Cruise vs. Just Land Tour ???

[GrandCanyon2005]

... might seem kind of silly to ask in a Cruise Forum, but the more I've researched our Alaska desires it seems we may prefer to do just a Land Tour. I would appreciate hearing from some who have done BOTH the cruise and just a Land Tour and get the pros and cons of each.

 

 

Some of the things that have caused me to pursue this is that none of the ships (per reviews and this forum) seem to measure up to what we are accustomed to (bad food reviews, bad show reviews, dated room reviews, etc). Everyone says but the reason you go is for the excursions ... SO with that in mind, we're considering taking just 10-14 days to do excursions, and just using the money we would put into a cruise into just flying or taking the train to everywhere we want to visit.

 

Thoughts?

[mytime53]

It depends on what you want to do and where you want to do it. Travel to Juneau, Ketchikan, Sitka, Skagway, etc., is very expensive. DH and I are considering a cruise just because he hasn't seen any of S.E. Alaska, and other options are pretty pricy compared to a cruise. If, OTOH, areas on the road system are your destinations, then I would suggest skipping the cruise.

[GlacierMD]

... might seem kind of silly to ask in a Cruise Forum, but the more I've researched our Alaska desires it seems we may prefer to do just a Land Tour. I would appreciate hearing from some who have done BOTH the cruise and just a Land Tour and get the pros and cons of each.

 

 

 

Some of the things that have caused me to pursue this is that none of the ships (per reviews and this forum) seem to measure up to what we are accustomed to (bad food reviews, bad show reviews, dated room reviews, etc). Everyone says but the reason you go is for the excursions ... SO with that in mind, we're considering taking just 10-14 days to do excursions, and just using the money we would put into a cruise into just flying or taking the train to everywhere we want to visit.

 

Thoughts?

Alaska is vast and to see the very best of Alaska you need to do a land tour. Whereas the cruise is beautiful it is just not the same as on land and going where the compass points. All the excursions offered on a cruise can be had on land. I hope you take the whole time and enjoy the beauty of this state.

[libtrek]

We have cruised twice and going again next year. The views from the ship are awesome. I like the land tour too. I always take the complaints with a grain of salt. We have had very good food on ships and always wonder why some folks complain. Maybe we're just easy going and easy to please. Please no blasts at me, but we liked the cruisetour part too. For us, it's relaxing to let someone else do the work. Just our choice.

Lib

[GrandCanyon2005]

If we do just land, some of the day cruises in Glacier Bay look fun and exciting, as well as overnighting in a Bed-Breakfast in Ketchikan. It seems like we could hit Junaeu, Skagway, and Ketchikan on a 3-day tour during the 10-12 days we've allotted for our vacation. I've already booked our Princess Sapphire Aft Suite (my wife and me) and Port Cabin (our adult kids) for 2013 and am probably just second guessing myself, but we've got a lot of time before we can cancel with a 100% refund. It seems like we could really go first-class and do a lot of stuff by staying on land. Our previous cruises are Oasis of the Seas, Norwegian Epic, and another Norwegian ship fifteen years ago that doesn't exist anymore (lol) ... but I'm afraid everyone would be comparing the Princess ship with the previous ones we've been on. We really look forward to the shows at the end of the day, and would be disappointed if they're as korny as a lot make them sound.

[donaldsc]

It depends on what you want to do and where you want to do it. Travel to Juneau, Ketchikan, Sitka, Skagway, etc., is very expensive. DH and I are considering a cruise just because he hasn't seen any of S.E. Alaska, and other options are pretty pricy compared to a cruise. If, OTOH, areas on the road system are your destinations, then I would suggest skipping the cruise.

 

If you use the Alaska Marine Highway ferries, it is not expensive at all

 

"

Review Itinerary

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Trip Summary Trip Details

Depart: HAINES Monday, July 9 9:15 AM

Arrive: JUNEAU Monday, July 9 1:45 PM

Vessel: M/V Malaspina Change cabins

Duration: 4hr, 30min Remove this leg

Your Travel Items

Adult 12 years or older $37.00

 

 

 

Depart: JUNEAU Tuesday, July 10 9:00 PM

Arrive: KETCHIKAN Wednesday, July 11 8:00 PM

Vessel: M/V Taku Change cabins

Duration: 23hr, 0min Remove this leg

Your Travel Items

Adult 12 years or older $107.00

2 Berth Full Facilities - Inside $92.00

2 Berth Full Facilities - Inside $92.00

 

Wed, Jul 11

2:00 PM

KETCHIKAN

Wed, Jul 11

8:00 PM

M/V Taku

Duration: 6hr, 0min

Total duration: 23hr, 0min

Subtotal: $291.00

 

Estimated Total: $328."

