Thoughts on an Alaska Cruise from someone not into animals or nature!

[Giantfan13]

There's a lot more to the world than the Caribbean. Try TAs - they're very inexpensive relatively speaking. We've done Europe and that is by far my favorite destination although we've also been to Hawaii, the Mex. Riv., Canada, besides lots of Caribbean cruises.

 

Sorry I wasn't a bit clearer. I was really addressing my point to this particular poster, who has stated several times that they just won't be having a good time, just going to see what it is like. If you go in with a completely negative outlook, that's the way you will most likely come out.

 

No harm, no foul.

 

Cheers

 

Len

[sgcass123]

Alaska is on the top of my bucket list and hope to get there in a couple of years. My question is what did you do with your luggage when you got off the ship in Seward in the morning until you took the 6pm train that night to Anchorage? Is the train station close to port and does it have lockers to store luggage?

[mapleleaves]

Alaska is on the top of my bucket list and hope to get there in a couple of years. My question is what did you do with your luggage when you got off the ship in Seward in the morning until you took the 6pm train that night to Anchorage? Is the train station close to port and does it have lockers to store luggage?

 

From the FAQ's on the Alaska Railroad web site.

<<<Do you hold luggage or are there lockers at the depots for luggage storage?

No. We are unable to hold luggage for passengers, either overnight or for just a few hours. We do not have lockers at any of our depots. Passengers may check their luggage only after checking in at a ticket counter. Passengers disembarking from a cruise ship, and departing on the train from Seward later in the day, may check luggage in early at the Seward depot.>>>

[disneyfan1313]

Thanks everyone for the comments - positive and negative. :)

 

Geocaching - The most fun cache we found was in Seward..but its a challenging multi. http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GCKJ7V_a-trail-of-two-lakes?guid=350a3c5a-af4f-4de3-8b73-5c6ea7131ea0

 

Mendinhal Glacier has one right near the visitor center - easy micro with a great view. Almost all ports have quickie caches near the ports that you can find easily with an app when you disembark. Our other favorite was one on the walk between ICP and Honnah - really cool location!

 

Vancouver - just exploring the city and eating some amazing restaurants will take over a day. We loved the Granville Island Market, taking the water taxi (aqua bus) around to get some great views and eating at "Dark Table" where you dine completely in the dark.

[laughing husky]

As a big city gal who lives here...born and bred in NYC....and have lived all over the world, usually in big cities....You have to realize that Anchorage is a small place...about 300,000 on a good day...and we are all spread out....but, as a foodie of the world....my daughter is a pastry chef, a son is a sommelier...neither live here....they live outside in big cities...:) I would be interested in what restaurants you did go to.....and how did you choose them.....Would you mind naming names? I would appreciate it, and I am sure that others would too....

[SparkleBee]

oooh, just looked up "dark Table"... how interesting! did you love the experience?

[tee_harbor]

Day 4 - Juneau - The rest of the town just didn't do it for us and didn't seem to have a ton of culture when we walked around - plus lots of angry locals, angry bus drivers to and from the glacier, etc.

 

LOL, and it's not even June yet! Locals avoid downtown during cruise season if they can help it, thus leaving only the angry ones trapped there!

 

We are the San Francisco of the North, but it takes some work the find the culture. There's actually some fine example of Art Deco architecture, and the new State Museum should be open by next summer. The Juneau Arts Center next door, although small, often has interesting modern art displays.

[editor@cruisecritic]

Great review, and while I can go either way on the wildlife/scenery vs culture/history angle, you made a good point that a not-so-nature-oriented traveler can have a good time on an Alaska cruise.

 

We're heading there next week (my second time; the first I did all the usual stuff so now I want to try different things) and we're active types, and are choosing mostly tours where we can get out and cycle, fish, kayak, etc. I'm looking forward to it.

 

Thanks again --

 

Carolyn

 

Carolyn Spencer Brown

Editor in Chief

Cruise Critic

 

I know that I can't be the only crazy person who booked an Alaska Cruise who has no interest at all in "nature" or seeing wildlife! Crazy, I know. :) I thought I would put together some of my thoughts on the ports and the overall experience to hopefully quell some anxiety of someone who thinks they are in for 7 days of boredom.

