Packing for Alaskan cruise at the END OF AUGUST

[cusoon]

Think layers and color schemes so you can mix up tops with bottoms. I always throw in at least one shawl for evenings. Sometimes dining rooms, lounges and theaters can get a little drafty. When we ported in Victoria BC I wore capris and short sleeve shirt. Two more pieces of luggage shouldn't take up too much room, you can probably fit those in your carry on tote. Have a great cruise. We're going again in August 2018 out of SFO.

 

 

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[Mapleleaf14]

I packed a down vest for my cruise to Alaska and was very glad that I had!!

 

 

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[abbykeenan]

I went last august and I did need a jacket, jeans, but also some cooler clothes. Umbrella is a must and a rain coat. If u forget something no worries all of the shops are actually really cheap. I bought jackets and sweatshirts. End of season so clothes are cheap.

 

 

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[BoiseBeth]

We cruised Alaska mid-August 2016. We had very nice days in port, mostly sunny but needed a light jacket/rain coat. The only time I needed winter attire (stocking hat, scarf & gloves) was the day we traveled into Tracey Arm Fjord and were up around 6:30 am to see glaciers from the ship. I wore long pants daily with a tshirt and carried or wore a jacket in ports. I liked having a wrap in the dining room in case it was chilly.

 

Enjoy the beautiful sights! Happy sailing! Seattle is beautiful in the summer!

 

 

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[maui traveler]

Layers, waterproof jacket, pack able umbrella...last August the best and sunniest day was in front of the glacier, maybe 40 degrees, the rest of every day and ports it rained hard...if you know what your in for and are flexible dress as you like...Princess let two doctors sit at our table on formal night in shorts and a polo...I've given up, I take one suit, two ties to Alaska.

 

 

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[rkreilly]

Just returned from a WONDERFUL two week Alaska trip (June 24-July 8). 4 days Denali, then cruise Southbound Inside Passage on the Island Princess, then 3 days in Vancouver. I researched a ton before we left about what to pack. This was our 11th cruise, but first cold weather. Now that we've been, I thought I would help.

4 person family (2 adults, 2 teen girls)- here is what we all started with, and adjusted according to our own needs:

 

4 prs pants

2 prs shorts

7 short sleeve shirts

5 long sleeve shirts (can be layered with short sleeve)

2 sweatshirts (can be layered with long or short sleeve)

10 prs socks

10 prs underwear

tennis shoes

flip flops/sandals (for hot tub, hotel pool, to run up to buffet quickly, or just get out of shoes we hiked in!)

1 pr dress shoes (for both casual and formal outfits)

1 formal outfit (worn twice)

mix/match dinner outfits (4-5)

gloves/mittens

baseball hat

winter hat

fleece jacket

raincoat/windbreaker

1 swimsuit

pajamas

sunglasses

 

This worked great for us all. For formal nights, my daughter and I both packed little black dresses- I wore mine for Christmas services, so it wasn't overly dressy. My husband wore suit pants, a button down, and a tie- no jacket. I did not feel like any of us were either over or under dressed. We did laundry 5 days into the trip. We all thought we did well. I wish I would have brought 1 more long sleeve shirt, my husband wish he would have had 2 less. My daughter bought a sweatshirt as a souvenir and wore it most the trip. I also think we would have been better with 3 outfits for dinner instead of 4 (we did eat in the buffet the first night, but still could have done with less). My daughters wore the same skirt each night with different shirts, I wore the same capri pants with different shirts. We all had a sweater for chilly dinning room- though I did not feel chilly on board this ship as I have in the Caribbean cruises. In Denali we had GORGEOUS weather and wound up wearing t-shirts and jeans, probably would have been OK in shorts if wanted. Cruise, we wore our fleece layered with rain jacket every day. We varied between long sleeve shirts and sweatshirts under the fleece jackets. Make sure your jackets are waterPROOF not water resistant, with a hood. It was wet every single day- whether rain, fog, or mist. We were not uncomfortable though it rained and was in the low 50s every day. If you don't already have a jacket now, buy when you get to Alaska. Jackets are everywhere, cheap ($20) and very cute. Even the cruise ship had one that I wished I could buy, but I was very happy with my Columbia waterproof shell already. We all said we wished we had 1 or 2 more prs of socks, and another pr of underwear. My daughters both had leggings and wore them one day under their jeans, I did not have and was OK, but if I had them I would have worn them. Vancouver was unseasonably warm and we wore shorts and t-shirts and were very warm as in the US summertime.

 

I only had one pr of hiking shoes, tennis shoe style- and though I wound up fine with this, I did get sick of them and wished I had a break. My husband and daughter both brought a 2nd pr of tennis shoes and admitted it was nice to rotate. I waterproofed our shoes with "Kiwi Boot Protector" before we left, figured it couldn't hurt and crossed my fingers. We realized on the last day of the cruise our feet never got wet and we never gave it a second thought. This product was awesome, since we hiked on damp trails and walked in the rain every single day- including the very very saturated pool deck. We did all wear our winter hats and mittens on different days, but never wore scarves- but zipped our fleeces up high. Baseball hats were also worn often both for sun protection and to keep the rain off our face.

 

This is just the clothing. Don't forget cameras, chargers, glasses, sunscreen, etc... that you need every trip. I thought I would pass on what worked for my family. We came home with very very few things unworn (our scarves, two undershirts from my husband), wore a few things multiple times, we could have done laundry later and been OK. I don't wish we would have packed differently, it worked out well.

