Alaska cruise

[ladyofthetramp]

The cruise is like a small city-a melting pot of all kinds of people. it is true, you can't escape-really. You can't get of the ship, unless you are in port and cleared to disembark. The ship is large, and there are plenty of places and ways around of being in the fray. I don't know if a concierge room is in your budget. You would have the lounge, much quieter there. But, if there is someone or something that triggered your anxiety in there, you would, of course, see them more often. I tend to avoid cabanas myself sometimes-it can be people soup in there. The Cove cafe, room service etc. are wonderful. Sit down breakfast and lunch in the larger restaurants are usually very quiet spaces. I find you can also carve out a quiet space or place. The ship is quite large. I hate flying. That gives me anxiety. A necessity to get anywhere-far away at least.

That being said, Alaska is just beautiful. I can't wait to go back. Wishing you the best with your decision.

 

[IcedCoffee52]

We just got off the ship on Monday. Like a pp, on our first at sea day, we were in open seas and not the inside passage most of the time but on the way back, we were on the IP, all day. And, there is plenty to see for a large part of the trip. A couple of other things that may be helpful:

--Keep checking on tickets for the Glacier Explorer. We booked late, and I was able get 6 tickets about 4 weeks before our cruise. I was checking constantly and one day, tickets just popped up. Someone must have cancelled.

--On our trip, the actual ship was able to get almost as close to the glacier as the Glacier Explorer b/c we had good weather. We all loved the Explorer, but on our trip, those that didn't go, didn't miss much. We did hear though that a few previous trips, they didn't get as close b/c of seal pupping season and too much rain and fog.

--Request a dinner table near the window. We did that, and at both Tiana's and Triton's, we were able to watch the scenery go by as we ate. In fact, at Triton's one night, we saw a huge pod of whales go by, and it was amazing.

 

[azrivest]

We were also on the June 19th sailing. We didn't book the Glacier Explorer since there weren't any spots left and I'm glad we didn't. We don't feel like we missed out on much (maybe because we were able to get so close this time). I really enjoyed having all day on deck 9 to take more character pics and enjoy the out-of-this-world views.

 

[shosh1530]

Other's have given great suggestions and I think you'll enjoy an Alaska cruise a lot. The only place where we were seeing the same people over and over again were in the main dining room for dinner. You are assigned the same table number through out all three restaurants and will have the same people near you.

Depending on your party size, there is also a chance you might be asked to share a table. We requested a private table and received it. Just be aware that the tables can be very close together. Our first night, my son (who has anxiety and other issues) got very overwhelmed and had to leave dinner early. But he did ok the following nights.

 

[grantclaire]

Hi. We sailed on the Wonder to Alaska last August and I remember more open water on the first sea day. The trip back in the inside passage was so scenic! It was our favorite cruise to date!

 

[auntlynne]

Breakfast and lunch every day in a restaurant. Even boarding day will have the sit-down option. You can get up and leave whenever you like.

If you end up in Cabanas buffet, there are two sides, if you need to change lines. Change tables if you need to.

One lesson I have learned while cruising (especially in AK) - try not to pin your happiness on a specific activity or port. Those can be cancelled - so go for the big picture. I have done lots of adventurous activities there, but I keep going back for the crisp air and beauty of SE Alaska. Have fun!

 

[auntlynne]

Other's have given great suggestions and I think you'll enjoy an Alaska cruise a lot. The only place where we were seeing the same people over and over again were in the main dining room for dinner. You are assigned the same table number through out all three restaurants and will have the same people near you.

Depending on your party size, there is also a chance you might be asked to share a table. We requested a private table and received it. Just be aware that the tables can be very close together. Our first night, my son (who has anxiety and other issues) got very overwhelmed and had to leave dinner early. But he did ok the following nights.

So happy for your son (and you) that he was able to overcome the first night’s dining (tacked on to travel and boarding - whew!)

 

[trainingupmy4princes]

Thank you all for the responses and for being kind regarding my anxiety, I know it can sound off putting so thanks for not judging. I would be absolutely fine in a hotel with people that I want to avoid so it sounds like being in the ship would be fine. Looks li we would be able to see the inside passage but miss the glacier excursion. That isn’t a dealbreaker for us. Maybe we will get that one next time.

Someone asked how I know when kids are sick…..on our plane to Aulani a few kids and a few adults were coughing constantly. IMO they were clearly sick. That’s fine. People can take their sick kids out if they want but I want to avoid them because I don’t enjoy being sick. If my child was sick I wouldn’t take her to make a plate at the buffet but that’s just me.…but I think buffets are gross anyway.

Coughing is not always due to illness. My one son coughs constantly some days. He has asthma and allergies and once triggered it sets him off for hours. He is not sick in the contagious sense and can't live his life trapped in a bubble and it's impossible to avoid all triggers. Example: he is allergic to dogs so if there is a service animal on the flight , which of course we understand they are a necessity for some people, he is coughing the entire time. Just another perspective to think about. As a child I got made fun of for my heavy breathing/coughing due to my asthma/allergies so I would have been embarrassed to have someone accuse me of spreading germs when I was younger.

