Please Assist With Alaska Cruise

[MtnSeaGirl]

Hey, Fellow Cruise Critics!  I need some HELP.  We are looking at a 2026 Alaska cruise.  We plan to do the precruise land tour prior to sailing.  I have been to the Caribbean many times most recently arriving home yesterday....  Never to Alaska, and this may be our one shot.  I am requesting information as to which ports/crusing areas are not to be missed.   Cruising areas:   Inside Passage is a must I understand.  Hubbard Glacier?  Glacier Bay? Tracy Arm Fjord, other???  If I can't get all of them, what is the must do(s)?  Ports: Sitka, Skagway, Ketichan, other???  We will limit shore excursions due to the precruise land portion so please help me get the best bang for our buck.  The sailings are not out yet for 2026.  I just want to be ready when they hit.  We are looking at Royal and maybe Holland Amer, but will keep an open mind.  This cruise is about the scenery for us and not the ship. We want to soak in as much beauty and majesty of Alaska as we can. Oh, two final questions for now:  What about the precruise trip that includes Alyeska? For grins we priced a RC 2025 Alaska trip and for some reason the extra day on the precruise portion that includes staying in  Alyeska, the tram, and a riverboat ride ( in a distant area ) was $ 1800 more.   That seems a lot for one night, a tram and a riverboat, but Alaska is expensive to begin wiht.  I think this was the 3B Royal Carib trip ( 7 day cruise with 3 extra nights on land ).   Fairbanks - worth the extra bucks and day to see Fairbanks given everything else we will be seeing?  Fairbanks was not on the 3B Precruise but a different option.  I know cost is subjective but please help a gal out here, and I certainly appreciate it in advance.  

[CruiserBruce]

Just a little reading around the board answers a number of your questions....first, that Glacier Bay is pretty important, and RCI doesn't sail there, but HAL does. 

[oaktreerb]

How many days do you have for precruise?  Do you want to do a cruise tour or plan your own land tour?  If you look at Holland America offerings for 2025, the itineraries will probably be the same for 2026.  You will want 2-3 nights in Denali, Fairbanks is optional but included in some tours.  Alyeska would be a nice place to stay if you do your own tour and have a car.  You want to cruise on a ship that sails through the inside passage to Vancouver.  Glacier Bay is amazing and a national park, Skagway is Gold Rush history with national park exhibits.  Sitka is beautiful with Russian history and is very scenic.  Most ships stop at Ketchikan and Juneau.  

 

Hope that helps you get started on your research!

[sadiwest]

I have been to Alaska once on Princess.   When I was considering a second visit I priced RCCL and found it to be a bit more than Princess.  Probably wouldn't care about the difference in cost if RCCL was as good or better.  I'm told, however, that Princess is the BEST for Alaska. 

 

I can't speak about the stop you mentioned as I haven't been. 

[royal3]

Been on Alaska cruises several times. Our favorite port is Skagway and we love Hubbard Glacier. 

[MtnSeaGirl]

19 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

Just a little reading around the board answers a number of your questions....first, that Glacier Bay is pretty important, and RCI doesn't sail there, but HAL does. 

Thank you, CruiserBruce.  I am now back full swing into those grinding 55 and 60 hour work weeks so appreciate any and all Alaska advice on this thread.  I read a few Alaska threads yesterday as I had one final day off, but after my 15 min morning break today, I'm pretty much rocking and rolling.  Four more years until retirement.....  I will put Glacier Bay on the list.  Thanks, SOOO much.  

[MtnSeaGirl]

15 hours ago, oaktreerb said:

How many days do you have for precruise?  Do you want to do a cruise tour or plan your own land tour?  If you look at Holland America offerings for 2025, the itineraries will probably be the same for 2026.  You will want 2-3 nights in Denali, Fairbanks is optional but included in some tours.  Alyeska would be a nice place to stay if you do your own tour and have a car.  You want to cruise on a ship that sails through the inside passage to Vancouver.  Glacier Bay is amazing and a national park, Skagway is Gold Rush history with national park exhibits.  Sitka is beautiful with Russian history and is very scenic.  Most ships stop at Ketchikan and Juneau.  

 

Hope that helps you get started on your research!

Thank you, thank you!  We plan on 3 days precruise.  We will not have a car of our own as we plan to book the precruise portion thru the ship.....at least we think so as Alaska is new to us and for some reason seems to be intimidating; not sure why.  

[MtnSeaGirl]

10 hours ago, royal3 said:

Been on Alaska cruises several times. Our favorite port is Skagway and we love Hubbard Glacier. 

Appreciate this!  Thanks so muchly!  

[MtnSeaGirl]

14 hours ago, sadiwest said:

I have been to Alaska once on Princess.   When I was considering a second visit I priced RCCL and found it to be a bit more than Princess.  Probably wouldn't care about the difference in cost if RCCL was as good or better.  I'm told, however, that Princess is the BEST for Alaska. 

 

I can't speak about the stop you mentioned as I haven't been. 

Hey, I will check Princess out.  I had pretty much figured it was too far out of the budget, but I will throw it in the mix.  

