First time Alaskan Cruise for couple in there upper 20s.

[aboysen2205]

Hi everyone. My wife and I, who are in our upper 20s, are planning our first alaskan cruise next summer. We are looking for any advice that we can get, like what is the best ship, what to do or not to do at ports, what to bring, excursions to do, what dates are the best to go, how many days should we go, etc. We are looking to do a sea/land cruise tour. We have began looking and have narrowed our choices down to the Celebrity Millennium, Island Princess, and Coral Princess cruise ships. The routes include: Fairbanks, Anchorage, Denali Wilderness Lodge, Mt. Mckinley Wilderness lodge, Hubbard Glacier, Glacier Bay National Park, Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan, Inside Passage and Vancouver.

[PhillyTravelBug]

We are looking to book an Alaskan cruise too, but it looks like the excursions are really expensive. We have spent a small fortune on our current upcoming cruise and want to do our next one on the cheap. Is it possible for Alaska?

[SuperCrewBear]

I was just in Alaska on Pearl for the May 5-15 cruise. It's not inexpensive but one can save money here and there by booking your own excursions instead of going through the cruise line - they are simply charging you more for the same thing. I had booked everything well in advance but it appeared that it could have been easy enough to done it when we walked off the ship - there are many people waiting to take you for whatever you're interested in. We were on such an early cruise and the only ship at most ports so it might not be as easy to do something when you walk off the ship later in the year with multiple ships in port.

 

Probably one of the best values I encountered was a Dyea Dave tour in Skagway. What we did was take his mini-bus (picture one of the shuttles that take you to off-site parking at an airport - holding about 20 people) tour to Emerald Lake in the Yukon Territory. Much, much better than a bus with 80 people followed by two more buses of 80...there was only four of us that day. We were able to stop about as much as we wanted and be flexible. Dave dropped us off at the train in Frasier. I think Dave charged us $80 each. The train was another $84. We could have done a complete round-trip with Dave but he did pick us up again at the train when we got back to town - then took us wherever we wanted or back to the ship. If one doesn't care about the train it would probably be about as cheap to rent a car for the day to do this excursion completely on your own.

 

Good luck!

[mapleleaves]

Hi everyone. My wife and I, who are in our upper 20s, are planning our first alaskan cruise next summer. We are looking for any advice that we can get, like what is the best ship, what to do or not to do at ports, what to bring, excursions to do, what dates are the best to go, how many days should we go, etc. We are looking to do a sea/land cruise tour. We have began looking and have narrowed our choices down to the Celebrity Millennium, Island Princess, and Coral Princess cruise ships. The routes include: Fairbanks, Anchorage, Denali Wilderness Lodge, Mt. Mckinley Wilderness lodge, Hubbard Glacier, Glacier Bay National Park, Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan, Inside Passage and Vancouver.

 

sorry, but there's no shortcut .... you just need to do your research like the rest of us :).

Which excursions to choose will depends on your interests, physical ability, and budget. No point in my suggesting an ice trek if it's not of interest, or a heli dog sled trip if its beyond your budget.

There are books specific to Alaska cruises. They provide info on itineraries, ports, excursions, DIY etc. Buy or borrow them from your library. Ann Vipond has 'alaska by cruiseship' and Fodor or Frommer has 'alaska ports of call'.

There are also 100+ trip reports posted in STICKYs near the top of the page. Many are detailed photojournals with information and photos that show ship life, meals, activities, excursions, and vendor recommendations.

You will find inexpensive and FREE sightseeing options at every port. Every port has a web site to promote tourism and local vendors. You can even download each town's Visitor Guide. ie http://skagway.com/# where you can do a free ranger tour at the Yukon/Goldrush NP then hike or bus to the Goldrush Cemetary and Lower Reid Falls. Look down the page to find a thread called 'helpful resources for planning a visit to Alaska'. It has links to town web sites.

 

Maybe budget for one special excursion that will be a lasting memory of your visit to Alaska.

 

If you are set on a cruisetour, try to learn the details. Pay particular attention to arrival and departure times. Alaska is a big state and esp on the short cruisetours you may spend most of your day in transit with little time for activities when you arrive. ie a tour billed as 2 days/1 nite in Denali may have you arriving mid afternoon but departing noon the next day. So you will have no time to get a bus INTO denali to experience the wildlife and scenery.

 

You've got a year to research and plan. Enjoy !

 

 

 

There are trip reports for cruisetours ... look for them specifically.

[aboysen2205]

Thanks for the info we will keep looking threw the Alaskan forum and follow your other advice.

[nhsbt]

We did Alaska in 2012 and did not do any of the high-priced excursions. We took one of the local shuttles to Mendenhall Glacier and back - our only expense. We chose to hike in each port and do not regret at all missing the excursions. We live in a tourist area and really enjoyed exploring Alaska on our own instead of with multitudes. So yes, it can be done more cheaply than most. We are heading back in 2017 and will add a few days to explore on land before our one-way cruise, again planning it to meet our limited funds and desire to see the land, not the canned events. I am happy they are there for those who enjoy them, but wanted to offer an alternative viewpoint.

[Budget Queen]

Hi everyone. My wife and I, who are in our upper 20s, are planning our first alaskan cruise next summer. We are looking for any advice that we can get, like what is the best ship, what to do or not to do at ports, what to bring, excursions to do, what dates are the best to go, how many days should we go, etc. We are looking to do a sea/land cruise tour. We have began looking and have narrowed our choices down to the Celebrity Millennium, Island Princess, and Coral Princess cruise ships. The routes include: Fairbanks, Anchorage, Denali Wilderness Lodge, Mt. Mckinley Wilderness lodge, Hubbard Glacier, Glacier Bay National Park, Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan, Inside Passage and Vancouver.

