Alaska Cruise

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OCMan_IHB

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I'm thinking about Alaska cruise this summer. I have a few questions from fellow Irvine neighbors about the cruise trip. This would be my first one.



1) I heard you gotta have a balcony for Alaska cruise. Is this true? Should I save a lot of money with a tiny inside room w/o window since I'll be enjoying outdoor most of the time?



2) Is saving money by booking one way airfairs by myself worthwhile or should I book it with cruise so I'm covered in case of delay or cancellation of flights?



3) Cancellation protection plan is rather expensive, but insurance is for unknown future events. Do you always buy it?



4) Any other tips to save money on Alaska Cruise?



Thank you very much for your input.
 
Think of the entire ship as a huge lounge or ?bedroom?; they design the entire place so you can almost relax/sleep anywhere. You don?t need a balcony, any room will do. The only time really you need to be in your room is to sleep at night. The ship usually sails at night; and docks at a port-o-cal in the morning; you spend morning/day excursion and head back to the ship before dinner.
 
Outside stateroom I'd recommend - ideal for going though the glacier passage which is spectacular. Going on deck not great (too cold - if you go that route, pack warm), large viewing rooms on some cheaper cruises are full of art auctions and other commericial activities, so you can't go and see the ice bergs from there, kinda lame.
 
[quote author="OCMan" date=1240064924]I'm thinking about Alaska cruise this summer. I have a few questions from fellow Irvine neighbors about the cruise trip. This would be my first one.



1) I heard you gotta have a balcony for Alaska cruise. Is this true? Should I save a lot of money with a tiny inside room w/o window since I'll be enjoying outdoor most of the time?



2) Is saving money by booking one way airfairs by myself worthwhile or should I book it with cruise so I'm covered in case of delay or cancellation of flights?



3) Cancellation protection plan is rather expensive, but insurance is for unknown future events. Do you always buy it?



4) Any other tips to save money on Alaska Cruise?



Thank you very much for your input.</blockquote>


suggestion:

a) i don't know too many people will go through this same cruise twice in their life time, so make the best of it. If you are willing to spend it, I highly suggest to get an outside room with a window at least. The inside room is like a cell as it is fully enclosed. Personally, I will go crazy inside. ( I went into one when I was on my cruise). we went on this cruise several years ago, and had a balcony room. It was awesome. We made the best of the balcony (sun set, view, room services, drinks, etc). I don't think I will ever go on a cruise without a balcony.



2.3) I never buy those type of misc. insurance, however, we did purchase a insurance on the cruise itself. I think we paid $200 for two via amex. We booked our flights via frequent flyer miles, and arrived the night before. We didn't even think about what if flight gets delayed scenario. Check the cruise insurance, it might cover you even if you don't buy flights from them.



4) one think you didn't ask , but I will offer you : make sure you pick a fun ship ( I am not referring just to Carnival ships). some ships are more purchased by older folks, for example: holland. Princess probably is the best on this route.



5). Finally check cruisecritic(s).com...you can find reviews on the same ship / itenary.

Good luck
 
BIG +1 on cruisecritic.com. Planning is key. My fiancee planned a cruise a couple years ago for us, my parents and 3 couples my parents have been friends with since the '50s. My fiancee found things our travel agent offered for much better prices, and other things our travel agent couldn't get. We did an Alaska cruise on NCL and had the best time ever. So far it's the only vacation we've had where we plan to do the exact same thing in the future at some point. From surfing cruisecritic, she knew what kind of room to get, what tours to go on, even what spot to stake out at a particular time to get the absolute best views of events. We got views and pictures of things that only a handful of people were able to get. It was scary how much she knew without even having been on the ship before. Dog sledding on a remote glacier face was short but surreal.

As for the balcony, I say get it. There is an indescribable peacefulness and serenity of waking up at 5AM, with your door cracked open so you can hear the water and birds outside, and watching whales in the distance while lying in bed.

I never used to buy travel insurance...until my China vacation that was supposed to fly out on September 12, 2001. I almost had to cancel the whole thing, and I lost the Beijing portion of the tour. Now I buy insurance if the cost of the trip is over $3k.
 
I just remembered I still have my cruise pics hosted.



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/sunsetontheinsidepassage.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/meetingthesleddogs.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/shoppinginjuneau.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/skagwayinthemorning.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/ourtrainheadingforatunnel.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/viewfromthetrain.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/moreyukon.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/earlymorningheadingintoglacierbay.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/ourwhaleofawelcometoglacierbay.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/sunriseonglacierbayday.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/about1mileawayfrommarjorieglacier.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/johnhopkinsglacier.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/eveningofglacierbayday.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/presunsetonglacierbayday.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/creekstreet.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/ketchikanfromtheship.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/sunsetafterdepartingketchikan.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/thesunkengardenatbutchartgardens.jpg" alt="" />



<img src="http://www.ozop.net/alaska/butchartcove.jpg" alt="" />
 
[quote author="OCMan" date=1240064924]I'm thinking about Alaska cruise this summer. I have a few questions from fellow Irvine neighbors about the cruise trip. This would be my first one.



1) I heard you gotta have a balcony for Alaska cruise. Is this true? Should I save a lot of money with a tiny inside room w/o window since I'll be enjoying outdoor most of the time?



2) Is saving money by booking one way airfairs by myself worthwhile or should I book it with cruise so I'm covered in case of delay or cancellation of flights?



3) Cancellation protection plan is rather expensive, but insurance is for unknown future events. Do you always buy it?



4) Any other tips to save money on Alaska Cruise?



