fourlocks Loc: Londonderry, NH

My wife and I are planning a land/sea Alaska trip next summer and we looked into the 100- to 200-passenger ships like National Geographic's. While these ships are perfect for small, out-of-the-way harbors and specialized day trips, we like to come back to a ship that offers a modest amount of pampering. I'm not looking for a ship with a hot tub in my room and Vegas floor show but I want a ship that gives me something more than my cabin and a small dining room. What do the smaller ships offer their passengers when they return from a strenuous day's activities? Is there something in between the 100- and 3,000-passenger ships?

Goober Loc: Southeastern PA

Did Alaska trip a couple years ago with Nat/Geo, 50 passengers and was an awesome trip. Great experience and excellent food. Several hikes and kayaking during the trip. Would not hesitate to do it again. A bit pricey but tough to beat.

bamfordr Loc: Campbell CA

Ditto Lindblad. Impossible to compare prices since so many activities - kayaking, hiking, museums, zodiac exploration, (and swimming!) are included. We only paid for a helicopter glacier excursion

traderjohn Loc: New York City

Thanks. I will check it out.

traderjohn Loc: New York City

Roger Dickinson Loc: Boston

Cruises are great with one exception. You never really experience the inside passage towns.

We now prefer to arrange lodging on land and take the Alaskan ferry for transportation. The ships are very clean and nice and, if you want to, can overnight on them. And they stop at many more towns than the cruise people do.

If you take this approach you then see how the towns change when the ships arrive. Ketchikan, for instance, has over 50 jewelry stores most of which are owned by the cruise firms. They open and close according to the cruise schedule. Just an example.

Lodging in the towns gives you tons of time to see/do things often outside the busy hours. Glacier hikes, halibut fishing. Hikes into the mountain terrain are all easily doable. On top of that are great restaurants, taverns that are owned locally.

Cruising is wonderful but we’ll not do it again in Alaska.

promfh Loc: Redwood City, CA, USA

We have been on two Alaska cruises. One on a huge boat (NCL) and one with National Geographic Expeditions. The small boat was specifically a “ Photo Expedition” where a National Geographic staff photographer was on board. That was, by far, the better experience. There were educational and critique sessions daily and we had briefings beforehand for each tour. We got closeup exposure to everything from eagles, bears, and orca, to gray whales. They also had a staff naturalist on board to help identify and learn about everything we were seeing.

We would go back with them in a heartbeat if the occasion arose.

https://www.expeditions.com/destinations/north-america/alaska/the-experience/

TheShoe Loc: Lacey, WA

My wife and I have been to Alaska 4 times. The first was on one of the big (at the time) ships. The second time we toured the interior. We stayed at the Farm Lodge at Port Alsworth in Lake Clark National Park. On that trip, Glen Alsworth acted as a guide and flew us out to different areas each day. The third trip was to Kodiak where we essentially chartered a boat - the crew consisted of a Captain and First Mate, each had a Captain's rating and was a licensed Alaska Guide and no other passenger signed on for the trip. We went for the bears and saw at least 77 different Kodiak bears. The 4th trip we took my brother and sister in law back to Kodiak but were disappointed - the weather was cold, windy and raining the whole week and we were between salmon runs so the bears were nowhere in sight.

As far as sightseeing goes, the second trip beat the others. The first Kodiak trip was the most exciting. There were times when the First Mate and I were only 15-30 feet away from some of the bears. They were protected and knew that we were not a threat. If you want to know more about it send me a PM.

traderjohn Loc: New York City

Thank you for your responses.

GregWCIL Loc: Illinois

Traderjohn, check out Alaska Dream cruises. We were on the Admiralty Dream. Super experience. You get what you pay for. Included about two excursions a day - zodiacs by glaciers, kayaking, hikes in the rain forest visits to small villages.
Super chef. No spa. Talks by naturalists at night. Endless photo opportunities.
Of course some folks want a fancy ship vs. really experiencing Alaska.

dwermske

We went on the Regent Seven Seas Mariner from Regent Seven Seas Cruses. The ship was large enough to accommodate 1,500 passengers but only carries 750. That is also the number of crew. A one-to-one ratio of passengers to crew. All cabins had a balcony with no inside passenger cabins. All on-board expenses were included. Your only extras were the optional shore excursions which were many and not expensive. Had a great 14 day cruse that left from Vancouver Ca, went up the inside passage and toured many Alaskan ports and cities and returned to Vancouver. The ship was unique because it had huge electric motors or pods as stern drive that could swivel 360 degrees which enabled the ship to turn on a dime. We went up a number of fiords and right up next to glaciers. The crew was friendly, knowledgeable and always willing to accommodate. Tipping was NOT allowed. This was a luxury cruse and would go again in a heart beat.

pbfuller

In 2017 we did a trip on Holland Amrica - smaller ship going inside. The only problem is they stop at the various 'cities' on the way up and it is like being in the Carib with all the company owned stores. Food was okay and we had an upgraded room with concierge and a few other extras. You have to pay additional for internet services which I thought was a real rip off. The room was pretty nice.

DJphoto Loc: SF Bay Area

We booked a cruise to Alaska on Princess on a mid-size ship of 2,600 passengers for last July and decided that was too big, so we cancelled and got our deposit back (thanks, Princess). We went to Norway, Scotland and London instead on the Viking Star with 930 passengers instead. The ship was elegant, casual, uncrowded, the service was great and all cabins have a veranda. It was the best vacation we've ever had. We will be going to Alaska on Viking. You pay a more on Viking (like the other premium lines), but we thought it was a good value. We could not have been happier and booked a cruise from Venice to Barcelona while on the cruise.