Alaska Cruise Decisions

[bubbapuck]

Hello Everyone! I had a post removed for some reason. Not 100% sure why but I read the rules and am rewording my post to get the info I need. 

 

My wife and I are celebrating our 25th anniversary in 2021. I want to surprise her dream cruise to Alaska for Christmas. I have looked at the prospective itineraries and have narrowed it down to two options... which I am struggling to pick one. I will list the cruises and explain why I like/dislike and would like anyone's opinion. As a single family income, cost is important but both of these are in our budget.

 

1) 14-Day Inside Passage (Roundtrip Los Angeles w/ Hubbard Glacier) out of Los Angeles in July 2021. This will be on the Sun Princess. It hits Ketchikan, Skagway, Icy Straight Point, Sitka, Juneau, Victoria, and the Hubbard Glacier.

• Los Angeles is our home port and would not have to pay for flights, hotel, or transport to the port.
• No Glacier Bay and we don't go up to Anchorage.
• We love sea days and this gives us 5 or 6 full sea days. This cruise doesn't seems as rushed as there are not as many port days where we may feel obligated to get off and do something.
• I have a feeling the cost of this cruise may lower in the future and thus save me on the cruise cost. The itinerary is not as good as the other cruise. Since there are only 4 cruises from LA in 2021 on a smaller ship, the demand may be higher and the price may not lower as much as I think.

 

2) 14-Day Voyage of the Glaciers Grand Adventure out of Vancouver in May 2021. This will be on the Star Princess. It hits Ketchikan twice, Juneau twice, Skagway twice, Glacier Bay twice, Hubbard Glacier, Anchorage, and College Fjord.

• We would have to fly to Vancouver. The cruise and flights match the cost of the LA cruise but the hotel, extra meals, transport, etc may cause the cost to be higher.
• I THINK I like this itinerary more as we go deeper into Alaska and hit multiple Fjords/Glaciers. Would you prefer Anchorage over Icy Straight Point/Sitka?
• We love sea days and this doesn't have as many. It does have cruise ports multiple times so we can have extra "sea days" on days we hit ports already visited.
• More port days means more $$$ spent in port. Excursions, meals, souvenirs, etc. 
• I am not sure if this cruise will lower in price. it seems to be a more popular cruise but there are many more Glaciers Grand Adventure cruises that has more supply than the 4 LA cruises.

 

We are honestly not that picky which one we pick. The main things we want to do are the train up the mountain, visit the state capital in Juneau, and eat some quality sea food. It is a dream to just visit Alaska and enjoy time together, we will be very happy with either. Either cruise achieves all of these goals. Also, I have the budget for both cruises now.... the basics and a few excursions (I know they are much higher in Alaska than other cruises).  Any sort of future cost savings are great but I just want to make sure any hidden costs may cause the costs to go much higher. 

 

I would just love anyone's feedback. The more conversation, the more I learn and can make the best choice. Please do not discuss anything that may have this post disappear. My previous post has good advice from people that is now gone. 

 

 

 

[Sea Hag]

I'd go for the one that's round trip Vancouver, even though I really don't like flying in and out of Vancouver. The port call in Whittier (Anchorage) has some really nice small boat glacier day cruises. We did one once there, and it was really good. If you decide on this one, you should definitely consider one of these.

 

Having said that, we loved Sitka and for some reason only managed to get there once. Been trying to get back again ever since.

[lstone19]

You likely know this but the reason your second option hits ports twice is it actually two seven-night cruises back-to-back. Most of the passengers will change at Whittier.

 

But if you're going to go all the way to Whittier (for Anchorage), you really should think about doing a cruise tour and seeing the interior. If you really want 14 days at sea and have three weeks available, think about doing a northbound cruise, followed immediately by a 14-night cruise tour that puts you on a different Princess ship for the return. You can also spend a night or two on your own to match up with a shorter cruise tour.

[The Mikado]

We decided to do a back-to-back out of Vancouver to cut down on the sea days. Besides, Vancouver is gorgeous and we decided to spend a couple of days there on one end or the other.

