sun in june to alaska - take your own blankets?

[calgarycowtown]

hi - expecting it to be cold. should we bring our own blankets to sit outside during the day?

are there lots of chairs/loungers to sit outside during the day?

thanks.

[bonitah69]

Hi. I don't know about NCL, but I was on an RCI cruise to Alaska in June 2002 & the only time you needed a blanket on deck was when going through Hubard glacier. They had plenty of blankets on deck where they normally have the beach towels. There were always chairs on deck as well.

I was on an NCL cruise from New York over Christmas in 2004 & they had blankets on deck the first day at sea. It was rough waters & very chilly. They did have deck chairs were out but startedstacking them up when it got real windy & rough. Enjoy your Alsaks cruise!!!

 

Bonnie

[retiredonthesea]

No you do not need to take your own blankets with, they supply them on the deck chairs and loungers. What part of June are you going? We went the end of June a few years back and where able to wear shorts. If your from Calgary I'am sure 65 F degree is probably comfortable for you. We even went in the pool and the one day it did snow we sat in the hot tub--wonderfull. We looked up the 10 day forecast a few days before we left for our cruise. That kinda gave us an idea how weather was going to be.

Dressed mostly in jeans, t-shirt and sweatshirt. Just remember to layer.

 

Have a great time:D We are going again in July "09"

Retiredonthesea

[BaileyandBella]

We are in a Mini-suite on the Star. Will there be extra blankets in our cabin for sitting on the balcony?

[Toyz711]

we used the bedspread off the bed. didn't see any blankets,but we didn't ask. our bed had that nice duvet on it, with the bedspread covering in during the day. when we sat out on the balcony, we were fine...but FIL got cold easily.

[calgarycowtown]

calgary snow is pretty melted.... we are now a further 7 hours north; with snowbanks of 4 feet in some places. just thinking about the rain ton the cruise that we may get 3rd week in june. don't like rain!

[Ms belp]

calgary snow is pretty melted.... we are now a further 7 hours north; with snowbanks of 4 feet in some places. just thinking about the rain ton the cruise that we may get 3rd week in june. don't like rain!

 

The first of May, what should we need? Rain gear, blankets, hot chocolate packets, mufflers?

[Toyz711]

you don't need whole rain gear, just get a rain poncho or something light to go over your other clothes. i do suggest waterproof shoes, but nothing like boots or golashes. just something to keep your feet dry.

just spraying waterproofing on regular good walking shoes. many take umbrellas, but the street are narrow...with the umbrellas open, it's hard to walk around and hard on others to avoid walking into your umbrella.

some take woolen caps or something to cover your ears. i had a sweat with a hood. for us, glacier bay had temps in the 50s, with no wind. the people who bundled up early, were stripping by 10am. layers that you can take off or put on, as needed, work best.

you can get hot chocolate packets in the buffet area or at the blue lagoon....i learned this after taking a whole box with us. the coffee makers, in the cabin, did a good job with the hot water for the hot chocolate. others just mix it at the buffet or blue lagoon. that way it's fee. usually whatever they have, on the top decks, is not fee...usually spiked.

don't take blankets...the airlines are charging for extra luggage. we didn't need any. between standing on our balcony and running up to the top decks and then running back down to the balcony...didn't need blankets.

if you are on your balcony and need a cover, just use the bedspread.

make sure you don't stay on the balcony,the views from the top decks are amazing...so wide open. you need to get up there to see the whole 360 degree view.

[Ms belp]

you don't need whole rain gear, just get a rain poncho or something light to go over your other clothes. i do suggest waterproof shoes, but nothing like boots or golashes. just something to keep your feet dry.

just spraying waterproofing on regular good walking shoes. many take umbrellas, but the street are narrow...with the umbrellas open, it's hard to walk around and hard on others to avoid walking into your umbrella.

some take woolen caps or something to cover your ears. i had a sweat with a hood. for us, glacier bay had temps in the 50s, with no wind. the people who bundled up early, were stripping by 10am. layers that you can take off or put on, as needed, work best.

you can get hot chocolate packets in the buffet area or at the blue lagoon....i learned this after taking a whole box with us. the coffee makers, in the cabin, did a good job with the hot water for the hot chocolate. others just mix it at the buffet or blue lagoon. that way it's fee. usually whatever they have, on the top decks, is not fee...usually spiked.

don't take blankets...the airlines are charging for extra luggage. we didn't need any. between standing on our balcony and running up to the top decks and then running back down to the balcony...didn't need blankets.

if you are on your balcony and need a cover, just use the bedspread.

make sure you don't stay on the balcony,the views from the top decks are amazing...so wide open. you need to get up there to see the whole 360 degree view.

