How to Plan a Cruise to Alaska

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A cruise to Alaska is one of the best vacation ideas for families, couples, guys/gals trip, or even a honeymoon vacation. Cruising to the ports in Alaska is one of the best ways of seeing the Frontier state. If you are like me, there are many questions you may find yourself asking in the planning process. I decided to compile a list of questions that I asked myself over the few years that I planned my cruise before actually putting the plan into action. Here’s some help on how to plan a cruise to Alaska.

The earlier you book your stateroom, the better. This is especially true if you are planning to go during the Alaska travel peak months of June and July. Many rooms fill up and the prices increase due to supply and demand. While there is a chance that you may get a great last minute deal on a cruise, you may not get a room that you want and many of the excursions are booked up.

The best time to cruise Alaska cheap would be in early May or September. The early part of the Alaska cruise season provides beautiful views of the snow covered glaciers and landscape. This is a good time for the photos of the glacier that are the bright white/blue versus the dirty looking calving glaciers. The bears and other wildlife are out after a long winter hunting for food.

If weather is your deciding factor, the best time to cruise is June, July, and August but there are more families during this peak, expensive time (if you are wanting to avoid kids). In late June and early July the days are long and you get almost no darkness (so plenty of time for adventure). The weather is warmer and with that brings the mosquitos. The whales have made it to their feeding grounds in Juneau and you have a better chance of seeing them along the inside passage. This is the ideal time for land tours to Denali as the road to Denali opens mid-June.

We went in August and although there was rain a few of the days, the weather was good. The more inland we went, the better the weather was. We even got a perfect view of Denali, the best that many had seen all year!

By September, the crowds have dwindled with the lower temperatures and you will find lower prices. Some souvenir shops may even have great sales trying to get enough money saved to make it through the winter when tourism is minimal at best. If you are lucky, the cruise captain may announce over the intercom that the Northern Lights are visible. While they are also visible in late August, you have a better chance of seeing them in September the farther north you sail.

 I think this depends on what your priorities are. Personally, I choose my cruise line based on the itinerary. Then, I narrow down my choices based on that.

If you are looking for the most beautiful glacier scenery, you need to book with a smaller cruise line that can get closer to the calving glaciers. Only Holland America (older crowd), Norwegian, and Princess are allowed to cruise near Glacier Bay National Park. I think visiting Glacier Bay is a must for a first time cruise to Alaska. 

If the ship is what you are going for, then I would suggest Royal Caribbean. There are many activities to enjoy on this particular cruise line compared to others that I have cruised. The Norwegian Bliss sails in Alaska and looks like it is a ton of fun, too!

If you have children, you may want to look into a Disney cruise or go with Carnival or Royal Caribbean. There are plenty of activities on these cruise lines for the children and adults. I personally feel like Carnival is more of a party ship and disembarkation is usually a mess, but the food is delicious.

One cruise line that is filled with adventure and one of a kind excursions is that of a National Geographic, Alaskan Dream, UnCruise Adventures, or American Safari cruise. This type of expedition ship is smaller so it can sail in areas where the larger ships cannot. This gives you an up close view of the Alaska landscape and wildlife. There isn’t as much entertainment on an expedition cruise as the highlights are in the adventure excursions. They also tend to be more expensive.

If you desire luxury and five-star gourmet meals, I suggest Regent Seven Seas, Silversea, or Oceania.

We chose the Princess Star for our first cruise in Alaska because it sailed to Glacier Bay and has a good atmosphere onboard with lots of informative activities throughout the sailing with their Discovery at Sea program.

Do you want ME to plan your vacation to Alaska? Visit me at Atlas Unleashed.

It may be cheaper to go on a round trip cruise, but I prefer a one way cruise to see more of the state. A round trip tour has more sea days, less ports, and you get to see less of the culture as every port is a little different. A one way cruise usually goes from Seattle or Vancouver to Whittier or Seward.

We started our amazing Alaska cruise vacation in Seattle. After spending one night in Seattle, we took the Cascades train north to Vancouver before boarding the ship towards Whittier. We were able to spend time in the originating and ending port cities which I enjoyed.

As long as you can! I would suggest a 7 day itinerary to get a feel for the Alaska culture. Remember, most of these ports are only accessible via air or sea. Therefore, a cruise is the perfect way to visit these towns and then explore the inland areas of Alaska.  

