Scott Barronton (00:00)
An Alaska cruise is on a lot of bucket lists, but what many people don't realize is how much choices shape the experience. From deciding between a megaship with endless amenities or a smaller vessel that gets closer to nature, to understanding who can actually sail into Glacier Bay, to figuring out which ports and excursions are really worth it. There's a lot more to planning than just booking a cabin. On this episode, we'll cut through the noise and focus on the questions people are really asking.
when they search for Alaska cruises, while sharing some of the highlights from our own trip and experiences.
Speaker 2 (00:40)
We're Scott and Melissa, The Sunshine Travelers.
Speaker 1 (00:43)
We're all about exploring the world and sharing the journey with you. Whether you're a seasoned traveler, dreaming of your next adventure, or just here for the stories.
Speaker 2 (00:50)
No matter where you are on your travel journey, we've got first-hand experiences, tips, and plenty of inspiration from some of the most amazing places on Earth.
Speaker 1 (01:00)
So buckle up and get ready to travel with us.
Scott Barronton (01:10)
Welcome back to the Sunshine Travelers podcast where we help you travel more and better. And today we're taking you with us to Alaska, not just to talk about glaciers and wildlife, but to go a little bit deeper. Exactly. We're covering the most searched questions about Alaska cruises, like which size ship is right for you? Should you prioritize Glacier Bay and what ports and itineraries are worth it?
Plus we're gonna share some of our personal highlights with you like flying in a float plane over glaciers and landing at a lodge for lunch. That was really incredible. Yeah, we're gonna talk a little bit about the food there because the food was magnificent.
But today we're going to share our experiences from the Alaskan cruise we just returned from, but to do it in a way that answers some of the most often asked questions about planning an Alaskan cruise.
All right, Scott. So first, the size of the ship definitely matters. And it's not only which ports you can sail into, but almost how much time and how many steps do you want to get like walking around on the ship just to get, to meals and to the different activities that you want to do as well. So, on a mega ship, you're going to find endless restaurants, Broadway style shows, pools.
even go-kart tracks and I mean, I guess they have the water slides on some ones, because those ships move around. I looked it up and they do. so that while we were on this trip, we saw the article where that one cruise line and I won't call them out, but like the, big corkscrew water slide broke and someone went through it. Yeah, that's yikes. That's crazy.
So let's start with that to talk about, because I think that helps you have a perspective about how big these ships are. So I kind of put that into a little perspective Princess is around 2,500 to 3,000. Some of them can be up to 4,000. Norwegian Cruise Line, about 4,200. Royal Caribbean goes up to about 5,000.
Okay, so those are going to be the ships on the bigger size. And the reason like the different numbers is because the different ships, right? So some of them are still going to be in the Caribbean while, you know, some of them are in Alaska, for example. So it just is really going to depend on that side of the ship. But as you're booking it, like you can, that's so easy to look up, right? If you want to see exactly what the amenities are on the ship that you're looking at booking and then exactly how big it is. And so then let's go on the other perspective, which is the small ships.
like expedition style. get closer to the glaciers. Some of these you'll hop on zodiacs for wildlife viewing or zodiacs even to go in the ports. We saw that in a couple of them. And you will probably feel like a much tighter-knit group. Seabourn has around 600 people. Nat Geo and Lindblad Expeditions is less than 200 people. And then there's other specialty and local ones that would be
100 or even smaller and we actually saw one of those in Glacier Bay and the people were kayaking and things like that. Whereas, for example, we didn't even get off in Glacier Bay. I think that you would choose the size of the ship based on what you're trying to do. And so for us, we wanted to make sure that we could go on the inside passage.
