OT Cruise to Alaska...Help Me Plan

[GOOFY4DONALD]

This may be OT (except I always look for ways to budget everything). I just know many of you (online of course) and this board is one the most helpful and friendly boards. My DH has always dreamed of a cruise to Alaska. I would really like to make it happen next year. We have never been alone on a vacation...actually since I had DD13 from my 1st marriage DH and I have never been alone together more than one night. Due to having 3 kids that would need care and my budget I am looking at a 6 night shorter cruise. Now here is where I need help. I have never been on a cruise. I do not know which company will be the best for this kind of trip. I want this to be a surprise but since we don't have passports I will have to give him this gift early. I was thinking trying for July or August and maybe surprising him with it on his birthday (end of Jan). I just need all the advice I can get.
Thank you.

 

[poohs4me]

Since DCL is going to Alaska next year, there is quite a bit of info on the Disney Cruise Line pages, so you might want to check over there. I used the cruisecritic forums alot for planning our trip

We went on an Alaskan Cruise in late August early September on Royal Caribbean's Serenade of the Seas. It was cold, but then we are from AZ and 70's feel cold.

 

[GOOFY4DONALD]

Since DCL is going to Alaska next year, there is quite a bit of info on the Disney Cruise Line pages, so you might want to check over there. I used the cruisecritic forums alot for planning our trip

We went on an Alaskan Cruise in late August early September on Royal Caribbean's Serenade of the Seas. It was cold, but then we are from AZ and 70's feel cold.

Thanks for the reply. I wasn't aware that DCL will be going to alaska so there is another option.

 

[PHXscuba]

I'm not aware of any cruise that are 6 nights or shorter. All of the ones I've seen on the major cruise lines are 7 nights or longer. There are some big distances involved, whether the cruise is one-way or round-trip.

I agree with a PP that Cruise Critic is a great place to ask some questions and learn more. They have a specific Alaska board as well as boards for each cruise line, families, etc. It's like the DIS of cruising -- the people are very friendly and helpful.

I priced an Alaskan cruise and found that everything in Alaska -- airfare, excursions, transfers, etc. -- is pricier than other cruises or vacations. We opted to put off our Alaskan family cruise for a couple years to really be able to enjoy it, age and money wise.

PHXscuba

 

[SaraJayne]

My Mom just returned from an Alaska land/sea vacation. Her's was 10 or 11 days, I believe.

It is very pricey. Her Alaska vacation cost more than her 21 day trip to Europe a couple years ago.

 

[GOOFY4DONALD]

I did find a 6 day cruise on carnival that will run us about 5K. It sails out of Seattle. To me it sounds like a steal compared to what it costs to take 5 of us to WDW.

 

[bumbershoot]

Cruisecritic.com all the way!

We did a 7 day AK cruise for our honeymoon. We got a relatively budget room, but the prices are up since '03. AK has some extra fees to offset the impact of the ships, and of course it's the US vs elsewhere, so the expense makes sense to me.

We only did one excursion through the cruiseship; the other thing we did we did on our own. $5 each to hop on the big blue bus to go to the glacier near Juneau, vs $50 or $75 or whatever to have a cruise-sponsored excursion. You do have to monitor and manage your time well, b/c going off on your own means you are responsible for getting back, and the ship won't wait for you! Anyway, my point is...it's the US and I was 100% comfy with finding our own way around. There's a nice little Mexican restaurant in Juneau if you leave the touristy district...what's funny is that 2 years ago my stepdad and his wife went on a cruise, didn't talk to us about it first, and they found the exact same restaurant!

 

[mrsklamc]

Loved DCL but can't recommend them for an Alaska cruise. Glacier Bay is the most amazing part of an Alaska cruise and Disney doesn't have permits to go there.
Bring binoculars and study up and budget for your desired excursions. If you don't have a digital SLR take a traditional film camera as a regular digital camera will not be fast enough to get whales, eagles, and other wildlife before they are gone.

 

[SnowWhite607]

Check out Princess cruise line also. My parents get back tomorrow from their cruise to Alaska, it was like 11 days also though....they did a land and sea package and stayed at a few wilderness lodges before actually getting on the ship. They left from Vancouver.

I think it was the Diamond Princess that they sailed on.

 

[GOOFY4DONALD]

Thanks again for the replies. It is pretty inexpensive to get to seattle from here and with a budget balcony room the trip will be under 5K but I was off on the nights it will be 7 nights not 6 which is fine because kids will be out of school and the grandparents can take turns watching them. Now I am getting to be a pro at planning WDW vacations but I wonder if this would be something I should find a TA for.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

Look into the Princess line. They have more ships sailing to Alaska than any other cruise line so you'll get more options for departure ports and dates. Also, look at the prices at different times during the summer. In 2008, we started our Alaska cruise in mid-June. The price went up considerably after that. When the weather is warmer and the kids are out of school, the prices will be higher.

 

[tommya60]

You need to spend some serious time at Cruise Critic . com You can get all the information you need there. I've done the Alaska cruise twice, love it.
Keep in mind that you will want to do some shore excursions, but you can book those without the cruise line. I can't recommend Cruise Critic highly enough. You will have good information and save a ton of money.

 

[dzorn]

Thanks for the reply. I wasn't aware that DCL will be going to alaska so there is another option.

Though not really a budget option.

