Alaskan Cruise – A Beach Bum’s Perspective

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We are in the heart of the Alaskan Cruise Season.  Have you sailed to Alaska?  If so, you’ll know that it’s an entirely different cruising experience.  One, frankly, I thought I would never experience.  But, spoiler alert – I did, and it became one of my most treasured cruising experiences.  Today I’m bringing you the scoop on an Alaskan Cruise and why you will love it (even if you are a beach bum like me).

Here’s the backstory on our Alaskan Cruise.

If you’ve been with me for a while you surely know that I am a BEACH BUM. I’m a Summer Lover.  I HATE to be cold.  Don’t get me wrong, I get hot, sweaty, and irritable in the summer.  But, my body just doesn’t deal well with being cold. I just feel bad.  So, my vacations typically consist of sailing to the Caribbean or hopping a plane to…well, anywhere warm.

My husband kindly obliges my need for the warm air and ocean breezes.  (He’s a keeper) So, around the time of our 10th cruise, he said…”You know, I’d really like to go on an Alaskan Cruise”.  Uh…What?  “And…I really think it would mean a lot to my Dad”.  Well, that did it.  Don’t get me wrong, I would do anything for my husband, but throw in my father-in-law who treats me like a true daughter and frankly a princess…and I’m calling the travel agent.

We booked about 15 months out and that entire time both men teased me mercilessly about how COLD it was going to be.  Meanies! But,  I endured their teasing and I began my obsession with packing, researching, and preparing for our upcoming Alaskan Cruise.

Alaskan Cruise – What You Need to Know

Price of an Alaskan Cruise

Be prepared to pay more than your average Caribbean Cruise. I assume it’s because it is a shorter sailing season than the Caribbean.  But, whatever the reason, it was definitely more expensive for the same room category.

You can save a bit by booking an interior or ocean view cabin instead of a balcony but I highly recommend the personal space for sightseeing the balcony offers. My husband Brian thought that this might be the only time in our life that he’d get me on a cold-weather cruise so there was no skipping the balcony.

For reference, we sailed on Royal Caribbean’s The Explorer of the Seas, 7 nights, roundtrip from Seattle. Our Ports of Call were Juneau, Alaska, Skagway, Alaska, and Victoria, BC, Canada.

Don’t even think of packing carry-on only for an Alaskan Cruise!

In my over-packing humble opinion, this is NOT the time to challenge yourself to go carry-on only.  Trust me when I tell you that there are some additional things that this cruise will require for you to be comfortable.  Namely…MORE CLOTHES!

Packing for an Alaskan Cruise – Layers…I’ll say it again…Layers!

Explore Pinterest (in fact, please check out my boards) searching on the topic of Alaskan Cruises for more than 15 seconds and you will see the word LAYERS.  There’s a good reason for that.  You will need to pack layers.  There’s no getting around it.

The temperature fluctuation between land and sea can be quite extreme.  For example, in both Juneau and Skagway, Alaska I was very comfortable in jeans and a t-shirt (but had a jacket with me).  However, while sailing, to be out on our balcony I wore fleece, hat, and gloves.  Check out my Alaskan Packing list in my travel printables section.

The Father/Son Duo start teasing the Beach Bum again…

Let’s talk about when it’s cold because this might surprise you.  We sailed out of Seattle, in July and it was a lovely day.  We were all wearing shorts.  We had a great afternoon on board then changed clothes and went to dinner.  When we walked out of dinner the deck doors opened and it was like someone smacked us with a blast of arctic air.

We weren’t’ alone.  It was suddenly the talk around the ship.  The shops onboard had anticipated everyone’s reaction and wheeled out “specials” featuring all things puffy and fleece.  I could almost hear the employees laughing at everyone scurrying around trying on full winter coats and making purchases left and right.

But here’s the deal once we arrived at our first port, no coats were needed. Our Alaskan Cruise ports were very mild and a simple jacket was enough.  Obviously, whether in July can be different than in May and September so keep that in mind.  But, it is summer in Alaska so don’t expect that you will need a parka on your excursions. (But, I would pack it for use during sailing!)

When you are sailing between ports it WILL be cold. And…your husband may tease you about your sweats, furry boots, and stocking cap.  

Excursions for an Alaskan Cruise

An Alaskan Cruise is a GREAT time to plan excursions.  They can be expensive, but save up because they are well worth it.  In the Caribbean, it’s typical on many of the islands to walk or hop in a taxi for a quick ride to the beach.  On an Alaskan Cruise you will want to plan your time a bit more but don’t be afraid to book excursions outside of the cruise line. Whale Watching is one extremely popular thing to do and I highly recommend it.  We thought the experience was worth every penny! We also enjoyed our White Pass Rail excursion, too!

You can find great information and reviews on Trip Advisor or on Cruiseline.com‘s ShipMate app.

The vibe onboard an Alaskan Cruise

On an Alaskan Cruise, we felt the vibe onboard was generally more casual.  That seems odd to say because cruises to the Caribbean can certainly seem laid back – steel drums and Pina Coladas!

I think it’s because when you are out on the open ocean it’s VERY cold.  People who are outside are all bundled up and it’s just more common to see people strolling along in their cozy sweatpants and sweatshirts drinking coffee.  And, you certainly won’t see anyone laying out by the pool in their bikini.

For this reason, dinners seemed more casual as well. I wore dress pants and blouses to dinner instead of cute summer dresses! Sailing on Royal Caribbean, there were also a lot more people wearing jeans to dinner, too, which is rare in the Royal Caribbean dining room.

Seeing wildlife during your Alaskan Cruise

Wow!  That’s all I can say.  Seals sunning on ice sheets right out from our balcony…amazing!  Hump Back whales swimming near our excursion boat. It’s like nothing any of us have ever experienced before. This is NOT the trip to leave the camera sitting on the kitchen table.  Bring those binoculars, too!

Loving our Environment

One of the things that I really loved about Alaska was the people.  Everyone we encountered seemed to have a genuine love of their home and of nature.  I could hear the respect they had for the environment in their voices.  It was truly inspiring.

If you’ve ever considered taking an Alaskan Cruise, this beach bum highly recommends it.  You will see a beauty that is difficult to describe.  Get out there and see something new.

Warm ocean air and sandy toes will always be in my heart but I have a great appreciation now for the “last frontier” that is Alaska and all of its beauty.

Be sure and let me know if you do!  You can read more about my cruise adventures here.

Want to read more about Alaska?  Check out this blog post from Canadian Affair where I was asked to share a bit of my experience with their readers or this one featuring Rocky Mountaineer and Alaska.

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Happy Travels!

Jillian