We wanted to make sure that we could go into Glacier Bay. Like those were things that were very important to us when we were choosing it. Plus we had that familiarity with Holland America and even the ship that we were on. We have sailed that before in the Caribbean. That's right. And so I think for us, as far as the booking and planning, it made that a lot easier because we knew from the get go, okay, Holland America.
is going to go into Glacier Bay, like you said, the ship, but then we also just knew that the atmosphere and the culture was just kind of what we wanted for this trip we were taking. The other plus is that all of these, most of these, I would say, have extensive also land tour packages, right? So as you're looking at these things that we've talked about,
That's the other thing too is the extensions and all that kind of stuff that you can do because that was another big part So glacier Bay was another big part for us, but then the extension on the train for your dad specifically Yeah, so today we're gonna talk a lot about Holland America That's the ship that we chose and it was the new Amsterdam and it sits right in the middle at around 2,000 passengers, which is similar to like a canard
It's not expedition size, but it's definitely not a mega yacht either or mega resort. know, when we think about things like the, like the entertainment at night, there was really good entertainment, but it's not at the same level as say that 5,000 passenger Royal Caribbean. Right. Agree. Yeah.
And it's not going to be like a ton of different, like the shows are different, but it's like the same people. The other thing that I like is that they also do bring on guest. So that's the other thing that I've been impressed with Holland America. Last time there was a guest comedian. This time there was a guest illusionist. So you're never going to have that experience twice because it's somebody different. So I think that's a neat thing about Holland America.
And that's really important if you're doing the round trip. where you cruise up to Anchorage and then back down, potentially going to have different entertainment on both ends of that, tour. Matter fact, the magician or the illusionist that was on there, we went into one of the bars one night and he was sitting around talking to a bunch of guys.
And he's like, I guess I need to go because I got to pack my bags and head back to Vegas. So he was only on that ship for about six days out of the seven that we were sailing. the other thing I think that's interesting is you feel like this stuff is so programmed. He was actually supposed to catch the ship in Vancouver, but had gotten delayed. And so his first show was canceled. And so, but then he actually did two shows. So a lot of that.
I mean, the cruise lines, especially Holland America, I'm not sure about the other ones. I mean, they're flexible, right? And he obviously was flexible, with they made it work.
Well, on Holland America and that Nieuw Amsterdam, you know, we talked about it being kind of a smaller ship, but I would just say it is not hard to hit 10,000 steps on a cruise ship. Yeah. We got that easy, like without even trying, especially on days that we went into port and some of the days where we were at sea, just 7,500, if you're going to go eat and then go to a show and then go to this and then back to your room. I mean, it was easy to.
They hit that. of liked what the cruise director said when she was explaining the layout of the ship. She said fun in the front, food in the back. And that's how it was, you know, all the staterooms are in the middle. And so you have your entertainment on this particular ship. All the entertainment is up in the front and then all of the dining would be in the back. And so we actually stayed closer to the front of the ship. So anytime we went to the dining, we were walking.
the distance of the ship every time. That's true. And so when you're, when you're planning a trip, that might be something that you want to take into consideration. And a lot of people choose to be in the very middle of the boat. And I don't think that's because of steps. I think, a lot of people feel that the boat is more stable there. So center of the ship about center of the,
decks, not at the top, not at the bottom, that it's more stable. But I will tell you is that staying in the center means that you have easier access to the front or the back when you want to go do one of those things. Yeah, that's a good point.
So Scott, real quick, let's talk a little bit about the restaurants and the service. Yeah, we had the most fantastic service. our waiters were Yvonne and Yayan. And these guys, you know, not only do they get to know your name and call you by name, and by the way, you're going to see them, throughout the day at different areas because they're not just servers in the restaurant at night. During the day, they're doing different
task in different food areas. And so when they see you, they will call you out by name. And they're always so excited to see you and interact with you. And I feel like that's just part of what makes it special on these cruises is the staff. And you really...
