Total cruise Cost

[alaska_planner]

It would seem we're on the expensive side of things...LOL...our cruise alone costs a little over $6K for just the 2 of us. We have a room with a balcony, and have booked 2 excursions in each of the 4 ports. We're also planning on eating lunch in each port, to enjoy local food and not waste time getting back on the ship. This is our honeymoon :) and we're coming from so far away and flights are a fortune nowadays, so it just seems silly to me not to do everything we want to do. Who knows what the future will bring...I don't want to miss anything because of "well, next time" which might never come. So, for instance, we're doing a whale watch in 2 ports, since whales are a big deal for us, so we want to double our chances :) when are we going to get that opportunity again?? Plus, we don't drink or smoke and we're not big on shopping, so we save a lot of money there.

I haven't calculated how much our week DIY before the cruise adds up to. Scary!! LOL hotels + railroad + food + activities...but as others have said - the experience and memories are priceless! Alaska has been my dream destination forever and I actually get to go!! Woohoo!

 

Side note - when I was traveling in Vietnam 6 years ago there was a really cool excursion I really wanted to do, but my friends didn't want to spend the money. I still regret not having that experience...

 

your transatlantic tickets are using air miles, so that's a big savings right there!!

your trip isn't over the top - it's a once in a lifetime adventure!!!

you've done the bare bones budget travel to southeast asia, alaska can never match that no matter how frugal a person is!

[Budget Queen]

 

 

I just want to know BQ's secret for being able to travel 17 weeks a year:D:D:D!!!

 

L.J.

 

I am a state employee who works in a max prison. :) I get 8 weeks paid off. The rest of the time is swapped with coworkers since I work where there is an exception to the labor laws. I cover for 4 other swap partners, working what they need- covering their shifts, weekends etc. Works out perfectly. Neither of us get charged the time. I am just back from 5 weeks of travel used 24 hours of my time, rest was swapped. :)

 

Plus the biggest perk I get, is I don't pay for air. My husband is a retired airline employee. Makes the world small and I take advantage of it. :)

[Freehike]

Welll, we still haven't booked everything we are going to do, but I'll tell you where we are.

 

We are doing the cruise tour as this is our first trip to Alaska. Our cruisetour total is $7300, not counting our excursions which right now add up to another $300 or so, so far. My wife isn't the best of flyers, so we booked first class to / from Alaska and Charlotte, which added on another $2600.

 

So, we are just over $10,000 so far, not counting our pre-cruise meals, the remaining excursions we will be doing and the drinks and such on board. I'm guessing we will wind up being closer to $13,000 or so when it's all said and done.

 

That being said, I couldn't care less. It's a lot of money but who knows what the future holds? Memories are priceless.

[WalleyeLJ]

I am a state employee who works in a max prison. :) I get 8 weeks paid off. The rest of the time is swapped with coworkers since I work where there is an exception to the labor laws. I cover for 4 other swap partners, working what they need- covering their shifts, weekends etc. Works out perfectly. Neither of us get charged the time. I am just back from 5 weeks of travel used 24 hours of my time, rest was swapped. :)

 

Plus the biggest perk I get, is I don't pay for air. My husband is a retired airline employee. Makes the world small and I take advantage of it. :)

 

BQ,

 

That ROCKS!!! It seems like the only better thing for you would be if you lived in Seattle instead of NY - 5 Alaska trips a summer:D! The swap issue is a great system. I only have had one job where that was allowed, and it was great. While I support most labor protection laws, the no swap & no comp time issues should really be put back in our hands.

 

We still only take 1 week (in this case 2!) a year, so we at least try to make the most of it. Can't wait until 7/6!!!

 

L.J.

[newpancake]

I agree with the $100/day/person rule. Have to make a budget, book ahead and search. Just back from a 3 week [Transatlantic + 6 days Rome] - spent about $4200 total for 2 (but used miles for return European flight]. So not quite at $100/day but close...:)

[alaska_planner]

I am a state employee who works in a max prison. :) I get 8 weeks paid off. The rest of the time is swapped with coworkers since I work where there is an exception to the labor laws. I cover for 4 other swap partners, working what they need- covering their shifts, weekends etc. Works out perfectly. Neither of us get charged the time. I am just back from 5 weeks of travel used 24 hours of my time, rest was swapped. :)

 

Plus the biggest perk I get, is I don't pay for air. My husband is a retired airline employee. Makes the world small and I take advantage of it. :)

 

 

you get 8 weeks of vacation a year???????????????

is that common in the US to have that many weeks of vacation?

seems i haven't lived in the US for a very very very long time!!!

back then (prehistoric times) you were lucky to get 2 weeks a year!!

