LoneRangeFinder Loc: Left field

I would like to hear recommendations based on actual experiences. I'm interested in photography; wife in wildlife. Neither of us is interested in overeating or gambling or "party crowds".

Thanks.

Apaflo Loc: Anchorage, Alaska

What is your concept of "Cruises"? Does that mean on a cruise ship, or does that include "land" cruising? Typically in Alaska it can be either or both.

Are you more interested in landscapes or wildlife than in other kinds of photography? Or would opportunities to photograph different cultures and ways of life be interesting? For example, would the chance to photograph Alaska Native people harvesting salmon and smoking them be of interest? Would other Native cultural objects be interesting, such as community activities, hunting activities, traditional arts, etc etc?

You might consider a different kind of Alaska tour than what you normally hear about. Most folks, but not all, come here and visit all the areas that are the most similar to where they come from. Frankly you can drive a 1000 mile circle from where you live and almost certainly see scenery and wildlife that are just as fabulous as what we have in Alaska. You'll spend a lot more money to come here though. And maybe, considering that cost, it is a waste to spend that much and come this far and not see the Alaska that is totally different than anything in the Lower-48.

The simple version is to get off a plane in Anchorage or Fairbanks... and buy a ticket to Bush Alaska. Bethel, Nome, Kotzebue and Barrow are the obvious places, but McGrath, Aniak, Unalakleet, Anaktuvuk Pass, Kaktovik and several other small (population 1000 or less) places are also great locations. It takes more planning perhaps, but it really is worth it.

SonyBug

Go to Bellingham Wa and take the Alaska Ferry. You can look up the stops. Get off when you want to visit cities that are only accessible by boat or plane, and then take the ferry further north. You can plan your own trip. Some wildlife, lots of scenery, quaint and beautiful villages. A great cruise on a great boat. You can take a car, but easier to go all the way to Whittier and rent one for the rest of the trip to Anchorage and points north. I took a MotorHome up the Alcan and all around alaska, and then took the ferry back. Like the ferry most of all the trip. 2013

2Dragons Loc: The Back of Beyond

We did the Alaska cruise with Princess Lines and it was fantastic. Princess had a woman on the ship who gave lectures on just about anything we saw on the cruise and never looked at notes. I think her last name was Bennett and she was a walking, talking Alaska Encyclopedia. She would alert us over the public speaker system of whales, otters, dolphins, etc. so that we got to see these animals that we might have missed if not for Ms. Bennett. Definitely get a balcony and if you are sailing north from Seattle or Vancouver, try to book a balcony cabin on the starboard side of the ship so that you won't miss any of the beautiful scenery on the inside passage. Do the tours at each port of call and definitely take the train ride from Skagway to the Yukon. We saw the wild sheep & goats from the train and Soapy Smith's burial place outside of the regular cemetery. We went for 2 weeks starting around Aug. 6th, a few years ago. Prince William Sound is just beautiful. The Dome Train ride from Denali was a wonderful experience, too. You don't have to gamble as there are at least two theaters on the ship where you can see wonderful acts or go to the movies. An itinerary of the day's activities is left at your door the night before so that you can plan your day. One of the best things we ever did was go to Alaska. I just wish I had a better camera at the time. There's a library on the ship if you want to just relax and read a book. I would do it again given the chance.

LaurenT Loc: Northern California

We have been to Alaska more times than I can count, and even moved there for 13 months, just to see more. That said, we have never taken a cruise. We have spent 3 weeks on the Inland Passage, via the Alaska Marine Highway System. Booking passage from one port to another with a couple days between sailings.
My suggestion, for a first time trip, would be to fly to Anchorage and go from there. Book a 7 Glacier trip from Whittier, (45 minute drive from Anchorage, along the Seward Highway with gorgeous views) where you will see marine life and beautiful scenery as well. Rent a car and drive to Danali National Park, stopping at Talkeetna for a visit. Drive over Hatcher Pass between Palmer and Willow. If finances allow, book a trip to Katmai National Park, Brooks Lodge and Brooks Falls (about a 1 mile hike/walk, one way, to the falls) for bears. (You can do Brooks Lodge & Falls in one day. Depending on the dates of your visit, be sure the salmon are running or there might not be bears at the falls.) Or not quite as adventurous, as bear watching, but beautiful, book an overnight trip to Lake Clark, and on to Twin Lakes to visit the cabin of Richard Prenneke, an Alaskan pioneer who moved to the wilderness for 1 year, and ended up staying for 30 years. PBS has run some documentaries with film that he recorded during the building of his cabin, etc. Also from Anchorage, you can drive down the Kenai Peninsula to visit Seward, Homer, etc.