And you really get a sense, I mean, they're there and they're working and they're away from home, but they really do enjoy it. And we actually talked to several people on the Holland America ship and they're just like, look, like this is our job, but this, there's a culture here where we really do enjoy this. And a lot of these people have been there for a long period of time, which was true of them.
as well. so I want to pass along a tip too, because I think that this particular relationship comes from having the same staff at dinner every night, which was the experience that we had also in the Caribbean that we didn't have in the Mediterranean. When we booked this Alaska cruise in, I think we ended up saying it was January sometime, all of the set dining times were actually already completely gone. But our family had seen
I think some tip online or on a YouTube video or something where the people had said, go when you first get on the ship and see if you can make a reservation for the same table for the same time every night. And so that's what we did. And so we were basically able to get a set seating, even though we weren't able to secure that ahead of time. So I thought that was a really great tip. was only, then we had a day where we had specialty dining.
or whatever that we didn't use that and we just let them know, we're not gonna be here that particular night. But I think that, and I think we felt like that last time, I think that goes a long way into getting to know some of the staff. I would say the other staff that we really kind of got to know was,
the people who were in charge of some of the activities. A couple of the first nights we went to a couple of like the games. And so the director, Natalie, like we had a fun time just trying to figure out like where is she from based on her accent. She was from, she's from Nashville.
And the guys, Harry and Wilson that were helping her do stuff. And then we would just run into them like throughout the week. They knew us as the Sunshine Travelers. Well, first of all, as our game name, but then after that knew us as our Sunshine Travelers. And we ended up sitting down with Harry and Wilson and talking just about the ship and about where they've been and about their cruise life and stuff like that for, I don't know, 45 minutes the day before we got off. And they even made the comment to us, we don't feel like on another cruise line that
we could have done this or had the freedom to do this. And so I thought that was just really, really cool. Yeah, that was, that was a great part and the great way to end our time on the cruise was just having that time where it was just the two of them and the two of us. And we were sitting in the library. They were in there taking the inventory. by the way, I should mention while we're talking about the library, if you didn't know that these boats have a library on them, you should go check it out.
They had a really extensive library of books that you could check out and use and read while you're on the cruise. We've been on this boat before and I didn't know that it had a library. Yeah. But, you know, we sat there that night with them. They were doing the inventory, seeing which books needed to be returned. And, you know, we just had an opportunity to talk to them about what's it like to live and work on a cruise ship. And they shared with us like
What are their favorite places that they've been to? What are the places that they're looking forward to going to, the most. And we almost kind of interviewed them. I almost wish we could have had our podcast mics and done the interview right there, because it was very fascinating to hear, you know, their experiences and what they're getting out of being on these cruises as well.
Another cool thing that we did, and actually Scott, need to turn this other one into an entire episode because we're going to have to kind of recap it. We actually got to sit down with the cruise ships media manager for a good 30 minute conversation where he also shared with us some kind of behind the scenes things that are coming and different things like that. So let's recap that.
whole thing for another episode because we really, I mean, he was so gracious. Unfortunately, we couldn't record it just because it wasn't something that was, pre-approved by the company, but he was so gracious to sit there and, have that chat with us. Well, I definitely think before we go on this cruise, in November, we should work out ahead of time with Princess, the ability to have somebody that we can interview, whether it be
I don't want to say it has to be the captain because the captain's really busy and has a lot of things going on, but somebody maybe in media relations or something like that, they can just sit down with this, with the permission of Princess and have a conversation because I think that it would be great for our listeners to hear as well. they just told a lot about what it's like to live on the cruise ship. And then also,
You know, kind of a little bit of behind the scenes. One of the things they told us was that the next week after we got off the ship, they were starting a behind the scenes tour where they're going to take people, below deck. They're going to take them into the boiler room. They're going to take them or the engine room. They're going to take them up to the bridge. And so I kind of wish that we could have been on the next week and gone and done that tour because I think that's, it's kind of fascinating to see.
the behind the scenes of how all of it works, including going into, think they said the bakery, they were going to take people into there. And boy, that must be a massive operation. All the bread on the shelf and then probably how they, yeah. yeah, for sure. And then how they kind of probably repurpose some of that, right? What becomes the croutons and what becomes, this and that, as, things get used.
