Advice requested for Alaska cruise

[hevnsprncs]

Hi everyone!!  Heather and Daniel from Richmond...we've been on 10 Celebrity cruises, all Caribbean itineraries, we have sailed on S and E class ships in balcony and above cabins. Looking for advice on an Alaska cruise Summer 2025. Specifically, we are curious which itinerary, and which ship is recommended and why. Preferably during the later/warmer months. We like active shore excursions, wildlife, and food experiences. Thanks in advance for any suggestions you share.

[bigbenboys]

Check out what others think about what Alaska cruise to take. Summit give you a better overall look at Alaska. 

 

Edited Sunday at 09:10 PM by bigbenboys
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[1025cruise]

My recommendation, don't lock yourself into Celebrity.

[Northern Aurora]

Even though we live in Alaska we have done 6 or 7 Alaska cruises.  

 

Regarding Alaska itineraries the Vancouver to Seward (or the reverse) one ways generally have the best itineraries, followed by the RTs out of Vancouver.  The RTs out of Seattle have the worst itineraries. We have actually done the Vancouver to Seward as a B2B pairing.

 

Carefully consider the port times.

 

And if you do a Seward to Vancouver itinerary consider adding a DIY land trip prior to the cruise.

 

[Stem to Stern]

3 hours ago, Northern Aurora said:

And if you do a Seward to Vancouver itinerary consider adding a DIY land trip prior to the cruise

Curious, why DIY?

Looking at a southbound 7-night ending in Vancouver for our first time in AK.

The cruise tour starts with one night in Fairbanks followed by three at Denali and another in Anchorage.

The train piece looks interesting.

Is doing it through the cruise line the overpriced, easy option?

Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

[Random Cruizer]

Take the Sapphire Princess--wrap-around promenade deck with a visit to Glacier Bay. Celebrity doesn't go to Glacier Bay.

[Dancing Shoes]

As usual, Northern Aurora has summed it up.  Celebrity has a great southbound from Seward to Vancouver.  Fly into Anchorage and take the train to Seward. We spent one night there.  Go for the upper deck on the train.  Celebrity doesn't go to Glacier Bay, but Hubbard Glacier is on many itineraries.

I really like Holland America for their R/T out of Vancouver, and they do go to Glacier Bay.  They also offer a side excursion to go up Tracy Arm that leaves from the ship, while the rest head on to Juneau. It was pricy and is not offered on all sailings.   If you like Celebrity, I think you will like Holland/ food wise.  Choose the smallest ship.  We have gone in August both trips.  

Once you decide on your itinerary, and when we know what you like to do, we can recommend excursions we have been on.  Save money for these, as you want to get away from port at some places.  You don't really need a balcony, as weather can be iffy, and you can always go out on deck for the scenery.  Have fun planning.  My husband and I really like Alaska.  Next trip will be another southbound along with renting a car in Anchorage and driving over to Denali.  

Edited yesterday at 01:37 AM by Dancing Shoes

[Stem to Stern]

We are looking at HAL first, followed by Celebrity Summit.

Glacier Bay is an important tick box for us.
Southbound disembarking in Vancouver.

Waiting for 2026 cruisetours on both lines to be released for booking.

Wondering if we are allowing enough time at Denali with three nights?

HAL seems to have so many iterations of the land portion.

[markeb]

2 hours ago, Stem to Stern said:

Curious, why DIY?

Looking at a southbound 7-night ending in Vancouver for our first time in AK.

The cruise tour starts with one night in Fairbanks followed by three at Denali and another in Anchorage.

The train piece looks interesting.

Is doing it through the cruise line the overpriced, easy option?

Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

We did the DIY in May. Drove to Denali and spent 3 nights, then back to Anchorage and Alaska Rail to Seward for two nights. DIY is pretty easy as long as you book hotels VERY early. Having your own vehicle lets you go back and forth into the publicly accessible parts of the park. We found three days was good since we weren’t hiking. Going deeper into the park requires a Park Service concession tour, which you should do. 
 

You can also explore the Kenai Peninsula from Seward. We didn’t this time. 
 

We just felt we had freedom doing it ourselves. 
 

I’ll find a link, but I did a semi review of our Summit cruise including Denali and Seward. Should have done more in Seward…

[Northern Aurora]

2 hours ago, Stem to Stern said:

Curious, why DIY?

