The Ultimae Alaska Cruise with Kids: Family Adventures & Money-Saving Secrets

Back in 2020, we planned an Alaskan cruise; however, as you can imagine, it was canceled. Prior to that trip, I honestly never cared to see Alaska. My ideal vacation always included warm weather and the beach – and Alaska didn’t check either of those boxes. Then I listened to a podcast about someone’s trip to Alaska and I was sold! It quickly rose to the top of my list and I booked our cruise shortly after.

Since we weren’t traveling by plane after Covid hit, we focused on road trips instead. I love a good checklist, so we decided to start ticking off the states we visited. I quickly realized that we were moving through our list pretty fast and decided to set a goal for us to reach all 50 states by the time our oldest graduated from high school, which gave us six years to accomplish the task.

In those six years, we saw some pretty incredible places! The landscapes out west are stunning and Hawaii became everyone’s favorite trip! Since our cruise was canceled back in 2020, I couldn’t wait to plan that trip again. With my oldest approaching his senior year in high school, we knew we were running out of time. Although we didn’t get to Alaska before he graduated, we did end up making it there shortly after.

We decided to plan almost the exact same trip we initially planned. We flew into Seattle, took a train to Vancouver and caught the boat from there. Thankfully, this time, we had a better outcome!

Flight to Seattle

We began our trip by flying to Seattle, Washington. Washington was state 49 for us, so we wanted to make sure we hit it while we were already heading northwest! We flew Southwest, using points for 4 of our 5 flights and getting the 5th flight free with our Southwest Companion Pass. For all of these flights, we just paid the taxes and fees, which were $5.60/person.

Airport Lounge

Anytime we fly, we always go straight to the airport lounge. Both my husband and I get lounge access for ourselves + 2 guests. He has the Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business and I have the Citi Strata Elite, which are great options to get our family of 5 in. 

Our credit cards give us Priority Pass, which grants us lounge access prior to our flight as well as during layovers. This is a huge perk for us because it allows our entire family to eat and drink for free! Just know that lounge access is not all the same – it really varies by airport.  We live about halfway between Cleveland and Pittsburgh, so we typically go with whoever has the best flights.

When it comes to lounges, Pittsburgh is the clear winner.  Cleveland has a small lounge, so there is almost always a wait, while Pittsburgh offers more seating and less waiting. In addition to better lounge access, parking is also about half the price, making Pittsburgh our go-to option.

Seattle, Washington

When we arrived in Seattle, we used Lyft to take us to our hotel. We opted to stay in downtown Seattle so we were close to the action and wouldn’t need a vehicle. We toggle between Lyft and Uber and typically use whatever is cheapest. Not only was Lyft the winner, but because my husband has the Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business, he gets a monthly $10 credit. So instead of our Lyft being $76, it only ended up being $66. And hey, savings is savings!

Accommodations: The W Hotel – Seattle

We stayed at the W Hotel in downtown Seattle. With my husband’s (you guessed it) Chase card, he gets a $500 Edit hotel credit. Edit hotels are typically more upscale hotels that can be booked through the Chase Travel Portal.  Sometimes these are super-expensive or not available at our destination. 

Since these Edit hotels are often in bigger cities, we were able to find a few options.  Not only was the W hotel available, it was also in a great location and was also a more budget friendly option.  We used a combination of our points and cash to utilize both the Chase Edit credit and covered the rest with points, so we didn’t spend any money out of pocket for our two night stay in Seattle.

Chase Edit Perks

As an added bonus, the Edit credit offers late checkout and early check in, room upgrades, when available + a $60 credit for breakfast each morning and a $100 food and beverage credit for the stay. The hotel charged destination fee that we had to pay upon arrival, but it was minimal and offered some additional perks like another $14/night food and beverage credit, 2 tickets to the Skywheel, Wi-fi, and access to their red light therapy room.

The hotel was a little upscale, but not super fancy. Food was okay, but pricey like you’d expect at any mid-tier hotel. Breakfast options were decent, but dinner and drinks were disappointing. Entrees for breakfast were around $21 each, while dinner was $17+.  We grabbed breakfast in their market using our $60 breakfast credit both mornings we were there.  Then, we used the other $128 for dinner and drinks one night.

