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Exploring Asia, traditions and modern itineraries

Exploring Asia by cruise is a fantastic way to experience the continent’s diverse cultures, stunning landscapes, and rich history. Here are some of the best cruises to Asia in 2024:

Princess Cruises: Known for their comprehensive itineraries, Princess Cruises offers voyages to destinations like Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and more. Their cruises blend ancient traditions with modern metropolises, providing a unique travel experience ¹.
Celebrity Cruises: Celebrity Cruises offers luxurious trips to various Asian destinations, including Japan, China, and Southeast Asia. Their ships are known for excellent service, gourmet dining, and enriching shore excursions ².
Royal Caribbean: This cruise line provides a mix of adventure and relaxation with itineraries covering Japan, South Korea, and China. Their ships feature numerous amenities, including rock climbing walls, ice skating rinks, and Broadway-style shows ².
Viking Ocean Cruises: Viking offers culturally immersive cruises with stops in Japan, China, Vietnam, and Thailand. Their smaller ships allow for more intimate experiences and access to less-visited ports ².
Holland America Line: Known for their elegant ships and diverse itineraries, Holland America Line offers cruises to Japan, China, and Southeast Asia. They focus on cultural enrichment and offer extensive shore excursions ².
Regent Seven Seas Cruises: For a more luxurious experience, Regent Seven Seas offers all-inclusive cruises to various Asian destinations. Their itineraries often include overnight stays in major cities, allowing for deeper exploration ².
Silversea Cruises: Silversea provides ultra-luxury cruises with personalized service and gourmet dining. Their Asian itineraries cover destinations like Japan, China, and Southeast Asia ².
Oceania Cruises: Known for their culinary excellence, Oceania Cruises offers trips to Japan, China, and Southeast Asia. Their smaller ships provide a more intimate cruising experience ².

Each of these cruise lines offers unique experiences, so consider what aspects are most important to you, such as luxury, adventure, cultural immersion, or specific destinations. Bon voyage! 🚢🌏

Would you like more details on any specific cruise line or destination?

Alaska Baby!

Image: Royal Caribbean

The best time to cruise Alaska isn’t obvious—until you’re quietly sailing along its calm waters under a cloudless, late-spring sky. It was on one such day that someone on board spotted a whale breaching. And then again. And again. Within minutes it seemed everyone on board had gathered at the railings on deck to watch. The captain of the ship nimbly repositioned us, giving both the port and starboard sides prime viewing, at a safe and respectful distance from the animals. With binoculars, cameras, and phones at the ready, the passengers and crew aboard UnCruise Adventures’ 86-guest S.S. Legacy settled in for what turned out to be an hour-long private show by a juvenile humpback who had migrated from Hawaii to spend the summer in the nutrient-rich Alaskan waters.

This is but one of the incredible experiences that may be had when visiting Alaska in the “secret season”—springtime. Not only are the flowers and plant life awakening from their wintertime slumber, so is its wildlife. Though the state’s more temperate summer season has long attracted its largest numbers of visitors, an increasing number of in-the-know travelers are looking to spring as the best time to cruise to Alaska, when they can count on fewer crowds—and increased savings—without sacrificing their chance to take advantage of the state’s landscape and wildlife sightings

On that same late-April voyage with UnCruise, the Northern Lights danced through the sky on night one, and through the week we spotted grizzly bear mamas and their cubs skirting the coastline; bald eagles soaring overhead; humpback whales and orcas breaking the water’s surface to breathe; puffins, seals, and sea lions bobbing in the water and laying out on rocks—even a wolf on the shoreline, feasting on a fresh kill. (Our captain said he had seen a wolf in Alaska only twice in his 30-year career.)

We sailed roundtrip from Juneau, and while I’ve visited the capital city during the busy summer months, I found the restaurants, bars, and shops much less crowded, reliably filled with locals for the most part. On the water, we rarely passed any other ships or boats, aside from fishermen out for their catches.

According to Travel Alaska, cruising is the most popular way to explore the state, and Cruise Lines International Association Alaska predicts that 1.64 million cruise line passengers will sail to and within Alaska in 2024.

But when is really the best time to sail Alaska? We’ve broken the seasons down for you, including the highlights of each, as well as the best cruise lines and cruise ships to consider so you can make your bucket list dreams come true.

April and May

If your schedule allows, not only does sailing Alaska in April and May afford the possibilities of glimpsing the Northern Lights and seeing wildlife emerge from their winter hibernation, it’s a more affordable and less crowded time to cruise, too. April and May are also the driest months in Alaska, so the chances of rain are slim.

Norwegian Cruise Line kicks off the 2024 Alaska cruise season when Norwegian Bliss sets sail on a weeklong, roundtrip itinerary from Seattle; she will be the only ship sailing in Alaska the first two weeks of spring. Balcony cabins are still available on the season’s inaugural sailing at a discounted fare of $1,029 per person.

