Alaska-Once...maybe but Not again

[TIGGERLARRY]

We went on Norwegian Star 8 years ago. Word to the attentive - NEVER, I mean NEVER book a ship to Alaska that has no viewing lounge. That tub had converted the lounge to suites and stuck the lounge with no windows. Inclement weather, you only see what's outside your balcony or get drenched on the deck.

 

We saw virtually no wildlife, but had a great time; especially Ketchikan, with three totem parks. It was great - my wife and I loved it, but my buddy said, "I never want to see another f....ing totem pole again".

 

Do the research - travel when the weather/crowds suite you, and for sure research itineraries and ships!

 

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[zqvol]

What a greatly informative thread! My husband and I always said Alaska cruise would be great when we retired. We both love to fish and take pictures. I just retired and Ive been feeling bad that I have been thinking that I would rather lay on a warm beach with a drink!

 

What you need to do is not an AK cruise but an AK vacation. Fly to Anchorage, and spend a couple of weeks exploring the interior and the Kenai. That is AK, it isn't what you see in three or four SE AK cruise ports, which are just tourist destinations. A land trip lets you get all your fishing in, and send it back home.

[PATRLR]

Congrats CCers!!! No real flames and some good alternate perspectives.!

I think the reason no real flames was due in part because you only stated facts.

 

There is a lesson there for other posters.

[deliver42]

We were in Alaska 2 years ago on NCL, and loved it. Round trip from Seattle. Saw a couple of backs of whales, but nothing else. Due to ice, we went to Endicott, which was awesome. We are booked next year on Princess for the same itinerary, except going to Glacier Nat'l Park this time, and can't wait. Maybe after this cruise, I'll have my fill of Alaska, but I doubt it.

[FranknBeans]

Our first Alaska cruise was 2008 on the Star and looking very forward to seeing it again in 2019

[naxer]

We just got back a couple weeks ago from our Alaska cruise. Absolutely loved it. No plans to repeat it. But when it comes to a cruise where itinerary is important, I'm kind of compulsive making sure it's the ports and port times I want (as much as possible, and they will always be subject to change by the cruise line).

[KittyloverCA]

Just some thoughts.

 

 

 

 

 

1. Overpacking is no one's fault except the OP's. To blame that on the cruise being an Alaskan cruise is simply silly.
   

 

I assume by overpacking the OP meant the ship??

[lisakoivu]

This is a great thread. Alaska is a place I have zero interest in attending - it's just too many people in a short season. I do want to do a Viking Passage with HAL sometime - longer timeframe, more remote ports. I'd have the same reaction as you in Alaska I'm pretty sure, and I wonder if it has more to do with you going for your wife's sake and that you didn't really want to go. I hear you - I REALLY don't want to go and don't know how I'd take it if I was just going for DH's sake. It wasn't on my bucket list anyway, but nice to have it confirmed. I went to Roatan this summer, 45 degrees and humid, but awesome!

[erdoran]

We sailed AK on Bliss 9/1-9/8 and loved it, and until now we were tropical cruisers. We were very lucky - fabulous weather most of the week. We decided not to worry about $ and booked every excursion that sounded interesting, and enjoyed them all! Ketchikan adventure scooters (meh for me but DH loved! - we saw a bear crossing the road), whale watch/Mendenhall nature photo safari & Tracy Arm glacier view in Juneau, scenic hwy drive in Ketchikan, and R&R aboard in Victoria. Every excursion was different and special.

 

AK is expensive but that's not the fault of the cruise line.

 

Just like cruise lines, food, music and politics, all of this is very individual and personal, and what one person loves another one doesn't. I'd do AK again in a heartbeat, and this time spend more time walking around the ports, but there are also other excursions I'd love to try. The scenery was magnificent, history fascinating, and it seemed less commercial than the Caribbean cruise ports. But that's my opinion.

[PTC DAWG]

The Alaska and weather complaints crack me up.....what do folks expect?

