Lousy Choice for Alaskan Cruises

I want to book an Alaskan cruise for June 2015 to celebrate my twins high school graduation and our 25th anniversary, but the choices are terrible. Only one ship is cruising and only one itinerary, which is not the Glacier Bay route. I heard that is better. Any chance Carnival will add more in the next few months? I'd like to book soon before prices go up. I checked other cruise lines and although they have more choices, they are way more expensive! Feeling frustrated...:(

Nope.

Best to check out HAL or Princess. They've been doing Alaska since (probably before) it became a state. Both part of CCL so you'd get shareholder OBC.

As far as Glacier Bay being better than Tracy Arm is subject to opinion. We compare it to Old Faithful. Not the biggest or longest but the one with the most hype.

I agree, Carnival does not do Alaska well, go with another cruise line. Pay less and go to the South if you want to go with Carnival otherwise it will probably cost you more.

I'd recommend checking out Princess northbound or southbound cruises, which include Glacier Bay and Hubbard Glacier or College Fjord. All spectacular.

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I'll second what others are saying. Look at what HAL has to offer. I was on the Oosterdam to Alaska a few years ago. Spectacular.

Also the HAL Vista class ships have the crows nest bar at 10-forward which is the perfect place to go after dinner and watch the endless Alaskan sunset.

NCL is also an excellent choice for Alaska. Having sailed Carnival and NCL to Alaska id choose NCL every time. Tracy Arm is no comparison to Glacier Bay or Hubbard Glacier imho.

I'd recommend checking out Princess northbound or southbound cruises, which include Glacier Bay and Hubbard Glacier or College Fjord. All spectacular.

 

 

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Agree in total. That's exactly what we did....cruised with Princess as they do Alaska far better than CCL. In fact, we did a land cruise tour package, it was spectacular with Princess. Check them out!! They are a CCL company too!

I love, love, love Carnival, but chose Princess for my Alaskan cruise. It meant having an inside cabin instead of a balcony, but I ended up loving it since I'm a person who needs darkness to sleep. For a celebration of an anniversary and high school graduation, I'd definitely use a different cruise line for Alaska. Their itineraries are far superior.:D

We went on HAL, wonderful cruise. We prefer Carnival for most Caribbean trips though.. have fun,

We went on HAL, wonderful cruise. We prefer Carnival for most Caribbean trips though.. have fun,

Next month, I sail on a Princess Crown Cruisetour, starting in Fairbanks and working through Denali, Talkeetna and then down to Whittier to embark on the ship - first two days are "sea days", sailing through Glacier and Hubbard Bays.....then porting 4 days down to Vancouver.

These cruisetours give you the time to see the land and experience Alaska through different lenses. I think teenagers would enjoy this as much as the adults do. I also think that HAL has an older demographic, and maybe more smokers than Princess. JMO that Princess would be better suited for a family.

I agree wholeheartedly that Carnival is not the way to go see Alaska.

We've booked Carnival for Alaska for next summer. I guess now I'm worried and confused. I priced HAL & RCL (11,000), Princess (17,000), Disney (28,000) and Carnival (8,500). The prices just weren't in comparison to Carnival. There are 7 of us, 4 adults and 3 kids. We want balconies. I actually booked parents in aft wrap balcony for that price.

The ports look basically the same. We have to do round trip due to price of flights. So what exactly makes Carnival so bad in Alaska? The four city towns are the same. It does Tracy Arm instead of Glacier Bay. I understand it might not be the elite Alaskan cruise, but I'm curious now as to why we will come away feeling like we didn't see Alaska. Advice? :confused:

We've booked Carnival for Alaska for next summer. I guess now I'm worried and confused. I priced HAL & RCL (11,000), Princess (17,000), Disney (28,000) and Carnival (8,500). The prices just weren't in comparison to Carnival. There are 7 of us, 4 adults and 3 kids. We want balconies. I actually booked parents in aft wrap balcony for that price.

 

The ports look basically the same. We have to do round trip due to price of flights. So what exactly makes Carnival so bad in Alaska? The four city towns are the same. It does Tracy Arm instead of Glacier Bay. I understand it might not be the elite Alaskan cruise, but I'm curious now as to why we will come away feeling like we didn't see Alaska. Advice? :confused:

If Carnival is offering the same itinerary, you'll be happy. The year I cruised, the Carnival cruises only went to 2 ports, while Princess did 4. I prefer Carnival, but had to choose Princess due to the itinerary. I haven't looked at future Alaskan cruises since my one time was wonderful. Have a fabulous cruise.:D

We've booked Carnival for Alaska for next summer. I guess now I'm worried and confused. I priced HAL & RCL (11,000), Princess (17,000), Disney (28,000) and Carnival (8,500). The prices just weren't in comparison to Carnival. There are 7 of us, 4 adults and 3 kids. We want balconies. I actually booked parents in aft wrap balcony for that price.

