Alaska B2B

[jer_l]

We are anxiously awaiting the 2008 Alaska itineraries. It will be our fourth Alaska Cruise and we are trying to decide between flying to Anchorage and spending a few days on our own touring Denali and then taking the cruise or cruising north out of Vancouver and then staying aboard for the southbound cruise. I think the cost will be about the same for us, but I was wondering if any of you have done the B2B on Celebrity in Alaska? If so, how was it?

 

Jerry

[CaliforniaDreamin]

Jerry,

 

We sailed north from Vancouver to Seward and return on our B/B Summit cruise in Aug/Sep 2002. It was our first cruise ever.

 

We visited Sitka on the southbound portion in place of one of the northbound ports, Ketchikan I think. We visited all other ports twice. There was plenty to do that we missed on the first stop.

 

We changed cabins after the northbound cruise because I booked the return very late and our original cabin was not available. Took our laundry to the laundromat in Seward as we had nothing planned there.

 

The Celebrity Theatre stage shows will be repeated on the return as will the dinner menues. Maybe lunch menues also. It's OK though since there are many choices.

 

We were flying standby with A/A and the seat loads out of ANC were not looking good for the day we arrived and for a few more days. That's when I decided to do the B/B and avoid the hassle and uncertainty.

 

We have a 12 night northbound cruisetour booked for 8/03/07 on Summit. We love cruising Alaska and this will be our first land tour. We did rent a car in Skagway last year and drove the Klondike Highway into Yukon Territory to Carcross and Emerald Lake. We went with another couple from Georgia and it was a great day trip.

 

Hope this is helpful. Any questions, just ask.

[Mary El]

We've done a couple of back to backs and it's easy as pie. We will be doing a back to back on the Summit to Alaska again this year. Anyway, when you book your cruise make sure that they can give you the same cabin so you don't have the hassle of having to switch cabins. Shouldn't be a problem if you book fairly early. Good luck.

[joramrose]

I booked very late a couple of years ago and still was lucky enough to get a good cabin without having to change.

 

I really wanted to do the land tour but did not feel up to it physically and enjoyed the B2B very much. Had a good choice of what to do at the various ports.

 

love

joan

[fleckle]

For an Alaska B2B, I would suggest considering 2 different ships on different cruise lines. That way you can choose different itineraries. For example, you can take Celebrity in one direction and HAL the other way and get to cruise Hubbard Glacier plus Glacier Bay and College Fjord all on the same trip. You would also have different restaurants, different menus, and different entertainment on the way back - no repeats.

 

In addition, if you have the time, you can get off at Seward or Whittier and spend a couple of days, or longer, sightseeing on the Kenai Peninsula or head up to Denali before boarding the ship for your return.

 

To me, it would be well worth an extra hour or two of the hassle of packing and unpacking in order to experience two different Alaska cruises instead of taking the same cruise again in reverse. Besides, packing on the ship is always much faster than packing at home because you just take it all and don't have to make any of those agonizing decisions.