The daylight in Alaska

[I<3Cruises]

I know when cruising on Alaska there is alot of hours of sunlight i think its almost always light out....is this really something that effects people as far as sleeping??? Any thoughts on this would be appreciated!!!!

[AkSusan]

I know when cruising on Alaska there is alot of hours of sunlight i think its almost always light out....is this really something that effects people as far as sleeping??? Any thoughts on this would be appreciated!!!!

 

Well here in Southcentral (Anchorage area) we only get to about 19 1/2 hours of sunlight on the summer solstice (June 20-22) so it does get dusky for a few hours.

 

At home I have blinds and drapes but have been out tent camping and really have no problems. Biggest thing during the summer here is convincing kids that yes even though it is light outside you have to come in because it's late :D

 

If you think it's going to bother you then you can always get a sleep mask!

 

Susan in Anchorage :)

[boewok]

There is so much to do, you will be ready for sleep. It is not always bright sunlight. And it rains (cloudy).

 

I took land tour and then cruise. No problems.

 

Most windows have light blocking drapes.

 

Have fun.

[fjb3cpa]

Not as much sunlight as you might think. Cruise ships do not get too far north, and the sunlight has faded by about 9:45 at night. Most of the extra sunlight is actually in the morning, as I recall seeing sunlight by about 4:30 AM in mid-July. Good luck.

[Autumnrose]

I definately found myself staying up later than I would anywhere else. I remember at one point in Denali it was about 11pm and I just couldn't believe it because it looked like it could have been noon. I had a hard time because I am the type of person that can not get to sleep if there is any amount of light.

[elleluv]

We lived in the Fairbanks area for 10 years and it can cause problems... even for those that live there.

 

I don't know how many times I heard people say after staying up until 2:00 am doing things outdoors and only sleeping until 5 or 6 am "We have all winter to sleep". :eek:

 

Summer Solstice is June 21, in Fairbanks we gained around 5-6 min (average) of sunlight a day from Dec 21 until June 21 and then lost the same amount every day after that until December again.

 

DH and I learned that we had to live by the clock all year round... If it was 10:30 it was time for bed whether we were tired or not. We had light blockers in the bedroom windows so our bodies didn't know if it was light or dark outside.

[BethCarp]

It didn't affect my sleep while there, but it did big time when I came home. I was jet lagged for about 2 weeks after coming home. The 3 hour time difference coupled with it not getting dark til 1am really did us in. We didn't have our kids with us so we were up until the wee hours anyway. We never finished dinner before 10pm and it looked like the middle of the afternoon when we did. It was crazy! But fun!!!

[smoosh21]

I know when cruising on Alaska there is alot of hours of sunlight i think its almost always light out....is this really something that effects people as far as sleeping??? Any thoughts on this would be appreciated!!!!

When I vacationed in Alaska a few years ago, it wasn't as noticeable in Seward (and this was in the middle of June). While up in Denali and Fairbanks, it never even got dusky, there you definitely noticed the midnight sun. It got dark enough to need lights in Seward. And if you are going later in the season, like August or September, you will definitely be getting enough night.

[SharkCruiser24]

It depends when you will be travelling. I went to Alaska in late May early June. The sun set at about 3-3:30 am and rose near 4:45-5:30am. It might be a bit longer daylight during late June and throughout July. As for a problem sleeping, I had none. As long as you close the drapes tightly you should be fine. Actually I found the drapes helpped in two ways: kept the sun out and the cold. Sometimes you can feel the cool air coming from the windows.;)

[cb at sea]

This is where an inside room may come in handy!!! No light at all!

[mommabean]

Our drapes on The Serenade of the Seas blocked all the light from coming in so sleep wasn't affected by light at all. I did find myself waking up just because mentally I wanted to check out what it looked like outside. I'm glad I did because I went out and took photos of the dimly lit morning sky around 3:30 am while cruising the inner passage. I shot some video, too. And then I just hung out and watched a while because it was a once in a life time opportunity...well, hopefully I'll cruise Alaska again.

 

I cruised in mid June and it was light until 11pm or so and never seemed to get totally dark at all.