Sunday, April 21, 2024

Alaska cruise guide: Best itineraries, planning tips and things to do

best alaskan cruise line for families

Choosing the best cruise to suit adults and older children can be challenging. Cruising roundtrip from Seattle, Norwegian, and Royal Caribbean offers two ships per company. Solo travelers don't always have to pay double to cruise Alaska on their own. Several Norwegian Cruise Line ships feature cozy studio cabins designed and priced for one person, and the 4,004-passenger Norwegian Bliss offers 82 solo rooms on its round-trip Seattle cruises to Alaska. Alaska has become a hot spot for multigenerational family travel, with grandparents taking their kids and grandkids of all ages on a memory-making holiday.

Best Cruise Ship Family Cabins

Most cabins are designed to accommodate families of all sizes, with options for connecting rooms and sofa beds. Some ships even offer themed staterooms, such as Disney Cruise Line's Frozen-themed cabins. Located on the Prince William Sound, Whittier is a small town that offers access to some of Alaska's most stunning natural attractions. Families can take a boat tour to see glaciers and wildlife, go fishing or kayaking, or explore the town's shops and restaurants.

Best Alaska Cruises for Families: Top Picks And Tips

Adults can join the teens for some fun onboard with attractions such as bumper cars, iFly, Flow Rider, North Star, an arcade, and a climbing wall. We spoke to cruise experts to find the best Alaska itineraries to book this year. The best part about this cruise is that it combines nature, science, and education in a live, real manner that makes it pertinent to those on board.

Family Cruise Companion

If you choose to explore a port without your children, the kids’ program is open at various times while docked. Princess Cruises and Animal Planet offer unique shore excursions to elevate your family vacation. All cruise lines have adjoining cabins, but you’ll need to book early to ensure you can get them. Alternatively, families sometimes book a balcony and an inside across the hall.

The entire family will experience fascinating shore excursions allowing them to further their knowledge about Alaska’s wildlife, nature, and people. Just like all children are different, everyone’s tastes will have a wide range. We provide ample options for everyone to equip you with the cruise the entire family will enjoy. Another good option for those families with older children is Oceania’s Regatta, which allows kids older than 6-months to sail.

Best Cruise And Land Options

12 best Alaska cruises for an awe-inspiring trip - The Times

12 best Alaska cruises for an awe-inspiring trip.

Posted: Mon, 12 Feb 2024 08:00:00 GMT [source]

Nonetheless, UnCruise Adventures offers some of the most memorable Alaska expeditions you’ll find anywhere. If a cruise line partners with the National Geographic Society, you undoubtedly expect adventure when you get onto one of their ships, right? The cruise line is renowned for its culture and nature-focused Alaskan cruises that are not only memorable but also educational. Princess uses some of its largest ships for the Alaskan cruises, including the Golden Princess, the Emerald Princess, the Ruby Princess, and the Grand Princess.

best alaskan cruise line for families

Onboard Activities for Kids

But with so many cruise lines and itineraries to choose from, it can be overwhelming to decide which one is the best for your family. In this article, I will share my top picks for the best Alaska cruises for families. Their Alaskan cruises provide guests with an adventure-packed voyage through various glaciers, national parks, and wildlife. Guests can enjoy Cruisetours, which involve the cruise itself, a scenic train travel direct to your lodging, and spending three nights in a Princess Wilderness Lodge located near many famous national parks.

To save money, choose to cruise in the shoulder season (April/May and September/October) when the kids are in school. First-timers to Alaska are often dismayed to learn that excursions also come with shockingly high prices. Alternatively, select a cruise line or vessel for its onboard experience, and the itinerary becomes secondary. This option is best suited to large generational families who want the best of both worlds.

Serenade of the Seas travels roundtrip on seven-night cruises that include time in Ketchikan, Alaska, and cruising through Tracy Arm Fjord. Possible excursions include dog-sledding, helicopter rides, and glacier hikes. Some of the most family-friendly cruise lines for Alaskan cruises include Disney Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian Cruise Line. These cruise lines offer a variety of amenities and activities for kids of all ages, including supervised kids’ clubs, water parks, and family-friendly entertainment.

Other presentations include Alaska naturalists, bush pilots, and mushers from the Iditarod dog sled race. A top candidate for this kind of family vacation is a seven-night cruise on Princess Cruises' Royal Princess sailing between Vancouver and Whittier, Alaska. The ship stops in Ketchikan, Juneau and either Skagway or Sitka, with scenic cruising in Glacier Bay and either College Fjord or Hubbard Glacier, depending on the itinerary. Disney cruises are the most family-friendly of all the cruise lines as they are Disney Cruises. If you haven’t been on a Disney Cruise, it’s important to understand that this is not just a cruise line for kids, though.

In 2020, Carnival Spirit sails week-long roundtrip cruises from Seattle, and Carnival Miracle will offer 10- and 11-day Alaska cruises from San Francisco for the first time ever. A mix of itineraries includes Inside Passage ports of Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway, Icy Strait Point, cruising Tracy Arm Fjord, and Victoria, British Columbia. This is the inaugural season for Koningsdam (launched in 2016) in Alaska, sailing seven-day Inside Passage itineraries roundtrip from Vancouver. The luxurious Pinnacle Class ship has outstanding service and dining and a number of entertainment options including Music Walk, Rolling Stone Rock Room, and World Stage, and more. Holland America Line is currently the only cruise line with seven-day roundtrip itineraries from Vancouver that include Glacier Bay National Park. Norwegian Cruise Line has also invested in the ports of Icy Straight Point, Ketchikan, and Juneau to create shore excursions for visitors to experience the land, wildlife and native peoples of Alaska.

As the capital of Alaska, Juneau offers a unique blend of city and wilderness experiences. Families can explore the Mendenhall Glacier, go whale watching, or take a scenic helicopter tour. The city also boasts a vibrant arts and culture scene, with galleries, theaters, and festivals throughout the year.

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