 

Note that the total fare with cabins is #328.

 

DON

[fleckle]

... might seem kind of silly to ask in a Cruise Forum, but the more I've researched our Alaska desires it seems we may prefer to do just a Land Tour. I would appreciate hearing from some who have done BOTH the cruise and just a Land Tour and get the pros and cons of each.Thoughts?

You get wonderful views from a cruise ship that you can't get from a land tour, and vice versa.

 

That is why so many of us like to do combinations of both.

 

On a cruise, you travel around from one location to another without needing to keep packing and unpacking or making reservations or checking in and out of hotels, with no concern about where to eat or sleep.

 

A cruise is a much more relaxing way to travel. If you want to sleep in some mornings or are not feeling well, you do not need to get up as there is no checkout time and no worry about the ship leaving without you, the way there is with a bus.

 

Your comfortable bed travels right along with you so anytime you feel tired along the way, you can go back to your cabin and lie down, or if you are feeling energetic you can jog on deck or work out at the gym.

 

It is nothing like traveling from location to location on a bus or in a car where you are stuck for hours sitting in your seat.

The restaurants and bars travel right along with you as well, so anything you want to eat or drink is always close at hand.

 

There is no time wasted waiting at airports to catch a flight to the next location. Not all Alaska destinations can be reached by land.

 

 

When it comes to a land tour, you need to decide if you would rather take an organized land tour or arrange a tour on your own because there are also big differences between them.

 

If touring on your own, you set your own schedule and can stop along the way wherever you wish and stay as long as you like, so you have a lot more freedom doing it that way, but you also have the responsibility for making all the arrangements.

 

If taking an organized land tour, someone else sets the itinerary and the time schedule and makes most of the arrangements for you, and you just go along.

 

On organized land tours, many times the bus will just go whizzing on past a quaint little town or scenic view along the way where we would like to stop, and where we would have stopped if we had been driving on our own.

 

We dislike the wasted time waiting for everyone to get on and off the bus at each stop, and we dislike needing to be back on the bus at some arbitrary time, even though we may want to leave earlier or stay there longer.

 

But we like not having to deal with traffic in congested areas, leaving the driving to someone else.

 

Like most things on vacation, it mainly comes down to a matter of tradeoffs and personal preferences.

[mapleleaves]

If an Alaska cruise was THAT bad people wouldn't do them repeatedly. Do you ever read the MEMBER REVIEWS section .... people are on the same ship at the same time but have opposite opinions. The food was excellent; no the food was marginal. The cabin was wonderful; no the cabin was too small. When you read reviews you have to take them with a grain of salt. Same with restaurant reviews and hotel reviews. We're all coming at the experience with a different perspective, so we see things differently.

My personal experience is that seeing the Alaska from the sea and doing a land tour are 2 VERY different experiences. I highly recommend BOTH! I've done several land trips because there's so much to see and Alaska is so large. I don't have a desire to repeat the cruise experience just yet. Maybe in another 5-6 years but there are too many new destinations on land to visit first and in comparison there are so few ports. But that's me. I also have no desire to take a dog sled excursion and/or land on a glacier.

I think you should do some research and figure out what you want from your trip to Alaska. What are your priorities? What are the sights, excursions, activities you want to experience. Perhaps you DON'T need a cruise. Perhaps you can replicate what you want by visiting coastal towns like Seward, Homer or Valdez. OTOH, without the cruise you would miss the wonderful coastline of the inside passage, the lighthouses, miles of forest and rocky cliffs, the isolated villages, the way of life in the small port towns, and the way of life when you live on an island ie Ketchikan, Juneau, Sitka.

