There is truly nothing like cruising Alaska. It took us years to try our first Alaskan cruise because we loved the warm waters and beautiful beaches of the Caribbean. Once we did it, we couldn't believe it took us that long. It's a bucket list thing. Everyone needs to experience this place at least once in their life.
The beauty of Alaska is an unbeatable experience, but it is a different type of cruising all together. There are terms and options that are not available on a traditional cruise. There are also a surprising amount of options of cruise lines, ships, and itineraries to this relatively limited cruising season.
Alaskan cruising season runs from late April to early September. Now is the time to start planning if Alaska is on your list for summer vacation destinations.
In this guide, we list our top five Alaskan cruise itineraries for the 2023 season and break down why we chose them. There may terms that you are not familiar with in these rankings so why we don't we start with a few definitions:
Open-Jawed Cruises: Many Alaskan cruises are what we call open-jawed. This means you get on the ship in one port and leave the ship in another. Typically, you will board in either Vancouver and sail northbound or Anchorage and sail southbound. The benefits to open-jawed itineraries are more time in Alaska, visiting Glacier Bay or Hubbard Glacier, and the option to take a pre or post cruise tour.
Cruise Tours: Alaskan cruise tours are offered by most cruise lines that sail Alaska. The cruise tour is a guided land vacation (anywhere from two to seven days) before or after your cruise booked through your cruise line. Basically, you fly into Alaska several days before or several days after and take a guided trip around the area. These often include hotel stays, tours, busses, trains, etc. and feature trips through Denali National Park. You get to explore inland Alaska before setting sail. These are often only available on open-jawed cruises and will be pre-cruise on southbound routes and post-cruise on northbound routes.
Scenic Cruising: On Alaskan itineraries, you may notice that some days will list "scenic cruising" in the ports of call section. If you are unfamiliar with Alaska, this might be confusing to you. Scenic cruising means that you won't be leaving the ship, rather the ship will sail into a scenic area, stay for a while to allow for pictures and viewing of the area, then depart. This is most common in Fjords and Glacier viewing stops. The ship will navigate a narrow body of water, get as close to a glacier as it can, and then stop for several hours, often turning 360 degrees. It's one of the coolest moments of Alaskan cruises and shouldn't be overlooked. Top scenic cruising spots are Tracy Arm Fjord, Hubbard Glacier, and Glacier National Park.
Now that we have the terminology, let's get to our top five. CruiseNReview has researched and picked our **top Alaskan cruise itineraries for the 2023 season. We'll list them below starting with number five and finishing up with our top pick for this year's Alaskan cruising window. Here we go:
Itinerary: 7-Day Alaska
Departure Port: Seattle, Washington
Disembarkation Port: Seattle, Washington
Cruise Line: Carnival
Cruise Ship: Carnival Luminosa
Dates Offered: Weekly from May - September
Schedule
Day 1 - Seattle, Washington (Departs at 4:00 pm)
Day 2 - At Sea
Day 3 - Juneau, Alaska (Arrives at 1:00 pm, Departs at 10:00 pm)
Day 4 - Skagway, Alaska (Arrives at 7:00 am, Departs at 8:00 pm)
Day 5 - Tracy Arm Fjord (Scenic Cruising)
Day 6 - Ketchikan, Alaska (Arrives at 7:00 am, Departs at 1:00 pm)
Day 7 - Victoria, British Columbia (Arrives at 8:00 pm, Departs at 11:59 pm)
Day 8 - Seattle, Washington (Arrives at 7:00 am)
Reason for Making the List: For starters, you have to include a Carnival cruise on lists like these or Carnival fans will riot. All joking aside, this one makes the list for three reasons: the ship, price, and the long port calls. Carnival Luminosa is part of the Costa by Carnival program, which will see some Costa Cruise Line ships moving into the Carnival fleet. There will be some renovations done but the ships will keep their Italian-themed feel on the interior. It's a unique Carnival ship that will provide an out-of-the-ordinary shipboard experience. The price on this cruise is among the most affordable of the season and the voyage features long port calls which are a must in Alaska. Make no mistake, this is a basic cruise, but basic in Alaska is still bucket list material. For more exotic experiences, keep scrolling.
Itinerary: 7-Night Alaska Adventure
Departure Port: Seattle, Washington
Disembarkation Port: Seattle, Washington
Cruise Line: Royal Caribbean
Cruise Ship: Quantum of the Seas
Dates Offered: Weekly from May - September
Schedule
Day 1 - Seattle, Washington (Departs at 4:00 pm)
Day 2 - At Sea
Day 3 - Sitka, Alaska (Arrives at 9:30 am, Departs at 5:00 pm)
Day 4 - Skagway, Alaska (Arrives at 7:00 am, Departs at 5:00 pm)
Day 5 - Endicott Arm & Dawes Glacier (Scenic Cruising)
Day 5 - Juneau, Alaska (Arrives at 1:00 pm, Departs at 8:00 pm)
Day 6 - At Sea
Day 7 - Victoria, British Columbia (Arrives at 5:00 pm, Departs at 10:00 pm)
Day 8 - Seattle, Washington (Arrives at 6:00 am)
Reason for Making the List: This cruise makes the list for two reasons: Roundtrip from the United States and Quantum of the Seas. Many Alaskan cruises are one-way, meaning they start at one port and finish in another. Flights can be expensive on these. Additionally, many roundtrip cruises depart from Vancouver in Canada. While Vancouver is a great destination, for cruisers wanting to leave from a United States home port and not fly internationally, Seattle is a great starting point. The Pacific Northwest is a great place to explore before or after your cruise. Lastly, Quantum of the Seas is one of the best ships sailing Alaska. It's one of the largest and most innovative at sea and unique in everyway. The ship also has terrific viewing of the ocean from interior areas of the ship, a must for traveling to the cold weather climate of Alaska and a rarity for a ship the size of Quantum of the Seas. The "North Star", a glass enclosed vessel on an elevating crane-like arm located on the ship's upper deck while cruising through the inside passage makes this ship a must for cruising Alaska.
