Alaska Cruise Travel Bible

❄️🛳️👸I had been dreaming of Alaska’s blue-white glaciers ever since I saw a Nat-Geo cover of a 200-ft wall of ice calving into the sea. The problem: I’m the kind of traveler who can’t even pick a Netflix show without three Reddit threads. A cruise sounded like “lazy-girl luxury”—someone else drives, cooks, and plans while you sip cocoa and watch mammoth icebergs float by. After obsessive spreadsheet nights I learned only TWO lines are allowed to sail deep into Glacier Bay National Park: Holland America and Princess. Princess Cruises 🏆 consistently wins “Best Alaska Itinerary,” plus my parents are die-hard fans of “The Love Boat” reruns. We booked the 8-day “Voyage of the Glaciers” round-trip out of Seattle on the Discovery Princess, newest ship in the fleet. Spoiler: Mom actually applauded the wait-staff on night one; Dad asked if we could live on board forever. Day 1 – Sail-away Seattle 🌆🎉 We Uber’d to Pier 66, handed our luggage to smiling porters, and walked into the Piazza atrium with champagne and a string quartet. Pro tip: book the “Plus” fare for free drinks & Wi-Fi; you’ll thank me when you’re posting Boomerangs of orcas at happy hour. Day 2 & 3 – Fun “Sea Days” 🛳️🧘‍♀️ Sea days are NOT boring. I started with 8 a.m. yoga on the top deck (snow-capped Olympics in the background), lost $20 in the casino by 10, learned to fold towel swans at 11, hit the thermal suite for a glacier-view sauna, then joined a cooking demo where the chef torched crème brûlée in front of us. Evenings: Broadway-style show, stargazing, and late-night pizza that somehow tasted better because it was 34 °F outside. Day 4 – Ketchikan 🎣🦌 Alaska’s “First City” is crayola-box cute. Creek Street is literally a boardwalk on stilts over rushing water; we saw salmon trying to leap upstream and a bald eagle perched on a totem pole like it owned the place. Shopping highlights: Tongass Trading Co for Xtratuf boots, Scanlon Gallery for watercolor ravens, and Sweet Mermaids for peanut-butter sea-salt cookies ☕️🍪. Lunch was Alaska Fish House—halibut grilled in a boat shed, dock slime still on the floor. Dad declared the chowder “life-changing,” which is big for a Midwestern retiree. Day 5 – Endicott Arm & Dawes Glacier 🧊💙 Scenic-cruising day! We ordered room-service lattes, wrapped ourselves in Princess plaid blankets, and watched 1,000-foot granite cliffs slide past our balcony. When Dawes Glacier appeared—electric-blue ice glowing like a K-pop light-stick—the captain spun the ship 360° so everyone got photos. Then CRACK! A house-sized chunk collapsed; the splash looked like slow-motion diamonds. I cried, Mom hugged me, even Dad took off his “I’m too cool” baseball cap. Day 6 – Juneau, Capital City 🏔️🦀 No roads lead to Juneau; you arrive by boat or birth canal. We walked ten minutes to the State Capitol, pretended to pass bills, then rode the Mount Roberts Tramway 1,800 ft up. The view: cruise ship the size of a Lego, fjords like cracked marble. Tracy’s King Crab Shack had a 40-minute line but the crab legs, bathed in garlic butter, were the size of Dad’s forearm. Worth every second. Day 7 – Skagway, Gold-Rush Town ⛏️🍺 Broadway Street is only five blocks but every building is a time capsule: swinging saloon doors, wooden boardwalks, ragtime piano. The free National Park visitor center screens black-and-white footage of stampeders climbing the Chilkoot Pass; I finally understood why they called it “the meanest 33 miles in history.” Latte stop: Glacial Coffeehouse with glacier-silt cold brew (yes, silt—minerally and delicious). Evening: Skagway Brewing Co for a Spruce Tip Blonde; the bartender handed out complimentary gold flakes like it was nothing. Weather & Packing 🌤️🧥 May temps ranged 45-65 °F. I lived in fleece leggings, waterproof boots, and a packable down jacket. On non-glacier days we sunbathed on deck while snowflakes melted on our hot-stone shoulders—Alaska’s version of a spa day. Bring binoculars, sunscreen (UV bounces off ice), and an empty suitcase for the salmon you’ll ship home. Final Tips 📝💡 Book balcony rooms port side northbound, starboard southbound—best glacier selfies. Download the Princess app; it pings you when whales are spotted port-side so you don’t miss the money shot. Pre-buy specialty dining; crab shack lines are real. Smile at the crew—they remember your coffee order by day two and slip you extra chocolate strawberries. If you want my daily itineraries, GPS maps, or the name of the bartender who makes a mean glacier-blue mojito, DM me! Alaska is calling, and princess-life is the happiest way to answer. ❄️👑🛳️ #Alaska #US #Travel #America #Juneau