 

First of all - a little background on me. I'm a mid-30s professional and a DINK who has been on 20+ cruises on all major lines. Outside of 1 trans-atlantic and 1 Italy cruise they have all been various Caribbean or Mexican Rivera itineraries. We booked an Alaska cruise to try something different and also because a group of our friends were going who we love to travel with. I had been doing quite a bit of research in advance and was pretty stressed out about what to do in each port. Having no interest in animals or nature (give me a big city any time!) leaves most of the shore excursions out of the picture and the high prices of most of the excursions made it risky to try something that we may or may not have any interest in. The TL;DR is that we had a *great* time and made it enjoyable to us by finding some different things to do. Finding interesting restaurants and Geocaching (look it up if you are not familiar!) in each port really helped along with having a ship with great activities to enjoy when you got bored of looking at the mountains!

 

This review isn't about the ship and I won't talk about activities on board since this is the Alaska board. But just as an FYI - we sailed on the Radiance of the Seas doing a 7d Northbound Inside Passage leaving from Vancouver and ending in Seward.

 

Vancouver - AMAZING! We absolutely loved this city and wish we had more than two days to explore. It had a very european feel mixed with the best parts of Seattle. If you are a "city" person, and your cruise leaves out of here I would highly recommend that you have an extra day or two to explore.

 

Day 1 - Cruising Inside Passage - I have to admit, even though spending time in the wilderness is at the bottom of my "bucket list" - this was beautiful scenery. Admittedly it did get a little old after an hour or two and especially after I realized it was what I would be seeing for the next 7 days. This is where having a ship with great activities comes into play. It was nice to be able to glance outside occasionally while enjoying the ship herself.

 

Day 2 Ketchikan - I think the first thing that caught me off guard (even though I knew from reading about it in advance) was how similar to Caribbean ports these Alaska ports really were. Look - a Del Sol, a Diamonds International and a crew internet cafe! That being said, this was probably the most "authentic" of the ports that we went to so it was fun to explore some of the back streets, etc. We did the lumberjack show (I know... very touristy) but it was actually really fun. Worth the cost and had lunch at a great seafood place right next door. This was definitely a tough port to find something to do at since the excursions here were all "outdoorsey" - but we had a great time exploring the town and our friends (who are also not particularly outdoorsey either ) really loved the deadliest catch excursion.

 

Day 3 - Icy Strait Point - Or "Labadee in Alaska"! I have to admit that I was pretty shocked how "Labadee" like this port was - and that isn't a bad thing! We actually enjoyed the nature trail and walking around the complex quite a bit without feeling out of our comfort zone. Plus... mini donuts with maple dipping sauce rock! Our friends did the zip-rider and enjoyed it as well - but the cost was a bit high compared to other zip-lines that we have done in other parts of the world. We decided to take the long walk to Hoonah and I am VERY glad we did. Very nice walk - safe with sidewalks the whole time - and a small and somewhat authentic town to walk around at the end.

 

Day 4 - Juneau - This was probably our biggest disappointment. We decided to do the very touristy (but fun) Red Dog Saloon for lunch. Followed up with the bus ride to the glacier (no spiel - $10 per person each way). The glacier was very impressive and worth the trip even to a person like me. The rest of the town just didn't do it for us and didn't seem to have a ton of culture when we walked around - plus lots of angry locals, angry bus drivers to and from the glacier, etc.

 

Day 5 - Skagway - We booked a Daya Dave tour to Emerald lake that also took us to the top of the pass, etc. We went for this tour because I had read it would be focused more on culture and history (gold rush facts, etc) and less on "lets look for a goat 100 yards away". We actually ended up loving this tour and thought it was a perfect blend of history/culture with a little bit of nature thrown in. Plus we got to see snow - which was awesome for us Floridians. :)

 

Day 6 - Cruising the Hubbard Glacier - First of all, I am not a morning person - so having to wake up at 8am to see this glacier already didn't put me in the best of moods. But to be honest, after seeing the Mendinhal glacier in Juno - this was a bit of a disappointment. It was interesting in a "let me take a few photos and go back inside where it is warm" kind of way - but I probably wouldn't wake up early for it next time. The Mendinhal is much prettier and scenic IMHO.

 

Day 7 - Seward! - We had the late (6pm) train booked so we had the whole day to explore Seward. We are actually very glad we did this - we ended up loving Seward. Not touristy at all, beautiful to walk along the water where all the campsites are - the town also had some awesome Geocaches, great coffee houses and great restaurants. Easy to blow 8 hours in this town.