Another thought to consider ... fly into Juneau and take the state ferry to Glacier Bay or Sitka to experience the coast then fly to Anchorage for a land tour. Or fly to Anchorage drive around for a week then take a southbound cruise to Vancouver. Here's an old trip report from tripadvisor from someone who did a DIY land trip, then a cruise. If you want to review their photos there's a link within the report: http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g28923-i349-k2904854-Just_back_Unbelievable_trip-Alaska.html

 

I recommend you borrow some Alaska travel books from your library, like Fodors, Frommers, Insight Guide, etc to learn about the various destinations in Alaska and what each place has to offer for sights and activities. Also get Ann Vipond's book 'Alaska by cruiseship' where she discusses the various cruisellines, ships, ports, excursions, etc.

The more you know, the easier it will be to make an informed decision.

I think people on this forum place too much stock in other people's opinions. ... 'what are the must sees?" " what should we do in Ketchikan?" Do a little research and find the best option for YOU. Don't be concerned about what the rest of us like or don't like.

BTW, I think whatever you decide, I think you'll return to Alaska :)!

[GrandCanyon2005]

I lived in Anchorage for three months in 1984 (single), and in Fairbanks for three months in 1987 (married) ... but this excursion would be the first for our kids. We are "definitely" do it yourselfers (definitely "not" touring on buses). I have the reputation for being the guy all our friends come to for vacation advice and where-to-go / how to do it / and what to do ... (Italy, Africa, Israel/Jordan/Egypt, Canada, Hungry/Romania, United Kingdom, and numerous vacations between San Francisco and Orlando, New York and Corpus Christi) ... but it's been so long since I've been to Alaska that I remember little else than traveling to glaciers on the weekend, exploring Denali on a weekend, eating great salmon and fried halibut, buying/collecting C. Alan Johnson Alaskan figurines (don't know if those are still popular or around) ... and working 12-hour days while there; lol.

[geoherb]

My in-laws did a 30-day bus trip from North Carolina to Alaska many years ago. They had a great time. They had about 10 days in Alaska.

[GrandCanyon2005]

I would love to drive from the lower 48 up to Alaska. It used to be gravel all the way, and I would assume it's paved now.

[mapleleaves]

I would love to drive from the lower 48 up to Alaska. It used to be gravel all the way, and I would assume it's paved now.

 

Even with the high price of gas there are still plenty of folks driving to Alaska from all over the US. If you enjoy reading travel blogs, check out the Alaska section of mytripjournal.com. Just scroll down the page to find the most current entries then click on the one you're interested in. (Maybe the entry by THE GREAT ALASKA ADVENTURE SUMMER 2012 and his halibut fishing trip in Homer yesterday).

http://www.mytripjournal.com/travel-United_States-Alaska

Consider driving a new RV from the manufacturer in Iowa to a rental company in Anchorage. Great Alaska Holidays has a program every yr where people pay a reduced rental rate to drive an RV to Anchorage. The catch is you must pick up the RV mid May and it needs to be in Anc by May 31 so not the best time to be driving thru the rockies and into the Yukon. OTOH folks saw lots of wildlife ... from bison to bears.

I retire in 4-5 yrs and my plan is spend 3 months driving to Alaska then touring around a bit. The drive thru BC and the Yukon looks very interesting.

[donaldsc]

Even with the high price of gas there are still plenty of folks driving to Alaska from all over the US. If you enjoy reading travel blogs, check out the Alaska section of mytripjournal.com. Just scroll down the page to find the most current entries then click on the one you're interested in. (Maybe the entry by THE GREAT ALASKA ADVENTURE SUMMER 2012 and his halibut fishing trip in Homer yesterday).

http://www.mytripjournal.com/travel-United_States-Alaska

Consider driving a new RV from the manufacturer in Iowa to a rental company in Anchorage. Great Alaska Holidays has a program every yr where people pay a reduced rental rate to drive an RV to Anchorage. The catch is you must pick up the RV mid May and it needs to be in Anc by May 31 so not the best time to be driving thru the rockies and into the Yukon. OTOH folks saw lots of wildlife ... from bison to bears.

I retire in 4-5 yrs and my plan is spend 3 months driving to Alaska then touring around a bit. The drive thru BC and the Yukon looks very interesting.

 

We did it last summer from Vegas to AK and back by Alaska ferry. We took 2 1/2 months and drove 11,500 miles. It was a wonderful not-to-be-forgotten trip.

