Sigyn

I'll do more research, thank you!

I have visited Vancouver before and love it. My husband wants to spend time visiting wineries in the Seattle area, however, so that's a really important vacation item for him. Otherwise, I'd be all over Vancouver for the entire trip and forgo Seattle completely. Very helpful, thanks! I'll consider, thanks!

We are cruising out of Vancouver in July 2023. We'd like to fly in and visit Seattle for a few days beforehand. What is the best way to handle getting from Seattle to Vancouver for our cruise? I looked into a train and that seems doable and an approx. 4-hour trip. A rental car seems out of the question given there's no way to return it and a one-way rental into a foreign country is crazy expensive. The plan is to fly to Seattle, visit for three days, then go to Vancouver, spend the night before our cruise, then embark on our cruise, which is one-way to Seward, then spend 3 nights in Alaska, then fly home from Anchorage or Fairbanks, depending on what we decide to visit in Alaska after our cruise.

are you renting a car in Vancouver and parking it while you are cruising? Or renting elsewhere and parking while crusing?

I appreciate everyone's help! I booked the Celebrity Millennium and I'm looking forward to the trip!

I booked the Celebrity Millennium. Thanks for everyone's help!

You are quite the experienced Alaskan cruiser! You're right, I still have ISP! I know, the railway looks so interesting!!!!

I saw that about the update on the Millennium. She's beautiful! It's ironic because just a few weeks ago I was worried about older ships. I did my homework and realized that, like with people, older can easily be better. Especially when you don't want to deal with a huge ship. A nip and tuck here and there and everything is better than new!

The Eclipse is beautiful. I really like the look of the Millennium. It's a classic. I think the itinerary might be a bit more appealing to me, with Skagway instead of Icy Strait Point. We lose Glacier Bay by doing Celebrity, so with Seward at the end, we could add in a few days inland if we choose.

I have narrowed down my first cruise to Alaska (I've been there on land before) to two options from Celebrity. I think my husband and I will like the vibe on Celebrity, based on what friends tell me, and we'll enjoy the service and pampering if we decide to step it up to the Retreat. Here are the two cruises I'm considering that work with the time we have available to cruise while our son is at summer camp. Which do you think is best? One is northbound and one is roundtrip from Vancouver. The prices for one-way flights to Vancouver and from Anchorage versus RT from Vancouver are very similar. Already did my homework. So it's really about which ship is best and the best itinerary with ideal port times. I've never cruised on Celebrity before. Seems like the perfect time when we are kid free with our son at camp. We are 51 and 54 years old, and we like to relax with wine, cocktails, and spend our time on deck looking for cool things to see, and the occasional theater show while at sea. Celebrity Eclipse July 9-16 Day 1: Vancouver depart 4:30 pm Day 2: Inside Passage cruising Day 3: Icy Strait Point, 1:30 - 10 pm Day 4: Hubbard Glacier, cruising Day 5: Juneau, 7:30 am - 8 pm Day 6: Ketchikan, 2 pm - 8:30 pm Day 7: Inside Passage cruising Day 8: Vancouver, arrive 6 am, disembark $3,796 for veranda cabin (all included) $8,827 for Retreat on deck 12, sky suite Celebrity Millennium July 7-14 Day 1: Vancouver depart 5 pm Day 2: Inside Passage cruising Day 3: Ketchikan, 7 am - 3 pm Day 4: Icy Strait Point, 9 am - 7 pm Day 5: Juneau, 7 am -9:30 pm Day 6: Skagway, 7 am -4 pm Day 7: Hubbard Glacier cruising Day 7: Seward, arrive 5 am, disembark $5,540 for Deluxe Veranda Stateroom (larger veranda, regular ones not available) on deck 6 (Or Prime Concierge Class deck 8 midship regular veranda for $5,964 all included) $10,773 for the Retreat on deck 6

That's kinda what I figure - we won't get it all in, so having some cool stuff on this one, with a ship we'll enjoy, is good enough. And we'll see more on the next trip!

