Persuade Me Towards an Alaskan Cruise

We did NCL Alaska cruise out of Seattle. It's all about nature, nature, nature. We loved it. We did a day tour of the Yukon up to Emerald Lake, beautiful! We hiked, saw the salmon running, and hiked to Mendenhall glacier and Nugget Falls. SOOOOO beautiful. Next time we would probably do Glacier Bay but we saw quite a bit and had a fabulous time!

I have always heard how beautiful Alaska was and hubby decided he wanted to do it. SO, we did a closed loop out of Seattle in 2010. We absolutely loved it. The downside was, it only made us want to see more. SO this year, we did the tour cruise. OMG. It was amazing. If you're interested, I've included the link to my review for that.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2512132

Whatever Alaska cruise you decide on, expect to see some amazing sights.

Erika

I am looking to book a cruise for August 2018. I can't help but feeling like I will only hit, at most, 1-2 new places if I do another cruise through the Caribbean. So, I am considering spreading my wings, which has brought me here, pondering an Alaskan cruise. For those that have done one, or several, can you persuade me into booking one? What are your favorite Alaskan ports/cruising experiences (because I know some itineraries cruise through Glacier Bay and such, not dock)? What are your favorite Alaskan cruise memories? What makes Alaskan cruises stand out?

 

Thank you to anyone who provides information, I'm hoping this thread will help me, as well as all future Alaskan first-time cruisers in either booking or planning their trip! :)

If one has to be persuaded, it's likely not a good choice for a cruise. This is a "bucket list" cruise destination for many people, and rightly so.

We've done the round trip Inner Passage Alaska cruise, and found it to be phenomenal. We also did a good deal of research and felt that with 2 glacier stops, 2 (different) whale-watching adventures, and several wildlife excursions...we truly captured the wonder and scenery of Alaska. The North or South routes would be OK too, but the cost of airfare and/or hotels for 2 different start/end locations seemed exorbitant.

Hump back whales, Orca whales, Bald Eagles, Sea Lions, Bears, Foxes, and other wildlife are part of the experience, in addition to the stunning glaciers. We went in early May - the May - July timeframe is the peak Alaska whale-watching season.

An Alaska cruise also costs more than a number of other options, but worth it overall.

MY DH was not all that keen to go to Alaska either--but, it was on my bucket list. I persuaded him by brining up Alaska when we talked with other cruisers. In the diamond lounge the conversation usually gets around to cruises people have taken. When they mentioned AK I asked them about it. EVERYONE talked about how great it was. We have never met anyone who said they did not like it. I eventually said lets try AK since everyone loves it and he agreed. It is one of my top 3 cruises. [along with Panama Canal and N Atlantic TA Harwich to Boston]

To get the most out of the trip you should add a land portion of several days. It is a long way to go for just a few ports. . . . and seeing just the inside passage does not give you the flavor of most of AK. Deanli is terrific. We also enjoyed renting a car and driving to the Matanuska Glacier, Turn Again Arm, and Garwood.

Read the posting on the Alaska Port of Call forum. It one of the more active and informative message forums.

Happy cruising. :)

We had a blast in early June this year. You can see my review here:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=53316007

Once you go, you will want to go again. There is too much to see in just 1 week.

if you decide to go to Alaska you might want to read this old thread .

more info here than you ever knew you needed.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1852077

We have gone the last cruise of the season on both Radiance (RCCL) and Celebrity (Solstice) both equally lovely.

The weather in early September seems to be quite warm and enjoyable with not too many rainy days. Here is a sunrise pic coming into Ketchikan.

Residents were out in their shorts painting:

One goes to Alaska to see nature in all her glory. It is spectacular!

Hubbard is my favorite glacier because of its size.

If this doesn't convince you, I don't know what will....

All in all, Alaska is one of our favorite destinations. in fact, I will be up at midnight on Nov. 28th to snag another aft cabin on Solstice the day they announce their 2019 Alaska cruises. Our 3rd.

Just do it, you'll never regret it!

Once you go, you will want to go again. There is too much to see in just 1 week.

True! Our last cruise was 14 days and it was too short! We have plans to return again.

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Maybe this Icy Straight Point rainbow:

Do the cruise tour. We chose Princess because they have permits to Glacier Bay. The cruise tour included three days on land before the cruise. Three wasn't enough and the land tours are hectic so I'd recommend doing land before sea. Once on the ship you can kick back a little and relax. We also chose early September and found the weather comfortable. There were a couple of sweatshirt days but that's as cold as it got.

Almost forgot, best cruise ever. New England-Canada doesn't compare. Go for it.

Go once and you’ll be hooked

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+30 cruises before I could convince DW to do Alaska. When we returned the first thing she said, "I would do Alaska again." First time she ever said that about any cruise.

Our cruise to Alaska is the only one my wife and I have taken that we both want to repeat, and this is after doing it three times.

One more reason......

Alaska Coastal Classic Train from Anchorage to Seward

The cruises are as different as North and South! Funny but true. Caribbean cruises are about sun, sand, and clear seas. Alaskan cruises are about rugged beauty. Both have nature to enjoy but in much different ways. I loved it. Will likely do it again.

Alaska was never somewhere that I personally wanted to visit, but after going on a cruise there with my family I say it's soooo worth it. The scenery is gorgeous, especially going through Endicott Arm, and I would go again in a heartbeat. I'll admit, living in Seattle definitely made transportation a lot easier and cheaper, but there's no other place quite like it.

I wrote a trip report with lots of pictures and video on my blog if you're interested: https://thechippertraveler.blogspot.com/

In addition to everyone else's comments, today it was announced that Ovation will do Alaska.

http://www.creative.rccl.com/e-lite/RCI/2017/Market_Development-Trade_Strategy/17059116_Deployment_Dedicated_Email_Big_Stories/17059116_Deployment_Dedicated_Email_Big_Stories_CCE.html