and teens club, leaves out of seattle, and with the go best package got drinks, tips, $300 onboard credit, and internet per stateroom. Liked the all inclusive feel and seems to have an atmosphere that will go from 14 to 71. I don't know why they call it a modern luxury cruise - what I see seems to be pretty regular cruise stuff. No rinks or rock climbing stuff but I planned tons of excursions in Alaska so figure my kids will be pretty worn out most days and won't mind chilling in teen club or room on sea days.

 

Your claim to the OP, is totally inaccurate assumptions, and invalid information.

 

In ALASKA, which you aren't basing upon, is pretty darn similar in demographics no matter who you go on. I HAVE sailed Carnival, multiple times 10++ In ALASKA and they do a very good job, certainly not any party ship, middle aged and above is the bulk. All ages sailing. SAME with all the others.

 

I have sailed, HAL, NCL, Celebrity, Princess and RCI, in Alaska. Multiple times each.

 

Last year it was all RCI but 2015, I did 4 cruises b2b, on Carnival, Hal and Princess. NO differences in passenger mix.

 

Yes, I am being vocal, it's a disservice to others, giving wrong assumptions

[TheCalicoCat]

Our first AK cruise was with HAL & we love it.

 

We were late 30 somethings & our son was 4.5 - he loved the club! (We saw other kids - not a lot of them, but they were there.)

 

That was our first HAL cruise (We looked at all of the lines & chose HAL for ship size, R/T out of Vancouver, Weekday departure & return, & Glacier Bay.)

 

Our next AK cruise will be on HAL again - July 2017, when my son will be 8.5.

 

Alaska is a destination that is all about families on all of the lines. HAL is not a senior center on water in AK. (No experience elsewhere.)

[dustyroad]

I totally agree that just because Carnival is considered a ''party cruise'' on down south cruises, does not mean it is one for Alaska. You can run into any drinking on any ship if you allow yourself to hang out at the bars and late at night in the discos and things. That is not the main reason passengers are on the ships for the Alaska Cruises as far as I have ever seen. I loved my Cruises on Carnival to Alaska and did not have problems with the ''party people''! And in the summer there will be children no matter what cruise line you choose. My cruises where picked for Alaska in this order and I was very happy with them--Price, location it was going too, and time of month ( May/Sept are cheaper ).

Actually I found the NCL Pearl to be a wonderful cruise ship to be on. And it had a great kids program for the young ones. I did not have young ones with me, but I saw the programs they had and what they had to offer. The food was wonder and it went to Glacier Bay. I loved the Pearl and I had a wonderful time being in Alaska and being on the ship. You are going to love Alaska. especially Glacier Bay. Have a great cruise.

[momto3gr8boys]

Our first Alaska cruise was on Princess and my kids were 13, 11 and 8 at the time. After a lot of research we decided to go with Princess since they got great reviews for Alaska. The kids clubs were great and relatable to Alaska...my 8 year old was dissecting squids and learning all sorts of things specific to our destination. The naturalist presentations were also appropriate for all age groups as well. They loved meeting Libby Riddles and her dogs, and were able to swim since the Star had a covered pool even though it was cool out. There were a bunch of kids on board. Probably not as many as a Disney cruise, but many more than any of our experiences on other lines (RCCL and Celebrity).

 

We have chosen to sail Princess again this summer and add on a land portion as well.

 

The excursion offerings are very similar on all the ships. I would go with availability (believe it or not it's getting late to book for this summer depending on what type of cabins you want) and itinerary and a line that is known to be strong for an Alaskan itinerary. From what I have found, Princess and HAL seem to fit that bill.

[mpc863]

Well Princess is out. They don't have any rooms in July that will allow 3 people in it. We have 3 kids so even with 2 rooms it's too many. I will try to figure out the other lines as well.

 

 

Even on ncl, the only ocean view rooms are the small portholes with obstructed view.

 

 

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[Coral]

Well Princess is out. They don't have any rooms in July that will allow 3 people in it. We have 3 kids so even with 2 rooms it's too many. I will try to figure out the other lines as well.

 

 

Even on ncl, the only ocean view rooms are the small portholes with obstructed view.

 

 

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On Princess - all the mini suites will accommodate 3 people. The other option is to contact some large agencies. They may have group space that allows 3 people.

[dustyroad]

Well Princess is out. They don't have any rooms in July that will allow 3 people in it. We have 3 kids so even with 2 rooms it's too many. I will try to figure out the other lines as well.

 

 

Even on ncl, the only ocean view rooms are the small portholes with obstructed view.

 

 

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I do know that the NCL cabins will be too small. 3 of us were really cramped in one of them. I hope you get something and have a great time.

[dustyroad]

Can you get two cabins next to each other and each of you be in one with the kids? That way you would also have a extra bathroom. That would possibly make it so you could go on your trip in June.

[mpc863]

I do know that the NCL cabins will be too small. 3 of us were really cramped in one of them. I hope you get something and have a great time.

