Recommendations for 20-Somethings on Alaska Cruises

[WackyHeathen]

Hello,

As a 20-something cruiser who's a bit tired of the Caribbean, I'm looking to take an Alaska cruise this summer. Any advice -- line, ship, pre-cruise stuff to do, etc. -- for someone my age who's looing for a decent amount of similarly aged people would be greatly appreciated. I enjoy very active excursions, have boundless energy (a night owl), am on a budget, etc.

Cheers,

Wacky

[WackyHeathen]

Obviously, I'm looking for for an overall high-energy feel onboard the ship rather than a rigid 18 - 35 demo. Lookin' to have fun and live forever (and respect my fellow passengers).

[Toyz711]

sounds like you are looking to party?
don't think any of the ships going to alaska are a 24 hour party. the ports/views are what you go for when cruising to alaska. our ship was quiet after midnight, except for a small group of people in the casino.
too many early morning port times for late nights.
alaska is a costly cruise, people want to remember it in the morning.

very few 20-somethings on our cruise, most were with family. had 2 with our family (niece/hubby). as i walked back to the room at 1am, very quiet. only the cleaning crew out. up before 6am every morning, either in port or on deck watching for wildlife/views.
i hear the younger/party crowd stay with the lesser price cruises out on the caribe. average age for alaska cruises is over 40.

[WackyHeathen]

Hey,

Thanks for the response Toyz. Not necessarily looking to "party" per say (bad dancer [two left feet], don't have too much money for booze, would rather spend on excursions, etc.), but I like to stay up late and chortle it up with my fellow passengers. Of course the scenery and the excursions are essential too. Question, when you stopped in port, were there particular excursions you went on that you remember the crowd being more "active" than on others?

Cheers,

Wacky

[Toyz711]

i only did a whale watch in juneau and the round-trip train in skagway.
people were napping on the way back on the train...lots of history going up and great views..average over 50.
whale watch is family-style...lots of shouts when you see the spouts or tails. very little interaction with fellow cruises, too busy looking at the humpbacks. camera and binoculars in hand.
depending on what ship you are looking at, here's a few links to the ports:
http://www.traveljuneau.com/
know for whale watching, fishing, flight seeing/glacier landings, float trips
http://www.fs.fed.us/r10/tongass/districts/mendenhall/
in juneau, easy to get to glacier with hiking trails.
http://www.visit-ketchikan.com/
depending on time of travel: bear, fishing, totem poles...big salmon run through town (depending on time of year), kayaking
http://www.skagway.com/
historic train /combo trips or rent a car and drive up the highway.
great views!!!

http://www.alaskacruises.com/alaska_glacier_viewing.asp
this is what everyone goes for.

very different travels then any of the islands or mexico. very quiet. not even 1 party boat for sight seeing. for the best sight-seeing many do fly in trip to the glaciers or the fjords. since the planes and helos are limited in passengers..very small groups. same with a lot of the whale watch...small boats: 6 passengers (max), mid-size boats: 15 - 40, large boat: 100
we had a group, besides our family, that we meet on this board..in our roll call for our ship. met up with them every night at the casino..but only to say "hi, how was your day". everyone was just too tired!!!!
since the excursions are so costly ($$$) up there, many of the local vendors keep the size down in numbers. the biggest tours are on the double deckers (through the ship) for whales/wildlife. heard a lot of cheering (for the whales) when near that boat. still average age: well over 30.
like i said, after midnight...only the cleaning crew!!
maybe others can report on their ships.
WARNING: pools are the ship are used very little...too cold!! unless the ship has a covered pool.(or you get real lucky with the weather)

[8mpg]

Wacky.. I know where you are coming from. Im 23 and wanted to go to Alaska. Like said above, dont expect many people our age on the cruise. Its mainly older people. We are going out May12 and I think we are quite possibly the only people under 40 on the boat. We are going during school time which doesnt help.

I would go with Royal caribbean or NCL for the younger crowd. Im sailing on Princess but I just wanted a quiet time with my girlfriend. NCL has the anytime dining which seems not to fly as well with the older crowd, they seem to prefer a traditional dining. For Alaska, its all about the ports and excursions. Its best to look at the ports and where the scenic tour is (Tracy Arm, Glacier Bay, etc..) and what ports you stop in. Excursions are expensive in Alaska. A fun helicopter ride and glacier dog sledding is like $400 and lasts 2 hours or so... Whale watching is a bit cheaper with some independent vendors like Alaskan Marine...Case quoted us $97/person and its 2.5 hrs. The railroad in Skagway is $150 for the long trip each person...we opted to rent a car instead (being on a budget) but we get a surcharge of $25-30 for not being 25.

Anyways, Alaksa is abou the itinerary... dont expect a younger crowd

[Terpnut]

Alaska is actually perfect for an active or adventure-seeking 20-something: serious hiking, glacier trekking, kayaking, rock-climbing, flightseeing, dog sledding, etc. all require stamina and/or an adventure-seeking, risk-taking attitude. However the very high costs of Alaska cruises and Alaska expenses in general (especially when compared to Caribbean cruises) will dissuade the casual young traveller -- many whom are not of unlimited means. Thus if travelling with your own age group is important to you, you're best off trying to organize your own group. Otherwise, I would not count on significant numbers of 20-somethings on most Alaskan ships.

