Alaska cruise guide: Best itineraries, planning tips and things to do
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Whichever ship you choose, Alaska and the vacation of a lifetime await. Alaska cruises provide plentiful opportunities to learn about Native Alaskan culture. You can get a taste of the gold rush life by trying your hand at panning for gold, attending a salmon bake or visiting a dog-sled camp. A hike on the Chilkoot Trail or ride on the White Pass Railway lets you follow in the footsteps of the miners who came to seek their fortunes. The personalized service and all-inclusive nature of luxury voyages might also be attractive to anyone celebrating a milestone, such as an anniversary, big birthday or retirement. AlaskaCruises.com is your best online source for everything you need to know about 2024 and 2025 Alaska Cruises and Alaskan Cruise Vacations.
Alaska on a Budget: Cheap and Free Things to Do in Port
Enjoy an insider’s guide to discovering the best family cruises for your next vacation onboard Brilliance of the Seas. If you're interested in the Midnight Sun, the longest day of the year is June 21, when you can experience close to 20 or more hours of sunlight in some parts of the state. If you're more interested in the Alaska Northern Lights, the earlier sunset in later summer will allow more contrast and better views of this natural wonder. This trip aboard Norwegian Jewel takes you from Seattle to Sitka, Icy Strait Point, Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan, and Victoria before returning home. That also gives you two extra days to explore Alaska compared to a typical cruise, yet the price is something that won’t break the bank. The trip departs early in the season as well, giving another reason why it’s among the cheapest deals your find to sail to the region.
Skagway
See St. Michael's Orthodox Cathedral with its onion dome and the Russian Bishop's House. If you want a more active trip in less touristed areas, a great choice would be a small-ship expedition line, including Alaska specialists such as Alaskan Dream Cruises and UnCruise Adventures. Gulf of Alaska sailings — especially those in late August and September — can encounter rough seas in the gulf portion of the voyage.
Northern Lights
From there, it’s Skagway and the Endicott Arm, followed Ketchikan and then sailing back down the Inside Package to return to Canada. A one-way trip from Vancouver to Seward, Alaska, this trip starts at just $349 per person and leaves in early May. The cruise is aboard Celebrity Summit, making it ideal for those wanting a more luxurious experience than what you normally find on mass-market lines. It’s among the cheapest trips to Alaska you’ll find, and stops in Ketchikan, Sitka, Juneau, and more. Combined, that’s about $750 in cruise fare for a two-week Alaskan trip.
16 cheap and free things to do on an Alaska cruise to avoid spending hundreds on shore excursions - Royal Caribbean Blog
16 cheap and free things to do on an Alaska cruise to avoid spending hundreds on shore excursions.
Posted: Mon, 14 Aug 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]
Take in Alaska’s evergreen fjords and thunderous glaciers on this Vista-class Alaska cruise ship. Pay airfare for one guest, and you'll automatically lock-in roundtrip flights for two. Secure these savings online by choosing your nearest airport in step one of your cruise booking, and enjoy air-to-sea made easy.
Best Time to Visit Alaska in 2023 When Is the Best Time to Go to Alaska? Trusted Since 1922 - Reader's Digest
Best Time to Visit Alaska in 2023 When Is the Best Time to Go to Alaska? Trusted Since 1922.
Posted: Mon, 18 Mar 2024 07:00:00 GMT [source]
While Radiance of the Seas is a little older than others in the fleet, it still has a lot to offer for those days at sea. For 2024, we’re finding lots of low prices sailing from Vancouver — especially if you sail one-way (often the return voyage is also fairly inexpensive). In this case, Norwegian Jewel is heading from Vancouver to Seward on a week long trip.
Whether you want the amenities and entertainment of Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) and Celebrity Cruises, or something more intimate -- like a luxury cruise in the Bahamas -- there's a deal out there for you. Most cruises offer shore excursions such as hikes, bus tours or other opportunities to get familiar with a local area. Alaska cruises have become substantially more popular in the past decade. The northwestern-most state has gained huge notoriety as one of the most beautiful destinations to visit because of its serene mix of natural features. There are so many different kinds of destinations to hit, it’s tough to pick only a few.
With incredible culture and unmatched natural beauty, on a cruise to awe-inspiring Alaska, the largest state in the United States, you'll have the time of your life. They want to admire its rugged beauty, seek out wildlife (such as eagles, bears and whales) and learn about its Native cultures and gold rush history. It's so far from the rest of the mainland U.S. that it's become a bucket list destination, especially for travelers looking to visit each of the 50 states.
This includes Ketchikan, Dawes Glacier, Juneau, and Skagway, along with a stop in Victoria, British Columbia before returning to Washington. From there you will need to book a southbound trip back to Vancouver (or fly home). That southbound let currently runs $368 and features stops in the same ports giving you more time to explore.
Active travelers can explore Alaska by sea kayak or canoe, hike on glaciers and through rainforests, zip line, bike, ride an ATV and even snorkel (you'll need a dry suit). Hop a bus, kayak, boat or plane to look for bears, eagles, whales, sea otters and other wildlife. Note that moose don't regularly show up in the Inside Passage; you'll need to head farther north to find them. On a cruisetour, you'll sail on a one-way Gulf of Alaska cruise, so your cruise starts or ends in Alaska. Depending on the tour itinerary you choose, you might visit Seward and the Kenai Peninsula, Alyeska, Talkeetna, Anchorage and Fairbanks — as well as spend one to three nights in Denali National Park. Popular Inside Passage ports of call include Juneau, Icy Strait Point, Ketchikan, Petersburg, Haines and Skagway.
Classic nautical finishes and a spectacular art collection make the Zuiderdam the ideal sanctuary for your cruise to Alaska. Named for the Northern compass point, Noordam is fitting for a cruise to Alaska. Museum-quality art outfits this ship, from oils to photographs of music legends. Nieuw Amsterdam's exceptional onboard experience earned "Best Cruise Ship Overall" at the Travvy Awards.
It’s not that many days in port but if you’re wanting to see some dramatic landscapes and are a Royal Caribbean fan, this might be the trip for you. It's twice the size of Texas, the natural beauty is immense and prices for tourist staples are supersized, as well. That's because the cost of what you eat, drink or buy in Alaskan ports reflects the cost of getting it there.
It's known for great fishing (salmon, halibut and trout) and an eagle preserve — because eagles know where the best fish can be found. You can learn about their history and culture at the Sitka National Historical Park and Sheldon Jackson Museum of Native Alaskan art. Wildlife enthusiasts might want to visit the Alaska Raptor Center, or go bird- and bear-watching. Sitka is as much a working fishing town as it is a tourist destination. Sitka's Russian heritage also sets it apart from other Alaskan ports on your cruise itinerary.
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