 

The ports look basically the same. We have to do round trip due to price of flights. So what exactly makes Carnival so bad in Alaska? The four city towns are the same. It does Tracy Arm instead of Glacier Bay. I understand it might not be the elite Alaskan cruise, but I'm curious now as to why we will come away feeling like we didn't see Alaska. Advice? :confused:

We did Carnival on the Spirit to Alaska and loved every minute. If you have never been there, you will be awed by the simplest itinerary. My advise is to research tours and find things like the Mendenhall glacier, a whale watch tour, and a salmon bake for a complete experience. We took the train ride I think in Skagway that was pretty incredible, also. Don't focus on where you aren't going or on what other ships are doing. Wish we were booked with you!!

Have not been to AK since 80s. Decided I better get there before I croak,Read some travel books; all said to do Inside passage and Glacier Bay.Booked NCL Sun early,maybe 6 mos out, Sept 15,14. $474 inside. Now over $700.They do both with Naturalist aboard.Alaska is more about sights than upscale experience.

We did Alaska in 2011. We figured we would only be going to Alaska once so we wanted to see as much as possible so we did a Princess Cruisetour, which was awesome. 7 night cruise and 3 night land tour.

Loved it so much I want to go back and do another cruise....so when it is time I will be booking Carnival............there is so much to do at each port. Do your research. To keep some expenses down we only did one ship excursion and booked outside tour operators. Skagway was the best......we booked Dyea Dave Tours............

Another reason I would not book Carnival to Alaska is they depart on a Tuesday, which would make this difficult for those of us who can only take off work M-F and need both weekends for the vacation. I think they have the worst times in port, but I'm not 100% sure about that. We cruised on Princess to Alaska in 2012 and it was fantastic! I would love to take a one-way voyage from Vancouver in the future or add on a cruisetour...Alaska is beautiful!

I've been to Alaska twice on Carnival and it was fantastic both times. The second trip was for a graduation and she also enjoyed every minute. The Yukon Scenic drive excursion in Skagway lets you see a lot more of the country than the train does, but I totally agree with whale watching and Mendenhall in Juneau. As far as Victoria, better to stay on the ship, but that's just my opinion. Your cruise will be what you make of it. If you go expecting to be disappointed, you probably will.

I priced HAL & RCL (11,000), Princess (17,000), Disney (28,000) and Carnival (8,500). The prices just weren't in comparison to Carnival.

Feel free to click on my photo review (link in my signature).

Yes, HAL and Princess have some itineraries that are similar to Carnival (if you just compare the roundtrip from Seattle), but even those have some differences. In our case, we had a weekend departure (instead of Carnival's awful Tuesday departure), we visited Glacier Bay (which was absolutely amazing) and we also visited beautiful Sitka (which very few other cruise lines call on). The onboard experience is excellent, with Alaska centered activities, cuisine, and naturalists. But where HAL (and Princess) excel is in their wide array of other itineraries; one ways from/to Vancouver and Seward/Whittier, as well as land tours, none of which Carnival offers.

We sailed on HAL to Alaska last year. A BIG reason why we selected that sailing was because it ended up being much cheaper than any other cruise line, including Carnival. We sailed on the Westerdam in June, roundtrip from Seattle visiting Glacier Bay, Sitka, Juneau, Ketchikan and Victoria. Total cost (cruise only, including ALL taxes) for a family of 4 in a balcony stateroom was $2,800.

Now, there are some things for you to consider. HAL has so much inventory in Alaska, that their prices tend to start high and drop as you get closer to sailing. Originally, we booked a standard oceanview stateroom. After final payment, the prices plummeted, and we ended upgrading for free to a balcony stateroom, plus HAL was gracious enough to give us $150 OBC.

Another thing for you to consider is that, contrary to Carnival, HAL does allow different travel agents to discount (sometimes deeply). So it does pay to shop around, as we saved close to $1,000 by going through a TA compared to going directly through HAL.

Even if prices had been the same, I'm EXTREMELY satisfied that we chose HAL for Alaska. It was an absolutely amazing experience, and Glacier Bay is beyond compare. Words and pictures simply can't describe what your senses will experience there.

Once again, feel free to click on my photo review. :)

I would agree that Princess and HAL are the 2 top picks when it comes to Alaska packages, but I would not go so far as to say that Carnival is a "lousy" option.

As far as Victoria, better to stay on the ship,

Uh, Victoria was one of the highlights of our cruise, even though we were there for only 5 hours. The ship arrived at 6pm, but during the summer time, it's daytime until amost 11pm. Victoria is an absolutely BEAUTIFUL city. Just walking along the waterfront and the Parliament, visiting the Fairmont, and browsing the various, shops and dining venues is a fantastic experience.

I'm glad that nobody recommended to us that we stay on the ship, as we would've missed out on one of those ports that makes you return some day for a longer stay!

Here are some photos from Victoria:

Feel free to click on my photo review (link in my signature).