Looking at a southbound 7-night ending in Vancouver for our first time in AK.

The cruise tour starts with one night in Fairbanks followed by three at Denali and another in Anchorage.

The train piece looks interesting.

Is doing it through the cruise line the overpriced, easy option?

Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

  Why a DIY?  Because you can do exactly what you want to see and do.  The cruise tours are a 
"one size fit all" --- which means they don't fit many folks very well.  And they spend a great amount on "shopping opportunities"  and the shops pay a commission to the cruise lines.

 

I don't want to sound sarcastic or obnoxious -- but in Alaska we drive on the same side of the road as the rest of the US.  You will find ATMs at the same locations as the rest of the US.  Capital One is not as widely accepted as in some US states.  Alaskans generally use VISA and Mastercard credit cards.  A DIY trip in Alaska is very easy.

 

The single road into Denali National Park is closed at the Pretty Rocks area due to the road sloughing off of the single road into the park.  It was constructed on ice rich land which is now melting.  As someone who lives about a 2.5 hour drive north of the park entrance we have not visited DNP since was closure at Pretty Rocks.  My favorite parts of the park are past (and now not accessible) due to the road closing.

 

And interesting alternative to Denali National Park is the Wrangell -- St. Elias National Park and Preserve.  One of my favorite areas of Alaska.

 

Hubbard Glacier is an incredibly large advancing tide water glacier which calves into the bay.  Most, if not all of the glaciers at Glacier Bay, are retreating (ie, melting).

 

Trips on the Alaska Railroad can be booked independently of any cruise line

 

 

[jlawrence01]

I did the September 1st Inside Passage cruises on the Solstice and the September 8th 14 day RT sailing on the Nieuw Amsterdam back to back this past month.

 

If we were to repeat, we would do the HAL RT again.  Yes, you see Glacier Bay yes, you go further into Hubbard Glacier area.  However, you see College Fjords which was the highlight of the trip.  Also, our day in Whittier, AK allowed us to meet a good portion of the population.  I think that the enrichment programs on HAL were a lot better overall.

[RichYak]

9 hours ago, Northern Aurora said:

Capital One is not as widely accepted as in some US states.  Alaskans generally use VISA and Mastercard credit cards.

I'm guessing you meant American Express as Capital One are VISA credit cards.

[Tom and Ingrid]

My suggestion - and seemingly contradictory to others - would be to aim for an itinerary STARTING in Vancouver (or Seattle) that ENDS at Seward/Anchorage and then ADDING to your time up there with exploring up there.

 

My rational being the trip starts out with a BANG but by the second, third, ...final day, it has become a BANG!!!  Each day just builds and the scenery grows better and better. The nature and landscape exceeds each day before.  If you have the time, tacking on the visit to Denali would be a wonderful and fitting end to your trip.

Edited yesterday at 02:59 PM by Tom and Ingrid

[sanger727]

I understand the idea that the Alaska is in the US and is driveable.  But I'd be concerned about the cost and availability of a one way car rental there.  Just doing a quick search on expedia, there are very few options, if any.

[hevnsprncs]

20 hours ago, 1025cruise said:

My recommendation, don't lock yourself into Celebrity.

Thank you for your reply. As much as I'd be interested in exploring other lines, this is one of two future cruises that we booked on our last trip that we have to get booked before December deadline or we lose the extra OBC. 

[hevnsprncs]

Thanks all for your input 🙂

[Purplsmurf]

We LOVED the itinerary from Seward to Vancouver. We started in Anchorage a few days earlier and then took the train to Seward to board the ship. I would definitely do that same itinerary again. The flight home from Vancouver is much shorter than the flight to Anchorage. I like the longer flight first if I have an option. As far as weather, it’s hard to say. We have friends that went in June and it was pool weather. They wore shorts and T-shirts the whole trip. We went at the end of July into early August. It was rainy and cooler.

[phoenix_dream]

My advice to anyone asking about Alaska cruises is always the same -pick the one with the most ports and don't worry about which ship (within the Celebrity family of course🙂).  My personal favorite is to do a B2B to/from Seward and Vancouver.  If you start or end in Seward make sure to add a few days to get up to Denali - we used an Alaska travel agent to book ours - just as nice and much less $$ than ship's excursions.  Actually, to argue with my own point about which ship - I would avoid Edge class if you are stopping at the glacier - without the forward viewing areas and Sky Lounge the experience is just not as good IMHO.  Our favorite times to go are May and September.  No, it won't be as warm but fewer kids is a big plus.  Also, May has beautiful spring flowers and September has beautiful fall colors.  