 

I suggest you back up and find out about touring Alaska. :) IF you are at all able to go independent on the mainland portion, you can see twice as much for lower costs. Your post tells me, some important details, are probably not known? An example- with the Princess cruisetour listed. It is a HUGE mistake to have the McKinley Princess be a stop- at the expense of Denali Park. At least 2 are needed there. Some itineraries have 1 and 2 at the McKinley Princess- one of the worse itineraries there is, in my opinion. :) As mentioned, read multiple trip reports and get very familiar with what each area is known for- what activies are of YOUR interest and make a ranking list. That list is what is important in your planning- don't buy packaged tours, that have "fill" days doing nothing of interest for you. Alaska is a big place, be where you want to be, doing the activities of your choosing. :)

 

Go for as long as you can afford. A mainland trip can be done reasonably independent. A car rental is essential for lower costs. Reserved in the fall prior to the next season- historically has had the lowest rates.

 

A significant cost saver is your cabin. I'm a cheap insider and won't pay 3/4 times the price some people do. :) You need to KNOW YOURSELF and what you want. That cabin -is important for some people. It doesn't matter what I or anyone else does- it's your trip. Same with the "best" claims- you will find raves just about pertaining to all of Alaska, cruises, tours. There is no best- so I caution you to look past these "you have to..best" claims with excursions and look at all the possibilities. Find the right match for you.

[Budget Queen]

We are looking to book an Alaskan cruise too, but it looks like the excursions are really expensive. We have spent a small fortune on our current upcoming cruise and want to do our next one on the cheap. Is it possible for Alaska?

 

My largest cost saving measure is being flexible and getting a cheap cabin on the cruise ship. This is NOT for everyone, and only a suggestion. This is significant to my priority with going to Alaska. I never skimp on tours and do exactly what I please. :)

 

Everyone needs a hard look at their priorities.

[Coral]

The Coral and Island Princess used to be sisters. They have since changed the Island Princess and not for the better. Unless the dates really work for you, I would cross the Island Princess off of your "top list".

 

If you want to know the differences - they removed the great aft viewing decks, and created cabins there, removed a show room and added quite a bit of cabins which makes the ship more crowded. The Coral Princess is the better of the two sisters. I think they planned to make similar changes to the Coral Princess but the reviews were bad on the Island and the retrofit was cancelled.

[Mindershire]

My husband and I are the same age as you and we did the cruisetour in Summer 2015. If you want to read about our trip, check out my blog posts here - http://72hourstogo.blogspot.com/search/label/Alaska%20Field%20Reports

 

Assuming you are fairly active and willing/able to drive a car and read a map, my recommendation would be NOT to do the land tour through the cruiselines. It was a good experience (we did not have a big lead time planning like you did so it was a good shortcut for us) but all you really get from the cruise tour is transportation from city to city, and your hotel arrangements taken care of. Your meals and daytime activities are all on your own to arrange and pay for. If you do the land portion on your own, you can still stay at some of the lodges owned by the cruiselines and take advantage of the tours they offer through the hotels, but you can have your own car and be on your own schedule. We felt like we wasted a fair amount of time waiting around for everyone to load/unload on the busses between each city and it would have been nice to be able to stop at our own pace.

 

That being said, I highly recommend spending time in Anchorage, Talkeetna, and Denali National Park if you only have time for the highlights. The Matanuska Glacier is a few hours drive from Anchorage and you can walk on the glacier for free, or hire guides and do an ice trek if you are really adventurous. An airplane tour of Denali or the Misty Fjords in Ketchikan is worth the expense so I recommend you budget that in. We were able to see lots of wildlife on the ship so we never booked a separate whale watching tour. Food was the most expensive thing overall.

 

Feel free to contact me direct via the blog if you have specific questions!

[Budget Queen]

 

The Matanuska Glacier is a few hours drive from Anchorage and you can walk on the glacier for free, or hire guides and do an ice trek if you are really adventurous. !

 

this is not accurate. There are admission fees, and it is not "adventurous" to get a guided tour. It does not sound like this poster has been there? I never recommend going there without a guided walk. You can NOT get very far without crampons, and if you just figure you are going to "walk" on the toe of the glacier, it is hardly worth even paying the admission. Just drive by and take a look from one of the Glenn Highway pull offs. Only "free" option you have.

[Mindershire]

Good catch! I forgot about the admission fee for the area, but it's relatively minimal compared to the cost of an excursion and a helicopter ride to land on a glacier. The website outlines all the options for exploring on your own (and the inherent risks that you have to sign a waiver to accept) or for booking a trek with their guides. We explored for about an hour along the edge of the glacier and had a really great time using just our hiking boots so I personally thought it was worth the experience but that would definitely be a personal preference.

[Budget Queen]

Good catch! I forgot about the admission fee for the area, but it's relatively minimal compared to the cost of an excursion and a helicopter ride to land on a glacier. The website outlines all the options for exploring on your own (and the inherent risks that you have to sign a waiver to accept) or for booking a trek with their guides. We explored for about an hour along the edge of the glacier and had a really great time using just our hiking boots so I personally thought it was worth the experience but that would definitely be a personal preference.

 

Thank you for informative self guided post. The $25 pp admission fee, I can envision, people be caught off guard for. Just posting the information since, a while ago, there were complaining people about the $30pp, increased Mendenhall Glacier shuttle fees. :)