Binoculars for Alaska

My wife and I will be taking our first Alaskan Cruise in May. We've read that binoculars are a smart purchase for this itinerary. Any suggestions?

Thanks

If you search you should be able to find a recent thread discussing binoculars that included a link to a very good comparison site.

The answers to your question will likely be prefaced with "It all depends..........). I have three pairs, and each has a different function. One is a very small but god quality folding pair. Over 30 years ago I spent an awful lot on a pair of Nikon 9x26 - still a beautiful pair with great optics and they will fit in a large pocket but are not weather proof. Last year I bought the Vortex Viper 10x40 waterproof - much larger but great visibility. My routine when purchasing a pair is to first ignore the price and test a number of different models. Once I find the ones best for my eyes, I then look at the price - I chose Nikon over the equivalent Leica model because I could not discern a quality difference in spite of a huge price difference. I used the same routine with the Vortex - I purchased a cheaper model because with my eyes I could not tell the difference between the Vipers and the model that cost twice as much.

You have to decide whether you want a large pair that gives you the best low light visibility, or a more pocketable pair that you will have with you more often. Do you want waterproof? If so that narrows your choices but there is still a great selection. I bought the Vortex model as I was going on a road trip to Newfoundland plus I live on the Wet Coast - so far I really like that feature as I do not have to keep the binoculars protected when it pours.

When you are looking around, try out a pair of image stabilized binoculars - Canon makes some and I am sure there are other brands - they are absolutely awesome but bulky.

Have fun shopping - there are so many great choices.

You need to define your budget before any meaningful answer can be give. You can buy binoculars at prices from less than $100 to more than $2000.

Do a search on CC on the cruising and on the Alaska forums for binoculars.

DON

Try to resist spending under 100.00 at Walmart;) For around 250.00 you can get some nice optics. For one specific model, I'd suggest looking at Burris Signature 10x32 semi-compacts. Natchez dot com has been running two different models for 200+/- and they are nice binoc's. Not too big, good quality for the money. I have a pair and like them a lot.

Budgeting around $300-500 for these.

Budgeting around $300-500 for these.

Then you'll find lots to choose from and get some quality:) Brands to look at include:

Leupold

Burris

Nikon

Pentax

I use Vortex Spitfire for birdwatching. Great customer service. I dropped it really hard once and knocked the focus off a bit. Mailed it to the company and they fixed them for free. Good value, good quality.

definitely go to Alaska forum to get more information. We use Zen-Ray SUMMIT for our trip and bird watching. They are waterproof binoculars, which is a must have feature for going to Alaska.