Alaska 2017 - Any other line as good as DCL?

[mousemamma]

We have been on five Disney cruises (Wonder, Dream, Magic) and absolutely love the service, ships, etc. To me there is nothing better than a Disney cruise. But I'm having a hard time justifying an extra $4000 for a DCL cruise in Alaska.

Does anyone have any thoughts on a comparable cruise line to DCL in Alaska? Or what comes close to the Wonder (especially post dry dock)? And specifically which ships within other cruise lines?

My husband and I have sailed HAL and although we liked it, I'm not sure our 14 and 12 year old will.

I've never sailed Princess or Celebrity so I don't know about them.

I've cruised Carnival once and it was basically a 3 day booze cruise; fun in my 20's but not sure I want that now.

I've had friends who have sailed RCCL and felt that they were nickeled and dimed the whole time. Although there were a lot of activities for their children.

I'm just looking for something very similar to the ease and inclusiveness of Disney (or hoping for a sale!)

Thanks for your thoughts!

 

[tvguy]

Been on HAL twice to Alaska. They rocked, they are the best cruise line for us, just a hair ahead of Disney. Our kids (who are now adults) did not care for the kids clubs on either line. And they were 11 and 15 on HAL the first time, and 12 and 16 on Disney.

 

[MUN]

We have been on five Disney cruises (Wonder, Dream, Magic) and absolutely love the service, ships, etc. To me there is nothing better than a Disney cruise. But I'm having a hard time justifying an extra $4000 for a DCL cruise in Alaska.

Does anyone have any thoughts on a comparable cruise line to DCL in Alaska? Or what comes close to the Wonder (especially post dry dock)? And specifically which ships within other cruise lines?

My husband and I have sailed HAL and although we liked it, I'm not sure our 14 and 12 year old will.

I've never sailed Princess or Celebrity so I don't know about them.

I've cruised Carnival once and it was basically a 3 day booze cruise; fun in my 20's but not sure I want that now.

I've had friends who have sailed RCCL and felt that they were nickeled and dimed the whole time. Although there were a lot of activities for their children.

I'm just looking for something very similar to the ease and inclusiveness of Disney (or hoping for a sale!)

Thanks for your thoughts!

IMHO, No. Not with kids your age. We stayed in 2 OV cabins on our DCL Alaska cruise, and I thought the price was very fair, especially compared to DCL EC & WC cruises. I think HAL is great, but not with children.

How are you coming up with your $4000 variance?

 

[Lunarias]

I actually sailed Carnival for my first cruise, to Alaska. And it was not a booze cruise in my opinion , but I have no idea about the kids club because it was just my fiancée and my parents with us. My best friend and her fiancée went on Princess a year earlier and loved it. But we totally agree Glacier Bay is the best experience . We are planning another trip to Alaska in 2018 with them on Princess for what it is worth . The destination is just phenomenal

 

[Jess_S]

There are lots of people here who recommend other lines for Alaska. I've sailed NCL and HAL. My personal opinion is that you need to be in a suite on those lines to get the same level of service that Disney provides in a standard cabin.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

We have been on five Disney cruises (Wonder, Dream, Magic) and absolutely love the service, ships, etc. To me there is nothing better than a Disney cruise. But I'm having a hard time justifying an extra $4000 for a DCL cruise in Alaska.

Does anyone have any thoughts on a comparable cruise line to DCL in Alaska? Or what comes close to the Wonder (especially post dry dock)? And specifically which ships within other cruise lines?

My husband and I have sailed HAL and although we liked it, I'm not sure our 14 and 12 year old will.

I've never sailed Princess or Celebrity so I don't know about them.

I've cruised Carnival once and it was basically a 3 day booze cruise; fun in my 20's but not sure I want that now.

I've had friends who have sailed RCCL and felt that they were nickeled and dimed the whole time. Although there were a lot of activities for their children.

I'm just looking for something very similar to the ease and inclusiveness of Disney (or hoping for a sale!)

Thanks for your thoughts!

We've used HAL twice for Alaska. Loved it. But, with teens, I'd suggest Princess. Both Princess and HAL have cruised Alaska the longest, and have the (in many people's opinions) the better itineraries.

Don't know much about Celebrity to Alaska, except that they don't do Glacier Bay.

 

[Carrie in AZ]

There are lots of people here who recommend other lines for Alaska. I've sailed NCL and HAL. My personal opinion is that you need to be in a suite on those lines to get the same level of service that Disney provides in a standard cabin.

Omgosh, we had friends tell us the exact same thing about Princess just last night!!

