Cruises to Alaska

[Popovich]

Can anyone recommend a cruise line and or TA for an Alaskan cruise with kids?? Our parents really want to go to Alaska and they will have taken 3 Disney trips and two Disney cruises with us, so it's only fair they get to pick the next trip (even though I'd still rather be on DCL )

I'd appreciate any suggestions.

Thanks,
Gailyn

 

[figment52]

I am sending you a pm.

 

[pppiglet]

Wow. I just got off the phone with my mother-in-law and they just got back from their alaska cruise on Holland America. She said they had the best time and the food was great. She said they had lots of things for kids to do too. It was her first cruise ever.

 

[tvguy]

I highly recomment HAL. We cruised on the Amsterdam 18 months before our first and only Disney cruise on the Magic. You will not be disappointed in the ship, the service or the scenery. They have kids clubs, and while their facilities aren't up to Disney standards for kids, the number of activities was comparable.
My kids skipped kids clubs on both HAL and Disney, preferring family activities. We got to be their friends instead of just mom and dad for a week on both cruises.

 

[Popovich]

Thanks for the replies. I'll look into HAL.

I wish DCL went to Alaska!

 

[Mary Anne]

I have never been to Alaska on HAL but I have been on other HAL cruises. Don't flame me but we actually like HAL better then Disney in a lot of ways. When we do go to Alaska, I think it will be on HAL.

 

[barkley]

i would suggest you look into lines other than hal. we did the inside passage last year (just about a year ago this week), we went with them because they are the only line that trades out with disney vacation club. if your kids are younger and want a cruise that offers activities for them-this is NOT the line to go on. they only had kid's club open a few hours a couple times of day (and the times conflicted with the dinner times-we were only able to eat in the dining room one night) they offered coloring, board games, puzzles, a couple hour swim party one night, and on one occasion a naturalist giving a speech. if the kids did not want to participate in the activity offered (and when i mentioned the activities above, i want to clarify that these were individual activities-the kids did not get a choice-if it was coloring time that was it.). the space for the kids area was smaller than the smallest cabin on board a disney ship.

as adults we were disappointed in the service on hal, not at all up to disney standards (room steward wise, food wise, service in general).

i just spoke with a friend yesterday who cruised last year on the same route on the "radiance of the sea". she said it was awsome, and that there were loads of activities for her kids to participate in.

 

[mic&min]

Last summer we took an Alaskan cruise on Royal Caribbean. There were a ton of kids on this cruise and they all had fun. My daughter was 12 so she wasn't in the kids clubs but there were still activities for her age.

We had a blast and I would recommend them in a heartbeat. The ship we were on was the Serenade of the Seas. It is a newer ship and it was beautiful.

 

[tvguy]

i would suggest you look into lines other than hal. we did the inside passage last year (just about a year ago this week), we went with them because they are the only line that trades out with disney vacation club. if your kids are younger and want a cruise that offers activities for them-this is NOT the line to go on. they only had kid's club open a few hours a couple times of day (and the times conflicted with the dinner times-we were only able to eat in the dining room one night) they offered coloring, board games, puzzles, a couple hour swim party one night, and on one occasion a naturalist giving a speech. if the kids did not want to participate in the activity offered (and when i mentioned the activities above, i want to clarify that these were individual activities-the kids did not get a choice-if it was coloring time that was it.). the space for the kids area was smaller than the smallest cabin on board a disney ship.

as adults we were disappointed in the service on hal, not at all up to disney standards (room steward wise, food wise, service in general).

i just spoke with a friend yesterday who cruised last year on the same route on the "radiance of the sea". she said it was awsome, and that there were loads of activities for her kids to participate in.

Which ship were you on? We cruised HAL before Disney, and found the service similar. BUT, we cruised before HAL started automatically charging tips to your account.
HAL had the "tipping optional" policy. The company line at the time was "we pay our staff a living wage, so tipping isn't necessary". They wouldn't even give tipping guidelines.
I wonder if the level of service had dropped now that HAL accepts and collects tips?

One thing that hasn't changed, HAL has been cruising Alaska longer than any other cruise line.

My kids never used the kids clubs on either ship, they found too many other things they found more interesting, so can't comment on the clubs themselves. However, one thing that HAL does better with the kids clubs is, they put out a "Navigator" every day for each age group that is delivered to your cabin with the regular Navigator. At least on the Amsterdam, the kids clubs were in operation from 9 am to 1 am every day. My kids were 11 and 15 on the HAL cruise, and 12 and 16 on the Disney cruise.

