I love Alaska cruises, but I also think Alaska is one of those destinations where how you plan the trip can make an enormous difference in the experience you have.
When people start looking at Alaska cruises, it’s easy to get distracted by the newest ship, the biggest balcony, or a great-looking price. Those things certainly matter. But after planning Alaska cruises for clients and experiencing Alaska cruising myself, there are a few things I think deserve even more attention.
So, here are five pieces of advice I’d give a friend who told me they were thinking about taking an Alaska cruise.
1. Don’t choose the ship first. Choose where you want to go.
Normally, I’m a big believer in finding the right ship for the person. A Royal Caribbean cruise can be a very different vacation from Holland America Line, Viking Ocean, or Disney Cruise Line, for example.
But Alaska is different.
In Alaska, I want to look at the itinerary before I fall in love with the ship.
Which ports are included? How long are you actually in those ports? What glacier experience does the itinerary offer? Does it visit Glacier Bay? Hubbard Glacier? Tracy Arm? Is it roundtrip from Seattle or Vancouver, or is it a one-way cruise that takes you farther into Alaska?
Glacier Bay is certainly one of the experiences I pay attention to. Only certain cruise lines and ships have permits to enter Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, and it’s a spectacular day of cruising.
But I wouldn’t say an Alaska cruise without Glacier Bay is automatically a bad itinerary. Hubbard Glacier can be incredible, too. There are some excellent Alaska itineraries that don’t visit Glacier Bay at all.
That’s why I don’t believe there’s one itinerary that’s right for everybody.
I’d much rather put someone on a slightly older ship with an itinerary that gives them the Alaska experience they’re dreaming about than choose the newest, flashiest ship simply because it’s new.
For Alaska, destination comes first. Ship comes second.
2. Balconies are great. But they’re not the first thing I’d consider.
I love a balcony as much as anyone. There’s something pretty wonderful about stepping outside your cabin and seeing mountains, forests, waterfalls, and glaciers passing by.
But when I’m choosing an Alaska cruise, a balcony isn’t at the top of my list.
In fact, my next Alaska cruise (I’ll be sailing with Holland America) is in September 2027, and I’m booked in an inside cabin. And I’m incredibly excited about cruising Alaska again. I’m not worried at all about what the view from my cabin will be because I don’t plan on sitting in there when there’s something worth seeing!
That’s the thing I think sometimes gets lost when people talk about Alaska cruising. You don’t need a private balcony to experience Alaska.
Some of my favorite places to enjoy the scenery are the open decks and public viewing areas where I can move around the ship. If someone spots a whale on the other side, I can go see it. On a glacier day, I can change locations as the ship turns. And sometimes there’s something special about standing outside with other passengers when everyone suddenly spots a whale, a glacier comes into view, or you round a corner and see another incredible mountain landscape.
Would I take a balcony if the price and circumstances were right? Of course.
But I’d choose the right itinerary, the right cruise line, the right time of year, and the experiences I want ashore before I’d make a balcony a requirement.
If choosing an inside or oceanview cabin means you can take the Alaska cruise you’ve been dreaming about, or leaves more room in the budget for whale watching, the White Pass Railway, or another bucket-list excursion, I wouldn’t hesitate.
Because Alaska happens outside the cabin.
And whether I’m sleeping in an inside cabin or waking up to a balcony view, I’m still going to be pretty excited when I walk outside and realize I’m back in Alaska.
3. Don’t wait until the last minute to think about excursions.
This is one area where I encourage my clients to plan ahead.
Alaska has some truly bucket-list shore excursions. Whale watching. Helicopter rides and glacier landings. Dog sledding. The famous White Pass & Yukon Route Railway in Skagway. Wildlife tours. Floatplanes. Fishing. There are experiences here that you simply aren’t going to find on your typical Caribbean cruise.
And some of the most popular experiences have limited capacity.
If there’s something you’ve been dreaming about doing in Alaska, I don’t recommend assuming you’ll figure it out once you get onboard, or around final payment…get those “Must Do” excursions booked soon after depositing your cruise!
I also don’t think you need to book an expensive excursion in every port. Sometimes simply walking around town, visiting a local restaurant, taking in the scenery, or finding a less elaborate activity makes for a wonderful day. (Ketchikan, I’m looking at you…)
My advice is to identify your must-do experience first. If there’s one thing you’d be genuinely disappointed to miss, that’s the excursion I’d concentrate on securing early.
4. Please don’t wait forever for someone else to be ready.
This one isn’t really about cruising. It’s about travel in general.
I’ve heard variations of this many times:
“I’d love to go to Alaska, but I’m waiting for…”
Waiting for a spouse to become interested. Waiting for friends to commit. Waiting for the kids. Waiting for somebody else’s schedule to line up.
Sometimes that works out beautifully.
Sometimes years go by.
If Alaska is somewhere you’ve always dreamed about seeing, I don’t think you necessarily need to wait for someone else to decide they’re ready.
Cruising can be a particularly comfortable way to travel solo. You unpack once. Transportation between destinations is handled. There are activities when you want company and plenty of opportunities to enjoy your own time when you don’t.
And if your parents are still able to travel and Alaska is somewhere you’ve talked about experiencing together, that’s another trip I wouldn’t keep pushing too far into the future. Just staying on the ship and experiencing the awe of Alaska is a wonderful vacation.
There will always be another ship and another sailing date.
There isn’t always another opportunity to travel with the people we love.
5. There is no such thing as “the best Alaska cruise.”
People understandably ask me which Alaska cruise is the best.
The problem is that I can’t really answer that until I know more about you.
A couple celebrating an anniversary may want something completely different from a multigenerational family. Someone fascinated by wildlife may prioritize different ports and excursions than someone whose lifelong dream is seeing glaciers. An experienced cruiser may care about the ship and onboard atmosphere differently than someone taking their first cruise.
Even the month you travel changes Alaska.
Early-season Alaska can feel very different from July. Late summer and September bring their own advantages and tradeoffs. Wildlife patterns change. Daylight changes. Weather changes. Prices can change considerably.
Then we have Seattle versus Vancouver departures, roundtrip versus one-way itineraries, different glacier-viewing opportunities, and the possibility of adding a land portion before or after the cruise.
That’s why I’m hesitant whenever someone declares that one particular ship or itinerary is the Alaska cruise everyone should book.
There isn’t one.
There is, however, a best Alaska cruise for you.
And finding that is where good planning really matters.
One Last Piece of Alaska Advice
If Alaska has been sitting on your bucket list for years, don’t get so caught up trying to create the “perfect” trip that you never actually take it.
Choose a good itinerary. Pick a ship that fits the way you like to travel. Spend money on the experiences that matter to you. Pack layers. Bring binoculars. Go outside even when it’s chilly.
And occasionally put the camera down.
Because one of my favorite things about Alaska is that photographs never quite capture how enormous it feels when you’re actually standing there.
Alaska isn’t a cruise you simply take. It’s a place you experience.
And with a little thoughtful planning, it can be one of those vacations you talk about for the rest of your life.
Cleared For Take-Off! 