General Alaska Info

[zackarykeef]

Hey, everyone!

 

We are headed out on our first cruise to Alaska this June aboard the Norwegian Pearl and can't wait! As you can see from my signature, I have only ever cruised the Caribbean, so I am looking forward to this new experience! With that being said, I was hoping y'all could share your wealth of knowledge of any info/tips/tricks you may have or wished you would have known before for an Alaskan cruise (what to expect, must-packs, daily activities since we won't be sunbathing lol etc) to help me prepare. I have been perusing the Alaska forum for information, but it seems to be a lot of port-specific questions. We have excursions booked, but otherwise pretty much going into this blind! It's already going to be a long flight and a world's difference from here in Miami!

 

Any and all information is appreciated! Thank you all so much in advance, and thanks for being the best forum on CC :p

 

-Zack

[Sunsetinvenice8]

Alaska is GORGEOUS! You'll love it. It's like staring at a postcard for days on end. Definitely pack a raincoat and some good waterproof shoes/boots. There were several days that were pretty rainy and we did whatever we wanted anyway, including a 3 mile hike. Layers also work well. There were days where I had short sleeves on, but needed more layers for days we were near glaciers etc.

 

It was really weird being on a cruise where everyone wasn't out by the pool all day long. We were on a Princess cruise and there were lots of activities and things unique to Alaska (like reindeer chili for lunch!). It was definitely low key and quiet as compared to the Caribbean cruise I've been on.

[destiny217]

http://www.cruisecritic.com/ports/area.cfm?area=1

 

Lots of info specific to Alaska. Then when you pick a port from the drop-down menu, you can select:

 

Things to Do

Info

Excursions

Reviews

Forums

[zqvol]

Hey, everyone!

 

We are headed out on our first cruise to Alaska this June aboard the Norwegian Pearl and can't wait! As you can see from my signature, I have only ever cruised the Caribbean, so I am looking forward to this new experience! With that being said, I was hoping y'all could share your wealth of knowledge of any info/tips/tricks you may have or wished you would have known before for an Alaskan cruise (what to expect, must-packs, daily activities since we won't be sunbathing lol etc) to help me prepare. I have been perusing the Alaska forum for information, but it seems to be a lot of port-specific questions. We have excursions booked, but otherwise pretty much going into this blind! It's already going to be a long flight and a world's difference from here in Miami!

 

Any and all information is appreciated! Thank you all so much in advance, and thanks for being the best forum on CC :p

 

-Zack

 

 

Have you looked iin the AK Port of Call section. You will find the answers to all your questions and the questions that you didn't know you had. The info about what to pack is there along with info and tips. The one I can tell you is don't be surprised if you do spend your sea days sun bathing, the highs can easily reach 80, it is not necessarily cold.

[Quilting_Cruiser]

Hey, everyone!

 

We are headed out on our first cruise to Alaska this June aboard the Norwegian Pearl and can't wait! As you can see from my signature, I have only ever cruised the Caribbean, so I am looking forward to this new experience! With that being said, I was hoping y'all could share your wealth of knowledge of any info/tips/tricks you may have or wished you would have known before for an Alaskan cruise (what to expect, must-packs, daily activities since we won't be sunbathing lol etc) to help me prepare. I have been perusing the Alaska forum for information, but it seems to be a lot of port-specific questions. We have excursions booked, but otherwise pretty much going into this blind! It's already going to be a long flight and a world's difference from here in Miami!

 

Any and all information is appreciated! Thank you all so much in advance, and thanks for being the best forum on CC :p

 

-Zack

 

 

Next year I'll be going on my fourth cruise to Alaska. Can't wait!! There will likely be a little older demographic than what you're used to with Caribbean cruises. Jeans are the order of the day! Be sure to pack layers as Alaska's weather can be very unpredictable. It can be cool, rainy, dry, warm--all in one day! I'll often find myself peeling layers off throughout the day. Take a rain-resistant jacket just in case. I've packed a rain poncho for each trip and never taken it out of the package--been very lucky with the weather!

 

Daily activities? My daily activity is spending time on my balcony or the deck. :p Take binoculars and spend time outside watching for wildlife. Alaska's about paying attention to what's around you--scenery and wildlife--and you never know what you may see when you're on deck. I was on one side of the ship and a friend of mine was on the other and she saw a whale breach! I was so jealous! There will be ship-sponsored activities, but I don't spend my time on them. That said, I don't spend my time on them on any cruise, so YMMV.

 

Book with independent vendors and not through the ship. I was on a whale watch and there were about 15 of us on the boat. I looked across the pod of Orcas we were watching and there was the cruise-line's excursion with at least 100 people jockeying for position!

 

What else do you want to know???

[bonvoyagie]

As others have said go to the ports of call - alaska -

 

Also don't feel that you have to use the ships excursions - there are lots of priviate tour operators that will give you a better tour (smaller boats, buses, etc) for the same price - or cheaper than the cruise line.

