Which cruise line?

[stasys]

Looking to book an Alaskan cruise for summer 2018 and looking for advise on cruise line. My wife and I have been on one cruise together (Caribbean on NCL Jade) and I have cruised alone prior (Bahamas on NCL Sky). Open to NCL again, as we liked the casual environment and dining options. Was not a fan of the long waits at the bars and restaurants (though that may be common on all cruises?) I did feel the second NCL cruise felt repetitive (same feel, restaurants, etc), so interested in trying another cruise line also. Can anyone make recommendations on which lines to look at, where we do not have to dress up to set specific times for dining, and overall fun feel (thought the less kids and crowds the better).

 

We are looking for a 7+ day cruise, preferably one way to maximize number of ports. Also considering the cruisetour options, though they seem quite expensive. Might do a few days on our own in Settle or Vancouver and in Alaksa on either end of the trip. I have miles on British Airways, and want to make all the flights with miles, and I think it gives me good options for flights.

 

Trying to keep it cost down, hopefully under $2500 total (2 people, fees, taxes, tips, etc), to save money for excursions. As much as we would like a balcony room, understand that likely wont happen.

 

Any recommendations are appreciated!

Edited September 4, 2017 by stasys

[easyboy]

You can check the Princess Alaska cruise, or cruise tour. It was incredible to see and hear the sound of the cracking and calving of the glacier when we went to Glacier Bay

[Keith1010]

Many on this board (me included) will recommend that you begin with the itinerary.

 

Not all itineraries are the same.

 

If you can find an itinerary that includes Glacier Bay that is good and look closely at the time that the ship is in port. Sometimes I see itineraries that have a lot of stops but in some ports either get there later in the day or just don't have a long time in port.

 

There are many options as many cruise lines sail Alaska. Once you find some itineraries that appeal to you then you can read about the cruise line on the respective cruise line board and also read reviews on the ship.

 

Keith

[kgm0612]

Just completed a land & cruise tour (July 31 - August 11th) with Royal Caribbean, starting in Fairbanks and cruising Southbound from Seward to Vancouver. We also spent two days prior in Seattle and one night in Vancouver. Although it was a bit expensive, we had a wonderful time. We also prefer a cabin with a balcony.

 

We have also cruised round trip from Seattle (2007) in mid-June on NCL's Pearl. Great cruise but was not a fan of the cruise line.

 

I highly recommend doing the land tour prior to the cruise. You are constantly on the go but can relax once on the ship.

 

Karen

[Budget Queen]

I do not "recommend" only a southbound cruise. You are discounting 50% of the one way cruise options. Frankly- if the reason is due to the claim above, then it's a poorly planed tour. My Alaska travels are EVEN, which I suggest other's strive for.

 

 

Especially with going independent, your entire Alaska visit can be centered on your interests and can usually do twice what you'd do with a fixed point to point tour. Alaska can be so enhanced with the "little stuff" :) If you can't add a lot of mainland touring days, especially consider independent to make the most of your short time. I'd discourage, only going on southbound cruises.

 

All cruise lines have open dining and buffets. I haven't dressed up in over 10 years and won't be starting anytime soon. I am gone for weeks and nothing is more wasteful for me with my luggage than useless dressy attire. :) I find far more similarities than differences with cruise lines and have sailed all of the majors in Alaska with the exception of Disney.

[Bettyscruiser]

I was on Holland America's Nieuw Amsterdam the first week of August this year, and it was wonderful. My family usually cruises on Celebrity, and we'd actually been on this ship in the Caribbean and I didn't love it in the Caribbean. However, when I was researching itineraries and experiences, I kept coming back to their itinerary out of Vancouver (r/t, Juneau, Glacier Bay, Skagway and Ketchikan.) We were a family of 20 people ages 2-75, and we all loved the ship for

Alaska. It is a bit quieter than most other cruiselines as it has an older demographic, but we liked that. It also has a retractable roof over the pool that allowed us to swim no matter the weather. And they had two naturalists on board the ship that were amazing at helping people spot wildlife. I really recommend it.

[JT1962]

I agree with others that the itinerary and time in ports you are interested in are most important. I have been on Princess and Royal Caribbean in Alaska and found them similar and fine.

 

I prefer one-way over round trip since you generally get more ports and / or time in port. You also can add on days for land tours on either end or both.

 

I have done Northbound in May and Southbound in late August and enjoyed both. May is nice with less rain and more snow on the mountains. Later in the summer usually means more wildlife and warmer weather, but more rain.

 

For the price range you want, you will probably be looking at an Inside Cabin or going in May or September. You can find last minute special deals, but you probably won't have that flexibility if using miles for your flights.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Coral]

I actually like the one way cruises (even if you don't do land). You get one more day of glaciers on some itineraries. Plus the times in port are superior compared to RT out of Seattle and Vancouver.

 

It takes me all day to fly so it doesn't make a difference if it is Vancouver or Anchorage.

[luv2gonow]

Looking to book an Alaskan cruise for summer 2018 and looking for advise on cruise line. My wife and I have been on one cruise together (Caribbean on NCL Jade) and I have cruised alone prior (Bahamas on NCL Sky). Open to NCL again, as we liked the casual environment and dining options. Was not a fan of the long waits at the bars and restaurants (though that may be common on all cruises?) I did feel the second NCL cruise felt repetitive (same feel, restaurants, etc), so interested in trying another cruise line also. Can anyone make recommendations on which lines to look at, where we do not have to dress up to set specific times for dining, and overall fun feel (thought the less kids and crowds the better).

 

We are looking for a 7+ day cruise, preferably one way to maximize number of ports. Also considering the cruisetour options, though they seem quite expensive. Might do a few days on our own in Settle or Vancouver and in Alaksa on either end of the trip. I have miles on British Airways, and want to make all the flights with miles, and I think it gives me good options for flights.

 

Trying to keep it cost down, hopefully under $2500 total (2 people, fees, taxes, tips, etc), to save money for excursions. As much as we would like a balcony room, understand that likely wont happen.

 

Any recommendations are appreciated!

 

If you are looking to increase your budget to include that land tour. The one I am booked on next year is the

12 day Denali Alyeska Southbound on the NCL Jewel. The land portion is already sold out for my cruise tour of 7/26/18.:eek:

Cruise before looks like inside cabin is $2498(plus tax). It looks amazing though.

Happy planning

Kerri

Kerri