LEAVING FROM SEATTLE vs. VANCOUVER...

[Sunny Lady]

First time Alaska cruisers. We are only able to do a cruise with no touring for our anticipated trip. We are coming from the east coast. There is a big difference in airfare flying into Seattle vs. Vancouver. Will it make a big difference in the cruise if we leave from Seattle vs. Vancouver? How much less do we see? Is it worth the extra $ to fly into Vancouver (again we are not doing any touring - just the cruise). Comments please! Thanks.

[dustyroad]

sunny lady

 

how wonderful to plan a cruise, but how sad to go to alaska and not do a tour. please try to see if you can squeeze one in. at any of the ports you can do some sort of tour for around $35 each. other wise, there are lots of free trails and hiking to be done on your own or just wandering around the towns. your delema of which port to leave from has been asked many times. it is a question "of what you can afford and what ship you want to travel on" that fits your money situation and time you can go. may and september are the cheapest months to sail to alaska. they are considered the shoulder months ( the first month and the last month of the cruise season. and the kids are in school at those times if you dont want to be on a ship that has alot of them cruising with you). flying into seattle is much cheaper than into vancouver ( we are saving a little over $300 each flying into seattle and then taking a quick shuttle bus to vancouver for $75 roundtrip to vancouver the day before and then going back to seattle after the cruise a for a few days touring. i like the carnival spirit that sails out of vancouver. it does a roundtrip to glacier bay or a southbound or northbound one way from vancouver up to anchorage or from there going back down to vancouver. if you choose the cruise out of seattle i have read that you are out in more open water at the beginning of the cruise compared to leaving from vancouver, but it is still a wonderful cruise and the ships visit basiclly the same ports as the other ships out of vancouver ( juneau, ketchikan, skagway, sitka or victoria).

 

there is so much research to do with picking a ship and where to leave from. there are many wonderful ships that have great reviews. make sure you read them also here on the boards. they help allot. im sure others will have much more info for you that will be very helpful. whatever you decide to do, have a wonderful time and im sure it wont be the last cruise you will take.

 

and the most important thing to remember is--get to the port city the day before if you can or arrive very early the day of sailing. it would be a shame to be held up at the airport for some unknown reason and miss the ship :( . i got a 4* hotel in vancouver for $50 on priceline for the night before the cruise. you might want to think about getting a room also the night before you cruise. have a great time and welcome to the boards :) .

[Budget Queen]

I'll assume the "touring" comment is in reference to interior Alaska after a one way cruise?? Otherwise- if your touring is referring to port tours- strongly rethink this- they are a necessary part of Alaska travel. You get little out of just walking the streets/shopping areas.

 

Anyway- for me and my opinion only the priority is scenic sailing- so Vancouver is my choice. BUT frankly way many Alaska cruisers are not out looking too often. :) Some Seattle sailings do a lot of outside passage sailing, just darting in and out of ports. There is always scenery getting to Juneau and Skagway however. It is an easy transfer to Vancouver from Seatac- several options- cruiseline bus, Quick Shuttle, Amtrak, one way rental car. All these from the east coast will require an overnight in Seattle, but priceline at airport hotels is usually a big bargain. Also you may usually have to do a red eye home if you leave the same day as the cruise. Allow 4 hours for the transfer.