05dml

need advice. i am taking my 16 year old son on an alaskan cruise for his 16th birthday and dad/son bonding time. looking for some suggestions for cruises? inside/ north/south/ and cruiselines?

BudgetQueen

How much time do you have? Myself, I never do any one ways without at least another week for interior touring. Round trip Vancouver are also my preference over the more outside sailing round trip Seattle cruises. All lines will be a good choice depending on your priorities- look at ports, time in ports, glacier, route, price. Fit in the what is best for you.

jcasale

I like the one way itineraries and I agree to add on some time on the ends to do some land exploring. You don't necessarily need to use the cruise land packages. At least in our mind, the Princess ones were a bit pricey. We did the Seward - Vancouver itinerary and flew into Anchorage a couple of days early. Drove down to Seward stopping at a variety of places. Then we did a full day boat tour of Kenai Fjord National Park and the morning we boarded the boat we went to the Sea Life exhibit. When we got to Vancouver we spent 4 days in Vancouver and Victoria seeing the sights. As for cruise lines, we used Princess because of their itinerary and we very pleased with them. Our cousins went on Holland America and liked it, but I think that line tends to appeal to an older crowd and your son might not like it as much. One word of advice if you decide to fly into Anchorage and drive one way to Seward - the one way car rentals are VERY limited (and expensive) so get that booked early. You will probably have to call them directly. I think Avis was the agency that was able to do the one way rentals since they have a facility in Seward.

pdxatty

I have a sixteen your old son whom I have taken on more than a few cruises on several lines. He loves cruising on Royal Caribbean for the teen activities and basketball court. No cruise to Alaska yet. I have found the best prices on outside cabins and balconies through Costco.

BudgetQueen

For clairfication the only car rental in Seward is Hertz.
I have been on 10 Alaska cruises and actually passengers are similar on all, with middle aged and above the norm, but all ages do sail. Including HAL which offers superb itineraries. Don't expect kids numbers like the Caribbean, including on Carnival. NO party ships yet.