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Original poster

Has anyone done an Alaska Cruise

15 replies

linentowel · 17/11/2019 16:33

How did you find it? Considering this for next year and taking a Princess Cruise to include Glacier Bay. Just wondered if anyone has been and can give me any tips or suggestions. DS will be 12.

OP posts:
TheoneandObi · 17/11/2019 16:36

No but I have lived there. Albeit 20 years ago

TheoneandObi · 17/11/2019 16:40

Despite almost 24 hours of daylight in the summer it can (if you hit a patch of low pressure) be a very wet place. But it is fascinating. Great wildlife. You probably won’t need to go on a whale watching trip bc you’ll see them from the ship. Bears. Amazing but dangerous! Mosquitoes! Oh god the mosquitoes. I was pregnant so unable to use deet. Got bitten alive! Interesting native Alaskan stuff to see - lovely crafts to buy too.
I’d def combine it with a fun city break stopover in Seattle or another Pacific NW city

TheoneandObi · 17/11/2019 17:42

I guess my point about the weather is that I’d be concerned if it was a two week holiday and I saw nothing but grey mist and dark green fir trees. Because that’s what it can be like in AK if you’re unlucky!

GladysGossips · 17/11/2019 18:06

Hi there,
I done a week cruise to Alaska from Vancouver,Canada. with Holland America. Usually these cruises happen around the summer as water conditions are more favourable. only problem was the skids in the toilet

BubblesBuddy · 17/11/2019 23:49

We did a Princess Cruise to Alaska some years ago. We flew to Seattle then up to
Anchorage. We then did a land tour to Denali and another wilderness lodge. We then joined the cruise ship snd sailed south to Vancouver. Our DDs were around 15 and 12 at the time and made friends on the ship.

There are a couple of things to consider regarding the cruise. These ships are huge. You are really paying for the voyage only. The shore excursions are not cheap. I booked our own excursions but a few from the ship are good. Helicopter trips are massively expensive, for example. So check out what you might want to do.

You will be lucky to see bears. You might need to book a private bear viewing trip. Whales are often seen from the ships. There are whale watching trips which can be booked but be very careful about how ethical they are. We saw ones following whales and this isn’t allowed.

There are interesting ports to explore and the glacier you visit is well worth it. Hot chocolate was served on deck as it got pretty cold!

We now prefer much smaller boats but these cost mega bucks. Do this if you can though!

The best time to visit Alaska is during the salmon run from mid August. If you see bears, they are likely to be catching and eating salmon, so do your research about where to go. It’s a fun holiday but don’t expect high quality wildlife sightings.

BubblesBuddy · 17/11/2019 23:50

We had decent weather by the way but it cannot be guaranteed.

Bumpinthenight · 18/11/2019 06:17

My parents have been to Alaska twice with Uncruise who are a small ship cruise. This means they can go up the small inlets that bigger ships can get to and get closer to land.

You can hike, bushwack, paddle board, and kayak with them.

On their second trip they took my DD who had an amazing time! She tried all the activities and even did the polar plunge from the boat! On one day a national park ranger came on board and she did some activities to become a junior Park ranger.

Bumpinthenight · 18/11/2019 06:18

can't get to

pelirocco123 · 18/11/2019 06:35

We did just over 2 weeks touring.1 week driving starting at Fairbanks which in Sept was 80 degrees

Then Denali for a couple of nights , whoch was misty and a bit drizzly but amazing wildlife .ended up in anchorage , where it was pretty wet .Caught cruise ship snd sailed the inside passage to Vancouver for a week. Weather got better every day .Don't let the weather put you off, we saw humpbacks, Orcas, grizzlies , moose , eagles black bear...on our trip to a hide to watch the black bear feeding on salmon twice we had bears walk with in feet of us...it has to be the best holiday we have ever done.we ended our trip with a few nights in Vancouver, which after the peace of Alaska I found noisy and too hot

Cardy24 · 18/11/2019 06:51

We went with Princess a few years ago, late August- early September. It was my favourite holiday ever, I'd love to go again.
We had great weather, bright and clear, except for one day. Excursions were expensive but so worth it. The day that we had bad weather our excursion had to be cancelled, it should have been a helicopter flight then on to a husky-pulled sledge. So I'd bear that in mind if you have your heart set on a particular experience that it could be entirely weather dependent.

Original poster
linentowel · 18/11/2019 18:59

Thanks. Lots to consider.

OP posts:
Chewbecca · 22/11/2019 18:13

We have & loved it. We sailed with Oceania which is a small ship though.

We spent time pre cruise in the Okanagan Valley and Seattle, then in Vancouver post cruise.

We went in August and had great weather, we were lucky. We did a helicopter trip to the glacier which we walked on, saw salmon swimming up river, did a small boat whale watching trip, it was fab.

BubblesBuddy · 23/11/2019 08:58

Oceania still have 650 passengers though. We have just been to the Great Bear Rainforest in Canada on a boat with 12 guests. That company has a similar boat which is based in Alaska. That’s small!

Uncruise look interesting though.

Chewbecca · 23/11/2019 15:51

Oooh, 12 guests is another proposition altogether. Possibly a bit too intimate for me.

Peaseblossom22 · 24/11/2019 15:02

@pelirocco123 that sounds great , can I ask which company you did the cruise with

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