[sherryf]

14 minutes ago, MtnSeaGirl said:

Hey, I will check Princess out.  I had pretty much figured it was too far out of the budget, but I will throw it in the mix.  

Princess and Holland America are similar in style and similar in price.  They both have been doing Alaska for a long time and do it well... and they both go to Glacier Bay.  If this is likely your only trip to Alaska, you don't want to miss Glacier Bay!  I have cruised both Princess and HAL to Alaska and enjoyed them both very much, but I would give a slight edge to Princess.  They have better naturalists, more enrichment lectures, and extras like husky puppies, Libby Riddles (first woman to win Iditarod), etc.

[libtrek]

Just a couple thoughts from someone who has done a lot of Alaska cruises both land and sea. 1. You have a bit of time. Suggest you read through a lot of reviews about DIY trips. You might be better to rent a car and pick a specific area to explore. Then get on your cruise. 2. I would suggest you think about a one-way cruise, like Vancouver to Anchorage or something similar. We have found that most round-trip cruises from Seattle have shorter times in port and more open ocean time. 3. You might even want to think about a smaller ship as they do spend longer in port, do the inside passage, and things like that. 4. Pro and con about cruise tours. They are very structured, you will often have to have your bags out early in the morning and then take a long bus ride. On the other hand, if you have never been to Alaska before it might be a good orientation. We started with cruise tours, but then did a DIY. Must say the DIY, even with car rental, was cheaper and we enjoyed doing things on our own pace. 5. You might consider this cruise a one and done. From personal experience, going on our seventh Alaska cruise soon, you might find you just have to go back. L O L. Mary

[sunluvr62]

5 hours ago, libtrek said:

Just a couple thoughts from someone who has done a lot of Alaska cruises both land and sea. 1. You have a bit of time. Suggest you read through a lot of reviews about DIY trips. You might be better to rent a car and pick a specific area to explore. Then get on your cruise. 2. I would suggest you think about a one-way cruise, like Vancouver to Anchorage or something similar. We have found that most round-trip cruises from Seattle have shorter times in port and more open ocean time. 3. You might even want to think about a smaller ship as they do spend longer in port, do the inside passage, and things like that. 4. Pro and con about cruise tours. They are very structured, you will often have to have your bags out early in the morning and then take a long bus ride. On the other hand, if you have never been to Alaska before it might be a good orientation. We started with cruise tours, but then did a DIY. Must say the DIY, even with car rental, was cheaper and we enjoyed doing things on our own pace. 5. You might consider this cruise a one and done. From personal experience, going on our seventh Alaska cruise soon, you might find you just have to go back. L O L. Mary

What is your cruise line prefrence?

[libtrek]

13 minutes ago, sunluvr62 said:

What is your cruise line prefrence?

Good question. I would eliminate Carnival, we’ve outgrown them plus they go from Seattle. I would go with Princess or NCL. We tried Celebrity and meh. Lately we’ve done NCL Jewell. Smaller ship, good port times, does inside passage. I like their drink package (included). You do have to pay the tips but if you have a Bloody Mary in the morning, a few drinks during the day, wine with dinner, and a nightcap, you’re ahead. Staff is excellent and the ship was refurbished just pre Covid. Mary Lou

[Coral]

I would budget for shore excursions on the cruise also. You don't want to be stuck in port towns. Look through these and see what interests you and then budget for them. Also this may help you decide which ports you like also. Many one way cruises include 2 glacier days (as opposed to just one) -I would aim for that. I personally think Hubbard Glacier and Glacier Bay would probably be my choices though Glacier Bay is #1 because it is always accessible and is a National Park.

 

BTW - I thought I would never like Alaska and only went because we got a free cruise. I much prefer Alaska to the Caribbean any day.

[oaktreerb]

Holland America has the D5L which begins with an overnight in Fairbanks and a bus ride to Denali, two nights in Denali with the Tundra wilderness Tour, scenic train to Anchorage overnight, scenic train to Whittier to join the ship.  If you start in Anchorage and go to Denali you have to return to Anchorage to join the ship in Whittier.

The bus ride from Fairbanks to Denali is maybe 4 hours, between Denali and Anchorage whether bus or train is a full day.   I think this itinerary would be the best use of your 3-4 days. @MtnSeaGirl

Edited April 17 by oaktreerb

[Coral]

If you are only doing 3-4 nights on land - I would skip Fairbanks. That is too far to go IMO for that short of trip.

 

I would be tempted to do it on my own. Rent a car and do Alyeska (Girdwood) and Seward.

[oaktreerb]

10 hours ago, MtnSeaGirl said:

Thank you, thank you!  We plan on 3 days precruise.  We will not have a car of our own as we plan to book the precruise portion thru the ship.....at least we think so as Alaska is new to us and for some reason seems to be intimidating; not sure why.  

It’s intimidating because there are a lot of choices.  The first time we went to Alaska we did a 10-11 day cruise tour.  i wanted to see Glacier Bay, Denali, and the Matanuska Valley.  Our TA chose a great HAL short cruise tour for us that took us from Fairbanks to Denali to Anchorage to the ship in Seward at that time.  We have been back many times over the years!  

