Alaska cruise 2023 - Other cruise lines?

[lklgoodman]

Of course, Spring Break on any cruise line can be a whole different experience.

When my dd was in elementary school we would go in Jan. I loved cruising in Jan because prices were cheaper and we could escape the freezing weather at home. My dd is now in high school so she doesn't want to miss any school. We've done 3 spring break cruises on DCL. The prices were more, but there wasn't that much of a difference with crowd size. I would think NCL would be similar since they are also more of a family line. I wouldn't want to do Carnival during Spring break.

 

[lklgoodman]

If anyone on here is in the military or a vet, NCL just started a 10% military discount on all cruises. It's for everyone on the reservation, not just the military member. There's info on their website. My dh is an USAF vet, so I registered him. Took only a few mins. Some people have reported that they have a reception and give out a coin set.

 

[THEDISNEYTHREE]

Layers is the way to go. When we cruised we had nice weather the entire cruise. On sea days I wore capris and short sleeve tops. Our Disney cruise went through Tracey's Arm, they go somewhere else now. It does get really cold on deck. We needed a heavy jacket, hat, and gloves. When we were in ports I wore jeans, t-shirt, and a 3 in 1 jacket. We all had 2 pairs of tennis shoes in case 1 pair got wet. My dd was 6 yrs old at the time(2014) so we were limited in the type of excursions. In Juneau we went to Glacier Gardens(really beautiful), Mendenhall Glacier(very nice), and a salmon hatchery(boring, wish we had skipped). This time we are going river rafting in Juneau. We had gone with extended family last time. They went zip lining at one of the ports and enjoyed it. In Ketchikan we went to the lumberjack show and to a totem pole park, doing that again. In Skagway we went to Liarsville to do gold panning and for lunch, neither were good. This time we are doing a canoe tour to a glacier. We booked all our excursions through NCL. I always see good reviews about the train trips in Skagway, but we aren't interested in sitting in a train for several hours. I've hear good things about some crab catching boat excursion. I think it's in Ketchikan and is from some TV show, the Deadliest Catch, I think.

Was the totem pole park in Ketchikan something you experienced by yourselves or was this part of an excursion? I was wondering if it was possible after an excursion to easily walk to the park by ourselves in Ketchikan?

 

[lklgoodman]

Was the totem pole park in Ketchikan something you experienced by yourselves or was this part of an excursion? I was wondering if it was possible after an excursion to easily walk to the park by ourselves in Ketchikan?

Both were an excursion booked through Disney. The lumberjack show is right across from the dock. We rode a bus to the totem park. It was about a 30 min bus ride from where the ship docks. We did this in 2014 and the ship docked by Creek Street. I assume they still dock there.

 

[THEDISNEYTHREE]

Both were an excursion booked through Disney. The lumberjack show is right across from the dock. We rode a bus to the totem park. It was about a 30 min bus ride from where the ship docks. We did this in 2014 and the ship docked by Creek Street. I assume they still dock there.

Thank you!

 

[pinkxray]

I’m glad I stumbled across this thread. I am looking to do an Alaskan cruise in June 2024. Kids will be 9 and 7. I would love to do DCL but I’m not paying thousands of dollars extra. I love that other cruise lines already have their schedules out. I am leaning towards Royal Caribbean due to price, itinerary and ship. We have been on the Anthem and it was fine, so I’m sure we’d like Ovation. Would love to try NCL but their time in port is so much shorter than other ships.

I also checked out HAL and Princess but nothing is matching my checklist like Royal. We really want to do the helicopter/dog sledding excursion that adds another $3000+ to our trip so it will be hard to book DCL at their prices.

For all those who travel this summer, I hope you come back and share your experiences.

 

[ofcabbagesandkings]

We did Alaska on the Wonder in 2019. Kids were not quite 3 and 7, so the nursery and kids clubs (with 3 sea days, wanted them to have plenty to do) were big factors, as were the characters, shows and movies (this was before Disney+, and our small town has no movie theater). If we did Alaska again I would want to see either Glacier Bay or Hubbard, and DCL can’t offer the former and rarely has the latter.