 

[trainingupmy4princes]

We were also on the June 19th sailing. We didn't book the Glacier Explorer since there weren't any spots left and I'm glad we didn't. We don't feel like we missed out on much (maybe because we were able to get so close this time). I really enjoyed having all day on deck 9 to take more character pics and enjoy the out-of-this-world views.

This is what we were wondering about looking at next year. If we do the Glacier Explorer would we miss the characters in their Alaska outfits? My daughter loves collecting characters pictures in different outfits.

 

[Flossbolna]

This is what we were wondering about looking at next year. If we do the Glacier Explorer would we miss the characters in their Alaska outfits? My daughter loves collecting characters pictures in different outfits.

On our Alaska cruise this summer the characters were in their Alaska outfit nearly every day. We saw them multiple times. But of course this might be different next year.

We cruised in August and got very close to the glacier. I never felt that we missed out on not doing the excursion. We like to travel a lot and the price of the excursion for two would equal a nice weekend break somewhere. I am attaching a picture from deck 9 to get an idea of where the Wonder was in relation to the excursion vessels.

 

[Karin1984]

If you are worried about getting sick, you can always mask up. You will be the minority nowadays, but it is more normalized now to wear a mask.

 

[emmybee]

OP, I think your concerns are more relatable than you think. My husband hates buffets, and prior to our first Disney cruise in February, I would have said he hated cruising as well. I'm more on the introvert, antisocial side. We went to Cabanas once, and my husband was more put off by rude people pushing ahead of him to fill their plate with fries I was paranoid and wanted to wash my hands again before I ate. I didn't see any hand sanitizer, so I went outside to wait in line again for the sink. That was our one buffet experience, and we ate in the dining room for all other meals. I found it a much more pleasant experience. No one will ever go hungry on a cruise.

As far as coughing and whatnot, I get that people may or may not be sick. What grosses me out is the lack of etiquette. There is no reason to not cover your cough! And for the love of all that's holy, don't cough into your hands! It boggles the mind how that hasn't gotten through to people these past few years.

I have to laugh at the concern about being trapped with less than pleasant guests. I was both fascinated and repulsed by a family that could have been featured on a Bravo Housewives show. Bored, drunken husbands, wives more interested in gossip and taking photos, wild children throwing popcorn in the theater while their disinterested parents literally lacked a clue, one kid from same family standing on the precipice of death while a horrified castmember rushed to get the child off the large storage box that was right at the rail...PopPop eventually turned away from his cocktail to notice the child. Yes, this was all the same large family on a group trip. I only felt trapped while we in the theater thanks to their shenanigans. We're going on another cruise next year for 7 nights, I am wondering if it'll be half as entertaining!

 

[trainingupmy4princes]

OP, I think your concerns are more relatable than you think. My husband hates buffets, and prior to our first Disney cruise in February, I would have said he hated cruising as well. I'm more on the introvert, antisocial side. We went to Cabanas once, and my husband was more put off by rude people pushing ahead of him to fill their plate with fries I was paranoid and wanted to wash my hands again before I ate. I didn't see any hand sanitizer, so I went outside to wait in line again for the sink. That was our one buffet experience, and we ate in the dining room for all other meals. I found it a much more pleasant experience. No one will ever go hungry on a cruise.

As far as coughing and whatnot, I get that people may or may not be sick. What grosses me out is the lack of etiquette. There is no reason to not cover your cough! And for the love of all that's holy, don't cough into your hands! It boggles the mind how that hasn't gotten through to people these past few years.

I have to laugh at the concern about being trapped with less than pleasant guests. I was both fascinated and repulsed by a family that could have been featured on a Bravo Housewives show. Bored, drunken husbands, wives more interested in gossip and taking photos, wild children throwing popcorn in the theater while their disinterested parents literally lacked a clue, one kid from same family standing on the precipice of death while a horrified castmember rushed to get the child off the large storage box that was right at the rail...PopPop eventually turned away from his cocktail to notice the child. Yes, this was all the same large family on a group trip. I only felt trapped while we in the theater thanks to their shenanigans. We're going on another cruise next year for 7 nights, I am wondering if it'll be half as entertaining!

Oh no , that is more the concern of my DH then sick people. He doesn't do well when he sees kids out of control while parents are checked out. We were at a zoo once when a preschooler who had been standing on a rail and climbing where he shouldn't fell back and hit his head hard. You actually heard a horrible sound when his head hit the pavement what worried us was he didn't cry for a couple minutes. The parents didn't even notice until he was injured.

On our Alaska cruise this summer the characters were in their Alaska outfit nearly every day. We saw them multiple times. But of course this might be different next year.

We cruised in August and got very close to the glacier. I never felt that we missed out on not doing the excursion. We like to travel a lot and the price of the excursion for two would equal a nice weekend break somewhere. I am attaching a picture from deck 9 to get an idea of where the Wonder was in relation to the excursion vessels.View attachment 790893

That looks so cool. Thanks for sharing.