Carnival: Alaskan cruise vs. Caribbean/Bahamas

[iheartmarshall]

I'm thinking of booking an Alaskan cruise on Carnival in September 2023.  It's been on our bucket list for a while and I'm almost ready to go for it.

 

We've only ever cruised to the Caribbean and Bahamas and of course Alaska will be different.  What are some things we should expect when cruising there that are different?  What's the vibe like (is it a party feel or more laid-back?).   I know it'll be cooler so hanging out by the pool on sea days probably won't be an option.  But what are some other things we should know prior to booking?

 

Thanks in advance!

Edited April 21, 2021 by iheartmarshall

[thesmiths]

Just booked for May 2023, our first time for Alaska.

On our bucket List as well for cruises so we'll go!

I am sure it is a different Vibe but we have fun anywhere!.

 

We'll be celebrating our 30th!

 

Booked an Aft Wrap !!!!

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 21, 2021 by thesmiths

[Tapi]

Are you planning on sailing specifically on Carnival? Your thread may get moved to the Alaska board. But here are some quick thoughts:

 

- Alaska is mostly about what’s going on outside than about what’s going inside the ship. So select your itinerary and activities ashore wisely. 
- It’s a much more sedate atmosphere onboard. People are drawn to Alaska for its beautify and not so much to party. Fellow cruisers tend to save their energy to go sightseeing ashore. 

- Yes it’s cooler, but people still go to the pool. One of my favorite memories is of me sitting in one of the hot tubs, with the glass roof half open, watching the breathtaking snowy peaks just outside as we sailed away from Sitka. 
- Day light hours are much longer (on our particular departure date it would get dark close to 11pm and the sun was back out by 4am). So plan on most if not all of your activities to be in sun light. 
 

Have an awesome time. I was a bit apprehensive about going to Alaska but it turned out to be one of my most amazing cruises yet. What you’ll see can’t be described by words, photos or videos. It’s truly breathtaking and beautiful. 
 

[chocolate melting cake]

Don't discount the pool area! If Carnival continues to use Spirit class ships there is a "sliding roof" over one of the pools and, though not Caribbean warmth, it's OK!

Edited April 21, 2021 by chocolate melting cake

[WildBlueYonder64]

Excursions will be much more expensive on an Alaskan cruise.  That being said, you definitely get what you pay for!  If this is a bucket list trip, then plan to budget for excursions, you won't regret it. 

[iheartmarshall]

6 minutes ago, Tapi said:

Are you planning on sailing specifically on Carnival? Your thread may get moved to the Alaska board. But here are some quick thoughts:

 

- Alaska is mostly about what’s going on outside than about what’s going inside the ship. So select your itinerary and activities ashore wisely. 
- It’s a much more sedate atmosphere onboard. People are drawn to Alaska for its beautify and not so much to party. Fellow cruisers tend to save their energy to go sightseeing ashore. 

- Yes it’s cooler, but people still go to the pool. One of my favorite memories is of me sitting in one of the hot tubs, with the glass roof half open, watching the breathtaking snowy peaks just outside as we sailed away from Sitka. 
- Day light hours are much longer (on our particular departure date it would get dark close to 11pm and the sun was back out by 4am). So plan on most if not all of your activities to be in sun light. 
 

Have an awesome time. I was a bit apprehensive about going to Alaska but it turned out to be one of my most amazing cruises yet. What you’ll see can’t be described by words, photos or videos. It’s truly breathtaking and beautiful. 
 

 

Thanks for the head's up about it possibly getting switched to the Alaskan board.  I edited it to say Carnival but if it gets moved, that's okay. 

 

Also, thank you for the feedback!  This is what I was expecting but was still curious.  I'm getting the feel that this would definitely be a true sightseeing/adventure-based cruise as opposed to a chill one (which is fine; we like do to both).  

[iheartmarshall]

7 minutes ago, chocolate melting cake said:

Don't discount the pool area! If Carnival continues to use Spirit class ships there is a "sliding roof" over one of the pools and, though not Caribbean warmth, it's OK!

 

This one is on Freedom which I thought was interesting.  But if I remember right, there's a sliding cover on the aft pool in that class? 

[Qcsailor]

Following with interest. I'm booked on Freedom for June 2022. I was following the thread on the need for a balcony for an AK cruise. I finally booked a scenic ocean view stateroom, hope this is a good choice for AK! Had that type of stateroom before on the Sunrise and loved it, + much cheaper than a balcony.

