Alaskan Cruise OR Yellowstone/GT??
 

For those who have been to both Alaska & Yellowstone:

I'm trying to decide whether we (me, husband and then 18 year old son) will go on an Alaskan cruise or to Yellowstone/Teton NP for our '06 summer trip.

Originally we were planning on a 4-5 day land tour of interior Alaska (Denali), with a 7 night cruise (Whittier to Vancouver). Later thought it might not be a great idea to kennel our aging dog that long (about 14 nights). So we're considering the 7 night cruise only. Now thinking going to Yellowstone for 3-4 nights then Jackson Hole for 3-4 nights would fit the bill... seeing lots of natural, spectacular beauty and WILDLIFE. My questions are: which is a more beautiful, spectacular area to see? Which might afford me more wildlife viewing (I understand that while on the cruise, I'd have to pay BIG bucks for excursions - the bear sighting one is over $310 pp)! Will we still see marvelous, magnificent views in Yellowstone/GT - I've heard nothing but wonderful raves about Alaska.

Thanks for any insight or suggestions!

Lisa

My vote would be to go to Yellowstone/Teton. You will see lots of wildlife, probably spend less (we stayed at Signal Mountain Lodge in the Tetons and Old Faithful Lodge in Yellowstone) and not feel the pain of kenneling your dog (you might even consider a house/petsitter, one of your son's friend's possibly to minimize the difficulty for your dog...I do understand how that factors in). We did the Alaska cruise (7 days Holland-America) followed by a week in Denali-Kenai. The land portion was spectacular, the cruise not so much. We enjoyed our shore excursions to Sitka and the Mendenhall Glacier area and the naturalist's presentations, but generally we had bad weather and low visibility so there was not much to see. I am the first to admit that we would have rather been outside walking than hanging around the ship. Cruising isn't our typical vacation and we only did it to reach the regions we would otherwise not have seen (and of course, due to the weather we didn't see anyway).

First regarding the dog - I'd find someone to come in and house/dog sit while you are gone, rather than kenneling a aging dog. Often, the vet techs do this on the side. If not, ask your vet for a referral.

Your other thread asked about resorts in Yellowstone or GT. Considering your expectations, you may prefer the cruise. I've done Alaska (both times in winter :-) and grew up camping. We took the ferry from Juneau to Haines to pick up the Alcan highway into the Yukon one November (driving on snowpack the entire way through a blue-tinted winter wonderland). The views from the ship/ferry are just spectacular and I'm glad I've been there. But, it sounds that for length of time you prefer to be gone, the Yellowstone/GT trip would be a better option for you at this time.

If you want to see WILDLIFE consider a Thanksgiving trip to Alaska. The Chilkat river at Haines does not freeze and all (or it seems like all) of the Bald Eagles in North America congregate there to spend the winter. Bald Eagles are everywhere - clustered together on bare trees as oranges on an orange tree!

we did both during summer 02.

Alaska has more spectacular scenery, but Grand Teton is quite impressive and the gesyers of Yellowstone are great.

We saw more wildlife in Yellowstone/Grand Teton than in Alaska (altho we didn't go into the interior of Denali). Buffalo and elk everywhere. Also saw 3-4 bears, several moose (grand teton) and some deer. In alaska we saw moose, a wolk, and bald eagle

Given your time constraints I'd go for Yellowstone etc. Note that it's a pretty different experience - high density tourism in the national parks, v. high density buffets and crowded ports on the 7-day boats. Depending on how and where you're traveling, the national parks option will probably be cheaper than 2 cabins on a cruise ship. Plus if it's a one-way cruise (Vancouver-Seward or v.v.) the lack of time in southcentral Alaska would leave you feeling cheated I'd bet, while the 7-day round trips (Seattle or Vancouver) show you southeast Alaska but nothing else. I'd wait for more time to do Alaska justice.

The only other thing I'd suggest you investigate is Banff and Jasper parks in Canada. Now that will knock your socks off, also plenty of creatures.

ttt. I'd never choose the cruise over traveling Alaska independently via car, rail, and/or local flights. Maybe Yellowstone would be best for this trip.