All About Alaska: Inside Passage Cruises Two Ways – Small Cruise vs. Big Ship Experience

Considering cruising in Alaska and wondering what you get with a big ship vs. a small ship or vice versa? Join us as we explore the differences between the two for Alaskan cruises, focusing on the Inside Passage. We discuss ship sizes, itineraries, cultural immersion, pricing, and personal preferences, providing insights to help you choose the right cruise for your dream vacation in The Last Frontier.

Here are some helpful links from our conversation: 

• These are the most amazing binoculars that we ALWAYS bring to Alaska.
• Celebrity Edge was the big ship we explored the Inside Passage on. See photos from our experience with additional info about the Dawes Glacier itinerary, and read more about the different suite classes with Celebrity. 
• We visited Sitka to start our Alaskan Dream Cruises Inside Passage Sojourn (see how close the ship was to the waterfall we discuss!). Also, check out Mikkel modeling the waterproof paints and jacket we mention!
• For additional reading, learn more about luxury cruise options in Alaska and compare large and small ships. (Tune into a future episode when we deep dive into this topic!)
• You’ll find the binoculars and other must-pack items in our easy-to-access

Want to grab our complimentary Essential River Cruise Budgeting Guide? Head over to Small Ship Cruise Talk, scroll halfway down the page to a blue box where you'll find the signup form, and claim your copy!

Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction to Inside Passage Cruising in Alaska
• 3:00 Comparing Ship Sizes and Types for Alaska Cruises
• 7:24 Itinerary and Destination Access for Different Ship Sizes in Alaska
• 9:46 Port Locations in Alaska for Small Ships vs. Big Ships
• 10:56 How Close Can You Get to Glaciers on a Cruise?
• 14:03 How Ship Size Affects You Time Spent in Alaskan Ports
• 15:33 Choosing the Right Cruise Deck for Your Alaskan Cruise
• 16:12 Flexibility of the Itinerary on Different Types of Cruises
• 18:28 Interactions with the Onboard Naturalist on Small vs. Big Alaskan Cruises
• 18:56 Venues, Spaces & Entertainment Options on Cruises in Alaska
• 20:13 Packing Essentials for Your Alaska Cruise
• 21:43 Cultural Authenticity & How Each Type of Cruise Supports the Local Economy
• 25:51 Price and Value Comparison Per Cruise Size
• 29:34 Who is Each Experience For?
• 32:57 Personal Preferences and Final Thoughts

Transcript

Mikkel (00:35)

Hello, hello. Welcome back to Small Ship Cruise Talk. We have been talking all about Alaska, and today we are discussing the Inside Passage Cruise two ways, small versus big ship experiences in The Last Frontier. This is a little bit of David versus Goliath in its conversation.

But it is more nuanced than that. And I am looking forward to discussing with you, Dan, and also for you listening what all of that means and entails.

Last week, we talked about Sitka. The week before, we discussed exploring Ketchikan. And we also, weeks ago, talked about Alaskan Dream Cruises. The good news is for you listening, if you haven't listened to any of those, they are all available right now.

In today's episode, comparing the Inside Passage, we are specifically going to talk about our small ship experience versus our big ship. And that was on Alaskan Dream Cruises versus Celebrity. However, there are other options, and we are going to let you know some other cruise lines that you can get both experiences with. We're going to break down

the key differences in these small versus big ship experiences in Alaska, the access onboard and off, the onboard life and experiences, and also some of the value that you get for your cruise fare. So we help you choose the right Alaskan cruise style for your travel preferences. Be sure to listen to the end, all the way to the end, when we tell you who we think each option is best for.

Dan (02:26)

First off, let's talk about ship sizes, types, and scale and start to compare all of those.

When you're looking into your Alaskan cruise, keep in mind the type of cruise that you want. So maybe it's a very small cruise or a very large cruise, but within those two categories, there's a lot of different options. Things you want to keep in mind is

Do you want a luxurious cruise or more of an expedition type cruise or more of an experiential cruise? Are you more interested in Alaska or the ship itself? And also the different options, you can really start to craft your own adventure

Mikkel (02:54)

Mmm.

Dan (03:09)

How much you want to connect with the scenery and environment of Alaska itself, and how much you want to connect with the ship itself.

Mikkel (03:17)

As I listen to you, I'm just excited to hear more about that. And I know these adventures firsthand, because I was with you. But I love that you phrased it that way, because even I'm excited to hear about what you're going to say next.

