Alaska versus Norwegian Fjords?

[SLK1]

Ok we just took an Alaskan cruise aboard the Wonder back in June. What a fabulous, beautiful, perfectly amazing trip!!! Now that I finally have my family convinced that cruises to destinations OTHER THAN the Caribbean are fun, I am looking at Norway.

Has anyone done both of those and can shed some light on similarities/differences?

Thank you!

 

[ELKA]

Ok we just took an Alaskan cruise aboard the Wonder back in June. What a fabulous, beautiful, perfectly amazing trip!!! Now that I finally have my family convinced that cruises to destinations OTHER THAN the Caribbean are fun, I am looking at Norway.

Has anyone done both of those and can shed some light on similarities/differences?

Thank you!

I have done both. 2012 I did Alaska, 2016 I did Norwegian Fjords. Both are beautiful and both had sights that I enjoyed seeing. The only port that DCL is not doing this coming year is Geiranger Fjord, that one was my favorite. Most of the buildings in Geiranger are by the port, then you have sights that are awesome to see. Stavanger, Bergen and Alesund are towns near Fjords and you travel to see them. All were great to see and I hope to go back another time to Geiranger. I am going back to Alaska next year, I am going on the nine night one in July.

 

[cruiser21]

I preferred our Norway and Iceland cruise over Alaska cruise. I'm not saying I didn't like Alaska, but if I had to choose it would be Norway.

 

[bobbiwoz]

I preferred our Norway and Iceland cruise over Alaska cruise. I'm not saying I didn't like Alaska, but if I had to choose it would be Norway.

We did too, and we would pick Norway over Alaska for a return cruise.

 

[trampslady]

We've done both, albeit on Celebrity, not Disney. In fact, we did both this very year--just back from 5th Alaskan cruise. We were very interested in having these so close together this year to compare. I have to say, I love Alaska. However, there was something simply magical about Norway, and we had the time of our lives. That said, we also LOVED Geiranger, and it would not be the same trip without that port. Flam was by far our favorite port. The fjord was beyond words. We will definitely be back to Norway.

 

[jiminyC_fan]

Been to both on different cruise lines. Just got back from Norway on Viking and much prefer it over Alaska. Never thought I would say that as I loved Alaska. I am now planning a road trip in Norway. Amazing country.

 

[MUN]

We have done both on DCL and they were both fabulous. You can't go wrong with either cruise. The one difference we noticed is we saw very little wildlife on the Norwegian Fjord cruise. We were unable to stop at Geiranger because of "high" winds. However, the ship did a slow sail up the fjord.

 

[jenf22]

We did Alaska on DCL in 2012 and Norway on NCL in 2015. They were both amazingly beautiful, but Norway was something really special. We saw a lot of wildlife in Alaska and not really any in Norway. Norway was absolutely pristine - no litter anywhere. I don't really remember thinking that in Alaska (doesn't mean it wasn't true). We visited Flam, Bergen, Alesund, and Geiranger on our Norway cruise. Alesund and Geiranger were our favorite ports. Though they were all great. I'm not sure what ports DCL goes to if you choose Norway, but you might want to check the other cruise lines to make sure you're not missing a great stop.

 

[cruiser21]

If you really wNt a special trip do the cruise that includes Iceland and Scotland along with Norway.

 

[bksaffle]

We loved Alaska in 2014, which led us to go to Norway and Baltic in 2016...really loved Norway and Baltic....it was amazing. However, we are going back to Alaska in 2018, so if you are wondering if you would enjoy Norway, ABSOLUTELY. It is just an amazing trip, but I would have to say my favorite port was Geiranger, and that is a bummer that they are not going there. I would go and read some trip reports and see what others say in detail. But I don't think you can go wrong....

 

[GeneMachine]

We did the Disney Magic's Norwegian Fjords/Iceland/Scotland this past summer and thought the itinerary was amazing.

We also sailed on Celebrity for an Alaskan cruise the last full week this past August.

If I had to choose which was better for ports of call, I would go with Norway.

Alaska is beautiful, and being there made me want to return to the cities for longer periods of time. Norway, Iceland and Scotland are also beautiful, and have different things to offer.

It depends on what you are looking for, as both cruises are amazing in their own ways. Alaska's size and geography is gorgeous and unparalleled. And the glaciers are gorgeous and the adventures are incredible, once-in-a-lifetime things. The same can be said for Iceland, Norway and Scotland. There is a greater sense of "being away," and discovery on the European cruises than I felt in Alaska.

Both are amazing, i would recommend doing something different than you've already done. Either way, you won't be disappointed!

 

[Pens Fan]

We've been on two Alaskan cruises - one on DCL (RT out of Seattle) and one on NCL (one way from Vancouver to Seward with an additional week on our own exploring the Kenai Peninsula), one land based trip to Alaska, and the DCL Norway/Iceland/Scotland cruise. All were amazing in their own way.

The way I see it the main differences you will encounter between Alaska and Europe are:

Much, much more potential for wildlife in Alaska - though you will probably have to drop some $$$ for excursions to see a lot

The European cruises are fantastic for experiencing an entirely different culture.

As for scenery, I think it depends on the Alaskan cruise. Unfortunately the DCL itineraries (with the a few exceptions that go to Hubbard Glacier), don't really showcase the best of Alaska in my opinion. The one way cruise we did this summer went to both Glacier Bay and Hubbard Glacier and then allowed us to spend a week in mainland Alaska. We spent 18 days with breath taking scenery throughout the trip. Simply incredible. Every bit as fabulous as our European cruise, and if I really had to choose I'd say Alaska was better.

As far as port towns, I would give the advantage to the European cruises over Alaska. Honestly, I hate to say this, but I think Juneau/Ketchikan/Skagway are kind of tourist traps. Yes, you can take an excursion and get out of town - and you should! - but I thought the port towns in Europe had so much more charm - probably because they were so different than what we see in SW PA .

If you loved Alaska, I think you will love Norway, but I'd definitely recommend looking at the cruises that go to Iceland as well. The scenery is breath taking and the people are incredibly warm and friendly (in their own unique way!). Also, Iceland has some great thermal features, similar to what you will see in Yellowstone. Plus they have these great black sand beaches due to the numerous volcanoes. It's a pretty special place.

Edited to add: Don't discount the Scotland factor of the Iceland cruises. Kirkwall was our second favorite port to Reykjavik (and better than Akureyri). The historical sights are just incredible there.

 

[jenf22]

If you loved Alaska, I think you will love Norway, but I'd definitely recommend looking at the cruises that go to Iceland as well. The scenery is breath taking and the people are incredibly warm and friendly (in their own unique way!). Also, Iceland has some great thermal features, similar to what you will see in Yellowstone. Plus they have these great black sand beaches due to the numerous volcanoes. It's a pretty special place.

I'll second (or third?) the Iceland recommendation but I wanted to add you can stop there on the way back from the Norway cruise too. You don't have to find a cruise that also goes there. We're in Denver and the best flight home from Copenhagen was through Iceland, so we stayed for 2 days. It was phenomenal!