 

[jennifer_f]

We are booked in a haven 2 bedroom family villa on NCL Encore in May. We were going to do DCL but it ran almost 20k for a 1bedroom! . In all fairness, the second ‘bedroom’ is quite small but it has its own bathroom. It works perfect for us since it’s me, my 76 year old mother, and my teen daughter. And while it was still pricey at 11k, much more reasonable than DCL. And I love the idea of the Haven area so we can get away from crowds and lines-it just makes our vacations that much more enjoyable since we don’t get to travel as often as we would like!

I do feel a little nickel and dimed on NCL vs DCL but I do like that in a way since if you aren’t interested in it, you aren’t paying for it. However, for Haven prices I feel like it should include SOME drinks like we had in concierge DCL. It includes no drinks above the standard ship free water, tea, and lemonade. However, with NCL ‘free at sea’ it doesn’t cost much to have it.

We loved concierge on the Fantasy. It’s been awhile since we cruised and are now a party of 5 so not sure how I feel putting us all in a room with only one bathroom and paying premium concierge pricing! And two concierge rooms is not even close to being in our budget! .

 

[auntlynne]

 

[wendlle]

The Disney Alaska is on my bucket list, but my goodness, the price for the rooms with balcony is crazy

so don't get a balcony.
The oceanview or even inside I've heard are great.
I booked an Oceanview, can't wait for that big window that my kids can sit on and look at the water so close (deck 2)
And inside is great for Alaska because of the darkness.

A balcony isn't that important IMO, especially if it means being able to go on an Alaskan cruise.

 

[DisneyPiPhi]

We did Alaska on the Wonder in 2019. Kids were not quite 3 and 7, so the nursery and kids clubs (with 3 sea days, wanted them to have plenty to do) were big factors, as were the characters, shows and movies (this was before Disney+, and our small town has no movie theater). If we did Alaska again I would want to see either Glacier Bay or Hubbard, and DCL can’t offer the former and rarely has the latter.

This makes me smile because we are doing the opposite! We did Alaska last summer on Princess for Glacier Bay, Hubbard Glacier, and the one-way itinerary that allowed us to spend extra time in Alaska before the cruise. We had a nice time, but if we go to Alaska again, I want to do DCL for the "Disney Alaska" experience, like the characters in their special Alaska outfits and more kids for DD to pal around with. The round-trip Vancouver itinerary would be logistically easier and allow for extra time in Vancouver, which is a city we really liked. I feel like having one Disney experience in Alaska and one on another cruise line that sails a different itinerary is a great plan if your family can make it happen!

 

[ofcabbagesandkings]

This makes me smile because we are doing the opposite! We did Alaska last summer on Princess for Glacier Bay, Hubbard Glacier, and the one-way itinerary that allowed us to spend extra time in Alaska before the cruise. We had a nice time, but if we go to Alaska again, I want to do DCL for the "Disney Alaska" experience, like the characters in their special Alaska outfits and more kids for DD to pal around with. The round-trip Vancouver itinerary would be logistically easier and allow for extra time in Vancouver, which is a city we really liked. I feel like having one Disney experience in Alaska and one on another cruise line that sails a different itinerary is a great plan if your family can make it happen!

Did you like Princess or do you wish you had done another line? Considering NCL for the Haven.

 

[holula]

so don't get a balcony.
The oceanview or even inside I've heard are great.
I booked an Oceanview, can't wait for that big window that my kids can sit on and look at the water so close (deck 2)
And inside is great for Alaska because of the darkness.

A balcony isn't that important IMO, especially if it means being able to go on an Alaskan cruise.

The Wonder doesn’t have those big windows you can sit on in the staterooms. Those are just on the Dream and Fantasy.

 

[wendlle]

The Wonder doesn’t have those big windows you can sit on in the staterooms. Those are just on the Dream and Fantasy.

The room we have had a large porthole looks big enough for me for my kids to look out of
I don’t mean actually sit on it, I just mean to look out of and enjoy looking at the water up so close from deck 2

 

[DisneyPiPhi]

Did you like Princess or do you wish you had done another line? Considering NCL for the Haven.

We had a very nice time! We liked the itinerary, our mini suite stateroom was nice, and the food was great. (The food MAY have been our favorite thing, although they were not as good with allergies as Disney.) We missed the family-friendly entertainment, general atmosphere of the Disney ships, having lots of other kids on board for DD to hang out with, and the split bathrooms. I would sail Princess again for another unique itinerary we are really excited about, but DCL remains my favorite.