 

While it will definitely increase the costs, it gives us an extra 4 days on the inside passage vs the "wham-bam" on the 10-day RT out of San Fran.

[greenie082756]

We have done the Alaska cruise out of LA and loved it.  We have signed up for July 8th round trip LA to Alaska (14 day) Inside Glacier next year.

We prefer to do LA for 2 reasons. Closer to home for us and we like the sea days.

I think you have to count your plus's and minus's and take it from there.

[Tapi]

I like the idea of the one way from Vancouver followed by the land portion rather than doing two back to back 7 day cruises. When we did Alaska, we did it as cheaply as possible (round trip from Seattle) and although we had an absolutely fantastic cruise, I feel as if we missed SO much by not going deeper into Alaska, or taking a land portion. 
 

If my options are strictly the two that you presented, I’d go with flying to Vancouver and doing the back to back cruises round trip. A huge part of an Alaska cruise is what you’ll see from the ship as it traverses the inside passage. Cruising from LA may be convenient, but you will also spend a lot of days “at sea” but with no scenery to look at. I get enjoying days at sea. I love sea days too. But I wouldn’t pick an expensive Alaska cruise for the sea days. 

Edited December 11, 2019 by Tapi

[lois1112]

I live in the LA area as well, and I would for sure (and do when possible) the round trip LA

[azbirdmom]

Is this the post you thought was removed?  It's still out there.  

 

[bubbapuck]

2 hours ago, Sea Hag said:

I'd go for the one that's round trip Vancouver, even though I really don't like flying in and out of Vancouver. The port call in Whittier (Anchorage) has some really nice small boat glacier day cruises. We did one once there, and it was really good. If you decide on this one, you should definitely consider one of these.

 

Having said that, we loved Sitka and for some reason only managed to get there once. Been trying to get back again ever since.

Sitka is a city I would like to visit. This decision is a tough one as I like both itineraries a lot. 

[bubbapuck]

2 hours ago, lstone19 said:

You likely know this but the reason your second option hits ports twice is it actually two seven-night cruises back-to-back. Most of the passengers will change at Whittier.

 

But if you're going to go all the way to Whittier (for Anchorage), you really should think about doing a cruise tour and seeing the interior. If you really want 14 days at sea and have three weeks available, think about doing a northbound cruise, followed immediately by a 14-night cruise tour that puts you on a different Princess ship for the return. You can also spend a night or two on your own to match up with a shorter cruise tour.

unfortunately longer trips and cruise tours are out of the budget. If we enjoy our trip we may plan a trip to Alaska in the future to go to Denali. My wife was born in El Salvador so I want to see how she handles Alaska from the comfort of a warm ship first. 🙂

[bubbapuck]

2 hours ago, The Mikado said:

We decided to do a back-to-back out of Vancouver to cut down on the sea days. Besides, Vancouver is gorgeous and we decided to spend a couple of days there on one end or the other.

 

While it will definitely increase the costs, it gives us an extra 4 days on the inside passage vs the "wham-bam" on the 10-day RT out of San Fran.

I was raised a hockey fan and I have always wanted to go to Vancouver. If I choose this option I will definitely go a little early to at least do the hop on/hope off of the city. It will definitely be One highlight Of my trip. 

[bubbapuck]

2 hours ago, greenie082756 said:

We have done the Alaska cruise out of LA and loved it.  We have signed up for July 8th round trip LA to Alaska (14 day) Inside Glacier next year.

We prefer to do LA for 2 reasons. Closer to home for us and we like the sea days.

I think you have to count your plus's and minus's and take it from there.

Agreed. One do the reasons I posted his thread I because a lot of the posts I have read helped me get a clearer picture of the positives and negatives of both trips. I have learned so much on these forums and look forward to reading peoples posts about these trips and getting a much clearer picture of positives and negatives I haven’t thought about. 
 

My wife and I enjoy sea days but I enjoy them more. My wife liked our 2 straight sea days on our Baja CA Cruise. I am worried she may get a little

bored on The three straight sea days the LA Cruise has. Is there enough to keep you busy on three consecutive sea days?

