Which cruise line to Alaska?

[Sweetly]

My family will be doing a cruise and land tour for Alaska. With so many choices we just can't decide which cruise line. One place that we would want to go is to Kenai. My father was stationed in Kenai when he was in the service and we would like to take him back. Even if we see Kenai by booking an excursion. Any suggestions would help.

[CraftyDD]

Carnival Spirit southbound this past year. Some of our group did land tour before and after cruise. Ports were Sitka, Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan. The price was reasonable, the ship was beautiful. The rooms were spacious and the staff was very friendly and helpful.

 

Make sure you get a balcony room - it is a must have.

[ARRTrain]

You would probably have to book any cruiseline up here and then do the land trip on your own.

 

The old military airbase in Kenai has been converted to a prison.

 

http://www.wildwoodsta.com/

 

http://www.wildwoodsta.com/history.html

[letsgoplaces]

We just got back from our Northbound cruise on the HAL ship Veendam. The dates were Sept.17-24th. We left from Vancouver and stopped in Juneau, Haines, and Ketchikan and also cruised Glacier Bay. We got our tickets 4 months prior and paid 560pp for an inside room. The ship is gorgeous with the most beautiful wood decks. Our room was awesome and contrary to what so many say......you CAN go from a balcony to an inside AND you DO NOT NEED a balcony when cruising Alaska. I can't tell you how many people from balcony rooms came running out on deck at all hours in order to see what was on the other side. Many times one side of the ship was encased in fog while the other side had perfect views. In order to get the full scope of things.....the decks were the place to be!

The inside rooms on this ship are big and comfortable. The beds can not be described as they are the MOST comfortable ever with the MOST gorgeous linens. Flat panel TV's....DVD players....flowers and fruit and robes everyday in your spotless room. The crew and passengers polite and courteous. The food?...........delicious. The ports were fantastic and even though cloudy most of the days........we saw bears ( everyone said we wouldn't, wrong they were) white mountain goats, humpback whales, killer whales, sea lions and eagles. The price was fantastic and the ship fabulous in every way. You will LOVE Alaska no matter who you go with but thought I would let you know about our very recent experience with HAL. ( oh and also the ship had educational speakers etc every day informing us of what we were about to see and giving us details and history etc about the region.)

Elana

[KAYEF]

The educational lecturers and the presence of a Native American Tribe Member sharing her culture and crafts make a big difference in cruiseline choice.....................choose HAL.

Veendam is a perfect size, by the way...............1250 passenger capacity....................we love her.

To go to Kenai, I believe you'd have to do your own tour. It's workable and fun................we rented a car and did a land tour for a week after disembarking in Seward. You could easily spend a week just on the peninsula, visiting Kenai, Homer, Seward, etc.

ENJOY!!

And, I agree..............you will be on deck most of the time.

We had an oceanview this time...............you don't HAVE to have a balcony. Book what you can afford; just GO!!:)

[Sweetly]

Thank you for all the information. I will keep it all in mind when we decide on our trip to Alaska.

I want to thank ARRTRAIN for the links for Wildwood Station. My Dad will especially like to walk down memory lane - again. Even today he raves about Alaska. Can't wait till we take him back

Thanks again everyone!!:cool:

[ARRTrain]

Your welcome on the links. I thought it was pretty cool. The old pics. on the website are cool. There was a couple of stories on there, those were cool, too.

 

Sail on Princess. Saturdays are the big ships, Diamond and Sapphire with around 3,000 passengers. Mondays are the Island and Coral with around 2,000 passengers. New to next summer is the Pacific Princess on every other Wednesday, with around 700 passengers.

[OnTheJourney]

Hi:

I have to agree with what was already stated - we sailed northbound on the Veendam in late June and loved it. The ship truly is beautiful. Our room was a verandah suite starboard side aft. While I wouldn't have wanted to be without a balcony room (I wouldn't even go on any cruise without one - just my preference)...I must agree with the one post that referred to people going out on deck to catch the view. There is nothing like getting the full 360-degree panorama of what Alaska has to offer. Luckily, our room was right at the aft stairway, so it was literally less than a minute walk from our room, down 1 flight, and right out on to the stern of the lido deck for great viewing -always seemed much less crowded than the bow anyway. And, I thought the HAL cruisetour package was fantastic. We did the cruise followed by 12-day land tour.

No matter which way you go, you'll love Alaska.

[H2O babe]

Once you decide on your priorities it will be easier to narrow your options. I did lots and lots of research well in advance of booking our cruise. (We booked 11 months ahead). Glacier Bay was a priority for us, which then eliminated some lines we would normally sail on. Factoring in our priorities for seeing Alaska we finally chose a June southbound sailing on the Island Princess. It was our cruise of a lifetime and we will be returing to Alaska. There are many very knowledgeable folks on this forum that will have great advice for you. Good luck with your planning.

 

K.

[Budget Queen]

Just for more information, IF your priority is Seward, be well aware that if you go with a cruiseline booked land tour, you will NOT have any time there. HAL is the winner for the cruise line, but go independent with your land touring. Plenty of accurate helpful planning information on this board. As a suggestion, allow, 2 nights in Seward and also consider a boat tour to Kenai Fjords- the only way to see them. :) Need at least 6 hours on the water, then train to Anchorage and pick up a round trip Anchorage rental car, continue to Denali Park for a few days and add other destinations depending on your time. Min. on your own, I recommend is 5 days for these two locations.

[Cshell5]

Once you decide on your priorities it will be easier to narrow your options. I did lots and lots of research well in advance of booking our cruise. (We booked 11 months ahead). Glacier Bay was a priority for us, which then eliminated some lines we would normally sail on. Factoring in our priorities for seeing Alaska we finally chose a June southbound sailing on the Island Princess. It was our cruise of a lifetime and we will be returing to Alaska. There are many very knowledgeable folks on this forum that will have great advice for you. Good luck with your planning.

 

K.

Hey K Hate to highjack this post but lost your e-mail. Drop me a line. Adrienne & Rick raseal@cox.net