Disney Cruise Alaska v Disney Aulani - help????

[Hills of Hasland UK]

with opening day tomorrow for 2017 Alaska cruises, we now need to make a decision. We went on our first merrytimecruise in December and it was fantastic and are now planning our daughters surprise 21st birthday present and she has always wanted to go to Alaska and Hawaii, we are struggling to decide on the cruise or Aulani and need to make our minds up so we can book Alaska tomorrow if that's what we choose.

So has anyone done either/both and what would you do? I know either will be amazing and that's what's making it so hard!!!!

Thanks

Jo.

 

[CamColt]

I have not done either, but I will give you a bump so hopefully you can get some opinions from those who have.

 

[chglass]

We had done an ocean view on an Alaskan cruise in 2013 and had a great time, and were thinking about repeating in 2016 with a veranda this time. The prices were more than we could justify (+$10K). We ended up switching to a 4 days at Disneyland followed by 10 days in Hawaii (6 of them at Aulani). We weren't even close to the price of the cruise. I talk about it a bit here: http://backtothemouse.com/planning-a-trip-to-hawaii-part-1/

 

[tlynk]

I've done both and this is a hard one! Two different vacations. The BEST family vacation was our Disney cruise to Alaska, yet going to Hawaii for a 21st birthday can be lots of fun! I'm not much help, because my young adult daughters loved both vacations. I think I'd lean more towards the Hawaiian trip for a 21st B-day.

 

[jdb in AZ]

Does your daughter enjoy mountain scenery and glaciers, or is she a beach person? What time of year are you thinking of? Obviously you couldn't cruise Alaska in the winter, but the heat/humidity in Hawaii can be a bit overwhelming during the summer, especially since you're from England. There's so much to see and do in Hawaii, and not just on the island of Oahu where Aulani is. An Alaska cruise is more laid-back, tho you could find lots of active shore excursions if you wanted.

They're both good choices, and I hope you can eventually do both.

 

[apathetic]

Both are great, but kids probably favor Hawaii. Alaska is a destination that will generally appeal to older people & the ports for Disney aren't as great as if you took another cruise line (Princess) that drop you in Alaska to do more things. In the end, Disney hits a few good ports and have great excursions, but kids probably won't "choose" that first. We've done both and the kids loved the beach so much better. Of course, it really depends on the kid, but I think most at age 21 would favor Hawaii. Rent a car (Aulani is isolated) and enjoy the whole island.

 

[Pooh2]

We had an absolutely amazing trip to Aulani for our 30th anniversary. Would highly recommend it! We are doing the Alaskan cruise this summer so cannot compare yet!