 

Thank you! Your tips are greatly appreciated, especially the one about not staying on your balcony! We've read a balcony is a must for Alaska but your post has enlightened us. Get up and get out and go up!:D

[Toyz711]

you got it! with a balcony you see just what if in front of you. on the open decks you are turn and look all around. usually the jaw drops and you hear a "WOW"!

i missed the john hopkins glacier calving. i was on our balcony as the ship turned. DH was on the top decks, heard the "crack" sound that the ice makes and was able to see the glacier break off pieces of ice...maybe 4 or 5 times in a quick time period. nothing huge, but enough to please DH.

[Ms belp]

you got it! with a balcony you see just what if in front of you. on the open decks you are turn and look all around. usually the jaw drops and you hear a "WOW"!

i missed the john hopkins glacier calving. i was on our balcony as the ship turned. DH was on the top decks, heard the "crack" sound that the ice makes and was able to see the glacier break off pieces of ice...maybe 4 or 5 times in a quick time period. nothing huge, but enough to please DH.

 

If you think of anything else, like the best times to be up on deck, please let us know. We are so new...Alaska sounds wonderful!

[Toyz711]

you will know, the park rangers tell you what is coming into view. at margarie glacier the ship stops. after about 20 mins, it starts to do a 1/2 turn, the pauses before it leaves the area. the ship will have people up there to take photos with the glacier in the background. (don't know how much they cost, we didn't do it)

they keep you will informed..

you can hear the park rangers over the loud speakers around the ship or on tv (they will tell you what channel) you will be cruising through glacier bay national park for hours...only stopping twice at different glacier. i have attached a photo from the port side balcony...you can see, with the roof over the top...the views are beautiful but limited. the other photo is from top deck..as the ship pulled away from the glacier. i was on the NCL star, but, at the time, the star did glacier bay. there's a kid in the hot tub and somewhere a guy was running around in SHORTS..it's wasn't that cold.

[SakeDad]

The first of May, what should we need? Rain gear, blankets, hot chocolate packets, mufflers?

I took all of those last May and they sat UNUSED in the cabin!!!:p I left all those cold weather tools for my cabin steward as I live in Vegas and was sure I'd never need them again and they had just started their Alaska weeks. The weather was GLORIOUS!! No rain, no cold, no wet. I did wear my heavy jacket and scarf when sailing Glacier Bay but even when I landed on a glacier outside Juneau in a helicopter I left the jacket on the copter and walked around in a long sleeve shirt. I know I was VERY LUCKY to have such great weather, but it can happen. Plan for the worse and pack for the best!:D Oh, and see all my Alaska pics in the gallery link below.

[ute_fan]

I took all of those last May and they sat UNUSED in the cabin!!!:p I left all those cold weather tools for my cabin steward as I live in Vegas and was sure I'd never need them again and they had just started their Alaska weeks. The weather was GLORIOUS!! No rain, no cold, no wet. I did wear my heavy jacket and scarf when sailing Glacier Bay but even when I landed on a glacier outside Juneau in a helicopter I left the jacket on the copter and walked around in a long sleeve shirt. I know I was VERY LUCKY to have such great weather, but it can happen. Plan for the worse and pack for the best!:D Oh, and see all my Alaska pics in the gallery link below.

 

We were also there in last May (sailed on 5/20), but the first of May, historically, is much more likely to have bad weather. I wouldn't worry about hot chocolate packets. We've always been able to grab some from the buffet and take them to our rooms. You'll definitely want a waterproof top layer, just in case of rain, and I wanted gloves and something to keep my ears warm while we were cruising Glacier Bay. The key is to pack lots of layers, so that you can adjust for whatever the weather conditions are.

 

I'm one who doesn't believe that a balcony is essential for Alaska. Is it nice? Sure -- but I'd rather take the money that I save by booking an inside cabin and using it for either excursions or another cruise! We spent a lot of time on the loungers on the promenade deck on the Pearl. They have blankets available for your use.

 

If you want to be able to track what the weather is doing, keep tabs on the Mendenhall Glacier webcam. Here's the link: http://www.fs.fed.us/r10/tongass/districts/mendenhall/webcam.html. I watched it faithfully last year to see when the ice and snow finally melted, as I felt that was a good indication of what the weather was doing.