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The Kitchen Table

Those who have been on the Alaska cruises............

18 years ago

Please need details...we are () close to booking one..but I told Brian I needed to check with my ladies/guy friends here first......what did you do who did you cruize with and if you want to disclose the price you can email me.....this I belelive Brian said with flight was 34 or 35 apiece...going shopping in tulsa today so will check back as soon as I get home...Thanks sTacy

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Comments (7)

glenda_al
18 years ago
That sounds close, or maybe a little less, but that was 2 years ago when I went.
Be sure you do the land and sea!
We flew into Vancouver and flew back from Anchorage.
Some do the opposite, think fly to Fairbanks first. We didn't go to Fairbanks.
Cruised on Princess cruise lines.
Be sure and take a rain coat.
Highly recommend the lumberjack show, goldmine camp and cookout, eh on the whale watch, you see them on the ship,
guided bus tour of the Denali and couple nites stay, and train ride with dinner to Denali.Camera in hand everywhere you go, and be sure and take your battery charger.
Didn't go, but couple did to see the salmon run and bears, and saw really nothing, but then others I know that DID! Just a matter of timing.
My head is getting foggy about the trip.
vannie
18 years ago
Hi Stacy Lucky you! We went on Norweigan and the thing I like about Norwegian is there are no dress up nights. I hate that! We flew to Vancouver and boarded; were on a week and it was just wonderful. The shore excursions can be expensive, but that's just part of it. I don't know what it cost b/c it was a present from DD#2. You will at least want a room w/ a window. It's kinda chilly to really enjoy the balconies, but they are nice. I had a friend that had been and she told me exactly what to take, and that's what I did. You don't need many clothes--you're not going to sweat, so stuff won't get dirty. Good walking shoes, some kind of hat, gloves, etc. We only used big coats when we went to Sawyer Glacier. The weather the rest of the time was very pleasant. They say it always rains, but it didn't rain at all when we were there. I hope you've checked prices on line as well as w/ an agent. That sounds high to me. Enjoy, enjoy. I'd like to go back some day.
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Don't go too late in the year. We took HA on a small ship on the last day cruises were offered. HUGE mistake. Because HA has to go around the outside of Vancouver Island, rather than starting within the Strait @ Vancouver as the other cruise lines do, bad weather can be a real problem. It was the end of September, and we ran into a storm. Very impressive seeing 20-ft waves hit the ship, LOL. They had to turn the boat around so we ended up losing 2.5 days, having to backtrack around Vancouver Island and start all over again heading north through the Straits. The ship never made its final 2 stops, they had to cut it short before reaching Sitka :(( Note it can be rainy in summer, so check the weather forecasts regularly. There was absolutely NO insistence on formal dress even in the main dining room. Although many folks did dress up on the final evening dinner, a sizable number did not bother at all, coming in tee shirts and tennies at every meal. We personally thought the food was okay but not great. Lots of quantity but the quality was more on level with a chain steakhouse. The upscale extra-cost restaurant wasn't much better - we actually preferred the food in the main dining room. The service is always impeccable, everywhere. We found the cruise people push a lot of jewelry on the ship and the stores nearest the port seem to be 2/3 jewelry stores. A friend of ours picked up the most delightful pendant ever, a beautifully carved pendant of a tiny polar bear on a swing! Remember that peak season for whale-watching is May - October. We obviously had a bad-luck fairy on our Alaskan cruise, as the whale watching excursion was pretty much a waste of money. We did see an orca calf - did you know they are a pinkish-orange color? - but that and a few far-off spouts were about it. Ironically, there are a number of companies on Vancouver Island that offer whale-watching tours. Our friends flew in to meet us after we got off the cruise ship, and a week later we all drove to Victoria BC. This was their first visit ever to the Pacific NW so we wanted to show them around. I had reserved the half-day tour from a local company, as I knew they would enjoy the scenery and sea air even if we didn't see many whales. Wouldn't you know it - we saw whales every few minutes! They swam so near the boat we could count individual barnacles. They splashed out of the water and spyhopped as if they were posing for photos! More orcas, and some dolphins leaped by as well. We've been on 3 whale watching tours, but this was by far the luckiest. You can just never really tell if they're going to be around the surface when your boat is nearby. But it's thrilling when you're in the right place at the right time. Good luck on your cruise!
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deemarie5500
18 years ago
I sailed in May/June 2005 on the Celebrity INFINITY roundtrip from San Francisco (13 day cruise I think). We paid around 21 each for balcony cabin, Concierge level.

Dont' have flight info because we RV'd out from NJ to SanFran and back again.

There were tons of excursions to choose, some very expensive.
naughtykitty
18 years ago
I haven't been on an Alaska cruise but I just did the LA to Ensenada this past weekend. I love cruises! Here is a good website to check out for good prices....

Here is a link that might be useful: Cruise Deals
bettyswwa
18 years ago
We have gone twice on Holland America. Once out of Seattle (Sept.) Beautiful weather. Next time out of Vancouver, BC (June) Beautiful weather. The first time we had a balcony and because it was so warm we used it a lot. $1300 ea. The second time we had a window room but only paid under 500 each because a relative on SIL side of family worked for Holland America and they were trying to fill a huge cancellation. We didn't have airfare as we live a couple of hours from Seattle and drove to Van. We took the train trip in Skagway one way, took the bus back with a stop in Liarsville (the old gold mining camp). We really enjoyed that. I love HA....but have nothing to compare it to. Whatever you do, you will love the whole experience. It's a beautiful trip. We saw whales and porpoises on both trips.
glenda_al
18 years ago
Now if your bucks are unlimited, will tell you how an "acquaintance and her DH" went to AK.
She went after I did, and we had lunch exchanging our experiences.

They had a 24 hour butler and handmaiden!

Thought you might want to check into THAT!

Not for me! :o)
grinch_gut
Original Author
18 years ago
OHHHHHHHHHHHHH sign me up for the unlimited one glenda....LMAO!! Thanks everyone will save this thread...STacy

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