 

And the wildlife...again? Are they supposed to be in cages waiting on you?

[sfaaa]

Alaska is expensive because you don't shop around. You can get on NCl Pearl this week for $299pp + tax. Princess is having a 3 For Free promo going on for Alaska cruise next year. I also see good deals being offered by HAL from time to time. The deals are there if you care to do some home work.

[IrieBajan54]

OP, I have been to Alaska 3 times (Princess & HAL) and the last time was about 10 years ago.. Enjoyed Glacier Bay. However, I have no desire to go back. Some like it, some don't.

[cruiselover19811981]

This past August, we took an Alaskan on the Bliss for our 4th cruise, and our children's (ages 8 and 10), 2nd cruise. We had never been to Alaska before. Yes, this was more pricey than our previous 3 cruises to the Caribbean, but it was truly a trip of a lifetime. We had record-breaking weather, unbelievable scenery/wildlife (without even booking a whale watching excursion, saw whales from our forward facing, oceanview room and the observation lounge), and saw seals at Endicott arm, just relaxing on an iceberg. We saw salmon spawning at Mendenhall glacier, as well as a mom and her baby cub walking around at the wildlife sanctuary in Ketchikan. Additionally, both my parents and inlaws joined us on this cruise. A memorable experience for our children. To all of us, this trip was priceless.

[Jorhammer]

Just got back today from Alaskexico. It was our best cruise yet. We took the Bliss and it was great for us. We had a balcony, so we were able to watch nature and how beautiful Alaska is. The weather favored us except in Victoria. Would do again in a heartbeat.

[Donna_In_India]

Sure I`ll get some neg pushback, but really did not enjoy the trip that much!

#1 Price-It was the most expensive cruise we`ve ever taken. We even had an oceanview vs the previous 20+ balcs.

#2 Crazy port times. Juneau arrived at 3PM-Bliss was in the way. Beautiful Victoria-arrive 6PM!

#3 Basically 3 1/2 sea days.

#4 Way overpacked

#5 cheapest lunch ashore with a couple of $6.00 beers was 40 bucks

# 6 Only saw the slight hump of a humpback whale, even though our guide kept saying "he`s gonna jump any second" and several blowholes

#7 saw 2 bears about 300 yards away for 20 seconds

 

Beautiful Wife wanted to do it-So North, we went

 

Some swear by it, but-Back to the Med for this Cruzer.

 

I'm sorry you didn't enjoy your cruise! It was us on the Bliss in front of you and unfortunately I didn't enjoy our cruise either (also very expensive).

 

 

I cruised Alaska almost 20 years ago on Celebrity (from Vancouver) and did a repositioning cruise on RCI from San Francisco about 10-11 years ago (and loved both of those cruises). So I was aware of most of the things you mention. We do excursions specifically for wildlife (such as bears) so we're usually happy with that. We also saw whales from the ship. We canceled our whale watching in Juneau because of weather.

 

 

The port times on the Bliss were pretty horrible. Victoria was such a waste - we had to wait 40 minutes or so for the idiots who have to report to immigration to actually do so. By the time we got off the ship, the shuttle lines were really long. (They could have skipped Victoria and spent more time in Juneau.) It didn't help that we had pretty crappy weather (of course not NCL's fault) - enough so that we never got near to the glaciers. Your issues were more with Alaska, mine were with the ship/NCL. Either way, it sucks when you don't enjoy your cruise. Hope your next one is better!

[vacation44]

From reading you went to Victoria, I’m gathering you left from Seattle. So you chose a cruise that went to Alaska, not an Alaskan Cruise.

 

What’s the difference? When you start in Seattle, you are gonna have more sea time just to get to AK ports. You at best get two Alaska ports and maybe a turn around at a glacier. That’s called a cruise that went to Alaska.

 

For those thinking about an Alaskan Cruise, choose one that DOESN’T Start in the US. Choose one that has at least 4 Alaskan ports. That’s an Alaskan Cruise, not one with a couple of ports there.