 

[MariettaC]

I have been on two Disney(Magic) cruises with my DD and her family. This July I took the HAL's Amsterdam to Alaska. In my opinion, the Disney Magic is far superior and I won't be cruising with HAL again.

 

[ibouncetoo]

I have been on two Disney(Magic) cruises with my DD and her family. This July I took the HAL's Amsterdam to Alaska. In my opinion, the Disney Magic is far superior and I won't be cruising with HAL again.

So which cruise line would you choose for Alaska?

I'm interested in people's response to this OP question also. Has anyone cruised both HAL and Princess (doesn't necessarily have to be to Alaska for comparison purposes) and which did you prefer. My boss is wanting to send her parents on an Alaskan cruise next year for their 50th anniversary and doesn't even know where to beging. It would be great if I could give her some input from the DIS crusin' crowd

 

[dobelover]

I was on RCI 'Radiance of the Seas' Alaska cruise in June of this year. The ship was beautiful and well maintained and the itinerary was great for seeing Alaska.

I have been on 8 DCL cruises and 4 RCI, I like both lines for different reasons.

Enjoy your cruise to magnificent Alaska.


Sue

 

[lillygator]

I am also interested on hearing from those with young children...what Alaska cruise is best?

 

[MariettaC]

So which cruise line would you choose for Alaska?

I'm interested in people's response to this OP question also. Has anyone cruised both HAL and Princess (doesn't necessarily have to be to Alaska for comparison purposes) and which did you prefer. My boss is wanting to send her parents on an Alaskan cruise next year for their 50th anniversary and doesn't even know where to beging. It would be great if I could give her some input from the DIS crusin' crowd

Sorry, I can only speak to my experience on the Amsterdam. It just didn't compare in so many ways to the Magic. Cruise Critic is a site you might try to learn about other lines.

 

[chip&dale&fun]

i would suggest you look into lines other than hal. we did the inside passage last year (just about a year ago this week), we went with them because they are the only line that trades out with disney vacation club. if your kids are younger and want a cruise that offers activities for them-this is NOT the line to go on. they only had kid's club open a few hours a couple times of day (and the times conflicted with the dinner times-we were only able to eat in the dining room one night) they offered coloring, board games, puzzles, a couple hour swim party one night, and on one occasion a naturalist giving a speech. if the kids did not want to participate in the activity offered (and when i mentioned the activities above, i want to clarify that these were individual activities-the kids did not get a choice-if it was coloring time that was it.). the space for the kids area was smaller than the smallest cabin on board a disney ship.

as adults we were disappointed in the service on hal, not at all up to disney standards (room steward wise, food wise, service in general).

i just spoke with a friend yesterday who cruised last year on the same route on the "radiance of the sea". she said it was awsome, and that there were loads of activities for her kids to participate in.

We were looking at using DVC points for this cruise, we love Disney service....What time of year did you go?

 

[joksten2000]

We've been on 5 Disney Cruises, Just got back from the Mexican Cruise, Looking forward to Alaska next july 2006. Get nervous to read some of you didn't have a great time on HAL Thinking maybe I should wait for DCL to go to Alaska

Anybody hear any rumors about this. I heard on the cruise there will be an announcement this fall on some new cruises.

 

[ashman]

I did NCL to Alaska for my honeymoon 11 years ago, we enjoyed it alot! NCL has since gone to the "freestyle" cruising option. (no assigned dining times) From what I have read Princess and RCCL have the better children's programs for the lines going to Alaska. Princess has the "freestyle" option as well (My in-laws are on a cruise right now on the Princess line in Alaska)

 

[tvguy]

. Get nervous to read some of you didn't have a great time on HAL Thinking maybe I should wait for DCL to go to Alaska

Anybody hear any rumors about this. I heard on the cruise there will be an announcement this fall on some new cruises.

None of the current Disney ships will be going to Alaska, they aren't designed for cooler weather cruising (no covered pools and outdoor areas, although Alaska is currently have a record heatwave!!!).