Itinerary: 9-Night Alaskan Cruise
Departure Port: Vancouver, British Columbia
Disembarkation Port: Vancouver, British Columbia
Cruise Line: Disney
Cruise Ship: Disney Wonder
Dates Offered: July 24, 2023
Schedule
Day 1 - Vancouver, British Columbia (Departs at 4:30 pm)
Day 2 - At Sea
Day 3 - Icy Strait Point, Alaska (Arrives at 11:00 am, Departs at 8:15 pm)
Day 4 - Skagway, Alaska (Arrives at 6:45 am, Departs at 8:30 pm)
Day 5 - Juneau, Alaska (Arrives at 6:15 am, Departs at 5:15 pm)
Day 6 - Hubbard Glacier (Scenic Cruising)
Day 7 - Sitka, Alaska (Arrives at 8:00 am, Departs at 5:15 pm)
Day 8 - Ketchikan, Alaska (Arrives at 9:30 am, Departs at 7:00 pm)
Day 9 - At Sea
Day 10 - Vancouver, British Columbia (Arrives at 7:00 am)
Reason for Making the List: There is only one chance this summer to take this cruise. It's another that falls under the "if money is no object" label. It's pricey, but anything over 7-nights in Alaska is rare and it gives guest the option to have a round trip cruise that features Hubbard Glacier and most of the popular ports-of-call in Alaska. Typically, Hubbard Glacier is reserved for open-jawed cruises (Embark at one port, disembark at another). This cruise, because of length, works it into a closed-loop. To top it off, it's on Disney Cruise Line, which is always one of the top rated cruise lines each year. The voyage features the Silver Anniversary at Sea celebration if that sort of thing excites you.
Itinerary: 7-Day Voyage of the Glaciers (Northbound or Southbound)
Departure Port: Anchorage, Alaska or Vancouver, British Columbia
Disembarkation Port: Anchorage, Alaska or Vancouver, British Columbia
Cruise Line: Princess Cruises
Cruise Ship: Discovery Princess or Grand Princess
Dates Offered: Weekly from May - September
Schedule
**Southbound Route (Will be Reversed on Northbound Route)**
Day 1 - Vancouver, British Columbia (Departs at 4:30 pm)
Day 2 - At Sea
Day 3 - Ketchikan, Alaska (Arrives at 6:30 am, Departs at 3:00 pm)
Day 4 - Juneau, Alaska (Arrives at 8:00 am, Departs at 9:00 pm)
Day 5 - Skagway, Alaska (Arrives at 7:00 am, Departs at 8:30 pm)
Day 6 - Glacier Bay National Park (Scenic Cruising)
Day 7 - College Fjord (Scenic Cruising)
Day 8 - Anchorage, Alaska (Arrives at 12:30 am)
Reason for Making the List: To start, Princess Cruises is the leader in main stream Alaskan cruises. The price is right, ports of call are great, and time in port is unmatched. These cruises are open-jawed, meaning you embark at one port and end in another. The best part of these itineraries are the time spent in Alaska and the option to have a pre or post-cruise land tour (See Land Tour Section). For the price, this option is hard to beat. Princess is also known for having longer port calls, which is critical to Alaska. With these times available, you could do multiple land tours at several of the stops. It also features a scenic cruise in Glacier Bay National Park, a limited, rare option on Alaskan cruises due to limits placed on ships by the United States government.
Itinerary: Exploring Alaska's Coastal Wilderness
Departure Port: Juneau, Alaska
Disembarkation Port: Sitka, Alaska
Cruise Line: Lindblad Expeditions
Cruise Ship: National Geographic Venture, National Geographic Quest
Dates Offered: Weekly from May - September
Schedule
Day 1 - Juneau, Alaska
Day 2 - Tracy Arm Fjord
Day 3 - Petersburg, Alaska
Day 4 - Frederick Sound and Chatham Strait
Day 5 - Icy Strait & Inian Islands
Day 6 - Glacier Bay National Park
Day 7 - Southeast Alaska Islands, Bays, & Fjords
Day 8 - Sitka, Alaska
Reason for Making the List: If you've got a larger budget and really want to experience Alaska, this is the one for you. On a small, expedition-style vessel, this cruise allows the crew to customize the cruise, find marine life, and take passengers via zodiac (small motor watercraft) to have intimate experiences in less-explored areas of Alaska. Lindblad Expeditions is a partner of National Geographic and offers more personalized and adventurous cruises on smaller ships than traditional cruise lines. This one is pricey, but if money is no object, this is the one. This one takes number one as a bucket list Alaskan cruise.
Like an Itinerary but not the Cruise Line?
It's important to understand that these are our favorite cruises out of a variety of options. If you like a specific itinerary but would prefer a different cruise line, there is a high likelihood that we can find it with your cruise line of choice.
Ready to Go? Get started!
If this has made you ready to a bucket list trip to Alaska, let's get started. CruiseNReview would be happy to help you plan this adventure down to the tiniest of details. Just complete our Alaskan Cruise Jump Start Form and we will contact you soon to get going.
**Rankings are editorial in nature and prices are subject to change.
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