What I want so far

[inthesouthrn]

I'm only a week or so into researching cruising in Alaska having neither cruised or gone to Alaska before. I was cruise ignorant before..(still am) .there is SO much to learn about cruising. The vast amount of info is almost as vast as Alaska itself.

 

In researching, I have found some particulars I want so far. I want a cruise line that will allow you to be casual all the time. I hear NCL is the best to go as far as casual goes.

 

I have also realized, I really, really want a cruise/tour...taking a 7 day cruise combined with a 4 or 5 day land tour. I want the very most out of this once in a lifetime trip. However, in researching NCL, I can't find where they offer a cruise tour, only cruises and I only find 7 day cruises. Now Princess offers some really nice sounding cruise tours. Any words of wisdom about cruse/tours? Are they worth it? They sure are pricier, but the trip is longer so....

 

Now I THOUGHT I wanted to go in the middle of summer, June or July, but hear that it's good to go in May or Sept so there would be a lesser chance of the better excursions being booked up. Is this true? But is Alaska still REALLY cold in May and Sept? I didn't want to go when it was VERY cold...cold is ok, just not VERY cold, lol.

 

So, any insight into the things I mentioned here? Any tips, suggestions, anything at all?

 

Thanks!

[neecee23]

You can be casual on Princess too. Typically, during a 7 night cruise, there are 2 formal nights. You do not have to dress to the hilt in order to eat in the dining room, Princess is becoming more relaxed with this on formal nights. If you want to stay very casual you can eat dinner in the buffet, but a nice dress and a sport coat and tie is ok. Purists will disagree I know. On non formal nights just dress as you would to go to a nice restaurant back home. Nice open neck shirt for men, blouse or sweater and pants for women. During the day, casual is good. Bring clothes to keep you warm and that are practical and comfortable for any excursions you plan on doing. There are lots of threads here about what to wear, search for them. I personally like Princess, most on CC will probably tell you that the food is better than NCL, I don't know. But I enjoyed the afternoon tea, the buffet and the dining room, the service, the accomodations and the variety of entertainment. Princess seems to offer many options for cruisetours also, I have no first hand knowledge about these tours, but someone will no doubt give you some insight or do a search for this info. Do a search for excursions in the different ports also. Many people here have used independent tour companies that are reputable and may be less of a cost than the cruiseline. I found several ideas on this board.

May and September may be a cheaper time to cruise, but I cruised in August and had no trouble booking excursions. I only booked one cruiseline excursion and that was at the end of the cruise. I started booking in February for our August cruise and had no problems.

Keep asking questions, only you can decide which cruiseline is best for you. Good luck!:)

[DisneyScrapper]

We went in Sept this year and did casual on Princess. If you go in May the salmon will not be running so you won't see the Bears. You stand a better chance of seeing snow. That happen to my GF when she went this May and took the train in Skagway.

You also stand the chance of not getting very good weather in Sept. In 2007 we had AWSOME weather, went back again this year and it was damp and foggy. But we still have a great time. Got alot of really good deals in the stores, so you have to take the bad with the good....:)

[inthesouthrn]

I'm sorry, but the search feature on this board is not working for me at all. Every time I try to use it, it states something about not being enabled at this time. So I figure I will just try to pick through all the posts but still ask the most pressing questions I have. Hope that's OK.

 

When is the best time to go to Alaska? I thought June or July would be good originally because I want the warmest weather I can get. Then someone said something about May and Sept to beat the crowds and not miss excursions due to being booked up. But I don't mind crowds and I want to see the bears and all the wildlife I can.

 

Please give me some advice on this.

 

Thank you!:)

[Chat Noir]

When is the best time to go to Alaska? I thought June or July would be good originally because I want the warmest weather I can get. Then someone said something about May and Sept to beat the crowds and not miss excursions due to being booked up. But I don't mind crowds and I want to see the bears and all the wildlife I can.

 

Please give me some advice on this.

 

Thank you!:)

 

If you want bears, you'll want late June at the very earliest for the best opportunity to see them... also plan for a bear viewing excursion, you won't see much from the ship itself (unless you're very, very lucky).

 

I think you are considering land, too. If so, Denali would be your best bet if you don't care to take a 'dedicated' bear excursion. We RV'd one year, and had a great time for a land tour. Many here rent cars. I think most of us here have a preference for planning independent as opposed to cruisetours... but there are those who are very pleased with their cruisetour choice, too.

 

You are looking into this soon enough (2010, yes?) that you'll have plenty of time to book excursions of your choice before they fill.

[countrygal52]

We sailed on HAL in mid Aug. of 2007 on a 13 day cruise/tour (land first - then cruise) Very relaxing that way. It was OUR first cruise and our first time in Alaska together (hubby had been there in the '70s as a teen with his parents and 2 younger sisters). Weather was upper 60's to low 70's on the land portion and 60's on the cruise. We had a little drizzle in Ketchikan but otherwise had good weather. You get more rain in May and Sept. and possibly some snow sometimes..... If you don't want to dress formal on those nites, you can eat in the buffet or order room service. Hubby complained LOUDLY about having to take a suit, but wore it both formal nites to dinner to please me....I loved dressing up in something long and sexy - we don't have those kinds of restaurants where WE live:D .

[nothriver]

Welcome to Cruise Critic!

 

I'm new to cruising and to Alaska. I'm totally overwhelmed myself. However, this board is a wonderful place to get information. Everyone here is so friendly and helpful. You've come to the right place!

 

I can't answer your question about the cruise. I'm sailing with my parents for their 50th anniversary and they chose Celebrity - not casual! I too would prefer casual since I'm a jeans and sweatshirt type of gal, but I'm already getting my wardrobe lined up for the cruise and I'm muddle through.

