Alaska bound help

[a.madruga]

We our looking to book 10 or 11 day cruise/land on HAL late June or July all helpful information appreciated...BTW is balcony/veranda a must? Thanks to all in advance

[a.madruga]

we our looking to book 10 or 11 day cruise/land on hal late june or july all helpful information appreciated...btw is balcony/veranda a must? Thanks to all in advance

2019.....

[AlaskaNewbie68]

Hello, I can't be of too much help as we are taking our first cruise in June to Alaska but it definitely seemed to us that a balcony was a must. I hear the decks get very crowded for photo taking and viewing sights.

 

 

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[3rdGenCunarder]

It depends on whether you want to be out and about on the ship for glacier viewing. We've had a balcony for our two Alaska cruises, and that was sufficient going outside for us, especially last fall when it was cold and rainy. The ship moves very slowly on the sail to the glacier, so we could have a look, then go inside and warm up, and then go out again.

[Old As Dirt Mom]

We our looking to book 10 or 11 day cruise/land on HAL late June or July all helpful information appreciated...BTW is balcony/veranda a must? Thanks to all in advance

 

No, a verandah is absolutely NOT a must. On every HAL Alaskan cruise I have ever taken (14+ on 9 different ships), the captain has opened up the bow for glacier viewing. HAL ships have lots of open deck space for viewing, from the wrap-around promenade, to the aft seaview pool area to the observation decks near the Crow's Nest. We spend a great deal of our Alaska cruise time out on deck enjoying not only the scenery, but also looking for wildlife, whether we have our own verandah or not.

Edited April 13, 2018 by Old As Dirt Mom

[Irish Eyes Are Sailing]

YES in a big way to a balcony.....just do it.

[kwb101]

We took the Y2L (Alaska-Yukon-cruise) 15-day trip last May and June, and managed to get a lanai cabin on Volendam. We thought it was a very good compromise for the price, since it opens directly out onto the Lower Promenade deck, and each cabin has its own two reserved deck chairs. Granted, it's not private, but the view is much more expansive (at least horizontally), and we found the weather the first week of June from Skagway to Vancouver to be generally mild (although it rained the day we were in Ketchikan.

 

Only the six S- and R-class ships have lanais, which are usually priced more than ocean-view cabins and less than verandahs.

 

Good luck!

[Paulinda]

We did the Alaskan cruise 2 years ago and had an Ocean View cabin. It was fine as the weather wasn't conducive to sitting out on a balcony for long. The Captain did open the bow up for viewing Glacier Bay and it wasn't too busy. After the pea soup we retreated to the Lido Pool and watched the ice calfing from there. It was perfect.

[JimnKaren]

You will have days of cruising only; generally the front deck of the ship will be open. Good views. You book a verandah and all you see is one side. Not always the best view (north or south).

 

More days in port than cruising. Save you money for doing 'things', not looking out the side of the ship.

 

Jim

[towhee]

I think it's more fun to be out and about on the decks for glacier viewing, so a veranda is NOT a must. Usually the photographers are around taking pictures and you can't get the wonderful pea soup on your veranda.

[VennDiagram]

No, a verandah is absolutely NOT a must. On every HAL Alaskan cruise I have ever taken (14+ on 9 different ships), the captain has opened up the bow for glacier viewing. HAL ships have lots of open deck space for viewing, from the wrap-around promenade, to the aft seaview pool area to the observation decks near the Crow's Nest. We spend a great deal of our Alaska cruise time out on deck enjoying not only the scenery, but also looking for wildlife, whether we have our own verandah or not.

 

This. THIS. A 1,00 times THIS.

