We are in the early stages of planning an Alaska cruise with 4-6 other couples, between June-August of 2020. This is everyone's first time to Alaska. We're focusing on a 10-14 day sea/land cruise on one of the larger lines, simply because they are more affordable. My research thus far tells me to book with either Holland America or Princess, because they take you into Glacier Bay, and also operate their own rail lines. Any advice is appreciated - best times to go, service experience, port, calls, excursions offered through the lines, ship, etc. We'd rather spend our budget on the length of the trip and excursions, rather than, say, having rooms with balconies. Thanks!

They don't operate their own rail lines, they just have their own branded cars that travel along the standard Alaska Railroad tracks, pulled by ARR traction.

First things first. The difference between 10 and 14 days is huge in terms of any land touring in southcentral/interior Alaska before or after the cruise. And while Glacier Bay is terrific, it's just one of several glacier viewing options one can experience, either from the ship or on land. In terms of the land time, a total of 10 days will only give you three days before or after the trip. Some popular destinations, especially Denali National Park, require three days to experience - one to get there, one to be there, and one to get back. With a week over and above the 7-day cruises, you'll have more options.

It sounds like you want to book a "cruise tour," one that's inclusive of both the cruise and the land portion. That's fine, but as you can expect you'll be quite "managed" on the land portion. Independent travel (for example by booking several cars for your group) can offer more flexibility and - possibly - lower cost, but obviously will put the burden of coordination while on land on your shoulders rather than using the cruise line's pre-packaged arrangements.

Many of the excursions laid on by the cruise lines can be done independently, often at a cheaper price. I personally think a balcony is of more benefit on an Alaska cruise than on other cruises, simply because while most of the sailing is done overnight, the daylight is so long, and the Inside Passage so beautiful, that being able to walk out on your balcony at night is one hell of an experience. But of course it's your call.

HAL and Princess are certainly popular and offer solid products. Princess docks in Whittier, making glacier cruises into College Fjord easy. HAL docks in Seward, making excursions into Kenai Fjords National Park, as well as salmon or halibut fishing, if anybody's interested, very easy. Both excursions are worth every penny and IMO would be well worth skipping some of the canned excursions offered along the Inside Passage portion. Some southbound Princess cruises call at both Yakutat Bay (for Hubbard Glacier) and Glacier Bay, making for a terrific twofer.

As for when to come, my personal preference is for later in the summer rather than earlier. Along the Inside Passage, it can usually be easier to get close to tidewater glaciers, especially the Hubbard Glacier, because there's less sea ice in the way. In interior places like Denali Park, by August the mosquitoes have subsided, and by late August the tundra colors can be stunning; autumn comes early in that country. The downside to August is that the weather in Southeast Alaska can be more iffy, but it is anyway; I've been in warm sunlight in Ketchikan on the 4th of July and in pouring rain in Juneau two days later. Planning Alaska trips around the weather is a fool's errand.

Look at Cruise Critic's West Coast Departures and Alaska boards where there are opinions, Q&As and trip reports galore. If you do decide to go independent on the land portion, booking cars as early as possible is highly recommended; the prices can skyrocket as the season approaches.

You have plenty of time to research and plan. Use it.

We visited the first week of August and had fantastic weather. I personally am not a fan of Princess or HAL. We went with Royal Caribbean. I don't know if they still cruise Alaska. By the way, we loved having a balcony for this particular cruise.

HAL tends to have smaller ships, a more sedate onboard experience and older passengers compared to other mass market cruise lines. Royal Caribbean tends to have larger ships, a more family oriented/younger demographic onboard with more activities geared toward that. Princess is somewhere in between so it depends on what kind of experience/atmosphere you prefer. We were on a 3 week HAL cruise to Alaska last month. You didn't mention May but it's actually one of the less rainy months. If you click on my screen name, I have a report and photos on the cruise forum if you're interested. It's mostly about the ports rather than the onboard experience but you might be able to glean some useful information and I'd be happy to answer any questions. We opted to rent cars in half of the ports and didn't utilize any of the ship's excursions as they tend to be overpriced. With a group that size, it could also make sense to arrange a private tour with a local tour operator in advance. The southbound HAL cruises visit Haines which we loved and is not a port that's on most cruise lines' itineraries which is nice compared to some of the more heavily utilized ports that can get up to 6 ships a day. I haven't been to the interior of Alaska but would also look into making independent arrangements as Gardyloo suggested.