I saw that Ward Cove was 7 miles from town. What a pain!

What's your favorite ship for Alaska?

I like to be outside to observe, even if the weather is chilly. When I did my one-day cruise of College Fjord many years ago, I was out on the deck while others were cozy inside. I think I saw a lot more than they did, and hearing the crash of the glaciers calving was something I've never forgotten. You don't hear that if you're indoors. I want to be outside for viewing, with the option to go inside if I get too cold, and warm up, and go back out. I looked at the Cunard cruise and it's on my list, but I feel like the cruise atmosphere itself is too formal for me. My best friend loves Cunard and cruises it quite a bit, so I'm familiar with the dress and options of Cunard cruises from her stories and photos, but it really isn't my style. Plus, her fellow passengers all seem quite elderly. I will do some of both. Probably 75% outside, 25% inside would be my guess, based on how much I like my bar and wine lounges. 🙂

Where is a good place to learn specifics about each port? I've read about each one, but it seems that everyone glosses over the details. It's very hard to find out what's real about the ports, at least, enough to say, yes, I want to go to Skagway but not Ketchikan, or I must see Hubbard Glacier but I don't think Tracy Arm is worth the bother.

Thanks for the suggestion. It does look like a great cruise. I had it ranked as 5th on my list, after the four I listed. It's just a day or so later in July than I really preferred because we're trying to do this while my son is at camp and he leaves on July 2. This cruise is July 10-17: Vancouver, 5 pm departure Inside Passage Ketchikan (Ward Cove) 7 am - 5 pm Juneau,Alaska 11 am - 9 pm Skagway,Alaska - 8 am - 8 pm Glacier Bay cruising Hubbard Glacier cruising Seward,Alaska 5 am disembark

I just realized the Princess won't do the real Inside Passage, it does the sea route. So scratch that one.

I'm trying to decide between four cruises for our first Alaskan cruise. Two are Vancouver roundtrips, the other two are Vancouver northbound one-ways. I checked airfare from our home to Alaska, and it's actually about the same whether we fly roundtrip to Vancouver ($741) or one way to Vancouver and then one way home from Anchorage ($607), so the one-way isn't a big deal. We will spend 2-3 days in Seattle before we depart (or after, if we return to Vancouver, perhaps) because we enjoy that city, too. So we might fly in or out of Seattle, but that isn't relevant to our cruise decision. We do not want to cruise out of Seattle and miss the Inside Passage. Those cruises don't appeal to us. Besides, Vancouver is only a scenic 4-hour train ride from Seattle, so easy enough to get to. Here are the four cruises. I'd very much like to get input from experienced cruisers to Alaska. I chose these itineraries based on the port time and the ports and my research. I have seen College Fjord before, 23 years ago, and I think my husband would like it, too. Holland America Koningsdam - 7-day Roundtrip from Vancouver Itinerary: Vancouver departs 4:30 pm Inside Passage, cruising Tracy Arm Inlet, 9 am - 9:30 pm Juneau, 1 pm - 10 pm Skagway, 7 am - 8 pm Glacier Bay, cruising 7 am - 4 pm Ketchikan - 11 am - 7 pm Inside passage - cruising Vancouver - arrives 7 am Celebrity Eclipse - 7-day Roundtrip from Vancouver Itinerary: Vancouver depart 4:30 pm Inside Passage cruising Icy Strait Point, 1:30 - 10 pm Hubbard Glacier, cruising Juneau, 7:30 am - 8 pm Ketchikan, 2 pm - 8:30 pm Inside Passage cruising Vancouver 6 am Princess Majestic Princess - 7-day Vancouver to Whittier Itinerary: Vancouver depart 4:30 pm Inside Passage, cruising Ketchikan 6:30 to 3 pm Juneau 8 am to 9 pm Skagway 7 am to 8:30 pm Glacier Bay National Park (Scenic Cruising) 6 am to 3 pm College Fjord (Scenic Cruising) 6 pm to 8:30 pm Anchorage (Whittier) 12:30 am Celebrity Millennium 7-day Vancouver to Seward Itinerary: Vancouver, 5 pm Inside Passage cruising Ketchikan 7-3, Icy Strait Point, 9 am - 7 pm Juneau, 7 am -9:30 pm Skagway, 7 am -4 pm Hubbard Glacier cruising Seward (arrive 5 am)