[IntrepidFromDC]

I've been on 15 Caribbean cruises and 3 to Alaska, all Carnival.  I felt like Tapi said, before, during and since the Alaska cruises: "I was a bit apprehensive about going to Alaska but it turned out to be one of my most amazing cruises yet. What you’ll see can’t be described by words, photos or videos. It’s truly breathtaking and beautiful."

 

I'll add two things: 1) the ports are not contrived Carnival BS although you'll find a Diamonds Int'l most likely.  You get off the ship and you are IN THE TOWN, a real working town with local-owned shops and restaurants instead of Thirsty Frog kinda places.  In other words, you don't have to wade and push your way through a quarter mile of the same old Carnival port crap.  And 2) unlike Caribbean cruises, where the scenery while you're cruising stays pretty much the same, the Inside Passage cruise is constantly changing beauty and there's an onboard scientist/naturalist describing so much and looking out for whales, bears, rams, etc. coming up, and he/she will alert you in time to get to the port (left) or starboard side to see them.  Bring binoculars or Carnival will sell you weak ones.

 

Our favorite town to walk through so far has been Skagway, which we had never heard of before.

 

Get ready to be amazed!

[jetsfan58]

Wishing you the best for your Bucket List cruise to Alaska. My idea of Cruising does not include packing an over coat.   

[xDisconnections]

I’ll be the odd one out and suggest you look at Princess or Holland America Line. These two cruise lines have the most experience sailing the region and will provide an experience focused on Alaska. Choosing fun is cool but with Alaska, you want to be immersed in what Alaska has to offer. These two cruise lines will also have better itineraries including land based options in Denali and the Kenai peninsula and will secure more entries into areas such as Glacier Bay.

 

Also, Carnival traditionally offers their Alaska cruises on Tuesday to Tuesday so keep that in mind in case it impacts a work schedule.

[xDisconnections]

1 hour ago, jetsfan58 said:

Wishing you the best for your Bucket List cruise to Alaska. My idea of Cruising does not include packing an over coat.   

Cruising comes in many different forms. The coats were a bit annoying when we sailed to Antarctica but we were just fine. As a Floridian, we were just fine with long sleeves during the summer months in Alaska and only needed a coat during a shore excursion in Juneau that involved taking a helicopter up to a glacier to go dog sledding.

[xDisconnections]

1 hour ago, IntrepidFromDC said:

I've been on 15 Caribbean cruises and 3 to Alaska, all Carnival.  I felt like Tapi said, before, during and since the Alaska cruises: "I was a bit apprehensive about going to Alaska but it turned out to be one of my most amazing cruises yet. What you’ll see can’t be described by words, photos or videos. It’s truly breathtaking and beautiful."

That’s how we felt about Antarctica which was described by the captain as Alaska on steroids. Our Alaska cruise remains as our favorite though.

[tallnthensome]

1 hour ago, jetsfan58 said:

Wishing you the best for your Bucket List cruise to Alaska. My idea of Cruising does not include packing an over coat.   

Good thing that most well versed cruisers don't think the way you do. Perhaps you enjoy going to Nassau 13 times and nowhere else but most do not. 

[firefly333]

I too did alaska on carnival and it was my favorite cruise ever.

 

Is yours listed as a journey cruise? Mine had a naturalist onboard who gave almost nightly talks in the theater. They were great and told us what to look for the next day.

 

We got to sail into some strait and see a extra glacier I was told carnival only did weather permitting. We had  glorious day.

 

I forget the port but we also went to another port that had some natl park glacier and what I was told was some of the worst rain. Instead of booking a excursion thru carnival I'd been told to walk outside of the port gates and buy bus tickets which I did. Less than $10 one way. This allowed me to spend as much time as I wanted. Carnival only gave 1 hour. I did some little paths and there was the best one to a falls with a view of the glacier and falls, a mile each way. I debated and told myself I might never get another chance, just start walking and if it was too much I could turn around. It was pouring hard the whole time and I had a heavy purse, and my tablet both over my should and a poncho over everything. It was well worth the walk which I probably couldnt have done on time if I went thru carnival.

 

Do go to the dollar store and pick up a poncho. I was so glad I had them. 