 

[kendall]

DH and I just returned from a Princess cruise and land tour. Here is what we noticed in comparing Princess and DCL. We went Sept 10-23, so definitely shoulder season. We lucked out with terrific weather and few crowds. The Princess lodges closed down for the season a couple days after we left.

• Itinerary - advantage Princess. Princess goes to Glacier Bay and College Fjord on the northbound - definitely beautiful. Continuing northbound versus returning to the Pacific Northwest situates you to continue on land to Denali and explore other parts of Alaska.
• Service - tie. staff provided excellent service
• Welcoming "culture" - advantage Disney. Disney's "vibe" on the ship is generally pleasant and welcoming. DCL staff always has smiles and greetings - overall we didn't find Princess staff to be as welcoming (inconsistent to say the least).
• Onboard activities - can't say - Princess did have presentations on culture, geology, animals, etc to help prepare you for what you would see and experience, as well as national park staff that came on board. I'm not sure what Alaska-specific presentations Disney does for Alaska. Obviously DCL has the kids club; Princess has a kids club as well but don't know how robust the programming was. Princess seemed to also have many shopping sessions (port and on board stores), so if that is your thing you would appreciate that (not our thing).
• Land portion - Princess does land portion well. They are quite good at moving people and luggage efficiently. Denali is beautiful, and there are kid-focused activities through the rangers if you choose to take advantage of them
• Ship layout and design - advantage Disney. We were on the Star Princess, and while it has some nice features and many small, intimate spaces, we noticed the lack of design cohesiveness and attention to design detail of a DCL ship. In addition, there are parts of the ship that are tired and looking ready for dry dock (we did see the staff performing maintenance, just as on DCL)

If we were to return to Alaska, we would go Princess again simply so we could again experience the amazing glaciers found north of where DCL goes. I think the Princess land portion is good for a first time visitor (we did 2 nights at McKinley lodge (our favorite of the three lodges), 2 nights at Denali lodge, and 1 night in Fairbanks). I suggest doing at least 2 nights at any location because of the time required to move between locations in Alaska. On a follow-up trip, we would do our own land portion and explore more remote towns and spend more time hiking in Denali.

As for cruising in general, we would choose DCL over Princess for the experience. But for Alaska, Princess goes places other lines don't (HAL is a sister corporation to Princess so has some similar itineraries), and we would choose Princess again for the cruise portion.

 

[xlxo]

Thoughts....

• When thinking about other Alaskan cruise lines.... one must-include itinerary.... Glacier Bay. This is DCL's main Alaskan weakness. HAL and Princess offers the most sailings.
• I think the larger Princess ships will appeal to the kids more than HAL. After sailing HAL and Princess. I think Princess entertainment appeals more to families than HAL.
• Then again HAL's smaller ships is able to access smaller ports better and you have loyalty rewards earned there.
• HAL smoking policies on balconies has been a concern in the past.... but in 2017 the rules have changed.
• Princess and HAL offers one way sailings to Central Alaska
• HAL offers a Yukon Denali option where you can travel between Skagway and Anchorage without a boat.

 

[mousemamma]

These are all great thoughts! Thank you so much for all of your input!

 

[ldo]

I have researched this a bit. here are my thoughts:
if you are OK to sail from Seattle, or one way, you have more options.We don't have time/$ for one way. Seattle goes via outer passage to/from vs. Vaconver uses inner passage to/from Vancouver. The SEA route is rougher. I like Princess, just below DCL, and if I were going out of SEA, I would pick them or RCCL, if I wanted a younger vibe feeling. Princess food is comparable to DCL, RCCL is a step down, IMHO. Never felt nickled. Soda is extra. If you want inclusive, buy a beverage package fo either soda or alcohol. Our bill on RCCL is usually the same as for DCL, with the exception that we now get 3 nights speciality dining on RCCL, while we find the MDR on DCL just fine. Service on Princess is excellent, IMHO.
Assuming you want VAN RT, then you have DCL, Celeb, HA. Celeb does not go to Skagway. HA still allows smoking on balconies (and IMHO attracts a much older crowd). We nixed HA, so that leaves DCL (also $4K more for us) or Celeb and skipping Skagway, or getting down to SEA when we will have been in Canada the week prior, so more $ and hassle.
I posted last week with a similar question. I am still undecided.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

HA still allows smoking on balconies

Only until Jan 1, 2017. Then it's not allowed.

