Recommended Line/Ship to Alaska?

[schmenge]

I am interested in a 2009, 7 night cruise. Specific itinerary is not critical, but most look to be the same except for being either from Seattle or Vancouver.

 

To me, that makes the decision to be the cruise line and ship. It would probably be RCCL or Princess. Any suggestions for an family group from 7 years to 70 years?

[5Cats]

DH and I have only taken Princess cruises and loved them. My TA told me RCCL is great for Caribbean, but for Alaska cruise, Princess is better. I would like to try RCCL and Carnival, but so far, Princess has treated us great. The one thing Princess does have that DH and I love is Anytime Dining. I don't know if RCCL has that.

 

Have you cruised in the past? If so, what lines? What things other than the location are important to your group? What ship would you be taking on Princess/RCCL?

 

I've been on Sapphire, Star and Crown Princess. Crown Princess was a little bit too big for me. Sapphire and Star (Diamond and Grand are nearly same size I think) were great! Some of the ships have Movie Under the Stars and some don't. I personally liked that feature - some do not! The movies they showed were appropriate for kids/all ages. Took me back to Drive In Theatre days!

 

Which ever line you choose, you cannot go wrong with an Alaskan cruise. It was our first and we are spoiled from it!

 

Kim

[Cosmic Rays]

Where do Holland America fit in here, especially with price? We have always sailed with Princess in the Caribbean but a change to Alaska could be considered..........

 

Colin:) :)

[schmenge]

We have taken Monarch, Navigator, and soon Mariner on RCCL, Grand from Princess, and Wonder from Disney. So, a variety of ships, but all in the carribean. In Alaska, I suspect that there will not be as much outside activity going on, but that we would do self walking tours and enjoy the scenery.

[plaso20]

We have cruised on Princess and HAL and like both. Have been to Alaska once and will return in May 2008 on Celebrity. I was not impressed with our HAL trip to Alaska (with the ship not the Alaska part) last July 2007, but had taken the grown children along so we were a group always moving about, and they could only get away for 7 days. I don't like anything less then 10, so I suspect this had something to do with my not being impressed with the ship. Went with HAL to Mexico in October 2007 and had a great time with the cruise line. Although I can honestly say I have never had a bad cruise. We are booked back with Princess for the Panama Canal April 2009.

[plaso20]

We have taken Monarch, Navigator, and soon Mariner on RCCL, Grand from Princess, and Wonder from Disney. So, a variety of ships, but all in the carribean. In Alaska, I suspect that there will not be as much outside activity going on, but that we would do self walking tours and enjoy the scenery.

 

Actually we booked a tour in every port then also had time to walk around. A lot to see and do I thought.

[Toyz711]

there are a lot of walking tours, but there is much more outside activity...away from the ports. wildlife viewing is not in town, jewelry stores and t-shirt shops are.

it's not like the caribbean at all..for most of the best excursions, pre-planning is needed, if not pre-booking to make sure you don't get left out.

if you are spending the money for the cruise, make sure you do your research on the ports...

glacier viewing is (usually) very important to the cruisers, make sure you know and understand what glaciers are involved and what you could see.

are you planning a 1-way cruise, with time to tour mainland alaska or just planning a round-trip? round-trips leave from seattle or vancouver, but hve a totally different feel to them. for round-trip, which glacier the ship goes to can make a BIG difference...since you will only have 1 chance to see it and some glaciers have ice problems that can prevent close viewing. usual recommendation for glacier bay for 1st timers.

http://www.alaskacruises.com/alaska_glacier_viewing.asp

http://www.traveljuneau.com/

http://www.skagway.com/

http://www.visit-ketchikan.com/

[CC Help Michell]

Alaska itineraries vary considerably, actually. Some are round trip, some are one-way (north or south bound), and some do not leave from Seattle or Vancouver, but rather from Whittier or Seward, in Alaska. Some visit College Fjord, some visit Glacier Bay, some visit Hubbard Glacier, some visit Tracy Arm/Sawyer Glacier -- and some visit more than one of those. To add on to Toyz's excellent comments, while Glacier Bay is frequently recommended for first time visitors, RCCL doesn't go there, so that might affect your choice, as well.