 

I didnt have a light weight warm jacket either as mentioned above, but i picked up one on the ship I still love. Not sure material? Fleece?  Something with bears on it I always get compliments on. Also came with another animal, but I love the bears. I did this cruise last minute and had no trouble filling in what I needed onboard. 

 

Also dont forget binoculars. One day everyone was lined up at 7 am to see whales jump and eagles. I never saw eagles but saw a lot of whales, and didnt even need a excursion. I had some tiny binoculars I got as a logo gift from carnival I brought.

 

Fabulous cruise. I was on miracle.

[gtouch]

We have been to Alaska twice the first time in 2010 and the last in 2019 and there was a lot of changes. Both were great trips but the towns are much more touristy now not as many real "mom and pop" stores lots of corporate owned stores with the same stuff in them.

 

But Alaska is for the outdoors and excursions it is at times breathtaking and as someone said earlier your pictures won't do it justice and you won't be able to describe it to people with true justice.

 

Bring some light weight rain gear as lots of Alaska is in a rain forest. 

[xDisconnections]

45 minutes ago, tallnthensome said:

Good thing that most well versed cruisers don't think the way you do. Perhaps you enjoy going to Nassau 13 times and nowhere else but most do not. 

You’re not always down for Nassau? Weird.

Edited April 21, 2021 by xDisconnections

[skrufy]

3 hours ago, iheartmarshall said:

I'm thinking of booking an Alaskan cruise on Carnival in September 2023.  It's been on our bucket list for a while and I'm almost ready to go for it.

 

We've only ever cruised to the Caribbean and Bahamas and of course Alaska will be different.  What are some things we should expect when cruising there that are different?  What's the vibe like (is it a party feel or more laid-back?).   I know it'll be cooler so hanging out by the pool on sea days probably won't be an option.  But what are some other things we should know prior to booking?

 

Thanks in advance!

An Alaska cruise is like no other, 100 out of 100 times I would choose Alaska over the Bahamas/Caribbean. You can choose Seattle or Vancouver to depart from, Carnival has had 14 day special cruises from Southern California ( we did two ) on occasion. If you are prone to sea sickness I would choose Vancouver ( I love Vancouver ). Sailing from Seattle, the ship goes west of Vancouver Island into the Pacific Ocean, can get rough. Departing Vancouver you sail east of Vancouver Island and into calmer waters, and it’s more picturesque. For a September cruise you will need fall type clothing, hats, gloves, and rain gear. If you plan on hiking you will need hiking boots.  The temps will be in the high 30s/ low 40s, and if you do Glaciers it will be cold up close to them. There are many videos and blogs with info about packing for Alaska cruises. Do your research and you will have an amazing experience.  Layering your clothing is the best way to keep warm. An Alaska cruise is an expensive adventure, the excursions are quite expensive. Alaska cruises, especially the longer ones are very laid back with an older group of people. We did two cruises in September and both were completely different weather wise. The first one it rained drizzled, was foggy in all the ports but Sitka, the second one it was beautiful weather in all but Icy Strait Point , it was drizzling, foggy, and overcast all day.September in Alaska you will find great bargains, the merchants are wrapping up the cruise season. If you cruise middle September on you will see lots of stores closed for the season. Dress for Alaska is casual in all areas of the ship, you can wear what you want to dinner ( this seems to be the norm on all Carnival cruises now ). Can’t put enough emphasis on watching as many videos as you can. You will learn something from one. Have a great Alaska cruise, you will not be disappointed.

[Tapi]

1 hour ago, xDisconnections said:

I’ll be the odd one out and suggest you look at Princess or Holland America Line. These two cruise lines have the most experience sailing the region and will provide an experience focused on Alaska.

I’ll agree with you. When I started planning our cruise to Alaska, I looked at all the cruise lines. Carnival was eliminated from the mix rather quickly (mid week departure, weak itinerary, no Glacier Bay, and prices that were actually higher than other cruise lines). We selected a Holland America sailing because it checked all the boxes which included Glacier Bay. This turned out to be one of the highlights of the cruise. 
 

Interestingly, this cruise was also one of the cheapest that I could find. They offered a “kids sail free” promotion which helped keep the total price well below Carnival. In addition to that, there were several price drops as the sailing date approached. Holland America was gracious enough to give us OBC plus an upgrade to a balcony stateroom (we had originally booked an ocean view stateroom). 
 

Overall, I was very happy about our selection. Holland America definitely knows Alaska. 

