Alaska Cruise

[stolenpromises]

I would really like to do a cruise in Alaksa. There seems to be many options so I wonder if anyone has been? I am not fussed for fancy dining as we are more than happy in the buffet so formal night etc isn’t important to us. We want to do dog sledding, see wildlife, have a good balcony cabin and a decent glass of wine at the end of the day. As with formal night, I am not bothered about cabaret shows either. We much prefer sunrises to sunsets. I am considering Holland America. Have never sailed them but have sailed princess and royal Caribbean. I think we definitely want to see Glacier Bay.

Not been on our Alaska cruise yet but we have booked. We cruise a bit and have booked with MSC for this one
They are good value for money and we will book trips for the days we are off the ship so spend our money on that rather than a more expensive cruise line

Thanks. When do you go? We usually just book an inside cabin so we have the cash for excursions but for Alaska I really want a balcony to appreciate where we are. I will definitely look at MSC. I hadn’t considered them at all.

In August. They have a few dates for this year. We have sailed with them before and we go all inclusive (drinks are expensive if you don’t). We also go inside to make it cheaper.

We did an Alaska cruise last year with HAL as they are one of two companies that are allowed in Glacier Bay. We did the land and sea tour starting in Fairbanks, through Denali National Park and then one week cruise starting in Whittier which included Hubbard glacier, Glacier Bay and three port stops. This was our first cruise, we enjoyed every minute of it and were very pleased with everything HAL offered as experiences and service. We also did a helicopter trip with dog sledding on a glacier which was amazing. All extra excursions we booked through HAL and everything went smoothly. Highly recommend them for cruise in Alaska. Definitely book a balcony if possible.

We are booked for Alaska this July with celebrity: cannot wait! OP like you I think a balcony is a must. We fly into and sail out of Seattle.

I’ve been to Alaska twice. Once with Princess cruises because dc liked meeting other dc and 2.6 yesrs ago when dh and me went back on a yacht with 10 other passengers. So I’ve some experience.

Princess cruise is obviously nearer to what you want and can presumably afford.

Helicopter flights - can be cancelled. All were on our trip.
Wildlife: there might be whales within sight of the boat but you are unlikely to have any meaningful experience unless you do a trip. We booked a trip ourselves and it was on a small boat and amazing. The cruise passengers went on a huge catamaran with sonar and effectively chased the whales away. We heard them singing but the cruise contractor should have been banned and our outfit reported them for breaking regulations. Orcas are around but you would need luck.

Bears - they won’t give you much time to find any bears. August is a good time as the salmon run is starting but check out where you can go.

Otters and birds - yes you might see some but otters are not usually around cruise ships - birds are at the coast and you should see sea eagles or bald eagles.

Buffet meals. Ok I suppose. Balcony - vital. Denali - I saw a wolf. No one else bothered with looking. Far too much time spent talking about wildlife and little time looking for it. Yellow park buses are awful! Land trips are very very long. You do get to see impressive scenery but not the best wildlife viewings.

Thank you for your feedback. Still researching but looking like it’s going to be Holland America for Glacier bay and we will work out our other activities around that.