Book Now or Wait for Wave Season?

[strickerj]

Hi all!

 

I was going to wait a few more years, but my parents came to visit a couple weeks ago, and in discussing vacation plans, they highly recommended doing an Alaska cruise. (They were on Island Princess from Whittier to Vancouver in 2014.) I'm interested in a northbound cruise that includes Glacier Bay and Skagway in May or early June, with a balcony cabin on the starboard side (and possibly an inside cabin across the hall if the wife's parents care to join us), which narrows it down to Norwegian Jewel, Holland America Noordam or Westerdam, or Grand or Royal Princess. So here are my questions:

 

1) Norwegian: This is the most expensive (which is surprising since I thought NCL was supposed to be a budget cruise line), but it's the only one that includes both Glacier Bay and Hubbard Glacier. Glacier Bay is a must, but is Hubbard worth it? It looks magnificent but I hear it's difficult to get close to it early in the season - I'd hate to pay a premium for that itinerary and then not see it.

 

2) Princess: I hear Royal is considerably larger than Grand - does this significantly affect its route and the viewing, or is the experience close enough? Also I notice it arrives in Whittier at 0:30, whereas the other cruise lines dock in Seward around 4:30 - can you stay on board until morning, or would I need lodging in Whittier?

 

Post-cruise/General Questions: Is there a way to just get from Seward to Whittier by bus or train? (I'm thinking of doing the 26 glacier cruise through College Fjords on the way to Anchorage if I pick a cruise that ends in Seward.) Or would I need to rent a car for this? (I see Seward has a Hertz and Whittier has an Avis, but neither are open yet when the ships arrive.

 

We're also planning a few days in Denali afterwards - how early in the season does the road typically open all the way to Wonder Lake? I'm trying to balance not going so early that we can't see much of Denali, but not so late that it'll be raining in the panhandle (and the cruises are more expensive).

 

Finally, it looks like prices are trending downwards - should we go ahead and book, or are there typically better deals during wave season? NCL is $1699 for a balcony cabin, and HAL and Princess are around $1400 - I've never been on a cruise so I'm not that familiar with the pricing, but once you add in taxes, port fees, and mandatory gratuities, that's more like $2000+ pp.

 

Thanks in advance! I'm quite excited! The Mrs. is not so much, but I'm working on her. 🙂

[AKStafford]

1 hour ago, strickerj said:

Post-cruise/General Questions: Is there a way to just get from Seward to Whittier by bus or train? (I'm thinking of doing the 26 glacier cruise through College Fjords on the way to Anchorage if I pick a cruise that ends in Seward.) Or would I need to rent a car for this? (I see Seward has a Hertz and Whittier has an Avis, but neither are open yet when the ships arrive.

 

We're also planning a few days in Denali afterwards - how early in the season does the road typically open all the way to Wonder Lake?

Denali: This year it was June 8th for Wonder Lake, June 1st for the Eielson Visitor Center. Those are typically the dates: https://www.nps.gov/dena/planyourvisit/shuttles.htm

 

Seward to Whittier: I would do a one-way car rental from Hertz and drop the car off in Anchorage that night. You can pick up your other rental car for Denali in the morning in Anchorage. Or you can check with Bear Valley Road Runner: https://www.bearvalleyroadrunner.com/

[strickerj]

Oh that’s a great idea! Hertz doesn’t seem to charge one-way fees; you just get a higher daily rate, so doing that for a day and then a second reservation would be a big savings!

[DaveOKC]

I only travel on Holland America, so my thoughts might not apply:

 

When I see a decent price for my cruise, I book it as much as a year out, but only with REFUNDABLE fares.  Then I monitor pricing during the year and whenever (often more than once) I see a better deal, I call my TA and quickly refare - easy to do plus I get to keep my cabin.  Of course, this only works up to final payment date (usually 75 days prior to sailing), but even after that Holland will usually work with you by giving you something (free cabin upgrade, Onboard credit, etc).