Edited July 9, 2017 by rkreilly

[jmecme]

Just returned from a WONDERFUL two week Alaska trip (June 24-July 8). 4 days Denali, then cruise Southbound Inside Passage on the Island Princess, then 3 days in Vancouver. I researched a ton before we left about what to pack. This was our 11th cruise, but first cold weather. Now that we've been, I thought I would help.

4 person family (2 adults, 2 teen girls)- here is what we all started with, and adjusted according to our own needs:

 

4 prs pants

2 prs shorts

7 short sleeve shirts

5 long sleeve shirts (can be layered with short sleeve)

2 sweatshirts (can be layered with long or short sleeve)

10 prs socks

10 prs underwear

tennis shoes

flip flops/sandals (for hot tub, hotel pool, to run up to buffet quickly, or just get out of shoes we hiked in!)

1 pr dress shoes (for both casual and formal outfits)

1 formal outfit (worn twice)

mix/match dinner outfits (4-5)

gloves/mittens

baseball hat

winter hat

fleece jacket

raincoat/windbreaker

1 swimsuit

pajamas

sunglasses

 

This worked great for us all. For formal nights, my daughter and I both packed little black dresses- I wore mine for Christmas services, so it wasn't overly dressy. My husband wore suit pants, a button down, and a tie- no jacket. I did not feel like any of us were either over or under dressed. We did laundry 5 days into the trip. We all thought we did well. I wish I would have brought 1 more long sleeve shirt, my husband wish he would have had 2 less. My daughter bought a sweatshirt as a souvenir and wore it most the trip. I also think we would have been better with 3 outfits for dinner instead of 4 (we did eat in the buffet the first night, but still could have done with less). My daughters wore the same skirt each night with different shirts, I wore the same capri pants with different shirts. We all had a sweater for chilly dinning room- though I did not feel chilly on board this ship as I have in the Caribbean cruises. In Denali we had GORGEOUS weather and wound up wearing t-shirts and jeans, probably would have been OK in shorts if wanted. Cruise, we wore our fleece layered with rain jacket every day. We varied between long sleeve shirts and sweatshirts under the fleece jackets. Make sure your jackets are waterPROOF not water resistant, with a hood. It was wet every single day- whether rain, fog, or mist. We were not uncomfortable though it rained and was in the low 50s every day. If you don't already have a jacket now, buy when you get to Alaska. Jackets are everywhere, cheap ($20) and very cute. Even the cruise ship had one that I wished I could buy, but I was very happy with my Columbia waterproof shell already. We all said we wished we had 1 or 2 more prs of socks, and another pr of underwear. My daughters both had leggings and wore them one day under their jeans, I did not have and was OK, but if I had them I would have worn them. Vancouver was unseasonably warm and we wore shorts and t-shirts and were very warm as in the US summertime.

 

I only had one pr of hiking shoes, tennis shoe style- and though I wound up fine with this, I did get sick of them and wished I had a break. My husband and daughter both brought a 2nd pr of tennis shoes and admitted it was nice to rotate. I waterproofed our shoes with "Kiwi Boot Protector" before we left, figured it couldn't hurt and crossed my fingers. We realized on the last day of the cruise our feet never got wet and we never gave it a second thought. This product was awesome, since we hiked on damp trails and walked in the rain every single day- including the very very saturated pool deck. We did all wear our winter hats and mittens on different days, but never wore scarves- but zipped our fleeces up high. Baseball hats were also worn often both for sun protection and to keep the rain off our face.

 

This is just the clothing. Don't forget cameras, chargers, glasses, sunscreen, etc... that you need every trip. I thought I would pass on what worked for my family. We came home with very very few things unworn (our scarves, two undershirts from my husband), wore a few things multiple times, we could have done laundry later and been OK. I don't wish we would have packed differently, it worked out well.

 

 

 

Great info! We both have water proof jackets to go over fleece. Husband has water proof pants to wear over jeans. I don't. Do you think it's necessary? He found north face had been $98 at outlet for $26! Our cruise isn't until end of August so I'll keep looking!

 

 

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[oaktreerb]

Great info! We both have water proof jackets to go over fleece. Husband has water proof pants to wear over jeans. I don't. Do you think it's necessary? He found north face had been $98 at outlet for $26! Our cruise isn't until end of August so I'll keep looking!

 

 

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I always take my waterproof pants to Alaska. Not only will they keep you dry if it rains, they become your outer layer over yours jeans on glacier viewing days. Mine roll up to fit in their own pouch so they are easy to carry with me if it looks like rain.

[Herfnerd]

Great info! We both have water proof jackets to go over fleece. Husband has water proof pants to wear over jeans. I don't. Do you think it's necessary? He found north face had been $98 at outlet for $26! Our cruise isn't until end of August so I'll keep looking!

 

 

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Frogg Togg makes inexpensive waterproof pants

 

 

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[rkreilly]

Great info! We both have water proof jackets to go over fleece. Husband has water proof pants to wear over jeans. I don't. Do you think it's necessary? He found north face had been $98 at outlet for $26! Our cruise isn't until end of August so I'll keep looking!

 

 

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None of us had waterproof pants, and we did not feel saturated or soaked. It was a very wet week (according to ship staff and locals), and we were OK without them. Did not have umbrella's either- they would have just been in the way. We did take a couple of ponchos if it was really pouring, but these never left the suitcase either- our jackets and hoods did the job.

[TheCalicoCat]

None of us had waterproof pants, and we did not feel saturated or soaked. It was a very wet week (according to ship staff and locals), and we were OK without them. Did not have umbrella's either- they would have just been in the way. We did take a couple of ponchos if it was really pouring, but these never left the suitcase either- our jackets and hoods did the job.

 

So glad to hear this...