The state of Alaska is huge: It encompasses 365 million acres and is greater than twice the scale of Texas. With simply 17,000 miles of public roads, a lot of Alaska is distant and reachable solely by ship or aircraft.
A cruise is without doubt one of the finest and best methods to go to the Nice Land. Nevertheless, if you wish to discover extra of the state’s extraordinary magnificence, together with its rugged wilderness areas — reminiscent of Denali Nationwide Park & Protect and Fairbanks, the town referred to as the “Golden Heart of Alaska” — take into account a cruisetour. A cruisetour is a mixed sea-and-land trip.
The benefits of cruise-only itineraries
Most Alaska cruises are shorter than cruisetours, usually lasting seven nights. With one extra evening on the town earlier than the cruise (as a buffer ought to journey plans go awry), you may make the journey in just a bit greater than per week. Moreover, many ships sail round-trip from main cities like Seattle or Vancouver, British Columbia, so airfare and transfers must be simpler (and cheaper) to ebook since you will be arriving and departing from the identical place.
One other plus is that you’re going to solely must pack and unpack as soon as (apart from a precruise resort keep) if you happen to’re solely taking a cruise. You will not should haul your baggage between lodges and different modes of transportation, reminiscent of buses, trains and planes.
Weeklong Alaska cruises
In case you’re pondering a cruise-only trip is best for you, there are just a few widespread seven-night Alaska cruise routes you could take to go to the south-central area of Alaska.
Norwegian Cruise Line’s “Glacier Bay, Juneau & Ketchikan” round-trip voyage from Seattle consists of stops within the coastal cities of Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan (Ward Cove) in Alaska and Victoria, British Columbia, and scenic cruising in magical Glacier Bay Nationwide Park & Protect. A lot of different strains additionally supply Seattle departures, together with Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, Cunard Line, MSC Cruises, Royal Caribbean Worldwide and Virgin Voyages (starting in 2026).
A seven-night, round-trip “Alaska Dawes Glacier” voyage with Celebrity Cruises from Vancouver traverses the scenic Inside Passage and the Endicott Arm fjord (dwelling to Dawes Glacier). It calls on the ports of Icy Strait Level, Skagway, Juneau and Ketchikan in Alaska. A number of different strains supply round-trip itineraries from Vancouver, together with Princess Cruises, Holland America Line and Disney Cruise Line.
You too can ebook a weeklong, one-way voyage, both heading southbound or northbound alongside the coast. A number of bigger and smaller strains supply such itineraries. In case you want a bigger ship, Royal Caribbean gives sailings from either Seward, Alaska, or Vancouver that embrace two days of scenic cruising in Hubbard Glacier and the Inside Passage, in addition to visits to the ports of Juneau, Skagway, Icy Strait Level and Ketchikan.
For a smaller luxurious ship, Regent Seven Seas Cruises gives one-way sailings from Whittier, Alaska, to Vancouver (or the reverse itinerary). These voyages cruise the Hubbard Glacier, the Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness space and the Pacific Ocean; they name on Icy Strait Level (Hoonah) and Ketchikan in Alaska, in addition to Vancouver.
Reward your inbox with the TPG Every day e-newsletter
Be a part of over 700,000 readers for breaking information, in-depth guides and unique offers from TPG’s consultants
Longer cruise-only voyages, some with lesser-known ports
Since you’ve got traveled up to now to go to Alaska, you would possibly wish to ebook an extended voyage to see extra of this nice state. Prolonged itineraries, particularly on smaller and expedition-style ships, usually name on distant and lesser-visited locations.
Silversea’s 14-night, round-trip sailing from Vancouver consists of stops in a number of the extra acquainted Alaska port cities, reminiscent of Ketchikan, Icy Strait Level, Skagway, Seward (Anchorage) and Juneau, in addition to much less frequented Valdez, Haines and Klawock. You may additionally discover voyages with just a few strains that cease within the small cities of Wrangell on the Inside Passage and Homer on the Kenai Peninsula.
In case you’re serious about a extra immersive Alaska expertise — and a crusing on a a lot smaller ship (roughly 40 to 86 visitors) — take into account reserving your bucket-list journey with Alaskan Dream Cruises or UnCruise Adventures. These corporations supply distinctive itineraries in wilderness areas, that includes wildlife viewing and energetic exploration in skiffs and kayaks proper from the ship. Each strains supply seven-night and longer voyages.