 

 

lucky your husband worked for one of the companies that's still in business :)

[Budget Queen]

you get 8 weeks of vacation a year???????????????

is that common in the US to have that many weeks of vacation?

seems i haven't lived in the US for a very very very long time!!!

back then (prehistoric times) you were lucky to get 2 weeks a year!!

 

 

lucky your husband worked for one of the companies that's still in business :)

 

No, it isn't common. I am a 31 year employee, could have retired last year, but the job is paradise, and have no plans to do so at this time. :) I'm also afraid of myself and fear I wouldn't be home at all. :)

[Gloria Mundi]

So far we're in for $6K for the cruise; it's an 85-passenger ship and pretty much everything is included other than alcohol and tips. Wet suits are for rent but I'm bringing my own. Kayaks are included. This is our kind of cruise; we'd never go on one of the mega-boats. Airfare used frequent flyer miles in and out of Seattle; we spent about $1K for travel from Seattle to Wrangell, then Ketchikan where the cruise starts, and from Juneau back to Seattle.

 

Unfortunately, I have this sinking feeling that we'll decide after this that we HAVE to take the Juneau-Ketchikan route (opposite direction, different ports) another year.:(

[Budget Queen]

So far we're in for $6K for the cruise; it's an 85-passenger ship and pretty much everything is included other than alcohol and tips. Wet suits are for rent but I'm bringing my own. Kayaks are included. This is our kind of cruise; we'd never go on one of the mega-boats. Airfare used frequent flyer miles in and out of Seattle; we spent about $1K for travel from Seattle to Wrangell, then Ketchikan where the cruise starts, and from Juneau back to Seattle.

 

Unfortunately, I have this sinking feeling that we'll decide after this that we HAVE to take the Juneau-Ketchikan route (opposite direction, different ports) another year.:(

 

You have a 1/4 inch 7mm wet suit with hood, boots and gloves?

[Gloria Mundi]

You have a 1/4 inch 7mm wet suit with hood, boots and gloves?

 

Hmmm..maybe I ought to consult the cruise line. Heck, my suit is sleeveless!

[Budget Queen]

Hmmm..maybe I ought to consult the cruise line. Heck, my suit is sleeveless!

 

Sorry, that isn't going to do. Leave yours at home and rent.

[ead571]

Alaska Expenses

 

13 night RCL Cruisetour for family of 4 (2 adults, 2 kids ages 11, and 12) @ 13,500 in Grand Suite

 

Airfare for 4 - @7,000

 

additional 2 nights in Fairbanks with rental car Arctic Circle Air Tour, Riverboat Discovery, El Dorado Gold Mine, Midnight Sun Baseball Game tickets, Ice Museum, Hot Springs and all meals on land - @ 3,000

 

excusrions booked through ship for both land and sea portions as well as beverage packages @ 5,200

 

Additional Night in Vancouver, car rental and sightseeing on our own with meals @ 1,000

 

Expensive - yes

 

Trip of a lifetime - yes

 

Family memories for a working mom and dad - PRICELESS...

[WendyG]

$7K for airfare??? OMG! Hopefully you're not in the US then I can see those prices. If you are in the US might I suggest cheaptickets dot com? :D

[alaska_planner]

Alaska Expenses

 

13 night RCL Cruisetour for family of 4 (2 adults, 2 kids ages 11, and 12) @ 13,500 in Grand Suite

 

Airfare for 4 - @7,000

 

additional 2 nights in Fairbanks with rental car Arctic Circle Air Tour, Riverboat Discovery, El Dorado Gold Mine, Midnight Sun Baseball Game tickets, Ice Museum, Hot Springs and all meals on land - @ 3,000

 

excusrions booked through ship for both land and sea portions as well as beverage packages @ 5,200

 

Additional Night in Vancouver, car rental and sightseeing on our own with meals @ 1,000

 

Expensive - yes

 

Trip of a lifetime - yes

 

Family memories for a working mom and dad - PRICELESS...

 

sounds wonderful!!!!! :)

[2little time]

Hi,

 

So my husband and I are taking a cruise in June. I was doing the math today and so far we have already spend $3400...this includes the curise itself, flight and couple of excursions.

 

I am guessing we will be booking couple of more smaller excursion. But, in total looks like we will be spending about 4k.

 

Does this seem right? I feel like we are over spending.

 

How much has it cost you in the past?

Wow! That is great. We are one of the ones who spent close to $20K. We had a suite each time and that was over $10, airfare another $2K, $2K for cat sitters and then there was another 3K for excusions and tips. We have gone several times but this was the most expensive.

