The best Alaska lines are Princess and Holland America. Since you are traveling w/teenagers, try Princess or Royal Caribbean. Princess has classes you can take while on-board and then continue them when you get home. Classes such as photography are offered, and may be of interest to your teenagers. July and August are the high seasons, with most daylight. May, June, and September will be cheaper. There is so much to see. Try to do a cruisetour if you can. It is a little more expensive, but you get to see a lot more of the country. A cruise will limit you on seeing the state.
we went in July 2005. We sailed on the Celebrity Summit, great time … but with the kids, you might consider Carnival, they have more to do for the "family" in general. Our cruise was from Vancouver to Seward AK. I wish we had planned for more time in Seward. You could easily spend 2 days there (or more) and have plenty to do. You will have to rent a car, the taxi service will rack up. There is a real nice dinner cruise in Seward and you wil have the chance to see whales and other wildlife. the train from Seward to Anchorage is quite nice too (you can pre-purchase your tickets on-line). have a blast. I suggest you purchase a digital camera, or take a ton of film!
Go in June, July, or August. I think August is the best time to see bears, from what i hear.
Book through a reputable travel agent, and be sure to purchase the additional travel insurance. We cruise twice year, and always buy the insurance. A friend of ours had to cancel her trip for mesical reason, and got every dime back. it was CSA insurance.
Do buy a real good raincoat. Something mid-thigh length is good, with a hood. You will want to dress in layers. but you’ll be glad for the raincoat, for sure, there is a lot of rain in ALaska.
Have fun!
You might want to splurge for a balcony, at least ocean view. We had an inside cabin, it worked for us, but our friends had a balcony, and we spend alot of time in their room.
Do know that you can put 3 in a room quite comfortably, don’t sweat it.
If you go on Celebrity, know that there are wonderful showers in the locker rooms. off the spa area, and that will be very helpful with 3 of you in one room.
References :
http://www.cruiseone.com/srandolph
The best Alaska lines are Princess and Holland America. Since you are traveling w/teenagers, try Princess or Royal Caribbean. Princess has classes you can take while on-board and then continue them when you get home. Classes such as photography are offered, and may be of interest to your teenagers. July and August are the high seasons, with most daylight. May, June, and September will be cheaper. There is so much to see. Try to do a cruisetour if you can. It is a little more expensive, but you get to see a lot more of the country. A cruise will limit you on seeing the state.
References :
I’m a travel agent.
I lived in Anchorage for nearly 4 years. September is a good time to visit to avoid crowds and peak mosquito season. If you have to go in Summer, August would be best. Be sure to take the drive from Anchorage to the Matanuska Glacier. It’s an awesome sight, a huge glacier that fills an entire valley floor.
Portage glacier is another awesome sight. This one is a mountain glacier that comes down to the Cook Inlet and is about 40 miles south of Anchorage. I also enjoyed hiking and biking in the mountains around Anchorage.
To experience a little more of the true flavor of Alaska, try visiting during the Fur Rendezvous (or "Rondy", as it’s called) which takes place in Anchorage from February 17-March 6, 2006. Click on the link below to see more about this annual event.
References :
http://www.furrondy.net/