Another huge search topic is Glacier Bay. Okay, so Glacier Bay is Glacier Bay National Park. so really the only way to access it is either on a cruise ship or you have to fly in. There is a visitor center type ranger station, I guess. And then you could access the park from there, whether that be hiking or boating or they do have some smaller ships that
take people. I think it's like 58 miles from that welcome center, I think, right? To like the end where the glaciers. And so that's really your two options. So the majority of the park's visitors every year then are on a cruise ship. And if you don't know what Glacier Bay is, it's a place where visitors can experience these breathtaking views of towering glaciers. They have dramatic mountain landscapes. Some of them have snow.
caps on them, some of them don't. They have a lot of different ecosystems. Like for example, we saw many areas along that way where little sea otters were out there swimming. You're also going to have a chance to see, like maybe some humpback whales. From time to time, they'll see orcas in there. And we went to a
a talk where one of the rangers was saying that, maybe the orcas will become a more important part of that ecosystem. in the future, you can see large chunks of ice crash off of the glaciers. call that calving and lots of, seabirds flying around. And if you're really lucky, you might see some brown bears on the
on the banks of the shore. Right. And then the goats up in the in the mountains. Yeah. Up in the mountains. they and they did see that a little bit. And so one of things I would say is that if you don't have a really powerful camera, definitely take a good set of binoculars with you. Our sister-in-law had some binoculars that were really high power.
They even had a little stabilizer thing on there, an image stabilizer, but she could see way up into the mountains even further than I could with my telescopic lens on my camera. So a lot of people ask, will my cruise even go there to Glacier Bay National Park? Well, it's a lot more than what we thought it was. Originally we thought it was only two cruise lines that were
allowed into Glacier Bay. But come to find out there's actually six different cruise lines that have permits. And these will go through 2029. The permits are good for 10 years. And that's Holland America. That's who we were on. Princess Cruises, Norwegian, Seaborne, Cunard and Viking. Those are the six lines that have these permanent
permits to get into there, but they do limit I think to like two ships a day or something like that. They go into Glacier Bay. And so, you know, when you are researching for a cruise, like we did, make sure that if you want to go into Glacier Bay, make sure it's listed on the itinerary that you're going to go into that bay.
So that was important to us. That was important to me to go into Glacier Bay National Park. We like to visit national parks and check those off the list. And so that was important to do that. So I just felt like Glacier Bay is special. It's protected, it's pristine and the limited number of ships. So here's how I would explain it. There were times when we would leave a port.
and you could see those other ships behind you, especially like when we left Vancouver, or you'd see those other cruise ships in the different ports. When we were in Glacier Bay, it just felt like that we were the only people there. We did end up going into like a little smaller little, I don't even know what you call it, like just a little finger type thing to go up and see another glacier and there was that little small ship. Okay, but that doesn't even count. We saw like the little bitty fairy, but I mean, those things look so small.
right when you're on that huge group, they just look small and you see the people kayaking. And so then when we went up to that, then we saw that Princess ship that had kind of been following our itinerary. It was going kind of the other way, but you still, was at that point, it was so far away. So I'm glad they do it this way because you then don't want to feel like you're in this pristine wilderness. And then you've got all these massive ships. So I am actually glad that the ships are allowed to go.
Right. Because otherwise it's a very inaccessible place, but then it doesn't feel like it's crowded. Yeah. And Glacier Bay is, is special because it's part of the national park system, but there are really great, fjords that I think all of the ships go in where you're going to see glaciers. So it's not something special that you're not going to get to see glaciers if you don't go into Glacier Bay. but.
You know, being part of the national park system that you actually can see in the morning when you go into the Bay, the Rangers come out on a boat and actually climb up a rope ladder and board the ship. And while they're on the ship, they set up on deck with spotting scopes. They give live commentary over the PA. like we were able to sit in our state room and listen to the Rangers. She would talk about the,
It was actually several different ones, but they would talk about, you know, the Bay itself and the national park. and then we had someone that would point out different wildlife along the way. and so, you know, that just makes it extra special. but there were times when we were in like college fjord, which was another Bay that we went into on our last day and cruise that.
The naturalist that was on board was doing a lot of the wildlife spotting and she was on the PA system. And so as the wildlife was being spotted, she would tell you where to go or which side to look out on to and what you're looking for.
Yeah, and that was really cool that she was there, Emory, and did that anytime there was wildlife. She did several talks to kind of tell you, here's where you need to be looking for things. But yeah, Scott, that was really cool. And actually, these park rangers will board any ship that goes into the National Park. And they even announced it, okay, it's going to be at, you know, 6 a.m. and then they're going to have a little talk at 7.