I just read that the age minimum for the fitness facilities on NCL is 16. Do they strictly enforce this? My son is 15, and a high school freshman on the track team, and had hoped to be able to run on an outdoor track during our holiday cruise, but it turns out the Prima does not have a jogging track. There's only treadmills in the fitness facility. And now we see that there's an age minimum for the fitness facility. Perhaps if I'm in there with him? He is nearly 6 feet tall so he doesn't look under 16, and he's a serious athlete so he's not going to go in to goof off. His coach is going to flip if he can't run for 8 days. I know it's the holidays, but they have a state championship team and he pushes the athletes to perform. Anyway...need to get my info ahead of time so that I can tell the coach. Thanks in advance...

Which type of balcony is best to book for an Alaskan cruise? Obviously starboard vs. port would be dependent on southbound or northbound, but what if it's a Vancouver roundtrip? Or how about an aft balcony? (I've left forward off because of the wind factor.) I'd love to get opinions on this. Thanks!

I'm curious what we can expect along the lines of Black Friday cruise deals. 2020 and 2021 aren't really years that we can use for comparison, given the pandemic fire sales, etc.. But what do you think we can expect to see this year? When do the sales usually begin, and what type of deals are offered? I looked for articles and posts on previous years and it seems that perhaps the deals start about a week before Black Friday and last for a week afterward, and are typically about $50 to $99 for deposits, and maybe a few extras thrown in. I have no idea if that is accurate, because it's simply based on 2-3 articles I found from 2018 and 2019. Any thoughts from experienced cruisers who have looked at Black Friday sales in the past, and even booked cruises as a result?

I've decided one of the most important things for me, outside of itinerary on an Alaskan cruise, is a great observation deck. Which ships have the best ones?

Ah, yes. Mine is a fee card. $550 a year. I love it, though, because of the miles I rack up for Delta. It gave me 120,000 miles when I first got it, plus I get free access to all Delta lounges, and two companion passes a year, or $39 pp for guests after those two passes are used up. And free access to all AmEx Centurion lounges. I love the lounges because they have amazing free food and the free cocktails and drinks are nice, too. And clean bathrooms that smell nice! 🙂 I also get a free companion ticket once a year on Delta, from main cabin up to first class, whichever I choose to fly myself. And a lot of other free benefits, like my first bag checked free for myself and up to 8 traveling companions, etc. I advise comparing all of the various AmEx travel cards, fee or no-fee, and seeing which ones might suit you best, with the deals and such that they offer.

Yes, my Cunard and Princess-loving friend's tastes aren't exactly like mine, unlike another friend who recommends both NCL and Celebrity. I respect my QE2 friend's preferences, but she likes afternoon tea, napping, and staying on board rather than doing excursions. She's also not a foodie like me, but she does know good food when it's in front of her. I saw tons of wildlife in the beginning, and throughout all 86 miles or so to Wonder Lake back in 1999. I even saw a gray wolf at the end of the day, as dusk was falling. There were two fresh moose or elk, I forget which, that had locked horns and died, and the wolves were feeding. I will never forget seeing the female wolf standing on the side of the road, watching the bus as we drove past. But as for wildlife, we saw 17 grizzlies that day, several moose, bald eagles, etc. It was amazing. So, even if there's not a great view of Denali, there's still the wildlife. But I would rather wait a year and go when I could get farther into the park again. That's good to know about the Jewel. And amazing that you saw the Orcas at that point. How fortunate! I would love to have fresh crab in Alaska. I'll check out the Spirit. That's useful info. Thank you!

This is very useful information. Thank you so much.