[Toyz711]

the above says it well...
EXCEPT....the older crowd loves freestyle on NCL. some of us are through with formal dining and packing formal clothes.
speaking of NCL, check out the NCL pearl. it's has a bowling alley and disco-style bar.

[FrogLover215]

Well, my husband and I are 30 and definitely felt the age gap between ourselves and our fellow cruisers on Princess last year. It was our first Alaskan cruise after several Mexican ones, and it was a little odd to have virtually everyone around us 60 or older. Don't get me wrong, we had a great time and are going back this year, but it was a big change from the energetic party passengers we'd encountered before.

At one point, we overheard some teens saying that this was the "dying wish" cruise. That wasn't very nice, but I can see how it would look that way to teenage eyes.

My only advice would be to maybe avoid Princess if you're looking for a high energy level. The reason I say this is that at one point we went on a canoe excursion through the ship. Out of our entire ship, only 7 people booked this, and 5 of them were myself, my husband, and our 3 kids. Once we got to the lake, we met up with cruisers from Norwegian who had booked the same excursion - only there was a busload of them.

[kingsgirl]

I am 25 (will be 26 soon)....will I be among the youngest on my Alaskan cruise?

I'm going with my mom and I don't mind. Just curious.

[Toyz711]

i was trying to talk my hubby into a trip to mexico..maybe around cabo..
sooooo...i was researching whale watching. found one tour that has a little double decker. girls dancing on the top, they comment on the music they play and all the drinks you can handle .
ahhh, it's a little different in alaska. no music, no dancing, drinks are fruit juices (no booze). every excrusions i looked at (in mexico) had booze on it. no wonder it's confusing for folks looking into alaska?
the ships are great, but most under 30s are either with a family reunion type trip or on honeymoon. it's not tame, just different.
the ones that do go usually are more physical (hiking, kayaking and such). our niece did do a kayak fishing trip, but if they hadn't been with her mom, granddad and us..they would have done a lot more hiking and such. they said the ship was too tame for them. they wanted rock climbing!!!
karoke was a blast! large crowds every night (by midnight..nothing)
BUT everyone has a great time...the views are breath-taking.

(still trying to figure out the music while whale watching...it's a wonder the whales stay down there )

[lilrere]

Just wanted to let you know I am late twenties and my husband is early thirties and we are going on the Serenade (RCI) next month. This is what was recommended to us. I know there will be a older crowd but I am looking forward to the scenery. I have been to the Caribbean quite a few times and I wanted something different! We will let you know how we liked it!

[kingsgirl]

Originally Posted by lilrere

Just wanted to let you know I am late twenties and my husband is early thirties and we are going on the Serenade (RCI) next month. This is what was recommended to us. I know there will be a older crowd but I am looking forward to the scenery. I have been to the Caribbean quite a few times and I wanted something different! We will let you know how we liked it!

You are going the week before me!! Oh I really hope you have a wonderful time!!

[usnavywife]

Dang I hope dh and I aren't the youngest on our cruise to Alaska.
Dh is 31 and I am 29.

[lilrere]

Originally Posted by kingsgirl

You are going the week before me!! Oh I really hope you have a wonderful time!!

Yeah it would have been great if we were on the cruise together! We would have enjoyed having more young people on board!

[jacksan1]

My first cruise ever was on the old Star Princess to Alaska when I was 31 (people have told me that I look about 5 to 10 years younger than my actual age). I had to be one of the youngest onboard even at that age, and boy, was I popular among the passengers (in the sense of a zoo animal, that is)! It was almost as if people would single me out and reassure themselves by saying: "See, there are some young ones on this ship." This is an ancient story, so things have changed a bit. But on Alaskan cruises, it does seem that the average age is a fair distance away from the 20-something. That should not stop those of you in the wonderful early years of your lives from going, though!

[cruisienewbie]

Originally Posted by lilrere

Yeah it would have been great if we were on the cruise together! We would have enjoyed having more young people on board!

Lilrere,

I'll be on with you. I'm traveling with my friend from work. I'm 34 and she's a little over 40.

[EdukatedRedHed]

My hubby and I will be on the Spirit starting May 23rd ... he's 36 and I'm 31, but we both look quite a few years younger! We're not big partiers, so we're looking forward to the relaxing peaceful pace of an older crowd!!

[WackyHeathen]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I wonder if it would help to have a "roll call" type forum -- or even something that was focused are planning to cruise on certain dates -- for the 18 - 35 set (once again, it's a mindset, not a strict demo). It might be especially useful for the less common cruise destinations to get people together.

[Toyz711]

there are roll calls, some more active then others. last year we only had about 10 people on my roll call...met 8 of them on the cruise. others have big, active groups. you have to be a memebers and signed in to get to the roll calls
http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=34
but they are by cruise line, not ports.