olesiabr

I will pause here to say a few words about weather and packing. It was generally cool to cold for us coming from the south. Every day (except for Ketchikan) there was some rain and some sun. There were times that we used sunglasses and sunscreen and other days that we were bundled up with hats, scarfs and gloves. The boys did wear shorts multiple times. Bottom line: be prepared for everything.

We all had a wheeled carry on for our Kenai week that contained active, quick dry clothing and casual jeans and tops.

Our one checked bag that contained our cruise clothes pretty much lived in the trunk of the rental car for the first week.

We all had Columbia tri climate jackets. My daughter and I had an extra warm layer (packable down) each and there were times we swapped the fleece layer for the down.

I would be happy to elaborate if anyone has additional questions.

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Once my snow deprived kids had their fill of the cold white stuff we had a light dinner at the cafe at the top of the tram which was probably our most uninspired meal in Alaska, but still not half bad!

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Our first 2 nights were spent at the Hotel Alyeska in Girdwood. Our rate included a trip on the tram as well as a $50 food credit. I'm glad we took advantage of this our first evening because the weather was lovely! DH was posing near a 3 foot wall of snow in his shorts!

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Thanks to all those that post their experiences here on cruise critic! Between Trip Advisor and this site I felt very comfortable planning a DIY week on the Kenai Peninsula prior to our cruise.

In summary, my family of 4 (DH 49, DS 15 and DD 12) had a wonderful time!

We arrived at Anchorage airport in the early afternoon on Saturday, June 3 and DH grabbed a cab to the downtown Avis location while the rest of us waited on our checked bag. The one way ANC to Whittier car rental was significantly cheaper from the downtown location.

We made a quick pit stop at Fred Meyer for supplies and soon were driving by views like this:

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Honestly Alaska was the "star" here! I believe the ship is undergoing a refurbishment prior to your cruise. We had no complaints. She is a nice midsize ship with lovely staff!

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I will write a longer review but am happy to answer questions in the meantime. We did a week on our own on the Kenai Peninsula and then boarded in Whittier.

Wonderful to be in Alaska!

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Forgot to mention that we stayed in a vrbo apartment in Seward wed and thurs (driftwood suites) so were able to do laundry. This was key in packing light

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Just a quick update on what is needed for a glacier cruise. Yesterday we did the Prince William Sound cruise out of Whittier and it was warm and sunny. My husband wore shorts (!) and I didn't even pull out my gloves.

Bottom line: be prepared for anything

As far as how much you need: we are a family of four (kids are 12 and 15) and each had a wheeled carryon for the one week land portion. We rented a car a stayed at Girdwood, Homer, Seward and now Whittier. This was mostly quick dry, active clothing with some jeans and tops thrown in for dinner, etc. We have one checked bag for the 4 of us with our cruise clothes that never came out of the trunk.

Getting on the ship today!

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We have Sprint (unlimited roaming) and have just completed a week in Anchorage, Girdwood, Homer, Seward and now Whittier. We could text and call almost everywhere on the Kenai Penninsula. No data available though and on "roam" the entire time. Waited until we hit hotels to use WiFi. And yes we are set up for data roaming... We had better data coverage in Europe!

Please remember to call and add free "open world" to your Sprint plan for calling, text and data in Canada. You will cross over in Skagway and Vancouver

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We just did the 8am tour on Thursday and saw orcas and humpbacks as well as sea lions, otters, puffins and other wildlife. There were only 45 on this tour on a vessel that fits 150, so seating was not an issue.

We stayed at the driftwood apartments (VRBO) and the location was midway between the marina and sea life center. Brand new 2 bedroom apartment that allowed our family of 4 to spread out a little!

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We are completing our DIY tour of the Kenai Peninsula prior to boarding our ship. We spray waterproofed our athletic shoes and used wool socks when hiking or on small boat tours

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Seriously, it was cold and wet but beautiful. Need tights with water resistant pants over, not jeans. Three layers on top. I recommend hat and gloves at least

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Just got off a Kenai Fjord tour out of Seward yesterday. We are from AR and wore this. There is the option of staying indoors the entire time...

