What cruise is best for me?? Anyone love the Alaskan cruises? Opinions needed from seasoned cruise-takers!?

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Moxie

I have not done an Alaskan Cruise. I have political issues with the state and most of the people that I know that have gone on it are senior citizens and perhaps their families. It's just not my cup of tea. I'm not a partier, but I also prefer to hang out with people more like me.

I will say that in an Alaskan Cruise, you disembark to see the towns and you can book tours and such to see more things.

Remember, just because it's cooler, it doesn't mean that your daughter is not going to burn.

Personally, the Caribbean is more for me. I load up on sunscreen and you can also use sun protective clothes for your daughter. http://www.cwear.com/ sells sun shirts. The fitted ones are not cumbersome and should help.

Enjoy your trip, whatever you decide!

rick d

I have done 25 cruise/tours to Alaska and was never bored once. Each cruise line offers many activities each day for people of all ages. The have pools that are heated. You have your choice of Itineraries so if you depart from Seattle you can return to depart from Seattle. For anyone who say Alaska is expensive has never been there. I have taken my 2 children flown first class for a 2 week cruise/tour And total cost for everything penny spent was Little over $8800.00. Like a cruise to anywhere they have a theater,spa, gym, game room, teen clubs, cooking classes etc. just to name afew.
Yes, the Scenery & Wildlife , Glaciers are AMAZING, plus meeting people from all over the, the ports of call etc.
Princess is the # 1 cruise line to Alaska Princess.com or call 1-800-Princess. They are having a big sale on now.
Enjoy.

Aimee Loves French

OH I love alaskan cruises!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!...
On the cruise line i went on (holland america) there was always something going on. There were
(free) shows/plays/musicals,
cooking demonstrations,
shopping,
swimming,
ice carving,
mini golf tournaments,
teen activities,
video games,
towel-folding demonstrations,
current movies,
wine-tasting (not like i did that!)
Swimming competitions,
excersizing,
strolling on deck,
spa treatments (hello $$$$)
eating,
talking with the stewards (they were sooooooooo friendly! & i'm shy) watching tv,
watching whales out your cabin window (and we were in the "row with the other slaves section") (fyi Bring binoculars, there's so much stuff to see)
attending wildlife seminars,
magic shows
comedians
hanging out with family
and most importantly, PORTS OF CALL!!!!
HAVE FUN..... IT IS AN EXPERIENCE TO REMEMBER!!!!!

luludoodie

Each port of call has interesting areas and trips.
Seeing 5 glaciers in one day (Glacier Bay) will answer your question!
Taking a helicopter up on top of a glacier will change your life!
White water rafting in Alaska will get your blood racing!

Alaska was our first cruise (I previously refused to take one knowing I would be bored etc.), and now we have done 20+ including, Galapagos islands, Antarctica, Spitzbergan (Polar Bear and Walrus watching!), Baltic capitals etc. etc.

We have changed now in that we hate the large "big" cruise line ships and use 50 -200 guest sized boats now for much more personal experiences.
Standing in the middle of 200,000 King Penguins (very smelly!) or being surrounded by a pod of 20 humpback whales for 2 hours gives you experiences to remember forever!

Time travler

We did an Alaskan cruise/tour and it was my favorite cruise out of 9 cruises with Princess. First, I must say that on an Alaskan cruise there is very little sunbathing. The temp is around 70 degrees and not likely to get much warmer then that. We went end of May and every day we needed at least a light jacket. Going to Glacier Bay was the highlight. The sights were totally awesome. We loved going on the white pass railroad too. There is so much to see on an Alaskan Cruise that we are doing it again, but on a different cruise. Very good choice for a family cruise.

MomSezNo

I also burn very easily, but I love the Caribbean cruises. I just use plenty of sunscreen. Alaskan cruises are all about the scenery, whereas the Caribbean cruises, of course, are more oriented to the beaches.

The Alaskan cruises are going to be more expensive - short season, high demand, limited number of ships on that itinerary. You also may have the extra expense of returning from a different port than from which you left, and one of them will be Alaska, which is more expensive to get to/from by air.

On a cruise, you can be as active or as lazy as you want. There are plenty of activities when the ship is not in port, though some ships/lines will have more activities than others.

Your best bet would be to go to the library or bookstore and get a book on cruising. This will give you a general overview of what cruising is like, what the different lines and ships offer, etc. There are so many variables, and you need to narrow things down a bit before you can make any actual plans.

You might also be interested in the website CruiseCritic.com. Click on "Cruise Styles" at the top of the page to find a discussion of what the different lines have to offer, depending on your interests. Click on "Reviews" and you can read the professional reviews of the different ships; and the "Member Reviews" are very helpful, too. Click on "Boards" and you can find out just about anything you could possibly want to know about cruising, just by doing some "lurking". If you join - which is free - you can post a specific question and be sure that you'll get answers from people who've "been there, done that".

A website that is really easy to use and helpful to get an idea of what's available is VacationsToGo.com. You probably don't want to try booking on-line the first time you go, although this site does have real agents to talk to and it has gotten good reviews at CC.

Have fun doing some reading/researching about cruising. When you're ready to book, a travel agent who specializes in cruises will be very helpful. But he/she will have lots of questions about your preferences, so you'll have to be ready.

Hope you find just the right cruise for you and your family!

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