[MamaFej]

6 minutes ago, bubbapuck said:

unfortunately longer trips and cruise tours are out of the budget. If we enjoy our trip we may plan a trip to Alaska in the future to go to Denali. My wife was born in El Salvador so I want to see how she handles Alaska from the comfort of a warm ship first. 🙂

I do hope you will return to Alaska someday and see the interior. It's such a vast and beautiful place! If you don't RV around yourself, I highly recommend a cruise tour. The train ride is amazing, as are other aspects.

 

It's my favorite state to visit, and I've been to every state at least twice, most six or more times. Alaska wins, hands down.

 

We are doing the 14 night from LA at the end of May for our 4th visit to AK, partly because we won't have to pay for flights, partly because we really want to go to Sitka, as we've never been there, partly because we all enjoy sea days, and mostly because that's when the adult offspring can join us. 

 

I do hope you find the best itinerary for you. Rest assured, no matter which you pick, you will almost certainly love Alaska and be eager to return.

[bubbapuck]

2 hours ago, Tapi said:

I like the idea of the one way from Vancouver followed by the land portion rather than doing two back to back 7 day cruises. When we did Alaska, we did it as cheaply as possible (round trip from Seattle) and although we had an absolutely fantastic cruise, I feel as if we missed SO much by not going deeper into Alaska, or taking a land portion. 
 

If my options are strictly the two that you presented, I’d go with flying to Vancouver and doing the back to back cruises round trip. A huge part of an Alaska cruise is what you’ll see from the ship as it traverses the inside passage. Cruising from LA may be convenient, but you will also spend a lot of days “at sea” but with no scenery to look at. I get enjoying days at sea. I love sea days too. But I wouldn’t pick an expensive Alaska cruise for the sea days. 

my concern about exploring Alaska outside of a cruise is my wife was born in El Salvador and is normally a warm climate type of person. I always wanted to cruise Alaska but she wanted warm weather cruises. After watching some videos on YouTube she got really excited about the possibility. I am afraid “too much” Alaska may give her a bad impression. I am hoping the cruises exploring the different ports will help her get a feel of it to better understand if she would enjoy it. If so, I will definitely plan a trip to explore More if the inside of Alaska. 

[bubbapuck]

1 hour ago, azbirdmom said:

Is this the post you thought was removed?  It's still out there.  

 

Thanks AZ Birdmom. That is not the post. That was my first post when I was trying to inquire about when dates would open for sale. I had another post, similar to the one above but it got more into the budget side. I believe it ended up removed because of some violations relating to third party services that may have come up. Either way, this post is more the direction I wanted to go anyway. I am sad a lot of the good advice is gone but I am hoping to collect some great new info here. 

[MamaFej]

1 minute ago, bubbapuck said:

my concern about exploring Alaska outside of a cruise is my wife was born in El Salvador and is normally a warm climate type of person. I always wanted to cruise Alaska but she wanted warm weather cruises. After watching some videos on YouTube she got really excited about the possibility. I am afraid “too much” Alaska may give her a bad impression. I am hoping the cruises exploring the different ports will help her get a feel of it to better understand if she would enjoy it. If so, I will definitely plan a trip to explore More if the inside of Alaska. 

If you go during summer, you'll be amazed at how warm it can be. I've walked around Fairbanks and Anchorage in shorts. 

 

I'm not a big fan of cold, and can't believe my son went to Montana for college, then stayed! Many parts of Alaska are quite temperate in summer. Even when we did a Denali (aka Mt. McKinley) glacier landing, we wore pants and short-sleeved shirts. We saw people walking and cross country skiing around base camp shirtless and in shorts.

[bubbapuck]

6 minutes ago, MamaFej said:

I do hope you will return to Alaska someday and see the interior. It's such a vast and beautiful place! If you don't RV around yourself, I highly recommend a cruise tour. The train ride is amazing, as are other aspects.

 

It's my favorite state to visit, and I've been to every state at least twice, most six or more times. Alaska wins, hands down.

