Alaskan cruise planning for folks who don't cruise?

[ahisma]

We travel a ton, but have zero idea where to start with planning an Alaskan cruise. Cruising has never been our thing, so we have zero idea where to start. I feel like I could get this very wrong.

Budget is a priority, but maybe not a KEY priority. We have teens - one of which is kinda hard to please on travel and is super hesitant about cruising.

Any tips? Where on earth do we start?

[georgiegirl]

We aren’t cruise people and we did Princess from Vancouver to Whittier then spent 3 nights in Alaska on our own. We did our own excursions at each port (did research on this) to avoid overly touristy and expensive ship excursions. We had a great time. I can post details later.

[ahisma]

We aren’t cruise people and we did Princess from Vancouver to Whittier then spent 3 nights in Alaska on our own. We did our own excursions at each port (did research on this) to avoid overly touristy and expensive ship excursions. We had a great time. I can post details later.

Thank you - I'd really appreciate it! I do think we'd do our own excursions too - that's a better fit for our travel approach.

I'm curious about rooms too - is it worth it to spring for a balcony? Ocean view doesn't look like much of a view. I'm not sure we'd be in the room enough to justify the expense - but maybe?

[gymnbomb]

Thank you - I'd really appreciate it! I do think we'd do our own excursions too - that's a better fit for our travel approach.

I'm curious about rooms too - is it worth it to spring for a balcony? Ocean view doesn't look like much of a view. I'm not sure we'd be in the room enough to justify the expense - but maybe?

Everyone will have a different opinion on this, but having stayed in every room category from inside to suite, ocean view is the one I would be least likely to book again. To me the little window isn’t worth paying extra for, I would either do inside or go for a balcony. How many people will you be traveling with? More than 3 in a room will be TIGHT unless you are in a suite or some type of larger room designed for holding more people. Some families do one balcony room and one inside room.

[ahisma]

Everyone will have a different opinion on this, but having stayed in every room category from inside to suite, ocean view is the one I would be least likely to book again. To me the little window isn’t worth paying extra for, I would either do inside or go for a balcony. How many people will you be traveling with? More than 3 in a room will be TIGHT unless you are in a suite or some type of larger room designed for holding more people. Some families do one balcony room and one inside room.

Four. Two adults and two teens. I'm conflicted on one vs. two rooms. One one hand, it seems obvious to do two. On the other hand, we backpack and camp a lot and are used to all being crammed into MUCH less space for the same duration.

[georgiegirl]

We did 2 rooms (there are 5 of us). We opted for an obstructed view since it was pretty cheap (barely more than interior). We could see a little out. We didn’t want to shell out extra for a balcony for two rooms. I’ve heard balconies are nice on Alaskan cruises though.

[smilequeen]

We aren’t cruise people, but Alaska was worth it. I do think the balcony was worth it too. There was actually a lot of on boat time and I loved sitting out there. I would probably never do another big cruise unless we decided to do Alaska again…but next time I want to see more of the rest of Alaska. It’s been a long time and we did Disney (kids were all 10 and under then)…The dog sledding and the whale watching were the biggest hits (we really lucked out with the whales though, for sure).

[AnnieW625]

I have been on one cruise to the Baltics in 2019 and we are planning another one (also with my dad’s family in 2024 to Norway/Scotland/Denmark, and it disembarks in England) and it was a great way to see countries that you may not have time to spend a whole few days in at each country or it might be a pain to get from one to the other. I would love to do an Alaska cruise because I am pretty sure it is the best way to see the state.

I think you need to make a list of wants on the cruise and what you want from the ship. Large or small. We cruised on Oceania which is considered a smaller ship and with passengers and crew it was right about 1800-2000 people. Our kids didn’t go, but there were some children (ranging in age from toddler to college) on board, but the cruise did have a median age range of probably 50-55. There were some college alumni groups on the cruise so tbh I think that brought the median age down. Everyone was friendly and I only ran into one or two elderly couples who moved really slow and or pushed people out of the way with their walkers or canes. My kids (especially DD2) would’ve been bored but they were 13 and 9 at the time. There is one pool and one or two jacuzzis so no water slides, no go kart tracks, no bowling alley and no kids club so really none of the kid friendly amenities you might find of a larger cruise ship. I do believe they offer excursions for kids on their Alaska cruises though. If you only have one day at sea (which is what our last one had and what the next one will have as well) and have older kids then I really think the smaller boat will be okay. A day relaxing in the room is okay. I loved the relaxed feel of the small ship as well.

Another thing I liked about Oceania (and I believe their big sister line NCL has the same rules) is that there is no required formal dinner. All meals in all of the restaurants were included; there was one private dining room and wine room that cost extra but we didn’t eat there. All non alcoholic drinks were included as well. There were a few options for included extras like the drink package, $600 or so worth of excursions (Dh and I chose that one and I felt it was worth it, but I don’t know if we will chose that same one again on the next cruise because there aren’t a lot options for excursions) or on ship credit.

I will only cruise with a balcony. I am mildly claustrophobic so I will absolutely not chose an interior room and I really liked being able to have a window that opened and to sit and or stand on the balcony. A porthole would not be enough for me either.

With all of that said if the four of us were to cruise again I wouldn’t have a problem trying NCL or Princess. My parents have also cruised with Princess and enjoyed it.

Also Oceania will book a second room with an adult 18+ in one room. Dd1 will be 18 on the next cruise so her and DD2 can share a room.

The cruise fares were booked directly with the cruise line, but AAA was involved as well because I get mailers from the AAA travel agent from time to time.


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