Need help picking side of ship?

[MizzouMary]

Itinerary:

Date Location Arival Departure

 

Saturday, May 14, 2011 Vancouver, British Columbia -- 04:30 PM

 

Sunday, May 15, 2011 At Sea -- --

 

Monday, May 16, 2011 Juneau, Alaska 01:00 PM 10:00 PM

 

Tuesday, May 17, 2011 Skagway, Alaska 06:00 AM 08:15 PM

 

Wednesday, May 18, 2011 Glacier Bay Cruising, Alaska 06:00 AM 03:00 PM

 

Thursday, May 19, 2011 Ketchikan, Alaska 07:00 AM 12:30 PM

 

Friday, May 20, 2011 Victoria, British Columbia 07:00 PM 11:59 PM

 

Saturday, May 21, 2011 Seattle, Washington 07:00 AM --

Hello,

 

Based on the above itinerary, we'd appreciate recommendations on which side of the ship we should book our cabin on since we are embarking at Vancouver and debarking at Seattle.

 

Thanks for your help!

[snydermann]

I'd vote for somewhere on the inside. :)

[MercedMike]

There is much yammer yammer yammer about which side of the ship. Frankly, the reasoning in much of this is questionable at least.

 

Now, if you plan to spend hours and hours sitting on your balcony scanning the shore in hopes you might see a moose, then perhaps you want a cabin which will be closer to the shore. On some trips it might be possible to predict this, on others not so easy.

 

In Glacier Bay, one side of the ship might see more glaciers going in. Then the other side sees them going out.

 

Frankly, spending time on your balcony in Alaska is generally a pretty cold and windy prospect in any case. And if you don't have a balcony then it makes no difference whatever.

 

I really don't think the side of the ship you are on makes a difference. Normally we book the least expensive cabin of the type we want on a guarantee, and take our chances on which side of the ship for that tantalizing possibility of a free upgrade! This summer, we booked a GG obstructed outside guarantee and would up in a BA balcony!

 

Have a GREAT cruise!

[MizzouMary]

Thanks for the input. I'm mainly inquiring about which side for the part of the cruise where we'll be seeing different scenery (Vancouver/Seattle).

 

MercedMike, we are going with my Mother and Father in law, so a guarantee won't work since we'll want our cabins next to one another. We usually get a guarantee when we go by ourselves.

 

Thanks again!

[Sailkeywest]

Is that the Golden Princess first cruise of the season itinerary? Nice one, was my second choice (I ended up going with HAL).

 

If I were to go on that cruise though, I'd pick c752 as my first choice :D

[harryfat1]

I agree with Merced Mike that the selection of the side of the ship for Alaska sailing is over rated. Especially for the one way north or south bound cruises, everybody wants the land viewing side thinking they can see a wild bear or something, without realizing there may be marine life on the ocean facing side. It’s all a crap shoot. You can actually find some good deals from that bias as the ships will discount the less desired sides.

 

As for your sailing, it’s marginal difference at best to decide between starboard versus port side since you are effectively doing a round trip (only difference is coming back to Seattle instead of Vancouver). No advantage on the Glacier Bay day as the captain turns the ship around to let everyone see. On the port days, unless you care what view of the pier while the ship is docked, it matters not what side.

 

The only thing you may care is on the last day, you will see the west side of the Vancouver Island on the port side and Pacific Ocean on the other side. But you will be pretty far away from the Vancouver Island, so unless you care about taking some panoramic shots of the Island from your camera on your balcony, I can’t see any big difference one side or another.

 

Personally the bigger issue for me would be more on location of the cabins as I am sensitive to motion sickness and mid ship is better on the last day when you are out in the open seas on the way to Victoria. That to me is a bigger decision than starboard vs. port.

[Bunkie103]

How about for cruising the Inside Passage Northbound? Would you think port or starboard?:confused: Thanks.

[InternetAgeTraveler]

For most of the days, I agree with everyone that doesn't matter too much which side. You'll have shares of views on both.