 

If you are going to spend out for an Alaskan Adventure, do one that begins or ends on Vancouver. It’s worth the wait to also add at least four nights on land before or after the cruise. Go to Denali National Park. Spend a night and day in Talkeetna. Ride the train on the interior of AK. If you don’t choose an RC land tour, rent a car or RV and do it yourself.

 

Even if you save an extra year to do it, wait. Yes, it’s pricey, and don’t skimp on excursions (there are some great independent ones).

 

Have an Alaskan experience, not a cruise with a couple of ports in AK. I wouldn’t take ANYTHING for our experience there. PS The AK experience was my husband’s idea. I was so surprised at how much I loved it.

 

Thank you for posting what sounds like great advice.

[ollienbertsmum]

Thanks, I appreciate your honest review. I have been toying with the idea of an Alaskan cruise, but I think I will do a land vacay instead. I'll save the cruise for the tropical places. :)

 

Please do not think that the OPs view means that a cruise in Alaska is not a great time. Obviously he is entitled to his opinion but there are other opinions about Alaska.

 

We did a "holiday of a lifetime" this year. We did 5 days on land, a cruise from Whittier to Vancouver and a few days in Vancouver. I was amazed at how much I enjoyed the cruise part - especially the days "at sea" - we spent lots of time on deck and the views and wildlife opportunities were great. You did have to be patient and have good binoculars at times. We went during the longest days of the year which was an advantage. Yes the tours and food at ports were expensive, the bonus is that the tours I am doing on my Med cruise next month seem very cheap.

 

If it were not for the very long journey to get to Alaska I would be repeating again and again.

[ElaineKeagy]

Thank you OP for this thread. A cruise to Alaska has never really appealed to me but I have friends who have done 4 cruises, on HAL, and rave about them.

I do want to see some Northern beauty so I’ve added the Norwegian Fjords as a B2B with the Baltic next May.

 

But I do want to see Alaska and have had a driving trip from the east coast up to Alaska, Yukon, and NWT on my bucket list for years ( and years). So it’s not that I don’t want to visit AK, I just want it to be part of a long road trip.

Your posting has just confirmed to me that my road excursion is the better option for me.

(Although I’m sure it would be easier and cheaper).

 

 

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[ColdCruise]

Like the OP, I was somewhat underwhelmed with our Alaskan cruise. We went on Princess in June, one way Vancouver to Whittier. The ports were meh in town, having to walk past the same shops and huts as elsewhere, but we budgeted for a privately organized bear watching and flightseeing in Juneau that made up for the commercialism elsewhere.

 

Unfortunately, we only saw 1 bear in Pack River - the salmon weren’t spawning yet and the ranger said the bears were thick onshe beach when they arrived but were sleeping off their overnight clam feast by the time we got there (straight from ship via taxi to the airport but we couldn’t disembark till 9 and the ranger arrived at 8. There were just us, the 2 rangers and 2 overlapping small groups of tourists in 6 hours of chilling on the edge of the forest watching the bear. Great day, despite the sleeping bears!

 

Didn’t do any ship excursions elsewhere, esp when I found out they were taking 3 buses of passengers on the same excursion we were interested in. I think it’d be worthwhile to go back on our own, timing visits to miss heavy cruise days. My idea of communing with nature doesn’t include listening to 150+ chattering people.

 

Glacier Bay was cool, but views of calving were poor since we were engulfed in the mob. However, last summer we cruised Greenland and were awed by the glaciers and ice bergs. Again, I’d make the repeat a couple days in Juneau with small boat trip out to GB.

 

Highlights of Alaska occurred AFTER we disembarked in Whittier and spent the next 10 day’s on land. FANTASTIC sights & experiences lots of wildlife on sea and land although no singular spectacular Kodak moment.

