I have traveled a lot but have never done a cruise. I am over whelmed by the amount of literature out there. Would like to do Alaska the end of August. Where do I start? Any suggestions for doing it myself and not going through a travel agent or is that silly? Would like to do the tour for a week. How far in advance is necessary and where/how do I find the good deals?

Hi: First of all a cruise is the one thing you don't want to book by yourself. You would have to do it directly with the cruiseline and they will charge you MUCH more than you would pay with a cruise discounter or travel agent. Secondly if you click on the search function in the upper right hand corner and type in a relevant word, i.e, "alaska" or the name of a particular cruiseline you will get more info than you want. On a personal note I did an Alaska cruise last July on Celebrity. It was really lovely. To some extent it's about how much you want to spend and what amenities are most important to you. You can start at the bottom with Carnival and work your way up with Norwegian>Royal Caribbean>Celebrity> Princess>to the really expensive luxury lines. Just search and it will all be there. You will also have to decide if you only want a cruise or if you want a cruisetour which would include several days of touring on land as well as the cruiseports. If you have time you can get tons of good information on www.cruisemates.com and www.cruisecritic.com. You can ask questions and read reviews. It is a world of information for new as well as experienced cruisers. Good Luck to you.

If you would like to tour Alaska, don't book a cruisetour. You are stuck with a large group, on and off busses, on and off the train, and all crammed into one hotel, which may or may not be to your liking. Cruisetours are also overpriced, unless you happen upon a sale.

We go to Alaska every year for 2-3 weeks, usually the last of August. We have been all over the state, so if you would like information, just email.

We took an Alaska cruise in 2002. Booked with Princess, had a horrible time, but that is a story for another time. Stick with Celebrity or Holland America. HA has been running some tremendous Alaska sales right now. We have done 7 Celebrity cruises and have never had a bad time.

Could be a bit cool and wet towards the end of August, but probably not too bad.

Key issue is big ship or small ship. Big ships go to larger cities (Juneau etc.) Small ships can go to other neat places such as Elfin Cove, but the small ships generally don't offer the luxury suites etc.

At the beginning or end, take the train from Anchorage to Denali Park if you have time.

greatam:

I booked an Alaska cruise with Princess for June. What was your experience in 2002?

You wanted to know so here it is!!

I booked the very best suite on the Dawn Princess to Alaska, 2002. For reference, I have also booked Cabin 8001 (oceanview outside CHEAPIE) on Celebrity Mercury (for 2 weeks around South America)Feb.2002 (and 5 other cruises) and DEFINETLY had a better experience on all the other cruise.

My personal experience-Princess Suite amenities SUCKED!!! I got NOTHING for my money except a bunch of chocolate covered strawberries and some extra room. Room service sucked. I ordered 2 glasses of iced tea and 2 Miller Lite beers. Got 2 Miller Lite's and 2 glasses. Called down to Room service, told them the problem, they brought 2 MORE MILLER LITE's. I never did get my iced tea.

Maybe it is my problem, but I feel a cruise is a time to do something out of the ordinary. I own a logistic company, Levi's and T-shirts are the order of the day. I want the fantasy of the romantic, Tuxedo dress up dinner and all that entails (sounds like "Urban Cowboy").

On my Alaska cruise-(Seward to Vancouver)(7 cruises previous so I am experienced) people actually thought T-shirts that had ALASKA in sequins were formal wear. There was one gentleman who actually had his pajamas on for FORMAL NIGHT. He was in the Atrium,during the time of Formal pictures, wandering around in his PJ's from home, with a robe, and thought he was properly dressed. Sleazy, Sleazy, Sleazy!!!

My husband made the acquaintance of the Captain only because "he was one of only three gentleman on the cruise with a dinner jacket on". Direct quote from the Captain.

Personal Choice Dining is the PITTS!!! Hope you booked something other than a large table. As a couple, we always like to meet other people. Generally pick a table for 8-10. On Princess, BECAUSE of PERSONAL CHOICE, people do what they feel like doing. No problem with that EXCEPT-if you originally booked FIXED DINING, you should NOT have the option of going anyplace you please. One night we were a table of 4, one night a table of 2 (we left after 30 minutes waiting for our tablemates), one night a table for 6. What inconsistency!!! The waiters could not give you great service, they never knew how many people may show up. We had a table one night where some people were eating appetizers and some people were eating the entre. What a joke!!! Rude people, not letting anyone know when they would be coming to dinner. IMHO, Personal Choice is a HORRIBLE premise unless you have your own group on the ship. If you are a single or a couple, WATCH out on FREESTYLE, PERSONAL CHOICE or whatever they call it. You may be eating by yourself at a table for 6-10.

Email if you need further info. We cruise 2-3 times a year. Only relaxation we get.





[This message has been edited by greatam (edited Mar 19, 2004).]

Here is a slightly different point of view:

There are many places in the world where a cruise on a large ship is great. Alaska is not one of them. If you can't live without the vegas acts and casinos than stop reading here.

If you are going to Alaska to see the natural splendors that abound there thatn your only real option is a small ship. While these ships don't offer the nightlife of the larger ships they do offer get upclose a personal with glaciers. Spending an hour following a pod of Orcas. Experts that will stand with you and explain the beauty of old growth forests, and best of all it is all included in your cruise price.