 

We are doing the 14 night from LA at the end of May for our 4th visit to AK, partly because we won't have to pay for flights, partly because we really want to go to Sitka, as we've never been there, partly because we all enjoy sea days, and mostly because that's when the adult offspring can join us. 

 

I do hope you find the best itinerary for you. Rest assured, no matter which you pick, you will almost certainly love Alaska and be eager to return.

 

Thanks! My wife and I love cruising and there is a very good chance that if my wife like one of these itineraries, we may be back to explore the other. Once I find out her feelings after the first Alaskan cruise I will go from there. 
 

Yoj are going with adult offspring? My wife and I started cruising to get away from them! 🙂

[MamaFej]

10 minutes ago, bubbapuck said:

 

Yoj are going with adult offspring? My wife and I started cruising to get away from them! 🙂

We do that, too. The middle one is a college junior living at home and the youngest will graduate HS in May, then attend a local college as well. Hubby and I have two 10+ weeks trips booked between next September and the following May, and lots more being planned. 

 

We need someone to take care of the house and dogs anyway. Bonus: our kids get along great and are responsible. 

 

Hubby and I aren't going to be empty-nesters just yet, we're going to have our kids do it first! 

 

Hopefully, one of them will stay fairly nearby after moving out, but this arrangement works out well for all of us in the meantime. 

[SusieKIslandGirl]

We just booked the Voyage of the Glaciers for this May. What I found out afterwards (I know-should have done more research first!) is that the airport in Anchorage is over 2 hours from the port in Whittier. We found a transfer company for the trip from Whittier to Anchorage for about $35 p/p. We booked our flights through Princess and were able to get 1st class for an amazing price. Because we booked with Princess we're flying in to Vancouver the morning of the cruise and taking the Sky Train to the pier.

[bubbapuck]

12 minutes ago, SusieKIslandGirl said:

We just booked the Voyage of the Glaciers for this May. What I found out afterwards (I know-should have done more research first!) is that the airport in Anchorage is over 2 hours from the port in Whittier. We found a transfer company for the trip from Whittier to Anchorage for about $35 p/p. We booked our flights through Princess and were able to get 1st class for an amazing price. Because we booked with Princess we're flying in to Vancouver the morning of the cruise and taking the Sky Train to the pier.

Thank you for this info. I haven’t done any sort of research on any of the ports yet but  didn’t realize Anchorage was so far from Whittier. The cruise I am looking at is the grand glacier cruise that starts and ends in Vancouver but I was looking forward to Anchorage which seems like I won’t see going To Whittier... unless they have an excursion from there to Anchorage. 

[Tapi]

1 hour ago, bubbapuck said:

my concern about exploring Alaska outside of a cruise is my wife was born in El Salvador and is normally a warm climate type of person.

I get that. My family is from Puerto Rico, so needless to say they are warm climate type of people as well. We had 6 family members who flew from San Juan to Seattle to sail on this family Alaska cruise. Everybody enjoyed it tremendously. Truly a memorable experience. We sailed in early June, and the temperatures were surprisingly mild, with some days hovering in the 60’s, although we had a few colder days and nights that dipped in the 40’s. We did A LOT of walking, specially in Sitka and Victoria. But overall, everybody loved sailing in Alaska and the cold wasn’t as much of an issue as many thought. Do go prepared though (maybe not quite as some of my  family members who came prepared as if we were sailing in Antarctica in the dead of the coldest months 😂). Thankfully all we needed for most of the cruise were sweaters and a jacket. 

Edited December 12, 2019 by Tapi

[donaldsc]

6 hours ago, bubbapuck said:

 

 

1) 14-Day Inside Passage (Roundtrip Los Angeles w/ Hubbard Glacier) out of Los Angeles in July 2021. This will be on the Sun Princess. It hits Ketchikan, Skagway, Icy Straight Point, Sitka, Juneau, Victoria, and the Hubbard Glacier.

