We Took Our Dream Alaska Cruise — Here's What Was Actually Worth It

LBV ADVENTURES
Come along for the ride.

There are some trips you enjoy, come home from, look through the photos a few times and move on.

Alaska wasn't one of those trips.

Two years later, we're still talking about flying over glaciers in a helicopter, dog sledding on actual snow-covered mountains, kayaking near Mendenhall Glacier, spotting whales from our ship and waking up to views that honestly didn't look real.

We had wanted to take an Alaska cruise for years, but we also knew this wasn't the type of trip we wanted to book without doing our homework.

Our goal was pretty simple: whales, glaciers, wildlife and experiences we couldn't have back home.

So we boarded the Norwegian Encore in Seattle and headed north.

And now that we've actually done it, there are things we'd absolutely spend the money on again, things we'd do differently and a few experiences that completely exceeded what we thought Alaska would be like.

Here's our firsthand take.

Why We Chose the Norwegian Encore

One of the biggest things we learned when researching Alaska is that the ship matters.

A lot.

You're not simply using it to get from one port to another. There are entire days when some of the best scenery of the trip is happening from the ship itself.

That's one reason the Norwegian Encore worked so well for us.

There are viewing areas seemingly everywhere, including the huge Observation Lounge, outdoor waterfront areas and covered spaces where you can still enjoy Alaska even when the weather isn't cooperating.

And Alaska definitely isn't known for cooperating with your weather forecast.

One of our favorite places ended up being the Observation Lounge. You could grab something to eat, get a drink, find a seat and just watch Alaska go by. We even spotted whales from the ship during the trip.

But the Encore is also kind of ridiculous—in a good way.

There's a full go-kart track on top of the ship.

Laser tag.

Virtual reality.

Water slides—including one that literally extends over the side of the ship.

Live music, shows, bars, restaurants, a casino and seemingly something happening everywhere you turn.

You could probably spend the entire cruise exploring the ship and still miss something.

[EMBED LBV TV — NORWEGIAN ENCORE SHIP TOUR VIDEO HERE]

Our Room Was an Experience by Itself

We stayed in the Haven Deluxe Owner's Suite with Large Balcony, and calling it a cruise-ship room almost doesn't seem fair.

It was nearly 1,000 square feet with roughly another 500 square feet of balcony space.

Yes. On a cruise ship.

There was a huge living area, dining area, multiple bedrooms, three bathrooms and a wraparound balcony that gave us some unbelievable views throughout the trip.

One of our favorite parts was simply waking up, looking out the windows and realizing:

We're in Alaska.

The Haven also came with some major perks—private areas of the ship, concierge service, dining, a private pool deck and easier ways to get on and off the ship.

Was staying in the Haven necessary to have an incredible Alaska cruise?

Absolutely not.

But for us, the extra space, quieter areas and ability to enjoy so much of Alaska directly from our room made it a huge part of the experience.

[EMBED LBV TV — HAVEN OWNER'S SUITE TOUR HERE]

Juneau: Our First Real Taste of Alaska

Then it was time to actually get off the ship.

Our first major Alaska stop was Juneau, and this was where the trip started becoming what we had imagined for years.

Remember our priorities?

Whales. Glaciers. Wildlife.

So instead of trying to cram every possible attraction into the day, we planned around those.

That led us to Mendenhall Glacier.

And rather than just seeing it from a lookout, we went kayaking.

You're out on the water with this enormous glacier sitting in front of you, getting closer and closer as you paddle.

Pictures don't really convey the scale of it.

What surprised us was that kayaking wasn't nearly as physically demanding as some people might assume. It was actually one of the more accessible, relaxed excursions we did and took only a few hours.

So if you're deciding where to spend your excursion money, this was one of our better values of the trip.

But Juneau was only the warm-up.

Because next came Skagway.

Skagway: The Day We'll Never Forget

If you told us we could relive one experience from this entire Alaska trip, this would be very difficult to beat.

We took a helicopter from Skagway up into the mountains to go dog sledding on a glacier.

Even writing that sentence sounds crazy.

It was also Chris's first helicopter ride.

The helicopter takes you away from town and suddenly you're flying over this enormous landscape of mountains, snow and glaciers.

It didn't look real.

The closest comparison we could come up with at the time was that it felt like we'd somehow landed inside a National Geographic or DisneyNature documentary.

And then we landed.

On a glacier.

With a team of very excited sled dogs waiting for us.

Was the dog-sledding excursion expensive?

Yes.

This was absolutely not one of the budget excursions of the trip.

But knowing what we know now?

We'd do it again.

There are certain vacation experiences where you finish and think, That was fun.

Then there are experiences where everyone keeps talking about what just happened for the rest of the day.

This was the second kind.

We rode through the glacier with the mountains surrounding us, met the dogs and their handlers and got to experience something that felt completely removed from normal life.

It was the definition of a bucket-list experience.

If Alaska is a trip you've been saving for and you're trying to decide where to splurge, this would be our splurge.

[EMBED LBV TV — SKAGWAY HELICOPTER + DOG SLEDDING VIDEO HERE]

And Don't Skip Skagway Itself

The excursion was incredible, but we also really liked Skagway.

Walking through town almost feels like stepping onto an old Western movie set.

The Gold Rush history, wooden boardwalks, old buildings and mountains surrounding everything give it a completely different personality from Juneau.

Naturally, we also found the brewery.

We stopped at Skagway Brewing Company before heading to the helicopter, where Chris tried the Boom Town Brown.

There are plenty of other things to do here, too. One of the most popular is the White Pass & Yukon Route railway.

We considered it, but this became one of the themes of our trip:

Don't just book something because everyone says you're supposed to do it.

