I would like to go on a cruise at the end of July to help my GF celebrate her 50th birthday.
I am presently considering taking a cruise ship from Alaska to Vancouver, BC. I would appreciate any advice and/or observations anyone could share.
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We went Princess. We have done several cruises, and chose an inside cabin for this one. It was one of the few cruises I wish we would have chosen a balcony. Aslo cruising north get a cabin on the right side of the ship. The coast line, and most of the view, is out the right going up, and left coming back. As most only cruise one way, pick your best view. Now even though we had an inside cabin, it did not stop us from the v iews. There is always somewhere on the ship to sit and watch the scenery go by.
Take a heavy coat, and a rain slicker jacket, even in July. You may not need it, but if you do, you really do! If I could do only one cruise, it would be Alaska.
I would also fly to Alaska, do Denali National Park, and cruise back. Why, you ask? It's hurricane season! There are very few flights out of Anchorage. We went south to north, and Allison hit Houston while we were gone. Our flight was canceled out of Alaska, due to the fact the Continental could not get planes out of Houston. It took us 48 hours to get home!
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I've never been on one, but a friend of mine went on an Alaskan cruise. He said if I ever decided to go on one, I must get a room with a balcony. You can have your meals served to you out there; enjoy privacy and have a glorious view.
I would like to go on a cruise at the end of July to help my GF celebrate her 50th birthday.
I am presently considering taking a cruise ship from Alaska to Vancouver, BC. I would appreciate any advice and/or observations anyone could share.
DW and I took a cruise a couple of years ago Seward-Vancouver on Holland-American lines. It was the best! Also took a week land tour of Alaska the week prior. The best (part 2)!
BTW I understand that this year is the lowest cruise costs in years and next year there will be fewer ships sailing, thus higher prices.
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Just in case you're cruising from/to Anchorage.........I've been told by some veteran cruisers that they got the (sea)sickest they've ever been on an
AK cruise. The sheltered Inside Passage may be nice and calm but apparently the open ocean from there to Anchorage may not always be so pleasant so be prepared just in case.
Just in case you're cruising from/to Anchorage.........I've been told by some veteran cruisers that they got the (sea)sickest they've ever been on an
AK cruise. The sheltered Inside Passage may be nice and calm but apparently the open ocean from there to Anchorage may not always be so pleasant so be prepared just in case.
I've done three Alaska cruises and we were lucky when we left the shelter of the Inside Passage for Whittier on the one time we did that, but we did have one cruise where the unprotected waters of the Pacific between Vancouver Island and the Inside Passage were rather rough. Fortunately that only lasted a few hours.
If you think this may be a once in a lifetime chance to go to Alaska, then I'd pad it a few days and spend some time on land. Definitely spend some time in Denali, and a couple of days in Anchorage aren't bad, either. The drive from Anchorage to Seward on the Seward Highway is about 120 miles and is a breathtaking drive. The first 50 miles or so have you right up against the hillside on one side of the road and the mudflats leading into Turnagain Arm on the other side. The remainder is mostly inland and has some terrific vistas almost all the way into Seward.
__________________ "Hey, for every ten dollars, that's another hour that I have to be in the work place. That's an hour of my life. And my life is a very finite thing. I have only 'x' number of hours left before I'm dead. So how do I want to use these hours of my life? Do I want to use them just spending it on more crap and more stuff, or do I want to start getting a handle on it and using my life more intelligently?" -- Joe Dominguez (1938 - 1997)
We went Princess. We have done several cruises, and chose an inside cabin for this one. It was one of the few cruises I wish we would have chosen a balcony. Aslo cruising north get a cabin on the right side of the ship. ...
Take a heavy coat, and a rain slicker jacket, even in July. You may not need it, but if you do, you really do! If I could do only one cruise, it would be Alaska.
Thank you Rustic. We are sailing on Princess out of Vancouver on June 21. Prices were way down this year so we got a balcony cabin on the right side. We will take the rain coats/pants.
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Pants most likely are not necessary, but hey if they don't take up much room, why not. We went in June. I told DW we needed to take heavy coats. She was opposed. I finally said, 'Just put them in a separate suitcase, If we don't need them we won't even unpack them.' I was in trouble until day three. It took that long to get far enough north. You could not go out on the deck without them!
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We are looking at Alaskan cruises as well. How do others handle flights? Do they buy round-trip tickets to/from Vancouver, and one way from Anchorage back to Vancouver? All the tickets add up to about $1,000 a person. Is there a better way to do it? One-way to Vancouver and one-way from Anchorage? One-way car rental from anchorage to Vancouver?
We're doing our second Alaska cruise in about 2 weeks from Seward to Vancouver on Holland America. Our airline tickets are as follows:
From CA to ANC
Return Portland to CA.
Alaska Airlines has good deals from CA. Our friends are going to rent a van in Portland and drive up to Vancouver and meet us there, we'll go around the Pacific Northwest for a week before flying home from PDX. BTW, Car rentals are expensive in Alaska! I think we are paying about $70/day for 2 days in ANC.
We are going to hang out in ANC for a couple of days. Not doing Denali this time because my parents are coming along and Mom just had knee surgery. If I could, I would not miss Denali. Go on some ranger led hikes there, simply breathtaking, especially when you run into grizzlies!
We also spent some time in the Kenai pensisula last time and it was VERY nice! Staying in log cabins and sampling the local salmon (best I've ever had).
I am doing my first Alaska cruise (Holland America Veendam) from Vancouver to Seward starting in 11 days.
The LAX to Vancouver flight is only $133. After taking a Seward-Homer bus and spending 2 days in Homer, 11 days of ferrying around, and watching the July 4th fireworks with friends in Ketchikan, the return flight is $326 from Ketchikan to Long Beach,CA.
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The inside passage is our favorite cruise.I'd recommend an outside cabin with a balcony and a good pair of binoculars.Also do the Denali side trip-it was spectacular.Enjoy.
We did the NCL Pearl out of Seattle last July. We loved the ship and leaving from Seattle. We had a balcony and it was well worth the extra money. Be sure to take a jacket and rain coat. July is the best time of year, but last year was unusually cool and damp during the entire summer. Being a Texan I don't do cool weather well, so it will be a long time before I choose to repeat the trip, but I am glad we did it!
Being a Texan I don't do cool weather well, so it will be a long time before I choose to repeat the trip, but I am glad we did it!
Being a Texan, I cherish every minute I spend in cooler climates during the summer.
__________________ "Hey, for every ten dollars, that's another hour that I have to be in the work place. That's an hour of my life. And my life is a very finite thing. I have only 'x' number of hours left before I'm dead. So how do I want to use these hours of my life? Do I want to use them just spending it on more crap and more stuff, or do I want to start getting a handle on it and using my life more intelligently?" -- Joe Dominguez (1938 - 1997)
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