 

Check out http://www.cruiseportinsider.com for info on all of the ports you are going to visit - there is a wealth of info there about DIY ideas, tour operators, and what the cruise lines offer as excursions.

 

Join you roll call - attend the meet and greet - usually held on the first day of the cruise - Mon.

 

Plan your tours around what you have an interest in - not someone elses idea of what is a must see.

 

Juneau is the capital of Alaska and is the most modern of the ports you will visit. This is a great spot for whale watching and is the home of Mendenhall Glacier. There are also gold mines and a tram ride to the top of Mt Roberts. There are also several flightseeing tours that take you above the glacier, landing and dog sled rides.

 

Skagway is the gold rush of 98 town - most everything in the town revolves around the two trails that start from that general area and head to the town of Bennett - White Pass and Chilkoot Pass. A favorite tour is to ride the White Pass and Yukon RR. You have several different options including several bus and train combos. Helicopters can take you to the nearby icefields where you can land and take a dog sled ride. Newer activities include zip lines and raft rides. You can also take a fast ferry or plane to Haines to do activities there. Or head to the Yukon to see Emerald Lake. You also have around 12 hrs to enjoy the town and surrounding area.

 

Glacier Bay is something to just sit back and take in.

 

Ketchikan is a quiant town - here the native culture is very much alive with several totom pole parks. Here is where the famous Creek Street is located - other popular tours include the lumberjack show and the crab fisherman's tour.

It is also a good place for flightseeing via sea planes into Misty Fjords.

 

it will quickly become apparent that you will not be able to see everything in the time you have - so it will be necessary to make a few more trips. :D

[Sue Do'nym]

Loved my Alaska cruise. My favorite and most used items I took were a portable DVD player and selection of DVDs- NCL's movie selection has gotten better, but is not extensive. My other favorite item was my snuggie blanket- very handy to sit on the balcony when it was cooler but also nice for the room. Have a great trip!

Edited April 23, 2016 by Sue Do'nym

[shadowmeboy]

Ketchikan - very walkable, Creek Street is scenic and a great place to get souvenirs.

 

Juneau - great city, walkable. Don't book Mt Roberts tram, if interested, until you get to Juneau in case Mt Roberts is fogged in.

 

Skagway - Make sure to take the train, its a great experience. Its also combinable with other experiences.

 

I have pictures of all three cities in my signature line below if interested.

[olemissreb]

Biggest thing is layers. As someone else said it can be rainy and cold in the morning and then the sun will come out and you are stripping off just about everything you put on! Bring water repellent jackets and maybe pants too (in case you go trekking on a glacier or end up taking a hike in the rain) - you don't want water resistant as after a while water may still leak through (I may have those terms reversed).

 

If you are doing any kind of hiking (especially inland), I would also suggest 100% DEET. The mosquitoes are brutal - worse than I've ever seen and I've lived in Minnesota & Louisiana who both, jokingly, claim the state bird as the mosquito - not even close! They will swarm you and bite through clothes. Deep Woods Off and the wipes weren't working for anyone when we did an ATV ride in Denali - they all were getting bit and the skeeters stayed clear of us.

 

If you are going whale watching, make sure you put your DSLR camera in "sport mode". My EX did this on our whale watching trip and was able to catch a whale do a full breach (nose up to tail down) 3 times!!!! Our guide said he'd had repeat customers over 10 years that had only gotten it once - never 3 times in 1 trip.

 

Speaking of cameras - if you don't have one, you might want to look at getting a DSLR. I got the EX his for Christmas primarily for the trip. The camera came with an additional, bigger, lens for getting even closer to some of the action/wildlife. It came in handy. I got one for myself last summer and paid $500-$600 (can't remember now) for a "step down" from the one I got the EX. When you do this, stock up on photo cards - you will need them. We took over 5000+ pictures and winnowed them down to about 3000! That was over a 2 week period, so YMMV.

 

I will also suggest that you look at booking independent excursions. For us (a family of 5) it was much cheaper plus the guides were much more personable than any cruise excursion I'd ever had. We were the only family on the boat for our whale watching tour. For our flightseeing tour to Misty Fjords National Monument, there were 6 of us plus the pilot on the plane - we were 5 of the 6 (a gentleman from a HAL cruise got extremely lucky and booked with us at the last minute). Our largest excursion was the 20 or so people on the train/bus up to the Yukon through Chilkoot Charters - but again the 20 of us had our own train car on the way up and a much smaller bus that was able to stop at additional places that the big cruise line buses (think Greyhoud size) couldn't even get in to.

 

Last piece of advice - and arguably the most important - DO NOT SPEND TIME IN YOUR CABIN! Get out on deck and take in all the scenery. Sadly I didn't adhere to this as much as I would have liked as I came down with a nasty cold. Luckily I had a balcony cabin, so I could at least get out there and enjoy much of the scenery.

 

Enjoy Alaska - it really is absolutely stunning! I tried to talk my youngest into doing the trip again for his graduation trip in 2018, but he decided Hawaii should be on the to do list (not a bad substitute though :)).