RCCL Alaska Cruises/Which one is the best?

[Radiomark]

My wife, my daughter and I will be on Serenade on January 14 for a southern Caribbean cruise. However, we are looking ahead to Alaska and are wanting to book another cruise. There are several itineraries which look quite appealing. The northbound cruise to Seward caught my eye. For those of you who have been on cruises to Alaska, I'd be really curious to get your perspective on what's the best cruise that RCCL offers to Alaska. Who's cruised what itinerary and what made it the best in your opinion?

 

I'd appreciate any and all input you could give on the subject.

 

Regards,

 

Mark

[nerak]

We have done the Serenade to Alaska twice. The ship is awesome, as you will soon see, and the ports are good. Hubbard glacier was calving like crazy this year, Skagway is quaint, Juneau interesting/good whale excursions, Ketchikan we just relaxed, but others kept very busy, and Misty Fjords was very tranquil. Alaska is just so beautiful, I don't think you can go wrong with any intinerary. Good luck choosing.

[sally r]

We have done alaska three times. My advice would be to choose a Radiance class ship that leaves out of Vancouver.

 

Timing is also crucial for Alaska cruises. The season is short. In June it will be light almost 24 hours but there maybe too much ice which will prevent the ship from gettting close to the glaciers. In mid summer you have a lot more kids, mosquitos and tourists. Prices are also higher. But you can usually get right up to the glaciers and the scenery is wonderful. In fall it gets dark early, the crew is sick of Alaska and grouchy, but everything is on sale in the shops:D . Also prices are lower. Best weather we have had is spring and fall, worst was August. It is a crap shoot.

 

If I had to book an Alaska cruise right now I would book: June on the Serenade, roundtrip Vancouver if it was offered.

[dougp26364]

We've done the northbound cruise (on Legend when it was in Alaska) and RT out of Vancouver on Vision a couple of years ago. Both cruises were very nice. It was interesting to take the Portage Glacier tour out of Seward on the bus trip back to Anchorage. Anchorage itself would have been a great city to spend a couple of extra nights in and explore. I wish we'd have done that rather than flying back home the day of disembarkation. The bad part was the airfare one way to Vancouver and one way home from Anchorage.

 

The RT out of Vancouver was very nice. We went into Vancouver a day early to explore the city. Misty Fjord was very beautiful and worthy of consideration as part of an itnererary. Airfare was less expensive on this route but, if I had to choose between two cities to spend extra time in, I'd go with Anchorage.

 

Next year we'll do the RT out of Seattle. There's a couple of reasons for this. First, my wife has always wanted to spend some time in Seattle so that's what we'll do post cruise. Second, there are two ports we haven't seen, Icy Straight Point and Victoria BC. As a bonus, RCI has better port times in Victoria than the other cruise lines traveling there IMO.

 

I can't say that, of the two Alaskan cruises we've taken, one was really better than the other. However, if the airfare was no object, I'd take the northbound cruise only because I'd like to spend more time in Anchorage and the bus trip from Seward to Anchorage was beautiful. Vancouver really didn't do much for either of us.

[Radiomark]

Thanks for the posts and the information. Would anybody know how much the bus trip from Seward to Anchorage costs and how long it takes?

 

Mark

[dougp26364]

We purchased our transfers directly from RCI. I'm sure they would have that information available somewhere as to what the current price is. You may have to give them a call to find out.

[wrp96]

Thanks for the posts and the information. Would anybody know how much the bus trip from Seward to Anchorage costs and how long it takes?

 

Mark

 

Depends on the traffic but usually around 3 hours without stops. I don't know the cost. You might post this question on the Alaska board. There is a poster there, Budget Queen, who would probably know about the different options, their costs, and the exact time it takes.

[Radiomark]

Thanks for the info. I'll go to the Alaska board.

 

Mark

[nfused2cruze]

Thanks for this info. Very specific. Helps me in making a decision too.

[elleluv]

Thanks for the posts and the information. Would anybody know how much the bus trip from Seward to Anchorage costs and how long it takes?

 

Mark

 

I'm not sure how much the bus is, but we've made the drive several times, both by car and by RV. It's about 125 miles and takes about 3 hours.

 

Why don't you check out the Alaska Railroad? We are doing the railroad for the first time in June when we go on our Alaska cruise. It's supposed to be an amazing trip. It's about $62 for and adult and $31 for a child.

 

Here's the Alaska Railroad site:

 

http://www.alaskarailroad.com/

 

Have a great trip! :)

[Radiomark]

Thanks Elleluv...I'll check it out. I love trains...sounds like fun.

 

Mark