Alaska Cruise Tips You Should Know (Based on My Personal Experience)
If you’re going on a cruise to Alaska soon, make sure you know these important Alaska cruise tips! I absolutely love Alaska — it’s one of the most unique places in the United States, unlike anywhere else in the country. And a cruise is the perfect way to explore this rugged, wild destination for the first time.
Taking an Alaska cruise is one of my earliest travel memories. I went on a cruise to Alaska with my extended family when I was five years old. Despite being so young, I remember so much about that trip.
More than two decades later, my mom and I decided to go on another Alaska cruise. Now, as a full-time traveler and professional travel writer, I obviously handled a lot more of the planning for this trip compared to the cruise I went on when I was five years old. And so I have a lot of tips to share with you!
Even if you’re an experienced cruiser, Alaska cruises are very different from other types of cruises. And if you’ve never been on a cruise before, you will also find a lot of helpful tips below.
Here’s a look at the most important Alaska cruise tips to know before you go:
1. Pack weather-appropriate clothing.
When you think of cruises, you might think of tropical destinations, flip-flops, and swimsuits. An Alaska cruise is a totally different vibe, though. Even though the Alaska cruise season takes place primarily during the summer, it can still be very chilly in Alaska. So you want to make sure you pack the right clothing.
For Alaska cruises, the most key thing to remember is layering. Most days on my Alaska cruise, I found myself wearing a pair of pants or leggings, a long-sleeve base layer top, and a puffy jacket.
You’ll also want to pack lots of socks and comfortable, water-resistant walking shoes.
You can pack a couple of pairs of shorts and t-shirts, and some nice dresses for dinner on the cruise ship (although Alaska cruises skew more casual) but other than that, you don’t need a lot of warm-weather clothing. Do remember to pack a swimsuit, though, for enjoying the heated swimming pool or the hot tub.
2. Book a balcony cabin.
I’ve cruised in all cabin types before: interior, exterior, and balcony. And there are few cruise itineraries where having a balcony is more important than on an Alaska cruise. It’s 100% worth the splurge!
Why? Because most Alaska itineraries feature a lot of scenic sailing. For example, Glacier Bay National Park, which is primarily accessible by boat, is a place you’ll visit on many Alaska cruises. You’ll spend hours sailing through some of the most breathtaking scenery, full of impressive glaciers and mountains.
If you don’t have a balcony, you’ll be standing shoulder-to-shoulder with everyone else on the upper decks to watch the scenery go by. But if you have a balcony, you can relax in your private lounge chairs (bundled up with an extra blanket or two on top!) and watch the scenery go by in peace and solitude.
It was so nice to sit on my balcony all cozy with a blanket and a mug of hot chocolate while watching the scenery of Alaska glide by. This is something that is definitely worth the extra price you’ll pay.
3. Bring binoculars.
Speaking of scenic sailing, you’ll also want to bring binoculars with you to Alaska. Binoculars are great for any cruise, but especially Alaska, where you have the chance to spot so much wildlife.
From bears to bald eagles to humpback whales to sea otters, you have the chance to see incredible animals in the wild, oftentimes from the ship. Binoculars are super helpful for getting a close-up look at wildlife.
4. Prepare for rain.
One thing many visitors aren’t prepared for is the rain in Alaska. The Inside Passage, the region of Alaska that is visited on most cruises, experiences a lot of rain during the summer months.
April and May are typically the driest months, although you should still expect some rain on your trip. Luckily, this is not a big problem as long as you come prepared for the rainy weather in Alaska.
My mom and I brought along oversized hooded ponchos, and this ended up being a lifesaver. Do they look stylish? No! But luckily, Alaska isn’t exactly known for being a high-fashion destination. The most important thing was that these ponchos keep you extra dry, and have a waterproof pouch for your phone.
You can also bring an umbrella on top of your rain gear, but if it’s windy, you might just end up fighting against it. I enjoyed wearing the ponchos since it allowed me to keep both hands free instead.
As I mentioned above, it’s also important to pack sturdy, water-resistant footwear for Alaska. I wouldn’t recommend rain boots, since walking long distances in them is impractical, but rather a comfortable pair of walking shoes that can withstand the rain. And lots of wool socks to keep your feet warm and dry!
5. Save money in the shoulder season.
The Alaska cruise season runs from April to October, with summer being the most popular time. April and October are both considered the shoulder season, and you can save money traveling at this time.
The weather is typically even cooler, and wildlife isn’t at its peak, but these months can still be a great time to go to Alaska if you want to experience the destination with lower prices and fewer crowds.
