The last great frontier is the latest, greatest place to take your grandchildren.
A cruise to — and through — Alaska is more than just another boat ride. It is a majestic, once-in-a-lifetime experience unlike any other.
Where else can you almost reach out and touch glaciers? Fish for salmon? Watch 700-pound bears frolic on the shoreline?
Oh, and about that shoreline. There are 34,000 miles of it in Alaska, more than any other state, so there’s certainly a lot to explore. Alaska was the No.2 cruise destination in 2007 behind the Western Caribbean, according to a Carlson Wagonlit Travel Associates survey, and is expected to be No.1 in 2008.
“Alaska is another bright spot in the travel landscape — particularly for cruising. For the first time ever in this survey, Alaska ranks as the top cruise destination being booked so far for [2008] beating out its Caribbean competitors,” said Roger Block, executive vice president of the Carlson Wagonlit Travel Associate Division.
Traveling to Alaska will take some preparation.
First off, it’s a short travel season to Alaska because of the weather, unlike the nearly year-round cruising in the Caribbean. The Caribbean certainly has its drawbacks in terms of the timing of travel. June through November is the hurricane season, and nearly all of the islands, with the exception of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao, are inside the hurricane belt. But hurricanes are also fickle. There could be six a year, or none, so cruise lines are able to work around Mother Nature, for the most part.
Not so with Alaska. The cold weather comes quickly to the nation’s 49th state, meaning the cruising season lasts from May to September. So plan early, and do all the necessary research. There are a dozen lines that cruises to Alaska, including Regent, Royal Caribbean, Holland America, Princess, Norwegian and Majestic, among others.
You’ll have to do some homework, which means spending some quality time on the various cruise-line websites or on Expedia.com or Travelocity.com. You might also consult a travel agent based on your needs, but suffice it to say that traveling with grandchildren probably means you want to avoid the cruise lines known more for partying and a younger crowd. You also may want the “freestyle” cruising option, which allows for more flexibility (such as not having assigned dinner times). The larger cruise lines also offer more amenities onboard that might appeal to children; the smaller cruise lines are able to sail closer to the glaciers and to the shoreline, to better see the wildlife. If you book a cruise that makes a stop in Vancouver, Canada, you’ll also need to get a passport. Regent, for instance, starts its Alaska cruises in Vancouver.
Again, it all depends on your wants and needs.
But once you’ve decided on a cruise line, the adventure begins. Perhaps nowhere in the country is the scenery more spectacular than in Alaska, with its wild rivers, glaciers, forests and mountains. The state’s Inside Passage is included on most cruise-line itineraries, allowing you to see such amazing sites as Glacier Bay and Sawyer Glacier. But, near Juneau, there’s also Yakutat Bay, Disenchantment Bay, and the Mendenhall Glacier. Depending on the length of your cruise, ports of call can include Ketchikan, Skagway, Sitka and a host of other towns and villages.
But, in a bit of an oxymoronic statement to the fact that you’re taking a cruise, the most important piece of advice about sailing Alaska is this: Get off the boat.
While ports of call in the Caribbean certainly offer a unique character at every stop, there is nothing like Alaska and the opportunity to both educate and thrill your grandchildren at the same time — not an easy task elsewhere.
Shore excursions can be arranged through the cruise lines, and they do cost extra. But you can explore to your heart’s content with an amazing variety of daytrips, including such national parks as Klondike and the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. You can stand on the same shore where bears hunt for salmon (and, yes, the guides and rangers will tell you what to do if you see a bear). There are helicopter tours of the glaciers, hiking, even dog-sledding.
Holland America line offers 250 different shore excursions, including a flight on a floatplane, halibut fishing, a trip down the Klondike River, even a tour of the crab fishing industry in Ketchikan based on the popular Discovery Channel television show, Deadliest Catch.
Regent has shore excursions at every port of call, including such diverse outings as a rappelling adventure, glass blowing and dredging for gold.
Regent also offers a special "Club Mariner" program in which children and grandchildren sail for free on selected cruises. Check out rssc.com for more details.
In short, Alaska is a breathtaking adventure that will leave a lifetime of memories for you and your grandchildren.
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