How smooth are the Alaska Cruises

[toontoy]

Hi everyone.

I gained so much info on our last couple of cruises here I thought I would see if I could get some more info about Alaska

My wife can handle the Caribbean cruises as the water is smoother. On both of the Mexican Rivera cruises we have taken she is fine going with the current down but when we return home she turns blue. She has the patches and all the meds that the doctor will allow.

I am wondering if the Alaska cruises are smoother or if the pacific isn't just for us as its pretty rolly.

The cruise I am trying to convince her to go on is in 2013 in august out of vancouver. I think she may have second thoughts with alaska as we have lots of snow here for 8 months out of the year

 

[Silly Little Pixie]

I'm curious too, but guessing it might vary depending on weather conditions like storms. Our roughest cruises have been the Caribbean and Bahamas- they have been much rougher than our 2 MR on DCL.

 

[plutojudy]

Our Alaskan cruise was the smoothest cruise we have ever taken. It was a delight to not feel movement. I get seasick easily and was fine on the Wonder in Alaska.

 

[jdb in AZ]

A lot of the Alaskan cruise has land on both sides, so that keeps the water extra smooth. But if you're out on the open sea and the wind is blowin the waves around, the captain will use the ship's stabilizers to keep the ship from rocking and rollin -- as much as possible.

 

[ilovetexas]

North America

Rough Waters: The majority of sailing on an Alaska cruise is done in the protected waters of the Inside Passage, but ships sailing to Seward, Whittier or Anchorage must cross the Gulf of Alaska, which is much rougher. Cruise staffers say the gulf gets especially bad after Labor Day, in the shoulder season.

Impacted Itineraries: one-way Alaska sailings

I copied this off of Cruise Critic. And I can vouch for the info. We did a Celebrity cruise a few years ago, one way Seward to Vancouver in September. Let's just say the night of the first full day at sea was a bit rough. I missed the first formal night because I was in bed. The rest of the cruise was fine but getting through the Gulf of Alaska can be a bit bumpy.

 

[NancyIL]

North America

Rough Waters: The majority of sailing on an Alaska cruise is done in the protected waters of the Inside Passage, but ships sailing to Seward, Whittier or Anchorage must cross the Gulf of Alaska, which is much rougher. Cruise staffers say the gulf gets especially bad after Labor Day, in the shoulder season.

Impacted Itineraries: one-way Alaska sailings

I copied this off of Cruise Critic. And I can vouch for the info. We did a Celebrity cruise a few years ago, one way Seward to Vancouver in September. Let's just say the night of the first full day at sea was a bit rough. I missed the first formal night because I was in bed. The rest of the cruise was fine but getting through the Gulf of Alaska can be a bit bumpy.

I had the same experience in August crossing the Gulf of Alaska from Kodiak to Hubbard Glacier. Since the Disney cruises don't go farther north than Skagway, and they depart from Vancouver in 2013 - they should be relatively calm. There can always be exceptions, so take precautions.

 

[sayhello]

2013 should be OK, sailing from Vancouver. This year's itineraries, however, sailing out of Seattle, go outside of Vancouver Island, and spend a lot more time in the open ocean. As long as you're looking at 2013, I'd say you should be fine. There's never a guarantee, but 2013's Alaska itinerary is probably one of the smoothest you're going to find.

Sayhello

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Hi everyone.

I gained so much info on our last couple of cruises here I thought I would see if I could get some more info about Alaska

My wife can handle the Caribbean cruises as the water is smoother. On both of the Mexican Rivera cruises we have taken she is fine going with the current down but when we return home she turns blue. She has the patches and all the meds that the doctor will allow.

I am wondering if the Alaska cruises are smoother or if the pacific isn't just for us as its pretty rolly.

The cruise I am trying to convince her to go on is in 2013 in august out of vancouver. I think she may have second thoughts with alaska as we have lots of snow here for 8 months out of the year

This is another of those "it depends" answers.

For the most part, as long as you are on the inside passage, the cruise is very smooth. If your cruise passes on the western side of the land (as in on the ocean) it can be rough. On our Alaska cruise the 2 times we had to cross out to the ocean before entering the inside passage again, were pretty rocky. On the first time they closed the doors so people couldn't go on the outside decks and the Captain made an announcement asking the ladies to NOT wear their high heels to dinner.

 

[llqool]

I was on one of the May Alaska sailings on the Wonder last year. There was only one rough time, and it happened, as someone mentioned, when we had to cross open ocean to enter the inside passage on the outbound journey. It was fairly brief, but it was during the dinner hour. I get *really* seasick if it's at all choppy, and I had to go put my seabands on and take bonine. I was fine after that. There was one other day (Skagway) when we had been on shore all day and I hadn't taken Bonine or put on my bands (I don't get carsick or airsick, just seasick). We came back on the ship and set sail, and it was a little choppy, so I had to duck back in to our cabin and get my seabands and meds.

One caveat - I did take bonine every day, just to make sure that i wasn't caught unawares. The only time I forgot to take it, I could tell the difference. But it still seemed a lot smoother than our Bahamian cruise, which I planned for Dec b/c it was supposed to be calmer.

 

[toontoy]

This is another of those "it depends" answers.

For the most part, as long as you are on the inside passage, the cruise is very smooth. If your cruise passes on the western side of the land (as in on the ocean) it can be rough. On our Alaska cruise the 2 times we had to cross out to the ocean before entering the inside passage again, were pretty rocky. On the first time they closed the doors so people couldn't go on the outside decks and the Captain made an announcement asking the ladies to NOT wear their high heels to dinner.

This is what I would fear the most, it would make me blue.

So many choices to think about. Thanks for all the info and keep it coming

 

[richmo]

I think in 2013 out of Vancouver, you should have it pretty good. We went last year (July) and I thought the cruise was pretty smooth, overall. I found the Bahamas cruise a year earlier a little smoother. The only day I remember a bit of rolling on the Alaska trip was the first at-sea day on the way to Tracy Arm. I should add it was rainy and windy that day, so that may have been a factor.

I've heard the cruises out of Seattle (2012) have a rougher time of it, but I'm not sure why (do they take the outside passage?)

 

[mellers]

We sailed on the mid-August cruise last year, and it was quite nice the whole time--one night it rocked a little bit, but it was never really bad.

 

[toontoy]

sounds great now to finalize the date for next year