[1025cruise]

Here's my opinion. September is end of the season. Things are starting to close. You have chances of ice blocking access to glaciers.

 

If Alaska is a bucket list for you, go during the season, not the tail end.

[marshhawk]

I did Carnival in September a few years ago.  We did not have a balcony, saved a lot, but a Spirit class with a French door, and just down the stairs, a deck, so we really didn't feel we missed anything.

 

I spent a lot of my childhood in Europe, a lot of the time in Switzerland-but Alaska beats it by a land slide. We did go to Glacier Bay, and we even ended up seeing additional glaciers because a new straight had opened up the day we got there.  Glaciers didnt block anything, but we did have bad fog on the last day of the cruise.  The Captain got permission to change the channel we were using, and it cleared right up.

 

It is about the being there, it is not a party cruise.  But we were never ever bored.  There are talks about what you will see, the wildlife and the towns.  They brought local entertainment aboard and we got to hear songs and stories that we would otherwise never hear (about Alaska).  The last day of the cruise we had harbor dolphins flying in front of the ship for hours. 

 

We saw hundreds of otters in Glacier bay, lying on their backs holding their babies.  We saw bears running along the coast line, and there was a ranger with us as we traveled.  Along with a good rain gear, good hiking shoes, and a warm jacket- get good binoculars!  Before you get on the ship, and make sure that your camera has enough batteries. 

 

I would love to go again, and I would choose September again,  Where else can i get winter and summer at the same time?  Cruise happy!

[kona_wahine]

We are going to Alaska May 2022 for 40th anniversary, but decided on NCL, as I really wanted to go to Glacier Bay. We are from Oregon and so it will be interesting to see how different the landscape is there. Pictures I see could be Oregon.... (without the glaciers)

[Illbcruzn4life]

9 hours ago, jetsfan58 said:

Wishing you the best for your Bucket List cruise to Alaska. My idea of Cruising does not include packing an over coat.   

 

from reading your post you don't seem to want to change things up.

 

I am not a cold weather person but I thought the Alaskan cruise we took was the best cruise we ever took in 30+ cruises. We went in September and the only day it was cold was the day we were at Glacier Bay. Since we were surrounded by ice that's very understandable.

 

Your other thing that struck me odd is that you just want to cruise on Carnival no matter what because you went on an RCI cruise 20 something years ago and the people were condescending.

 

It's your time and money and as long as you and yours are happy stay the course I guess. There is so much more out there though.

 

 

[firefly333]

5 hours ago, marshhawk said:

I did Carnival in September a few years ago.  We did not have a balcony, saved a lot, but a Spirit class with a French door, and just down the stairs, a deck, so we really didn't feel we missed anything.

 

I spent a lot of my childhood in Europe, a lot of the time in Switzerland-but Alaska beats it by a land slide. We did go to Glacier Bay, and we even ended up seeing additional glaciers because a new straight had opened up the day we got there.  Glaciers didnt block anything, but we did have bad fog on the last day of the cruise.  The Captain got permission to change the channel we were using, and it cleared right up.

 

It is about the being there, it is not a party cruise.  But we were never ever bored.  There are talks about what you will see, the wildlife and the towns.  They brought local entertainment aboard and we got to hear songs and stories that we would otherwise never hear (about Alaska).  The last day of the cruise we had harbor dolphins flying in front of the ship for hours. 

 

We saw hundreds of otters in Glacier bay, lying on their backs holding their babies.  We saw bears running along the coast line, and there was a ranger with us as we traveled.  Along with a good rain gear, good hiking shoes, and a warm jacket- get good binoculars!  Before you get on the ship, and make sure that your camera has enough batteries. 

 

I would love to go again, and I would choose September again,  Where else can i get winter and summer at the same time?  Cruise happy!

Sounds like we were on the same cruise. Only difference is not otters but remember there were seals, so maybe different names for same thing. Everyone says good rain gear but my poncho from the dollar store these boards advised me to get worked great. In fact if you booked thru carnival they gave out ponchos. I dont think there was a big need for so much. My track shoes worked fine for hiking. I might have paid $50 onboard for my bear fleece jacket. I had extra obc though so I didnt mind.

 

Everyone always says do another cruiseline, but carnival with the naturalist was great. We had the same experience you had and must have done the same route.

[firefly333]

Another duplicate post!

Edited April 22, 2021 by firefly333