Hotel Location

The location was great! We were within walking distance of Pike Place Market, the waterfront piers, and even the space needle.  Our walk to the space needle was more leisurely than the waterfront. Although the waterfront was much closer, it reminded me of San Francisco with the crazy hills! Going to the waterfront was all down hill, so not bad, but boy did we get a workout coming back! 

Seattle Activities

I loved the waterfront and walking through the shops on the pier. It’s such a cute area! Pike Place Market had a lot of vendors, but it was so packed that it just wasn’t enjoyable.  We discussed all sorts of things we could do while we were in Seattle – go up in the space needle, check out the Museum of Pop Culture, head to the aquarium, etc. As with any city, these activities really add up for a family of 5!  Just because I am in a new place, does not mean that we do all of the tourist trap activities.

For us to spend maybe 45 minutes to an hour going up into the space needle, it would have cost our family about $280. I am not spending that kind of money just to say I did something.  I ask our kids before every trip to go look and find what you want to do. It doesn’t always happen but ultimately, I want them to have fun. If an option isn’t something they really care to do, I’m not going to spend a ton of money just to say we did it.

Entertainment: The Escape Game

No matter what activity we chose, the cost was about the same as the Space Needle. Our youngest wanted to do the aquarium and I thought the Museum of Pop Culture looked cool. My oldest found an escape room that he suggested and the other kids got on board fast, so that’s what we ended up doing. 

We went to The Escape Game and did the ruins escape room. The premise was that our plane crashed and we had to find the treasure. It was the first time we ever did an escape room, and it was really fun!  Talk about a unique experience to see how your family thinks, pays attention to detail and works together to solve a problem! We did use a few clues, but we managed to escape!

Cost for this activity was $259 and I truly feel it was a much better experience for our family than paying for the Space Needle. 

Space Needle + Seattle Bite Food Festival

Afterwards, we walked to the Space Needle, which was not too far. We snapped some pictures and called it a day.  During our visit, Seattle was hosting the Seattle Bite Food Festival right next to the Space Needle. There were hundreds of food and non-food vendors, plus bands playing on multiple stages. Plus, the event was free!

Each food vendor had several items and one “bite”. Bites were smaller portions and only $6, which allowed us to try several options.  It was a beautiful day and a nice way to spend a couple of hours. By the time we were done at the food festival, we were pretty wiped, so we took a Lyft back to our hotel ($21).

Evening in Seattle

My plan was to head back down to the pier in the evening so we could see it all lit up at night, but we were still adjusting to the time change, and decided to stay in.  Later on, we did go grab some food at our hotel, since we had $114 food and beverage credit to use up. We just got a few entrees and split them. My husband and I had a drink at the bar and then we were all in bed by 9pm.

Train to Vancouver

We woke up early and grabbed breakfast as soon as they opened. Because we got a $60 breakfast credit each morning, we wanted to make sure we put it to use before we left. We ordered a Lyft and headed to the Amtrak station to catch our train to Vancouver, BC, Canada.

This train ride was another first for all of us! We opted to spend a bit more and go with the Cascades train versus the buses that go from Seattle to Vancouver. The train station was beautiful and the scenery on the train was pretty. Just be sure you know which way the train is heading when you get on and sit on the left side heading north because that’s where the best views are!

The train allows checked luggage, or you can carry on smaller bags like you would when flying. You get 2 free checked bags, plus a personal item. Seats are two on each side and were pretty comfy. The kids liked being able to get up and walk around while the train was moving. There is a Cafe with a variety of snacks, food items and both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. Plus, they offer free Wi-fi. Everyone really enjoyed the ride – more so than any flight.

The train does stop at several cities between Seattle and Vancouver, but only for a very short period of time. The total ride took around four hours. Refundable tickets were $84 per person (our 11 year old was slightly cheaper). The bus option was only around $50/person, but I am glad we went with the train. And I spent a little more to give us that refundable ticket. We had the train booked for our first attempt at Alaska and we lost that money, so I decided to protect us this time!