• Los Angeles is our home port and would not have to pay for flights, hotel, or transport to the port.
• No Glacier Bay and we don't go up to Anchorage.
• We love sea days and this gives us 5 or 6 full sea days. This cruise doesn't seems as rushed as there are not as many port days where we may feel obligated to get off and do something.
• I have a feeling the cost of this cruise may lower in the future and thus save me on the cruise cost. The itinerary is not as good as the other cruise. Since there are only 4 cruises from LA in 2021 on a smaller ship, the demand may be higher and the price may not lower as much as I think.

 

 

 

•  

 

We are honestly not that picky which one we pick. The main things we want to do are the train up the mountain, visit the state capital in Juneau, and eat some quality sea food. It is a dream to just visit Alaska and enjoy time together, we will be very happy with either. Either cruise achieves all of these goals. Also, I have the budget for both cruises now.... the basics and a few excursions (I know they are much higher in Alaska than other cruises).  Any sort of future cost savings are great but I just want to make sure any hidden costs may cause the costs to go much higher. 

 

 

 

 

I am going to comment on the 2 parts of your post that I have red-modified.

 

You say that you love sea days.  I get that some people love sea days although I personally hate them but cruising in AK is different from cruising in say the Caribbean or other parts of the world.  When you do AK, you are going to experience AK and not to sit on the ship and watch the ocean go by.  You can do that on other cruises.  In AK, you want to get off the ship and see what makes AK special.  I would go for the cruise that has good ports and good port times as opposed to the one with more sea days.

 

With regard to eating quality sea food, most seafood is seasonal and is is also in many cases flash frozen on the boat where it is caught.  Therefore, it is likely that when you get seafood in AK, it is frozen seafood.  For example, many people insist on going out and eating king crab in AK.  There is another post on CC discussing king crab but it is guaranteed that any king crab that you eat in AK is frozen.  If there is a good seafood restaurant where you live, the seafood that you can get there whether fresh or frozen will be as good as the stuff that you get in AK.

 

DON

[crystalspin]

8 hours ago, bubbapuck said:

Hello Everyone! I had a post removed for some reason. Not 100% sure why but I read the rules and am rewording my post to get the info I need. ... I have looked at the prospective itineraries and have narrowed it down to two options... which I am struggling to pick one...

 

1) 14-Day Inside Passage (Roundtrip Los Angeles w/ Hubbard Glacier) out of Los Angeles in July 2021. This will be on the Sun Princess. It hits Ketchikan, Skagway, Icy Straight Point, Sitka, Juneau, Victoria, and the Hubbard Glacier.

...

2) 14-Day Voyage of the Glaciers Grand Adventure out of Vancouver in May 2021. This will be on the Star Princess. It hits Ketchikan twice, Juneau twice, Skagway twice, Glacier Bay twice, Hubbard Glacier, Anchorage, and College Fjord.

• I THINK I like this itinerary more as we go deeper into Alaska and hit multiple Fjords/Glaciers. Would you prefer Anchorage over Icy Straight Point/Sitka?

I looked and looked for that other thread! I thought I was going blind or crazy! We are on the LA-roundtrip this June on the Golden Princess. It will be our fourth AK cruise and my sister/BIL's third. We have been to all of your possible ports except Whittier.

 

As you have learned above, "Anchorage" on the Voyage of Glaciers itinerary is not Anchorage. The ship will probably bus you there for some excursion or maybe just to drop you off and bring you back, but my point would be that on your second choice you are NOT going deeper into Alaska, only a little farther north.

 

Anchorage is by So.Cal standards, a small city, but it is a city nonetheless and not "deeper Alaska". Of the ports for both cruises, the ones that are "more" Alaskan (less touristy) are Icy Strait Point and Sitka.

 

I would definitely prefer ISP+Sitka over either Whittier or Anchorage. And while viewing glaciers, hoping for a calving event is great fun, it is cold out on the decks! So for you and DW, after the first one, I suspect those days will be seadays with maybe a bit more scenic views. And you will have the Hubbard day on the Sun Princess. So your experience will not be multiplied by doing it four times.

