Has anyone here taken an Alaskan Cruise?

[ebaynut31]

We are planning one for July/August 2004 and was wondering if anyone had any experiences? What cruise line and what ship names? We want to see Denali while there. Looks like it will be about a 2 week trip in all. We will have my dd who will be 11 and a 3 yo boy.

Has anyone actually gone kyaking (sp?) whale watching? I intend on learning how to kyak this summer so I can do the whale watching thing next summer.

 

[Pin Wizard]

I haven't, but a coworker went this past July. They said it was the best cruise/vacation they've ever had! And their pictures were beautiful!! I hear the summer months are the time to go...Enjoy! (And don't forget to share pics with us.)

 

[Mackey Mouse]

One of my closest friends went last year and said it was incredible.. I will see what I can find out..

 

[JohnTBap]

One of my friends is sending her parents for their 50th anniversary. Are they kid friendly?

 

[binny]

I worked for Holland America in Alaska for 2 years and did most everything there.

You can PM if you want lots of details


You HAVE to go to Skagway!!! ( my own personal mission in life is to get people to this town )

 

[mickeyfan1]

I was on HAL Ryndamm, a beautiful ship. We left from Vancouver, CA, docked in Ketchican, Juneau (where I panned for gold, I'm rich!!!), and Sitka, where the Russian Orthodox Church is. We got off in Seward, took a bus to Anchorage, then a train to Denali, we actually saw the mountain 2 days in a row, it is awesome, then to Fairbanks and home. We were in Galcier Bay on September 11th, and that made the cruise a little scary. But it was very nice. It was aslo unusually warm so I got to lay out on the deck the day we were in Juneau after my shore trip, and get some sun. It was a lot different from the Bahamas and Hawaii cruises I have been on, but it was very interesting. I thought the ship was beautiful, the ports are the typical cruise ports, lots of tourist shops, but there are good shore excursions at all of them.

PM me if you would like, and I will rack my feeble brain for more info.

WOrd of caution, bring good bug repellant, at that time of year there are lots of mositoes (sp?).

MM

 

[binny]

Hey Marsha! You did my tour! Isnt it great?

I usually dod the one to Dawson City but I did that run a few times too. How did you like Beaver Creek?

 

[phins_jazy]

DH and his whole family went there in '98. Every single one of them loved the trip. They went via Norweigian Cruise Line (NCL). I don't remember what ship they were on. I remember them saying the food was wonderful. And his pictures are beautiful. He wants to go back again someday.

 

[ryanpatricksmom]

I can't offer any insight yet, but I'll be happy to provide all the details when we get back in August of 2003!
First we are taking a land tour via the Alaskan Railroad...1 nights in Anchorage, 2 nights in Denali park, 1 more night in Anchorage, then 1 night in Seward...assorted tours included. Then we cruise the 7 night southbound itinerary on the Carnival Spirit. We finish up with an extra night in Vancouver.
We (including DS 11) really enjoyed our last Carnival cruise, so we're hoping that this will be just as kid-friendly.

 

[Meriweather]

I am interested in details too!!
Planning June 2004.

I do have a cousin that has done a lot of cruises and just recently did a 2 week Alaskan one. She likes the Alaska cruises the most of all the ones she's done.

I need to pick her brain sometime too.

 

[AngieBelle]

I took an Alaskan cruise on Princess Cruiselines about 3 years ago with my family. It was the first and only cruise I've ever done, and I thought it was great! We saw huge glaciers and whales and towns and totem poles. I really enjoyed being on the ship too. They always had activities going on like a talent show I got to do. I liked the shows they put on in the evening.

 

[CrazyBoutDisney]

No cruise, but I lived there--2 years in Ketchikan and 2 years in Kodiak! DD born in Ketchikan, best birthing experience I could imagine!! Beautiful country and friendly people, I must say. Echoing mickeyfan1, be sure your bug repellant contains DEET. It's not just the mosquitoes, it's the no-see-ums! They're little bitty things kinda like gnats that bite like crazy!!!

 

[DonnaS]

We're going on Holland America in late July on the Statendam. We'll be doing the southbound Glacier Discovery Tour, but it doesn't look like we will make it to Denali-- the cost was just more than we could bear at this time.

A great website for cruise information is CruiseCritic . Their BB's are especially helpful.

 

[tedsmom]

I haven't but know 3 different couples who have, and they all LOVED it!