Denise in MI

 

[skip323]

One more push for cruise critic. Look at the different cruise line threads, the Alaska threads and the west coast port threads. Very informative! We are attempting to do an Alaskan cruise next July with the whole family. Talk about expensive! We have signed up to do Holland. Our biggest deciding factor was where the cruise lines go .... we wanted to do Glacier Bay and I believe Princess and Holland are the two that go there. The cruise I picked also goes to Tracy Arm so I am feeling pretty lucky!! We Also wanted inside passage (more scenery per the pros on cruisecritic) so we will fly into Seattle then take the train (not very expensive) over to Vancouver.

Cruise critic is the place to do research on this trip!

 

[adkkev]

There are various sized ships that cruise to Alaska ... as already posted, really look over the cruisecritic website and soak in as much as you can from there.

And consider what kind of cabin you want to spend your money on ... will the inside cabin (usually the cheapest) meet your needs, or do you want to splurge on something like a verandah with a balcony?

 

[Starbrite]

I did find a 6 day cruise on carnival that will run us about 5K. It sails out of Seattle. To me it sounds like a steal compared to what it costs to take 5 of us to WDW.

OP - I am leaving in 2 weeks for a Carnival Cruise to Alaska ~ 7 nights r/t out of Seattle.



I just wanted to say that my cruise (for 3 people) including airfare from Pittsburgh & 2 nights hotel in Seattle is far less than 5k. So you can definately do this on a budget if you want to.

We booked our cruise over a year ago, directly with the cruise line & took advantage of Carnival's Early Saver rates. I'm in an Inside Room, but the base rate was only $559pp (for the 1st 2 - $259 for my DD). We went with the inside room because my parents booked the big corner aft balcony across the hall...we'll just use their balcony.


Definately read over on Cruise Critic. They'll help you choose a cruiseline & hotel. You can do this yourself - If you can plan Disney, you can plan a cruise.


I see you mentioned a passport. If you're from the States, depending on the itinerary, you may not even need a passport. (someone correct me if I'm wrong here) Technically, you could get by with a DL & Birth Cert - as long as you watch what excursions you book. Some of the excursions, like the train in Skagway, require a passport because they take you thru Canada.


Feel free to ask if you have any specific questions about my cruise or the booking process. I love planning vacations.

 

[crjack]

We took a cruise to AK last August and it was our best vacation ever!

Definitely check out cruise critic but realize some people are very attached to specific cruise lines. We weren't but we did get a lot of good advice on itinerary.

Glacier Bay is not visited by every ship (limited # can go there) It is beautiful and we really wanted to see it. We ended up the NCL Pearl and had a great time.

NCL is also more casual with Freestyle dining and for us, with teens, that was great. Some people, especially if just adults, may not like it but you could go more formal if you wanted to.

It's also more budget friendly so that line may work for you. It is a 7 day cruise out of Seattle and cabins come in all size and budgets. For 2 people you will have lots of choices.

The excursions are exta $$ and again vary widely. Check out NCL's website to get some ideas and cruise critic has lots of info as well. You may want to pick one port to splurge on an excursion that you both really want to do. The choices are endless.

I would recommend having a passport, especially if you want to leave the ship in certain ports but we got ours for our children in less than 3 weeks so you should have plenty of time after your DH's birthday.

The cruise season to AK isn't that long. Really mid May to mid Oct with July & Aug being the most popular.

BIL/SIL went on Princess and enjoyed it as well.

Enjoy...it is truly a trip of a lifetime!

 

[rigs32]

1) You can do this without a T/A by doing your own research. As others said, cruisecritic is fantastic.

2) If you can go on May or Sept you will save a TON of money. July is the most expensive month. You can look at all Alaskan cruises at once on a site like vacationstogo.com

3) Do you *need* a balcony room? Many cruise ships (esp smaller ones) have plenty of deck space where you can sit to see the glaciers. You will more than halve your cost in exchange for having to leave the room. If you book an inside near a stairwell/exit the inconvenience is minimal.

4) Round trip to and from Seattle is the cheapest in terms of transportation, but if you won't ever go back, try to book one that sails through Glacier Bay. Def the best glacier viewing but not all ships can go - only 2 or 3 ships are allowed in every day.

 

[Vijoge]

I was thinking trying for July or August and maybe surprising him with it on his birthday (end of Jan). I just need all the advice I can get.
Thank you.

I did find a 6 day cruise on carnival that will run us about 5K. It sails out of Seattle. To me it sounds like a steal compared to what it costs to take 5 of us to WDW.

I may have misunderstood, but I think you are talking about going in August 2011, correct? I'm curious as to where you found your price quote..

The only way you're going to spend $5000 on a Carnival Cruise to Alaska is if you get a suite. Otherwise, the prices don't even come close to that and you can get an inside cabin that ranges from about $589 to $865 pp at the moment. Of course prices fluctuate and that's not written in stone, but Alaska doesn't necessaril;y need to be any more expensive than cruising most anywhere else. I've seen Alaska cruises starting as low as $399 (but probably not in August).

NCL is also reasonable. DH and I had a suite with a butler on NCL's Star and only paid about $3000 for the two of us.

 

[zscfan]

Just putting in my 2 cents....Holland America Line!!!! They go to Glacier Bay, have amazing food and service....Just remember to include crewmembers' tips as part of a budget.