Alaska thoughts/opinions, please!

[ltsally]

Since SS has not had any Alaska itineraries since '04, I've not found much in the way of detailed info here. Would be interested to hear (even from those who've made these stops on other lines) what we should expect from Sitka; Juneau; Skagway; Sawyer Glacier; Wrangell; and Prince Rupert. We're talking a July sailing from Vancouver. Thanks!

[Dreps]

I suggest you look at the Cruise Critic Alaska Board. That's what I did before our cruise on the Mariner last August. One person in particular--Budget Queen--provides a wealth of information. We cruised from Seward to Vancouver, stopping in Sitka, Juneau, Skagway, and Ketchikan. When we arrived in Anchorage, we rented a car, stayed overnight in Anchorage. Then we drove to the Denali area and stayed overnight in a B&B near the park. Spent a day at the park, and then drove to Talkeetna for 2 nights at the Alaskan Lodge. Then drove back to the Anchorage airport, dropped our car off, and walked over to Radisson's train car from the airport to Seward. The train trip was terrific, and then we boarded the Mariner. We arranged many of our excursions during the cruise independently. (There's even a Toursaver coupon book that is useful for some of the excursions, especially 2-for-1 flights.) It's easy to do a lot of arrangements on your own in Alaska. We also took a couple of Radisson excursions. We spent several days in Vancouver at the end of the cruise. Had a great time, and the weather was incredible, and incredibly warm.

[CASHIPman]

I posted a review of our Silversea Alaska cruise here. It was our first of 3 (so far!) Silversea cruises. Hopefully it'll be of some use.