Whittier - small boat trip with whales bubble fishing, lots of birds, waterfalls, glacier fronts up close

Denali - hiking, mama bears with cubs at a distance (binocs helpful!), moose, caribou, sheep, “the mountain” showing off, good camp companions

Mahay’s riverboat to Devil’s Canyon - unique

Seward - 8 hour northwest Fjord trip: seals in front of glaciers, sea lions hauled out, 4 whale species, dolphins, killer whales hunting salmon, sever spectacular glaciers (incl calving), more bubble feeding, lot and lots of birds, Exit glacier hike, Sea Life Museum (acquarium)

Everywhere - scenery and more!

[gooch47]

To each his own. We've been there five times. I'd go back in a minute. Hubby? Not so much.

 

My favorite bear story happened on I think our first trip. I can't remember if the Captain pointed it out or not, but there was a bear walking on the beach. As we came alongside it, it stood up and started waving an Italian flag. A man in a bear suit.

[TNCruzer56]

Again proud of all CCers. A lot of great input...especially for those on the fence!

An interesting observation is that it appears that Alaska is more the Ladies cup of tea, than us butt in the sand and beer in hand Gents!?! JMHO

[soccermommy]

DH and I had our very first cruise together in 2006 on the Star( back when it had a forward lounge). We went at the end of the season, weather was definitely colder, wildlife was starting to hunker down, but Glacier Bay was spectacular. We absolutely loved it. Fast forward to 2018, and things have changed a lot. We have megaships, we have 6 different mass market lines visiting. We have a lot of choice, but Alaska in season has gotten a lot more crowded. Add crowds to shorter port stays, and some ports tendered, I can see why an Alaskan cruise can be underwhelming.

And with the short season and high demand, prices have been climbing.

Wildlife has never been a guarantee, or the weather.

So, OP, it's perfectly understandable why you didn't have the greatest experience. I wish it could have been better for you. I will say you have confirmed my feeling that a 7 day cruise out of Seattle may not be the best way to see Alaska again, we're looking at cruise tours. Thanks for giving us an honest review, and I hope you have a fantastic time on your next cruise.

[firstimer2009]

I agree, the Alaska cruise was too much sea time for me too. I thought "Inland Passage" meant inland passage the whole time and being able to see trees, land, etc. I did love Glacier Bay so by the end I did enjoy it but never again.

 

Have a Sept 2019 Med cruise from Venice to Rome back on the Pearl, the same ship I went to Alaska on 8 years ago. It will be fun to see the new enhancements and my first time to Italy so I'm very excited.

[alejorubi]

Are you comparing Alaska with Santorini?. Equaly overpriced ripping tourists and turist packed, I think Europe is even worst as you have to deal with hordes of Chinese taking photos without any respect

[bonvoyagie]

First cruise ever was on the NCL Sky in 02 and again in 03 both RT Seattle had a wonderful time both DW and I enjoyed it- we went in mid and late June saw whales, a bear or two and mountain goats and lots of eagles. We are both nature lovers and can watch the scenery go by for hours on end - we sit on the balcony with binoculars in hand watching for any sign of wildlife. BTW both trips had decent port times and we did go on the inside of Vancouver Island - at night. Next stop was Juneau for the morning and then to Tracy Arm for the afternoon the next day was Skagway and then down to Ketchikan and around the outside of the island to Victoria - we ended up there in the early PM and left around midnight - ample time to see the gardens both day and night. Our next AK cruise was in 12 and this time we saw the same ports along with Glacier Bay. I agree that the time in both Juneau and Victoria was ill timed - but with proper pre planning you can see quite a bit. I agree that everything in the AK ports is expensive - they only have a few short months to make a living for the entire year. One thing I noticed between 02 and 12 is the number of ships we saw - or in the case of 02 didn't see - in -02 we hardly ever saw another ship except in port - in 12 we saw way more ships in-between ports. I will agree that AK is not everybody's cup of joe, but with the help of places like CC you can at least go prepared.