What’s your BIGGEST tip to tell a first time Alaskan cruiser!

[Geomom]

Waterproof shoes! Some people buy a can of waterproofing spray and just spray their shoes before leaving. We got waterproof hiking shoes for the trip in 2016. Mine are now worn out (after Alaska and Baltic cruise, Girl Scout camping, and just rainy days) and I just bought a new pair that I'm breaking in before our Norway trip.

And maybe a pair of rain boots for your little one. Little kids love puddles!

 

[IceSkatingPrincess]

Bring your own binoculars, splurge for good excursions. We did a helicopter ride to a glacier landing to then go dog sledding and it was $$$ but so incredibly worth it. We also did a second excursion that day to make sure we went whale watching. We did all sorts of wonderful excursions. Don't underestimate the excursion budget!

 

[MomOTwins]

Bring your own binoculars, splurge for good excursions. We did a helicopter ride to a glacier landing to then go dog sledding and it was $$$ but so incredibly worth it. We also did a second excursion that day to make sure we went whale watching. We did all sorts of wonderful excursions. Don't underestimate the excursion budget!

Lol, it’s funny because I was about to post how our advice is don’t spend a lot of money on excursions. We did two cruises to Alaska—one a honeymoon where we went big with excursions and one a family trip with out kids in tow where we did DIY stuff to save money. In Juneau, I much preferred our DIY hike to nugget falls at the base of mendenhall glacier than the expensive whale watching (long and mostly boring as we had a foggy day and only a few minutes of whales) and salmon bake (dry and tasteless) we did on our prior cruise. Felt like we could have more quality family time on our hike and really got to experience something private and special without being herded around in an excursion group. In ketchikan our first trip we did an expensive zip line but felt like it could have been a zip line anywhere in the US—nothing special. Second trip we explored town on our own and bought cheap tickets to the lumberjack show and had so much fun—creek street, the salmon run, path through the rainforest—all were really neat! In skagway I did enjoy the train so that is one thing I would pay again to do. But I would not recommend sled dogs if you are an animal lover—we had heard that the treatment of the animals is ethically problematic but went anyway and wished we hadn’t. YMMV.

 

[Calantha]

Same with us. We hit a heat wave

And we had the coldest week in June last year and I froze! So, be prepared for anything.

 

[Cruising Engineer]

Bring good hiking footwear. Rocks and mud are slippery when walking on trails, especially in shaded areas. Binoculars really get the shoreline and treetops up close to see big animals and eagles. Layers, but don't over-pack. You can wear the same ones over and over (or under and under ) again, and no one will notice.

 

[tvguy]

And we had the coldest week in June last year and I froze! So, be prepared for anything.

Very true. But people EXPECT cold weather in Alaska, so warm weather is usually the surprise.

 

[jimmymc]

Do they wear the Alaska outfits every day on the ship and nautical on the first and last?

I’m thinking f

Nautical
Formal
Alaska

Surely they have something else they wear

Alaska clothes are usually only on the glacier viewing day. On port days they'll be in nautical.

 

[jimmymc]

Weather can be anywhere from 50s and cloudy to 80 and sunny, sometimes in the same week, so you really need gear for both. It rains a lot in Alaska, something like 200+ days a year, so bring jackets and umbrellas. I personally like the REI Jacket: https://www.rei.com/product/127336/rei-co-op-rainier-rain-jacket-mens

My biggest advice is to go all-out on your excursions. Alaska is beautiful from the ship, but the real draw for me is getting to hike and see wildlife you can't at home.

Juneau and Icy Strait Point are good for whale watching (they go to the same waters). You can also do a variety of hikes at the Mendenhall Glacier.

In Skagway, you can take the train, a bus, or drive yourself up into Canada to see the mountains. The train is the most relaxing, but driving yourself lets you stop and take pictures or go on short walks. Bring your passports so you can get into Canada.

