Recommendations for 20-Somethings on Alaska Cruises

[NCmomwithteens]

We are going on the Princess Aug 11 out of Seattle. I have a 20 year old daughter and 16 year old son. How might they connect with some other young people?

[NCmomwithteens]

By the way, what is AO?

[cruisienewbie]

Yeah! Are you doing late or early dining? I am getting so excited! I am from Alabama so I am a little nervous about the cold weather! Anything below 70 is cold for me!:eek:

So what excursions are you planning on doing? We are still deciding:confused:

 

I'm doing late dining. Didn't have a choice but based on our excursions it turned out for the best. I'm from Alabama too! Small world. We're doing the Taku Glacier Flight & Feast in Juneau, and I can't remember the rest. Seems like there is a whale watch somewhere, dog sledding, white pass railway, and a forest and nature tram. I'm going to need a vacation from my vacation! You've signed up for the Meet and Mingle right?

[IndpdntChik324]

I'm right there with the young crew...

 

Me and my husband are both 22 and planning our honeymoon to Alaska. I guess we're not your typical 20-something partiers. Both hubby and I have dreamt of going to Alaska since we were kids. I remember reading the cruise catalogs my mom got and seeing those pictures...man I wanted to go so bad. But parents love the heat of the Caribbean, so I had to wait until I was old enough to pay the bill...

 

Anyway, even planning this cruise has been a blast so far. We're not going until 2009, but so far I've gotten quite a bit narrowed down. Probably going to go with Carnival, unless NCL gets a better military rate program. Carnival's military rates are incredibly hard to pass up. But I've heard that Carnival has more of an up-beat, life-loving crowd than a few of the other cruiselines. And we're planning for late May, so there will probably be less school-age kids and families than in the summer. The age difference won't bother us a bit.

 

We'll probably do a fishing excursion, whale-watching, a helicopter tour and landing, maybe kayaking, and some independent exploration of our own. Also planning an independent one-week land tour, post-cruise, for some extra Alaska sightseeing. I'm really counting down the days (only 2 years :cool: )

 

Anyway, happy planning and happy travels!

[lilrere]

I'm doing late dining. Didn't have a choice but based on our excursions it turned out for the best. I'm from Alabama too! Small world. We're doing the Taku Glacier Flight & Feast in Juneau, and I can't remember the rest. Seems like there is a whale watch somewhere, dog sledding, white pass railway, and a forest and nature tram. I'm going to need a vacation from my vacation! You've signed up for the Meet and Mingle right?

 

We are doing the late dining too! :) I like to eat late and have plenty of free time in the afternoon! We booked a Deluxe Sightseeing tour with Southeast tours last night. And we are planning on doing the Mendenhall Glacier and Salmon Bake in Juneau. We are still deciding on the rest!

I have not signed up yet but I am planning on it!

Can you believe less than a month and we will be on the cruise!:D

[Terpnut]

By the way, what is AO?

AO = Adventure Ocean (RCI's onboard children's program)

[Terpnut]

But I've heard that Carnival has more of an up-beat, life-loving crowd than a few of the other cruiselines. And we're planning for late May, so there will probably be less school-age kids and families than in the summer.

While this is true for Caribbean itineraries, I would not count on Carnival being much different in passenger demographics in Alaska than the other lines.

[cruisienewbie]

We are doing the late dining too! :) I like to eat late and have plenty of free time in the afternoon! We booked a Deluxe Sightseeing tour with Southeast tours last night. And we are planning on doing the Mendenhall Glacier and Salmon Bake in Juneau. We are still deciding on the rest!

I have not signed up yet but I am planning on it!

Can you believe less than a month and we will be on the cruise!:D

 

I know. It is exciting. Make sure you sign up online for the Meet & Mingle so you get the invitation to the party RCL puts on. It sounds like you have some cool excursions. I'm counting down the days and I tell you there sure aren't many left :D ! Are you going to Vancouver early?

[mattswife]

DH is 48 and I'm 35 we will be up all night an sightseeing all day!!! we don't go to bed early so if anyone is on the May 5 sailing of the Star join us late night at the casino/bar. we will catch up on our sleep on the days at sea!!! see ya there!!!