These special encounters with Alaska are not cheap, but all activities are included and 100 guest aboard, not 1200!!

The cabins are not grand, but then given all the activities, how much time are you spend there anyway?

I have travelled and loved Lindblad Expeditions, but also would recommend Cruise West as an option.

Whatever you decide I know that you will enjoy Alaska!

Especially if it's your first cruise, make sure that it includes Glacier Bay National Park -- slots to go there are limited and not all cruise ships have it on their itinerary, yet it's the real highlight of most cruises.

I haven't been to College Fjord and maybe it's as good, but other than that possibility, an Alaska cruise that doesn't include Glacier Bay is missing a lot.

a lot other posters already gave you valuable advices on how to book a cruise.

you usually get the best deals via some cruise-only agents who send out specials weekly. the second poster gave you the good sites to read up.

since it is your first cruise, i would suggest you go for better lines, such as celebrity, royal carribean or holland america. it is very important to have a right ship on the first cruise, because it would most likely influence you whether you enjoy cruise or not. in general most people love cruise after they try one, unless they pick a very cheap ship or one that is totally not suited for their own taste.

late August / early Sept is the end of the season for Alaska cruise, thus the cheapest fare. sometimes actually the best of weather too. do the cruise that includes Gracier Bay National Park, and pay special attn to the itinerary south bound or north bound, so you wont cruise thru some very scenic areas at the darkness of the night.

also at least do a land trip either pre or after your cruise. Denali National Park is a must-do. But Denali State Park is even better, but far less known.

do it yourself. driving in Alaska is quite easy eventhough most roads are only 2-lanes. you can drive to Denali National Park from Anchorage in a day - there is not too much to see in between - the highlight is the park. Lodging at Denali is expensive, but you can choose very good B&B at nearby Healy for about $120 a night. Denali Dome Home is an excellent excellent choice. you cannot drive thru the park, must take the park shuttle. go to the National Park website to find details. tickets usually need to be reserve weeks ahead in peak season so you wont be disappointed when you arrive there is no seats available. Plan to spend 2 nights at Denali area, may be 3. you need a full day at least to enjoy the park, for its amazing vastness and the wildlife.

another good area to tour by your own car is Kenai Peninsula - to us, it is by far the most scenic area of Alaska.

PL has rooms available for bidding at Anchorage, much cheaper than you go thru other channels.

I agree with tryvingfool. One really should go to Alaska for the tremendous natural beauty - not the cruise ship glitz.

We did the cruise thing a few years ago with World Discovery. The ship didn't offer much much in the way of amenities, but it did give us twelve days of breathtaking upclose scenery, easy access to naturalists, and the occassional unscheduled stop to watch playful whales that came up right alongside the ship to flap their flippers and show off for a very appreciative audience.

It was unbelievably wonderful.

trvingfool and Flyingmama have got this exactly right. If you want a luxury cruise experience, great, but in that case DON'T go to Alaska. We went quite a few years ago with Lindblad (Special Expeditions), and it was basically a wildlife safari. There was not a set itinerary, except for stopping in Petersburg (our "big" port!) midway through so the crew could do the ship's laundry. Otherwise, we went to gorgeous uninhabited islands for hikes and bird-watching, sometimes with picnics on the beach. While sailing, one crew member would be on the bridge with binoc's, and if whales were spotted, we'd head in that direction. No hordes of people, no tourist-y places, just up close and personal with humpbacks, orcas, birds, and glaciers. Also, the food was fantastic---often it was fish that had been pulled out of the water that day (and I am a bona fide food snob). I think either Fodor or Frommer has a guide that lists small ship operators. If you want to cruise in Alaska, you owe it to yourself to look into these.

FWIW: We cruised at the end of August and found the weather uncooperative. I don't know if it was because it was nearing the end of the cruise season or not, but would recommend you go in late June/July/early August.

Then again, weather, as always, is highly unpredictable from one year to the next. I went on an Alaskan cruise at the end of August 2002, and the weather was perfect. Warm, but not too hot, no rain, no high winds.....just perfect.

We cruised to Alaska Last year on Carnival. Its the low end on the scale of cruise ships but that puts it in the price range for people our age. We are in our 20's and have found several couples our age on each of the 4 cruises we have been on (All Carnival). Carnival is a very friendly cruise line...in fact on this cruise we went on several excursions with the cruise director and her assistant (25 mile bike into a fish hatchery, 6-7 mile hike into a secluded set of waterfalls, and some great kayaking). They took pictures with their digital camera and burned CDs for us at no charge.

But if you are looking for everyone to be dressed in formals for dinner you just won't find that atmosphere on their ships. This is a plus for us...I wear suits to the sit-down dinners but in no way are offended by how others are dressed (Whatever they feel comfortable in is ok with me)

I do agree about the seating. We have always done with small tables (4-6 people) and have met some wonderful people (Carnival has always done a great job seating us with people in their 20's-30's). Its nice to sit with the same people each night and get to know them.

I think it all depends on what kind of experience you are looking for.

annerj

On an early September Holland American cruise from Vancouver to Anchorage a few years ago, we caught 70-degree weather in Vancouver, Ketchikan and Juneau with 60s in Valdez and Anchorage. We only wore our jackets in Sitka (rain) and in College Fjiord (chill).