FASHION, LIFESTYLE, TRAVEL

The Ultimate Guide to Cruising Glacier Bay National Park

alaska cruise scenery

SHOP SCENIC CRUISING ESSENTIALS


As promised, I’m back again this week with another post from the 7-day Alaskan cruise adventure Cole and I took with Princess Cruises earlier this September. I’ve been taking you chronologically through each of the stops on our cruise, starting with Juneau (our Monday stop) and then Skagway (our Tuesday stop), so I wanted to dedicate today’s post to what was definitely one of our favorite days of the cruise:  our day of scenic cruising through Glacier Bay National Park.

Click through to get the full scoop on our mid-week scenic adventure through Glacier Bay National Park and read my 8 tips on how to make it a day you’ll never forget!

alaska cruise scenery

1. Book an Alaskan Cruise With a Day at Glacier Bay National Park Included

When you go to book your Alaskan cruise, you’ll notice several itinerary options on cruise length, ports and scenic cruising options. Both Glacier Bay and Tracy Arm Fjord are popular scenic cruise options, and although I’ll admit to being a little bit bias, I did do my research and based on our experience and reviews I read, I definitely recommend the option for Glacier Bay National Park if it’s your first Alaskan Cruise experience. The full-day experience will take you through some of the most majestic sights that will truly make your experience unforgettable. One of those marvels is the Margerie Glacier, where you will get to see the stunning wall of ice calve, which is where a huge chunk of ice.

alaska cruise scenery

2. Book a Room With a Balcony

It’s true that booking a room with a balcony will cost you extra money, and on many cruises destinations, it may not be necessary or worth the extra money, but on an Alaskan cruise, it is absolutely worth every penny. The balcony staterooms onboard Princess Cruise Line offer up spacious balconies, complete with tables and chairs so you can sit and enjoy your coffee or breakfast as you take in the sights. Cole and I literally sat on our balcony staring for hours as we journeyed through Glacier Bay, without even realizing how much time had passed. It was so nice getting to take in the sights from the peace and comfort of our own private space. I even got to do a few instagram live stories and Facetime my mom and dad to share the magic!

alaska cruise sunset

3. Set An Alarm For Before The Sun Rises

As your ship voyages towards Glacier Bay National Park, the scenery will continually become more and more beautiful, and that starts even before the sun rises, so be sure to set your alarm clock (which you must pack…more on what to pack in a later post!) Cole and I were up around 6:00am so we could get all of our necessities ready (GoPro, camera, etc.) to take in all of the stunning sights to come.

princess cruise breakfast

4. Book an Ultimate Balcony Breakfast

Princess Cruise Line offers up an Ultimate Balcony Breakfast, which we were able to enjoy on our day of scenic cruising through Glacier Bay and I HIGHLY recommend for your Alaskan Cruise. The Ultimate Balcony Breakfast is a delicious multi-course breakfast, complete with champagne for mimosas, that’s delivered right to your door at whatever time is most convenient for you. The day that you’ll be scenic cruising is the perfect one to schedule this dining experience for! Whether you do an early morning option or a mid-morning brunch time, you’ll love being able to eat an incredibly delicious breakfast from your balcony as you take in the majestic beauty of Alaska!

alaska cruise scenery

5. Come Prepared With Necessities To Capture Every Beautiful Moment

The day of scenic cruising will definitely be one you’ll want to be fully prepared with camera, videos cameras and all of your best tech accessories. Here are the necessities I used for our ALaskan cruise, which especially came in handy on this day:

MY CAMERA: : Nikon D3300

MY LENS: Sigma 35mm F1.4 Lens for Nikon

IPHONE LENS: Moment Telephoto Lens

IPHONE LENS CASE: Moment Lens iPhone Case

GOPRO: Hero Session

GO PRO MOUNT: Jaws Flex Clamp Mount

BINOCULARS: Swavroski

alaska cruise sceneryalaska cruise scenery

6. Be on The Lookout for Beautiful Scenes Big and Small

There was so much to see and take in during our day at Glacier Bay, that it was easy to miss something if you weren’t all eyes for the entirety of the voyage. Of course it would be hard to miss the majesty of the stunning glaciers like the Margerie Glacier, but you have to be on the look out for the small beauties too. Cole and I got to see darling little sea otters  hopping on and off mini icebergs, just feet away from our boat, but they would have been so easy to miss! I was thankful Cole had brought his binoculars so we could see the wildlife up-close.

alaska cruise scenery7. Listen to the Commentary

During your voyage through Glacier Bay, park rangers will board the ship and take over the speakers to share historical facts and information about the beautiful sights you’ll see. If you’re viewing from any of the ships decks, the commentary will be easy to hear, but if you view from your balcony, I definitely recommend turning your television on to the Princess channel where you can also hear the park rangers’ commentary.

alaska cruise sunsetalaska cruise sunset

8. Don’t Forget to Watch The Sunset

As I mentioned, your time at Glacier Bay can be from sun up to sun down. Cole and I even got to see a few humpback whales as the sun was setting and we left Glacier National Bay!

Stay tuned for more previews and tips from our Alaskan cruise with Princess cruises.

Fair-well xx,

**Thanks so much to Princess Cruises for sponsoring this post. All opinions are my own.

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10 Comment

  1. Reply
    the cape on the corner
    December 22, 2017 at 11:03 am

    amazing photos! i wish we had this good of weather when we went thru on our cruise, but it was a foggy and rainy day. and so colllllld. i did get some amazing photos, and was lucky enough to see a little seal floating on a piece of ice. you are right, we didn’t leave our balcony all day. i literally ordered room service for all three meals so as not to miss anything.
    b

  2. Reply
    Lindsay
    December 22, 2017 at 4:23 pm

    All your Alaska posts have officially made me sign up for a cruise next year! I’m not sure who’s more excited, me or my husband! I’ll definitely use your guides. -Lindsay

    1. Reply
      Lauren Vandiver
      January 25, 2018 at 11:34 am

      Hooray!!! This makes me so happy to hear! You will LOVE every second!!! Thanks so much for the love!!

      xx,
      -Lauren

  3. Reply
    Karina H.
    January 25, 2018 at 10:03 am

    So this is where my favorite photos from your Alaska cruise came from. This is another thing on my list after I saw your photos.

    <3 – Karina H.

    1. Reply
      Lauren Vandiver
      January 25, 2018 at 11:20 am

      YAAASSSS!!! I couldn’t get enough photos because it was so beautiful so I just kept changing outfits since we were in our room on our balcony for the majority of the day. Such a magical experience!! Thanks so much for the love!!

      xx,
      -Lauren

  4. Reply
    Lauren Vandiver
    September 18, 2018 at 7:47 pm

    Hi Christina! Cole and I both had the time of our lives on our Alaskan Cruise with Princess Cruises! I’m so lucky that he’s so patient with taking my photos and we both feel so fortunate for a job that allows us to travel and work with such incredible companies like Princess Cruise Lines. While we did take time to take photos so we could create some content to share along the way, we had plenty of time to experience Alaska and are so thankful for the experience and the memories. 🙂 xx, -Lauren

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