Need help with which itinerary/cruise line to choose

[TiffW19]

We are looking at an Alaska cruise for summer of 2018. I went almost 20 years ago on Carnival and loved it, but I was very young then and don't remember any details. I would like to go on Norwegian, Carnival, or Princess. We want an itinerary that includes Glacier Bay but also has 4 port stops. We don't really have a preference over one way/round trip/southbound/northbound...but would love to hear opinions on which is "best". We want a very port intensive trip with lots of time on land in Alaska. Only 7 day cruises, because we can't miss any more work. Any input would be greatly appreciated!

[bUU]

"Best" is remarkably subjective, so be prepared for comments diametrically opposed to each other.

 

Having said that, we just went through the same decision process a few months ago regarding our June 2018 Alaska cruise. Our research and decision experience should be somewhat informative for you in that we went into it with something similar to your question, intent on deciding between NCL and Princess. As you can see from our signature we're booked on Holland America. The lesson there I think should be that at least for Alaska a decision should be based on itinerary first last and always and cruise line should be a consequence of the itinerary selected. Good folks on these boards opened our eyes up to the possibility that Holland America might serve our needs best despite our initial impression based on our experience on Holland America in the past ( which wasn't horrible except for the weather but also wasn't loyalty inducing ).

 

The decision for us started with the same parameters that you had , a seven day cruise including Glacier Bay. That limited us to a certain set of cruise lines at the start (which made research a bit easier, actually). Then the decision came down to one way vs. Round trip. When we decided that round trip trumped one way the decision came down to Seattle departure versus the advantages of the Vancouver departure balanced against the inconvenience of getting to and from Vancouver. Incidentally the main advantage of a Vancouver departure is you spend a lot more of the cruise in the protected Waters of the beautiful Inside passage. Once we decided on a round trip from Vancouver the decision was very easy.

Edited March 4, 2017 by bUU

[NancyIL]

The trick will be finding 7-night Glacier Bay cruises that make 4 Alaskan port stops. Glacier Bay alone will eliminate Celebrity and Royal Caribbean. However, their one-way cruises go to 4 Alaskan ports and Hubbard Glacier. Princess one-way cruises visit 2 glaciers and 3 ports. Seattle round trip cruises will give you 4 ports - but one of them will be an evening stop in Victoria.

 

Look at each cruise line's 2018 Alaska itineraries until you find what you are looking for.

[Coral]

Seattle round trip cruises will give you 4 ports - but one of them will be an evening stop in Victoria.

 

 

This is important to look at. Seattle roundtrips will give you 4 ports as Nancy indicated - but definitely look at the times in port. I have found RT Seattle trips often have odd times or shortened times in some of the ports. For example, Juneau 2 pm-10 and as Nancy pointed out Victoria maybe 7-11 pm. These sound like they fit your criteria of 4 ports but they give you the least amount of time in the ports. When looking at schedules, look at the times also.

[xlxo]

We are looking at an Alaska cruise for summer of 2018. I went almost 20 years ago on Carnival and loved it, but I was very young then and don't remember any details. I would like to go on Norwegian, Carnival, or Princess. We want an itinerary that includes Glacier Bay but also has 4 port stop

Thoughts....

• you might also want to include Holland America in your research as they also have frequent Glacier Bay coverage.
  
• Summer? Think July if you want dry weather. Oprah likes July too! http://www.hollandamerica.com/pageByName/Resp.action?requestPage=SharetheAdventure_Partnership
  

[TiffW19]

Thanks for all the responses! As I was looking at itineraries today, We added Holland America to the list. Any comment on balcony vs ocean view? We were certain that balcony would be a "must have" but on second thought, does the extra cost warrant the benefit...and will we use it if its chilly? Thanks for all your help!

[NancyIL]

Thanks for all the responses! As I was looking at itineraries today, We added Holland America to the list. Any comment on balcony vs ocean view? We were certain that balcony would be a "must have" but on second thought, does the extra cost warrant the benefit...and will we use it if its chilly? Thanks for all your help!