And then like you were saying, it was over the speakers. so we actually, Scott said we sat in our stateroom. We actually were on the balcony, right, with the door open so that we could hear the TV. But if you're not in a balcony stateroom, there's plenty of places. I'm sure on every ship you could be where they were to go and hear that. So that was really cool, right? So they also, like you were saying, they had the...
They had a shop that you could buy just like if you went into a visitor center so that the proceeds like benefited the park as well. And if you had kids on board, they actually do. A junior ranger program. Which I think is really cool. Melissa talked about that, you know, being on our balcony in the state room during the glacier bay portion, we decided to just hang out there on the balcony and
There's certain times in the cruise where it's really, if you're moving fast or the ship is moving at full speed, it can be kind of chilly to sit out there. But in this case, they're moving slowly through the, through the Bay. And so you just sit out there and it was really comfortable for us to almost just be like in long sleeve shirts and a vest or something. it wasn't, it wasn't all that cold as what we were, preparing ourselves for.
But we ordered tea and coffee to the room. And we sat out there with my brother and his wife and my dad and stepmom and just took in this beautiful scenery along the way. My sister-in-law had her binoculars out. And so she was spotting stuff as well. And then I had my camera and trying to get whatever pictures that I could from that part. And so.
That was really a special time that we got to enjoy that with our family. And, but also just to see the majestic beauty of these towering mountains. and like I said, some were snow capped, and then of course those glaciers, knowing that that ice that is falling off into the water is thousands of years old. And you also don't think about how
clear and beautiful that water is. It's just this greenish bluish and we were blessed with some sunshine which just made it all the more absolutely stunning as well.
Well, the next big thing that people search for is about the different ports and itineraries. And trust us, your itinerary really shapes your trip. So the classic ones are Juneau Ketchikan, and Skagway. And each of these offers something completely different. Yeah. So in Juneau, you're going to have Mendenhall Glacier, whale watching, flight seeing
We chose the flight seeing It was a float plane over the glaciers to a place called Taku Lodge for lunch. And I was super excited about this just because I had seen glaciers before from a boat in Alaska and just from like being beside it in Iceland, but I have never flown over them. So that's why I was super excited about this. But wow, when we got there, Taku Lodge is a pretty cool and special place.
Yeah, it's really neat because we boarded a little float plane and took off from the water. this was mine and Melissa's first time ever flying on a float plane. and so you take off, you're in a small plane. and the pilot, is giving you a little bit of information about what you're seeing as you're flying over it. we saw five different glaciers, I believe on the way to Taku Lodge.
And so we, you know, we land in the river and we go to this lodge. Well, the lodge was built by a doctor on the island. I think he had moved from Juneau to this area, which wasn't very far away, but he just wanted to get away from Juneau and he built this lodge. Well, the story goes is that this wealthy lady was bringing her son
in a private yacht up the coastal waterway there. And she came across this lodge. And what they told us was that her son was battling like a drug addiction or an alcohol addiction, something like that. And she was looking for somewhere out in nature to get him away. And so she ended up buying this lodge from this doctor who built it.
And just knowing that they were out there by themselves. And it's a really fascinating story. Eventually they started raising sled dogs and stuff like that there. And these sled dogs became world famous championship sled dogs. But the food at Taku Lodge was amazing.
So we get there and so this is going to basically be a salmon barbecue lunch. They did have a chicken option for people who didn't eat fish. and, but he was out there grilling the salmon. you are literally, did they say a mile, I think a mile from that glacier or two miles from that glacier. Taku glacier is like a mile. So it's right there. So you have this beautiful view of the glacier. and then they have some pretty other famous dishes. They have like a, like a coleslaw and then they have a baked beans and they have.
kinds of bread and they have a cookbook that you can buy. But they're pretty famous for that. It is obviously a seasonal place, so the people who are working there have come from other places, like most of the people that you're gonna run into on excursions and in places in Alaska. A lot of these people are gonna be just there for the summer.