One thing to note about taking the train is that you will need to have your passport in order to book this portion of the trip. Because you are crossing the border into Canada, a passport is necessary. The good thing is, customs was super-easy!

Vancouver, BC – Canada

When we arrived in Vancouver, we took a Lyft from the train station to our hotel (Hyatt Regency Vancouver). Lyft was $20 and took about 10-15 min. It was, unfortunately, a cold and rainy day, but we were prepared.

If there is one thing to pack for Alaska – it’s a rain coat! We walked to Gaston and had lunch at Steamworks Brewpub. Then we stopped in some shops, saw the Gaston Steam Clock and ate some Lee’s donuts. Their glazed donuts were delicious! We also got Gelato at Motoretta Gelato (try the almost tiramisu flavor – it was so good)!

Accommodation: Hyatt Regency – Vancouver

I don’t know if it was the rain or the time change or a combo of the two, but we were all pretty tired. We went back to the hotel and spent time relaxing in the outdoor hot tub. The kids hit the pool too, but it was way too cold for me to entertain that option! 

We needed a few things before our cruise, so we left the kids in the room and ventured out to grab them. Dollarama is Canada’s dollar store and had great prices.  While we were out, our kids decided to go to go on their own adventure. The chocolate cake advertised in the hotel elevator was calling my oldest son’s name from the moment we arrived! So the boys went to the restaurant and had a dessert date!

When we got back to the room, they all had a smirk on their face. My oldest said, “umm…we spent some money on your card, mom. But only like 40 bucks and that was Canadian, so not even that much!” We were not surprised that they went looking for that cake! Honestly, I love the fact that they are old enough to go do things on their own.

By the time we got back, I was so tired and was out cold before 9pm! I needed that extra sleep though and felt so refreshed when I woke up!  The Hyatt had breakfast, but it’s pretty expensive. We never choose a hotel breakfast, unless it’s included. Most of the time it’s pretty overpriced and isn’t any better than what you’d get for free at a Hampton Inn or Holiday Inn Express.

The Hyatt is right next to McDonald’s though, so when we woke up, we just headed there to grab breakfast. We were able to save money eating breakfast offsite. Plus, our accommodations were also $0, as we transferred points from our Chase card to cover our hotel stay.

Cruise

It was another rainy morning, so we decided to take a Lyft to the cruise port. However, the arrival time kept changing, so we canceled it and just walked to the port instead. It was raining, but it all worked out! We got there in less than 10 minutes and our rain jackets did their job! 

Our cruise check in time was 11:30am. I checked in for our cruise the day check-in opened (45 days prior to departure), so I got the earliest time. I love getting on the ship early. Although it didn’t leave until 4pm, we were on, enjoying lunch and exploring the ship hours before our departure. This meant we were in vacation mode earlier than those with a later check in time! 

We’ve been on both Royal Caribbean and Carnival ships. Both were good, but we prefer Royal. We booked the same ship we were supposed to sail on in 2020 – The Serenade of the Seas. This ship is one of their older, smaller ships, so I was a little concerned about how much it would have to offer for the kids. Especially since our last cruise was on Oasis, which is one of the larger ships. 

Cruise Wi-Fi

We’ve cruised several times and this was the first time we purchased an internet plan. Personally, I like to disconnect from the world, but with the kids being teenagers and on a smaller ship with several sea days, I caved. I only bought a one-device plan, which was around $128 for our 7 day cruise. This allowed us to access the internet with one device for the entire cruise. It was a great option because there isn’t a limit on how many devices could access the internet, but only ONE of those devices could be connected at a time.

Because of this, the kids had to share. They actually wanted to pay for an additional device with their own money so they could each be connected 24/7, but I said no. As much as I was against purchasing it, I will say that it did come in handy for us when we had some issues with our flights home. I will probably purchase it again on future sailings because of that – although I still don’t plan to be on it much!

Small Ship vs. Large Ship

On the first night, everyone went to sleep, except my oldest and I. On the way to one of the adult shows, he said, “I haven’t really looked at my phone at all!” They sure kept busy that first day!  For as many complaints as I’ve seen about this ship or small ships, in general, I feel like those people are just setting the wrong expectations.

