Alaska Cruise advice please

[Sundowners]

Hi,

 

My wife and I are not big time cruisers, although we have been on 5 with another already booked. Now both retired we would like to cruise more and an Alaska cruise is very attractive to us.

But before I start looking seriously at choosing a cruise, I wonder if you could give me some advice on a couple of points please?

 

* Considering we will be flying out of Sydney, Australia, would it be better to join a cruise starting from Seattle or Vancouver? (We will chose a cruise that returns to our departure port)

 

* We would like to make it a 10-14 day cruise but notice that most are 7 day-ers with the longer cruises going further north, which attracts us. So, is it really worth going right up to Anchorage?....or even Fairbanks? Or do you recommend the shorter trips?

 

We/I would appreciate any suggestions or advice please. Not necessarily limited to the points I've just mentioned.

 

Thanks & Cheers

 

 

[flutprop]

I can't address whether it is better to fly into Seattle or Vancouver. We chose Seattle as my sister could drive her family from Portland, Oregon.

 

You can look into a B2B cruise that goes a full 7 days north, then 7 days south (or vice versa) You will experience most ports twice, but that gives you opportunities to experience different excursions in each port. I think you often get longer port times than a round trip cruise.

 

Or you could do a 7 day cruise plus a 3, 4, 7 day land tour. Lots of options.  I was going to do a 7 day north, 4 day self guided land tour and then a 7 day cruise south last summer, but our plans changed to a Caribbean cruise instead for less than half the price.

[CruiserBruce]

Holland America is doing a 14 day cruise out of Vancouver next year...the cruise was out of Seattle this year...we were on it the first weeks of June...highly recommend it. As you can fly non-stop to Vancouver, that would fit your needs well.

[VennDiagram]

2 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

Holland America is doing a 14 day cruise out of Vancouver next year...the cruise was out of Seattle this year...we were on it the first weeks of June...highly recommend it. As you can fly non-stop to Vancouver, that would fit your needs well.

 

Another vote for the 14 day Holland America round-trip from Vancouver in 2020.  No repeat ports, and the itinerary takes you to some rarely visited Alaska towns ❤️  

[Paul Bradley]

Vancouver has a nicer, less crowded airport, so if you have the option to fly direct, that's a bonus. 

[VennDiagram]

Another advantage to Vancouver is that the Aus $ and Cdn $ are usually quite comparable in value, definitely closer than the Aus and US usually are.

[skrufy]

13 hours ago, Sundowners said:

Hi,

 

My wife and I are not big time cruisers, although we have been on 5 with another already booked. Now both retired we would like to cruise more and an Alaska cruise is very attractive to us.

But before I start looking seriously at choosing a cruise, I wonder if you could give me some advice on a couple of points please?

 

* Considering we will be flying out of Sydney, Australia, would it be better to join a cruise starting from Seattle or Vancouver? (We will chose a cruise that returns to our departure port)

 

* We would like to make it a 10-14 day cruise but notice that most are 7 day-ers with the longer cruises going further north, which attracts us. So, is it really worth going right up to Anchorage?....or even Fairbanks? Or do you recommend the shorter trips?

 

We/I would appreciate any suggestions or advice please. Not necessarily limited to the points I've just mentioned.

 

Thanks & Cheers

Would fly into Vancouver over Seattle unless Seattle has a cruise you can’t pass up. Departing Vancouver keeps you in calm water on the east side of Vancouver Island. Seattle takes you out into the Pacific on the west side of Vancouver Island which can get rough. Vancouver is a great city, one of my favorites.If you can swing it, do a 14 day cruise, more ports. We did 14 day cruises in 2018 and 19 and are glad we did.  7 day cruises go by very quickly, before you know it, it’s over.  See more of Alaska, not just the tourist ports, Ketchikan, Juneau, and Skagway. Include a glacier or two in your itinerary also.

Holland America and Princess are two of the best. Have you thought of a land tour and then a cruise?

What ever you choose enjoy Alaska it’s spectacular.

 

 

Edited July 5, 2019 by skrufy

[Sundowners]

Its early morning here and I have just found all this advice that arrived overnight.

Thank you all for answering and addressing each of my concerns.

I now have it sorted, thanks to you folk.

You've gotta love "Cruise Critic" eh?

Cheers,

[tutuwahineLV]

I'd also recommend departing from Vancouver,  I find the passage between Vancouver Island and the mainland much more scenic.  On that route, the only 'rough seas' we've ever encountered was when you cross Queen Charlotte Sound at the north end of the island.   Even then it wasn't much, just enough to cause me to feel unsettled and a tad queasy.  