[burtie]

Spouse and I will be taking a 14 day B2B Alaska out of Vancouver with the following costs--

Cruise, Including taxes $1,018 per person for obstrucetd view=total $2,036

Room in Vancouver before, transfer to ship, and parking=$153

Tips at $24 per day=$336

Booze and misc =$500

Gas for trip to Vancouver and home =$150

Total=$3,175.

 

This is without air fare as we will be driving, and does not include any excursions. This will be our 8th cruise to Alaska so we typically don't do any more excursions. Might rent a car in Whittier and if we do that will be an additional $115.

Burtie

[raylene5]

$7K for airfare??? OMG! Hopefully you're not in the US then I can see those prices. If you are in the US might I suggest cheaptickets dot com? :D

 

Maybe they are going first class :)

[cellyml12]

Soon to be DH & I are going next May. The cruise alone is over $4000.00, so I'd say being at 4k with the other stuff included is good. We're still going to have to do airfare from San Francisco, excursions, alcohol, etc. Expecting it to become pricey really fast.

[Smokeyham]

I would agree that the OP's costs around $4K are very good.

 

We are going for a southbound in September. We are celebrating a special occasion, and wanted to enjoy the Alaska views from the privacy of our balcony, so have gone for a higher end balcony. My estimate, for the total trip costs for two people is around $8,000.

 

This includes:

One way air fares from/to California (Anchorage & Vancouver)

Night in a hotel prior to the cruise

Train to the boarding port

On board expenses (spa and ship's tour)

Two paid shore excursions (whale watching and train ride)

On shore shopping/food

Trip Cancellation Insurance

Tips, etc.

 

For comparison, a single friend was really interested in going, but really did not care what type of cabin he had. He wanted to go for a lower cost, while still enjoying some shore excursions, etc. For him, we figured that cost would be around $3,600. Of course, being only one person he had to pay the full cabin price (around $1,500 for an inside).

[reney313]

We were over 7K last summer on our Alaska cruise. That included 4 nights land pre cruise and southbound Whittier to Vancouver in an inside cabin.

 

It was going to be almost 8K as we had booked the helicopter with dog sled in Juneau. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how i look at it) the tour was cancelled due to fog. We ended up going Whale watching and to Mendenhall instead for ~$250. We decided to go all out on the excursions and the land trip as we didn't expect to go back for several years. It really was the trip of a lifetime and I have no regrets on the money we spent.

 

This year we are going back due to an incredible cruise rate for an inside. We're not planning on doing any excursions (or maybe just a couple of the lesser ones that are not very expensive). We really want to spend time walking around the ports that we weren't able to do last year. I suspect with flights (that cost double the cruise) and onboard account, etc we'll be at around 3K. For the Caribbean that would seem to be high for the same accommodations, but not Alaska!

 

Enjoy your vacation, it definitely is something everyone has to do once!

 

Fortunately, I'm still in my 30's (for about another 3 months) so hopefully can go all out again and finally do the helicopter trip on a future trip.

[Gloria Mundi]

You have a 1/4 inch 7mm wet suit with hood, boots and gloves?

 

Budget Queen, you were spot on- the cruise line told me that my wet suit would be "useless". You can see from my avatar pic what they supplied for snorkeling- a second piece had the long sleeves and provided a second layer from neck to knees. They also supplied gloves and the hood.

 

But, to get back to the OT- yeah, Alaska was expensive, especially on a small ship (although only the snorkeling expedition, at $30 for everything incl. equipment use, and alcohol were extra). We defrayed the cost by using miles to fly in and out of Seattle and cashing in hotel points for most of our land stays. We were surprised at how much more food cost, especially in restaurants, but I guess it's the cost of bringing most of it in from the Lower 48. You need to anticipate that if you're going to be doing much land touring.

 

We loved it, though- my husband joked that as far as bang for the buck, it was our cheapest vacation-and we've had some wonderful vacations. We're already planning to go again in 2014.

[Smokeyham]

Budget Queen, you were spot on- the cruise line told me that my wet suit would be "useless". You can see from my avatar pic what they supplied for snorkeling- a second piece had the long sleeves and provided a second layer from neck to knees. They also supplied gloves and the hood.

 

quote]

 

So glad to hear that worked out, and that you did not end up hauling a wet suit to Alaska for nothting!

 

I just looked up water temps around Juneau, and they are around 53 degrees. Those are similiar to what we experience diving off of Monterey, CA and a 7MM full wet suit is definitely called for.

[Catocop]

Hi,

 

So my husband and I are taking a cruise in June. I was doing the math today and so far we have already spend $3400...this includes the curise itself, flight and couple of excursions.