 

 

In 4 Alaska cruises, 1 was in an inside cabin and 3 were ocean view cabins. I never missed the balcony, and I used the money saved for the excursions I really wanted. The few times I've had a balcony cabin on a cruise - they were nice to have, but I spent very little time on them.

 

 

I booked b2b Alaska cruises for this May, and again - 1 is inside and the other is OV.

[Coral]

Thanks for all the responses! As I was looking at itineraries today, We added Holland America to the list. Any comment on balcony vs ocean view? We were certain that balcony would be a "must have" but on second thought, does the extra cost warrant the benefit...and will we use it if its chilly? Thanks for all your help!

 

 

I have had insides, outsides, balconies and suites in Alaska. Yes - the balcony is nice to have but the best views are from the open decks.

 

It can be chilly but it is chilly on the open deck also.

 

I think the main question is, if you book a balcony, are you cutting back on the excursions? If you are, then book an inside or outside cabin. I would put excursions first which are expensive and if you have money left over, book a balcony. I would not sacrifice the excursions for the balcony.

[xlxo]

Thoughts

• Balconies are great for a few hours of private glacier viewings.... but others recommend the public decks for a 360 viewing
  
• Balconies are good for the inside passages
  
• I found the balconies too cold and windy on my mid-August trips. Future trips will all be ocean view for the savings.
  
• are you normally an outdoors person where you drive your car with the windows rolled down? I like the climate controlled personal comfort. DCL's Wonder's Deck 2 oceanview's massive porthole feels like a climate controlled balcony.
  

[AryMay]

Any comment on balcony vs ocean view? We were certain that balcony would be a "must have" but on second thought, does the extra cost warrant the benefit...and will we use it if its chilly? Thanks for all your help!

I will always want a balcony for Alaska. Yes...it is chilly, but still warmer than what it would be standing on an open deck. We almost always go the cheaper route and book inside cabins in the Caribbean, but Alaska is different for 2 main reasons:

 

 

1. Daylight hours are extremely long. Sunrise in June was before 4 am and it stayed light until nearly midnight.
   
2. Unlike the Caribbean where you only see water, there is almost always something to see when cruising in Alaska...mountains, waterfalls, wildlife, glaciers, etc. Here is a photo of my reflection in our balcony door and you can see just how close we were sailing to land.
   

 

We also looked at the added cost of the balcony as if it were an excursion that lasted all week long. We did spend time on the public decks, but I can only stand at a railing in the cold for so long. Having our balcony meant being able to sit down, retreat inside to warm up if needed, having camera gear & binoculars close by, handy to get to the bathroom, etc. Here is my DH as we sailed away from Ketchikan. We were tired from being in port all day and would have missed this if it meant standing outside at the railing.

 

 

And...the view is there from the time you open your eyes in the morning until you fall asleep at night. I would even peak outside in the middle of the night sometimes! The time stamp on the next photo shows it was taken a little after midnight.

 

 

Being on the balcony was chilly at times, but so is standing outside on an open deck. By being on our own balcony it was easy to pop inside to warm up...or just grab a blanket! I know we would not have seen half of what we did if it meant being out on a public deck. From our balcony we saw an incredible amount of wildlife...whales, porpoises, eagles, sea otters, seals, etc.

 

 

Our balcony was like being on a tour that lasted a whole week. A couple of times we chose to grab food from the buffet and eat on the balcony just so we wouldn't miss anything! (By keeping the balcony door open we could hear the narration from the onboard naturalist through the TV.)

 

 

And here is one last photo that was taken as we sailed away from College Fjords. I had been out on the public decks earlier with all of the crowds, but it was nice to be able to retreat to my own balcony and enjoy the view in solitude.

 

 

Only you can decide if the added cost of the balcony is worth it...but for us it was a wise choice.

[bUU]

I will always want a balcony for Alaska.

Thanks so much for all you shared.

 

 

 

This message may have been entered using voice recognition. Please excuse any typos.