Dan (03:32)

We've done two Alaskan cruises. The first one was on Alaskan Dream Cruises. We've talked about that in a previous episode. That ship was the Baranof Dream. Now this is a smaller expedition ship. 143 feet long, 49 passenger capacity, 25 staterooms. Like I said, this is a small ship that's an expedition style.

Now other cruise lines that fall into this small ship category that sail in Alaska are Uncruise, HX Expeditions, and Silversea.

As far as big ships, there are plenty of cruise lines that cruise in Alaska. Those range from Princess and Holland America Line to Royal Caribbean, Norwegian Cruise Line... even Disney goes to Alaska. We sailed with Celebrity on Celebrity Edge. This ship is quite a bit bigger than the Baranof Dream. It is over a thousand feet long. It can handle 2,900 passengers.

Mikkel (04:39)

Celebrity Edge is give or take way more hundreds of feet, even up to a thousand feet than the Baranof Dream. It's thousands of passengers, right? Like 3,000 plus, I would say, approximately, including crew. It's for sure in the thousands. And it's about 1,400 staterooms compared to 25 staterooms.

Dan (05:03)

The size of the ship will affect your experience on board and how you experience Alaska.

Small ships could be expedition or luxury, whereas big ships are gonna be more like a recreational type of cruise. When you start to compare the two, small versus big, keep in mind that on the small ships, there are not going to be balconies. Each room itself is going to have an ocean view.

Mikkel (05:29)

Yeah, and that's true of Uncruise and also Alaskan Dream Cruises. Of course, you might have a balcony on the ships that are up to a thousand passengers, but the expedition ships that are cruising in Alaska, the balcony is kind of an exterior deck for everybody to walk around. And a balcony is not as important because you go outside your room and you're sort of on the balcony, so to speak, and there's only three decks, let's say. 

Whereas on a bigger ship, if you want to be out on your own private balcony, a true balcony that's yours and you have privacy, you're going to have that option on a Princess ship or on Celebrity Edge like we were on. So that's more of a consideration when you're booking your Alaska cruise that you want to consider.

Also, the crowd dynamics and personal space is something to consider. On a small ship, it's really hard to be anonymous with only 49 passengers. Everybody knows your name by the third day at the very max. And on a large ship, conversely, while it's easy to be anonymous, it's also hard to feel like a VIP, which you can feel on a smaller ship because the guest to crew ratio is very different. And also the guest to guest numbers are very different.

Dan (06:49)

Let's talk about itinerary and destination access. Small ships, you're most likely going to start and end in Alaska. So you'll be flying directly into Alaska. Now in the big ships, because of the Jones Act - which means that if a ship is not flagged US, they have to stop in a different country - you're most likely going to fly into either Seattle or Vancouver first, pick up the cruise there, make a stop in Canada, and then go up to Alaska or vice versa.

So two great examples of big ship ports versus small ship ports is Sitka and Ketchikan. In Sitka, if you're on a small ship, you're gonna dock about a mile and a half from downtown, whereas the big ships dock about six miles out of downtown. Now at Ketchikan, both ships dock in the same area and that's right in the heart of downtown. So there are going to be differences within the ports for where the big ships and the small ships

Mikkel (07:35)

Big difference. Mm-hmm.

To make a point about that Jones Act and a ship being flagged US or not, not to get into the technicalities of it. I don't want to abandon anyone listening. But it's a good point because it's part of the reason why US flag ships like Alaskan Dream Cruises or Uncruise is able to give you what I believe is more of an Alaskan experience because if you're starting and ending in Seattle, well, that's not Alaska. Same with Vancouver. British Columbia is amazing and I really like Vancouver. So if you want to go to Vancouver, it's a good excuse and a good reason to and you can kind of kill two birds with one stone seeing Vancouver to start and end versus Alaska kind of on the meat of the sandwich. 

But because of the Jones Act and these huge mega ships that are international ships in terms of their registration and where they're flagged, they have to have international ports in Canada on the itinerary. So because of that, they get less Alaska ports within seven days. And that's a really important point that I want you to be aware of if you're listening, because maybe you want that and maybe you don't. And I just want to point out that it's a consideration.

Dan (09:10)

Yeah, that's a really good point.

Another thing you want to think about is big ship ports vs. small ship ports and the access points within those ports. For this example, I'll use Sitka and Ketchikan. Sitka: the small ship port is about a mile and a half from downtown, while the big ships dock about six miles outside of downtown.