There's a good chance of decent weather in SE Alaska in May but it's too early for places like Denali.

What is your objection to either HAL or Princess? (which Royal Caribbean owns)

You're wrong about Royal Caribbean owning HAL and Princess, they are instead owned by Carnival. However having been on all three cruise lines, they each have separate "personalities", strengths and weaknesses. We found the customer service and dining room service on RCL to be abyssmal, btw. Leaving out of Seward has the advantage of being able to take the train there. In June there was tons of wildlife in Resurrection Bay (killer whales and humpbacks). We did see plenty of moose on the train ride but it's probably too early for bear sightings.

I did a trip report on a HAL cruise last year, I recommend that southbound itinerary that stops in Haines also. I'm not one who needs a balcony,in fact I find them useless most of the time. HAL has much better spaces for hanging out with a view, than does Princess, at least on the Coral/Island combo. Do take a look at the actual time that you spend in ports and in scenic glacier cruising, for example with Glacier Bay it's virtually all day, and there is a narrator and Park Service naturalists are on board.

Perhaps the larger Princess ships are better, but I also prefer a smaller ship.

Alaska Seward to Vancouver June 2018 Noordam

Are you considering a one way (northbound or southbound) vs round trip cruise?
A tip we were given for a one way (northbound) from Vancouver was to fly into Seattle and take a car or train or bus to Vancouver. We returned from Anchorage. Since you are flying in and out of US cities, your airline tickets may be less and easier to manage rather than flying into an international city.

>> . . . fly into Seattle and take a car or train or bus to Vancouver. We returned from Anchorage. Since you are flying in and out of US cities, your airline tickets may be less and easier to manage rather than flying into an international city.

RE gbelle1's comments - we prefer to fly Southwest for the free luggage and open seating. Since it doesn't fly into Vancouver, that has prompted us to take the train in between - which is a treat, we feel, since we enjoy watching the eagles along the shore and just the leisurely trip itself. It's a low-cost add-on to our vacations. To each their own, though.

WRT railroads, the OP is probably referring to Carnival's part-ownership stake in the White Pass & Yukon. I've seen posts that Princess and HAL seem to have tied up many if not all of the tickets on the days they are in port, and passengers who don't book through the cruise line are likely to be out of luck.

Personally, I'd rather go to Haines anyways.

WRT flying out of Vancouver on the return for a southbound itinerary, you go through US customs in Canada so on arrival in the US there's no immigration. And it's very easy (amd inexpensive) to take the Sky Train rapid transit from the end point in Vancouver to the airport. Easier than dealing getting between the train and airport in Seattle.

We'll be flying out of Kansas City. As for flying into Vancouver, flights into that city are expensive, most have 2 stops, and Southwest doesn't fly to Vancouver from here. Thus, my preference to fly into Seattle and take Amtrak to Vancouver. One-way tickets start at $56/person.

My thoughts as well! I've heard that it's a scenic ride. I'm assuming you're referring to the Amtrak route?

Yes, we're looking at a one-way trip.

Thanks! And yes, we're leaning towards August as well, for the reason you mentioned. I've also read that the animals tend to be more active later in the summer. As for the weather, yes, there's doesn't seem to be much difference in average number of rainy days in June vs. August. So, why book based on weather history?

I usually fly in to Anchorage and out of Vancouver. Delta Airlines has good connections to many US cities.

You would have to add up all of the costs. Transfers, taxis, etc. YVR tends to come out on top when I factor in the cheap train fare.

You'll also want to factor in the train schedule as there are only two per day which may require a hotel night depending on the timing of your flight.

I just checked for an arbitrary day in this August and the all-in costs from MCI to YVR (using United) are $3 more per person than flying into Seattle on Southwest, paying for a cab downtown, half a night's lodging, a cab to the train station, the train tickets, and a cab from Pacific Central Station in Vancouver to the cruise terminal or any other downtown hotel. "All in" costs assume 2 bags per person and being able to find a hotel in downtown Seattle for $250, which is a fairly difficult undertaking. Unless you fly in much earlier in the day (thus sending the Southwest fare WAY up) you wouldn't be able to take the 7 PM evening train from Seattle so you'd have to spend the night and take the 7:45 AM train the next morning. What's your time worth?

The train ride is nice but not earth-shattering. With the same four hours you can see a lot more in either city.