 

For the ground portion, I highly recommend you do as much research as you can. I've decided to arrange our pre cruise tour on our own. Much cheaper and we can get exactly what we want. I didn't find a cruise tour doing what we wanted and once I looked into booking all the components seperately, I was a little shocked how much they overpriced these cruise tours. I'm not saying that you won't find one that is perfect for you, just make sure that you know what you want and that you DO find the one that is perfect. Also know that if I can book an independent tour, you probably can too. Because I have no idea what I'm doing! Certainly it has been a learning process but with the help of all the wonderful people here on this board, everything is falling in place.

 

Finally, watch out with the "once in a lifetime" notion. I'm 8 months away from my first Alaska trip and I've already fallen in love with Alaska. I know already that I'll be back. I'm guessing other here would tell you the same thing!

[LuvToCr]

I'm only a week or so into researching cruising in Alaska having neither cruised or gone to Alaska before. I was cruise ignorant before..(still am) .there is SO much to learn about cruising. The vast amount of info is almost as vast as Alaska itself.

 

In researching, I have found some particulars I want so far. I want a cruise line that will allow you to be casual all the time. I hear NCL is the best to go as far as casual goes.

 

I have also realized, I really, really want a cruise/tour...taking a 7 day cruise combined with a 4 or 5 day land tour. I want the very most out of this once in a lifetime trip. However, in researching NCL, I can't find where they offer a cruise tour, only cruises and I only find 7 day cruises. Now Princess offers some really nice sounding cruise tours. Any words of wisdom about cruse/tours? Are they worth it? They sure are pricier, but the trip is longer so....

 

Now I THOUGHT I wanted to go in the middle of summer, June or July, but hear that it's good to go in May or Sept so there would be a lesser chance of the better excursions being booked up. Is this true? But is Alaska still REALLY cold in May and Sept? I didn't want to go when it was VERY cold...cold is ok, just not VERY cold, lol.

 

So, any insight into the things I mentioned here? Any tips, suggestions, anything at all?

 

Thanks!

 

 

I beleive the reason you will not find any cruise/land tours with NCL is because I think they always do round trip cruises. To find a cruise/land combination you will generally need to look for one-way cruises that start in Vancouver and end in Seward or Whittier or that start in one of these ports and end in Vancouver. This way you can do a land portion either pre or post cruise. NCL does round trip out of Seattle or Vancouver so there is no oppurtunity for a land portion in Alaska. I also think if you use this board and do your research you can plan a much more enjoyable land portion on your own; however, everyone has there own comfort level.

[kenish]

I think most people on this board will recommend independent travel and not a cruise tour. You will be able to plan an itenerary based on your interests and preferences, be able to sleep and dine at places you like, stop whenever you want for photos, etc. Cruisetours seem like a good way to "see" Alaska but a bad way to experience it. Just too "precanned" and regimented for my tastes. Independent travel is a lot less expensive although everything is Alaska is either expensive or free no matter how you do it.

 

Cruise tours are good if you have mobility or health issues and need assistance. If you're concerned about possible issues with independent travel, keep in mind it's the US of A. They use the same money, speak English, provide VP candidates, and your national cell calling plan is a good way to contact places up there to plan and book reservations.

 

Keep asking questions and browsing these boards!

[sunsetbeachgal]

We did a cruisetour on Princess in early-mid June and were very pleased. It was our first trip to Alaska and I just found the choices to be overwhelming, so when a nice special appeared in our e-mail from Princess, we decided to book it. The weather was perfect-no rain, sunshine most days. As far as wildlife, we saw everything, including lots of whales, but only bear in the distance-the salmon are not running that early.

 

We found the ship (Coral Princess) to be much more casual than prior Princess cruises. Saw casual wear, including nice jeans, in the dining room all nights including formal. And Anytime Dining allows you to eat whenever you want with whomever!

 

The cruisetour was easy-all is done for you-which was a big plus. Loved the domed train cars, lodges and knowledgeable guides. If you are looking at tours recommend you choose one with two nights in Denali and that includes the Tundra Wilderness Tour. Also, recommend touring first and cruising second-the tour involves being up and about early most days and the cruise is so relaxing!

[OldNavy]

We did the Princess land tour this year before the cruise portion and it really worked out great. Not having been before, we chose the land tour that went from Anchorage all the way to Deadhorse. What a fantastic land tour. Seeing Alaska from Fairbanks north (half the state) was unbelievable to say the least. When you're done, you can honestly say you've seen the state. We actually flew in several days early and rented a car and drove down to seward which added to our experience. By the way, we went in August and the weather was perfect the entire time. Regardless of what some might say, this land tour was worth the trip. We still had plenty of time to see things on our own and they took wonderful care of us on the trip. So much so, that we were slightly disappointed when we got to the ship. It was truely a wonderful trip.

[Chat Noir]

I'm sailing with my parents for their 50th anniversary and they chose Celebrity - not casual! I too would prefer casual since I'm a jeans and sweatshirt type of gal, but I'm already getting my wardrobe lined up for the cruise and I'm muddle through.

 

We sailed Celebrity Mercury a couple of years ago in Alaska. I didn't find it to be any more or less formal than our Carnival or Princess sailings of Alaska.:) Your (nice) jeans and (nice) sweatshirts are fine for most activites. Of course, most dressed well for dinner, and some were quite elegant on formal nights, however some were simply in their Sunday best.:) Even for Celebrity, it's all about Alaska in Alaska, rather than all about the ship as it is for some other destinations. (My observations only, of course!)