Who would be the best travel agent to help me book this tailored holiday? Is there one?!

[TheFirstAffair]

This just isn't the type of holiday I'd be confident booking by myself so what I really want is someone to just do it for me and someone I can call if something goes wrong!

A flight from UK (hopefully London) then a cruise around Alaska for around one week then home. I'd want them to sort my insurance, flights, transfers, cruise and all usual add ons such as drinks packages and choosing the best room / deck.

Is there such help available?! I'd be travelling solo and I'm hoping I can do all this for around £6k maximum...

Bump

ChatGPT?

Trailfinders may be worth a look.
Have found them very good.

Audley Travel are brilliant. Just come back from Canada, organised by them and it was a fabulous trip.

You could try Canadian Affair. They do cruise package hols to Alaska

Trailfinders

We have just done: Fly to Vancouver, 3 days Vancouver, 1 week cruise to Alaska, pick up hire car in Alaska, 3 days in wilderness lodge in Kenai Fjords National Park, 10 days road trip round Alaska up to Fairbanks, railway back to Anchorage, fly home from Anchorage to Portland, back to Heathrow.

3 adults, 2 rooms. All organised by Trailfinders who are amazing at talking through all the details with you, getting the itinerary right, juggling price options. They also offer insurance.

My top tips- make sure your cruise includes Glacier Bay- it’s too small for the larger ships so pick a smaller one, it’s magical.
We didn’t rate Princess as a cruise line and have had better experiences on Royal and P&O. If we went to Alaska again would probably try Holland America who have a good reputation in Alaska.

We’ve booked Canadian Rockies via trailfinders

If you want a cruise the actual companies like Princess and Holland America will do end to end packages. As a pp says they are the main companies that also do Glacier Bay.

Cruise specialists like ROL and Bolsover can build packages as can Trailfinders. They may also have ready made packages that include a land tour.

The issue you will face is the cost of solo cruising - as a solo cruiser it’s ££ but for £6k you can definitely get a lovely trip. I can reassure you that you will meet other solo cruisers and it’s a safe way to travel.

If you have the time and inclination you can absolutely do this yourself.

Not all cruise lines send a ship to Alaska so you can start to narrow down choices - have a look at cruise critic to review ships. Some cruise lines offer solo fares so they may be the best ones to start with.

Best cabins/decks - have you cruised before or not? Do you know whether you experience motion sickness? Low and centre of ship has less movement. Never pick a room above/below/next to public areas or the galley, it risks being noisy. How close do you want to be to outside decks? What type of cabin? Alaska is scenic so you may want a balcony to shiver on (more expensive) or a much cheaper inside room without a window and go up on deck for the views. Are you planning excursions whilst in Alaska or just wandering around? Excursions sold by your cruise line will cost a bit more than an independent tour but means the cruise line is responsible for getting you back on board in case of issues.

Happy planning. I love cruising although have never been to Alaska.

All really good advice so far, no I've never done a cruise before. The cost really pisses me off because I'm pretty much going to be paying the same as two people but it is what it is and if I want the trip I'm just going to have to suck it up.

I definitely want a balcony but I'm not fussed about how big the room is as long as it has a comfortable bed, WiFi and a shower. I guess it'll just be a standard double, no need for a fancy suite. I have no idea what deck is best this is one of the things I'll need help with from the travel agent. I definitely want a quiet room.

I'm not a very sociable person so whilst I'm happy to say hello to people and have the odd chit chat I'm definitely not going to be joining any "solo events" or looking to bolt on to a group. I like my own company.

Rainbow travel

Cabin location - make sure you have cabins below, above either side and ideally opposite. Mid ship lowish deck is best and most expensive. I personally like mid forward by the front lifts/stairs - if you are lucky and book very early then forward by the front stairs will be cheapest.

WRT wifi - it’s £££ on board look for an eSIM with RedBull mobile - you can get one that covers land and sea at $18 (they are purchased in USD) for 1 gig of data.

Drinks package - unless you drink quite a lot they are not usually worth it.

Excursions - Skagway do the Railroad.

Edited to add - I’m like you and have only ever done one solo event in 10+ years cruising - it was a free afternoon tea with flowing fizz 😂. You should find they offer freedom dining where you can share a table or have one on your own. I mostly share as I like a chat at breakfast and dinner but the rest of the time I do what I want when I want.

Sorry another one from me - really study deck plans, just google - ship name deck plan pdf.

YouTube has a lot of good videos of both individual ship tours, cabin layouts and Alaska cruises.

It might be worth you looking at the Passion for Cruises website. They cater for solo travellers and have good deals from some of the major cruise lines. They’re based in the uk so all prices include flights etc. they’re very helpful on the phone.

Here is their website: https://www.passionforcruises.co.uk/