 

Do it!!!

 

DON

[mytime53]

If you use the Alaska Marine Highway ferries, it is not expensive at all

 

 

Note that the total fare with cabins is #328.

 

DON

 

You're overlooking a few things...getting to Haines and spending night there, spending night in Juneau, all meals, spending night in Ketchikan, missing Glacier Bay (which would definitely be on any itinerary we would choose), missing a 3rd port....

Of course, I am comparing the actual ferry costs with the costs of a discounted cruise, which is the only kind we would purchase.

My parents took the AMH from Bellingham to Whittier. For the same cost, they could have taken a cruiseship that very same week. The only reason for them to take the ferry was the remote possibility they could get their car on (theirs was the only stand-by auto to get on that day...lucky them!)

[Budget Queen]

I have done separate, land tours, separate round trip cruises, and many combo cruise land tours.

 

ALL are great and depending on the AREAS of most interest to you, I would suggest you select the mode of travel how it suits you.

 

A cruise is definately not a "must do". They do pack a lot of easy travel into 7 days- with meals, lodging and transporation in one. :)

 

A land only tour, is excellent, and especially with having an extra 7 days to (instead of cruising) can really get you to areas off the beaten path.

[vbmom87]

I combined cruise and independent land and it was a good way to see Alaska. Most people who do an independent land tour miss Glacier Bay and Hubbard Glacier. To my they are worth going on a cruise for, especially Glacier Bay. They can be done via a land tour with lots of planning and expense. I actually enjoyed the scenery I saw from the cruise more than the scenery from the land tour. However, I took extensive excursions in order to get to the wilderness of Alaska from the ports.

 

Ultimately it is your choice. My suggestion is to do both if you can. However, if you will truly be miserable because the ship may not meet your expectations, then plan a land tour. Trip Advisor has many land tour itineraries you can read through for ideas.

[thinfool]

Some of the things that have caused me to pursue this is that none of the ships (per reviews and this forum) seem to measure up to what we are accustomed to (bad food reviews, bad show reviews, dated room reviews, etc). Everyone says but the reason you go is for the excursions ... SO with that in mind, we're considering taking just 10-14 days to do excursions, and just using the money we would put into a cruise into just flying or taking the train to everywhere we want to visit.

 

Thoughts?

 

If you are basing your decision based on opinions on Cruise Critic you will miss a wonderful way to see an otherwise inaccessible part of the world.

 

Fact is most people do not post a review and are wildly happy with their cruise experience. (ex: see posts from Budget Queen, who has sailed on all the cruise lines and continues to do so)

 

The AK Marine Highway is an attractive, tho pricey, alternative to the major cruise lines.

 

Still, to see SE Alaska you will have to be on the water for part of the time. In fact, truly seeing Alaska is a combination of air, water and land travel.

 

Finally, your point about what you are 'used to' sounds like you travel in 4 star or better accomodations. Good luck with that in Alaska. Even the nice lodges at Denali don't come close to those standards.

[GrandCanyon2005]

Glacier Bay is a must-do for us, and if we don't do the cruise then we will stay two nights at Glacier Bay Lodge and do the Glacier Bay Day Tour (http://www.visitglacierbay.com/glacier-bay-tours/bay-tour.aspx). It's an 8-hour tour narrated by a National Park Service Ranger. I'm booking all of our excursions as if we keep the cruise, but am researching ways to explore even more of Alaska. Regardless of how our mode of travel ends up, we sure enjoy the opportunity to learn from all the experts here on the board.

[mapleleaves]

Glacier Bay is a must-do for us, and if we don't do the cruise then we will stay two nights at Glacier Bay Lodge and do the Glacier Bay Day Tour (http://www.visitglacierbay.com/glacier-bay-tours/bay-tour.aspx). It's an 8-hour tour narrated by a National Park Service Ranger. I'm booking all of our excursions as if we keep the cruise, but am researching ways to explore even more of Alaska. Regardless of how our mode of travel ends up, we sure enjoy the opportunity to learn from all the experts here on the board.

 

I highly recommend the Glacier Bay Lodge and day cruise! We did it as a long weekend trip one year.