Thank you very much for your input.</blockquote>


I'm going this summer too!



1-I've got a balcony...wasn't really a question for me.

2-I booked myself and have plenty of time getting there the night before. I didn't look into their airfare as I can only think they make money on thise vs using kayak.com

3-I never buy this, but it's really up to you. The profit margin is so high on this...depends how well you'll sleep without it.

4-The excursions are very or can be very expensive.



Enjoy!
 
I took a cruise to Ketchikan Alaska back in 2005. Unless if you spend big bucks, the rooms are small regardless of patio or no patio. We got a patio room for $500 extra for a little patio. Was the extra $500 worth it? Only if you're going to use it. If you prefer to sit on the patio chair in your bath robe instead of making your way on deck for the view.



Personally, I felt the ship was like a floating Vegas hotel with unlimited buffet and slot machines with bad odds. The view was pretty nice though. We stopped at Vancouver and it was really nice there in April. Totally different vibe from Vancouver to Seattle.
 
Momopi raised an excellent point that I forgot to mention: take a cruise starting from Vancouver instead of seattle if you can, especially if you haven't been to vancouver. Vancouver is beautiful! It is probably one of the nicest north america cities IMO ( money mag actually agrees with me with their best n.a. cities rank).
 
[quote author="irvine123" date=1240222165]Momopi raised an excellent point that I forgot to mention: take a cruise starting from Vancouver instead of seattle if you can, especially if you haven't been to vancouver. Vancouver is beautiful! It is probably one of the nicest north america cities IMO ( money mag actually agrees with me with their best n.a. cities rank).</blockquote>


there's another very big reason for taking the cruise out of vancouver instead of seattle. all cruises originating from the US will need to make one foreign port of call, so most of the cruises will stop in vancouver anyway. some find it more convenient since it's only a domestic flight to seattle and the airfare is often cheaper, but how difficult is canadian customs anyway? it's a waste of a day if you compare the itineraries of seattle vs vancouver-originating cruises.



also, the one way vancouver-to-anchorage cruises have a much better itinerary. the first two days will just be cruising up the BC coast, which is beautiful but its all mtn forests and you'll be seeing it twice. they'll take you far enough north to see glaciers, but then you turn around and make your way head south again. going further north is where the glaciers really get impressive and see the icy frontier that imagine when we think of alaska.



the one way cruises cost more because you have to book 2 one-way flights but worth the cost IMO. as someone else mentioned earlier, you're likely to do an alaskan cruise only once so don't skimp on a once-lifetime experience. it sounds like you already opted for that itinerary since your orig post mentioned one way airfare.
 
Daedalus and others,



Did you do a lot of excursions or just one or two. I heard the train ride is a rip off. Helicopter or inland tours are very expensive. I'm thinking I should enjoy views, ship amenities, and port of call cities and villages, and plan a separate road trip just for inland national parks some other times.



Because I'm planning on having 6 people, every expense is X 6. So far even in July, I got quote for $3000 for inside or $4300 for outside (for 2 cabins) plus ~$1700 for airfair (2 oneways). That's $5k to $6k to begin with. Adding tips, transportation from airports to ports, and plus alpha, I'm thinking minimum $7k to $8k. First this discouraged me a little bit and I'm thinking may be I could do different trips like to Canadian rockies or cross country road trip for this year and save more for Alaska cruise next year. In my opinion, the economy, unemployment, and company earnings won't be any better until the second half or 2010 or early 2011 so these great trip deals may continue or even get better...



Thank you all for your comments.
 
[quote author="OCMan" date=1240491467]Daedalus and others,



Did you do a lot of excursions or just one or two. I heard the train ride is a rip off. Helicopter or inland tours are very expensive. I'm thinking I should enjoy views, ship amenities, and port of call cities and villages, and plan a separate road trip just for inland national parks some other times.



Because I'm planning on having 6 people, every expense is X 6. So far even in July, I got quote for $3000 for inside or $4300 for outside (for 2 cabins) plus ~$1700 for airfair (2 oneways). That's $5k to $6k to begin with. Adding tips, transportation from airports to ports, and plus alpha, I'm thinking minimum $7k to $8k. First this discouraged me a little bit and I'm thinking may be I could do different trips like to Canadian rockies or cross country road trip for this year and save more for Alaska cruise next year. In my opinion, the economy, unemployment, and company earnings won't be any better until the second half or 2010 or early 2011 so these great trip deals may continue or even get better...



Thank you all for your comments.</blockquote>


Was some years ago, but here are some thoughts on Juneau

The gold mine tour was interesting, bit pricy but seemed worth it as it was given by people who had actually worked in the mine, and demoed equipment and so on

Juneau on the cheap - if you have kids 5 and under, consider this - I could walk off the ship, take one of the buses to the Mendenhall Glacier (tip: bring jackets, I forgot - even on a hot summer day, it's chilly if you are standing next to a giant chunk of ice) - paid $10 for myself, the two kids under 5 were free. Also did the cable car up the mountain - again, just paid for myself the two kids were free. I think I even rode some kind of town tour trolley again paying for myself only, kids were free. I was proud of my frugal self that day, managed to see the top 3 attractions with 3 people, and only spent $25 for the day, including snacks from the vending machine for lunch :).



So do your research about what's in port, and if you can just walk up and do stuff w/o booking through the cruise line, especially if going direct has a price break for any kids.
 
Canadian Rockies are one of my favorite places in the world. A trip to Vancouver, then a road trip through Banff Nat'l Park would be a wonderful vacation. Don't miss Lake Louise, considered by many the most beautiful lake in the world. Can't go wrong...
 
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