Ketchikan has a bear sanctuary you can visit, or you can do the George Inlet Lodge crab feast. There are also boat and seaplane tours you can go on. One bucket list trip for me here is taking a seaplane to a bear viewing area. This is also a popular port if you want to go salmon fishing.

 

[brentm77]

Lol, it’s funny because I was about to post how our advice is don’t spend a lot of money on excursions. We did two cruises to Alaska—one a honeymoon where we went big with excursions and one a family trip with out kids in tow where we did DIY stuff to save money. In Juneau, I much preferred our DIY hike to nugget falls at the base of mendenhall glacier than the expensive whale watching (long and mostly boring as we had a foggy day and only a few minutes of whales) and salmon bake (dry and tasteless) we did on our prior cruise. Felt like we could have more quality family time on our hike and really got to experience something private and special without being herded around in an excursion group. In ketchikan our first trip we did an expensive zip line but felt like it could have been a zip line anywhere in the US—nothing special. Second trip we explored town on our own and bought cheap tickets to the lumberjack show and had so much fun—creek street, the salmon run, path through the rainforest—all were really neat! In skagway I did enjoy the train so that is one thing I would pay again to do. But I would not recommend sled dogs if you are an animal lover—we had heard that the treatment of the animals is ethically problematic but went anyway and wished we hadn’t. YMMV.

Do you think two adults would enjoy the lumberjack show? My wife can't do anything high-adventure so I am looking for more low key stuff she will enjoy. She is already humoring me by letting me pick a non-tropical/non-Europe vacation. We don't mind a little corny either.

 

[jimmymc]

Do you think two adults would enjoy the lumberjack show? My wife can't do anything high-adventure so I am looking for more low key stuff she will enjoy. She is already humoring me by letting me pick a non-tropical/non-Europe vacation. We don't mind a little corny either.

It depends on the adults. IMO it's cornier than a lot of Disney park shows. But if you watch the lumberjack events on TV and think "hmm, that's cool", then give it a try! It's neither that long nor expensive.

 

[IceSkatingPrincess]

Lol, it’s funny because I was about to post how our advice is don’t spend a lot of money on excursions. We did two cruises to Alaska—one a honeymoon where we went big with excursions and one a family trip with out kids in tow where we did DIY stuff to save money. In Juneau, I much preferred our DIY hike to nugget falls at the base of mendenhall glacier than the expensive whale watching (long and mostly boring as we had a foggy day and only a few minutes of whales) and salmon bake (dry and tasteless) we did on our prior cruise. Felt like we could have more quality family time on our hike and really got to experience something private and special without being herded around in an excursion group. In ketchikan our first trip we did an expensive zip line but felt like it could have been a zip line anywhere in the US—nothing special. Second trip we explored town on our own and bought cheap tickets to the lumberjack show and had so much fun—creek street, the salmon run, path through the rainforest—all were really neat! In skagway I did enjoy the train so that is one thing I would pay again to do. But I would not recommend sled dogs if you are an animal lover—we had heard that the treatment of the animals is ethically problematic but went anyway and wished we hadn’t. YMMV.

I don't think it is quite fair to blanket statement every sled dog camp as having problematic animal treatment, some surely do, but definitely not all. Our experience showed very well cared for animals who had clearly close relationships with their handler. I'm sure that is not the case everywhere, but YMMV.

Regardless though, I think the advice is to figure out your priorities and design your trip based around that. We loved our more adventurous excursion choices but realize some of those would not have been good for everyone. If you do plan on excursions though, just know that many of them (not all, but many) are significantly more costly than excursions you may be used to on something like a Caribbean itinerary.

 

[jimmymc]

I don't think it is quite fair to blanket statement every sled dog camp as having problematic animal treatment, some surely do, but definitely not all. Our experience showed very well cared for animals who had clearly close relationships with their handler. I'm sure that is not the case everywhere, but YMMV.

Regardless though, I think the advice is to figure out your priorities and design your trip based around that. We loved our more adventurous excursion choices but realize some of those would not have been good for everyone. If you do plan on excursions though, just know that many of them (not all, but many) are significantly more costly than excursions you may be used to on something like a Caribbean itinerary.