 

Yes, HAL and Princess have some itineraries that are similar to Carnival (if you just compare the roundtrip from Seattle), but even those have some differences. In our case, we had a weekend departure (instead of Carnival's awful Tuesday departure), we visited Glacier Bay (which was absolutely amazing) and we also visited beautiful Sitka (which very few other cruise lines call on). The onboard experience is excellent, with Alaska centered activities, cuisine, and naturalists. But where HAL (and Princess) excel is in their wide array of other itineraries; one ways from/to Vancouver and Seward/Whittier, as well as land tours, none of which Carnival offers.

 

We sailed on HAL to Alaska last year. A BIG reason why we selected that sailing was because it ended up being much cheaper than any other cruise line, including Carnival. We sailed on the Westerdam in June, roundtrip from Seattle visiting Glacier Bay, Sitka, Juneau, Ketchikan and Victoria. Total cost (cruise only, including ALL taxes) for a family of 4 in a balcony stateroom was $2,800.

 

Now, there are some things for you to consider. HAL has so much inventory in Alaska, that their prices tend to start high and drop as you get closer to sailing. Originally, we booked a standard oceanview stateroom. After final payment, the prices plummeted, and we ended upgrading for free to a balcony stateroom, plus HAL was gracious enough to give us $150 OBC.

 

Another thing for you to consider is that, contrary to Carnival, HAL does allow different travel agents to discount (sometimes deeply). So it does pay to shop around, as we saved close to $1,000 by going through a TA compared to going directly through HAL.

 

Even if prices had been the same, I'm EXTREMELY satisfied that we chose HAL for Alaska. It was an absolutely amazing experience, and Glacier Bay is beyond compare. Words and pictures simply can't describe what your senses will experience there.

 

Once again, feel free to click on my photo review. :)

All very good advice. I've been to Alaska on NCL, twice on HAL, and twice on Princess. I loved HAL (Westerdam) the most because of the itinerary going to Sitka and Hubbard Glacier. Carnival and Princess do not go there. We now prefer cruising on Princess because we can cruise right out of San Francisco, our home port, and it becomes a lovely and relaxing 10 day cruise RT. It also goes to Haines, which for us, has been the ultimate stop for wildlife experiences.

One bit of advice that no one has yet mentioned. The tours in Alaska can be very pricey. There are ways of getting around some of these costs and you can go to the other CC board that focuses on various ports.

I will make only one other suggestion. Aft balconies are the best for Alaska because they do not get as much wind or weather and you can see everything from both sides of the ship. If you want to keep the costs down, book just one aft balcony for the family to enjoy during parts of the day, and the rest as inside cabins. Many people complain that with the long days of daylight in Alaska (not getting dark until 11ish and dawn beginning very early) some people feel a need for more darkness for sleep.

Oh, and as much as we love whale watching (we always book private tours both in Alaska and Hawaii and Mexico) you can save money because there are places where whales can be seen from the ship. Not quite the same experience as a small boat, but doable if you have a tight budget. The on-board naturalist can tell you where they would most likely be sighted.

Oh, and Victoria is BEAUTIFUL city and very much worth getting off the ship to see. It's safe and very easy getting around. People always rave about the Butchart Garden tours that all ships offer. You need to have the extra time to see it well, though, and some port stops there are short.

Yes carnival has Lousy Choice for Alaskan Cruises I would like it if carnival had more choices. I do not want to take week and half off work (tue-tue)

Many people complain that with the long days of daylight in Alaska (not getting dark until 11ish and dawn beginning very early) some people feel a need for more darkness for sleep.

Oh, yes, forgot about that! We are glad that we had our balcony, but the sunlight was a drawback. Traveling with very small children that associate daylight with playtime, we had to deal with two kids that refused to go to bed until almost 11:00pm, and who were wide awake and ready to go at a little bit past 4:00am! Add to that the 4 hour time change! :eek:

If there is an up side to cruising Carnival to Alaska it is that it is Seattle roundtrip which can be much more economical if you have to fly to your cruise. That is a big trade off though for the difference in ports that you would have if you instead choose a northbound or southbound Alaska cruise. I will embark on my 24th Carnival cruise in September, but the 2 times that I cruised to Alaska I did not choose Carnival. I chose Norwegian and Princess to cruise to Alaska. One other consideration that I would share is that if you cruise the Inside Passage early in the season (like May or early June), you will get to experience lots of beautiful waterfalls from the snow melt. If you cruise later in the season, you will not get to see those.

We chose HAL for Alaska based on these factors:

- Departure from Vancouver, so you cruise the Inside Passage. Beautiful scenery, and more sheltered from rough seas. This turned out to be a very good decision as the seas were very rough on our sailing. We really only felt them when we hit open water, but cruisers on other cruise lines that left from Seattle had it really bad.

- Glacier Bay. I had read that it was beautiful, and a must-see, and it was.

- Return voyage, rather than one-way, as that is what we wanted.

I prefer Carnival, but for Alaska, HAL (Zuiderdam) turned out perfectly, and yes, it was more expensive, but I figured we might only go once.

We got a spa pass for this trip, and it was so beautiful sitting in the heated lounge chairs and watching the scenery go by. I have very fond memories of that cruise.