 

 

[Guindalf]

I booked our cruise in February, during Wave season and I think I got a great deal! Not only did we get all four perks (premium drinks, pre-paid grats, wifi and $300 OBC), but we also got $375 extra from our TA, plus another $50 loyalty bonus, for a total of $725 in combined OBC!

 

YMMV of course, but that would be my recommendation.

 

BTW, we leave for Vancouver tomorrow to get on the Celebrity Eclipse on Sunday! Can't wait!!

[strickerj]

Sounds like now might be a good time to book then. I'm leaning toward HA as well. I'm concerned about waiting until winter and maybe saving a few bucks on the cruise but then finding out flights are twice as expensive.

 

One other thing - I see some of the travel agencies offer bonuses including onboard credits. Where/for what can these be used? (I assume drinks and specialty dining, but how about drink packages, onboard WiFi, shore excursions, gratuities, etc.?) Sorry I searched but found dozens of threads that weren't relevant, and I didn't have time to read through all.

[Guindalf]

OBC can be used for just about anything on board. If it's from the cruise line, then you should be able to use it to book in advance, but TA provided OBC can only be used once you get on board, but the latter is refundable, so if you don't use it, you'll get a check after you return.

[DaveOKC]

8 minutes ago, Guindalf said:

OBC can be used for just about anything on board. If it's from the cruise line, then you should be able to use it to book in advance, but TA provided OBC can only be used once you get on board, but the latter is refundable, so if you don't use it, you'll get a check after you return.

Not true on HA - can only use OBC for things you book onboard.  I wish it was different, especiallt for tours.

[Guindalf]

Sorry, I'm a Celebrity cruiser and I've never been on HA - I'm not old enough yet!

[strickerj]

Thanks everyone! So shore excursions booked in advance can't use the OBC (I kind of figured that, actually), but those booked on board can? I definitely want to book the train in Skagway in advance since it fills up, but I'm not set on anything else in particular. (I think we might just go our own way to Mendenhall and Mt. Roberts in Juneau. I wouldn't mind a seaplane flight through Misty Fjords in Ketchikan but I know the Mrs. won't go for that.) If the OBC isn't refundable at the end, then I'll probably just spend the rest of it on an increased gratuity if you can do that - might as well let it go to the crew that provided our service.

 

I'm starting to think we might be the youngest passengers on board - my wife and I are only 34. (I like Norwegian's casual approach but they were far more expensive, and the perks they offered to offset that didn't seem all that useful to me.)

[oaktreerb]

On 8/23/2019 at 9:32 AM, strickerj said:

Thanks everyone! So shore excursions booked in advance can't use the OBC (I kind of figured that, actually), but those booked on board can? I definitely want to book the train in Skagway in advance since it fills up, but I'm not set on anything else in particular. (I think we might just go our own way to Mendenhall and Mt. Roberts in Juneau. I wouldn't mind a seaplane flight through Misty Fjords in Ketchikan but I know the Mrs. won't go for that.) If the OBC isn't refundable at the end, then I'll probably just spend the rest of it on an increased gratuity if you can do that - might as well let it go to the crew that provided our service.

 

I'm starting to think we might be the youngest passengers on board - my wife and I are only 34. (I like Norwegian's casual approach but they were far more expensive, and the perks they offered to offset that didn't seem all that useful to me.)

 

Ages will vary on HAL.  .  Many three generation families enjoy the Alaska experience when school is out..  The OBC goes surprisingly fast with gratuities, wifi, a laundry package, excursions, etc. coming out of it.  I do recommend the laundry package!

 

Seward has the Kenai Fjord cruise tours (6 hour minimum) which are wonderful wildlife and glacier viewing opportunities and a drive up Turnagain Arm to Anchorage has lots of viewing opportunities if you rent a car from Hertz.  No need to drive from Seward to Whittier for 26 Glacier tour.

 

 

 

Edited August 24, 2019 by oaktreerb

[strickerj]

6 hours ago, oaktreerb said:

...

Seward has the Kenai Fjord cruise tours (6 hour minimum) which are wonderful wildlife and glacier viewing opportunities and a drive up Turnagain Arm to Anchorage has lots of viewing opportunities if you rent a car from Hertz.  No need to drive from Seward to Whittier for 26 Glacier tour.