We wanted glaciers and wildlife.

So that's where we spent our time and money.

And we don't regret it.

Glacier Bay: The Day the Ship Becomes the Excursion

One of the most surprising things about an Alaska cruise is that sometimes you don't have to get off the ship at all.

Glacier Bay National Park was one of those days.

A park ranger actually came aboard while we traveled through the national park, and we spent the day watching the scenery from the ship.

We saw Margerie Glacier, Lamplugh Glacier and Johns Hopkins Glacier, along with icebergs, wildlife and some of the most dramatic landscapes of the entire trip.

The blue inside the glaciers is something we'll never forget.

At Johns Hopkins, we couldn't travel all the way toward the glacier because the area was being used by mother seals and their babies.

Even from farther away, the scale was incredible.

One tip we learned the hard way:

Pay attention to the ship's Glacier Bay schedule.

We almost missed part of the experience because we were relaxing in our room and didn't realize exactly when certain glaciers and landmarks were coming into view.

Check the daily schedule. Listen to the ranger commentary. And if there's something you really want to see, get to your viewing spot early.

Ketchikan: Go Beyond the First Row of Tourist Shops

Our next stop was Ketchikan.

Instead of booking another expensive excursion, we decided to explore.

That ended up being a good decision.

Once we moved away from the more commercial area around the port, Ketchikan became much more interesting to us.

We explored historic Creek Street, learned more about the area's history and found shops carrying things we hadn't seen repeated at every other port.

And if you're heading to Alaska during salmon season, Ketchikan deserves extra attention.

It's known for salmon, and during the salmon months this is one of the places where we'd absolutely consider adding a fishing experience.

We actually spent the entire trip looking for one incredibly specific thing:

salmon spread.

Seven days.

Multiple ports.

Nothing.

Then, finally, in Ketchikan...

We found it.

Sometimes it's the helicopter over a glacier.

Sometimes it's finding the salmon spread you've been looking for all week.

Both count as victories.

What About the Food?

We ate very well on this trip.

There are plenty of included restaurants aboard the Encore, but we also tried several specialty dining options.

Our surprise favorite?

Los Lobos.

Of all the fancy restaurants available on the ship, the Mexican restaurant was the one we kept talking about.

We had tableside guacamole, queso fundido, quesadillas, red snapper, chile relleno, enchiladas and eventually a coconut-avocado ice cream that sounded strange and ended up being one of our favorite desserts of the cruise.

And the view from the back of the ship made the entire dinner even better.

Another hidden gem was Food Republic, especially if you like Asian fusion. The pork belly bao, sushi, firecracker shrimp and black cod skewers were standouts for us.

And here's something we'd recommend researching before sailing:

Look at the dining packages.

Depending on where you want to eat, they can save a substantial amount compared with ordering everything individually.

What We'd Spend Money On Again

After doing the trip ourselves, we'd divide our Alaska budget differently than we would have before going.

We'd absolutely splurge on:
The Skagway helicopter and glacier dog-sledding excursion.

We'd absolutely do again:
Kayaking near Mendenhall Glacier.

We wouldn't feel pressure to book an excursion at every port:
Exploring Ketchikan ourselves worked really well for us.

We'd protect time for:
Simply watching Alaska from the ship.

That's probably the biggest lesson.

It's easy to plan an Alaska cruise and start filling every available hour with reservations.

But some of our favorite moments were simply standing outside—or sitting on our balcony—and looking around.

What We Wore in Alaska

[SHOP LBV PRODUCT FEATURE — VISIT ARENDELLE + ARENDELLE FROZEN MOUNTAIN COLLECTION]

There are certain places where you have to wear the shirt.

Alaska was one of them.

Throughout the trip we wore pieces from our Visit Arendelle and Arendelle Frozen Mountain collections, which felt pretty appropriate when you're surrounded by actual snow-covered mountains and glaciers.

[ADD PRODUCT PHOTOS + SHOP BUTTONS HERE]

Visit Arendelle Tee / Sweatshirt
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Arendelle Frozen Mountain Tee / Sweatshirt
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So...Was an Alaska Cruise Worth It?

For us?

100%.

We went into this trip having researched Alaska for years.

And somehow the real thing still exceeded what we had imagined.

We saw whales from our ship.

We kayaked toward a glacier.

We flew over the Alaskan wilderness in a helicopter.

We stood on a glacier.

We went dog sledding.

We watched seals and sea lions in Glacier Bay.

We explored old Gold Rush towns.

We ate enormous Alaska king crab legs.

And sometimes we did absolutely nothing except sit there and stare at the mountains going by.

Two years later, we're still talking about it.

And that might be the best review we can give.

If Alaska has been sitting somewhere on your bucket list, put it a little closer to the top.

We'd go back.

Actually...

we'd go back tomorrow.

Watch Our Alaska Adventure

Want to see everything instead of just reading about it? We documented the trip on LBV TV, including our excursions, Norwegian Encore experience, Haven room and our helicopter trip to go dog sledding on a glacier.

[EMBED ALASKA LBV TV VIDEO SERIES / PLAYLIST HERE]

And this is exactly why we created LBV Adventures.

There are a lot more places we want to see, things we want to try and stories we want to bring back with us.

So wherever we end up next...

Come along for the ride.

 

Quick Answers From Our Alaska Cruise

Was an Alaska cruise worth it?
Was dog sledding in Skagway worth the money?
What was our favorite Alaska cruise excursion?
Did we get seasick on the Norwegian Encore?
Which Alaska port did we like best?
Do you need an excursion in Ketchikan?
Would we cruise Alaska again?