Help Us Choose!

[nyyhoneybee]

For a party of 11 ages 3 1/2 through 86 (5 kids total) what interary and cruise line would you suggest for Alaska? 

 

We will be going in August. 5 kids, 6 adults. Only one adult has done Alaska before, for 3 of us, it's a bucket list trip. 

 

I'm fine doing a land portion as well, although I'm not sure if the rest of the group would or not. If we do, it will be 5 of us including the youngest. 

 

Edit: we are okay splitting up while in port though it would be nice to be able to balance that. Some together some separate. 

Edited January 28, 2023 by nyyhoneybee

[maggieq]

Alaska has been on our cruise bucket list for a while and we are thinking of going this may.  However, not sure of what itinerary or cruise line to go with.   Airfare is crazy high for us.   Concerned about travel to cruise port from ANC if we started or ended cruise there.   We usually cruise with rccl and celebrity but hearing Princess or HA do Alaska best.  

[AKJonesy]

If 5 of you, I'd recommend renting an RV and going to the Kenai Peninsula.  A package land tour is NOT going to work for kids.  Sitting on a bus for 8 or more hours will be miserable for them.  In an RV, you can stop when you want, where you want and spend as much or as little time as you want.  I mention the Kenai Peninsula because there is much to do and see, and the KP is beautiful.  I'd recommend an RV over a car because then you don't have the added pressure of booking accommodations here which are OUTRAGEOUS. 

[Coral]

I would agree on not doing the land part in a cruise tour. I think your kids would be bored on the long distances and with a large group. I would also agree on spending time in Seward and the Kenai Peninsula. This is not too far from Anchorage and there are a ton of things to do in Seward that would appeal to all ages. 

 

I haven't done an RV so will defer knowledge of this to others.

Edited January 28, 2023 by Coral

[AKJonesy]

I posted about the RV option because many people do this when they come here to AK and they report on the flexibility of it.  I also owned an Rv until recently.  With all of the water and mountains here, the weather can change quickly.  On the coast, like down in Seward the Gulf can churn up a lot of rain, but don't let that discourage you.  What I am getting at here, is that if the weather doesn't cooperate, you can move on down the road.  Into the Kenai Peninsula, there is one road from Anchorage - the Seward Highway.  I tell people that if the weather doesn't cooperate then do that on your trip back to Anchorage.  Whenever we had guests, this is what we did.  I hope this makes sense. 

 

[Coral]

2 hours ago, AKJonesy said:

I posted about the RV option because many people do this when they come here to AK and they report on the flexibility of it.  I also owned an Rv until recently.  With all of the water and mountains here, the weather can change quickly.  On the coast, like down in Seward the Gulf can churn up a lot of rain, but don't let that discourage you.  What I am getting at here, is that if the weather doesn't cooperate, you can move on down the road.  Into the Kenai Peninsula, there is one road from Anchorage - the Seward Highway.  I tell people that if the weather doesn't cooperate then do that on your trip back to Anchorage.  Whenever we had guests, this is what we did.  I hope this makes sense. 

 

Makes perfect sense! Glad to have an Alaskan on this board!

[oaktreerb]

8 hours ago, maggieq said:

Alaska has been on our cruise bucket list for a while and we are thinking of going this may.  However, not sure of what itinerary or cruise line to go with.   Airfare is crazy high for us.   Concerned about travel to cruise port from ANC if we started or ended cruise there.   We usually cruise with rccl and celebrity but hearing Princess or HA do Alaska best.  

The cruise lines have transfers to and from the port.  Holland America and Princess offer a transfer  between Anchorage and the port in Whittier.  Princess and HAL have the most itineraries that include Glacier Bay, which is a National Park and prime viewing area for Glaciers.  

 

i have not traveled with Celebrity or RCCL but they will offer transfers to their ships in Seward and/or to Anchorage.  

 

If this is your first trip you may want to let the cruise lines plan your hotels and transfers.

 

Check out itineraries and times in port, decide what you want to see, check prices and specials for the cruise lines and book your cruise through someone you trust.  

 

 

[pdmlynek]

On 1/28/2023 at 8:08 AM, nyyhoneybee said:

For a party of 11 ages 3 1/2 through 86 (5 kids total) what interary and cruise line would you suggest for Alaska? 

There were 12 of us, 6 adults and 6 kids (10 to 16 yo).  We did it with HAL Vancouver to Seward, and then did a week land portion.

 

During the exursion, we'd typically stay together for the morning, and then we'd split up into 2 to 4 groups, depending on how everybody felt.  Sometimes, we had kids and adults go their separate ways, sometimes men/boys went their way and women/girls went another, sometimes the more active went different places than the less active, etc.

 

The secret is to manage expectations.  "In Ketchikan, let's do __ together for a few hours, and then we can split up", "Everyone meet at MDR for dinner at 19:00", etc.

 

It worked, and we all look fondly on our trip together.