Lenf Loc: Strasburg,PA

I love going to Alaska, have taken three cruise ships there, princess land sea tour 10'days and 2- Disney 7 day cruises, all are excellent for your first adventure there , you will see plenty of wildlife .. The recommendations from the other UHH are excellent, I wish I had known about the inland ferry and other inland tours. I plan on going back next year for 2 weeks of photography including the Bears at salmon running time in late July. I thinks the advise they offered is excellent . Make sure you take some great lenses you will have a blast!

Tom337

Try adventure Sea wolf. 12 passenger boat, lots of kayaking, hiking and plenty of opportunities for wildlife and nature photography. They do a lot of trips in Glacier Bay and some on the Inside passage.

GregWCIL Loc: Illinois

Lonerangefinder, there are cruises designed exactly for you -- small ship cruises. These ships range from about 150 passengers down to maybe only a dozen on a private yacht. Price-wise they range from the well known National Geographic/Lindblad expeditions down to any number of local cruise companies.
In 2013, after extensive research, my wife and I chose Alaska Dream Cruises. They are a very reputable Alaskan owned company with a passion to provide the best adventure cruise you can imagine.

http://www.alaskandreamcruises.com/

We spent 11 days having one of the very best times of our lives. If someone spotted a pod of whales feeding, the captain would stop the ship for a couple of hours while we photographed them. Every day included one or more shore excursions for hiking, kayaking, or other outdoor adventures. Often, while our 50 passenger ship was stopped to let us photograph, a large cruise ship would pass by with very few passengers even out on deck. They had no idea what they missed.

The Allen family is part native so they believe in emphasizing local culture and natural history. Each ship has at least one naturalist guide - ours shared an amazing amount of local information with us about history, geography and wildlife.

The small ships can go into remote ports that the big ships can't. For example, we stopped at native villages, remote bays for kayaking and four-wheeling and little towns such as the Norwegian fishing village of Petersburg.

A small ship cruise will cost more than a large ship, but ours had all the side trips such as the narrow-guage train ride above Skagway and a cable car ride at Juneau included in the base price. Only thing extra were alcohol drinks. (A martini made with 250 year-old iceberg ice is very nice at the end of a long day of photographing, btw.)

We did the 11 day cruise and enjoyed the extra time. Each day seemed like it couldn't be topped. But the next day held it's own adventures. As you can tell, I would highly recommend them.

As an extra bonus, our ship docked in the beautiful town of Haines. One of our very own Hedgehogs lives there - Tom Ganner. He's a retired teacher and a very good photographer who works part time guiding photo tours. I joined Tom for an afternoon of some of the most amazing bald eagle photography you can imagine.

I can't count the number of whale photos we got.

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Early morning iceberg out of the mist.

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Tom Ganner helped me find this fella.

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Puffin near Sitka where the ship is based.

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An entire day to explore a remote bay by kayak or 4 wheeler


We spent the entire day of the 4th of July exploring this glacier and fiord up close.

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tjphxaz Loc: Phoenix, AZ

Sorry, I don't have time to research for you. My wife and I did a small ship (138 passenger size) inland passage cruise from Ketchikan to Juneau a few years back on Clipper Cruise Lines' The Yankee Clipper. The line has since changed ownership/name but you should be able to find the size ship and inland itenerary.
Eight days, seven nights. Terrific because: fewer people, relaxed atmosphere; cruises close to shore lines for lots of views of eagle, bear, moose; stand on bow and watch dolphin play dodge with the boat for hours; stops in small town ports where the big cruise boats can't get to; stops when there are things to see (we floated over two hours to watch two pods of killer whales join up - the two naturalists on board nearly wet themselves with excitement); two naturalists on board walking around constantly with lectures and answering questions; great fresh seafood brought on board each day; cruise right up to glaciers and crew retrieved glacier ice for our beverages (never could see those million-year-old ice worms - Alaska legend I guess).
A most memorable trip.

