Alaska Cruise - NCL vs HAL (or RCL)

[PixieMom3]

Posted this on the HAL board but also wanted to check in here. I've sailed on Norwegian (and Royal Caribbean) before but I'm trying to decide between NCL, probably Bliss, or Holland America for an Alaska cruise. Taking my dad (80s)and sister (40s) with me.  Can anyone who has sailed on NCL, RCL and/or Holland America let me know how they compare?  Looking for things like rooms (will be getting balcony), dinning and things to do. Thanks in advance. 

[mugtech]

Many claim the best Alaska cruises are on Princess.

[rockfsh]

12 minutes ago, mugtech said:

Many claim the best Alaska cruises are on Princess.

 

Princess is facing federal charges for polluting Alaska again.

https://www.ktuu.com/content/news/Carnival-cruises-in-court-over-pollution-from-its-cruise-ships.html

[smplybcause]

HAL is for older people. My parents felt they were the young ones at 60 on their Caribbean sailing on HAL. In Juneau half the people on the excursion I did were from the HAL ship docked...I believe they were all over 70 maybe 60.

[puppycanducruise]

We did a HAL cruise to Alaska a few years ago.

We were in our forties.  Met people of all ages, lots of families.

They bring a ranger on for commentary in Glacier Bay - very interesting.

Food was good to very good, but of course, that's subjective. 

Service was excellent.  Crew was wonderful.

[smplybcause]

1 hour ago, puppycanducruise said:

We did a HAL cruise to Alaska a few years ago.

We were in our forties.  Met people of all ages, lots of families.

They bring a ranger on for commentary in Glacier Bay - very interesting.

Food was good to very good, but of course, that's subjective. 

Service was excellent.  Crew was wonderful.

 

I think every ship that goes into glacier bay bring on a ranger. Bliss had one talking over intercom from the bridge the whole time we were there plus a few walking around to answer questions. 

[bonvoyagie]

Princess, HAL, and NCL have most of the permits for Glacier Bay so if that is a priority you need to use one of them. Other Glacier Viewing is around Juneau with either Dawes or Sawyer Glaciers.

 

I have cruised NCL three times to AK and enjoyed it very much - there are so many things to do in port that the ship really does not make that much of a difference.

[RNCheryl]

We have sailed Princess (Coral) to Alaska previously, and this is the size of ship I really prefer.  So easy to get around the ship, never any feeling of crowds.  And of course it sails Glacier Bay.

 

But we are 2 weeks out from sailing Bliss.  Chose the large ship for a better kids program and more activities for them.  I personally don't like having to reserve shows, etc. in advance.

 

But Alaska is the star, not the ship.  Balcony is a must.

[Msmojo66]

On 6/22/2019 at 7:26 PM, RNCheryl said:

We have sailed Princess (Coral) to Alaska previously, and this is the size of ship I really prefer.  So easy to get around the ship, never any feeling of crowds.  And of course it sails Glacier Bay.

 

But we are 2 weeks out from sailing Bliss.  Chose the large ship for a better kids program and more activities for them.  I personally don't like having to reserve shows, etc. in advance.

 

But Alaska is the star, not the ship.  Balcony is a must.

Please do a trip report!!!  Would love to see how things compare!!  Looking at booking NCL with 2 11yr olds so very curious!!!

[careyayn22]

28 minutes ago, Msmojo66 said:

Please do a trip report!!!  Would love to see how things compare!!  Looking at booking NCL with 2 11yr olds so very curious!!!

 

We just got back from the Joy sailing with two 11 year olds. They didn’t care for the splash academy this time (did like it two years ago). My dh and I did Alaska in 2002 on the Princess Star.  It’s  hard to compare with that time difference, but I would recommend a glacier bay sailing (which we had on princess and not NCL Joy). However, I think the excursions are more family friendly for the kids on NCL. They liked them all and all were solid quality. 

[zqvol]

On 6/3/2019 at 3:25 PM, PixieMom3 said:

Posted this on the HAL board but also wanted to check in here. I've sailed on Norwegian (and Royal Caribbean) before but I'm trying to decide between NCL, probably Bliss, or Holland America for an Alaska cruise. Taking my dad (80s)and sister (40s) with me.  Can anyone who has sailed on NCL, RCL and/or Holland America let me know how they compare?  Looking for things like rooms (will be getting balcony), dinning and things to do. Thanks in advance. 

We were on HAL this past spring on a Panama Canal cruise. Never again. Among the mass market lines that we have been on (CCL, NCL, Royal and HAL) it is without a doubt the worst.

 

Alaska is about Alaska, not the ship. All the mass market lines go to the same old tired ports, with the same excursions. If you can afoord it the best way to go is a one way north or south and at least get to the Kenai to see some of real Alaska.

[ZsaZsa2019]

We just returned off of the Bliss a week ago.  Over the years, we've done Carnival, NCL, RCL and Celebrity (all caribbean).  This was by far the best as far as on ship service and food.  We were quite pleased.  However, we found too few/too short stops and too much time on the ship this cruise.  We get bored easily, so it was a bit of a struggle.   We felt the Bliss was well laid out and easy to get around for the most part (elevators can be a challenge at times).  The only complaint I'd comment on is that the buffet was a ZOO and so was The Local.  So many people, SO loud at The Local, NO seats at the buffet, just gave me anxiety.  Everywhere else we never felt crowded.  Always found a bar stool, no waiting on other dining, and always found a blackjack table.

 

Glacier Bay was amazing, so if others don't do that, I'd consider that a deal breaker for me.

[cmaygar]

We’ve been on two HAL Alaska cruises and just returned from our Norwegian Alaska cruise from the NCL Joy. The HAL cruises were by ourselves (mature cruisers). The NCL cruise included our daughter and her husband (in their early 40’s) and the two grand kids (13 and 15). We are very glad that we chose the Joy for this cruise. There were dozens of things for the teenagers to do on this ship; including the amazing go-kart race track and a very active teen center with activities. The NCL ship also offered multiple specialty dining options (all fabulous) and a great observation lounge for whale-watching and the ability to see the glaciers while inside (HAL larger ships offer this area also). 

 

I looked at the HAL options and their newest ship in Alaska is the 10-year-old Eurodam. We have been on that ship multiple times and like it very much, but the appeal of a new ship with a full drink package and specialty dining package added as perks sealed the deal for us. HAL needs to compare its amenities to NCL to keep its customers. This was our 22nd cruise. We sailed more times with HAL than with any other lines. Our first NCL cruise was last year in the Med on the Epic and we loved that too. NCL is doing a great job with its newer ships and all-inclusive package options. Right now, I think that NCL has tipped the scales for us to give them a first look for future cruises.

[PixieMom3]

We booked Bliss for next year. The third person was "free", which allows more for excursions and other things, and we got the other packages for two of us. Have the feeling dad will spend most of his time in the observation lounge.  

[qoap24]

On 6/24/2019 at 10:43 AM, zqvol said:

We were on HAL this past spring on a Panama Canal cruise. Never again. Among the mass market lines that we have been on (CCL, NCL, Royal and HAL) it is without a doubt the worst.

 

Can I ask why you felt HAL was the worst?

[jmh3791]

I just wrote a review from my Alaska trip on the NCL Jewel a few weeks ago.  I went with my 73 y.o. dad, and we both had a blast on a smaller ship.  We also went to two glaciers and cruised the Inside Passage of Canada that the larger ships don't do, so the sea was much calmer.