[NutsAboutGolf]

I'll say what I always say, seriously look into a Norway cruise.  It's absolutely STUNNING, the sun will be out super late and most ports are lively cities, not "cruise port cities" that shut down once all the ships leave.  Our first and only pre-pandemic X sailing was Alaska, it was overall good.  We did Norway in in the summer of 2023, I thought it was going to be the same as Alaska but boy was I wrong.  Of my 200+ nights at sea, Norway was the most "magical" sailing; slightly beating out Greenland and Iceland due to the ports

 

[carolina_yankee]

16 hours ago, Northern Aurora said:

  Why a DIY?  Because you can do exactly what you want to see and do.  The cruise tours are a 
"one size fit all" --- which means they don't fit many folks very well.  And they spend a great amount on "shopping opportunities"  and the shops pay a commission to the cruise lines.

 

 

 

I tend to avoid organized tours for the reasons you state, but I have to say, after studying cruise tours on HAL, Princess, and Celebrity, it is possible to do a cruise tour that offers flexibility and checks the boxes of what one wants to see. The nice thing about Alaska is that it's not a shopping mecca so the land portion of the tours don't focus on that. 

 

We're likely to do a hybrid - some DIY before the tour starts, and then join with the tour.  Seward on our own, and Denali/Talkeetna/ with the cruise line. Why? Because it offers the stops I want, the transportation I want, lodging I will like, and reasonable flexibility. Pricing is good, and it saves me from having to figure out the car rental issues and lodging issues in an expensive, tight market.

 

Honestly, it seems in Alaska some choices come down to "Enjoy this pretty site or wonderful nature adventure or that pretty site and wonderful nature adventure."  With 7-9 days, I'm limited to what I can fit in as well as afford.  Admittedly, in Denali, I'm going to bag the cruise-arranged tour in favor of the East Fork Shuttle and will book my own experiences in Talkeetna, while letting the cruise line handle my lodging and transport to/from, but that's the flexibility I want. On the cruise portion, I would be shocked if we took a ship excursion instead of booking our own, much of what we'll do is actually offered by ship. We are just re-directing things to our schedules, smaller groups, and making sure the local vendors gets more of our money than the cruise line.

 

I'd also add that for train buffs, the opportunity to maximize the Alaska RR experience is also a plus. Does it give me flexibility to go into small towns and off the beaten stops?  No, but it does give me the experience of doing the Railroad, which as a train buff is awesome.

 

If Alaska awes me - I'll find a way to come back and do more! 

 

[maggieq]

5 hours ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

I'll say what I always say, seriously look into a Norway cruise.  It's absolutely STUNNING, the sun will be out super late and most ports are lively cities, not "cruise port cities" that shut down once all the ships leave.  Our first and only pre-pandemic X sailing was Alaska, it was overall good.  We did Norway in in the summer of 2023, I thought it was going to be the same as Alaska but boy was I wrong.  Of my 200+ nights at sea, Norway was the most "magical" sailing; slightly beating out Greenland and Iceland due to the ports

 

@NutsAboutGolf interesting comments as we are looking at a cruise to Alaska in 2025/2026.   It would be a first after all this time.  We cruised 12 nights to Norwegian fjords and arctic circle in may of his year.  A few fellow passengers stated it was close to Alaska scenery wise.  🤔 

[NutsAboutGolf]

33 minutes ago, maggieq said:

@NutsAboutGolf interesting comments as we are looking at a cruise to Alaska in 2025/2026.   It would be a first after all this time.  We cruised 12 nights to Norwegian fjords and arctic circle in may of his year.  A few fellow passengers stated it was close to Alaska scenery wise.  🤔 

 

Both Alaska and Norway have Fjords, while I'm sure it's itinerary-specific, we were in the Fjords longer on the Norway sailing than the Alaska sailing.  Another way to think about it, do Alaska first then do Norway (lol).  One can look at youtube videos, I have zero affiliation with this video, this just came up first when I searched Alaska cruise vs Norway cruise https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R6lliREeYdg&pp=ygUdZmpvcmQgYWxhc2thIGNydWlzZSB2cyBub3J3YXk%3D