 

[ScottakaMickey]

We've done 4 Alaska cruises, all without kids. 2 on HAL and 2 on RCCL. HAL won on presenting Alaska it's goifpd education talks and authentic native people to interact with on the ship. That said, our next Alaska will be on RCCL with our two kids. They have a large ship up there, out of SEA, and with the awesome ship activities and Alask scenery I think it would be the best. Disney is jus not worth the cost. IMHO

 

[Karlzmom]

DS10 liked Celebrity better than Disney. He found the programming to be more interesting and not so much throw the kids in a cool room and watch them. Even after pointing out there was programming available he still liked the Celebrity options better.

I didn't think I could like a different line as much, but I found the food better on celebrity and I really enjoyed how. Much outside there was to see from the boat. I found myself in the big glasses lined lounge forward most days. I did miss the split bah, but enjoyed the bigger shower.

Good luck whatever you choose...

 

[Krissy22222]

We just did Alaska with NCL. We have done Alaska with Disney twice but wanted to go through Glacier Bay, which Disney does not do. That day was the highlight, we saw more glaciers, calving glaciers, it was way better than just going to Tracy Arm, in my opinion. However, they did not have a naturalist on board, like Disney does. They took on some rangers on GLacier Bay day and they did a presentation for the adults and one for the kids, that was it. The kids club was great for my younger ones, but there were not enough teens signed up for that club to run, and my son was bummed about that. This was likely due to the fact that we sailed in September and the kids were back to school, mine are homeschooled. The food was great, the buffet was way better than Disney in my opinion, MDR was comparable. The cruise was very port intensive so we didn't care about missing the extras that Disney adds, like a lot of family activities on board, because we were so busy. Also, the entertainment was great, very lively shows, way better than Princess or Holland but not as good as Disney. The staff was great, just as friendly and professional as Disney. We enjoyed NCL very much and would try them again, as they were super cheap compared to Disney.

 

[bumbershoot]

I would do Royal.

I've had friends who have sailed RCCL and felt that they were nickeled and dimed the whole time.

Where exactly did they feel they were nickel and dimed?

The ONE thing that Disney includes in their fare that Royal does not is *soda*.

Royal put Ben&Jerrys on their ships, which is an extra cost, but until recently Disney didn't have ice cream other than the cheap free stuff. Now some of the ships have Vanellope's, which is an extra cost more premium ice cream.

Royal does have a little box on their menus each night that allow you to upgrade your dinner. So if you want lobster or a special cut of cow, you can get that, for an extra fee. *No one* is required to get that. You can have perfectly lovely dinners without paying extra.

Alcohol, espresso, snacks...all included on both in the same way.

Only until Jan 1, 2017. Then it's not allowed.

Woohoo!!!

 

[bobbiwoz]

We are choosing Princess for our 2018 Alaska sea land trip. I have friends who have just come back from a great time with Princess.

 

[mousemamma]

DS10 liked Celebrity better than Disney. He found the programming to be more interesting and not so much throw the kids in a cool room and watch them. Even after pointing out there was programming available he still liked the Celebrity options better.

I didn't think I could like a different line as much, but I found the food better on celebrity and I really enjoyed how. Much outside there was to see from the boat. I found myself in the big glasses lined lounge forward most days. I did miss the split bah, but enjoyed the bigger shower.

Good luck whatever you choose...

Hi! Which Celebrity ship were you on? I'll check that one out Thanks!

 

[mousemamma]

We just did Alaska with NCL. We have done Alaska with Disney twice but wanted to go through Glacier Bay, which Disney does not do. That day was the highlight, we saw more glaciers, calving glaciers, it was way better than just going to Tracy Arm, in my opinion. However, they did not have a naturalist on board, like Disney does. They took on some rangers on GLacier Bay day and they did a presentation for the adults and one for the kids, that was it. The kids club was great for my younger ones, but there were not enough teens signed up for that club to run, and my son was bummed about that. This was likely due to the fact that we sailed in September and the kids were back to school, mine are homeschooled. The food was great, the buffet was way better than Disney in my opinion, MDR was comparable. The cruise was very port intensive so we didn't care about missing the extras that Disney adds, like a lot of family activities on board, because we were so busy. Also, the entertainment was great, very lively shows, way better than Princess or Holland but not as good as Disney. The staff was great, just as friendly and professional as Disney. We enjoyed NCL very much and would try them again, as they were super cheap compared to Disney.

Which NCL ship were you on? I think I saw a few in Alaska and want to make sure I price the one you went on. Thanks!

 

[xlxo]

Princess has one weakness compared to HAL/DCL... no photo packages. If you love pictures... you might spend more on photo's than your Princess cruise. Good thing Princess does not have character pictures.