They have little cabins that they stay in but just the friendliest people they had you know beer and wine that you could Purchase and you had just a couple of hours to they had a trail to a waterfall. They had a trail that got you closer to the great glacier but Blueberries were on these bushes. They had these beautiful wildflowers. So it's just a really Neat afternoon and a cool and special place. They actually do this several times a day
They bring enough people who can fit in that dining room and they do a serving. then so as you're coming, people are leaving and as you're leaving, the next group is coming and they basically just do that all day long from like probably early lunch to the dinner before, the cruise ship leaves or people who are staying in Juneau. So this is definitely something that you could book, you know, separate from a cruise ship that would be available to book on something like Viator or just directly through them.
One of the things that I thought was really neat is the ice that they served in the lodge. They don't have electricity, main powered electricity. All of their electricity that they do have is coming from a solar panel that they have. because they don't have that electricity, they actually keep their food cold.
with ice taken from the glacier. So as the ice calves off the glacier goes into the water, they take their boat out there, they collect these big chunks of ice, and they put that into, the locker where they store the fish. And all of this is fish that they've caught upriver near the lodge there, but they store the fish, they store
the ice in there. And so in your drinks, they've got just like a ice pick and they're picking off pieces of that glacier. And so you actually have a thousand year old ice in your drink. Yeah, that was actually just a really cool, little thing, but that's just really, really neat. And so I think that experience, you know, besides going to glacier Bay, I think that it was probably one of my top experiences from the trip.
And so I'm going to find the link to that so that you could go and book that if you're just there in the Juneau area. That's where it takes off from right there in the port in Juneau. And we didn't see one, but they said often the bears will come when they smell that salmon being cooked. They will come up into the camp to try to see what's being cooked there. And so a lot of visitors to Taku Lodge actually get sightings.
of those bears as they come up trying to figure out what's going on. I got a little nervous actually end up walking to the waterfall part by myself after we ate lunch and I got to thinking, don't hope I don't hope you you always like I want to see a bear and then I was like, I really hope I don't run into a bear.
Well, it was definitely one of our all time favorite excursions and worth every penny. So Ketchikan is the salmon capital of Alaska. There's rich native heritage there and some totem parks. We took a walk up the river and we were watching people out there in the river who were, who were fishing for the salmon that are swimming up river at this time of year to start their spawning.
And then you have Skagway, which has a really rich gold rush history. And our excursion there took us into a town called Haynes, where we went on a jet boat up the river in hopes of finding bears, moose, or bald eagles. Yeah. So that was neat just to see something different. So like we got on the ferry, which is just really the public ferry, but it was included in, you know, what we had booked that took you over there. So we got to basically see that whole.
I guess that would have been a fjord as well, right? Just that whole area. And then just see a different area that we had never seen. They talked a little bit about the town. then again, you got commentary from people who are there seasonal Alaska workers, which was interesting. was interesting because there's a lot of people from Florida that go up there to work. Yeah.
All right, so our tip about the excursions is just to really look at what is available because I think that you could find, I mean, far and wide, depending on what you want to do. You can stay in the little town and walk it yourself. You could hire, you know, a day tour in that town. But then you can go on some fantastic things like we did. We even saw in Ketchikan people were renting.
jeeps and going off on our own. So there's just like a wide variety. But I think at least we would just encourage you to get out and see something, right? Get out and experience. But I think it's also the people that we meet and have those interaction with that I think makes it the most memorable. It was just funny because the guys who fly that float plane over the glaciers, I mean, they're just...
They're young kids. And it's like they fly in like cars probably because they've been doing this like their whole life, which is just really, really cool. And then, like I said, the guys that were running the bus from Haynes up to the river excursion. And he was training the other guy to be like in the public speaking, right? Cause that's what he's doing all day. And so I think some of those are just to me are as memorable as what you see in Alaska as well. Yeah. And we had people.
on our ship that went out and did a whale watching tour and they actually saw a lot of whales on their excursion. We saw a few humpback whales in the bay and in the fjord, but I won't say we saw a ton of whales on this trip and that's fine. That's how it works sometimes. It's kind of like going to see the northern lights. You're either going to see them or you're not going to see them.
