Alaskan Cruise

[DrivesLikeMario]

When you book your one-way AK cruise, take into consideration airfare and how long it'll take you to get to the embarkation port.  For us in So. Cal., it was a little more expensive and took longer to fly into ANC but it was a much easier flight home from YVR at the end of the cruise. 

It depends on how much time you have to get there and how much time you want to spend getting home.  Some flights home from ANC have really bad timing and that's something to consider too. Try to fly in at least a day early if you can.  We couldn't and it worked out very smoothly for us but I wouldn't recommend it if you have the time.

[Coral]

3 hours ago, jsglow said:

 

You mentioned doing the Cali coast.  Our son lives in Seattle so that might be a good family vaca option.  Thoughts?

I think it is a great getaway cruise. Since I don't live in CA - visiting the ports are fun. It can be rocky. You also often get a full day in Victoria which is always a treat.

[peety3]

As others have said, you've got to consider your willingness to put up with travel logistics. We've done two northbound Vancouver-Whittier, two Seattle RT to Tracy Arm Fjord, one Seattle RT to Glacier Bay, and one Alaska Sampler, all on Princess. We're both into photography, and I love renting a big lens to capture the wildlife in Alaska, so for me, travel logistics matter. If you've got kids that need to be marshaled, travel logistics probably matter.

 

Flights out of Anchorage are a chore, depending on where you're going. On our first cruise, we were heading back to San Antonio. I had several choices of three legs (ANC-Seattle/Portland-Houston-SAT), but we went with the unique option of a late-evening/red-eye non-stop ANC-Houston (three hours time difference and six hours flying meant we landed IAH around 6am). The logistics of getting from the cruise ship docking location (few if any actually go to Anchorage, so you're looking at a 90-120 minute drive or train) mean you simply cannot safely choose a pre-noon flight.

 

Seattle round-trip makes a lot of things easier. Fair warning though: the Seattle conference/convention season runs from about January 1 to perhaps December 31, so hotels are never cheap. I truly believe in flying in the day before so you have a buffer to not miss your cruise, but be ready to pay. Plan to stay down by the airport for lower hotel rates, which will impact your options to "be a tourist".

 

The one-way itineraries are generally a little better balanced. My standard comment on the Seattle RT Tracy Arm is "hurry up, wait, hurry up, HURRY UP, wait, HURRwaitleave". Hurry up to board the ship, chill out for ~36 hours en route to Ketchikan, then the next day is a LONG day with TAF around 6am and then Juneau to 11pm, followed by a 7am or 8am morning in Skagway and quick be back on the ship by 5pm. Now it's 49 hours non-stop cruising to get to Victoria, and in that time you have a formal night, pack your suitcases, then eat dinner and run around Victoria for a few minutes before getting back on the ship to wake up in Seattle. The Seattle RT Glacier Bay is a little better, but the NB is essentially a day at sea, then something to do each of the next five days.

 

As much as I want more Alaska, honestly if it wasn't for all of my photography gear and the fact that we live in the Seattle metro area (40 minute drive to the terminal), I would fly to CA for the 10-day. There's something about relaxing on the ship while you're totally unplugged that I seek. It's probably why I'm now dreaming/aspiring to do an Alaska cruise on Seabourn, as their itinerary just seems so much more relaxing to me. Calgon, take me away! 🙂

[RogerandMartha]

We prefer the South bound glacier cruise. We have done the round trip from Seattle 2 times ,  Southbound from Whittier twice , and Southbound from Seward once.  We have another Southbound from Whittier again this year. We loved all of them, but on the Southbound from Whittier we get to go to Glacier Bay and Hubbard Glacier which we love! We prefer one way because the time in the ports are usually much longer! As you can tell, we LOVE cruising Alaska!