 

[Michigan]

Haven't been yet, but we are booked on Princess for July 2003.

 

[Krissalee]

I went on the Holland America Volendam in September 2002. It was a fantastic trip! We did the Inside Passage cruise roundtrip from Vancouver. We would have liked to done the land excursions to Denali, but we can't travel in the summer months due to DH's work.

We were one of the last Alaskan cruises for the season. It was very cold when we were there, and found that wearing layers was the way to go. We went salmon fishing in Ketchilan. We went to Mendenhal Glacier and took a whale watching cruise in Juneau. We went to a salmon bake at a gold rush camp in Skagway. We were able to spend a lot of time in both Skagway and Juneau before or after or excursion. The nice thing about going that late in the season was that all the shops were clearing out their stock with sales of 50-75% off everything. Needless to say, we needed an extra bag for the return trip home.

The Volendam was a nice ship. We had a mini-suite with a veranda. It was amazing to walk out on the balcony and see whales and dolphins jumping along side the boat. We spent a lot of time on our veranda watching the scenery go by. The crew on the ship was amazing! We had fantastic service and were treated like royalty by all.

If you are cruising out of Vancouver, you may want to spend an extra day or two exploring the city and the surroundings. We really loved it there, and spent a lot of time in the downtown area, as well as Northern Vancouver and the Capilano area. We had a great hike out there! Plus, travelling by SeaBus was a lot of fun.

If you have any questions, please ask! This trip is fresh in my mind, as it was only about 3 months ago!

 

[denisem]

Sailed inside passage on Celebrity Galaxy 9/99. I'm a cruisenut (14 times/7 different cruiselines, all caribbean except this one).

You are in for a major treat! Amazing scenery. If at all possible, book a veranda cabin; makes it easier to pop in & out. (You never know when those whales will show up....DH called me out of the SHOWER to see a pod swimming by...was worth the chill!)

Along with what's already been mentioned, another highlight was drifting through Glacier Bay, not available to all ships/itineraries (they issue a limited # of permits each season). Incredible silence....then the crack/thunder of a glacier breaking off.....

It's hard to recommend a particular cruiseline...we're 40ish/no kids and thoroughly enjoyed Celebrity. But it is a bit more "sedate" line (some call it boring ). In conversations, I've found young families seem to prefer RCI/Princess/Carnival. We've become Princess fans merely for their personal choice dining (no set dining times, which give you a bit more flexibility).

Unfortunately, we also didn't have extra time to explore Vancouver or visit Denali, but they're on my wish list. Have a great time planning your trip!

For more cruise opinions visit:

Cruise Critics

 

[ebaynut31]

Wow, thanks everyone! I've been on Cruise Critic also. Not many replies there though. Denali is a definite to do. Going thru Glacier bay is also a definite.

I will never sail without a verandah! Went on the Disney Wonder once without the verandah and once with it. I will never go back!

has anyone done kyaking whale watching while in Alaska?

 

[tigercat]

My dh and I along with my parents took the Regal Princess inside passage cruise return from Vancouver. We say Jeaneu, Sitka and Skagway. Since I had to look after my parents the only excursion I took was a private tour I arranged before we got there in Skagway. It was really great. There were 8 of us on the tour and boy did we see a lot. It really was a wonderful cruise for seeing glaciers. Unfortunatly for me because I had to spend my time looking after my parents I didn't get to see as much as my dh. For example my dm decided to get her hair done on the day we were entering Glacier Bay. She had to be taken there and I had to stay there and wait for her. She would have gotten lost coming back if I had not waited for her. We would like to go back again. We went in May and there were no bugs but it was a little bit cooler. We were okay because we are used to the cold but others really felt it.
tigercat

 

[ebaynut31]

I'm sorry you missed a lot but am very proud of how you took care of the parents. I do the same for my grandparents. I love them dearly but they no longer drive and we do everythig we can for them. We feel guilty for going on such a long vacation, 2 weeks total but we have to do what we have to do. Their other children will have to take care of them while we are gone.

I'm sure this is going to be a pricey vacation. I'm estimating about $2500 per person or so. Not including airfare. Am I in the right price range?

We will have three rooms total. 2 families going. My friend, husband, and their 3yo son will be in an inside cabin. My family is getting a deluxe family room with verandah and a family room with verandah. We are just waiting for my travel agent to get back to us with a price.

We may book it ourselves though. What has anyone done for booking this trip and excursions? Please let me know.