 

Finally, while Ketchikan, Juneau, and Skagway have their charms, I would not be too keen on seeing them each twice in two weeks. And Vancouver deserves a land-trip visit sometime in your future.

 

So my vote is for RT/LA on the Sun Princess, and spend the money you would need to stay over in Vancouver on your shore excursions. Recommendations for which I can provide in a later thread!

Edited December 12, 2019 by crystalspin

[bubbapuck]

35 minutes ago, crystalspin said:

I looked and looked for that other thread! I thought I was going blind or crazy! We are on the LA-roundtrip this June on the Golden Princess. It will be our fourth AK cruise and my sister/BIL's third. We have been to all of your possible ports except Whittier.

 

As you have learned above, "Anchorage" on the Voyage of Glaciers itinerary is not Anchorage. The ship will probably bus you there for some excursion or maybe just to drop you off and bring you back, but my point would be that on your second choice you are NOT going deeper into Alaska, only a little farther north.

 

Anchorage is by So.Cal standards, a small city, but it is a city nonetheless and not "deeper Alaska". Of the ports for both cruises, the ones that are "more" Alaskan (less touristy) are Icy Strait Point and Sitka.

 

I would definitely prefer ISP+Sitka over either Whittier or Anchorage. And while viewing glaciers, hoping for a calving event is great fun, it is cold out on the decks! So for you and DW, after the first one, I suspect those days will be seadays with maybe a bit more scenic views. And you will have the Hubbard day on the Sun Princess. So your experience will not be multiplied by doing it four times.

 

Finally, while Ketchikan, Juneau, and Skagway have their charms, I would not be too keen on seeing them each twice in two weeks. And Vancouver deserves a land-trip visit sometime in your future.

 

So my vote is for RT/LA on the Sun Princess, and spend the money you would need to stay over in Vancouver on your shore excursions. Recommendations for which I can provide in a later thread!

Thanks  Crystal. You bring up some very valid points in favor of the LA cruise. O wasn’t so sure about the same ports up and back. Someone gave a good point That if the weather is bad one day in a port I have another shot but when you goto Alaska you know and prepare for bad weather. 
 

 I really wanted to see the Anchorage area but not knowing much about this, I guess we don’t actually hit Anchorage. I am not sure if Whittier is worth missing Sitka and Icy Strait Point. 

 

What is your opinion of ISP and Sitka?

[crystalspin]

DH and I did not get off the ship in ISP (but the other 7 of our party did). DH wasn't feeling 100% that day. I believe there was not too much to do if you didn't have an excursion, but take a walk (which isn't a bad thing!)... As the planner for the family, I chose not to book a tour here, instead spending more money in some of the other ports. There is a brewery, if that appeals! Maybe others can pipe up with what they did here.

 

Sitka is FABULOUS! The forest comes right down to the houses, some places right down to the road. We booked a "triple tour" from the ship (HAL but I'm sure most ship's will have similar). Ours was called "Otters and Eagles and Bears OH MY". A boat ride to see 'rafts' of otters -- and we also saw more whales and closer than in Juneau! -- the Raptor Rescue Center (it was raining, but my sister walked the nature trail anyway and saw more salmon running there than in Ketchikan. However, they won't be running anywhere in July I don't think), and the Fortress of the Bear -- which is a lumber yard? or quarry? that has been turned into the most amazing rescue site for grizzly bearcubs -- they raise them up in a way that they could be released to the wild (not accustomed to people) IF the law against that were ever changed. You go up above them on a platform and watch, there were two pairs of bears in separate halves of the quarry. GREAT photo ops!

 

I won't promise the whales, others have said they did not see them. We did the scientific whale-watch in Juneau (this last time) and the NOAA restrictions meant we only saw the whales from quite a distance. Sitka made up for it! Note that it wasn't because the Allen Family boat's pilot disregarded the safety of the whales -- the whales came to the boat, not the other way around!

 

ETA: there is a location board for Alaska.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/33-alaska/

Browse around and if you don't find anything for ISP, start a thread to ask about it!

Edited December 12, 2019 by crystalspin