 

Also, which ports of call are on the itinerary can make a difference in what activities you would be able to do (for instance, ziplining is offered in only a couple of locations), and even between ships visiting the same ports there is often a big difference in how much time they actually spend in port.

 

Regarding your follow up post, if by "not as much outside activity" as the Caribbean you mean activities out of doors, I'm not sure where you got that impression. Outdoor activities are pretty much front and center for Alaska, and a big reason many of her residents choose to live there. :) Fishing, hiking, biking, wildlife viewing via boats of all sizes, kayaking, bear watching trips, flightseeing, glacier landing, sled dogs, nature photography.... just a small sample of the kinds of activities you can do in Alaska.

 

If you are only interested in RCCL and Princess, I'd suggest you visit their websites and check out the Alaska section. Look at the offered shore excursions in various ports to get a feel for the variety -- you just might find a must do activity and could begin narrowing your choices that way (to ships that visit the ports where you could do whatever grabbed you).

 

Have fun planning!

[Putterdude]

I am a big fan of the 7 night rtn Inside Passage that Celebrity's Mercury does out of Vancouver. Out of Vancouver they sail a true Inside Passage route that keeps them on the east side of Vancouver Island where the waters are calmer and you are hardly ever out of sight of land. The scenery on this type of a cruise is spectacular. The only thing that is disappointing for this years itinerary is that they have dropped Skagway and substituted Sitka.

[schmenge]

I was suspecting that outdoors activity on the ship was reduced as compared to the Caribbean. I do understand all of the on-land options.

 

I appreciate all of the feedback. It has been very helpful.

 

Perhaps as one last item. I have 2 kids that would be 7 and 13. I suspect some ships may be more kid friendly. Some talk of a kid pool with slides, but I wonder how that would be in Alaska???

[2ndguesser]

We are going on the NCL Pearl in August with children. From what I've read kids do use the waterslide and pool on the cruise to Alaska. Probably warmer when docked in port rather than sailing. i can't imagine them using it for long but my kids are planning to go for a dip. pools are heated.

[Budget Queen]

A general "best" cruise to Alaska has many varied options. To better narrow down the vast list, you are far better off, deciding WHAT routing you want, one way or round trip?? There is no point going through all the choices if not an option for you??

 

In my opinion, I go to Alaska for Alaska, with the ship being the last priority. Since it sound like the ship is a priority for you, then look at ships you like, if the pool is a priority, then get a ship with a covered pool. Otherwise, it can be downright cold in outside ship pools.

 

Do NOT expect demographics like sailing the Caribbean. Bulk of Alaska travelers is still middle aged and above, on ALL lines, even Carnival. There are definately all ages, including many families sailing.

 

Do your homework, it will pay off many times over. Look at ports, time in ports, glaciers, route, ship naturalist, price. Budget for tours, you get only half a trip without them in my opinion.

[Buccaneergirl]

Our first Alaskan cruise was on Princess 7 years ago and our 2nd cruise, last May was on RCI Radiance of the Seas. Both have their differences - good and bad. Princess was a NB cruise(Vancouver to Seward) and we had a starboard balcony. The captain sailed the ship close to shore and we could sit on our balcony with binoculars and see lots of wildlife on land. RCI was also NB, but the captain sailed farther out, so having a balcony was still wonderful, but we could not see land up close. I prefer Glacier Bay(Princess) over Hubbard Glacier(RCI), but the rest of the ports were the same on both ships.

Age range - RCI had more people our age(40's)than Princess, but the overall age of both ships was older than any othere cruises we have been on. The kids program on RCI is suppose to be great.

I would choose RCI, but honestly, you can't go wrong with either cruiseline. Alaska is a wonderful place to visit! Good luck!:)