 

I am guessing we will be booking couple of more smaller excursion. But, in total looks like we will be spending about 4k.

 

Does this seem right? I feel like we are over spending.

 

How much has it cost you in the past?

 

Last month my husband and I spend about $4200 for airfare from Baltimore to Seattle on Southwest, two weekends in Seattle (at the Best Western) include a pricey lunch at the Space Needle, inside cabin, ship's whale watch in Juneau, Dyea Dave in Skagway, and Eagle Wings whale watch in Victoria. That also includes one meal at a $ extra on-board restaurant, tips including tips for excursions, six beers, two glasses of wine, one low-end bottle of wine. From the airport we took public transportation, back to the airport we took a Town Car. Oh and two lattes, a lunch in the Yukon and a visit to Skagway Brewing Company, and some souvenirs. I guess I should do the math leaving out Seattle but I don't have access to those figures right now.

 

It's all about how much you are comfortable with spending and where you're comfortable with scrimping. For example, we didn't need a balcony because we we on the deck when views were in the offing.

 

I see you've already sailed. Hope you had a wonderful time!

[Want2CWhales]

I think the poster who mentioned Goldilocks was spot on. It might be interesting to start separate threads for people with different goals, tips for: the cheapest way to see Alaska; the most amazing excursion in Juneau; the most interesting "cultural" experience in Skagway; the most family-friendly ideas, etc.

 

Anyway, to throw in my 2cents, a couple days ago I happened upon a thread where someone mentioned spending $1000+ in onboard credit. I was shocked, I had no idea what could cost so much. The kind CC'ers informed me. :)

 

I'm a budget traveler. This is the trip of a lifetime, especially in the sense that I've never had a big family vacation, and I don't expect my grandparents will be around for another one. But I still need to pay my rent when the vacation is over. So, in order to see as much as possible while being what I consider to be financially responsible, I created a 2-week vacation for $4k (as a couple).* We're doing a land tour on our own, and an inside cabin on a 7-day cruise. Ours is a one-way from Anchorage to Vancouver, and we're taking a train from Vancouver to Seattle to fly home to the east coast on a red-eye. We were able to get one free ticket home from Seattle with points. We used 2-for-1 coupons. I devoted a lot of time to planning. I posted specifics of the land portion here: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1674295

 

My take? 4k is reasonable for the vacation the OP described. To do what I'm doing for 4K takes time and effort. Some people have the desire to save, but not the time--for them 4K is under-budgeting. Some people want the experience of luxury--for them 4K is ridiculous. It all depends on what you want, and what you're willing to give for it.

 

*We'll see if it works. We leave in 10 days. We've spent 3.5k, the other $500 is to cover whatever is left.

[paddingtonbear]

I think the poster who mentioned Goldilocks was spot on. It might be interesting to start separate threads for people with different goals, tips for: the cheapest way to see Alaska; the most amazing excursion in Juneau; the most interesting "cultural" experience in Skagway; the most family-friendly ideas, etc.

 

Anyway, to throw in my 2cents, a couple days ago I happened upon a thread where someone mentioned spending $1000+ in onboard credit. I was shocked, I had no idea what could cost so much. The kind CC'ers informed me. :)

 

I'm a budget traveler. This is the trip of a lifetime, especially in the sense that I've never had a big family vacation, and I don't expect my grandparents will be around for another one. But I still need to pay my rent when the vacation is over. So, in order to see as much as possible while being what I consider to be financially responsible, I created a 2-week vacation for $4k (as a couple).* We're doing a land tour on our own, and an inside cabin on a 7-day cruise. Ours is a one-way from Anchorage to Vancouver, and we're taking a train from Vancouver to Seattle to fly home to the east coast on a red-eye. We were able to get one free ticket home from Seattle with points. We used 2-for-1 coupons. I devoted a lot of time to planning. I posted specifics of the land portion here: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1674295

 

My take? 4k is reasonable for the vacation the OP described. To do what I'm doing for 4K takes time and effort. Some people have the desire to save, but not the time--for them 4K is under-budgeting. Some people want the experience of luxury--for them 4K is ridiculous. It all depends on what you want, and what you're willing to give for it.

 

*We'll see if it works. We leave in 10 days. We've spent 3.5k, the other $500 is to cover whatever is left.

 

Toursaver and northern lights coupon books make travel in Alaska really affordable if you can organise it. Thank you so much for sharing your planning. I will be really interested in hearing your trip report as we are doing about the same as you, but ours is a little longer and we're hiring a car. Still, our mindset is similar to yours. Hope you have a wonderful trip.