Alaskan Cruise?

[Granny Sue]

Originally Posted by nitram

I'd be sure to get rain insurance since those Alaskan ports can get as much as 120 inches per year. Our last cruise to Alaska, same ports as yours, it rained the whole week heavily and all tours, rentals, site seeing flights were cancelled.
If you pre arranged trips with the Cruise line and it rains, you will not be charged for cancellations. If you go on your own, you take your chances.
I would not count on 13 hours in Skagway. We only had 8 hours. Your time will be cut short by about 1- 2 hours if you rent an automobile just because of the time it takes to do the paperwork checking in and then checking out. If the ship is late docking or there is bad weather you will need to adjust your schedule.
And yes we had some cruisers miss the boat. They had privately arranged sight seeing tours and the cost to catch up to the ship at the next port was expensive. They had a flat tire and hit some bad weather that got them stuck. No AAA available for them.

Good things to keep in mind. Thanks!

[GlendaRN]

Thinking of doing an Alaskan cruise next summer. I've noticed different routes. Anyone know what the best routes/ports to see are?

[wit-nit]

All the major cruise lines take the same routes. Routes vary slightly depending on the length of the cruise, but they all hit the same ports, and many on the same day.

[j_k_k]

We enjoyed it. The towns aren't much--mostly jewelry traps and t-shirt traps--but there are some fun things to do, especially the shore excursions. Of course, you have to be ready to fork over for that.

[Diane Giam]

I went on an Alaskan Cruise from Seattle this year because its easier to fly there. A must do port is Skagway, and the Train excursion from there.
My cruise went into Glacier Bay which was beautiful, but Hubbard Glacier is also very pretty.
I know a lot that do a cruise and a cruise tour where they go into the interior.
You'll love Alaska.

[DotLib]

You will love Alaska, but to me, there is really nothing to see when cruising from Seattle until you reach the ports. I would do the true inside passage and leave from Vancouver, or from the north down to Vancouver.Its still enjoyable either way, but if your into the scenery, much better. Although, it is cheaper from Seattle..and I loved Seattle too! If you can, add a few land days onto your cruise. Be sure and do a Helicopter/Glacier Trek! Its expensive, but well worth it. The best excursion Ive ever taken on a cruise!

The train from Skagway is enjoyable too, just dont buy the video! I loved walking around in Ketchikan. Lovely little town.We did a float plane trip with Michelle of Island Wings, which was awesome... I have never been to Sitka, but a lot of people do like the history there.

Alaska is so beautiful. Im NOT a cold weather person, but it was one of the most enjoyable cruises I have ever taken. Enjoy!

You might want to go to CruiseCritic.com and check out the Alaska threads. You will get a lot of up to date info there. There is a poster named BudgetQueen who can answer any question you might have about a cruise to Alaska!

[Grannysroost]

If possible fly up, rent a car and drive...you will miss SE Alaska, but you can drive to the Kenai Peninsula from Anchorage, drive to Homer, fish for a day, you can to north from Anchorage and see Denali, maybe if she cooperates, even to the North Pole and take pictures with Santa There are also train options, plane options...most of the cruise stops are made in China shops...

[trlhiker]

Grannysroost, that is what my wife and i are planning for next summer. Rent a car in Anchorage and drive to Homer, Seward, Talkeetna, Denali, and either Fairbanks or Valdez. Will take about 2 weeks so we can stay in each place for at least 2 nights.