Mikkel (09:31)

Big difference.

Dan (09:32)

In Ketchikan, both ships, both big and small ships dock in the same area and that's right in the heart of downtown.

Mikkel (09:40)

Right. So again, it's not saying anyone is better or worse. It's just pointing out that it's a consideration in two ways comparison for a big ship versus a small ship and what you're looking for. If you want to dock right within walking distance of Sitka, then a small ship's the way to go. If you don't care and you don't mind a six mile bus ride and longer disembarkation, then it's not going to matter. But a place like Ketchikan, they were both docked right next to each other. We docked at 6 a.m. and then four hours later, I would say approximately four hours later, the Disney Wonder docked right next to us.

Also with that point, though, is that our small ship was able to access a place like Misty Fjord's National Monument, whereas a big ship could never fit in there. It literally would be fitting a car in a Lego. You know, a...

I'm not good with analogies.  It would literally be like trying to fit a monster truck inside a Lego model with a small road. It just won't fit in there.

And then do you remember when we pulled into Dawes Glacier area on our Celebrity Edge ship? Because we had done it the year before on a smaller ship. And I remember when we pulled in and they were like, pretty much like, well, this is as far as we can go. We were like, "Huh?"

Because you were still pretty far from the glacier.

Dan (11:09)

It seemed like maybe my memory's playing tricks on me, but it seemed like we were close enough to the glacier on Alaskan Dream Cruises that you could feel the glacier and how chilly it was.

Mikkel (11:20)

Mmm, yeah, that's a great point. That is true.

Dan (11:23)

Whereas on the Celebrity ship, the glacier was a dot on the horizon.

Mikkel (11:31)

Yeah, and it might vary slightly based on the conditions that day from what they said on the announcement. But regardless of how "close" quote unquote, a big ship is going to be able to get, which is still pretty far away, a small ship is going to get you infinitely closer because of the size of the vessel and for safety reasons.

Mikkel (11:53)

If you are gonna go on a big ship in Alaska, I do want to highlight that the Celebrity Edge series and Celebrity Edge in our case is such an amazing choice because they have more glass than any other ship that we have seen of its size that travels to Alaska. So this means that in the Edge at the back of the ship, it is technically, divided glass with the way that they were able to do floor to ceiling glass windows, but it gives you this panoramic view of the glaciers and wild Alaska that other ships aren't going to get you. Another example of that is what they call the magic carpet that actually is over the water and allows you to get better views than other ships. 

So on that note of big ships and seeing the glaciers, I just wanted to highlight that Celebrity Edge series is a fantastic choice. And that is absolutely what we recommend looking into first and foremost for big cruises in Alaska if the views from the ship are of the utmost importance to you.

Mikkel (13:03)

And then small ships, you could even maybe get on a skiff or a Zodiac and get even closer depending on which cruise and what's included with your cruise. So that's significant. If seeing glaciers is important to you and close up, then you might wanna consider a small ship for those reasons or look into if your big ship has an excursion that's gonna get you closer to the glaciers.

Dan (13:28)

Going back to ports for a minute, let's talk about time in ports. If you're on a small ship, you only have a couple of passengers. By a couple, I mean maybe 50 or 600 getting on and off the ship. So, embarkation and debarkation is a lot faster and a lot smoother.

For example, when we were on Alaskan Dream Cruises, it was as easy as finding your name written on a dry erase board and then putting the magnet on the In or Out box.

Mikkel (13:53)

Yeah.

Dan (13:59)

So there was no security, no key cards, nobody checking you or scanning you in and out.

Mikkel (13:59)

That's one of the things I love about small ships getting on and off the ship is literally a hop, skipping a jump over from the ship to the dock. Like you said, moving a magnet and it could take over an hour to get off of a big ship.

Dan (14:20)

Right. You may even have to tender if you're on a big ship. So get on a smaller ship and then go to port, then get on a bus and the whole thing could take at least an hour.

Mikkel (14:29)

Mm-hmm. Yeah, significant amount of time. 

And then when you come back, you kind of have to do everything in reverse. You don't have to do that on a small ship. Also in terms of destination access is the wildlife and nature viewing opportunities and the proximity. So on a smaller ship, there's only three decks, let's say. So you're going to be closer to the water, even if you're on something like Silversea you know, and there's like nine decks.