GilroyGal Loc: Greater Monterey Bay Area (CA)

From personal experience, I took the smallest cruise ships available in Alaska. Great food, great service. They stay close to shore where the real beauty is readily visible. When the captain spotted a bear on shore, he announced "bear portside" and turned the ship around so we could get a closer look. Your big cruise ships do not, and cannot, do this.
I also considered the Alaskan ferry system but gave up for the following reasons. The ferries, and also the big cruise ships, cannot dock during low tide. Many places in Alaska have 30+ foot difference between low and high tide. Also, the ferries' schedule will change with the tides. For example, I found out that in Petersburg the ferry arrived at 2:30 am at high tide. From the dock, which is NOT at town center, you would have to take a taxi and find lodging. Good Luck with that!
Also, I saw many big cruise ships "parked" miles away from towns because there were no dock space available. Then the passengers have to board smaller boats and be shuttled into town, given some 3 hours before they have to be shuttled back into the big ship. That leaves you only time to stand in line at some shop to buy Alaskan T-shirts, and then back to the boat. This is NOT the way to see Alaska.

I recommend subscribing to the Alaska magazine before you go; you will gain a lot of information as to where to stay, what tour and cruise lines are available. Cruise America West (if still running) goes all over the Southwest Passage, including Misty Fiords (John Muir said: endless Yosemite in water), Tracy Arm Fiords, and other glaciers. For glacier viewing from any ship, dress warmly since the cold wind blows across the ice.

If you want to view Alaska from a glass window with a cocktail in your hand, take a big cruise ship!

wotsmith Loc: Nashville TN

It is hard to give you an answer, but maybe some guidelines. I have driven to Alaska twice, and taken three cruises either to or from Alaska; been several more times as we have a daughter living there.
I love cruises, been on a small ship one, but none of them get you really close to big game compared to flying in to remote locations like Brook Falls.

What is very important is that the actual time of your visit will determine what you see. We drove up in May and lots of waterfowl then drove up the next June and no waterfowl. You will find bears where the salmon are; no salmon run, probably no bears. So timing is critical, learn about what you want to see and the time to see it.
Alaska adventure lodge on the Alagnak river outside of bristol bay will put you on many bears from 20 - 100 feet. I have seen wolves there as well. I have been to a lodge on afognak island and they put me on a lot of wildlife.
So, what you see on a cruise is luck and a long way off; private fishing/photo lodges will get you upclose and personal, but expensive. For a limited budget that can afford one thing; get to brook falls for a day or three if you can during the sockeye salmon run - usually mid July and it is an incredible experience. We have seen as many as 15 bears in front of us at Brook Falls

Otherwise on a cruise go for landscape photography and there is a great shot at every moment. After you are in Alaska, i prefer to rent a small motor home from Great Alaska Holidays in Anchorage. Done it several times and always excellent. Outside of Denali a lot of the motels and restaurants are sketchy, so we motorhome.
Don't know if this helps, but it makes me hot for another trip to Alaska. Check my website for photos and send PM if you like.
Good luck

Taken on the bus ride in Denali park


Brook Falls


Brook Falls Fighting over a fishing spot


near Afognak Island


Brook Falls

LoneRangeFinder Loc: Left field

Thanks. It looks like one of the smaller ones with lots of day excursions are what I'm looking for. I wanted to do some kayaking as well-- so this is a great start.

Thanks again.

joe west Loc: Taylor, Michigan

:-D :thumbup: :thumbup:

Seattle Otter Loc: Shoreline,Wa

Hi! well we have been to Alaska for the last five years and I have plenty of information for you, How would you like to talk? you can e-mail me at lee.marcia@frontier.com be happy to help. We are going again in July

stableduck Loc: Chugiak, Alaska

I live 30 miles from Anchorage. there have been a lot of good suggestions posted. if its your first time to Alaska Im sure you will enjoy most of the cruises that come up here.
Alaska is a large state, which most can't be seen buy a ship. renting a motorhome in Anchorage is a good way to travel around the state. depending on how much time you have.
Louren suggested Brooks Falls. if you go when the salmon are running you will see bears up close! I have a friend who flies for Rusts flying service. he is also a photographer. here is a link to his work if your interested. http://www.artwithinnature.com
anyway, flight seeing will get you to places only accessible by float plane. I have been flying with him and its a different perspective. I would recommend checking into flight seeing while your in Anchorage.