Alaska: Best time and cruise line itinerary

[ol'bob]

I would appreciate it some experienced Alaska cruisers would give me their opinions regarding the best time of the year to cruise Alaska and which cruise line has the best itinerary.

Thank you for your help. Bob.

[Keith1010]

I would recommend posting this on the Alaska Ports of Call Board where you will get lots of good input.

 

If you do not plan to stay up in Alaska and do a land package I would go with an inside passage cruise. I prefer R/T out of Vancouver rather than Seattle. Try to pick an itinerary that include Glacier Bay.

 

Which cruise line you select depends on inteests and budget. A couple to consider are Celebrity Cruise Lines and Princess who both do wonderful cruises of Alaska in my opinion.

 

Keith

[tigervixxxen]

I have not cruised Alaska but looked into it quite a bit, its likely our next cruise. So take my opinion for what its worth...

 

I'd say May or September is the best time to cruise due to low prices and it might not be the high season for vacationers.

 

I have also heard that if you cruise early in May you might see the Northern Lights.

 

I would look at taking Princess because they have a variety of iteneraries that go to Alaska and I've heard many good things about them. RCCL and Carnival have limited itineraries.

 

I personally want a round trip departure from Seattle. I know the airfare is less expensive to there than it would be to fly to Vancouver.

 

But obviously price is a large consideration for me, if thats not the case for you then there are probably people who can advise you better.

[RetireeWannabee]

I researched this for a while, and took Mom on Princess doing a southbound from Whittier to Vancouver. open jaw air was not as steep as I had thought, but we did Amtrak to Seattle for flying out vs Vancouver.

 

College Fjord, Glacier Bay - these were exceptional intros to glaciers. I picked Princess because they have naturalists onboard to add a lot to what you're seeing - we went for scenery but it was nice to have anytime dining so we didn't have to pull ourselves away from whale watching or port to race to dinner.

 

Pricing was comparable to Royal and Carnival.

[alcpa1]

We have sailed on both RCI and Celebrity to Alaska.

The Radiance itinerary was a southbound trip in June sailing Hubbard Glacier. We also remained in Vancouver for a few days after the cruise since we love the city.

The Summit sailing was a sailing in September from Vancouver to Alaska and then on to San Diego.

Both ships had a naturalist on board, by the way.

No matter which ship you choose, please consider arriving in your embarkation city at least one day prior to the cruise. Perhaps in the future you will be able to count on the airlines to get you there but not now. Give as much thought to your flights and connections as your cruise. I highly recommend you book your own air unless you have priority with the cruise line you choose.

Look very carefully at the length of time you will have in each port. For example, if you wish to travel to Carcross, Canada when you stop at Skagway you will need at least 7 hours.

The weather in Alaska can be very rainy. We were prepared and took it in stride. It did not stop any activities that we had planned. The only cold day we had on either cruise was sailing the glacier.

We firmly believe that the Alaska cruises are all about Alaska and not the ship. The itinerary is far more important than say a Caribbean sailing.

Enjoy planning your cruise and fall in love with Alaska.

[WinnieinWA]

Weather.... I live in the Seattle area and I ask friends who wish to visit to come the end of August or first part of Sept. as that is our hottest time of year..........usually.

 

That said......Labor Day weekend several years ago we had hurricane winds and our anchored 16 footer, as well as all our neighbors (5) who had boats anchored, sunk!:eek:

 

It was quite a sight when the tide went out at 3 AM having several neighbors working with only flashlights trying to turn the boats over enough so they would float when the tide came in. (Most of us comiserated and drank our way to 3AM so it was indeed a sight! :D )Repairs to motors was pricey.:eek:

 

* A boat is a hole in the water one pours money into!*

 

I am taking my 3 adult kids and spouses to Alaska mid August as that will most likely be the best weather. (plus we can all make it that week) :eek:

 

Hope that helps. :)

 

Winnie <-----> From MT and never had to shovel one inch of rain so doesn't ever complain about it

[GORDONCHICK]

There are so many variables and it also depends on what you want your experience to be. I'll just point out a few things on time of year for Alaska: If you go very early in the season, you may not get as close to the glaciers as the ships will later in the season because not enough of the ice in the water has melted. Going late in the season (September) runs into the rainier part of the season, but there are great sales going on in shops and on the ships as well. Prices of the actual cruises are higher when school kids are out because of demand, so June-August are usually going to be higher.

