RC or Princess for Family Alaska Cruise?

[GoGoLACP]

Hi all. We are planning a cruise to Alaska for 2 families, total of 6 kids between the ages of 6-12 for August 2018. I am looking at two options, one on Royal Caribbean (Radiance of the Seas) from Seward and one on Princess (Golden Princess) from Whittier. Both have almost exact itinerary and very similar price. Do you have a recommendation between these two cruise lines based on the age of the kids? I am not concerned about other kids on the ships b/c we have plenty of our own to play with. I am more interested in the quality of the two ships and programming. Thanks!

[Potstech]

I would go with Princess. They do have a great area for kids to spend some time in.

[tailspintom]

Hi all. We are planning a cruise to Alaska for 2 families, total of 6 kids between the ages of 6-12 for August 2018. I am looking at two options, one on Royal Caribbean (Radiance of the Seas) from Seward and one on Princess (Golden Princess) from Whittier. Both have almost exact itinerary and very similar price. Do you have a recommendation between these two cruise lines based on the age of the kids? I am not concerned about other kids on the ships b/c we have plenty of our own to play with. I am more interested in the quality of the two ships and programming. Thanks!

You are on the Princess boards so I believe you will find more of those folks who have demonstrated a preference for that line. Having sailed both Royal Caribbean and Princess, I prefer Princess. Now, should you find that you can acquire better cabins and dates for RCCL, by all means book those cabins, they do a fine job. The two line are more alike than different.

[paul929207]

Princess goes to Glacier Bay on nearly all trips. RCI is not authorized to go there. So I would take Princess.

[skynight]

Princess is very good in Alaska, been there for years and years especially if you are taking a cruisetour.

[easyboy]

Been to Alaska on Golden but didn’t notice much kids in our cruise. We were focused more on the ports than the ship facilities.

 

 

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[baz48]

I'm going to be the odd one out here, but we faced that very same decision. We are taking our family (3 cabins) to Alaska next June and there will be 3 kids ages 6-9. We opted for Royal Caribbean for a couple of reasons. The first was that it was a lot cheaper, but also because I think the RC ship (Explorer of the Seas) will have more for the kids to do. I may be wrong, since we've never sailed on RC, but we are Elite on Princess so we know the ships well and I just thought we should do RC this time.

[Turtle05]

If you are more concerned with a better ship, I'd go for the RCI Explorer. It's bigger than the Radiance and will have more child-friendly activities. I've sailed on a Voyager class ship, and they are probably more fun that smaller RCI and Princess ships.

[Wishing on a star]

I think it boils down to choosing one of two priorities.

Either sailing Glacier Bay (IMHO a must if one really wants to cruise Alaska)

Or, having a more kid-friendly cruise.

In this case, I think the two are kind of mutually exclusive.

 

You are probably the only one who can know which would be the biggest priority for your group!

 

I would also want to choose an itinerary that sails the Inside Passage, not outside-of-the-inside passage.

[deliver42]

If you are going with the idea of the kids being happy, go for the Explorer of the seas. The Radiance and Princess will be OK, but not as kid friendly.

[Coral]

If you are more concerned with a better ship, I'd go for the RCI Explorer. It's bigger than the Radiance and will have more child-friendly activities. I've sailed on a Voyager class ship, and they are probably more fun that smaller RCI and Princess ships.

 

This ship (Explorer of the Seas) has the worst itinerary in Alaska. I would not recommend it if the goal is to see Alaska.

 

Princess actually has enrichment programs for all ages in Alaska. They do quite a bit of fun education programs dealing with Alaska for kids (and adults).

 

I personally thought RCCL did a poor job in Alaska when I went. They did not have any speakers except for shopping speakers. Princess is the opposite.

 

I would also put an emphasis on Glacier Bay (RCCL doesn't go there) as it never seems to be missed. Hubbard glacier can be missed. On Princess one ways, you can get both glacier days (handy if one is missed).

[rocklinmom]

Princess is the best for Alaska. I am biased because I have been sailing on Princess since I was a kid and this summer will go there for the third time as an adult with my family. We are sailing into Whittier (from Vancouver) so similar itinerary as the one you are looking at.

It really comes down to price, cabin selection, and ports. Also the dates that work best for all of you. You will find plenty to do (and eat) onboard on either cruise line.

[satxdiver]

Princess is the original cruise line to go to AK. We have been 3x so far and enjoyed it. Princess has enrichment speakers aboard to talk about AK before every port. One talk was on the whales and how they capture their dinner. In Glacier Bay they had the NP rangers aboard to talk about the bay as we entered it and were in Skywalkers to answer questions and sell some of their momentos. At one port they had a sled dog and his handler aboard while we were in port to answer questions and talk about the sleds and dogs. We did the r/t our of Seattle the first week of August this year and there were over 200 kids aboard! If you are interested Princess offers land trips in AK on their private vista railcars and has 3 lodges two of which are in or near Denali NP. Princess will offer a transfer from Whittier to Anchorage in their private vista railcars. We have taken the transfer. The road goes through a one way tunnel used by cars and trains so there can be delays although the train has priority.

 

As noted earlier RCI does not have permission to enter Glacier Bay and watch the glaciers calving (breaking off large pieces) into the bay. The NP only allows a certain number to enter and all the slots are taken.

[donaldsc]

Hi all. We are planning a cruise to Alaska for 2 families, total of 6 kids between the ages of 6-12 for August 2018. I am looking at two options, one on Royal Caribbean (Radiance of the Seas) from Seward and one on Princess (Golden Princess) from Whittier. Both have almost exact itinerary and very similar price. Do you have a recommendation between these two cruise lines based on the age of the kids? I am not concerned about other kids on the ships b/c we have plenty of our own to play with. I am more interested in the quality of the two ships and programming. Thanks!

 

If the ship does not go to Glacier Bay, do not take it.

 

DON

[Turtle05]

I would say it depends more on what the adults want. I understand you want the kids to enjoy themselves, but unless they are secret child actors, they aren't paying for the cruise, and if they are less than enthused about the end result, they can take their own Alaskan cruise when they do have the money to pay for it. I don't mean to sound judgmental or harsh, just pointing out a different view. It also depends on whether or not you foresee getting to go on another Alaskan cruise in the future. If so, I'm certain you will not keel over and die if you don't go to Glacier Bay this time. I managed to go on an Alaskan cruise that didn't go to GB, and I clearly lived to tell the tale. Now, my upcoming one is with Princess to GB, so maybe I'll have different thoughts afterwards. I do concede after looking at the itinerary that the Explorer itinerary is the worst.

[donswife]

I have been to Alaska with 3 different cruise lines (not RCL though), and my opinion is that Princess did the best job with the Alaska specific programming and food. I have also been on Radiance of the Seas, and found it to be a lovely ship. With the 6-12 age range of kids, I think they will have a fine time on either. If on-board spending could be a problem, I would also give the nod to Princess. I think there are more included food options, including room service. The Princess ships also have a lot of outdoor space. Be sure and bring several pairs of binoculars for viewing wildlife!

[sunsetbeachgal]

Very good point about RC charging for room service. I think their charge is $7.95 per order. When we travel with our grandchildren in this age range they love to order room service. We choose our cruises first based on itinerary. For Alaska I might lean towards a ship that has an indoor pool, kids love to swim and Alaska can be cold!

 

 

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