 

 

(verandah not required imho :) )

[winddawn]

We our looking to book 10 or 11 day cruise/land on HAL late June or July all helpful information appreciated...BTW is balcony/veranda a must? Thanks to all in advance

 

I've cruised to Alaska 3 times on 3 different cruise lines. IMHO a balcony cabin is very much worth the extra expense because Alaska is all about experiencing the scenery and wildlife. I did Vancouver to Anchorage, Vancouver round-trip, and Seattle round-trip, and each of those choices is important because it affects which areas you will visit. My preference is doing the Vancouver to Anchorage itinerary. Glacier Bay is an absolute must-see. I recommend you not visit until you can afford to book the best excursions unless you can afford to visit multiple times. My favorite excursions were the Mendenhall Glacier helicopter excursion and the Misty Fjord Float Plane excursion (which I booked twice because it was so spectacular). My opinion is Princess is the best cruise line to book for Alaska.

[OlsSalt]

We sailed on a 7 day -Vancouver to Vancouver Alaska trip in a wonderful SS suite cabin on the Vista class Zuiderdam and there was never a feeling the outer public decks were too crowded. Not sure where you heard they would be. Lots of open deck space on all HAL ships. Full promenade, some aft viewing decks, upper viewing decks across most of the length of the ship, and special opening forward viewing decks with hot split pea soup - a Dutch tradition.

 

We used our cabin verandah itself rarely on that trip (too cold in June), but we did like looking out the large glass windows and doors of that large class suite while we were sailing the Inland Passage, where we could stay warm. Towards the end it was a little warmer and we did enjoy sitting out with the wool lap rugs for a bit to enjoy the Inside Passage on the way back to Vancouver ... cozy, homey and out door - the best of a verandah.

 

What I liked best was the warm sun room feeling of the Lido deck with the closed retractable roof and the banks of large windows along each side where one could move from side to side to see as much as possible, while again being warm (and well-fed). But when it came time for Glaciar Bay, we were mainly on the forward outdoor deck and the ship swung from side to side so everyone could get close up views for an extended period of time - enough to see and hear a tremendous calving.

 

The Crow's Nest might be crowded during these times - the very upper forward facing indoor viewing bar and lounge room. But we did not go up there during the really scenic times. We wanted to be outdoors too and feel Alaska.

[grsnovi]

We've also done Alaska 3x and each time had an outside balcony. My most memorable experience was sitting outside as we approached Sitka or Ketchikan, our cabin was to starboard and we might have been 100 yards from shore. It was early (5:30 or 6) and some whales were swimming between us and the shore. You can hear the glaciers calving if you're outside but you can just as easily get a great view from the Lido. The forward bow is usually crowded when you're actually at the glacier face. I don't think that one side or the other is "better" viewing because eventually you'll be going the other direction.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[bluegiraffe]

I was sure it was a must when I went on my first Alaska cruise. But I changed my mind during the cruise. A balcony is nice to have, but we spent most of the day in Glacier Bay, for example, out in various parts of the ship: the bow, the Crow's Nest, the promenade deck, the aft portion of the Lido deck. It was fun to see everything from different vantage points.

[lynndon]

We did the Alaska cruise last June. We had an oceanview cabin. The bow was never overly crowded. We had a beautiful day at Glacier Bay and was wonderful to move about the ship to take it all in. We walked a lot on the promenade deck throughout our cruise taking in the views. We never once said "oh, I wish we had a balcony".

[Essiesmom]

I've twice done Alaska B2B in inside cabins and never felt I missed anything. EM

[catl331]

We think a balcony is nice in AK, but not a must. We've done two AK cruises with just OVs and didn't regret that choice. On one of those two, a friend had a balcony and she got very little use out of it because of cold/wet weather. In addition to the bow area for glacier viewing, most ships open large forward public balconies as well.

Edited April 14, 2018 by catl331

[Kesstral]

I think it depends on your budget. If you are trying to decide between getting a balcony and being able to do any excursions while in port or maybe between getting a balcony and being able to take that flight seeing/helicopter/(insert other expensive or once in a lifetime excursion here) then I don' think it's worth it to get the balcony.

 

If you have the budget for the balcony and everything else you want do then go for it. But I wouldn't NOT go on an Alaskan cruise just because I couldn't get a balcony. :)