Ketchikan or Icy Strait Point?

[lishka]

I need some feedback.

I need help with a decision and I am hoping you can help me.

We are 3 families travelling to Alaska in May 2008. Currently booked on the Carnival Spirit.

We have 3 cabins. Total of 4 adults and 3 teens (13/14 girls and a 15 year old boy.)

The more I look at this ship, the less I see for these guys to do!

I am thinking of switching to the Serenade of the Seas...mini-golf, climbing wall, pool tables, plus ALOT of glass for viewing the glaciers...

 

Spirit goes to Juneau, Glacier Bay, Skagway and Ketchikan.

Serenade goes to Icy Strait Point, Hubbard Glacier, Skagway and Juneau.

 

What woud you do if you were if my shoes?

[LoveThisCruisingThing]

I would chose Icy Strait. I fell in love with the place. It is NOT touristy like Ketchikan (they only allow 1 ship/day). It is very rural and outdoorsy. Lots of nature trails and tours. It has a reputation for being a great place for whale watching. The zip line looked amazing (no way would I go on it but those who did loved it). Easily walkable. Check out the website for Icy Strait. Just do a search engine for "icy strait point". OH you can get right down to the shore to look for sea glass/rocks/etc.

[Yukon]

Having been to all of them recnly , my choices are Icy Strait over Ketchikan ( more "real"), and Hubbard Glacier over Glacier Bay (more calving).

 

Murray

[Bucky3]

We also loved Icy Strait and your kids would probably love the zipline. You can walk to it - just a short walk along the beach path. It ends there. They take you up to the top on a bus of some sort (didn't see the bus). There was a kiosk there that sold tickets - $85 for the ride. We didn't do it - too scary for me, but everyone we talked to who got off loved it.

[SoccerMom#3]

We were on the Serenade in June with my 17 daughter and 16 year old son. My son did the zipline in Icy Strait and absolutely loved it.

 

Just a heads up though about the teen activities on Serenade...technically you have to be 18 to use the pool tables so my son and his friends were not able to use the pool tables. Also at times it got pretty cold out on deck even with a hoodie on so, although he played basketball, he and his friends didn't play as much as they would have wanted since it was so cold.

[dirtgirl]

I would pick the Serenade, simply because I have been on the Carnival Pride (the Spirit's sister ship) and I got bored. There wasn't enough to keep me occupied, so I would hesitate to bring my kids (they refuse to join the kid's programs).

[lishka]

Thanks to all of you!:)

Interesting about the pool tables...can they play a game with me?

Or not at all under 18?

Also - would they be allowed to play mini-golf or is there an age limit?

[sarahruth23]

We were on Radiance of the Seas recently, and there was no age limit on mini-golf (no rules or regulating that I could see at all!) I don't know about the pool - we didn't have anyone under 18 with us so we never really looked.

 

We went to Icy Strait Point (Hoonah) and Ketchikan - I loved both. I loved Hoonah because the locals were really fun. Be sure to book a local tour and get out of the little Icy Strait Point company's area of stores and such. I bet the teenagers would love the zipline, too. There is great wildlife watching here. We went out fishing and saw whales as well.

 

I loved Ketchikan, though, because we flew out of town with Island Wings and got to see bears feeding on salmon swimming upstream. That ended up being my favorite thing of the whole trip - and I thought I was more excited about whales :) I've heard of some good bear watching trips in Hoonah as well, though - if you can get that trip in sometime, I agree with the others. In terms of the towns themselves,you're not missing much by skipping all of the souvenir shops of Ketchikan. (Unless your teenagers would enjoy the lumberjack show? Probably not, though - it's too cheesy for most teenagers) The town of Hoonah is much more interesting.

[SoccerMom#3]

Thanks to all of you!:)

Interesting about the pool tables...can they play a game with me?

Or not at all under 18?

Also - would they be allowed to play mini-golf or is there an age limit?

 

As long as someone with them is over 18 they can play pool. No age requirement on mini golf. My son liked playing basketball and soccer on the sports deck although early in the cruise someone kicked the two soccer balls overboard and that was the end of soccer :-)

 

Mostly he had fun just hanging out with the friends he made on the cruise.