So there is one sled dog camp in Skagway that's kind of infamous for not being a good experience. The dog conditions are fine but not great, and the ride you go on is way too short. If you're able to take a helicopter to a glacier and meet dogs on actual snow, I think it's a much better time, but also way more expensive.

 

[IceSkatingPrincess]

So there is one sled dog camp in Skagway that's kind of infamous for not being a good experience. The dog conditions are fine but not great, and the ride you go on is way too short. If you're able to take a helicopter to a glacier and meet dogs on actual snow, I think it's a much better time, but also way more expensive.

Ah, I can only speak for our excursion in Juneau. It was ~$900/pp and included transport to/from, a scenic helicopter ride over a couple other glaciers, landing on a glacier, a tour of the camp, and an opportunity to ride on the sled that included a halfway stop to love on the dogs and give some belly rubs. OP - there was an option to sit if standing on the sled would be problematic for anyone in your party and it was something you wanted to do.

Great experience. Sorry to hear some of the others were not as positive.

 

[Lumpy1106]

Don't do an excursion in Ketchikan. The town is very walk-able and there is a lot to see. Juneau OTOH is all tourist trap garbage right where the ships dock. If you keep walking it gets better but still - you might want to plan an excursion there just to get away from it. If you like dogs, the sled dog training excursion in Juneau was our favorite (the excursion is actually on Douglas Island, across the bridge from Juneau).
As others have said, plan for all weather. We had rain, a decent storm one night at sea, and also spent a day by the pool, with a gorgeous day when we sailed by the glacier.

 

[stout]

Enjoy yourself. Traveling with a pre-schooler, your “perfect shot” or experience may not go as you planned; that’s life.

This is so true! During our Hubbard Glacier day…DD4 was overtired from the kids club. She wanted to see Tinkerbell and to watch movies in the room, and wanted nothing to do with the glacier. I took her see Tinkerbell and then wanted a family picture on the upper deck in front of the glacier…that family picture includes her with her jacket on backwards (because it was the only way it would stay on her) and her crying/throwing a tantrum. We then went back to the room to watch the calving of the glacier from the veranda…she watched tv.
So the tip that saved us…get a veranda!

 

[nancipants]

We did a sled dog excursion in Skagway in 2014 and loved it.

 

[jimmymc]

Ah, I can only speak for our excursion in Juneau. It was ~$900/pp and included transport to/from, a scenic helicopter ride over a couple other glaciers, landing on a glacier, a tour of the camp, and an opportunity to ride on the sled that included a halfway stop to love on the dogs and give some belly rubs. OP - there was an option to sit if standing on the sled would be problematic for anyone in your party and it was something you wanted to do.

Great experience. Sorry to hear some of the others were not as positive.

I've also heard great things about the tour you did and would definitely like to try it in the future.

 

[KGmomoftwins]

Biggest advice is know your family. Don’t just do something because a bunch of other people say oh it’s the best. The train in Skagway would be an example for my family we are to active and sitting for that long no matter what the scenery is not for us. We made a list of our must dos and then designed from there. IMO people think you don’t need an excursion in Ketchikan because creek at is so cool which it is but there is plenty of time to do both. I wish we had done one meal at a fish place instead of doing all our meals on the ship. Also jet lag is real and might be tough depending on how scheduled your toddler is. For our girls it was tougher going back home west to east. I agree with the deck 4 on glacier day some of my favorite wildlife scenery pictures were taken from there and our deck six balcony. No matter what Alaska is amazing

 

[MomOTwins]

Do you think two adults would enjoy the lumberjack show? My wife can't do anything high-adventure so I am looking for more low key stuff she will enjoy. She is already humoring me by letting me pick a non-tropical/non-Europe vacation. We don't mind a little corny either.

Yes! It is definitely corny, but I enjoyed it. And it is pretty impressive all the stunts they pull. I felt like it was not a "kiddie" thing, just a silly thing.

 

[auntlynne]