[AF-1]

I have to go with the balcony. no crowds; you can step inside to warm up if needed. I had a friend sail last summer on Holland, Her main complaint with them was after spending all day in port they came back to the ship hungry and tired; she said there weren't a lot of food options if it wasn't during a meal period. They did not like that. Princess and Royal Caribbean have 24 hr dining options; Holland does not. We are doing Princess out of Seattle. The only port with less than ten hours is Victoria. All others have plenty of time.

[Coral]

I have to go with the balcony. no crowds; you can step inside to warm up if needed. I had a friend sail last summer on Holland, Her main complaint with them was after spending all day in port they came back to the ship hungry and tired; she said there weren't a lot of food options if it wasn't during a meal period. They did not like that. Princess and Royal Caribbean have 24 hr dining options; Holland does not. We are doing Princess out of Seattle. The only port with less than ten hours is Victoria. All others have plenty of time.

 

 

Holland has a great room service menu and will deliver what is on the breakfast or dinner menu which is a plus (during those hours).

[biojeep]

NCL northbound from Vancouver to Seward on the Sun is a great itinerary. It also includes Hubbard Glacier & Glacier Bay. We did this cruise last year & it was much better than our round trip from Seattle that we did in 2012. We got a balcony & it was so nice not to have to deal with the crowds on the upper decks.

[Coral]

NCL northbound from Vancouver to Seward on the Sun is a great itinerary. It also includes Hubbard Glacier & Glacier Bay. We did this cruise last year & it was much better than our round trip from Seattle that we did in 2012. We got a balcony & it was so nice not to have to deal with the crowds on the upper decks.

 

 

Princess NB does Hubbard Glacier and Glacier Bay also.

 

I agree - I prefer the one ways to the RT out of Seattle trips.

[NancyIL]

Princess NB does Hubbard Glacier and Glacier Bay also.

 

I agree - I prefer the one ways to the RT out of Seattle trips.

 

 

Princess goes to Glacier Bay and College Fjord northbound, and to Glacier Bay and Hubbard Glacier southbound.

[Coral]

Princess goes to Glacier Bay and College Fjord northbound, and to Glacier Bay and Hubbard Glacier southbound.

 

 

Yes - thanks for the correction!

[Cozumelted]

Im going on Carnival Legend in May. We leave out of Seattle and go to Juneau, Skagway, Ketchikan, Glacier Bay, and Victoria BC. That might be your best bet since you can only go 7 days.

 

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[CATGUY7]

Love the balcony pictures. Makes me feel much better about forking up the extra money for it! (First trip to Alaska - so excited!!!)

[TheCalicoCat]

We are looking at an Alaska cruise for summer of 2018. I went almost 20 years ago on Carnival and loved it, but I was very young then and don't remember any details. I would like to go on Norwegian, Carnival, or Princess. We want an itinerary that includes Glacier Bay but also has 4 port stops. We don't really have a preference over one way/round trip/southbound/northbound...but would love to hear opinions on which is "best". We want a very port intensive trip with lots of time on land in Alaska. Only 7 day cruises, because we can't miss any more work. Any input would be greatly appreciated!

 

You have enough information based on your limitations to figure out your "best" option.

 

Take a look at the different itineraries for the different cruise lines & find the one fits your needs best.

[TheCalicoCat]

Only individuals can determine if the price of a balcony is worth it.

 

We sailed inside on our previous AK cruise & I was able to hop inside to warm up easily & it wasn't crowded all the time on the open decks.

 

Skagway, Ak. by Amy S, on Flickr

 

DSCF8329 by Amy S, on Flickr

 

In July 2017, I will be on 14-night cruise where the inside cabins it priced at $1,699

Conversely, also in July 2017 a balcony on a 7-night cruise is $1,509 on one cruise line & $1,998 on another.

 

Also I can afford 2 flight tours while staying in an inside cabin instead of looking at the town from my balcony. (Or asking on CC what I can do cheaply in Juneau, Skagway & Ketchikan.)

 

The choice not to have a balcony wasn't a hard one for me.