 

[tidefan]

We had a very nice time! We liked the itinerary, our mini suite stateroom was nice, and the food was great. (The food MAY have been our favorite thing, although they were not as good with allergies as Disney.) We missed the family-friendly entertainment, general atmosphere of the Disney ships, having lots of other kids on board for DD to hang out with, and the split bathrooms. I would sail Princess again for another unique itinerary we are really excited about, but DCL remains my favorite.

What ship were you on? Did it have an Alfredo's? Also, we really like the International Cafe on the Princess ships.

Been to Alaska 3 times. Once on the Wonder (our best cruise ever - DVC Member Cruise back in 2015 and we loved that because it was a full inside passage out of Vancouver) and twice on Princess (Emerald Princess and Crown Princess). We enjoyed our Princess cruises as well. However, we have also taken Regal Princess in the Caribbean, and I have to say that Regal Princess is a step above IMHO what the Emerald and Crown were.

Princess has incredible pizza, especially if there is an Alfredo's/Gigi's on the ship...

 

[Mango7100]

We are booked in a haven 2 bedroom family villa on NCL Encore in May. We were going to do DCL but it ran almost 20k for a 1bedroom! . In all fairness, the second ‘bedroom’ is quite small but it has its own bathroom. It works perfect for us since it’s me, my 76 year old mother, and my teen daughter. And while it was still pricey at 11k, much more reasonable than DCL. And I love the idea of the Haven area so we can get away from crowds and lines-it just makes our vacations that much more enjoyable since we don’t get to travel as often as we would like!

I do feel a little nickel and dimed on NCL vs DCL but I do like that in a way since if you aren’t interested in it, you aren’t paying for it. However, for Haven prices I feel like it should include SOME drinks like we had in concierge DCL. It includes no drinks above the standard ship free water, tea, and lemonade. However, with NCL ‘free at sea’ it doesn’t cost much to have it.

We loved concierge on the Fantasy. It’s been awhile since we cruised and are now a party of 5 so not sure how I feel putting us all in a room with only one bathroom and paying premium concierge pricing! And two concierge rooms is not even close to being in our budget! .

We did a Haven cruise in July (not to Alaska) and wow, they make it hard to ever try a non Haven. It was so nice to have the private restaurant with higher end menu and all private tables and no set time to eat. And the pool…it was people soup in at the main pool, but the Haven pool (though small so more of a cooling off pool and not a swimming pool) was never crowded and Lou germs were only 1/3 full ever. DH and I got the drink package and were able to order DD non alcoholic drinks on our card when we ordered a drink for ourselves. She drank a lot of virgin pina colada’s. On the Encore you will have your own Haven observation lounge with the fancy coffee machine and snacks as well, Enjoy!

 

[Calantha]

The room we have had a large porthole looks big enough for me for my kids to look out of
I don’t mean actually sit on it, I just mean to look out of and enjoy looking at the water up so close from deck 2

Agree. We were Deck 2 last summer, and it was a chilly week, so I don't think I'd have been out there anyway. We sat on 4, outside at Cabanas, stood in line for characters (many of whom were outside). I didn't miss the balcony at all.

 

[wendlle]

Agree. We were Deck 2 last summer, and it was a chilly week, so I don't think I'd have been out there anyway. We sat on 4, outside at Cabanas, stood in line for characters (many of whom were outside). I didn't miss the balcony at all.

I'm just not someone who's sold on balcony rooms anyway. We did a Caribbean cruise and got a balcony based on recommendations and honestly hated it. It was windy, it was hot and so unpleasant. I spent maybe 10mins total out there and that was because I was forcing myself to justify the cost. In the end it wasn't worth it, I'm an Oceanview or Inside person now and use the savings for future trips. I just can't see the value in them at all, and as a person who gets cold quite easily, the last thing I want to do in Alaska is be on a balcony freezing my tushy off.

 

[CeCe0906]

I will be doing my first cruise ever on the Wish this summer, but my husband and I have been looking into Alaskan cruises. But we've been looking at more "small boat" cruises, like UnCruise, that do more interior; my husband's not interested in shows or dressing up for dinner, or casinos. Has anyone done these type of cruises, from what I've read there is <100 passengers.