icemann0220
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Nov 16, 2011
Tell me the truth, what, if anything, makes it worth $8-$10k?
Well...... you can do Alaska cheaper than that. Other cruiselines have better fares. And, often, better itineraries. But they don't have the Disney touch.Tell me the truth, what, if anything, makes it worth $8-$10k?
Not worth that in my book.Tell me the truth, what, if anything, makes it worth $8-$10k?
Which hotels are a few blocks away? Our departure day is apparently a three ship day so may need to be a few blocks away. I am also glade to hear Alaska has ATT coverage. DH gets about a billion work emails a day and not only is it hard for him to truly disconnect because of important matters, he also dreads his inbox when he has stepped away from his phone.Do you love your kids? How much is that pixie dust high worth it to you? DCL offers the best service for children.... but yes there's significant savings with other cruise lines. If not DCL.... look at HAL and Princess Glacier Bay itineraries. If you want to see glaciers.... Glacier Bay offers the best Alaskan experience.
Some money saving DCL tips....
- if the balconies are pricy.... look at the Deck 2 oceanviews. That porthole is so big.... it feels like a climate controlled balcony. Do NOT get the Deck 1 twins... it's not the same experience.
- look for pre/post-cruise hotels a few blocks away from the cruise terminal for savings.
- try to cruise before August when the weather is dryer.
- June offers good savings with lower hotel/cruise rates and dry weather compared to July
Currently... Alaska is super popular...
- low terrorism threat
- no zika, no malaria, no dengue, no West Nile
- Alaska welcomes the US dollar
- Alaska offers ATT coverage
- Alaska speaks English
Where do you find the cruise ship schedules?Which hotels are a few blocks away? Our departure day is apparently a three ship day so may need to be a few blocks away. I am also glade to hear Alaska has ATT coverage. DH gets about a billion work emails a day and not only is it hard for him to truly disconnect because of important matters, he also dreads his inbox when he has stepped away from his phone.
Where do you find the cruise ship schedules?
ATT coverage when you are docked. The main cruise ship hotels are Pan Pacific, Fairmont Waterfront, and Fairmont Pacific Rim. They are premium priced for the convenience.Which hotels are a few blocks away? Our departure day is apparently a three ship day so may need to be a few blocks away. I am also glade to hear Alaska has ATT coverage. DH gets about a billion work emails a day and not only is it hard for him to truly disconnect because of important matters, he also dreads his inbox when he has stepped away from his phone.
I saw (somewhere on these boards) someone mention June 18 was a three cruise ship day. I just looked at the link and June 17 is a 4 ship day and June 18 is only a two ship day. We are arriving 6/16, I imagine the hotels near the ships will be busy.Where do you find the cruise ship schedules?
I went back and forth on this for months. We wanted to do an Alaska cruise but DCL was so much more expensive than everyone else. We could get a huge suite on any other line for what we could get a verandah room for on DCL. We went with Princess. Overall, they were comparable. The Emerald Princess is a gorgeous ship. The cast on both were fabulous. The food was similar. Princess did have some fun characters on port days. We took a photo with a giant lobster and maybe an eagle - can’t totally remember. Sure, no Mickey, but it was still kinda cute.
Disney is Disney. The staterooms with the split bathrooms are the best. The decor is, well, Disney. The area that Disney cannot be beat is entertainment. We did one of the shows on Princess. Their wildly popular show. And it was horrible. I looked at DH several times and we couldn’t believe how bad it was. The entire script made no sense, the songs were just jumbled together, and the performers were horrible. We went to the piano bar one night, expecting a Yehaa Bob type show. Nope. It was boring and when the pianist would talk, he would only talk to the people around him and we couldn’t understand a word he said. There was a cute little Dixieland band that played only one night, and we really enjoyed them. We were disappointed they never performed again.
For me personally, an Alaskan cruise is about experiencing Alaska. It is an amazing cruise that I can’t wait to do again. But it won’t be on DCL.
I agree that DCL is the optimal cruise line for kids, even in Alaska. I seriously considered switching to Princess to get Glacier Bay and a lower price, but just couldn't do it. My son wanted Disney more than he wanted to see a larger number of glaciers, and when reviewing the HAL & Princess ships and staterooms online, I just wasn't feeling the excitement that I feel when booking a Disney cruise. I'm glad we're sticking with DCL for our Alaska trip, but whether that's the right choice for you is all about personal priorities & price.My family is considering an Alaskan cruise, we really want to go on a cruise to Alaska with my parents and my brothers family. We were discouraged by the price, but will likely proceed because from why we can tell no other cruise line has better amenities/activities for our children. The traveling party will include 6 adults and 6 kids ages 3-8.
We talked about waiting several years, to let the kids get older (would probably enjoy the scenery more), but life has no guarantees and we want to go while we are all able.
From what we can tell, Disney is the only cruise that checks both boxes. (Good time for kids, relaxing breathtaking Alaskan cruise for adults)
My family is considering an Alaskan cruise, we really want to go on a cruise to Alaska with my parents and my brothers family. We were discouraged by the price, but will likely proceed because from why we can tell no other cruise line has better amenities/activities for our children. The traveling party will include 6 adults and 6 kids ages 3-8.
We talked about waiting several years, to let the kids get older (would probably enjoy the scenery more), but life has no guarantees and we want to go while we are all able.
From what we can tell, Disney is the only cruise that checks both boxes. (Good time for kids, relaxing breathtaking Alaskan cruise for adults)
Did you travel with children? If so what ages?