May and September are usually also cheaper than June, July, and August. I personally did an Alaska cruise in late May and was able to get a really good deal on it, so shop around when it comes to dates.
6. Research your itinerary.
Another important thing to research is the exact itinerary of your Alaska cruise. Most Alaska cruises travel the Inside Passage, stopping at ports of call like Juneau, Ketchikan, Sitka, and Skagway.
Most of these cruises depart from Seattle, Washington or Vancouver, Canada and last one week.
However, some cruises start or end in Anchorage, Alaska, and these are typically longer and allow you to see more northern ports like Anchorage, Whittier, Seward, Valdez, and Kodiak. If you have more time and are interested in these lesser-visited destinations, you might want to book one of these cruises.
7. Choose the right cruise line.
It’s also important that you choose the right cruise line. I’ve cruised with eight different cruise lines now, but both of my Alaska cruises were with Holland America Line, which I highly recommend.
Holland America and Princess Cruises are widely considered the best cruise lines for Alaska, because they’ve been doing it the longest and have priority in some ports. I’ve personally been on two Princess cruises in other destinations (not Alaska), and I wasn’t as impressed compared to Holland America.
Both cruise lines tend to skew towards older travelers, although part of that is just the demographics traveling to Alaska. There are still plenty of activities catering to children and teens onboard, though.
If you’re a family traveling with kids and you’re looking for a younger crowd overall and more kid-friendly activities, you might consider going with Royal Caribbean, another good cruise line.
8. Book your excursions early.
Alaska is a destination where you need to book your cruise excursions as far in advance as possible. I’ve written about whether or not I think cruise excursions are worth it (not for me, in most cases), but one of the examples I gave where they are worth it is remote ports of call with unique activities.
That describes Alaska to a tee. There are all kinds of unique activities to try here — whale-watching tours, taking a helicopter ride to a glacier, dog sledding, fly fishing, glacier trekking, and so on.
If you want to try any of these activities, you should book them well in advance, because both cruise ship shore excursions and third-party tours from Viator or GetYourGuide sell out quickly.
9. DIY excursions are possible, but limited.
Since I’m usually not a fan of tours and excursions on cruises, I personally decided to plan DIY activities in each port of the Alaska cruise that my mom and I took. We ended up having a great time!
However, it’s important to note that you can’t really do some of the more extreme activities I mentioned above on your own. But you can still visit some beautiful scenic destinations and fascinating historic and cultural sites independently, which is what we did — saving tons of money in the process.
In Juneau, for example, we visited Mendenhall Glacier independently by bus, and in Ketchikan, we went to Totem Bight State Historical Park on our own by bus. Both DIY excursions cost just a fraction of what it would have cost to visit these places as part of a cruise ship excursion, and we could go at our own pace.
Public transportation in Alaska is limited, but I was surprised by how efficient it was!
In other, smaller ports, like Icy Strait Point, we took advantage of a free shuttle the cruise ship offered to visit the nearby town of Hoonah and simply spent time walking around and exploring on our own.
10. Get a window seat for meals.
This one can be a little tricky, but it’s worth it! Since you can often see a lot of beautiful scenery while cruising through Alaska, it’s worth asking for a window seat at meals so you can watch it go by.
If you have a set dinner time and table on your cruise, arrive early to dinner on the first night and request a window table from the host. If you’re participating in flexible dining, you should still arrive early to request it. You’ll just need to repeat the process every evening since you don’t have an assigned table.
For other meals in the dining room, including breakfast and lunch, where no one has an assigned table, you can usually snag a window table simply by arriving a little early to request one.
11. Fly in a day or two early.
Most Alaska cruises depart from Seattle, Washington or Vancouver, Canada. I highly recommend flying in a day or two early, and not arriving on the morning of your embarkation day. If you do and your flight is delayed, you have a very high likelihood of missing your cruise — it’s simply not worth the risk!
Both Seattle and Vancouver are cool cities that have some great tourist attractions, so it’s also worth arriving a day or two in advance just to give yourself some time to explore before your cruise begins.
I’ve written guides on where to stay in both Seattle and Vancouver before your cruise, highlighting hotels that are central to tourist attractions and also close to the cruise port (in some cases, walking distance!)
Alaska Cruise Tips You Should Know
These are the essential Alaska cruise tips you should know before you travel.
By following these tips, you can ensure that you have a great Alaska cruise and don’t end up disappointed. Alaska is an incredible destination for anyone who loves nature, wildlife, and the outdoors. Taking a cruise is a great way to experience this beautiful, remote state, and these tips will help you make the most of it.
Enjoy your Alaska cruise!
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