On the other hand, we did one trip that departed Vancouver, and returned to Seattle.  That last sea day, running down the Pacific side of Vancouver Island, was some of the highest seas I've even been in.  It was early in the season, spring, but the waves were 5-7 meters, with the winds at force 10.  it was a very rough day.   Fortunately, I've never had another day like it. 

[Sundowners]

My thanks to everyone who set me straight with their good advice.

BUT... I'd like to attach one more question to this thread, rather than starting another one.

What month/s would you say is the best time to make this cruise?

Thanks again & Cheers.

[VennDiagram]

We personally prefer May over other months. 

 

May is shoulder season.  Sometimes but not always cooler than the rest of the cruise season.  (Alaska weather is a crapshoot -- be prepared for anything 😉 )We've had temps of 70F/20C in Juneau, with sun, in May.  Last year in Ketchikan it was 80F/27C.  But last year in Juneau it was 50F/8C.  May, there is still snow on the mountain peaks.  Fewer kids because most are still in school.  Long hours of daylight as you get past the middle of May.  Not "midnight sun" but lots of hours of daylight.  The locals and tour operators are not yet worn out from months and months of tourists.

 

You won't see salmon spawning, and you will need to be very lucky to see a bear in the wild in May.  Some shore excursions may not be running yet. 

 

Have you chosen a cruise yet?  Have you decided what you want to do and see in Alaska?

 

Other people will have other months they prefer.  We all have our personal preferences. 

[Northern Aurora]

Just some random thoughts --

 

First, I hope our OP has read the trip reports, organized by year, posted at the top of this forum index page.  Skimming through all of them, many of which contain photos, will answer so many questions.  They will help you determine what you want to see and do.  Also peruse the website for Northern Alaska Tours help you decide if you want to go into northern Alaska.

 

While the OP has stated they would chose a cruise which returned to their departure port.   I personally hate "long haul" flights, and now that we are also retired we don't do them anymore.  We will be flying to Auckland in March to spend several days before boarding a ship for a B2B2B2B series.  We will leave the ship in Sydney and spend a few days before flying back to our home in Alaska.  We will break the flight to NZ by spending several nights in Honolulu, and again will spend two nights in Honolulu before taking a flight directly to Anchorage, and then onto Fairbanks. 

 

The Rocky Mountaineer train trip is heavily marketed in the UK. and while we have been to Australia four times through the years I don't remember it being as heavily marketed.  But adding it to an Alaska cruise could be intriguing.

[Sundowners]

Thanks for answering, Venn Diagram.

We live on 3 acres that needs regular and constant mowing when the grass is growing. We like to get away in our winter when the Kykuyu is asleep. Not necessarily for warmer climates as ours is very mild.  So May to October are our preferred times. Narrowed down further, probably August and September.

We really like the look of HAL's 14 day Great Alaskan Explorer for a couple of reasons, but mostly because it departs and arrives in Vancouver which is easy to reach from Sydney. Canadian Airlines fly there direct, where there are no direct flights into Seattle.

Previously we hadn't considered a time as early as May, but will now.

Thanks for your advice on this as its difficult for us, living down-under, to get a grip on the seasons and what they have to offer in the far North.

Cheers

[geoherb]

I just got back from back-to-back cruises on a Princess ship. I went to Juneau and Skagway both on my northbound and southbound cruises. I had been to both on my previous three cruises to Alaska. The ship went to Icy Strait Point on the northbound cruise and Ketchikan on the southbound. Glacier Bay was repeated on both cruises. The northbound cruise went to College Fjord and to Hubbard Glacier on the southbound. I did not mind the repeated ports. But if I were flying such a long distance and may not be back, I'd plan on a cruise that gave me time to see more of Alaska than the coastal towns and cities that a 7-day cruise will give you.

 

I met several Australians on the cruises. One had been traveling on a long holiday: starting in Las Vegas, flying to Calgary and then taking the Rocky Mountaineer to Vancouver. He was taking a land tour in Alaska after his cruise. He said his total holiday was 37 days long. Another was on just a three-week holiday, having spent time in Seattle before the cruise then taking the Princess shuttle to Vancouver to board the ship. He was touring on land after the northbound cruise then flying back to Seattle to fly home.

[vozzie]

One thing to remember.....the availability of dogsled rides (on snow) disappear during September. From Juneau we went by helicopter to the snow and ice fields, where they train their dogs. That isn't available from early September...as the snow has melted...if it's important to you.

[CoW mAn]

I did an 8 day that began in Vancouver and ended in Seattle and it was lovely

 

When it comes time to book I strongly recommend getting an Ocean View cabin...