After dinner we walked along the cove and kept hearing this odd sound. We finally looked around and there was a whale just off the shore. The sound we heard was it surfacing and blowing. The day cruise was great; saw icebergs, seals, whales, calving. On a small boat you really feel the swells if a large chunk of ice falls in. We also saw deer and a black bear on the coast on the way back to the lodge.

We flew Alaska Airlines to Juneau then Gustavus but there's also ferry service from Juneau 2-3 times a week. I'm sure the ferry passengers fill up the day cruise so plan to take the cruise on a day where everyone is on the ferry. There are nice B&B's at Gustavus too if you don't want to stay at the lodge. But the lodge location is certainly lovely; it sits on the cove and is surrounded by forest. Check out the Gustavus web site.

[vbmom87]

If you use the Alaska Marine Highway ferries, it is not expensive at all

DON

 

We priced out the Alaska Marine Highway for 2008, as that was what I really wanted to do. However, it was going to cost us significantly more than the cruise. (we booked an inside cabin, ended up with outside when prices dropped) It would have been an overall better experience I am sure, but the cost was not in our budget. One day, I hope we can try it though.

[LisaInVA]

Just returned this weekend from a 2 week land tour/cruise trip to Alaska - our first time there. I thought the land tour portion would be our favorite part, but it turned out that the cruise portion was - just because of the scenery. If you are going on a smaller cruise ship (we went on Princess Diamond, about 3000 passengers) the ship will be able to take you to amazing views of Glacier Bay National Park, etc., which you will not be able to get to from the road (you would have to book a boat excursion in order to see the amazing sights we saw). If you do land only, you will not be able to get to places like Skagway, Juneau, etc. without booking a "float plane" (the small ones that land on water) or a boat. Or - even if a road is an option, the driving will take you hours longer than a boat ferry or float plane because the few roads they have must take long routes around the mountains, etc. Once you add in the costs of meals/hotel/ferrt or float plane the cruise is probably more economical. One thing I would say though is that the ports like Skagway, Juneau, Ketichan, etc. are mostly shopping tourist trap like places if the only thing you do is get off the cruise and walk into town. But if you make arrangements for excursions in those ports you will see some amazing things. Hope this helps!

[LisaInVA]

Another thing I forgot to mention is that the train does not go to all that many places in Alaska (depending on where you want to go) so if you research that a little the decision might become an easier one for you to make because it might not be as much of an option as you would think.

[vbmom87]

Just returned this weekend from a 2 week land tour/cruise trip to Alaska - our first time there. I thought the land tour portion would be our favorite part, but it turned out that the cruise portion was - just because of the scenery.

 

This was my feeling also. When I went on our first cruise to Alaska, we did a cruise followed by independent land. Two of my sisters did just the cruise. Upon our return my sister was curious how I felt about what she missed. I told her I was confident she would not have enjoyed the land as much, and for the same reason as you: the scenery.

 

That said, I still have so much more of Alaska to see, so perhaps my opinion will change. However, having done a very scenic sailing out of Vancouver that included sailing to the east of Vancouver Island, Glacier Bay, College Fjords, an all day independent tour to Tracy Arm and the full train ride to Carcross (from Skagway) we were on scenery overload. The land portion, although beautiful too, did not compare to what we saw from the ship. My sister did not do Tracy Arm, but did go on a float plane in Ketchikan and had took a helicopter tour in Juneau landing twice on glaciers. It would be difficult to get this much scenic viewing in a land trip for 7 days. You do have to select the right cruise though, and be willing to spend the money to take the excursions that get you out of the ports. I still think for a first trip to Alaska, doing the most scenic cruise you can find, plus adding on at least 7 days on land, is the way to go if you and afford the time and have the financial resources.

[Gardyloo]

That said, I still have so much more of Alaska to see, so perhaps my opinion will change...

 

This is a key quote. Regardless of your choice - cruise, cruise plus land, land only... you have to recognize that you're seeing a tiny - that's tiny - glimpse of what Alaska has to offer. Even with a "land only" tour - meaning a car-based tour of southcentral and interior Alaska - Denali, Anchorage, Fairbanks, Kenai Peninsula, etc. - you're only seeing things that for the most part can be accessed by road. Bush Alaska - the landscapes, villages, people - that comprises the biggest percentage of Alaska's area, is out of reach unless you park the car and get into a plane.