I wish the folks that had concerns about HAL would be specific about what issues they had. As I posted earlier, I also wonder if any issues they had came about because of HAL eliminating their "No Tipping Expected" policy.
Frankly, you can't go wrong with either Disney or HAL.
My HAL cruise on the Amsterdam was my 6th cruise, and my cruise on the Magic was my 7th, also cruised with Paquet, NCL(twice) and RCCL(twice).

Some comparisons:

KIDS CLUBS: No question, at least on paper, Disney is stronger here. More space for kids only. Pulling out my Navigator and my newsletter from HAL, the number of hours of kids club availability are identical (or were). HAL does have a slight edge in that they print age specific newsletters each day for the kids clubs that list that days activities. My kids would have been in different clubs on both ships, and enjoyed getting their own newsletter. However, I have no first hand knowledge of what the kids think of the clubs on either ship, because my kids toured the clubs on both ships and never went back. They found the general ship activities more to their liking. They were 11 and 15 on the HAL cruise, and 12 and 16 on the Disney cruise.

DINING & FOOD:
Service on both was great. No nightly "show" from the wait staff on HAL, just the traditional "Baked Alaska" parade one night. HAL was a bit more formal, which may make those with very young children a less uncomfortable. HAL also had a little bit more upscale a menu, for example, there was a Lobster dish on the menu every night. Disney also offers one less course at dinner (not that I missed it).

STATEROOMS:
Outside stateroom square footage on the Amsterdam, 197 square feet.
Outside stateroom square footage on the Magic/Wonder 214 square feet. The DISNEY ADVANTAGE is in the split bathroom, especially if you travel with kids. Since the split bathroom takes up about 17 square feet, the actual sleeping/living area of the cabins is identical.
The HAL ADVANTAGE may also be in it's bathroom if you are traveling as a couple with no kids. Because there is only one bathroom with one sink (Disney has a sink and toilet in one half of the split bathroom, and a sink and the tub in the other half) there is more "turn around room" in their bathroom.

ATMOSPHERE: Hands down, Disney wins this. It's Disney. And it's done in such a way that if you aren't a Disney fan, it isn't over powering.
Another Disney difference, their programs are clearly geared to the "early to bed early to rise crowd". There is a ton of stuff to do from 9 am to 10 pm, but except for New Year's Eve, the ship is pretty much shutdown after 10:30 pm. We always have late seating, and love to go dancing, but the clubs on Disney that had dancing were nearly empty at night. (yes, self conscience about being the only ones on the dance floor).

ENTERTAINMENT: Disney hands down in production values. Only thing we didn't like about Disney, relates to my above comment about "early to bed early to rise". If you have late seating, your show is BEFORE dinner, instead of AFTER, which is the cruise industry norm. Many of us who chose late seating do so because we want time between a day in port, and dinner to rest, get cleaned up, and gear up for the night. Putting the late seating show at 6:30, instead of the normal 10:30 messes that up.
We did see the most "geniune" show we have ever seen on the Amsterdam. The Indonesian cabin stewards and wait staff put on a show featuring
the music and culture of Indonesia. They did this at 11:30 one night. It was an awesome way for them to celebrate and share their culture, as well as give them a kind of recreational outlet, and let their hair down with the passengers.

CONCLUSION: You can't lose with either Disney or HAL. Both are premium priced cruises, known for premium quality, and premium prices. And they must make their passengers happy, because they are the top lines in returning passengers.

 

[jgalecpa]

Just did a Celebrity cruise to Alaska this summer on the "Infinity".

We have two teens, but in;aws had kids ranging from one to 10.

Would not recommend it for kids.

Many reactions were: "Jeez, where'd all these kids come from"

My bet would be RCCL for older kids.

Can't comment on HAL, since I haven't sailed them since I was 13 (Nixon was president).

Jim

 

[denecarter]

Hopefully, my parents will be beginning their Alaskan cruise on HAL in about 2 minutes (5 pm Vancouver time). I say hopefully because their Northwest flight from Minneapolis was almost two and a half hours late (1:20 scheduled vs. 3:48 actual arrival). the web said there was "unscheduled maintenance"... that's nice, they're having a maintenance strike. The cruise site says it takes 20 to 25 minutes to get to the port and that the gangway is pulled out 30 minutes before departure.

Wonder what will happen if they "miss the boat". They won't be alone... they are part of a group from here in Texas. We were laughing yesterday because they, at 61 & 62 are the youngsters of the group!