Which Cruiselines go to Alaska?

[TwoWeebles]

I hope that's not a stupid question. I am looking at taking hubby and son on a cruise to Alaska, probably in 2010. I have only ever cruised on RCCL and I know that NCL goes to Alaska too. Which other cruise lines go to Alaska? I want to start researching itineraries and prices, but I am not sure where to start.

[Old As Dirt Mom]

To the best of my knowledge:

 

In addition to Royal Caribbean and Norwegian, the following cruise lines offer Alaska itineraries: Princess, Holland America, Celebrity, Carnival, Regent, and Cruise West.

[lauren0309]

They all have cruises to Alaska. The 2010 itineraries have not come yet except for NCL. I'm am impatiently waiting so I can book my cruise.

[Keith1010]

There are a few that have been doing Alaska for many years now from Princess to HAL to Celebrity and then there are so many others as have been posted.

 

Keith

[wolfshadow]

I would highly recommend looking into a cruisetour rather than just the cruise. Starting with the landtour and then finishing up with the cruise. This would be a southbound cruisetour. Very worth the extra money and extra sites to see. We did this this past June with Celebrity starting in Fairbanks. It was absolutely incredible! And, Celebrity did an outstanding job. We are very, very happy we did ours this way. Good luck!

[thinfool]

I hope that's not a stupid question. I am looking at taking hubby and son on a cruise to Alaska, probably in 2010.

 

Hiya Kentucky!!

 

When you find which lines sail to Alaska, then you can look at itineraries and pricing.

 

People usually expect to see glaciers and wildlife on an Alaskan adventure.

 

Know that Royal Caribbean and Celebrity have no permits to sail into Glacier Bay. They have other glacier viewing locations.

 

Princess and HAL both have Glacier Bay permits and, on their one way cruises, College Fjord (awesome glaciers). Princess has the most permits by virtue of the fact that they have been in Alaska longer than the others.

 

NCL and Carnival have Glacier Bay permits, too.

 

We saw tons of whales as we sailed out of Glacier Bay (August 2007) bound for Whittier, AK (Anchorage). [on the Diamond Princess]

[wolfshadow]

Hiya Kentucky!!

 

When you find which lines sail to Alaska, then you can look at itineraries and pricing.

 

People usually expect to see glaciers and wildlife on an Alaskan adventure.

 

Know that Royal Caribbean and Celebrity have no permits to sail into Glacier Bay. They have other glacier viewing locations.

 

Princess and HAL both have Glacier Bay permits and, on their one way cruises, College Fjord (awesome glaciers). Princess has the most permits by virtue of the fact that they have been in Alaska longer than the others.

 

NCL and Carnival have Glacier Bay permits, too.

 

We saw tons of whales as we sailed out of Glacier Bay (August 2007) bound for Whittier, AK (Anchorage). [on the Diamond Princess]

This is true, BUT, Celebrity and Royal sail out of Seward rather than Whittier which is way more desirable and they go to Hubbard Glacier which is usually argued to be an equal trade off with Glacier Bay. If you like Glaciers, out of Juneau there is a company that does a 9 hr tour on their 56 ft boat, the Adventure Bound, where they go up the Tracy Arm and get right up to both Sawyer Glaciers. Talk about whales, wildlife, waterfalls (over 700) and major floating ice bergs! Celebrity and Royal also go to Icy Straight Point of which they are the only lines that have these permits. And, they sail the true Inside Passage, too! :D

[Budget Queen]

This is true, BUT, Celebrity and Royal sail out of Seward rather than Whittier which is way more desirable and they go to Hubbard Glacier which is usually argued to be an equal trade off with Glacier Bay. If you like Glaciers, out of Juneau there is a company that does a 9 hr tour on their 56 ft boat, the Adventure Bound, where they go up the Tracy Arm and get right up to both Sawyer Glaciers. Talk about whales, wildlife, waterfalls (over 700) and major floating ice bergs! Celebrity and Royal also go to Icy Straight Point of which they are the only lines that have these permits. And, they sail the true Inside Passage, too! :D

 

However, with your "cruisetour" recommendation, most people NEVER see Seward, so it doesn't matter if they port in Seward or Whittier.

 

Hubbard and Glacier Bay, are not "equal trade offs", especially in early season, when you can't get withing 15 miles of Hubbard. You can always transit Glacier Bay and have a look at approx 4 glaciers. Have you sailed both?

[Sunshine Gal]

However, with your "cruisetour" recommendation, most people NEVER see Seward, so it doesn't matter if they port in Seward or Whittier.

 

Hubbard and Glacier Bay, are not "equal trade offs", especially in early season, when you can't get withing 15 miles of Hubbard. You can always transit Glacier Bay and have a look at approx 4 glaciers. Have you sailed both?

