Newbie Help: Seattle/Vancouver/SF -> to -> Seward/Whittier in Early Sept 2023

[darinboville]

My wife and I are taking an 8-week trip this fall (very late August or early September). Our (very) rough plan is to go to Alaska for half, then Hawaii for the other half. We've been to SE and so thought we'd explore Central Alaska.  Last time we took the Alaska Marine Highway (and brought our vehicle) but it appears they no longer connect up from SE. I hate to fly--so then we hit upon the idea of taking a cruise.

 

I'm near San Francisco but can easily get to Seattle or Vancouver. I'm looking at my cruise options to Seward or Whittier (one way only) and it is all a little bewildering. Can someone narrow down things for me or offer general advice to help me make sense of it all?

 

1) Are the prices I'm seeing now (found via this site's "Find a Cruise" feature) good deals or should I wait until later in the year? How much time pressure am I under to decide what I'm doing? 🙂. ($450 or more inside cabin, $850 or so outside cabin, plus all the taxes and upgrades, etc).

 

2) We've never been on a cruise before and I'm not sure I need to pay the extra $1000 a person for a balcony room. The ship is full of places to sit and view the ocean, isn't it? We don't drink much at all so the inclusion of free drinks doesn't sound attractive. Am I missing something--should I be looking at the pricier rooms?

 

3) EDIT: Just found the click-box in the filter area! ******** Not required but I'd like to go into Glacier Bay. We did do an Uncruise (very different!) into Glacier Bay last trip and I remember that only certain cruise lines had permits. Is there an easy way to search for such cruises or do I just have to click on "Itinerary" on each listing?

 

Thanks,

 

--Darin

[Kiran]

Not central Alaska but:

 

Norwegian Spririt 16 day Alaska and the Hawaii departing Vancouver 8/30 saves the airfare to Hawaii

 

I am skipping balcony for more cruise time in Alaska myself

Balcony worth it when traveling with my elderly Mom as she could sightsee while in her nightgown and a cup of tea at hand

Drink package not worth it for me either

port fees and taxes add a lot to the bare fares

 

Many options 

Good Luck!

[GTJ]

17 hours ago, darinboville said:

Last time we took the Alaska Marine Highway (and brought our vehicle) but it appears they no longer connect up from SE. I hate to fly--so then we hit upon the idea of taking a cruise.

The Kennicott has been sailing every two weeks between Bellingham and Whittier during the summer, but the recently-released summer 2023 schedules do not include that vessel. According to the Alaska Marine Highway press release from March 7, 2023, "[t]he M/V Kennicott and M/V Tazlina will be off-line for the time being due to skilled crew shortages, but will be brought back on-line once hiring increases." In recent years the state budget has played havoc with the schedule, with service reduced dramatically, but now it seems that the employment situation is also playing a factor in there now being further reductions. I am not certain the extent to which labor is a real issue, or a surrogate for budget cuts, or whether it is realistic to expect the Alaska Marine Highway to to put the Kennicott back into the schedule later this summer season if they're actively recruiting crew.

 

For planning purposes, though, unless you're very flexible, travel by cruise vessel is a good "Plan B." Alaska is one of the markets where the cruise lines both have much one-way service between Vancouver and Whittier or Seward, and with frequencies greater than the Alaska Marine Highway, effectively providing an alternative "ferry" service that is practicable. Generally, the one-way cruises are one week (7 nights) in duration. Departure and arrival days for service to and from Seward are: alternate Mondays via Norwegian Cruise Line; Wednesdays via Norwegian Cruise Line and Regent Seven Seas Cruises (alternating each week between the two brands); Thursdays via Silversea Cruises; Fridays via Celebrity Cruises and Royal Caribbean International (alternating each week between the two brands). Departure and arrival days for service to and from Whittier are: alternate Wednesdays via Princess Cruises; Saturdays via Princess Cruises; Sundays via Holland America Line. Viking Ocean Cruises operates 10-night one-way cruises to and from Seward departing every 20 days; there are also a handful of infrequent cruises to and from Seward operated by Hurtigruten, Hapag-Lloyd, and Windstar Cruises. There are also round-trip cruises from both Vancouver and Seattle that only go so far as the Alaska panhandle.

 

Let me also throw out an additional idea. During the spring and autumn transitions, there are one-way cruises between Vancouver and Hawai'i. You might be able to create a trip that goes San Francisco to Anchorage via airplane, Whittier or Seward to Vancouver via cruise vessel, Vancouver to Honolulu via cruise vessel, Honolulu to San Francisco via airplane. This plan might replace a round-trip airplane trip between San Francisco and Honolulu with only one-way via airplane, a benefit if you dislike flying (though there are round-trip, but not one-way, cruises between San Francisco and Honolulu). The 2023 one-way cruise line schedule from Vancouver to Honolulu is as follows.

 

Lve Vancouver Aug 30, 16 nights, via Norwegian Cruise Line, "Norwegian Spirit"

Lve Vancouver Sept 22, 9 nights, via Celebrity Cruises, "Celebrity Solstice"

Lve Vancouver Sept 24, 10 nights, via Royal Caribbean, "Brilliance of the Seas"

Lve Vancouver Sept 25, 7 nights, via Princess Cruises, "Royal Princess"

Lve Vancouver, Oct 2, 8 nights, via Royal Caribbean, "Quantum of the Seas"

Lve Vancouver Oct 3, 10 nights, via Disney Cruise Line "Disney Wonder"

Lve Vancouver Oct 6, 9 nights, via Royal Caribbean, "Ovation of the Seas"

 

N.B. The Norwegian Cruise Line itinerary departing Vancouver on August 30, 2023, initially travels to Alaska, stopping at Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway, and Sitka, before sailing directly to the Hawaiian islands. This one cruise, by itself, could satisfy the desire to visit both Alaska and Hawai'i.

 

An important planning note as to Honolulu cruises: The Passenger Vessel Services Act would influence your planning here. The law prohibits you from doing "back-to-back" cruises, on the same vessel, from Whittier or Seward, to Vancouver, and onward to Honolulu . . . you have to change vessels in Vancouver.

 

17 hours ago, darinboville said:

2) We've never been on a cruise before and I'm not sure I need to pay the extra $1000 a person for a balcony room. The ship is full of places to sit and view the ocean, isn't it? We don't drink much at all so the inclusion of free drinks doesn't sound attractive. Am I missing something--should I be looking at the pricier rooms?

People have different views on this issue, some held strongly. Do you really intend to sit on your balcony, facing in one direction, for any length of time? I prefer being on the promenade deck, having the ability to walk from port to starboard, and vice versa, as sights might appear on each side of the vessel. You will also have the lounges that are forward, and pool decks that are aft, as well. I have a balcony at home, and have no strong desire to have one at sea, too. Nor do I drink. It can be nice to have fresh air in the stateroom, but by having an inside stateroom you get the best sleep with no light infiltration, and you'll save some money that can be better spent on shore (I spend my money to go places, not to sit in a fancy stateroom).

 

Edited March 29, 2023 by GTJ

[arpie05]

I'm an inside Cabin preferred BUT for Alaska  - Balcony is a must  Out of 15+ cruises - I have done a balcony twice. First Alaska was not a balcony and I swore next time it would be a balcony and it was worth it.  It's nice to just sit in your room looking out. I prefer Alaska when it's cooler but even July it was nice to sit in the room and watch.