Air Flight Question for Alaska Cruisers

[Nibby1]

Can any of you Carnival Spirit Alaska cruisers answer a question about air flights into Anchorage? With a cruise departure time of 9 PM out of Whittier, is it reasonable to fly out of SC into Anchorage the same day, or is an overnight stay advisable? We are looking into the possibility of the 5/25/05 Southbound cruise and also wondered if the weather will be okay, or would we be better off paying the extra dollars for a July or August cruise. This would be our first trip to Alaska and we'd love to hear from some of you who have had the experience and would offer tips to us in our planning. Thanks!

[nikki796]

its such a long journey, its worth it to fly in a day ahead of time to relax, get your bearings and avoid potential nerve-wracking delays. will u be touring post-cruise? remember, alaska is 4 hrs different than est, so you will be exhausted after leaving home for early flights out west and when that 9pm sail time comes, you'll be on 1am est - so go early.

[betsyrossapk]

I was wonderring if anyone could direct me to the "airline" board. I miss that forum because it was a good place to go to with airline questions such as this.

nikki796, you & I are neighbors. I live in Hinckley, just south of Cleveland.

 

Inspiration: 11/4/04

[floridasteelerfans]

we took the southbound cruise last year,we were very lucky with the weather.it only rained one day. we went on june 11. i highly recomend including the land tour if possible. we did the land tour first and then the cruise. the flights went smooth except for Vancouver return home. we were in line for almost 3 hours between customs and check in and almost missed our flight back to florida. it was a wonderful experiance on the cruise and land tour. cruise was on spirit and land tour was with ship and shore.

[CCLNCLRCICRUISER]

I was wonderring if anyone could direct me to the "airline" board. I miss that forum because it was a good place to go to with airline questions such as this.

nikki796, you & I are neighbors. I live in Hinckley, just south of Cleveland.

 

Inspiration: 11/4/04

betsyrossapk

Here is the link to the Cruise Air forum.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?s=&daysprune=&f=128

[pal900]

I've been to Alaska twice..2000 and 2003 and both times in May. I highly recommend May as it is the best time to see animals... saw bear both times (they are shortly out of hibernation, tending to their yound and looking for food!) Just maybe won't see ORca's then, but we saw humpback whales both times too. The weahter in May when we went (one beginning of May, once end) was very good.... between both trips not even two full days of rain and weather was warm... not shorts warm, but wind pants and short shirt warm.

 

I highly recommend you come in at least one day early with the time difference and long flight it really is necessary.

 

You will love Alaska, we will go back again in 2006; out of all our cruises it is the favorite one!

[garycarla]

Day early or not?

 

If you miss the ship, you miss one of the BEST days at sea, cruising the glacier. How much is that worth to you?

 

Sure, 95%+ flights will fly and land on time, but is it worth it to chance it? Besides, why not see Anchorage first and get rested. Find a hotel downtown, see a few sights, maybe even fly to Mt McKinnley if you have the $$$.

[Jenifire]

We just got back from the northbound cruise. If you have any questions, feel free to let me know and I would be happy to answer, or just e-mail me at jenifire@iserv.net

Jenny

[kkorman]

If flying in the day of your cruise, you have to be careful that you are able to get to Whittier. You can get threre by train or bus. The tunnel that gets you to Whittier (shared by trains and vehicles) closes at 5 PM, so be sure to plan accordingly. I did and would recommend the day before and if time even more. I have heard mixed opinions on the land tours. I would probably arrange my own if I was to do it. I am sure it is much cheaper.