 

If you are going for a balcony, the Glacier Bay experience to me is best enjoyed on the port side. The reasoning for this is simple, "anticipation", going into the bay the glaciers are on the port side and you're going to want to see them on the way in. Its also nice as you will be up early to be able to see the entrance to the bay and then to watch some of the earlier views as you getting ready (while cruisers from the port side have to go on deck). We were on the Pearl and we found that the total time stopped for Glacier viewing were about twice as long for the port side. Of course, I don't suggest spending all of your time on your balcony and going on deck for some of the time. Another observation is that the ships tend to go into the bay closer to the western shore and exit the bay more in the middle (see my time lapse collection in my signature below for a sampling include a glacier bay compilation over 2 months) .

[bbwex]

We were on the starboard side for a southbound 7-day glacier discovery cruise, and I don't think we missed a thing. As has been noted, the ships turn around in College Fjord or Glacier Bay, etc., so you see the same things. We were up in the buffet for breakfast as we entered College Fjord and saw lots from there, went out on the aft deck some of the time, and watched from our cabin some of the time. The same thing in Glacier Bay. It was pretty cold in both places, by the way.

 

In the Inside Passage, we had good views of Vancouver Island. Though people suggested we had made a mistake in selecting a starboard side cabin, after all was said and done, I had no regrets -- and I was the one that selected the cabin and then had second thoughts.

 

Bottom line -- I agree that the comments suggesting one side or the other are vastly over-rated.

[mutzy]

we had an aft cabin very end of the boat- huge balcony- loved sitting outside watching the scenery go by- it was super awesome when we went into hubbard bay and the captain kept turning the boat around and around-

 

the downside is that it is a bit of a hike to the elevators- probably wouldn't do an aft cabin for any other cruise but alaska-

[Budget Queen]

IF you ONLY want Glacier Bay viewing from your cabin, you are best with a port side, since the commentary will match up with your viewing. But the "better" viewing is on deck and moving with the ship, to see much more. :)

[FINTUCKYFARMS]

I personally find myself watching from the port side when on the outdoor decks because I like to watch the crew "dock" and "undock" the boat. I like to see the ropes and the ramps deployed and at some ports they take on fresh supplies. That said, the Port side is usually the designated smoking side so if you are sensitive to smoke, you might want to pick the starboard side.

[Texas Tillie]

I personally find myself watching from the port side when on the outdoor decks because I like to watch the crew "dock" and "undock" the boat. I like to see the ropes and the ramps deployed and at some ports they take on fresh supplies. That said, the Port side is usually the designated smoking side so if you are sensitive to smoke, you might want to pick the starboard side.

 

Problem with that is that a ship is just as likely to dock with their starboard side next to the dock as the port side! :D:);)

[loliola]

I was happy to have a port side balcony for Glacier Bay because it was very cold early on - we were able to watch from our balcony wrapped up, and step in to get warm without missing anything. As the day warmed up, we were out and about everywhere on the ship. So beautiful....

[pattyj 1204]

I know this probably goes against the tide, but I truly don't think that it will matter. We had an inside cabin on our previous cruise to Alaska and saw everything there was to see from the public viewing areas. We spent most of the time at the back of the ship where we were able to hear the naturalist and see whatever from either side of the ship. It also added some extra conversation with all the other cruisers while we were checking things out. Even people with balconies were out there with us. It was fun. Whatever you do enjoy your cruise.

[Irie]

i agree 100 percent that which side doesn't matter. we did port

side recently, saw hubbard glacier, than ran to the deck when the

ship turned.

 

tell me which side the whale will appear on, and i'll tell you which

side to be on.

 

and inside definitely saves money, and does make you get out and be

more social.

 

the point is - you are in alaska. enjoy. was on celebrity milennium

aug. 20 and had a wonderful time!

 

Have fun!!!!!!!!!!

[SeattleCruiselover]

How about for cruising the Inside Passage Northbound? Would you think port or starboard?:confused: Thanks.

 

Basically, the same arguments apply. When I was a res agent for Princess, I used to spend hours a day explaining to pax (essentially, and tongue in cheek) that both sides of the ship go to the same place. If you are going up the true inside passage, both sides look pretty much the same. In the glaciers, the ship will rotate so that both sides see the same thing. When you are sailing outside of Vancouver Island to reach Seattle, both sides of the ship are going to see exactly the same thing......water, water, everywhere.

 

If you are on the port side and there is something you want to see on the starboard side, there are plenty of both indoor and outdoor places that you can go to see it.

 

The starboard side northbound and port side southbound argument is pretty much a non-issue as far as most are concerned.