 

I was thinking of doing both. 🙂

Edited August 25, 2019 by strickerj

[geoherb]

We've had all ages on Holland America cruises. A lot depends on itinerary. Alaska in the middle of the summer will get a few families with children, honeymooners, young couples, and a lot of older couples and singles. 

[Coral]

Princess South Bound tours include both Glacier Bay and Hubbard Glacier. So you can do Denali first.

 

I would not do Royal Princess. There are a number of posts on why this is not a good ship for Alaska. If you are interested in a small ship, I believe Pacific Princess will be in Alaska this summer.

 

I would book in September. They run a 3-for-free which includes free gratuities and OBC.

[foggyphils]

May/ Early June Northbound and Southbound cruises have the best prices 30-45 days out. That’s what we did this year. Deluxe balcony on Princess was ~$750 and HAL had suites at $899. Celebrity was $599 for a balcony the week we were looking at. Here’s a screenshot of prices I took April 12 for May cruises. 

 

[strickerj]

Thanks for the feedback everyone! I went ahead and booked with Holland America since it included $400 OBC and free internet, which wasn't offered when I was researching last week so I guess it just got posted yesterday or today. I decided not to wait any longer since it would have been difficult getting flights 30 to 45 days out. This is our first cruise, so I'm excited!

[DaveOKC]

A couple of thoughts on using your OBC - first, if you are REALLY wanting to do a specific tour, go ahead and book/pay for it ahead of time, as it may sell out, not worth the risk of missing out.  

 

Second, your OBC can be used towards you hotel service charge (about $15 per day per person), so this can eat it up pretty quickly.

 

Third, book your onboard excursions as soon as you borad the ship - they can fill up quickly with others like you and me! 

[strickerj]

I figured the desirable ones would fill up early - I went ahead and booked the White Pass Rail Bennet Lake & Yukon excursion. I think we'll just self-navigate to Mendenhall Glacier and Mt. Roberts in Juneau, and we haven't decided on Ketchikan yet. (Well, *I've* decided, but I'll need a couple months to convince my wife to get on a seaplane.)

 

Good idea on using the OBC for gratuities (I assume that's the hotel service charge you were referring to?). I figure I'll use the rest of it on drinks/dining.

[DaveOKC]

20 hours ago, strickerj said:

I figured the desirable ones would fill up early - I went ahead and booked the White Pass Rail Bennet Lake & Yukon excursion. I think we'll just self-navigate to Mendenhall Glacier and Mt. Roberts in Juneau, and we haven't decided on Ketchikan yet. (Well, *I've* decided, but I'll need a couple months to convince my wife to get on a seaplane.)

 

Good idea on using the OBC for gratuities (I assume that's the hotel service charge you were referring to?). I figure I'll use the rest of it on drinks/dining.

Yes, gratuities = hotel service charge.

 

I have been on a hundred small planes (2-8 passengers) and never a problem, but stuff can happen anywhere at anytime.  One of the BEST excursions we ever have done is the Misty Lakes floatplane - an experience you will never forget.  As an option, you can take the boat ride as well - I have heard it is quite good.  

[strickerj]

1 hour ago, DaveOKC said:

Yes, gratuities = hotel service charge.

 

I have been on a hundred small planes (2-8 passengers) and never a problem, but stuff can happen anywhere at anytime.  One of the BEST excursions we ever have done is the Misty Lakes floatplane - an experience you will never forget.  As an option, you can take the boat ride as well - I have heard it is quite good.  

 

My dad booked a sightseeing flight out of Talkeetna with a glacier landing on their cruise several years ago, but it ended up canceled due to weather. He was quite disappointed but I think mom was secretly relieved. 🙂 I’m wondering if I can do the Misty Fjord cruise/flight combo and the rest of my family can just do the cruise round trip, with us on the same outbound leg? That’s if I can’t convince them to join me on the flight. (I’m a private pilot myself with about 200 hours in a Cessna 172, so I’m fine with it.)

Edited August 27, 2019 by strickerj