[Coral]

Alaska by Cruise Ship by Anne Vipond is a great book to get a feel for Alaska planning.

[jean-lynd]

Princess and HAL have cruised Alaska the longest so they tend to have the best itineraries and longest port stays.

[afn10305]

On 4/15/2024 at 7:10 PM, oaktreerb said:

How many days do you have for precruise?  Do you want to do a cruise tour or plan your own land tour?  If you look at Holland America offerings for 2025, the itineraries will probably be the same for 2026.  You will want 2-3 nights in Denali, Fairbanks is optional but included in some tours.  Alyeska would be a nice place to stay if you do your own tour and have a car.  You want to cruise on a ship that sails through the inside passage to Vancouver.  Glacier Bay is amazing and a national park, Skagway is Gold Rush history with national park exhibits.  Sitka is beautiful with Russian history and is very scenic.  Most ships stop at Ketchikan and Juneau.  

 

Hope that helps you get started on your research!

Thank you for this info oaktreerb.  We're in the talking stages of our first-ever Alaska cruise and possible land tour for summer 2025, so will be following these forums as well.

[afn10305]

On 4/16/2024 at 10:18 AM, MtnSeaGirl said:

Thank you, thank you!  We plan on 3 days precruise.  We will not have a car of our own as we plan to book the precruise portion thru the ship.....at least we think so as Alaska is new to us and for some reason seems to be intimidating; not sure why.  

Ditto for us Florida folks MtnSeaGirl!  We are experienced cruisers, but first time considering Alaska, so are having trouble trying to figure out what will work best for us.  We're planning for summer 2025 and want to maximize our travel there.

[afn10305]

23 hours ago, libtrek said:

Good question. I would eliminate Carnival, we’ve outgrown them plus they go from Seattle. I would go with Princess or NCL. We tried Celebrity and meh. Lately we’ve done NCL Jewell. Smaller ship, good port times, does inside passage. I like their drink package (included). You do have to pay the tips but if you have a Bloody Mary in the morning, a few drinks during the day, wine with dinner, and a nightcap, you’re ahead. Staff is excellent and the ship was refurbished just pre Covid. Mary Lou

Mary Lou,

I would be interested to hear more about your upcoming NCL Jewel plans for the end of April and May. We just hit Sapphire for the Latitudes program and are open to any cruise line really that fits our time frame and itinerary, but have more CruiseNext deposits available.

[libtrek]

1 hour ago, afn10305 said:

Mary Lou,

I would be interested to hear more about your upcoming NCL Jewel plans for the end of April and May. We just hit Sapphire for the Latitudes program and are open to any cruise line really that fits our time frame and itinerary, but have more CruiseNext deposits available.

Well, we leave in about a week and a half. Because hubs has Alzheimer’s it makes our cruise different than most. I try to simplify everything. The itinerary the Jewell follows is great scenery most of the way, so if we don’t move around much, we still have something to look at. We too are Sapphire so enjoy the extra fancy dinners and free laundry. I can pack less which makes things easier. Any specific questions? Mary Lou

[MtnSeaGirl]

On 4/16/2024 at 10:38 AM, sherryf said:

Princess and Holland America are similar in style and similar in price.  They both have been doing Alaska for a long time and do it well... and they both go to Glacier Bay.  If this is likely your only trip to Alaska, you don't want to miss Glacier Bay!  I have cruised both Princess and HAL to Alaska and enjoyed them both very much, but I would give a slight edge to Princess.  They have better naturalists, more enrichment lectures, and extras like husky puppies, Libby Riddles (first woman to win Iditarod), etc.

TY, Sherry F.  I will look at both lines.  I really want to get this right and appreciate your help.  

[MtnSeaGirl]

On 4/16/2024 at 1:24 PM, libtrek said:

Just a couple thoughts from someone who has done a lot of Alaska cruises both land and sea. 1. You have a bit of time. Suggest you read through a lot of reviews about DIY trips. You might be better to rent a car and pick a specific area to explore. Then get on your cruise. 2. I would suggest you think about a one-way cruise, like Vancouver to Anchorage or something similar. We have found that most round-trip cruises from Seattle have shorter times in port and more open ocean time. 3. You might even want to think about a smaller ship as they do spend longer in port, do the inside passage, and things like that. 4. Pro and con about cruise tours. They are very structured, you will often have to have your bags out early in the morning and then take a long bus ride. On the other hand, if you have never been to Alaska before it might be a good orientation. We started with cruise tours, but then did a DIY. Must say the DIY, even with car rental, was cheaper and we enjoyed doing things on our own pace. 5. You might consider this cruise a one and done. From personal experience, going on our seventh Alaska cruise soon, you might find you just have to go back. L O L. Mary

Lots of good advice, and this is why I ask questions here.  Will certainly read some of the DIY reviews.  Yes, we plan to take a smaller ship to make sure we nail the Inside passage.  Def doing a one way with most likely a land tour prior to the cruise.  I'm glad you love Alaska.  Maybe we will be blessed with more time and $ to return after this one.  I am good at stretching a dollar at home to save for what I want to do.  Thanks again!