Planning First Cruise (Alaska 08/05)

[klh-or]

My family (my husband I, two teenage daughters and I) are planning our first cruise. We chose Alaska because we love the outdoors, nature and whales! Plus, we are very casual, low key people. After reading Frommer's "Alaska Cruises & Ports of Call" I am thinking maybe Norwegian would be a good fit for us. Sounds like it is the most casual of the cruise lines, I like the idea of the freestyle dining, and they sail from Seattle (we are in Oregon). I'm concerned about the room size, though, because in order to afford this, we'll really need to all be in one room. Also, I've seen more not-so-positive comments for Norwegian in comparison to other lines. Any first-hand info would be greatly appreciated, especially those who have cruised with teens. Our daughters aren't classic "party girls" but they like to have fun! We want this to be a really solid family vacation, and we really are pretty bewildered by all of the choices!! Thanks for any input you can send our way!!

[lhall85917]

I can't help you with Alaska trips, but we sailed on the Star last summer in one room with 21 year old and a 16 year old. We were on the 8th deck with a window and found the room to be perfectly comfortable for the 4 of us. It was by no means huge, but we didn't trip over each other and we had plenty of room for all of our things. We learned a lot from reading these boards that helped make it more pleasant such as bringing a power strip. That helped us girls dry our hair in the room while someone else was in the showere.
I can't vouch for the other ships, but we found the Star to be fine for 4 in a room.
We all had a great time on the ship and each of us found our own things to do together and on our own.

[Kayla's Mom]

We were just on the Star in a BD balcony (8560) and I don't honestly think you'd fit four in the room, because the sofa bed was very small -- more of a single bed. We were in RCCI to Alaska in 2003 in what is basically the same grade -- the cheapest balcony and that cabin would have very nicely fit four. The sofa bed seemed to be a queen or a very large double.
We had a nice big desk/vanity with more drawers and every bed had an end table with drawers.

Freestyle is great, so you'd love NCL, but RCCI was much less formal than I expected. Except for two formal nights, it was casual for dinner. You won't go wrong with either.

Have an excellent vacation -- Alaska is the BEST!

Legend of the Seas 8/02
NCL Star to Hawaii 04/04

[jkrislc]

Although I haven't cruised NCL yet, I have cruised Alaska and believe that freestyle will be a tremendous benefit in Alaska. When we cruised with Princess, we found that many people had to or chose to skip dinner in order to enjoy extra time in port (our ship didn't leave until 8/8:30-10P depending on the port). As a result, the personal choice restuarant and buffet got very busy as the other two dining rooms were designated seating. Others on RCI complained that they had few options for dining when returning late from port. Thus, freestyle will give you the flexibility to enjoy the ports at your leisure without having to rush back to the ship.

I don't recall if you specified the cabin type, but a balcony is a real plus in Alaska. However, in your case, you might want to opt for two inside, or an inside and an oceanview that are close to each other (e.g., across the hall). That way, you'll have some breathing room and can always go on deck to enjoy the views.

Since you live in Oregon, you might want to consider taking the train to Seattle. We did this from California and had a great time. While the train might not be affordable, keep in mind that it will save you from having to pay for a week's worth of parking. And a cab probably wont cost all that much, maybe $8 from the train station.

KLC
UPCOMING CRUISES:
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MONARCH OF THE SEAS (04/04)
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PRIDE OF ???????-HAWAII (01/05)
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PREVIOUS CRUISES
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RCI's Monarch of the Seas (01/04)
Star Princess (6/03)
RCI's Rhapsody of the Seas (4/01)
Carnival's Ecstasy (6/96)
RCI's Viking Serenade (1/94)

[pattict1]

I realize that having two rooms makes it more expensive but when my husband and I decided to book a cruise it was a must for us. We actually have two adjoining balcony cabins for us and our two boys 5 & 13. This means we paid the same price for the boys as we did for ourselves but we will be a lot more comfortable in the long run.

I just couldn't imagine sharing one bathroom with the kids and my husband when we are used to three at home.

[vijoge]

Portland to Seattle by Amtrak will take 3 to 3 1/2 hours and cost about $180 for four people (round trip). We always travel by train when we can and will be taking Amtrak from Chicago to Seattle in June 2005.

As far as NCL goes, we love RCI. . .but I just can't give up Free-Style cruising now that I've tried it. No more rushing back from port just so we don't miss dinner, etc. No more trying to decide if we want early seating, where we have to hurry up and eat so they can get ready for the late diners, or late seating, where I'm falling asleep in my salad!

RCI Majesty of the Seas 06/05/2000
RCI Enchantment of the Seas 12/09/2001
Carnival Conquest 12/01/2002
Norwegian Dawn 11/30/2003
Norwegian Star to Alaska 6/26/05

Life is too short to be unhappy!