 

As far as picking a cruise line, that depends as well. Are you expecting an active night life? If so, HAL wouldn't be a good choice for you. If you don't want annoucements alllll day long on board the ship, Carnival may not be for you. If you don't want to do formal nights at all, NCL may be a good fit unless you plan on eating at the evening buffets or specialty restaurants those nights.

 

Alaska cruising is so different from the Caribbean in that Alaska (off the ship) is really the destination. In the Caribbean, the ship itself would play a bigger part. Pick an itinerary first, then look at what lines/ships do that or close to it.

[qiangf2]

there are many factors you should take into consideration. For cost and weather, May might be the best month. But you may miss out other opportunities. For example, the bear watching at Anan Creek won't start until late June. It really boils down what your priority is.

[jmk22574]

My husband and I chose Holland America for our Alaskan cruise. We're 31 and 33 years old, and we LOVED it. We cruised this past September, and we enjoyed it so much that we are booked a return trip to Alaska this May on Holland America once again. Our suite was beautiful, the staff was amazing, we were more than happy with the food, and we lucked out with the entertainment (we had a couple of the "favorite" entertainers on our particular cruise). After our cruise in May, I'll be able to better answer this question for others. It wasn't really that cold in September, we didn't have a day of heavy rain until the day we returned to Seattle, and we got very close to the glaciers due to the lack of ice floating in the water. The stores in port and on the ship were having major sales on nearly everything too. Have fun planning your adventure! :)

 

Jill

[Budget Queen]

There really isn't any "best". All my trips have offered me wonderful adventures and none I was sorry I took. :)

 

My most traveled timeframe and favorite is mid August into the first week of Sept. Any later, you take a chance of the foulest weather of the sailing season. Dusk at 7pm is also a negative if you enjoy scenic sailing and/or have late port times.

 

I like going mid May or later. Earlier, again, iffy weather, but not as significant as Sept.

 

For interior Alaska touring on the ends of the season, northbound trips are superior, so to get into interior Alaska later in May and so to have better potential weather Inside Passage, doing it first in Sept.

 

Ship naturalists, can greatly enhance a trip, Princess, HAL, and Carnival always have one.

 

So look at ports, time in ports, ship naturalist, glacier, route, price and budget fully for costly excursions, in my opinion, you only get half a trip without them. :)

[Budget Queen]

 

I'd say May or September is the best time to cruise due to low prices and it might not be the high season for vacationers.

 

I have also heard that if you cruise early in May you might see the Northern Lights.

 

 

 

I personally want a round trip departure from Seattle. I know the airfare is less expensive to there than it would be to fly to Vancouver.

 

.

 

For clairfication- After the first week of Sept. This timeframe has the worse potential for weather of the entire season, also dusk is at 7pm potentially impacting on touring and scenic sailing. There is just about zero chance of any Northern Lights sightings in May. Round trip Seattle routes are the roughest sailing of Alaska cruises, also the least scenic due to 2 days open ocean. May not also have the best port times, since they have to add Victoria/etc (Ca. stop) taking up time.

[Sunshine Gal]

I would appreciate it some experienced Alaska cruisers would give me their opinions regarding the best time of the year to cruise Alaska and which cruise line has the best itinerary.

Thank you for your help. Bob.

 

Hi Bob:

 

I have sailed Princess, HAL and Celebrity to Alaska. Princess would be my first choice with HAL my second choice. Most Princess cruises offer two days of glacier viewing with one in College Fjord and one day in Glacier Bay and this is a big plus. There are also many other fine cruise lines that cruise to Alaska but the one cruise line that I would not recommend is the Celebrity ships that will be sailing to Alaska next season. The Infinity and Millennium both have suffered propulsion problems on and off since their launch. These problems, when they do happen, have impacted many Alaskan cruise with missed ports late arrivals and even cancelled cruises. The Mercury which does not have these problems but I have seen many reports about sub-standard maintenance that I would make myself aware of before booking that ship. Celebrity also does not go to Glacier Bay, which is one of the highlights of any Alaskan cruise.

 

Our favorite time to go is mid May because there is still snow on the mountains, the prices are lower and there are not very many childred onboard at that time.

 

As far as itinerary there are roundtrips from Seattle, Vancouver and one way cruise from Vancouver. If time permits I would recommend taking the one way cruise from Vancouver and spending some time on land in Alaska before or after your cruise.

 

Hope some of this helps. Enjoy Alaska!