I am interested in taking a cruise thru the inland passage in Alaska in August 2011 but don't like the big ships. My preference would be for one with under 150 passengers.

Does anyone know of a cruise line that has ships like this?
Also, do you think the weather would be too cold?

The weather will be fine. August is probably their warmest month. For small ship cruises try National Geographic/Lindblad www.expeditions.com

They are expensive but well worth the money if you can afford it. There were 62 people on our boat with six expedition leaders. I've done two expeditions with National Geographic. The one this year was along the Inside Passage. I'm also booked for a third trip.

Another vote for Lindblad. We had around 70 on our trip in Alaska, half of them were one from one extended family.
The only time we saw a large cruise ship was in Glacier Bay NP. We were sailing among the whales and other marine wildlife, venturing off the ship twice daily on zodiacs and kayaks. I can't imagine visiting Alaska inner passage any other way.

I hope it's okay if I piggyback onto this post ... I have almost exactly the same question.

I'd love to book a Lindblad cruise in August 2011, but I'm still gasping from the prices. Has anyone used AdventureSmith (or something similar? Small ships, no crowds, no casino nights).

http://www.adventuresmithexploration...s.php/advid/54

I live in California and can self-tour myself anywhere in Europe, but am finding it hard to get my head around Alaska.

I looked at adventuresmithexplorations. The prices aren't all that much cheaper than Lindblad, except for the cheaper cabins. I couldn't find the ship information and differences in the cabin categories.

Lindblad has such a great reputation - I am going to seriously consider it but would love to see what other companies offer.

Lindblad will give you such a rich and rewarding experience. The naturalists lead the zodiac excursions and hikes and our fellow passengers on both of our Lindblad trips were a very interesting group.

At a glance, 8 days on adventuresmith is $3-4K p/p and Lindblad is $6/8K p/p. I'll look at some other small ship cruise sites ... though the Lindblad recommendations here make a compelling argument. (Maybe just plan to vacation in my own back yard in 2012!)

happytrvlr - did you take the extension to Denali?
I would love to do that. What would you say was the age group on the trip you took? What month did you go and how was the weather?I am planning late July/early August.

Check out Seattle-based Fantasy Cruises (www.smallalaskaship.com) for an unbeatable small ship cruise of Alaska's Inside Passage. The owner-operated Island Spirit has a maximum capacity of 32 passengers and a caring, compassionate crew of 9. Reasonable rates, everything included; friendly, personable service; great food; and front row seats to wildlife adventures. We lucked out with the weather on our late-Spring cruise. Temps. were in the mid-70's for most of the 9 days, with just a bit of rain near the end of the trip.

Thanks for the info, movinon, but I already booked a trip thru Lindblad. I will be on my own in Fairbanks, Denali and Anchorage before we hook up with the ship in Juneau.

We will be going in July - hopefully the weather will be good.

Sorry for being so late getting back to you.
We didn't take Lindblad's extension but rather did it independently. We flew into Anchorage, rented a car for two weeks.. Anchorage, Talkeetna/Denali, Girdwood, Seward, Homer, (flew over to Kenai NP to see the bears),Kenai River fishing lodge, then back to Anchorage and flew to Juneau to board the ship. I can't imagine being on one of those huge cruise ships;you will get so much out of your Lindblad trip. On our Alaska trip half the ship was a 50th wedding anniversary celebration, a family group, so lots of young adults and children, plus others from abroad. On another Lindblad trip passengers ages ranged from 40-90. Your fellow passengers will be interesting, curious people who have self selected this style of travel. Lots of whales and sea otters were seen daily. We went the first week of July.This was our second LIndblad trip.

Happytrvlr - sounds as if you had an awesome time.
We are glad that we will be on our own before the ship. I can't stand those huge floating hotels and am so happy that we discovered the Lindblad trip.

I just saw your topic. I agree about the large ships. My husband and I did a small ship (39 passengers) on the Inside Passage about 16 years ago. I can't remember the name of it off-hand but who knows how the company is now even if it's in business. It was fantastic nad I highly recommend a small ship. We flew to Anchorage and took the train to Denali Park. This was at the beginning of July. We have since been to Alaska twice-my brother-in-law lives in Nome. We have been to Anchorage for about a week, Nome for a week both during the Iditarod in March and then again at the end of July 3 years ago. That trip we spent about a week in Seward and Homer. We spent a day with the grizzlies in Kenai NP. It was one of the best days in our lives and would highly recommend that.
Whatever you do, it will be a fantastic trip. Alaska is spectular! Good luck