Smaller ships like those that comprise UnCruise Adventures’ and Alaska Dream Cruises’ fleets can maneuver closer to the coastline for better views of bears rambling along the beaches and on-land excursions without another soul around. Uncruise’s 12-night “Inside Passage” itinerary departs April 15 with rates starting at $6,300 per person, and Alaska Dream Cruises’ seven-night “Last Frontier Adventure” has starting rates from $3,995 per person.

June to August

Warmer temperatures, an average of 17 hours of daylight, and schools’ summer vacations all make Alaska a popular destination for cruising in June, July, and August. Expect crowded ports and more ships out on the water, but that’s not to say it’s not a good time to set sail: bears are still active, as are whales and native bird life.

Holland America Line, which has sailed in Alaska for 75 years, offers 50 itineraries throughout June, July, and August, including the new 28-day Alaska Arctic Circle Solstice itinerary that departs June 9 from Seattle; verandah staterooms start at $7,259 per person. Family favorite Disney Cruise Line offers 13 itineraries over the summer, including a seven-night itinerary from $3,467 per person.

September

Not only is school back in session in September, which means fewer crowds at ports, but the chances of seeing the Northern Lights return, especially if combining your cruise with a land tour that takes you further north into Alaska. Fall is also mating season for wildlife, so expect to see some friskiness.

Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Edge sets sail for the first time in Alaska this year and has four six- and seven-night itineraries in September, starting at $599 per person. For a cruise-tour option, Princess’ 12-day Denali Explorer itinerary blends five days on land with a weeklong cruise with mini-suite rates from $4,008 per person.

October

The Alaska cruise season winds down in October, with only a few ships setting sail. Just as in April and May, you’ll likely have the water to yourself, and even fewer people in the ports you call upon. Along with cooler weather, you’ll also find lower fares that will please your bank account.

Just as Norwegian Cruise Line kicks off the 2024 Alaska cruise season in April, it’s the last cruise line to set sail in the state, and the only one to sail in October. The seven- and nine-day itineraries sail roundtrip from Seattle, and a recent search found fares more than 80% off published fares, starting at $499 per person.

Dressing Up (or Down) on a Cruise

If you’re new to cruising, you’ll want to make sure that you pack all the essentials that you need for a great trip. You may be wondering what to pack in terms of clothes. Don’t worry — we’ll help to make sure that you’re all ready to go. Each cruise line has a dress code in place, but we can help you understand the differences so you can get packing. Keep reading to learn more about the dress code for your upcoming cruise.

Carnival Cruise Line

If you’re taking a Carnival Cruise Line cruise, you’ll get the chance to wear a lot of casual attire. Most evenings the dress code is “cruise casual,” so you’ll be fine wearing khakis, collared sports shirts, pants, jeans, and blouses. “Cruise elegant” attire is suggested for a few special evenings. Think dress shirts, cocktail dresses, pantsuits, and sports coats. You won’t need to pull out the tuxedos and evening gowns, but you can if you want.

Holland America

You’ll also find that the Holland America dress code is also quite casual. Most evenings are “resort casual,” and clothing like slacks, collared shirts, skirts, slacks, and blouses are acceptable. For the evenings that have a formal option, the dress code is referred to as “Gala Night” wear. For these gala evenings, you can plan to wear suits, tuxedos, jackets, cocktail dresses, and gowns.

MSC Cruises

If you’re taking an MSC Cruises journey, we have you covered! Most of the time, you can get away with “casual wear” on your cruise. “Gala Dinners” on the other hand, require travelers to wear more formal attire. Suits, jackets, ties, and cocktail dresses are acceptable for these evening events.

Oceania Cruises

Oceania Cruises has an easy to follow dress code to make things stress-free. Plan to wear country club and resort-style attire like button-down shirts and slacks and dresses and skirts and tops. For evening events, plan to dress more elegant. This cruise line keeps things pretty casual, which is excellent if you don’t feel like pulling out your gowns!

Princess Cruises

Another favorite cruise line is Princess Cruises. This cruise line has both formal and smart-casual evenings. When it’s formal attire night, plan to wear tuxedos, dark suits, evening gowns, cocktail dresses, and elegant pantsuits. For smart-casual attire, plan to bring pants, slacks, sweaters, and blouses.

Regent Seven Seas Cruises

When you cruise with Regent Seven Seas, “casual” wear is perfect for daytime, and resort-style attire is best. In the evenings, plan to dress “elegant casual,” which means items like collared shirts, skirts, slacks, blouses, and sweaters. Some longer cruises have formal or semi-formal nights, which require gowns, cocktail dresses, and tuxedos.

For all cruise lines, you can’t wear swimwear in the dining areas. Some cruise lines also have special theme nights, where you’re encouraged to dress up to match the theme!