What to wear for an Alaskan cruise

[emayracing]

My deepest apologies if this is answered elsewhere, I've been searching but haven't found anything.

 

We are planning a late June/early July 2013 Alaskan Cruise - Seattle to just north of Juneau.

 

What does one bring - do we need light jackets, sweat jackets, heavy jackets? What is the weather like at that time of the year?

 

Is the pool even open? I've checked the temperatures at the major ports, but that really doesn't answer what it feels like on a moving ship near Alaska.

 

Any insight would be helpful. We've always cruised the carribean - so this climate will be new to us.

[cb at sea]

Bring things you can layer....you won't need heavy, bulky coats. It's summer there, too! But, if you have a few things you can layer (long sleeve tee, jacket, etc...) you can add or remove as needed.

 

Alaskan weather is tricky....I remember one early June when it was hotter in Alaska than it was on the East Coast...Va. and NC!

 

So, bring some shorts and some long pants...short and long sleeves.....you can rewear things!!!

[CruiserBruce]

I agree with cb, it is all about layers. The temps could be 50s to maybe 80s.

 

The place for this, and a lot of other relevent info is the Alaska board, here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=55

[emayracing]

Thank you!

[emayracing]

CruiserBruce - ha -I thought I WAS in the Alaska Cruise section when I posted this. Apparently, I navigated incorrectly, because I see I didn't put it there after all. Thanks again for the answer and the correct link.

[sail7seas]

Good luck. :)

 

We just returned from 5 days in Seattle and 7 days in Alaska on Ooosterdam.

We have a fabulous time but I put a lot of careful thought into what to pack and it really paid off for us.

 

We never opened our umbrellas the whole time we were gone.

It was one of the three prettiest days of the year when we were in Seattle and we barely needed a jacket. I carried one all day and the next day left it in our hotel.

 

DH wore long sleeve cotton shirt and I had on 3/4 sleeve cotton jersey with slacks each day of our time in Seattle and our cruise. Our average temperatures in Alaska were mid sixties to low seventies the day in Ketchikan with bright sunshine.

 

Had I lugged all warm clothing, we would have been very uncomfortable.

Bring a few lighterweight things and a few medium and a sweater/hoodie for each that you can wear under a medium weight jacket if you need added warmth.

 

Pack a pair of gloves though we never needed them most people say they were glad to have them on the 'usual' Alaska weather days.

 

Hope you have a great cruise. We did. :)

 

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

It could be in the 80s you never could tell.

[Keith1010]

My deepest apologies if this is answered elsewhere, I've been searching but haven't found anything.

 

We are planning a late June/early July 2013 Alaskan Cruise - Seattle to just north of Juneau.

 

What does one bring - do we need light jackets, sweat jackets, heavy jackets? What is the weather like at that time of the year?

 

Is the pool even open? I've checked the temperatures at the major ports, but that really doesn't answer what it feels like on a moving ship near Alaska.

 

Any insight would be helpful. We've always cruised the carribean - so this climate will be new to us.

 

I've been to Alaska six times. One thing I can tell you is that weather changes often even from hour to hour.

 

Bring long sleeve tops and long pants but also a pair of shorts and some short tops. Bring a waterproof jacket and either a fleece, sweater or sweatshirt and if no fleece a medium weight jacket. A hat is a good idea too.

 

Bring a couple of pairs of shoes to wear in port just in case one gets wet. This can be athletic shoes and/or waterproof shoes.

 

If you are sailing Glacier Bay or one of the Glaciers if you get cold easy bring gloves.

 

The key is to layer.

 

Keith

[jamessemaj]

When I think of my Alaska cruise, I think cold. Especially at night as I like to go outside then. It was July. There were some glorious days, like fall in Texas. But overall, cold. Shorts and summer wear? I wouldn't bother. On the pleasant days jeans and a t-shirt will do. Otherwise, think cold. And wet.

[Cruisin' Chick]

About the pool, it depends on what ship you'll be on (some ships have pools under retractable roofs) and what the weather will be during that time.

[SadieN]

We've been to Alaska twice at eh end of June. One year it was T-shirt and shorts weather, the next it was 40 and wet.

 

Check weather.com for the 10day forecast and bring layers to wear.

[marco]

Bring gloves, umbrella and insect repellent.

[auburngirlie]

We went around the same time as you, and like everyone has already said LAYERS! My northface rain jacket was around my waist for most days in port, but on one excursion went walking on a glacier and I remember being SO cold and thankful I had worn my jacket and numerous layers underneath. I never wore shorts, and as I recall the pool was not open (this was on an NCL ship). For shoes, I wore my slip on Merrills or sneakers. Best advice I can give you is get a balcony room! Nothing is comparable to watching Alaska float by, outside your own room. Wonderful!

[sherryf]

I always take a variety of clothing and mix and match as needed. Shorts, capris, jeans, long and short sleeves, fleece, rain jacket, etc. Hat and gloves for glacier sailing day. On my 4 Alaskan cruises, at least one pool has always been open, and they have always been used. We've always had covered pools on our trips, but the outdoor pools have been open and used also. Last year when we took our kids, they were in the pools every day.

 

I admit to being very opinionated about umbrellas... leave them at home! They can be a nuisance in crowded ports, are often ineffective due to winds, and are more hassle than they are worth. A good rain jacket with a hood is much better. Here in the Seattle area we joke that only tourists use umbrellas. ;)

[GlendaleCruiser]

My deepest apologies if this is answered elsewhere, I've been searching but haven't found anything.

 

We are planning a late June/early July 2013 Alaskan Cruise - Seattle to just north of Juneau.

 

What does one bring - do we need light jackets, sweat jackets, heavy jackets? What is the weather like at that time of the year?

 

Is the pool even open? I've checked the temperatures at the major ports, but that really doesn't answer what it feels like on a moving ship near Alaska.

 

Any insight would be helpful. We've always cruised the carribean - so this climate will be new to us.

 

I went deep in the summer (relatively speaking) a few years ago and am about to go again. I took a lot of bulky sweaters and never wore them. Layering is absolutely the way to go. Having said that, however, I am from Arizona and it doesn't get as cold here as it does standing out on the Lido deck for 3 hours watching the Marjorie Glacier calve, which I wouldn't miss for the world. Even with gloves, wool hat, flannel, thermal underwear and a parka like coat, I was freezing. Will take all that stuff but will only need it when we park for watching the glacier. Other times, layers will be fine.

[sail7seas]

About the pool' date=' it depends on what ship you'll be on (some ships have pools under retractable roofs) and what the weather will be during that time.[/quote']

 

 

HAL ships have a mid ship pool under a retractable glass roof.

Kids were in the pool in Alaska three times that we saw during our seven days with the roof half open and it was warm. We were sooooo lucky about the weather so you just never know.