 

Train to Anchorage - this was the highlight of our trip by far. So much fun to see the changing landscape in a comfortable environment. We decided to spend the extra money to do "Gold Star" class and we are VERY glad we did. I commented in one of the other threads but the difference is night and day and worth the extra expense. Taking that train was a good way to summarize all the different landscapes you saw during the cruise in 3 hours - frankly you could do that and skip the cruise.. ;)

 

Anchorage - we had an extra day in Anchorage after the cruise. While Anchorage was "nice" it definitely feels like a small town that wants to be a big city. Not a ton to do - especially after hours. Some good restaurants - but nothing outstanding. Few tours that aren't nature oriented - although we enjoyed the trolly ride that took us out to Earthquake park. And the weekend summer market was fun as well - but much smaller and less variety than markets you see in other cities. Overall we had an OK time in Anchorage - but would probably skip the extra day next time.

 

Please let me know if you have any questions - and to you non-nature people out there like me... try an Alaska Cruise - you will find something to enjoy if you look!

Edited June 6, 2014 by editor@cruisecritic

[lizinindy]

We are also going on this cruise with 4 other couples who really wanted to do Alaska...us--not so much. We've got a balcony and I'm sure we'll enjoy the scenery but I was glad to hear you had a great time even though wildlife and scenery aren't your first choice. Not ours either but I'm sure it will be fun to be with friends in a beautiful setting. Who knows--maybe we'll be enthralled and want to book Alaska again...or maybe not. I'm keeping an open mind.

[jskinsd]

Excellent review.:):):) I think everyone should have the same atittude (expectations) when taking there first Alaskan cruise. The cruisers that have high expectations will see nothing because they spend to much time inside and they expect nature to come to them. The cruisers that have no expectations will see everything. These people look for nature and appreciate everything they see. My first alaskan cruise in 1992 I only saw one whale in seven days and the ship got very cloose to Hubbard and they are two of my finest memories. I have since been on 14 alaskan cruises and doing a b2b on the NCL SUN on monday.

[disneyfan1313]

laughing husky - I always use Yelp when I am in a new place for food. I usually do some basic research in advance, jot down a couple of possibilities then use the Yelp app when I am hungry to see which one of my possibilities is close by. That is how I found White Spot Cafe in Anchorage... some of the biggest pancakes I have ever had!

 

SparkleBee - Dark Table in Vancouver was *awesome*. Really very intimidating and honestly scary at first - but SO memorable and worth doing. Plus the food (minus desert..which was generic and bland) was very good!

[sharktums]

I was also on this cruise with the OP, and he was nice enough to call us good friends!

 

My husband, daughter, and myself are also not really into nature, animals, and outdoors but as the daughter of a geographer and a mom to an inquisitive seven year old I knew it was a good cruise to do.

 

We all enjoyed it more than we thought we would here are some thoughts from our POV (as we did something different in every port than the OP):

 

Day 1 - Cruising - It was really cool looking, so different from most of the other cruises out there, but my family didn't seem overly impressed and we would see this view for a bunch more days.

 

Day 2 - Ketchikan - Probably my favorite port. So cute, lots to do and see. We have been on a ton of 'shore excursions' and were totally blown away by the Deadliest Catch tour. It was well run, comfortable, we saw so much, the staff were fantastic, I cannot recommend this excursion enough. My daughter says it was the best part of the whole trip.

 

Day 3 - Icy Strait Point - Loved the Alaska Labadee! Everything is terribly overpriced but it was a fun place to hang out and we saw a lot more than I thought we would on the bus ride up to the Zip Line. If you've done the Labadee Zip Line this one isn't a ton different, but feels super fast and long (1. because it is faster and longer and 2. because it's FREEZING!).

 

Day 4 - Juneau - We rented a car and went out to the Glacier before it got crowded from the ships in port. The visitor center had a lot for my daughter and she learned a ton without realizing it. She also enjoyed the free telescopes indoors for close up views of the glacier and forest. We then went to a whale watching point but didn't see much. After a quick lunch at McDonalds (remember, we had a picky seven year old with us!) we went to the Salmon Hatchery which was a great stop. We saw a mink and lots of sea life. We finished our time with a trip to that office building with the outdoor observation deck (free) for a cool view of all the ships in port.

 

Day 5 - Skagway - Interesting place. Reminded me of Alaskan Key West. We did the Sled Dogs, Ice House, and Panning for Gold excursion (remember, we were catering to a seven year old) and she loved it. The place was completely manufactured for several excursions going through but it was genuine in the fact that they did have a real musher and Iditarod competitor. All of the other workers were seasonal from other states or even countries. We ate at the local BrewPub for lunch and bought some chocolates from the fudge place for the Kids Club staff.