 

Are the NCL rooms smaller than Princess?

[Coral]

Make sure you check out Holland America also. HAL has larger cabins.

[Moparop]

We are doing HAL in July as part of a 14 person group. We are a family of 5 (kids aged 12,11, and 7) and have worked it out that our oldest will stay in another cabin (with his grandparents) so we don't need a second cabin just for our family. When picking a line for Alaska, getting in to Glacier Bay was a top priority as was a smaller ship. My kids have only cruised DCL so this will be a bit different for them. One of the things that intrigued me about HAL was that they bring naturalists on board for even the kids. While they don't have the nonstop activities in the clubs that we saw on DCL, there seems to be plenty to do after looking over the ClubHAL offerings. Also, having fewer kids may be a plus for us. Making a bestie because there are only 3-4 kids my daughter's age will likely make her more comfortable going to the club.

[mpc863]

We are doing HAL in July as part of a 14 person group. We are a family of 5 (kids aged 12,11, and 7) and have worked it out that our oldest will stay in another cabin (with his grandparents) so we don't need a second cabin just for our family. When picking a line for Alaska, getting in to Glacier Bay was a top priority as was a smaller ship. My kids have only cruised DCL so this will be a bit different for them. One of the things that intrigued me about HAL was that they bring naturalists on board for even the kids. While they don't have the nonstop activities in the clubs that we saw on DCL, there seems to be plenty to do after looking over the ClubHAL offerings. Also, having fewer kids may be a plus for us. Making a bestie because there are only 3-4 kids my daughter's age will likely make her more comfortable going to the club.

 

 

 

I think we are doing HAL in July as well. I wanted glacier bay and an indoor pool. Are you on the eurodam?

 

 

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[Moparop]

I think we are doing HAL in July as well. I wanted glacier bay and an indoor pool. Are you on the eurodam?

 

 

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No, we will be on Zaandam. Based on the availability of everyone, northbound on Zaandam was the only time people were free.

[dustyroad]

Are the NCL rooms smaller than Princess?

 

I don't know about the Princess cabins, but I do know the NCL cabin was smaller than the Carnival cabin was. That is why if you get two cabins close together and spilt the adults and kids up you will have more room than with just one cabin. And as I mentioned, with that many people a extra bathroom would be nice to have. Each cruise site will have the sizes of the cabins. And the less bags you take the better for space.

[Melinda Brasher]

Holland American does have the stereotype of catering to an older crowd, but there will be kids on board and good kids' activities. Princess also has plenty to do for kids. Since those two lines have the most Alaskan sailings, they also tend to have some of the best prices, especially if you book closer to departure.

 

Whatever line you decide on, you'll have a blast. Cruising Alaska is amazing.

 

And yes, I highly recommend Glacier Bay.

[Herfnerd]

I

Carnival - not my peeps. I went on a 3 day carnival cruise and felt like I was on a floating ghetto. Now, in full disclosure, I paid $199 to try cruising out so I had what was coming to me.

 

 

I think you'll find that ANY 3-day cruise will be a party no matter what the line. Wife and I are in our 50's and have cruised Carnival and enjoyed them very much - but the shortest we've ever done is a 5-day and normally do 7-days - that tends to weed out the weekend booze cruisers. I think Alaska will definitely do the same

 

In other words, I wouldn't discount Carnival as long as it has the itinerary you want.

[dustyroad]

I think you'll find that ANY 3-day cruise will be a party no matter what the line. Wife and I are in our 50's and have cruised Carnival and enjoyed them very much - but the shortest we've ever done is a 5-day and normally do 7-days - that tends to weed out the weekend booze cruisers. I think Alaska will definitely do the same

 

In other words, I wouldn't discount Carnival as long as it has the itinerary you want.

 

I totally agree. I did the 5 day cruise on Carnival from New Orleans and I had no problems with the drinking. And I did not find it GHETTO on any of my cruises on their ships! There are many nice places on the Carnival ships to be at that will not have the party people if you don't want to be with them. It is correct that Alaska is a cruise in weeding out the '' booze party '' groups if there are any.

[Nicki828]

Hi -

 

We just decided to do an Alaskan cruise this summer. Group includes my family (husband, 3 kids - 8,6,3) and my parents. This will likely be my parents only time to Alaska. Timing is July.

 

In my initial research on these boards I would like to include Glacier Bay. I think we want to do a 1 way itinerary to maximize time in port.

 

Given that and the ages of my kids, is there a ship/itinerary you would recommend?

 

Thank you!

 

We decided on Princess for our cruise to Alaska, this will be our first time on Princess. We have heard wonderful things and we really like the itinerary. I have been on 2 NCL cruises with my kids. Once when they were 5 & 8 and then again when they were 13 & 16, and we found the kids programming to be fantastic. By far the favorite of my kids. For reference, they have also been on Carnival and Disney cruise lines.