 

Budget Queen:

 

Very good point about Hubbard Glacier and Glacier Bay are not equal trade offs. Often in May and June cruise ships are often not able to get anywhere near Hubbard Glacier because of ice flows in the water. On all of my cruises to Glacier Bay we have always have been able to get very close to the glacier. Seeing a glacier from ten, or more, miles away is not even close to the experience of being close to such a beautiful wonder of nature.

 

I have been on many cruises to Alaska and on several different ships and cruise lines. For anyone for whom glacier viewing is important, I would recommend a cruise that goes to Glacier Bay. There are several good cruise lines that are allowed into Glacier Bay and would highly recommend one of these cruise lines. I am not tied to any particular cruise line and enjoy the change of pace of trying different cruise lines. While most have been very good, my personal favorite is Princess as I feel they have consistently done the best job cruising Alaska. That said, I also enjoyed HAL and have read good things about Carnival and the NCL Pearl. I am sure there also other cruise lines that also cruise to Glacier Bay.

 

Another advantage is if you sail out of Whittier it is about an hour less bus ride, from or to Anchorage, than if you sail out of Seward.

[wolfshadow]

However, with your "cruisetour" recommendation, most people NEVER see Seward, so it doesn't matter if they port in Seward or Whittier.

 

Hubbard and Glacier Bay, are not "equal trade offs", especially in early season, when you can't get withing 15 miles of Hubbard. You can always transit Glacier Bay and have a look at approx 4 glaciers. Have you sailed both?

Ah, Budget Queen, I know that you are THE resident expert here on Alaska but I still believe I can offer my own opinions from information that I had gathered prior to our trip to Alaska and from my own experiences. I have heard from many people from past Alaska cruises that said Seward had much more to offer than Whittier. No, I have never been to Whittier. And, yes, it was a shame that we couldn't spend more time in Seward but we did travel on our cruise with several who did spend time there and they really enjoyed it. And, as far as Hubbard Glacier or Glacier Bay compares, there too I have heard from many people that it was a toss up for them after seeing both. We were at Hubbard on June 7th, 2008, and we got quite close. I believe that we were within a couple of miles if I remember correctly. I do know that we got in closer than the Veendam who was there at the same time. We spent a couple of hours there, too, after arriving so that both sides of the ship could get equal time. I am not saying I would never go to Glacier Bay. Now that I have seen Hubbard I would like to see Glacier Bay, too. I don't believe you can get enough glacier viewing. Prior to our sailing we took an excursion to the Knik Glacier out of Anchorage (we were up right at this glacier) and as I believe I already mentioned, we took the Adventure Bound up the Tracy Arm to the twin Sawyer Glaciers (again, we got within 1/4-1/2 mile from the two), which again in my opinion was one of the two best excursions we did. The other being our flight to Coldfoot/Wiseman out of Fairbanks. I have picked up on the feeling that you are not a fan of Celebrity or Royal as I have read many of your posts regarding Alaska. Then again you seem to recommend doing Alaska without the cruise if at all possible. No one had mentioned Celebrity as yet for the OP so I thought I would lend her another possibility. Sorry if you do not agree with me but I certainly know how happy and satisfied we were with the way we spent our 13 days. If we are able to go again we want to spend some time on Kodiak as this is where my DH's mother's aleutian family is from.

[NancyIL]

And, as far as Hubbard Glacier or Glacier Bay compares, there too I have heard from many people that it was a toss up for them after seeing both. We were at Hubbard on June 7th, 2008, and we got quite close. I believe that we were within a couple of miles if I remember correctly. I do know that we got in closer than the Veendam who was there at the same time. We spent a couple of hours there, too, after arriving so that both sides of the ship could get equal time.

 

We were on the Veendam in Hubbard Glacier in July, and the Millennium was already there. We waited as the Millennium sat...and sat...and sat! There was a lot of ice in the water and it was also very foggy, and when the Millennium didn't move, the Veendam turned around and left! Captain Albert of the Veendam had reported in his blog about the showdown with the Millennium's captain on a previous occasion, and we had a new captain for our cruise. Needless to say - I had some very unkind thoughts about the Millennium's captain after that!

[c-cruise]

I consider Hubbard and Glacier Bay to be an equal tradeoffs as well. The whole Yakutat Bay area is spectacular. The size of Hubbard alone is something to behold. Not to mention that you can see some of the tallest peaks in North America from Yakutat Bay (Mt. Logan, Mt. St. Elias). The downside to Hubbard is that it is a one-trick-pony. If you can't get close or have bad weather then it is not nearly as spectacular. Where as in Glacier Bay you are there most of the day and have a much better chance of getting close to the glaciers earlier in the season.

 

The one thing I would try to avoid is an itinerary that goes only to Tracy Arm and to neither Hubbard or Glacier Bay.