 

So my recommendation is to think about what you want to see and how you want to experience it, then make a commitment accordingly. From the cruise ship you'll see beautiful coastal scenery, but it will largely be on the terms of mass tourism and what the cruiseline and excursion operators think you want to see, along with plenty of opportunities for them to separate you from your money. Remember that Skagway has a population of around 800 people, and that on a "good" day (in merchant terms) there will be upwards of 8,000 - 10,000 tourists in town. That's not to say they all won't have a good time, but just recognize that you're not getting an especially "authentic" picture of the area.

 

From a car on the Parks or Glenn Highway, you can stop when you want, pack a picnic and eat a sandwich next to roaring river or in the shadow of a glacier-topped mountain. There won't be any buffets or drinks of the day. And you'll have no idea if the most beautiful valley in the world is just over that mountain or through that pass, because the road doesn't go there.

 

Or, you can fly out to, say, Kotzebue or Barrow, stick a toe in the Arctic Ocean, see the actual Midnight Sun - at Midnight - and learn about Eskimo culture. But you'll have few "excursion" options, and food and lodging options will be basic and limited. And it will be expensive. Worth it to you? Only you can judge.

 

So think about what works for your interests, comfort levels, time availability and budget. You can't have it all, you've got to choose. But the good news is that it won't go away over next winter, so you can just plan your next trip.

[Budget Queen]

This is a key quote. Regardless of your choice - cruise, cruise plus land, land only... you have to recognize that you're seeing a tiny - that's tiny - glimpse of what Alaska has to offer. Even with a "land only" tour - meaning a car-based tour of southcentral and interior Alaska - Denali, Anchorage, Fairbanks, Kenai Peninsula, etc. - you're only seeing things that for the most part can be accessed by road. Bush Alaska - the landscapes, villages, people - that comprises the biggest percentage of Alaska's area, is out of reach unless you park the car and get into a plane.

 

So my recommendation is to think about what you want to see and how you want to experience it, then make a commitment accordingly. From the cruise ship you'll see beautiful coastal scenery, but it will largely be on the terms of mass tourism and what the cruiseline and excursion operators think you want to see, along with plenty of opportunities for them to separate you from your money. Remember that Skagway has a population of around 800 people, and that on a "good" day (in merchant terms) there will be upwards of 8,000 - 10,000 tourists in town. That's not to say they all won't have a good time, but just recognize that you're not getting an especially "authentic" picture of the area.

 

From a car on the Parks or Glenn Highway, you can stop when you want, pack a picnic and eat a sandwich next to roaring river or in the shadow of a glacier-topped mountain. There won't be any buffets or drinks of the day. And you'll have no idea if the most beautiful valley in the world is just over that mountain or through that pass, because the road doesn't go there.

 

Or, you can fly out to, say, Kotzebue or Barrow, stick a toe in the Arctic Ocean, see the actual Midnight Sun - at Midnight - and learn about Eskimo culture. But you'll have few "excursion" options, and food and lodging options will be basic and limited. And it will be expensive. Worth it to you? Only you can judge.

 

So think about what works for your interests, comfort levels, time availability and budget. You can't have it all, you've got to choose. But the good news is that it won't go away over next winter, so you can just plan your next trip.

 

Very well said. Most of the "recommenders" here, haven't really done a lot of Alaska. It is hardly just inside passage sailing, Denali Park, Fairbanks, Whittier, Seward. The interior can occupy a boatload of time. Last year, I did one Alaska cruise, then another three week land- made it up to Prudhoe. :) Most people do not have that amount of time. Two weeks are pretty common, but more is rare. You can not do much with only a week- land touring Alaska.

 

So, it still is an excellent option to skip a cruise and get areas of interest to the person. Cruises are NOT the best options many times. I frequently see, itineraries/lists of "ideas" people have for a week, which in my opinion, needs two. :) Cruisetours frequently are on this mode, hence the comments of "hectic", "do southbound cruises to relax", "on the go". This never would do for my priorities, or would I ever consider it.

 

Best- is to find out about Alaska, the library is an excellent resource. Look at sample itineraries, and get a feel for how plans go together. Don't underestimate time and distances. Less can be more. :)