Travel

[mac116]

My husband and I have never been on a cruise.  We have been at a few ports on vacation (St. Thomas, Hawaii), and the enormous ships are an enormous turn off to us.  However, a cruise is on my bucket list, and my DH is willing to go next year.  I would appreciate any and all ideas.  We only want to go for 7 days since we haven't cruised before.  Average cost? 

[SXMGirl]

@mac116, we took our first Alaska cruise in May and we were on Celebrity.  While I was not thrilled with them, the cruise was about Alaska and it was wonderful.  If you can, I would try to go for a 9-day cruise.  The reason that we went with Celebrity was the itinerary as it made the regular stops, along with Sitka and Victoria.  Both are places that were well worth visiting.

If you do a 7-day cruise, I would recommend Royal Caribbean.  A friend did the Alaska cruise out of Anchorage with them and had a wonderful time.  We cruised out of Vancouver and really enjoyed our time there.

When you cruise Alaska, there will be other cruise ship companies in port with you.  We met a couple on a Norwegian ship and they thought it was just so-so.  My friend only cruises Holland America and loves it.

The main thing is that you are there to see Alaska.  It is magnificent.  You will meet many people who have cruised Alaska numerous times.  We opted only to take a few excursions so that we could really get a feel for the towns, with the idea that we will go back but not necessarily on a cruise.  There is every type of excursion that you could want, but choose carefully.  They can be very expensive.

Mainly, just go and enjoy yourselves.

[Shelbelle]

I have heard the excursions are very expensive and not worth the prices.

[Stevie Nix]

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@Shelbelle wrote:

I have heard the excursions are very expensive and not worth the prices.

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They are indeed expensive, but IMO very much worth the prices.  Do you want to take a heliocopter to a glacier?  Do you want to walk on a glacier?  Take a dog sled run?  See otters and eagles in their natural habitats?  If the answer is yes, then spend the money.

You don't know if you will get the chance again.

[kaydee50]

We have done a 7 day cruise from Vancouver to Seward and then on our own spent another 9 days touring including Denali which I believe is a must.  We have also done a 14 day round trip from Seattle, both on Holland America.  We loved both of them and plan on doing the 14 day cruise again in the not too distant future.  HAL is a mid size (about 1300 passengers) ship and it is our favorite cruise line.

There is a LOT to see in Alaska.  If you don't want to do the excursions that the ship offers (we usually do take them) you can arrange your own tours.  Check out trip advisor, cruise critic and viator.com.  You can get a lot of info from those websites.

Bon voyage!

[drizzellla]

We went on a Disney Cruise last year to Alaska. I thought the excursions were reasonable. My husband signed us up for panning for gold. I told him I thought that was a waste of time and grumbled about it. But we wanted to do as many excursions so we went. We had so much fun. We actually got gold and enjoyed our time there.

We went whale watching, tour of Ketchcan, up a cable car in Juneau, Mendelhall glacier, Tracey's Arm, shown numerous totum poles, seals and eagles nests.

To get to the different cities you either need a plane or a boat. That is why cruising works so well when you go to Alaska. 

The cruise was for 8 days. And will definitely do it again. 

[ScrapHappy]

I've been on MANY cruises.  From my early 20's with my best friends to a couple of years ago on the Disney Cruise Line with my family.  I highly recommend a Disney Cruise, with reservation.  Only because as you start to research cost, you're going to find DCL more expensive.  But, the ships, service, etc. is just great.  You mentioned about the size of the ship, Disney does have several ships.  I believe the Fantasy is the largest but there are others like the Dream and Magic which are smaller.  I'd stay away from the mega-ships like Oasis of the Seas, Anthem of the Seas, etc.  Check out a travel agent, one that specializes in cruises.  What  I've heard, you can get some pretty good deals and usually via a travel agent there are little extras to have, like on board credit.  Also go to Disboards.com.  Yes, it's a lot of Disney but scroll down.  There are two specific threads about cruising.  Royal Carribean and DCL(of course!).  Cost....there's a lot of factors.  Length of cruise, when you book, what type of room (inside or outside cabin, balcony, excursions (which are expensive on any cruise), alchohol, etc.  Also keep in mind about the tipping.  Tips are given in envelopes, usually given the last day of cruise to housekeeper, waiter and wait staff.  It adds up.  One other thing about a Disney Cruise, don't think it's all about the kids.  There are plenty of adult only places to hang out and eat.  But, it's not for everybody.  I hope you have a wonderful time whatever you decide to do.

[Meowingkitty]

We did Holland America to Alaska. We like that cruise line because it doesn’t cater to to many kids like Disney. I think we saw maybe 2 kids.  So if you don’t want hordes of kids I recommend Holland America. We did the dog sledding and it was so worth it. I feel that if you are going on a cruise the excursions are a must. Yes they are expensive but think about it. You will probably never have a chance to go back so you might as well enjoy it. Also good to know, that if you book an excursion not affiliated with the cruise line and something happens and they return late the ship will leave without you and it’s up to you to find a way back but if you book a cruise affiliate if something happens the ship will make accommodations. 

[Kachina624]

There are cruise lines that use smaller ships than the huge ocean liners.  They often emphasize the nature aspect of the experience.  My sister and I took such a cruise in 1992, but the company is no longer in business. In 2010, we took basically the same cruise on a Princess ship, which I wouldn't recommend. I would contact a travel agent about the options availble.

If at all possible, I would I'd also recommend a side trip to Denali National Park. It's the high point of any trip to Alaska.  Be sure to select a ship that goes to Glacier Bay National Park.  To lessen environmental impact, the park service limits the number of ships that enter.

The only excursion with which we were impressed was the train ride out of Skagway. You may sign up for the same trips the cruise lines offer, with vendors on the docks at greatly reduced prices. We did that with whale watching in Juneau, paid half of the ship's rate, and went in a much nicer boat.

Try this website for small ship cruises.

liveaboard.com/cruise/alaska

[gmkb]

We have done most of our cruising on Princess and have never been disappointed.  Holland America, a bit more expensive, but well worth the few extra dollars, is also a very fine cruise line.  

We did a seven day cruise out of Vancouver.  I would recommend spending a couple of days in Vancouver before the Alaska cruise if you choose that starting point.  It is a lovely city with much to see and do.

Alaska was not my favorite place to visit - cold and wet - but I know I am in the minority, because most people love visiting Alaska.

We have always found the excursions offered by the cruise lines to generally be worthwhile.  This is especially true if it is a first time visit.

I hope you enjoy your cruise experience.