YES! If at all feasible, then certainly extend your Alaska cruise with a land tour to see more of the Alaska frontier. You can either add time before your cruise starts, or when the cruise disembarks at the final port of call. 

It really depends on your schedule on which of these 2 options you should choose. I personally like the way we planned it where we enjoyed our one way Northern cruise and then took our land tour to Denali. 

By booking a land tour in addition to your cruise, you get to stay in the true Alaska frontier with wildlife, amazing scenery, and get to truly experience the culture of Alaska. You can book a private tour (usually made through Princess/Holland America) or through your cruise line. We booked a private tour because we had plans for our yearly anniversary photo shoot with a glacier landing in my wedding dress. We had a private driver to Denali where we stayed a few days before enjoying the highly recommended McKinley Explorer train ride back to Anchorage. 

The majority of land tours do involve a train ride through the wilderness (and sometimes stopping for wildlife!) to get to towns such as Talkeetna, Denali, and Fairbanks. Princess/Holland America is the leader in land tours because they have their own rail car and lodging. We checked out the lodging options while in Denali and were really impressed with the options considering it was out in the middle of nowhere. Royal Caribbean and Celebrity also have their own rail line, too. 

No matter what you choose, I highly advise you to see more of Alaska than just the ports of call. Below is a video of our train tour via the McKinley Explorer which we absolutely enjoyed.

You will hear the majority of people advise you to get a balcony room for an Alaska cruise. I may be one of the few who believe you should spend your money on something like an excursion. If money is not a problem, definitely go for the balcony room. 

We chose an ocean view room and felt like it was perfect. We could check out the views as we were getting ready but then go out on deck and socialize with others. When the boat does a full turn near a glacier that’s calving, you will want to be able to move around the ship freely to get the longest views of this breathtaking beauty. 

If you don’t want to talk to anyone or want to avoid crowds, go for a balcony room. Just don’t feel like it is a necessity to book a balcony room on an Alaska cruise.

If you are on a one way cruise going north to choose a room on the starboard side of the ship or else you will miss the adorable seaside towns. Choose the port side if you are going from north to south.

If you are more prone to motion sickness, I suggest a lower floor in the middle of the ship. While we have never experienced sea sickness prior to our Alaska cruise, we did on our one way Northern Alaska cruise while in the Gulf of Alaska. 

If you are sensitive to noise, check to see where the clubs are to avoid the stomping and music over your head. A good website to find out details and reviews on the room you are interested in is cruisedeckplans.com.

This really depends on you. Tally up how much you think you will drink in a day while actually on the ship (minus your time on excursions and sleeping). If your total comes out more than the cost of the package, go for it. I personally drink the water from the cruise and bring a couple bottles of wine and cans of soda onto the ship (check your cruise line’s policy on beverages). 

I wouldn’t recommend booking an excursion through the cruise line unless you have mobility issues that require assistance from the cruise line. Usually, I find that the excursions with a reliable independent company are much cheaper and you get a more intimate experience. You don’t have to worry about getting back to the ship in time, they don’t want you to miss your ship as their reputation depends on it.

**It is important to book your private excursions as soon as you know your cruise plans. Many of the tours, such as flight sightseeing tours, fill up quickly. Some of the bear watching tours require a permit given months in advance. For example, Anan Wildlife Observatory only allows for 60 permits a day! Of those 60, only 30 are available for the guided tours needed to get you there via air. If you are unsure of a private company for a tour you are interested in, search the name of the cruise line’s tour to look for private tours offering the same thing.

We paid almost half what we would have paid for our kayaking tour to hike Mendenhall Glacier. We even found a discount code online, so don’t forget to google discount codes!

Below is a video of one of our tours we booked in Ketchikan with Island Wings Air Service. It is recommended to book early if you want to get in on this wonderful excursion!

Here’s a great guide I made for what to bring on an Alaska cruise. While this is tailored for an August trip, many of the suggestions are for all year long. 

I hope these questions are answered well so that you can better prepare for this trip of a lifetime. I think that the basic ports that most cruise lines visit (Ketchikan, Juneau, & Skagway) are the best for a first time cruise to Alaska. I think my next cruise in the area, I will hit up some of the smaller ports for more exploration.

Has this helped you plan your cruise to Alaska? What questions do you still have for planning a cruise to Alaska? Comment below and I will do my best to answer them!