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Thank you for this review! Looking forward to the rest as we are on the Star June 10. We are also spending a few nights at Alyeska and have reservations at Jack Sprat AND Ray's (which I may now cancel😁)

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Thanks! I just checked and there will only be two ships in Vancouver on that date. I think we'll take our chances with Express walk off.

I really appreciate all of your tips, especially on clothing

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Thanks for the review lakegirl.16!

We will be debarking in Vancouver on Saturday June 17th. We were planning on carrying off our own bags and being off the ship as soon as possible. Was this what you meant by being in one of the first groups? We have 12 noon flights. Do you think we will have a problem?

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Hmm. Be prepared to take 2 cabs to fit 3 seats. Is one of the kids old enough for just a booster?

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There are private companies that will transfer you from Whittier to Anchorage (I just googled "Whittier to Anchorage transfers"). Another option is renting a vehicle from Avis. The one way rental is not cheap but it gives you the most flexibility.

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Sigh...

I just went through this scenario but in reverse.

We are arriving in Anchorage June 3, 2017 and are touring the Kenai Peninsula for a week prior to joining the Star Princess in Whittier on the 10th.

My original plan was a 6 day one way rental from Anchorage to Whittier. The only way I could schedule this was by calling Avis Alaska directly ( there are two offices, one by the airport and one downtown...google the phone number)

Problem was that it came out to $1300!! I was told that perhaps waiting until January of this year would be helpful because they would "open up" the reservation system.

So I reserved a 6-day round-trip rental from Anchorage downtown to Anchorage downtown for about $300 and waited until January.

On January 2nd I was able to go online and the price for a one-way 6-day rental dropped to about $900, which I still feel is too much.

We are keeping our Anchorage to Anchorage rental for $300 and hired a private limo to transfer the four of us to Whittier for $240.

Incidentally a one-day one-way rental from Anchorage to Whittier came out to about $385, so that is another option

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Has anybody done both that can compare? We would like to do one of the longer cruises out of Whittier. The 26 Glacier (Phillips) and the Surprise Glacier (Major Marine) roughly cover the same ground.

Any comments on food, size and comfort of ships?

Thanks!

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LOL!

Ever so often I come back to check the PG board to relive one of our best cruises, and was surprised to see this thread again. My husband is a chiropractor, and he routinely reverses the neck support in cars to minimize the forward position.

The seat on ATN was simply hopeless!!

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Just want to chime in here with my own 2cents.

We were in a balcony cabin on the Norwegian Jewel with ONE ten year old last spring break, and it was tight. It may be better with the 2 lower beds apart, but when the 3rd berth was out the only floor space left to change clothes with literally in the bathroom. I can't imagine that rom with 4 occupants.

We are booked on the Star Princess in June in 2 inside cabins next to each other for myself, my husband and 2 kids 12 and 15 years old. I figure we will go out on deck for viewing and enjoy the darkness at bedtime instead of dealing with midnight sun issues!

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Good point!

I was trying to build in some "down time" as my family always accuses me of running them ragged, and The Inn at Whittier looked promising. I will see what transportation options from Anchorage the Major Marine has..

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Thanks all...great advice from everyone as usual!

Unfortunately all the shuttles and transports (I checked all the links) only run on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

We were hoping to get to Whittier on Friday and do the Prince William sound cruise on Friday afternoon.

I called the Downtown Anchorage Avis phone number and spoke to a nice young lady who advised me to wait until January when their system would allow them to "see" the rates. She assured me that there would be plenty of cars left.

Incidentally the one way Anchorage to Whittier 6 day rental from the Downtown Anchorage office came out to about $1,000 which was $300 cheaper than my quote from Anchorage Airport Avis.

Still quite excessive I feel

I will call Midnight Sun tomorrow

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OK.

The shuttles only run wed and sat. We would like to get to Whittier on friday. Is the train, or a one day one way rental through avis our only option? Is there uber in Anchorage?

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