[TwoWeebles]

Thanks to everyone who has replied! As far as a cruisetour goes, I would absolutely LOVE this, but I don't think I could afford that after airfare and the cruise itself. Maybe if I lived close to a port, but I don't. :( That trip might have to wait until we retire years from now. I have been to Alaska before on RCCL in 1994. I have been wanting to go back ever since. It is my dream to take my husband and son so that they can enjoy the most beautiful scenery I have ever seen. Pictures do not do it justice at all! I also would love to do some whale watching this time around.

 

I would highly recommend looking into a cruisetour rather than just the cruise. Starting with the landtour and then finishing up with the cruise. This would be a southbound cruisetour. Very worth the extra money and extra sites to see. We did this this past June with Celebrity starting in Fairbanks. It was absolutely incredible! And, Celebrity did an outstanding job. We are very, very happy we did ours this way. Good luck!

[Sunshine Gal]

Thanks to everyone who has replied! As far as a cruisetour goes, I would absolutely LOVE this, but I don't think I could afford that after airfare and the cruise itself. Maybe if I lived close to a port, but I don't. :( That trip might have to wait until we retire years from now. I have been to Alaska before on RCCL in 1994. I have been wanting to go back ever since. It is my dream to take my husband and son so that they can enjoy the most beautiful scenery I have ever seen. Pictures do not do it justice at all! I also would love to do some whale watching this time around.

 

If you can work the time in, I would highly recommend taking your own land tour of Alaska. The advantages of an independent land tour are many.

The biggest plus is that for two people you can save around half the cost of a cruise tour. There are coupons that will save you half at major hotels and resorts and recreational activities in Alaska. These are offered in coupon books such as the Alaskan toursaver books.

 

Whenever I go to Alaska I do travel on a budget and have found that getting around in Alaska is very easy. I also hate being going from tour bus to tour bus like a heard of cattle, but for some I can understand that they like the feeling of traveling in a large group. The opportunity to go where and when you want to, is for me the only way to see Alaska.

 

Nancy,

 

You have just given me another very good reason to go to Glacier Bay and not take a chance on Hubbard Glacier. Glacier Bay is a National Park and entrance to Glacier Bay is limited to two large cruise ships per day. Reservations, for each cruise ship, are made years in advance so you are guaranteed to be able to get to the glacier. Celebrity and Royal Caribbean have been banned from Glacier Bay and that is why they now have no choice but to go to Hubbard Glacier. It would indeed be very frustrating to travel all that way and then not see a glacier that you were supposed to see.

[NancyIL]

Nancy,

 

You have just given me another very good reason to go to Glacier Bay and not take a chance on Hubbard Glacier. Glacier Bay is a National Park and entrance to Glacier Bay is limited to two large cruise ships per day. Reservations, for each cruise ship, are made years in advance so you are guaranteed to be able to get to the glacier. Celebrity and Royal Caribbean have been banned from Glacier Bay and that is why they now have no choice but to go to Hubbard Glacier. It would indeed be very frustrating to travel all that way and then not see a glacier that you were supposed to see.

 

I was under the impression that ships were also limited at Hubbard Glacier. I definitely want to return to Hubbard Glacier, because I'd like to see it - and preferably not shrouded by fog! Had we been at Glacier Bay in that fog, we wouldn't have seen much, either.

[wolfshadow]

Thanks to everyone who has replied! As far as a cruisetour goes, I would absolutely LOVE this, but I don't think I could afford that after airfare and the cruise itself. Maybe if I lived close to a port, but I don't. :( That trip might have to wait until we retire years from now. I have been to Alaska before on RCCL in 1994. I have been wanting to go back ever since. It is my dream to take my husband and son so that they can enjoy the most beautiful scenery I have ever seen. Pictures do not do it justice at all! I also would love to do some whale watching this time around.

I know what you mean, we live within an hour and a half of San Francisco and was able to take a r/t from there on the Infinity to Mexico for 11 nt back in 2006. It was great not having to fly to get to the ship. This was our first cruise together, my real first cruise was back in 1978 with my ex-husband in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. Our cruisetour to Alaska was one of those once in a lifetime type trips for us. Luckily we just had to fly from CA. Alaska was very expensive as compared to Mexico or the Caribbean, especially if you do live within driving distance to the port. This is the only reason why we are able to go to Mexico this year. We can drive down to LA and cruise for a week for less than $2,000! :eek: We used to spend more than half of that going camping! We are planning a big Panamal Canal cruise for our 25th anniversary next year but only because we have special financing arranged. We can't cruise several times a year like some can, I only wish that were possible now that I've gotten hooked on it! I sure hope the ones that can truly appreciate it! And, the only way we could cruise maybe once a year is if the prices remain low and we can drive to the ship. So, whichever cruiseline you decide to go with, you know you will be in a very special place because as you said it is incredibly beautiful in Alaska! Did I mention that we watched whales from our dining room table? Talk about incredible!!! I don't think the Captain had anything to do with that one though! ;)