Cruising Alaska

Having done three over the years, I like whoever has the best deal when I want to go. Last month I actually had a Holland America cruise consultant say (what I've said for years)... DO NOT get a balcony cabin on the AK cruise as it's too cold to use. I would not do their land portion but would rent a Class C for a week and head south to the Kenai/Seward/Homer. I would not go north for Denali unless you do the flghtseeing out of Talkeetna although some offer bus service out of Anchorage. I would not take the school bus rides to see wildlife at Denali... BORING and a ruff ride. You can get land excursions for 1/2 of what the cruise line want... do a google search. AK WX is such that you can have great WX in late May and sorry WX in July. The length of the days that far north is not a problem, but finding something to put in the overhead vents of the MH to darken it is. PM me on our trip last summer.

* More info: Having taken over 50 cruises... a 21 day to Norway this past August we go cheap and often. On the AK cruise you are in port during the day and while there will be several hours of daylight cruising, between dinner and the shows, not much time to sit on a COLD balcony. Get a window cabin for less than $75/day/person
As a pilot the best way to see THE MOUNTAIN is from the air. Guess I've seen enough wildlife over the years so not a BIG deal anymore. The shuttle bus (new in the last 12 years) sounds better than the yellow school buses, but the scenery is still boring. Did I mention I LIKE TREES!
The last minute cruises are back to being the bargains... book your flights more than 21 days out, but wait for the cruise prices to come down... like this ocean view $75/day/person.
I would recommend becoming a member at: http://vacationstogo.com/ as they have many really good vacation deals of all sorts.
For less expensive port excursions try Viato or as suggested pair up and get a van for 6. Had a driver when asked about seeing lots of bald eagles... he took us behind a grocery store in Juneau where there were 10 lined up on the power line waiting for the scraps. They did not mind 6 people getting out and look up at them from 25'.

Ivylog wrote:
I would not go north for Denali unless you do the flghtseeing out of Talkeetna although some offer bus service out of Anchorage. I would not take the school bus rides to see wildlife at Denali... BORING and a ruff ride.

Wow! I've never heard of anyone thinking Denali wasn't worth doing!!! If you only fly to the mountain you aren't seeing Denali National Park. As far as the shuttle busses...they're the best way to go. We saw every single kind of animal that lives in that park by doing the bus. Not boring at all. Rough road? It's a well-graded gravel road. No, it's not an interstate. We even stayed 5 nights at the farthest campground you can drive to - Teklanika - and took the bus tour out farther every day and sometimes with a few short trips added. When you stay at that campground you can ride the bus as often as you want and whenever you want with only one fee. We couldn't get enough of Denali!! Everyone is certainly different, for sure.

The year we took the ferry, we did rent a small Class C for a month. The combination is a great way to go. There's much to see by traveling the highways, too. We've also driven the whole way up which is another great adventure...Canada and the Yukon are just as beautiful as Alaska. There are many ways to do the trip and sometimes you just have to go back and back again!!

Goldencrazy wrote:
Take the marine Highway from Bellingham. Get off at the various ports and stay awhile in a hotel-we had motorhome. Take a car or rent one when there. Not expensive and great way to see the whole area up close on a leisurely trip that you choose the terms. Denali-take the bus trip to the end of the park-8 to 11 hrs of very interesting trip. Take a glacier cruise somewhere. Enjoy.

X-2, you will sail out of B'Ham on the MV Columbia or the MV Matanuska I know a lot of the crews I used to work with them, there good people!

We did what Diplomat Don did except we went in August. There was a bit of rain but with rain there were no bugs. At the different ports we walked as far as we could away from the tourist traps and checked out the towns in that matter along with eating away from there. We had a balcony and had the door open almost the whole time so its not that cold. Our bill for the trip was also about 10k when it was said and done.

