In honour of their (mid-Covid) 50th anniversary, my parents generously gifted our entire family with a group cruise to Alaska in August 2025.
I’ve sailed the seas once before, and though I didn’t spend hours vomiting overboard, I admit that it wasn’t my fav type of travel. At that time in the Caribbean seas, whenever we were in our room, my constant fear involved the grumbling ocean knocking out our first-level porthole and Titanic-ing us.
This time, I was pleasantly surprised.
Here are what I believe are the pluses and minuses of cruise ship travel.
The Pros
- Num nums
I will happily preface this pro with the fact that I am not a foodie. In fact, my family would chortle and tell you stories about weird concoctions such as “Weinie Winner” (yes, it was as bad as it sounds).
My chef-trained sister may disagree, but I found it very easy to eat yummy and healthy on board. Sure, you could inhale as many pizzas as you could fit in your belly (just ask my brother) and pile French fries higher than your grease-dripping burger. But there were tonnes of other choices. Healthy ones. The fruit and salad bars were packed with options. The woman serving up juicy pork loin happily chopped it into small chunks to lay atop spinach.
Also, speaking about food, a week without cooking is exactly what the vacation doctor ordered. The most challenging kitchen chore I did all week involved sliding a tea bag into my mug and pouring my own hot water. And even that could’ve been done for me had I headed to the Dutch Café and ordered from the blonde braided beauty behind the counter.
- The views, Baby
Even as a non-cruise convert, I would say ‘do it’ if you’re headed to Alaska. Flying in would mean missing out on pods of Orcas, Humpbacks, and dolphins.
How else would you spy oceanside mountains dipping into the ocean, eagles, fluffy white dots that through binoculars turned out to be goats, and brown bears frolicking alongside driftwood that was four times their length? You’d be deprived of neon orange jellyfish with tails up to 120 feet, and hundreds of sea otters playfully spinning only feet from the boat.
- Here ducky, ducky
Maybe you already knew about cruise ship duck hunts? We had no idea until my daughter discovered a pinkie-fingernail-sized blue duck attached to a paper that read, “Oh, what luck, a cruising duck! Keep or hide – you decide!” Supposedly, the tradition has been going on since 2018. My teens upped their step counts by thousands and squealed like hangry toddlers when they found them.
- Never a dull moment
You can slide into a comfie deck chair, in the sun or out of it, and fill your face with fiction. Or have your pick of activities.
We embarrassed ourselves on the pickleball court. We yoga-ed our way alongside an employee who demo-ed advanced poses that made me immediately picture full-body traction. There were classes for origami, watercolour, and flower arranging. Movies about Alaskan history lit up the screen and, of course, the evening shows with comedians, singing stars, and dancers who seemed to have sashayed straight from Broadway.
You can do a lot. Or you can do nothing.
Wrapped in towels to avoid the sun. Photo by author, Aug 2025.
The Cons
- People, people everywhere
Even as a happy-to-chat-with-everyone extrovert, I struggled with the number of humans invading my personal bubble. The upside: people share intriguing life stories. The downside: fellow passengers slamming their elbows into my back and bursting my eardrums with shouts of, “whale whale whale WHALE!”
- Walking like a lush
Sometimes, without warning, you’ll find yourself grabbing for the railings, stumbling like you’ve just downed Jello shooters for 93 straight hours. One friend shared her tale of an attempted on-board workout, which involved falling off the treadmill. (I hope I have those details right, Jayme, I mean, uh…).
And just a word to the wise: if you’re into recording your running or walking steps while rounding the jogging trail, remember the simple fact that GPS is a satellite. Don’t believe your Garmin when it claims you’ve completed the easiest 7km of your life. I was heartbroken when I realized that the ship’s movement was part of my overall distance. And that I hadn’t worn off those cake day calories.
- Take the money and run
If you’re planning any off-ship adventures, make sure to have a huge wad of cash or lots of room on your credit card. “The Last Frontier” is in no way a poor man’s destination. Even laying claim to some of those goofy pics they take of you with furry eagle mascots as you leave the ship will set you back about $30 per photo. (Pet peeve: they print dozens for each of the 2500 passengers and then shred the ones that don’t sell. I’m sure we could stop the melting of a few glaciers by cutting that out but, alas…capitalism reigns…)
There are pros and cons to everything. The good. The bad. Weighing it all out, though, I’ll advise what I may not have a year ago: go west, young man. Take the cruise ship. Get duck-faced. See Alaska.
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