Flights for Alaska Cruise Question

[chik1987]

Looking at booking Alaska in the future. Whats been everyones experience on flights. It seems like unless you want a 14 hour flight time you pay through the nose. Is this the general consensus? What have you done to make getting there and back more affordable without drawing out the timeline?

 

[dcassetta]

Vancouver is and expensive destination airport. One thing that we did several years ago was to fly into Seattle and take the train up to Vancouver. Saved several hundred dollars, and the train route is really beautiful in that part of the country.

 

[Pooh2]

Vancouver is and expensive destination airport. One thing that we did several years ago was to fly into Seattle and take the train up to Vancouver. Saved several hundred dollars, and the train route is really beautiful in that part of the country.

We did as well. We enjoyed the train ride and also got to tour Seattle.

 

[ajo]

We just keep checking prices and about 5 months before our Alaskan cruise found a great fare sale to Vancouver through Orbitz. The tickets to Vancouver ended up cheaper than flying to Seattle and taking any mode of transportation (bus, ferry, train, or car) to Vancouver.

 

[xlxo]

Thoughts....

• there are two daily trains to/from Vancouver. Research the times.... you need to budget a Seattle hotel room that adds to the cost. I do recommend the train if you plan to explore Seattle too.
• also research Quick Shuttle. It sounds more expensive than the train, but the Quick Shuttle offers 6 to 7 daily trips and picks up direct from the airport.... convenient as you don't need to make your way to Seattle's train/bus stations
• Budget an extra 3 to 6 hours of travel time when using the Seattle airport.
• Vancouver's cruise terminal hotels are premium priced. But you will find savings looking a hotels a few blocks away from the cruise terminal. There's also savings by staying near the Vancouver airport.

 

[GoofyLovingFamily]

We found cheaper tickets on Hotwire into Vancouver. The Seattle tickets were most expensive. Check all options.

 

[lorimay]

We did Seattle then Quick Shuttle.....It was a very long day.
6 hour flight, then 7 hours on the bus.....yuck.
We came in from Ft Lauderdale

 

[KristiMc]

We flew into Seattle and did two one-way rentals to get to/from Vancouver. The drive was easy and it worked better for our schedule vs the train.

 

[ludari]

I've flown into Vancouver at least five different times for cruises and it wasn't that expensive but I guess it's a matter of your departure airport. To save on airline cost I would suggest you consider flying in mid week. Good luck with booking your flights.

 

[MUN]

Looking at booking Alaska in the future. Whats been everyones experience on flights. It seems like unless you want a 14 hour flight time you pay through the nose. Is this the general consensus? What have you done to make getting there and back more affordable without drawing out the timeline?

Where are you flying from?

 

[chik1987]

Where are you flying from?

We would be flying out of Kansas City. We have also considered flights from Dallas OKC or Denver (or really anywhere semi-close) if the drive would be worth the $ savings.

 

[psac]

Try to give yourself a few days in Vancouver before if you can!!

 

[MUN]

We would be flying out of Kansas City. We have also considered flights from Dallas OKC or Denver (or really anywhere semi-close) if the drive would be worth the $ savings.

I would check Southwest to Seattle and either do a shuttle back and forth or 2 one-way car rentals. As others have said, Vancouver is expensive to fly to.

 

[TinkLoverSam]

Also check www.westjet.com and www.aircanada.com for flights

 

[chik1987]

We flew into Seattle and did two one-way rentals to get to/from Vancouver. The drive was easy and it worked better for our schedule vs the train.

That's a really good idea I didn't even think about doing a one way car rental and they seem decently priced even without hunting down coupon codes or discounts. And the drive looks to be around a few hours which isn't bad and i'm sure its a pretty drive. Thanks!

 

[labdogs42]

We flew from Newark, NJ through Toronto to Vancouver on AirCanada last August and it worked well. We got in the day before we sailed and stayed the night at the Pan Pacific. We LOVED the Pan Pacific. Highly recommended.

 

[msabol01]

I'm a big fan of Google flight as well as kayak as they both track airfares and give recommendations whether to hold or buy. We are doing an Alaskan cruise this summer (non-Disney ) and was able to purchase at the dip...

It's also nice because you can search multi departures and destinations at once (for example I search PHL, EWR, JFK [Philly, Newark, and NY]) and it gave the best results across all departure points.

 

[erin1715]

I'm going to follow this also. I have an Alaskan cruise on hold for summer 2018. My husband and I both have Southwest CC's so normally we fly on those points, but we'd need to both open up another CC to have enough to fly 4 adults to Seattle, so I'm currently researching if there is another CC that offers a better deal perhaps right into Vancouver. Disney World is so much easier to plan!

 

[chik1987]

I'm a big fan of Google flight as well as kayak as they both track airfares and give recommendations whether to hold or buy. We are doing an Alaskan cruise this summer (non-Disney ) and was able to purchase at the dip...

It's also nice because you can search multi departures and destinations at once (for example I search PHL, EWR, JFK [Philly, Newark, and NY]) and it gave the best results across all departure points.

View attachment 221809

We are planning on doing Princess because we really want to do Glacier Bay. They do have some round trip from Seattle that seem feasible so maybe that will be a future option.

 

[havaneselover]

I'm going to follow this also. I have an Alaskan cruise on hold for summer 2018. My husband and I both have Southwest CC's so normally we fly on those points, but we'd need to both open up another CC to have enough to fly 4 adults to Seattle, so I'm currently researching if there is another CC that offers a better deal perhaps right into Vancouver. Disney World is so much easier to plan!

Not sure where you are but I was seeing roundtrips on westjet (with whoever their partner is) from VA for < $400 through Chase ultimate rewards. Chase Sapphire Reserve sign on bonus is worth $1,500 for about another month if you apply at a branch. I have csr but will probably add CSp (sign on bonus worth $750) to cover two of our tickets to Vancouver.