My husband and I have never been on a cruise but would like to sail the inside passage one way. Many ships -although reasonably priced - seem to require formal attire. I simply do not want to take all these clothes, unless there is no other way. We are flying to and from Vancouver in early June and after touring the city would like to spend 3 weeks in Alaska, hiking and etc.

Look into taking the public highway ferry from Bellingham to Alaska. It's very casual, people bring sleeping bags and sleep on deck, etc. I've never taken it, but it sounds much different than the standard cruise. It's essentially an offshoot of the government highway system. However, you can't expect cruise-like services.

We took Norwegian Cruise Lines out of Seattle, but I think that they have Vancouver departures. True, they did have a formal night, but it applied only to the chi-chi restaurants and not the general dining area. We never take any formal clothes, and we got along just fine.

Bob, will check the Norwegian out of Vancouver.

Another option could be: Vancouver -Port Hardy-Prince Rupert.

But again, I can't figure out how to get from Vancouver -Port Hardy.

I must admit, I am trying to squeeze too much into my budget. We have 30 days with only $8K and that may not be very realistic.

We want to explore Vancouver, the inside passage and the Denali State Park as well.

If Kenai Fjords are a must see too we are really in a deep trouble.

Alaska is so overwhelming. And it is hard to choose.

There is a Greyhound bus that goes to Port Hardy, but I think it only leaves once a day. You can also fly there directly from the Vanacouver Airport South Terminal.

All the information on getting to Port Hardy is here:

http://www.ph-chamber.bc.ca/map.html

One tip for the BC Ferries Inside Passage route. If you're taking a car on the ferry, book ASAP - don't leave it until spring as the ferry often books up months in advance.

I'd still advise making a reservation even if you plan on walking on the ferry, although that doesn't book up nearly as fast as car reservations do.

Carmanah, thank you, this is a great link. I am not sure if renting a car in Vancouver would be a liability and cause scheduling difficulties on various ferries. Unfortunately, Alaska Marine Hwy has not published their 2008 schedule as of yet.

But, if we rent a car, we could drive from Denali back to Vancouver. No doubt, it would be a week long drive, but could be interesting?

My sister and I took Norwegian out of Vancouver and we never dressed up.

Thank you. I think we will probably rent a car and take the ferry from Port Hardy to Prince Rupert.

Hi, I have taken the ferry from Port Hardy to PrinceRupert last year on BCferries(website for info and phone #'s). It is nice and if you can ,get a cabin complete with shower toilet. There is food service too with reasonable prices. The greyhound is decent too as I took it to Port Hardy from Nanaimo,on Vancouver Island, which is where the BCferries can arrive from Vancoouver.I did not find need for auto.Some larger cruise ships leave from Prince Rupert to Alaska.Why not take the ALaska Railroad for part of your trip, Fairbanks to Anchorage and on to Seward from where the Holland America cruise line has sailings and the Alaska Marine highway connects.just some more info to try to help you decide.

to add Island LINK CAN TAKE YOU FROM MANY vANCOUVER HOTELS TO the ferry terminal for that connection in Nanaimo, and u may be able to rent car at naNAIMO THEN DRIVE to PORT HARDY.

The ferry trip from Port Hardy towards Prince Rupert can be very broring, if you have heavy rainfall.

I would recommend to do this trip without a car. You can interrupt the trip at Bella Bella (without a car) and you can continue the trip towards Alaska.

Check the page

www.alaskapass.com . You can buy a combined ticket for the ferries at the westcoast.

Thank you for great suggestions. I really should wait until the Alaska Marine Hwy schedules are published and then decide. Taking a ferry from Bellingham could be the most convenient way to go. On the other hand, a cruise ship does not seem to be much more expensive. Not sure, why I am so reluctant to try a cruise. I will study the Alaska pass also. Decisions, decisions..

I haven't fully priced out an Alaskan cruise versus the Alaskan Marine Highway, but I also had the impression that a cruise may not be that much more expensive at all, particularly if you choose to have a cabin. If you are willing to sleep in sleeping bags on the deck, it probably is cheaper.

Of course, cruises have so many additional fees that you'd have to be sure you were making an accurate comparison.

Well, pricing these two options is surely fun. Hard to price any cruise for me, because I have no idea what the ‘additional charges’–like a glass of wine- are. LOL

Let’s assume a one way HAL cruise Vancouver-Ketchikan-Juneau-Skagway-Sitka-Hubbard Glacier-Seward is about $1,600 for 2 people + $150 tips + $200 incidentals. So, this comes out to about $2,000 for two people.

And, the ferry from Bellingham-Petersburg-Sitka-Juneau-Whittier would cost about $2,100+ for two people. Of course, pricing the ferries depends on a number of stops, ferry connections, choice of accommodations and restaurants. Here is one sample.


Bellingham-Petersburg with cabin is about $840 + food ($900)
Petersburg- 1 night+ food ($180)
Petersburg – Sitka $90+ food ($140) – sailing 14 hours
Sitka –Juneau (high speed ferry) $90
Juneau 2 nights + food ($300).
Juneau-Whittier (1 day) $360+cabin + food ($500 )


So, the type of travel is a very personal choice, I guess. I tend to lean towards the ferry unless the sailings to Sitka and Whittier are really rough, rough. In which case, I can ignore these ports or go cruise.

I spent two weeks in Alaska in 2000 and decided to return in 2009. I researched lots and lots of info on the inside passage and realized a one-way cruise ship from Vancouver stopping for 12-16 hours at my ports of choice - Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway, and Sitka - would cost about the same and be less headache than dragging luggage on the ferry system. I am now booked with my husband on the Carnival Spirit in May for a balcony cabin (non-balcony cabins are of course lower cost) for $2600 for both of us, including taxes, etc.

We are not formal people either, and past cruisers on the Spirit assure me you can easily eat elsewhere (room service, pizza, buffet) during the two formal nights if you don't want to dress up - but "dress up" can be as simple as looking decent, with no jeans but preferably a tie, for men, and a nice top and slacks for women.