Small ships are completely different than big ones. And cruising to Alaska is totally different than cruising to the Caribbean.  We were on Oasis on our last cruise and it was amazing. There was so much to do that this ship doesn’t offer, like the flow rider, zip lining, ice skating, dive shows, etc.  This ship has its own variety of activities though. We honestly didn’t even spend much time on the decks outside because was cold and rainy.  The great thing about this ship is that it is full of windows, so we didn’t feel like we missed out on the views.

We kept busy too! We played lots of trivia, enjoyed game shows, participated in scavenger hunts, laughed at the comedians on board, ate more than we should have, tried new foods and ultimately enjoyed each other’s company! 

Two Cabins vs. One Cabin

On all the cruised we’ve done so far, we had one room; however, we booked two rooms for this trip. We booked an ocean view cabin and an interior cabin across the hall. The kids stayed in one room and we stayed in the other.  For this cruise, two rooms were actually cheaper for us than one room.  And the kids loved having their own space.  And because we had two rooms, we had two bathrooms too, which really spoiled us!

The kids loved having their own room.  And for the most part, they got along and all hung out together.  My two older boys are really close, but they pick on the youngest all the time.  That still happened, but they also included him in almost everything they did.  It was nice that my husband and I got to do our own thing, while the kids did what they wanted to do.

We did a lot together too – and the kids even asked to meet up with us at times! Because this ship was smaller, we just naturally ran into each other all the time! The staff was also amazing on this ship, and because it’s smaller, you feel like you get to know them a little better.  I would never turn down a big ship because they are truly incredible, but my advice: don’t discount a smaller ship. They are still huge floating hotels with tons to do and plenty of fun to be had! You just can’t compare the two because they are nowhere near the same.

Instead, adjust your expectations and you’ll likely be pleasantly surprised! 

Glacier Day

Our ship left on Sunday from Vancouver and sailed through the inside passage on Monday. Tuesday was our Glacier Day. We were originally supposed to see Tracy Arm Fjord, but there were some issues with ships getting near, so it was switched to Endicott Arm/Dawes Glacier. Views were spectacular the moment we woke up! The weather was beautiful too. It was clear and 55 degrees.

Most days, I am cold, so I needed more layers, while my son was in pants and a t-shirt. I wore a pair of fleece lined leggings with a pair of fleece lined joggers over top. For my top half, I had on a long sleeve base layer, sweater and my rain jacket. I also wore gloves in the morning. At 55 degrees, I was comfortable.

The morning of Glacier Day, we had a naturalist on board who did a presentation about glaciers and what we’d see on our journey. She explained that glaciers are moving, dense ice – if they aren’t moving, they’re not a glacier! She also talked about the color of the glaciers. Sometimes they are a really pretty bright blue color. This is from compressed air pockets. Other glaciers are dirty looking and that’s because they are like bulldozers, picking up rock and other things in its way.   I would suggest taking the time to listen to these talks if you have the chance!

We spent most of our glacier day outside.  The views were truly amazing!  The ship sails down through a channel and then once it gets to the end, it spins (slowly) 360 degrees, so no matter where you are, you get the view.  The entire journey takes about 6 hours and is full of jaw-dropping scenery! Pictures just don’t do it justice, so if you have the ability to see it in person, I highly recommend making plans to visit!

Juneau

The next day, we docked in Juneau.  The morning started off pretty dreary with, you guessed it, rain.  But, again, we were prepared.  Juneau is in a rain forest, so you need to set those expectations before you even leave for your trip!  It didn’t hold us back though!

Sea Plane Excursion

No matter what cruise you go on, there are so many different excursions you can do in port, and some are pretty expensive. Our cruise only had two Alaskan ports, so I wanted to make sure we did something memorable while we were there. I would have loved to do the helicopter tour that lands on a glacier and then you go dog sledding, but at $800/person, that’s a pretty expensive few hours for our family of five. And that option was non-refundable, which made me continue searching.

