Alaska Cruises Central

Alaska is a popular cruise destination simply for the uniqueness that it offers, so you’ll find many huge cruise lines sending their ships there on a regular basis. Here are the larger cruise lines:

Royal Caribbean – They depart from a number of coastal cities including Seattle and Vancouver, and you can choose from three different ships – Radiance of the Seas, Rhapsody of the Seas and Serenade of the Seas. All of the trips are around a week and you can choose from routes that include a port of call at Icy Strait Point.

Celebrity Cruises – As with many other lines, Seattle and Vancouver are main starting points for the Alaska cruises, and you can choose from three different ships. More in-depth information here.

Regent Seven Seas Cruises – Regent uses the wonderful Seven Seas Mariner ship, which is not as big as the ships suffering from gigantism, but is far more charming.  It has balconies for all the rooms, and just looks fantastic – it feels like you’re on a luxury cruise.  Regent has less departures than the other big guys, but if you can score a good price, it’s more personalized and unique.  The cruises leave from Vancouver, often named the best city in the world.

Princess – Most of Princess’ cruises, and there are a lot of them with seven ships, will cruise along the Inside Passage, the most common route with Alaska cruises.  Just because it’s common though, doesn’t mean that it’s not interesting.  You’ll get to see glaciers, sea lions, otters, whales, sea eagles, bears and a whole lot more!

Holland America – With no less than eight ships, Holland America offers up a ton of options for the Alaska cruiser.  Most of them follow the Inside Passage route, but there are a couple of very unique routes offered, as well as some interesting excursions.  More information here.

Norwegian Cruise Line – NCL ships start from Vancouver and you’re offered a choice on one of three ships.  All routes use the Inside Passage routes, but some nice excursions will offer some exclusivity.