Ivylog wrote:
Having done three over the years, I like whoever has the best deal when I want to go. Last month I actually had a Holland America cruise consultant say (what I've said for years)... DO NOT get a balcony cabin on the AK cruise as it's too cold to use. I would not do their land portion but would rent a Class C for a week and head south to the Kenai/Seward/Homer. I would not go north for Denali unless you do the flghtseeing out of Talkeetna although some offer bus service out of Anchorage. I would not take the school bus rides to see wildlife at Denali... BORING and a ruff ride. You can get land excursions for 1/2 of what the cruise line want... do a google search. AK WX is such that you can have great WX in late May and sorry WX in July. The length of the days that far north is not a problem, but finding something to put in the overhead vents of the MH to darken it is. PM me on our trip last summer.

With all due respect, GET A BALCONY CABIN! We had one and it was well worth the money and I spent many many hours on my private balcony during the cruise. It was NOT too cold to use in July. I would not do an Alaska cruise in anything other than a balcony cabin.

Well, I wrote a long,excellent (if I do say so) reply but the site froze and I lost it. So, the Cliff Notes version -

Ask an Alaska-specialist travel agent about small-ship cruises to Alaska. They are pricey but they are worth it. That's how we cruised Alaska (can't afford to do it twice) and it was fantastic! Got up close to wildlife (in a safe way) and we were able to check out the scenery in a more relaxed (and casual) manner. Haven't yet tried the ferry, but there are some advantages to that mode of cruising as well.

Yes, you can take the Alaska RR to Denali, though you will need to find a hotel there that offers a shuttle to/from the train. You can also rent a car & drive it. Not a problem.

Best time of year: May through the first half of September. We did our Denali trip the week after Labor Day (years ago) and the fall colors were stupendous! Nice pleasant weather, in the 50s. We took our cruise in early to mid-May, and the only thing we missed was orca - too early for them. Saw plenty of humpbacks, though.

Ditto msmith on the balcony cabin. If you do not do the small ship or the ferry, BY ALL MEANS get a balcony cabin. Yes, it will be windy and chilly - dress for it, in layers, and enjoy.

Obviously, nothing takes you to the base of McKinley, but your feet!. The train leaves Denali area (sorry I wasn't exact) and travels down to the McKinley area (sorry I wasn't exact). You take a bus ride to the McKinley Lodge where you have a beautiful view of McKinley from their deck.

The part about not getting a balcony cabin is ludicrous. In July, we left our door open whenever we were in the room. We sat out in shorts for cocktails.

We've been on 16 cruises so far (and still counting.) I don't know if Diplomat Don is a long time cruiser or a newbie, but he pretty much hit the nail right on the head in his first post, other than he left out RCCL. RCCL is the best bang for the buck, but it will also be a step below a few of the other cruise lines.

Cruising for us is a very economical stress free way of traveling. I wouldn't call it an adventure (like RV'ing on your own) it's more like going on vacation where your parents were in charge. Just plain touristy fun, interspersed with some corny down time.

We took a reposition cruise from Alaska down to LA near the end of August. Much too cold to spend time on deck when north, but very nice once we got down south.

Between 2006 and 2008 my late wife and I enjoyed three cruises. We loved cruising so much I'm only sorry we didn't discover the delights years earlier. Our first cruise was to Alaska on Celebrity. We loved the cruise, we weren't that crazy about the cruise line. Our next cruise was out of NY and up in to Canada's Maritime provinces. It was an okay cruise but the ship was infested with grumpy and impolite passengers, not the cruise lines fault but YIIIICK! I forget the cruise line, but it was okay. Our third and final cruise left Valparaiso Chile went down the coast through the Straits of Magellan, visited Cape Horn and the Falkland Islands and ended in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It was a two week cruise which we found to be a little excessive in length, but we both loved Norwegian Cruise Lines. When I take another cruise it'll be on Norwegian.

BTW, if you get a chance while your in Alaska, have some fresh-from-the-boat king crab, you won't be sorry!

Steve

You might check out The smaller cruise ships, Jimmy west I believe. Mqx 80 people. They get to go into the forbidden waters of the larger ships accompanied by a forest ranger. Excellent food and a very hands on personal touch.
I second Cruising the Alaskan Highway also, did it and really enjoyed our own pace. We could get off at its ports visit the villages and towns, even stay a few days then continue on when the next ferry arrived, staterooms are available if desired and decent food. Skagway is the last stop, then it returns.
Rent a car or rv and visit Denali, fish halibut in Homer.