I finally landed on the sea plane excursion. We boarded a small 10-seat sea plane that took us over five different glaciers for a bird’s eye view.  Although the morning was wet, our pilot just returned from a flight and let us know that on the ground, it was overcast, but once we were up in the air, it was clear skies. He was not wrong!  It was a pretty cool excursion to see these massive glaciers from the air.

The flight was about 45 minutes. There was audio narration, but our pilot also gave us more facts or told us where to look.  The pilot was also great about snapping pictures for us in front of the plane, once we landed!  It’s always nice to get pictures of our entire family, so we appreciated that!

Excursion Cost

The cost for this excursion was just over $1600 for the five of us; however, you know by now that I am going to find a deal when I can! Capital One Shopping is a “cash back” site that offers a percentage back when you shop through their portal. I have an extension added to my Chrome browser that tells me how much cash back I’ll earn when shopping at that site (similar to a Rakuten or Retail Me Not). The difference with Capital One Shopping is that the cash back you get can only be used for gift cards. So instead of getting money deposited into a PayPal account or you bank account, you have to select a gift card. Some of the deals I’ve received are significantly more than any other cash back site, so it’s totally worth it to me!

For this particular excursion, I booked through Viator. I did this previously for an excursion on our Aruba trip and it gave us 25% cash back, so I did it again for this trip. Once I knew which excursion we were going to do, I checked the Viator site regularly to see how much cash back they were offering. Capital One Shopping will also send push notifications and emails to you with targeted discounts. When I got a targeted offer for 50% cash back, I jumped on it!

I was able to book this excursion with no money down, so I was a little nervous that the cash back wouldn’t apply. However, I read all the fine print and it said it just needed to be paid for within 24 hours of our flight. It was a pretty big savings ($800), so I wasn’t holding my breath!

Shortly after our trip, I checked my account and sure enough that cash back was deposited into my account! If you don’t have a Capital One Shopping account, use my link to sign up! It’s free and it DOES NOT require you to have a Capital One credit card. When you make a purchase, you can use any card you have. This is such a great way to save extra money, even if it does come in the form of gift cards! There are a variety of gift cards to choose from that I would personally use!

Exploring Juneau

After our sea plane excursion, we walked around downtown Juneau.  The kids stopped at Jellyfish donuts for a treat, and we went into a few stores.  I will say that the donuts are more hype than anything – it’s not a place I’d stop again. The ones we had a Lee’s in Vancouver were 100x better!

We also stopped by Tracy’s King Crab Shack for their famous king crab legs.  I can’t really give a true review because I am not a seafood fan.  I will say that my husband and kids enjoyed it.  My son, Cohen, got the pulled pork sandwich and neither of us were really impressed with that option. If you’re not a seafood fan, I’d look elsewhere for dining options.

Rental Car

One thing to prepare for in Alaska is canceled excursions. Often times flights, like our sea plane or helicopter tours get canceled due to weather.  We wanted to make sure we had something to do in Juneau if our tour got canceled, so we reserved a rental car through Turo. It was parked in a nearby lot, making pick up and drop off easy.

Mendenhall Glacier

We knew we wanted to head up to Mendenhall Glacier and see more of Juneau, so renting a car gave us the most freedom. It was only about a 15-20 minute drive to Mendenhall Glacier and because we had a car, we parked right in the main lot.  From what I hear, if you take the cheapest route (public transportation), the drop off point is a lot farther away.

The glacier is available to look at right when you arrive.  You can see the glacier and hike Nugget Falls at no extra charge.  There is, however, a charge to enter the visitor’s center.  It’s on the honor system and there are self-pay kiosks available right near the entrance.  The charge is minimal though – only $5 for adults (children 15 and under are free).

Nugget Falls was a cool sight to see and a pretty easy hike.  Between the hike and Visitor’s Center, we probably spent about an hour and a half there.  Afterward, we drove to see some additional sights.  We headed back into town, parked the car and got back on the ship.  We talked about getting off the ship again later in the evening but decided to just stay on the ship instead.

