First Time Alaska cruiser...question about liquor store in Anchorage

[newbiewfromms]

Hi all. I am not new to cruising but have only been on Carnival so far. We are going on an Alaska Land/Cruise tour with Princess departing Fairbanks on June 29, also first time in Alaksa...so excited . There will be 7 of us total, it was a Christmas gift from my mother-in-law to her kids and spouses. We arrive in Fairbanks and spend 4 days on land (Fairbanks/Denali) before boarding the Coral Princess in Anchorage. We take the train from Denali to Anchorage which takes us straight to the cruise ship. My question for the day is: We do like to bring on the allowed bottle of wine per person but  how/where can we purchase the wine in Anchorage before boarding the ship? Should we try to purchase the wine before we take the train to Anchorage to board the ship at either Fairbanks or Denali or is there a place at the port in Anchorage we could purchase wine? Thanks in advance and I've gotten so much wonderful advice reading these boards so thanks in advance to everyone.

 

[lax19]

Don't know about purchasing wine...but technically, you will board the ship in Whittier (some 60 miles SE of Anchorage). You may not stop in Anchorage, but head straight to Whittier from Denali. 

[Glaciers]

There are many places in Anchorage to purchase wine but as noted, it sounds as though you’ll be taking the train from Denali to Whittier to catch the cruise. Alcohol in Whittier and Denali is expensive. You should probably pick it up in Fairbanks, if you are indeed traveling by train all the way to Whittier.  Revisit and look at the details of your itinerary.

 

If you do, indeed, have some time in Anchorage Costco is an option as well at Brown Jug on Old Seward Highway for best selection and prices.

 

 

Edited February 4, 2019 by Glaciers

[newbiewfromms]

You are correct. It says Anchorage (Whittier) AK. I didn't realize they were two separate places. So it looks like we should try to pick some up in Fairbanks on the first leg of our Land tour. Thanks for the info. Now going to research our ports some more. They will be Skagway, Juneau and Ketchikan. I would love to get in some whale watching in Juneau. I saw the Adventure Bound tour and was so excited until I realized we will be leaving Juneau at 5:00 pm so we would get back too late. I will try and research some Mendenhall Glacier and whale watching combos. Skagway I'm looking at Dyea Dave Emerald Lake tour. Since were going on the Direct-to-Wilderness train ride do you think it would be worth it to take the train back to Skagway or just stay on the bus tour?  I've also read good things about the Jewell Garden since my mother in law loves flowers/gardens. Any personal experiences on that? We are in port from 7:00 am to 8:30 pm that day. Still wide open on Ketchikan but like I said just starting to getting into researching.

[Missymssy]

I have similar situation. Embarking in Seward, taking train from Anchorage. Would it be best to purchase in Anchorage and take on train? I just figured Seward had stores 

[Glaciers]

Seward has more services than Whittier and several places to purchase alcohol. We use Safeway that’s short walk from both the train station and cruise terminal, less than 1 mile.  There may be closer places. I think that it would be more of a convenience issue if you purchase before or after arriving Seward.

[Missymssy]

Thank you, glaciers! It definitely is more convenient just getting it in Seward