 

Day 6 - Hubbard - We enjoyed this a lot more than the OP. We had an inside cabin and were awoken way too early by my parents yelling at us to come to their balcony room to see what was happening. In my totally having no nautical sense opinion we were in way too much ice! You could hear it scraping the boat making terrible noises and we even have pictures of icebergs with blue paint from the hull all over them! My daughter who loves cruises and learning about the Titanic was a bit apprehensive about this! We then passed an ice berg with blood all over it! She was fascinated by that one as she thought about all of the different predators and prey and what could have transpired on that little piece of ice. We then got to watch a few small sections and one decent piece of the glacier calve which is a pretty big deal.

 

Day 7 - We got off the ship, took a bus to the airport then rented a car to go up and do Denali on our own (not part of a cruise package).

 

I *REALLY* liked this cruise and can't understand why it's not more popular. I mean, people repeat the Caribbean all the time but I would love to repeat Alaska!!! The only thing I can think of is more people like the beach or the cost. Our airfare was pretty decent coming from Florida even though the cruise priced out cheaper than most 7 night Caribbean cruises.

 

To sum it up because this got way longer than I meant it to be, it was a fabulous cruise that EVERYONE should do and enjoy whether they like nature or not.

[laughing husky]

Sharkums......You made me laugh.....Skagway.....Key West.....and you are actually right....but for Alaska in general. There are more Floridians living up here than from any other state......And there are lots of Key Westers up here also....You might be amazed....It is actually just the western/northern half of US 1.

 

Skagway - Interesting place. Reminded me of Alaskan Key West. We did the Sled Dogs, Ice House, and Panning for Gold excursion (remember, we were catering to a seven year old) and she loved it. The place was completely manufactured for several excursions going through but it was genuine in the fact that they did have a real musher and Iditarod competitor. All of the other workers were seasonal from other states or even countries. We ate at the local BrewPub for lunch and bought some chocolates from the fudge place for the Kids Club staff.

[mapleleaves]

sharktums, you kinda wrote up a trip report here ! :) Can I ask you to start a new thread, then cut and paste this paragraph to it. The subject line would be the name of the ship. We don't have many reports that include kids so your perspective would be helpful. Thx

[momthecruisedirector]

Love the review - thank you.

 

We are from Seattle and cruised to Alaska in 2005 - no airfare was key! We cruise the Caribbean repeatedly because it is the 'anti-northwest' - hot weather, beautiful beaches and all that goes with it. We enjoyed our cruise to Alaska more then we thought we would, while we see Eagles almost daily at home, they are HUGE up north and that alone was unforgettable. Seeing the windex blue floating ice with big critters relaxing on them while you cruise by is hard to explain.

 

We figured once was enough but are going back in August with extended family, I'm looking forward to going and seeing the scenery but mostly enjoying the ship this time, I can see us waving good bye as they head out on their excursions and we lazily sit poolside, like I said, we're from Seattle, let it rain - we can laze in the hot tub instead!

[LadyValkyrie]

My husband and I are going on this same cruise in July doing the same thing with the train late in the day. My question is what in the world did you do with your luggage while you were sightseeing in Seward all day? I just cant figure that one out. Thank you.

[mapleleaves]

My husband and I are going on this same cruise in July doing the same thing with the train late in the day. My question is what in the world did you do with your luggage while you were sightseeing in Seward all day? I just cant figure that one out. Thank you.

 

If you're taking the train, you can check it at the depot. Look at the Alaska Railroad site ... I think it's addressed under FAQ's.

Also, most vendors will hold onto your luggage while you're on their excursion.

[poolwife]

After reading your initial comment to my husband he said Why didn't you go to Las Vegas since it is a big city which is what you sermons to prefer.

 

 

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[dateacher]

Thanks for your post. As someone else who doesn't usually pick vacations for wildlife and nature, we chose Alaska because it was something different and felt it was something we should see. I appreciate you taking the time and giving us your perspective I also like you attitude that if we only did things we liked, we would miss out on a lot.

 

And to the last poster, we are actually going on the cruise straight from 5 days in Las Vegas. Nothing like trying to pack for the two, very different vacations.

[stewartmamone1]

We are headed to Seattle in about a week. Can you recommend hotel to stay and places to see. We will be there for two days before boarding Rhapsody

 

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