2025 and 2026 Alaska Cruise Itineraries

Choosing the ‘right’ Alaskan Cruise can be daunting! Here are some tips that can help (plus comparison of popular cruise lines’ available 2025 and 2026 sailings)!

Where to visit

The most visited cruise ports in Alaska are Ketchikan (fishing, totem poles, rainforest), Juneau (whale watching, Mendenhall glacier, hiking), and Skagway (train, gold rush history, hiking). Other common ports include Icy Strait Point (whale watching, zip line, cultural activities), Sitka (raptor center, totem poles), Seward (sea life center, dog sledding, scenic cruising), Whittier (scenic glacier cruising), and Victoria.

Each and every port offers a wide variety of experiences for visitors of all ages and abilities.

Time in port

Perhaps even more important than which ports you visit is how long you spend there. Activities in Alaska can be time consuming…and you may have a hard time choosing just one thing to do in each port. Try to pick an itinerary that maximizes your time at port. This will give you flexibility to schedule an activity as well as have time to explore on your own…or, perhaps if the timing is right, to schedule two activities at a port.

Also note what time of day you are arriving/leaving. Some ships arrive quite early in the morning 5:30-6:30a! And some restrict hours to late evening…such as 8p-11:59p in Victoria.

Glacier viewing

Most Alaskan cruise itineraries offer at least one day of scenic glacier cruising. Common locations include: Glacier Bay, Tracy Arm Fjord, Endicott Arm and Dawes Glacier, and Hubbard Glacier.

Glacier Bay is a National Park and rangers will come on board the ship to provide information and commentary during your sailing. The park strictly limits the number of ships in the area and only a few companies (Norwegian, Princess, Holland, etc.) have permits to sail Glacier Bay.

Tracy Arm Fjord, Endicott Arm, and Hubbard Glacier are all impressive in their own right! However, particularly early or late in the season, weather may impact the ship’s ability to access these areas.

One way or Round Trip

The majority of Alaskan Cruises are roundtrip from Seattle or Vancouver. This arrangement does make travel planning a bit easier as you’ll be arriving and departing from the same port. Addition ports for round trip sailings include San Francisco and Los Angeles.

However, some Alaskan cruises are one way–usually traveling between Vancouver and either Seward or Whittier. While this does make travel planning slightly more complicated, it does offer a unique opportunity to extend your vacation in Alaska with a land portion either before or after your sailing. (Check out these blog posts for tips on travelling between Anchorage (the closest major airport) and Seward or Whittier)

Size of ship

Since most of the time is spent in port, often the ship is less important for Alaskan sailings. However, larger ships are forced to travel west of Vancouver Island in open ocean–which can be a much rougher route! Smaller ships are able to pass through the ‘Inside Passage’ (east of Vancouver Island)–a much more protected and scenic option.