Ketchikan

Our day in Juneau, although rainy to start, cleared up and allowed us to enjoy the area.  Ketchikan, on the other hand, was full of rain.  We got off the ship and headed to Creek Street.  The boys just wanted to fish, so our first stop was Dolly’s House.  This local museum also has fishing pole rentals. We paid $70 for two poles and lures for an hour.  They only accepted cash though, so just be prepared.  The attendant was friendly and told us where we could go.  The boys fished for their hour.  I snapped some pics and then went back to Creek Street to wander through the shops.

It was cold and rainy the entire time, which made this day my least favorite.  Once the boys were done fishing, we headed back to the ship and stayed there for the night.  I did get to see a sea lion though as I walked near the salmon ladder, which was cool to see.

Fortunately, we saw tons of whales from the ship, which we really enjoyed.

Prince Rupert

When we booked this trip in 2020, Skagway and Sitka were included ports in addition to Juneau and Ketchikan.  I was pretty disappointed that only two ports were included with this sailing, but we had a small window of time we were able to sail and this was what they had available.  I wasn’t excited to hit Prince Rupert so we decided that if it was cold and rainy, we weren’t planning to even get off the ship. 

However, this day turned out to be one of the nicest days.  We got off the ship and walked around town.  The boys wanted to rent fishing poles and there was a place right off the ship that had them.  However, we needed to get a license first, which meant we had to go somewhere else to get that.  On the way, the boys wanted to stop for sushi. Afterwards, we got our licenses and headed back to the rental facility.  By that time though, the poles were all rented out.  We walked around a bit more and decided to just head back to the ship.

Booking our Cruise

I book the majority of my reservations on my own because we typically pay in points for most trips. However, for cruises, I use a travel agent. Because we are a family of five, very few ships offer accommodations for larger groups – especially if you want to stay in one room. Depending on what specials the cruise line is offering, sometimes squeezing into one room is significantly cheaper. Our family is so used to this and we don’t spend a ton of time in our room anyways, so that doesn’t really bother us. I’d rather save on my room and allow more money in our budget for experiences.

For this cruise, I reached out to a friend of mine who is a travel agent and she helped me get this trip booked. We had the option to be in a balcony room for about $1k more than two rooms. With the kids being older now, we opted for the two rooms – which also meant TWO bathrooms!

Courtney’s Crazy Amazing Adventures put us in two rooms across the hall from each other, giving us one ocean view room and one interior room. The boys were able to be in their own room, which they really enjoyed. It was nice that we had our own space too!

Booking a cruise through a travel agent has no additional costs – the cruise fare is identical to what you’d see on Royal Caribbean’s (or other cruise line’s) website. However, they often throw in extra incentives and Courtney did just that! We were surprised with some on board credit that we could use for a variety of things on the ship, like drinks, specialty dining, excursions, wi-fi, etc.

If you’ve got a cruise you’re planning soon, consider using a travel agent!

Overall Thoughts

I was excited to see Alaska and I would go back in a heartbeat.  The weather was not as clear as I hoped for, but we set those expectations early on.  My kids probably wouldn’t choose Alaska over the beach, but I’m curious to see if they decide to go back once they are older.  It truly is a beautiful landscape that you should see with your own eyes. 

I loved the cruise, but I would also like to go to the mainland to see how that compares. Personally, I don’t know that I would really care to go back to Juneau.  I enjoyed the sea plane excursion and seeing Mendenhall Glacier, but just getting off the ship and not doing anything would be pretty boring in my opinion. As for Ketchikan, I would love to see it again (when it’s not pouring)!

It would have been super-cool to do dog sledding or a helicopter tour, but those excursions are really expensive – especially for a family of five.  We tried to pick one thing that was our big wow and that was the sea plane.  With our 2020 trip getting canceled, I was nervous to book anything that wasn’t refundable.  The helicopter tours were pay in advance and non-refundable.  With a price tag of $3k+ for our family, I just couldn’t take that risk.  The sea plane allowed us to enjoy a bird’s eye view, have peace of mind with a refundable option and was significantly cheaper for our family.

As for the cruise, I honestly really enjoyed the ship. We did have a mishap (well a couple of them) that I will share about in a later post, but all in all, it was a really fun ship! I think the entertainment team and cruise director were outstanding.  They were so involved and hilarious.  They truly made this ship a blast!

