Pros and cons of Alaska cruise tour

[ghc10]

Our cruise for July 2024 was cancelled by ncl for a charter. So now we are picking another sailing trying to stay sane date range. Due to that restriction and pricing we are now going to start in Canada and do the land tour after. 
 

any pros or cons of doing land after the 7 day cruise.  It is our first trip to Alaska and want it to be the best vacation for all of us. Group of 30. 
 

thank you 
 

 

[bonvoyagie]

Some of it depends on the length of the tour, we are doing a SB 14 day cruise tour this June, We chose it for two reasons - the SB cruise visits a new port for us - Icy Strait Point and the tour portion is comprised of jam packed days of getting up early to meet the bus/train for the days adventure. The only down time we have is spending the last day in Homer as a DIY day. The following day we head from there to Seward and the Jewel. From there we unpack once and relax for the next 7 days enjoying the cruise. NB tours have the relaxing part first and the frantic part second for instance on the NB version of our tour the first two days are spent in Homer and the last day in Fairbanks then off to the airport for home. Perhaps a shorter tour would not be as rushed  - at least for so many days.

[Travelling2Some]

Just a FYI that the (only) road through Denali National Park is expected to remain closed at Mile 43. through 2024 due to the landslide at Pretty Rocks.  We are putting off our land trip until 2025 for that reason. 

[SeekingKillerWhales!]

We did the one week cruise and 5 night land tour (2 nights in Denali) in 2015. We did the cruise first and the park/land tour after. 

 

In all honesty, I wish we had done the land tour first. It was 5 very action paced days, lots of moving around and unpacking/packing (3 different hotels), full days hiking, and a loooong couple of flights home at the end of it. I wish we had front loaded the big flight/travel, did all the hiking and exploring, and had a couple of sea days to rest up from all that. Instead, we got home exhausted. Happy, but exhausted. 

 

Just something to consider. But the land tour was amazing and I highly, highly recommend it. (We were on Princess, so I'm not sure how that compares to NCL.) 

[ollienbertsmum]

My family of 4 ((2 daughters in mid twenties) did our land portion (3 nights in Denali and one night to visit the Matanuska glacier) prior to our SB cruise.  I planned the tour myself and know that I saved about one third on the price.  We did find that shaking off any time-difference sleep disturbance was easier in a hotel than on a cruise where you would want to be seeing everything that was happening on board.  Also a big consideration for us was getting laundry done.  The land tour portion involved getting our clothes dirtier, so then when we boarded Princess ship we had laundry facilities.    

[Cruiser from Kansas]

22 hours ago, SeekingKillerWhales! said:

We did the one week cruise and 5 night land tour (2 nights in Denali) in 2015. We did the cruise first and the park/land tour after. 

 

In all honesty, I wish we had done the land tour first. It was 5 very action paced days, lots of moving around and unpacking/packing (3 different hotels), full days hiking, and a loooong couple of flights home at the end of it. I wish we had front loaded the big flight/travel, did all the hiking and exploring, and had a couple of sea days to rest up from all that. Instead, we got home exhausted. Happy, but exhausted. 

 

Just something to consider. But the land tour was amazing and I highly, highly recommend it. (We were on Princess, so I'm not sure how that compares to NCL.) 

We have completed our check in today but still do not have any information about our land tour.

Is this normal? Do you remember?

 

[robbinsca]

We just rented a car and went where we wanted rather than doing the land tour. It was easy, and much cheaper, but there were only two of us. With 30 the logistics are a bit more involved and the land tour may be a better choice.

[Let Me Travel!]

Last year we did the land tour right after our 7 day cruise to Alaska…the land tour was really good…the hotels were not great,  and they really don’t tell you about how much the food will cost (a lot)…the interior of Alaska is stunning…we DID get to see the top of Denali (kinda rare)…but you can only see it when you are in Denali Park…and it is way in the distance…we are really glad we did it.

 

Heading to Alaska again one week from today…only the cruise, but always excited to see beautiful Alaska.

[Doug_S]

Our July  2024 cruise was also cancelled (NCL Spirit) so we rebooked on the Jewel. Despite NCLs supposed 10% discount for the inconvenience of the cancellation, the price to rebook was hundreds more in cost. And NCL offers no adjustment. So be aware they will just charge you more for the same trip. Guest relations is a joke!

[CCJack]

Probably pros and cons to both.  

 

Cruising Southbound and doing the land portion first has the advantage of doing the busiest / taxing portion first then relax on the cruise.  

 

Cruising Northbound and doing land portion last has the advantage of the cruise leaving from Vancouver which is a great departure city.   Spending 1 or 2 nights there is perfect pre-cruise, the ships dock right downtown, etc....

 

[Travelling2Some]

On 5/23/2023 at 9:43 AM, Doug_S said:

Our July  2024 cruise was also cancelled (NCL Spirit) so we rebooked on the Jewel. Despite NCLs supposed 10% discount for the inconvenience of the cancellation, the price to rebook was hundreds more in cost. And NCL offers no adjustment. So be aware they will just charge you more for the same trip. Guest relations is a joke!

We had the same thing happen when a sailing was chartered out from under us.  Prices had gone way up since we booked and were beyond what we would consider paying. Really felt badly for those who had already bought airfare.

Edited May 24, 2023 by Travelling2Some

[SeekingKillerWhales!]

On 5/22/2023 at 7:02 PM, Cruiser from Kansas said:

We have completed our check in today but still do not have any information about our land tour.

Is this normal? Do you remember?

 

It's been so long ago, and was on Princess, I just couldn't tell you. But we had an idea of our itinerary and 2 of the three hotels (Princess hotels, only choice. They were nice. Food very expensive, but stores around), long before leaving. Call NCL if you don't know times and places yet, as less than 3 weeks out you should know. Have fun!

[ollienbertsmum]

22 hours ago, CCJack said:

Probably pros and cons to both.  

 

Cruising Southbound and doing the land portion first has the advantage of doing the busiest / taxing portion first then relax on the cruise.  

 

Cruising Northbound and doing land portion last has the advantage of the cruise leaving from Vancouver which is a great departure city.   Spending 1 or 2 nights there is perfect pre-cruise, the ships dock right downtown, etc....

 

We went southbound and stayed in Vancouver for three nights post cruise.  I loved that city. 

[cindyflora]

1 hour ago, ollienbertsmum said:

We went southbound and stayed in Vancouver for three nights post cruise.  I loved that city. 

We are doing same in Sept.What did you do in Vancouver?

Thanks for any additional advice.

 

[Cruiser from Kansas]

On 5/24/2023 at 7:14 PM, SeekingKillerWhales! said:

It's been so long ago, and was on Princess, I just couldn't tell you. But we had an idea of our itinerary and 2 of the three hotels (Princess hotels, only choice. They were nice. Food very expensive, but stores around), long before leaving. Call NCL if you don't know times and places yet, as less than 3 weeks out you should know. Have fun!

Finally got our ground itinerary yesterday after finding the right person at Ncl

Hotels not yet assigned until arrival 

 

[kitkat343]

We travelled to Alaska at the last minute.  the only options were northbound, with a land excursion at the end.  The biggest advantage was that the scenery got more exciting as you sailed northwards.  I liked having the cruisetour at the end since the cruise was a bit more relaxing (and I was pregnant).  I realize you have 30 people with you, so this might not be applicable to your group but with smaller numbers an independent land tour is a great way to go, and it saved us  a lot of money.  But there's an issue with the denali busses this year so this might not be the best year for that cruise tour. 

Edited May 27, 2023 by kitkat343