Thread: Which Cruise to Alaska; Northbound

Help me decide which cruise.

We're looking at going summer 2009 and I've done some research and pricing and have narrowed it down.

We want a Northbound as we plan to leave from Vancouver, disembark by Anchorage and then see Denali, Fairbanks and maybe further north on our own the second week.

We have one major requirement: DH wants to have access to 24 hour coffee within easy walking distance of the Pool Deck where there would be an area to sit at a table. His 5 Carnival cruises had this feature.

If you know that these ships have that, please let me know that also

We just came off Explorer OTS where they did not have this, and I did not hear the end of it

Voted the Radiance. As you will see for yourself very soon, this class is much better then the Voyager class

I need to take many pictures if there is a beverage station outside on the pool deck

yes you do

Come on people give our dear Judy some advice here!!!!!!!!!!!!

Although the Carnival Spirit is nice, it does not match the quality of either the Island Princess or the Radiance of the Seas. I would much prefer either of these over the Spirit.

I can't remember if they had a 24-hour coffee place, as I'm not a big coffee drinker. But they do have 24-hour room service.

However, you might want to consider a southbound versus a northbound. You'll see the same ports going in either direction. But the major reason is flight times. If you're flying out of Anchorage, the flights depart either early in the morning or late in the evening. I don't know where you live, but if it's on the east coast, that can present problems depending on when you want to leave. You'll either lose a whole day in Anchorage or have to fly overnight.

Plus, touring takes alot more effort than cruising, so if you tour first, then you can relax on your cruise back. Last year we did the cruise first and wished we had done it the other way.

If I were doing this, I would fly into Fairbanks and rent a car. I'd then spend 2 or 3 nights there and then drive to Denali where I would either stay at the Holland America lodge or the Princess Lodge for 2 nights or perhaps one night and then stay at the Royal Caribbean/Celebrity Lodge for a night. Then I'd drive to Anchorage and spend 1 or 2 nights, and then do the southbound cruise. The train is a nice way to get from Fairbanks to Denali to Anchorage, but driving would provide the opportunity for more sightseeing and sampling the wonderful food along the way.

We had a client do this and instead of renting a car, they rented an RV - they had a fantastic time spending 2 weeks driving around before taking the southbound cruise.

Just some ideas for you to consider.

Pete

Hi Pete,

Thank you for the advice of going Southbound first.

There is a method to my madness. We're planning Northbound because I'm hoping to ship at least 1, or possibly 2 suitcases home (to my MIL's house or my work) when we arrive in Anchorage We won't need any formal wear once the cruise is over.

We are on the East Coast, Philadelphia, and the flying overnight would work for us. We try to sleep on planes to make the time go faster.

I did do the Northbound route some years ago on HAL's Rotterdam V with my SIL with 5 days around Fairbanks & Denali. We stayed in a little log cabin on the edge of Lake when we went.

DH has never been there so this is HIS big trip. That's why I'm so concerned about his coffee situation

We didn't take any formal wear. Thought we'd be out of place, but was pleased to see more than half the people were dressed the same as us. Alot of people do tours either before or after their cruise and do not want to haul around formal wear, so they don't bring it. Plus there's the issue of overweight bags and being charged for luggage.

Of course, you could always rent formal wear - may end up costing less in money and hassle than taking it and then having to ship it back. Just a thought.

We just learned the hard way that it was best to do the cruise after the tour so we could relax in the 2nd part of the trip.

But arriving in Vancouver for a northbound cruise is very nice - they really have it together. They have the U.S. Direct and once you check your bags in Philly, you won't see them again until they appear in your cabin on the ship. It's very quick and easy.

Pete

When I went with SIL I had a huge suitcase, garment bag and carry-on. I was so thankful that my luggage didn't make it with me on the return to Philly and they would deliver it to my home the next day

We actually found that we did more sightseeing in the ports while onboard the ship vs. touring the land portion on our own. SIL told our flightseeing pilot how bored she was compared to being on the cruise, of course he decided to add some excitement by making hard leaning turns with the plane. We did do some pretty active excursions so maybe that was why she was bored?

The other factor is that we're able to get a non-stop from Philly to Vancouver on the outbound. I figured if DH was frustrated with layovers and connections, better for him to feel that way on the way coming back, not heading to!

We did the helicopter/dog sled excursion in Juneau and it was absolutely awesome!! Then we did the flight out of Fairbanks north of the Artic Circle to Cold Foot and Wiseman, which was very interesting and educational. Both excursions we did through Shore Trips and not through the cruise line. Save $100 per person just on the helicopter/dog sled excursion.

But as I said, you'll love flying into Vancouver - very quick and easy.

Are you going to rent a car when you arrive in Alaska? I really think that's the way to go.

And I really do feel you'd enjoy Princess or Royal better than Carnival. Depending on your age and what you like in a cruise, you might want to consider Holland America - it's our personal favorite and they have the biggest presence in Alaska, with Princess next, and Royal third.

Pete

I did love Holland American when I was on it. The food was incredible. We want to book at the very least a larger balcony, maybe even hopefully a suite or mini-suite. That put HAL a little out of my budget with adding the extra week at the end.

We're in our mid 40's. When I first started looking into the Alaska cruise I was sent some info from HAL, DH was looking through it and said, isn't this an older people crowd and I had to remind him that WE are older people now.

We are renting a car or suv. We hit a snowstorm when I was with SIL and I was very glad we had a 4x4.

My first time there we did the helicopter flight; gold panning and the tram car all in the same day in Juneau through the ship. We also went white water rafting in Valdez, but I don't think that's a stop on the itineraries anymore? All of our excursions were through the ship back then. I didn't realize that you could do them on your own, but I've learned that now with the help of CLF

Both of your tours sound awesome! Does the company have a website?

Have you ever been on Island Princess? That was the one I was leaning a little more towards.