You can't time them. It's not like you can turn them on and off and same thing with the wildlife. Matter of fact, we talked to a lot of people on this trip about the wildlife and because we had so much sunshine, they said a lot of the wildlife that you would normally see was not out and about. so while yes, we love having the sunshine and the warmer weather, it does have an impact on
what you'll see from a wildlife perspective. the other thing is like orcas were spotted from our ship a couple of times. One time a bear was spotted, but you also have to be, you know, in the, in the right place at the right time. And that, and that's just the way that it is. The other thing, Scott, I wanted to mention about these excursions is, and we've talked about this before, I think we actually did a whole episode on this, is that you can either book them through the cruise line.
or you can book them on your own. And I think both of those scenarios work out perfectly. So just really briefly, you know, if you have some credit on the cruise line or you have something where it goes to the cruise excursion, that is obviously going to be the best way to use that. And then also probably the easiest way to book. So I will say that even after we had booked these months ago, we had a time where it's like, this has been changed to a different time or...
something that had actually gotten canceled. Actually, the one from Haynes had gotten canceled something about the ferry. So we ended up booking something else. And then when we got on the ship, it was available again. And so they said, okay, we can rearrange this for you. So that would kind of be the advantage of booking it through the ship. The other thing is while we were there, that Mendenhall glacier has been experiencing some flooding. And so a lot of those excursions had gotten canceled. had mentioned the couple that saw the whales, they were actually supposed to go to the glacier.
didn't work out, they got rebooked and they said, you know what, it was fun. It was worked out. It was a wonderful day. What I would say though, is that if you book these on your own, the operator is going to be in touch with you most likely, but you're going to have to be the one checking. And then if it gets canceled, then you're going to have to, kind of find one on your own. But I would say that there was probably like, if you got off that ship, you could have
found something, right? They're there trying to sell tours and stuff like that via tour last minute. think just because of the nature of the season and everything, you're going to be able to find something to do. but we would say if there's something very specific that you want to do book that early, but if it
looks like it's sold out on the cruise ship, then go to something like Viator or call the operator directly or something like that and see if you can get in before you just give up hope for that. So that would kind of be our tips for cruise excursions. Well, let's talk about kind of the last part of the cruise. So the last two days were both kind of at sea days. So we were cruising. One, we went into Glacier Bay. The next day we went into College Fjord.
and these are just, they're very relaxing days, where, know, you're not rush, rush, rush all around, unless you're trying to do all the different activities on the ship. there are activities nonstop throughout the day. And so if you're going to do all of the activities, they will keep you busy from sunup till way past sundown. but.
It's also a good time where if you just want to hang out in your stateroom, we would definitely recommend for this trip that you book a balcony. Just because you're going to want to spend time out there where you just kind of relax and take some downtime. And over these next two days that we spent, we spent a good fair amount of time on our balcony, just taking in the sights and the views.
Yeah, just being able to wake up and have that in your view. And if you wanted to order room service or whatever, there was even one night late where we knew that there was a big meteor shower happening. We were also hoping for the Northern Lights. They were kind of close by, but there was a meteor shower happening and we could see that, especially with those binoculars. But there was a lot you could see from the naked eye. So I would agree with Scott that if that is something that is doable, book that balcony stateroom.
Especially if you have a couple of days at sea where it is this what they call the scenic cruising. I would say on other cruises, it may not be as much of a must because you don't really end up having time where you would, you know, sit out there but you just watch in the ocean go by. But this is definitely a different case.
Alaska is one of the most rewarding cruise destinations out there, but it's not a one size fits all. The ship you choose, whether your itinerary includes Glacier Bay and the excursions you book, all make a big difference in how you experience it. For us, flying to Taku Lodge in Juneau and cruising through Glacier Bay with the park rangers on board were standout moments. If Alaska is on your list, start planning with intention. You'll get so much more out of the journey.
And as always, remember that the world is full of sunshine and surprises. Make 2025 the year that you explore beyond the familiar.
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