Been on two Disney carribean cruises, Alaska is next!

[canadiandisneycruise]

What are the differences? Obviously, the weather! What kind of clothes would you take for the end of August? Are there fireworks? Character breakfasts? Best excursions?

Is there a preferred dinner rotation? If we have a large group (so far 17) , can they seat us together?

What should we NOT miss??

 

[PrincessShmoo]

What are the differences? Obviously, the weather! What kind of clothes would you take for the end of August? Are there fireworks? Character breakfasts? Best excursions?

Is there a preferred dinner rotation? If we have a large group (so far 17) , can they seat us together?

What should we NOT miss??

The secret for dress for Alaska is layers. The weather can be quite variable. So layers you can take off, or add to as necessary are important.

No fireworks for the Alaska cruises. Actually, no Pirate night, either. There have been Character breakfasts in the past, so I'm figuring they will continue.

You can link all your reservations together for dining, if you wish. I will point out that a table for 17 would be pretty awkward. You won't be able to really talk to others at the table well. You might see about splitting up to two 8 tops (well, one could be 9) and mixing up where you sit each night for different dining companions. You can request the 2 table be at the same service station, so you would be next to each other.

As to the rotation, we've always just taken what DCL has given us. Everyone onboard will have the same menus during the cruise regardless of rotation.

 

[ILUVALASKA]

August can be warm and perfect, I have worn shorts many times. Must dos in Alaska include whale watching, the train in Skagway, dog sled camps, and any bear viewing. The salmon will be running in August so you should see lots of wildlife. I hope there are no fireworks in Alaska, IMHO it is not appropriate to the beauty and sanctity of the setting and wilderness.

 

[gojulia]

It was an amazing trip. Kids were in the pool every day. Layers are definitely the key. Very casual... jeans and tshirts and sweatshirts were fine. The key to Alaska in my experience was the port adventures, which were not cheap. Have a wonderful time!

Oh, and we did have a pirate night, but it was fairly low key. No fireworks allowed.

 

[gotomu212]

I would echo the very casual comment. Since all the excursions are out in nature and so much ship time is spent on deck we noticed a more casual vibe. Jeans and hoodies/light sweatshirts out and about.

It was our fifth Disney cruise and we noticed more jeans in the MDR (totally fine in our opinion) and less people transitioning to dinner clothes. Which made sense to us. On the tropical cruises you are probably in shorts and swimsuits during the day and got all sweaty and sandy so you have more of a need to shower and clean up for dinner. Plus we found with the layers and warming clothes we had less room in the suitcases for multiple outfits each day.

This was our FAVORITE trip so far. Awe inspiring scenery that we could not fully imagine until we saw it in person.

The other surprise for us was that we didn't have as much downtime. We are normally big readers and spend time each cruise day with a book at the pool, deck 4, in the room late evenings, just unwinding. I think I read one day for 30 minutes in Alaska. We spent so much time just viewing things from deck (and I never thought we were the type to enjoy staring at trees for an hour). Wish I had saved some of our book packing space for another hoodie- the one I had was in every picture since I wore it every day and the pictures look like they were taken all on the same day!

 

[hamm1207]

Alaska in general is pretty laid back (even when we go to a "fancy" restuarant here people aren't really dressed up)! Be sure to dress in layers and bring a waterproof jacket. Have fun and take lots of pictures!

 

[labdogs42]

Oooh, I want to do the Alaska cruise next! So, August is the best time to go?

 

[canadiandisneycruise]

Oooh, I want to do the Alaska cruise next! So, August is the best time to go?

I have no idea. This is just when it worked best for our family! And, Canadians are used to dressing in layers!;-)

 

[DisneyMom70]

Our first cruise was the Fantasy and now we are going to Alaska on the Wonder next August (2014). Can't wait!
I read they are changing pirate night to a Pixar night. I don't think Pirate night worked as well up there.

 

[Gilland18]

We had 18 on the Wonder in 2011. They seated us at 3 tables in the same area, with the same servers. We didn't think to rotate which tables we ate at, just mindlessly sat at the number we were assigned. I would do that differently if I had the chance.

 

[canadiandisneycruise]

Do you think as long as we've linked our reservations they'll sit us together? I'm sure we will switch up seats though!

 

[Gilland18]

Do you think as long as we've linked our reservations they'll sit us together? I'm sure we will switch up seats though!

Pretty confident they will; we've done it twice.

 

[Luv2Diz]

Oooh, I want to do the Alaska cruise next! So, August is the best time to go?

It was for us! We were on the August 27 cruise last year. Absolutely beautiful weather the entire week. We were walking around the ports in t-shirts and sunglasses! It was still cold out on Tracy Arm day, but the photos we took that day with blue skies over the glacier are some of my all time favorite photos. I'd love to go back to Alaska some day, but I doubt we would luck out twice and have the same great weather! It definitely added to our first ever cruise and Alaska experience.

 

[labdogs42]

It was for us! We were on the August 27 cruise last year. Absolutely beautiful weather the entire week. We were walking around the ports in t-shirts and sunglasses! It was still cold out on Tracy Arm day, but the photos we took that day with blue skies over the glacier are some of my all time favorite photos. I'd love to go back to Alaska some day, but I doubt we would luck out twice and have the same great weather! It definitely added to our first ever cruise and Alaska experience.

Excellent info. We are doing the 4 night Caribbean this August, sounds like Alaska could now be on my list for Aug 2014 or '15! Thanks!