Which side of the ship??

[tmg698]

I am going on Spirit to Alaska in July for a balcony which side of the ship would have the best view. This is a roundtrip from Seattle.

[scoobysnacks70]

I would say going up would be the right side (because the land will be on that side) and coming back would be the left 🙂

[Jeafl]

Not sure about Carnival, but Holland America turned the ship in complete circles so everyone had a great view of the glaciers.

 

[1025cruise]

It doesn't matter.

[Homosassa]

2 hours ago, scoobysnacks70 said:

I would say going up would be the right side (because the land will be on that side) and coming back would be the left 🙂

I take it you have never cruised to Alaska or are not familiar with the geographic features of Alaska and its waters.

[bar1068]

We did a "spur of the moment" Alaska cruise last August on the Splendor taking advantage of a crazy discounted cruise fare, but the fare was only for interior cabins, but we booked regardless to take advantage of the low fare. I've read numerous accounts of how a balcony cabin is a "MUST"!!! for an Alaskan cruise, but I was not convinced. Having taken that cruise, I'm less convinced. The cabin we booked was forward on the ship, and a quick walk out to the "secret deck" where there is a much better view than you'd get in any balcony. Plus we also spent very little time in the cabin, something we felt we would have done even had we booked a balcony. Sites to view occured all around the ship, roaming around the decks we were able to move from port to starboard and vice versa when the naturalist onboard spotted something worth viewing.  

 

The other side of booking a low cost fare vs the pretty much guaranteed over inflated cost of a balcony, was the dollars we didn't spend on a balcony, we spent on excursions we wanted to do, which are also pretty pricey. 

 

 

[nwcruiselover]

2 hours ago, Jeafl said:

Not sure about Carnival, but Holland America turned the ship in complete circles so everyone had a great view of the glaciers.

 

Yes,  Carnival also turns completely around at the glaciers so everyone gets to see the view. 

[Mic101680]

It really doesn't matter - you'll be facing landward going out or coming back, and when you cruise the glaciers, they spin the ship in circles. 

[staceyglow]

I have been on two Alaska cruises - each a one-way.  One started in Alaska and the other started in Vancouver.  Didn't have a balcony on either one.  Don't regret it one bit.

 

We spent our time up on the open decks (Lido and higher) whenever we were near glaciers or other sights to see.  That way we could move quickly whenever there was something on the other side to see.  I know we saw things we might never have if we were on a balcony - like a bald eagle perched on an iceberg floating by one side of the ship, or a glacier calving right in front of the bow.