And I don’t know what size ship I prefer.  Yes, a large Oasis class ship is so fun and has so much to do, but this smaller ship really felt cozier.  I loved the fact that my husband and I were able to be on our own quite a bit and our kids hung out together.  When we were roaming around the ship, we’d bump into the kids all the time.  And they would even join us for shows or trivia.

I love that we could easily find them playing chess, pool, or putt-putt.  We used the app to chat back and forth when needed and it worked pretty well for us. You do have to check your phone often though because notifications don’t ding, but it still worked for us. Just keep in mind that kids under 13 can’t access the app.  Our 11 year old was kind of bummed that he couldn’t chat with us, but his brothers could.  And he couldn’t see activities like they could either.

I love that the kids meet other kids and were able to make those memories. The boys found another group of boys from Canada who liked to hang out.  On the last day, it was finally semi-warm enough for them to jump in the pool!  They went from the pool to the hot tub and enjoyed each other’s company.

Cruises are, by far, one of our family’s favorite vacations. We all love the activities and (typically) beaches.  The kids also love that they can grab food whenever they want.  They have a sense of freedom too.  Since they are 18, 14 and 11, they were fine roaming around together.  I don’t know that my 11 year old would go off on his own, but by 12 or 13, I think he’d be fine.

Everyone is already asking about the next cruise, so you know they had fun!

Packing

Before our cruise, I did so much research.  Part of the fun of any vacation is planning.  Reading other blogs, watching videos or researching what to do is part of the hype!  At least for me it is! We have places that we’ve gone several times, but I love exploring new places too.  One of the biggest topic that comes up in any post about Alaska is how to pack.

Pack Layers!

The short answer to this is to bring layers.  Have things that you can wear and take off or put on.  Starting with a t-shirt and having extra layers available when you go on shore or plan to be on the deck is ideal.  Most of the days on the ship, the kids wore either shorts and t-shirts or pants and a t-shirt.  They each brought a couple of hoodies as well as a few pairs of pants, a rain jacket and a puffer jacket.  I don’t think they wore their puffer jackets at all, but they don’t get nearly as cold as I do.

On the other hand, I packed fleece lined leggings, fleece lined joggers and jeans for most days.  I did bring two pairs of shorts, but I never wore them – even in Seattle. On the colder, port days, I wore both my leggings and put my joggers over top.  I also wore a sweater, jacket and my raincoat, plus had gloves on!

My tip for you is to go by what you typically wear.  Even in the summer in Ohio, if it’s a breezy day, I can be comfortable in jeans or leggings. My kids, however, are in shorts and a t-shirt even when I am bundled up! For me, I packed more sweaters and pants, but for my boys I packed more shorts and t-shirts. As long as you have things to layer that you can re-wear, you will have what you need to stay comfortable and not over pack.

Casual Attire

The good thing about an Alaskan Cruise is that the dress code seems to be more casual.  Plenty of people wore jeans to dinner – even on formal nights.  Yes, there were plenty of people who went all out and dressed up too. You do you!

For my family, I brought one pair of “dress pants” for each of the boys.  They were just golf pants, so they packed easily and didn’t wrinkIe.  Between their pants and golf shorts, they had plenty of bottoms for the week to dress nice for dinner.  For shirts, they either wore a nice t-shirt, polo or quarter zip sweater. I only packed a couple of long sleeve options for them.  And they were able to re-wear these.  They may wear a quarter zip sweatshirt to dinner one night and then have it as an extra layer on a port day.

For me, I did the same with my blazers/sweaters – I just brought a few and then paired them with different base shirts or dresses. I packed two dresses and one pair of dress pants that I wore with different tops. For my shoes, I had one pair of neutral dress shoes, a pair of tennis shoes and a pair of sandals.

We did well packing for this trip. We were gone a total of 10 nights and as a family of five, we had five carry on bags and packed light enough to fit it all in!  You can easily do it too! Pack in layers and don’t forget your rain jacket!

What are your thoughts on Alaska?

Is it a bucket list trip or somewhere you’d never consider?