Cruise Reviews, Ship Reviews by The Avid Cruiser

The first cruise ships sail to Alaska in May and the last ones depart in September. And though the weather can be unpredictable during the months that mark the bookends of the Alaska cruise season, shoulder season is a good time to visit for a variety of reasons, according Tania Hancock, tourism sales manager with the Anchorage Convention and Visitors Bureau.

“I particularly enjoy the shoulder seasons,” Hancock says. “May and September are my favorite months, and of the two, September in particular, because I love the fall foliage. It’s a short season, but it’s an absolutely beautiful season. The tundra is red and orange and gold in Denali, and that backdrop to the wildlife is pretty spectacular. We also see a lot more wildlife in our shoulder seasons than in the middle of high season. The wildlife tends to come out more on cloudy days, when it’s a little bit cooler, maybe a little bit misty. We see a lot more of the bears, and a lot more of our moose and caribou. And certainly the same thing rings true in spring. Of course, the foliage is very different. It’s that beautiful bright spring green, and once again, it’s an amazing backdrop to all of the wildlife that you see in Anchorage and South Central Alaska and in the interior as well.”

The shorter daylight hours during May and September (as opposed to the nearly 16 to 18 hours of daylight in mid-summer) also means that you’re more likely to see animals. Midsummer, moose bed down underneath trees, out of sight of visitors. But in cooler weather, “we see them at 5 o’clock in the evening,” Hancock says, “as opposed to having to wait until 10 o’clock at night in the middle of June.”

And don’t think you have to run off to Denali to see moose and other wildlife. “The biggest misconception about Anchorage,” Hancock says, “is that it’s just like any other city in the lower 48, like a mini-Seattle, for example. What a lot of visitors don’t realize until they get to Alaska, is that Anchorage actually has a lot of wilderness and wildlife right in the city, and it is uniquely Alaskan. Without realizing how uniquely Alaskan the city, a lot of visitors will just breeze right through. They think they need to continue on to get to the real Alaska, but Anchorage is the real Alaska.”

Anchorage boasts a few thousand moose. And they can be just as spectacular as bear, Hancock says, plus moose are vegetarians, meaning that, unlike bear, they don’t consider cruise passengers part of the food chain. “When it comes to watchable wildlife,” Hancock says, “moose are definitely at the top of my list.”

Anchorage is situated more than 200 miles south of Denali National Park. On the clear days during shoulder season, you can see Mt. McKinley from Alaska’s largest city. “Riding a bicycle or just walking along our Coastal Trail, which starts on 2nd avenue in downtown Anchorage, is a wonderful way to spend a few hours in my city,” Hancock says. “Once again, you’ve got views of gorgeous mountain ranges like Mt. McKinley, you’ve got a lot of wildlife opportunities and you’re right on the edge of the water.”

When is the best time to book your cruise? The answer depends on where you’re going.

The only part of your cruise where you can’t relax is in booking it. Planning on cruising Europe’s rivers in the summer of 2009? Better hurry, or you’ll miss the boat.

You’re somewhat better off if planning an ocean cruise in Europe — or if you’re wanting to skirt the Alaskan coast. Ocean-going vessels have more capacity than European river cruisers, but even on big ships, it pays to book early. 

Savvy cruisers will begin booking their summer 2009 vacations in September 2008. Those who wait longer, “take a significant chance,” says Rick Meadows, Holland America Line’s executive vice president marketing, sales and guest programs. “You may not get the dates or the accommodations you’re looking for.”

Be sure to ask about “off-season cruises” in Europe and Alaska, where you’ll find some of the best values, but “many of those dates go quite quickly,” Meadows says. 

A good rule of thumb for when to book: nine months to a year out, unless you have your sights set on a balmy Caribbean cruise, which can be booked much closer in.

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Selecting an Alaska cruisetour can be daunting for the uninitiated. With more that 50 cruisetours offered by the major players, how do you sift through the options to find an Alaska cruisetour that’s right for you? To find out, we sat down with Paul Allen, vice president of sales for Holland America Line.

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Make the most of your Alaska cruise from Seattle by pitching camp for a few days to explore the “Emerald City.”

ON A SUNNY SATURDAY IN AUGUST, a crowd gathers at Seattle’s Pike Place Market. The mood is festive, particularly at Pike Place Fish, where fishmongers, garbed in Grundens (the Swedish-stitched orange bib overalls) joke as they toss whole Sockeye Salmon, Alaskan Halibut and Yellow Fin Tuna over the counter to be packaged. “Want to see a flying fish?” says one, as he sends a salmon sailing to a co-worker. With cameras rolling and flashes sparkling, the tourists laugh. Continue Reading »

Reason number 8,028 to book a balcony stateroom: the early-morning view in Sitka, Alaska. It was 7 a.m., and my stateroom was immersed in darkness until I rose from my bed and stood in front of the curtains. I used both hands to draw them back for a view that caused me to audibly express my awe. My snapshot, in fact, does little justice to the nuances of light on the islands and evergreens, the sounds of water lapping against the ship’s hull and fishing boats with motors humming in the distance — and even the cry of an eagle overhead. There were seven other mornings similar to this one during our weeklong cruise to Alaska. Whether drawing back the curtains to walls of glaciers or to majestic snow-capped mountains, my balcony framed Alaska each day of my cruise. A friend of mine calls her balcony, “a view with a room,” because unlike a hotel or resort, the view from a ship changes constantly. I don’t know that there are really 8,028 reasons to book a balcony stateroom. I chose that number because it was my stateroom number, a Deluxe Veranda Outside, forward on Navigation Deck on Holland America Line’s Westerdam. So while I may not be able to come up with 8,027 other reasons, I can tell you this: All you need is one reason, and you’re looking at it.

Research shows that most people planning a trip to Alaska want to see two places: Glacier Bay National Park and Denali National Park. You can get to Glacier Bay aboard a cruise ship and admire the national park’s stunning scenery from the comfort of your balcony stateroom. But to get to Denali (a.k.a. Mt. McKinley), you’ll have to get off the ship, lace up your hiking boots, and trek inland. That’s where a cruisetour comes in. Continue Reading »