Cruise with Family
 

We are planning an Alaskan family cruise for July 2007. Sixteen people, four generations. Grandkids ages 6-20. Does anyone have suggestions as to inside passage vs Gulf of Alaska. The original thought was to do Golden Princess but as it is round trip, it appears we miss some scenery. Any suggestions?
Is any one ship particularly better for kids than another?

We really enjoyed Celebrity Summit on the cruise from Anchorage to Vacouver. Seven days and very good cruise. Includes train from Anchorage to the port. We were happy

We cruised northbound this past August from VAncouver to Whittier then did a few days north of Anchorage, with ages 2-72 on Carnival Spirit. Had a GREAT time! See my review.
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I vote for the inside passage using Norwegian Cruise Lines. When we made the trip on the Sun, there were dozens of families on board (my evidence is the number of groups having their pictures taken together by the ship's photographers). There were times when it was difficult to go down the stairs between the 7th and 6th decks because the stairway was being used by these groups BUT I'M NOT COMPLAINING. Needless to say their were kids of all ages, and there are kids-only recreational activities. I think it is a great way to have a reunion.

Having spent a goodly portion of my life in the Coast Guard, sailing to and from Alaska on the outside, I would rather be roasted on a spit than spend my cruising time looking at nothing but water...and that's what you will see in the Gulf of Alaska. Go inside and you will love it. (Of course, there were those cruisers who spent all of their time in the casino...what a waste of time.)

Even tho I love NCL they do not have a naturalist onboard... a big minus for us after sailing the Dream last year... so I would go with HA or Princess. Celebrity and RCCL does not do Glacier Bay. Princess has "anytime" dining which we like.
Be sure to check times in port once you have decided on an itineray. I like the RT Vancouver Zaandam [HA]itinerary.

We did a HAL cruise last July out of Vancouver with the inside passage that was wonderful. The route was awesome and the time at the glaciers was fantastic, but there were VERY few children on our ship. They had areas for teens, and there were 2 or 3 7 - 10 year olds who lived by the pool. The pool was quite small to use as a week's entertainment. There were several infants as part of family groups, but I didn't see any other children between infants and 7 or so. Maybe HAL has an older client than other lines, but I think mid to late teens would be very bored on the ship.