National Geographic — Lindblad Expeditions additionally options off-the-grid itineraries into Alaska’s wilderness on small expedition-style ships, together with locations alongside the Inside Passage. The road’s eight-night “Exploring Southeast Alaska’s ABC Islands” round-trip cruise from Juneau (on a 62-guest ship) features a Zodiac cruise by means of Alaska’s Inian Islands; you will spend six days exploring Admiralty, Baranof and Chichagof islands and looking for wildlife like orca, humpback whales, sea otters, sea lions and brown (or grizzly) bears.
Cruisetours — exploring Alaska by sea and ashore
For the final word trip to Alaska, take into account a cruisetour. A mixed sea-and-land trip gives one of the best of each experiences: crusing alongside Alaska’s picturesque shoreline and exploring its boundless wilderness within the inside.
Many massive cruise strains supply cruisetours, together with Holland America, Princess, Norwegian, Celeb and Royal Caribbean, in addition to smaller strains like Azamara Cruises and American Cruise Strains. Others, reminiscent of Oceania Cruises and Silversea, supply cruise extensions with absolutely escorted precruise or postcruise land excursions. These add-on extensions embrace a go to to Denali or a rail journey by means of the Canadian Rockies aboard the Rocky Mountaineer. Nevertheless, they don’t seem to be full bundle packages just like the cruisetours.
What’s included with a cruisetour?
Relying on the itinerary, your cruise could also be in the beginning or finish of the journey, with the remainder of the time spent ashore. There are a lot of variables and choices with cruisetours. Most of them start or finish with a seven-night cruise, adopted by a number of days or per week or longer touring between lodges and locations, with varied excursions and sightseeing choices alongside the best way.
A number of the land parts are escorted, whereas others will be performed by yourself. These journeys can final so long as 19 days, they usually typically include transportation by deluxe motorcoach and a glass-domed railroad automotive with the Alaska Railroad. Some land excursions may embrace flights. Lodges and journey between locations are often included within the value. Nevertheless, meals and a few featured land excursions — reminiscent of an Arctic air journey or northern lights viewing tour from Fairbanks — might be an extra price.
For instance, Princess gives a 13-day “Denali Explorer” cruisetour from Vancouver to Fairbanks. After the cruise, you disembark in Whittier and spend a night in Anchorage earlier than boarding the railcar for the Direct-to-the-Wilderness service for a two-night keep on the Mount McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge, adopted by two nights on the Denali Princess Wilderness Lodge. Each properties are simply outdoors the doorway to Denali.
Whereas there, you possibly can go to the park with a tour looking for Denali’s “Large 5”: brown (or grizzly) bears, moose, wolves, Dall sheep and caribou. Different non-obligatory excursions embrace a sled canine expertise, a flightseeing or helicopter tour, fly-fishing for Arctic grayling and a night coated wagon trip full with an Alaskan feast.
The final cease in your Alaska journey is Fairbanks, the place you will have an included tour on the Chena River aboard a sternwheeler steamboat, then pan for gold and luxuriate in a hearty miner’s lunch at Gold Dredge 8.
Norwegian gives a “12-day Denali Alyeska — Southbound Cruise Tour,” which contains a five-day land portion earlier than the seven-night cruise. This journey begins in Anchorage and consists of the Alaska Railroad domed railcar to Denali and a motorcoach trip to Girdwood, dwelling to the gorgeous Alyeska Resort, nestled on the foot of the Chugach Mountains. After an in a single day in Girdwood, you will head to Whittier to start your cruise.
You may additionally discover cruisetours with Princess that embrace in a single day stays at their Copper River Princess Wilderness Lodge. This lodge gives entry to distant Wrangell—St. Elias Nationwide Park & Protect (the most important nationwide park within the U.S.) and the Kenai Princess Wilderness Lodge, the gateway to adventures in Kenai Fjords Nationwide Park.
The last word Alaska cruise
And if you wish to head as far north as Nome, Alaska, then cross the Arctic Circle and go to Kodiak Island — dwelling to the world’s second-largest bears (subsequent to polar bears) — and do all of it whereas on a ship (no land portion included), ebook the “28-day Legendary Alaska Arctic Circle Solstice” cruise with Holland America. This bucket-list journey units sail round-trip from Seattle and consists of many days of scenic cruising, 12 ports of name and the smaller cities of Valdez, Haines, Wrangell and Dutch Harbor in Alaska’s Aleutian Islands.