[Katiemac]

Why not Radiance northbound? You would get both Icy Strait and Ketchikan along with Hubbard (breath taking), Juneau and Skagway. My 13 year old was a bit shy at first to do the kid's program but once she went we hardly saw her the rest of the trip.

[lishka]

Why not Radiance northbound? You would get both Icy Strait and Ketchikan along with Hubbard (breath taking), Juneau and Skagway. My 13 year old was a bit shy at first to do the kid's program but once she went we hardly saw her the rest of the trip.

Would be nice!:)

But we are trying to avoid airfare!....we live just outside of Vancouver, so we can just grab a cab to the ship! ;)

[dirtgirl]

Hi Leah, I'm Carol and I live in North Van. :) I am off on the Serenade next Saturday.:cool:

[Yukon]

Hi Leah, I'm Carol and I live in North Van. :) I am off on the Serenade next Saturday.:cool:

 

Hey dirtgirl - in Skagway we have a landscaping company called The Dirty Girls. You can buy Dirty Girl t-shirts at Glacier Smoothies & Espresso on 3rd :D

 

Murray

[lishka]

Hi Leah, I'm Carol and I live in North Van. :) I am off on the Serenade next Saturday.:cool:

 

Hi Carol.... Have a great time on the Serenade!

I am in Langley, but we lived in North Van for years...Deep Cove and then Seymour area. Love North Van, but the time came to buy a house and it was hmmm...3000 square foot house in Langley or one bedroom apartment in North Van?? Same price..:rolleyes:

 

I see you do a lot of Royal Caribbean ships!

We did the Vision last spring break and loved it (had corner aft 8588 - wow!)

and so we are gonna try our first ever voyager class for spring break 2009 - Mariner to Mexico...can't wait!

 

Oh! And thanks to you all for helping me make my decision....I've cancelled the Spirit to Alaska...going to book the Serenade!:)

Does it sail from Canada Place or Ballantyne?

[dirtgirl]

It sails from Ballantyne. I'll have to post a review when I get back. We are using CruisePark, too, which I have never done. Nice to not have to fly!!;)

 

I am in Lynn Valley, and am glad we bought a townhouse when they were still affordable. I would never be able to buy a house here now; our townhouse has more than tripled in price since we bought.:eek:

 

Hey dirtgirl - in Skagway we have a landscaping company called The Dirty Girls. You can buy Dirty Girl t-shirts at Glacier Smoothies & Espresso on 3rd :D

 

 

I'll have to keep that in mind! That fits right in with my warped sense of humour!!:D Is it anywhere near Southeast Tours, as we will be going there first thing?

[P.A.]

We were on the Serenade in June with my 17 daughter and 16 year old son. My son did the zipline in Icy Strait and absolutely loved it.

 

 

SoccerMom#3~When you have time would you mind to elaborate on your cruise on the Serenade? We are booked on it for next June and I have never been on Royal Caribbean before and have never been to Alaska. We are two couples in their early 50's. Our friends have been on RCCL several times but never to Alaska. Even if you need to do that in another thread or you can even email me. I would love to see pictures and just get a lot of detailed info on the ship itself. I would apprecaite it. Thanks! :)

[tj_sc]

Just returned from Alaska on Serende of the Seas. We were originally scheduled to go to Icy Point, but it was changed to Sitka. Other than the Raptor Center you would be dragging the kids around there. I will be posting my review in a few days. I got the impression that Icy Point was small, really small. I suspect that itinery was changed to Sitka because they may not have been capable of handling two or more cruise ships a day yet. It was there we were going to go on our whale watch. We did it in Junea instead. I think that Icy Point could be great. Less developed. At that age there is a lot for them to do but let them plan it. Their doing the research on the ship and the places they will see will mean they will hit the ground running on the ship. If they and you do it right you may hardly ever see them. Which at that age is just about right.

[CruisinJul]

I just returned from the Serenade yesterday. ISP was my favorite port. This is a small community with pristine wilderness. We booked a tour with a private guide. We saw many remote spots, streams filled with salmon and the town. We only saw one bear due to the unusual heat that day. We saw humpback whales about 1,000ft from the beach. I left Hoonah with a greater appreciation of the local culture and a way of life that I could not have imagined before. If you go, find a local tour guide in advance that can help you plan your trip to suit your interests.