:D :D

Blondie35-

Too bad we are not on the Star. Sounds like we have similar ideas as to how our trip is going to be "up all night, sightseeing all day". We leave the same date out of Seattle on the Golden Princess. We are both 33 and would love some like minded people to hang out with at the bar/casino.

 

Any other 3O somethings on the Golden leaving May 5?

[JJ2sail]

We are going on RC this year. Some of the excursions being offered include, hiking, cycling, zipline, 4X4 back country, canoes, kayaking etc...

[zetabetatau]

i'm 31 and going solo on the Carnival Glacier Bay on May 9. Sounds like I might be the freak show onboard!!! (look at the wee one!!!)

[dyeadave]

I can't help you on the ship, but when you get off in Skagway, you are actually coming into a very unique mix of people! There are only about 700 of us who live here year round, but starting this week, the population swells to well over 2000! The LARGE majority of the"summer help" are in what us old fogeys like to call the date&mate age range of 18 to 30. They are mostly here to work hard and pay for college but they do know how to party! They fill up the churches as well as the bars and all of the front yards of the crew houses all round the town! They have discovered a mecca of working at things that they would like to do anyway and so they keep coming back each year until they graduate college and are forced to move on to "reality"! This is what one young lady lamented last year on her fifth and last summer here!

I help them start gardens with plantings purloined from my sisters garden and in turn I never lack for help with any heavy lifting due to my bad back. If I went to every food party that I get invited to each summer I would probably weigh 400 pounds or more.

They have hiking, rockclimbing, fishing, rafting all within a few blocks of their housing and this is what they do for work!?! Come and meet some of the crowd of youth which outnumbers us old folks by about three to one. I am sure that they will help you find amusement!?!

The cruise can be just a way to get somewhere if you are creative! DD;)

[WackyHeathen]

I can't help you on the ship, but when you get off in Skagway, you are actually coming into a very unique mix of people! There are only about 700 of us who live here year round, but starting this week, the population swells to well over 2000! The LARGE majority of the "summer help" are in what us old fogeys like to call the date&mate age range of 18 to 30. They are mostly here to work hard and pay for college but they do know how to party! They fill up the churches as well as the bars and all of the front yards of the crew houses all round the town! They have discovered a mecca of working at things that they would like to do anyway and so they keep coming back each year until they graduate college and are forced to move on to "reality"! This is what one young lady lamented last year on her fifth and last summer here!

I help them start gardens with plantings purloined from my sisters garden and in turn I never lack for help with any heavy lifting due to my bad back. If I went to every food party that I get invited to each summer I would probably weigh 400 pounds or more.

They have hiking, rockclimbing, fishing, rafting all within a few blocks of their housing and this is what they do for work!?! Come and meet some of the crowd of youth which outnumbers us old folks by about three to one. I am sure that they will help you find amusement!?!

The cruise can be just a way to get somewhere if you are creative! DD;)

 

Hey Dave,

 

Are there any ways to hook up with these young folks when you get off in Skagway? What would you suggest? Is there any place in particular that hte younger working crowd hangs out at? Are there tour companies that are marketing to adventurous types?

 

Cheers,

 

Wacky

[gambit57]

Me and my friend had lots of fun kayaking and mountain biking the last time I went. The people doing physical excursions like that are almost surely going to be on the younger side. Zip lining should be another one where the people will trend towards the younger side.

 

Otherwise, Alaska is fairly sedate and the cruisers trend well into the mature side. Just cuz they've got quite a few years under their belt doesn't mean they aren't fun to chat and hang around with. On my honeymoon cruise a couple of years ago, our table companions were a lovely 80+ yr old gentleman and his 70+ yr old companion (g/f?). During all those years, they'd accumulated a treasure trove of great stories.

[Citizengwen]

don't get me wrong, my husband (28) and i (27) like to party and we party hard...but i do that at home. haha. we're going to alaska in 2 weeks on NCL. our itinerary consists of ways to get away from the world, not party with it.

[usnavywife]

You all won't be anywhere near the youngest onboard. Don't forget that most summer sailings will have hundreds of children! On our Alaska cruise last August on Royal Caribbean, I think there were 300 kids registered just for AO (that's over 10% of the onboard population)! Oh wait, did you mean the youngest ADULTS!? :)

haha lol

We are taking 3 kids too so I know there will be atleast 3 younger than me lol