Even on the top deck, you're going to be closer to the water. And in Alaska, that could be significant because there's sea lions in the water, you know? And if you have a balcony on a big ship, maybe you're on a lower deck and maybe this is something you want to consider. Maybe you don't typically book, let's say, deck six on a big ship if you're going to the Caribbean or the Mediterranean. But in Alaska, you might want to because if you have a balcony and you want to see those sea lions,

Dan (15:04)

Mm-hmm.

Mikkel (15:24)

Then you might want to be a little closer to the water. And who's to say if a sea lion's going to be swimming parallel to your ship? You just don't know, but you have to be prepared for it. Bring those binoculars. Always be prepared for it. One of the things I loved about our Alaskan Dream Cruise was the flexibility that the captain had.

Dan (15:37)

Yeah.

Mikkel (15:44)

In one of the days we were sailing to get so close to a waterfall, I mean so close that we could almost touch the waterfall, but we certainly felt the spray from the waterfall on our faces. And I remember taking a photo of you, Dan, just, you know, looking at it and it looks like it was right there because it was right there.

Dan (16:05)

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Mikkel (16:07)

It could just sail right into these waterfalls. And again, the flexibility that the small ships have to switch up the itinerary based on nature like that. 'Cause if it rains significantly the day before, then the waterfall is going to be flowing. And if not, then, you know, there's no need to go up to the waterfall, but it was raining quite a bit during our last skin dream cruises adventure. And because of that, we were fortunate enough to see this waterfall and for the captain to get close up. 

And also another thing about that is if we saw a whale, then we can kind of chase the whale. So a big ship can't do that as much. Not only can they not change the itinerary as much, but they also might not, well, I know they can't, they also can't go as fast. So they have to cruise at a lesser knot speed.

Dan (16:44)

Right.

Mikkel (17:00)

Now that's not to say we can go as fast as something like our Bumble Expeditions Wildlife Safari, or our Allen Marine Tour Safari that we talked about in Sitka and Ketchikan, respectively, but a smaller ship can go a little faster and has that flexibility. So we were able to - "we," like we were driving the ship - so the captain could change the ship course a little bit and had some flexibility.

Dan (17:26)

The flexibility is truly key when you're on those smaller ships and ports. But it's also the onboard experience itself. So you have a naturalist, let's say, onboard a smaller ship and there are naturalists on bigger ships but you're not actually having dinner with them and they're not walking around in the lounge and you can just ask a question at any time.

Mikkel (17:52)

Yeah, to be fair on our Celebrity ship, I didn't even know there was a naturalist on board until we were in the Dawes Glacier area and I heard somebody making announcements and then somebody nearby told me that it was the naturalist and I was like, well, that's the first I'm hearing about that. And I was so happy there was one, but like you said, we're not interacting with that person. It was a female during ours. We weren't interacting with her for dinner like we were with Kevin on our Alaskan Dream Cruises tour.

Dan (18:21)

Right. It's going to be different. It's going to be different on a big ship versus small ship. For example, you're going to have conversations with your naturalist or you're going to actually know who he or she is. But on a big ship, you're going to have stage shows and shopping and multiple restaurant options and dining options. On a small ship, you've got one restaurant and one bar.

Mikkel (18:41)

Right. Yeah, and on a mid-size small ship, so like Silversea, you have more dining options. So again, like Dan said, it's just all things to consider when you're deciding what's best for you. You could be like Goldilocks, like maybe the smallest ship, like 49 passengers is too small and the biggest is too big, but there's a passenger ship with 600 passengers that is just right for you.

Dan (18:41)

Another thing to keep in mind, if you need a big cabin, the smaller ships may not be the right move for you. So there is quite a difference in cabin size on some of the ships and on some of the itineraries. Public spaces and facilities are also part of that, right? So smaller ship, obviously things are going to be smaller, including your room and including the lounges. On a larger ship, you're going to have that room to spread out and really kind of carve out your own little space.

Mikkel (19:37)

So another thing in kind of this versus that and comparing and contrasting is packing. The truth is we recommend packing the same for either experience. No matter what, you're going to Alaska and you're going to want to pack layers and you're going to want to be prepared for cold days. You can always take off layers, but if you didn't pack the layers, you can't put them on. Of course, there's a gift shop on a big ship that you can shop for extra layers. 

On a small ship, you're not going to have a gift shop that's going to have as much as a big ship would. On both ships, I would say that there were some opportunities for like, for sure a beanie, a hat, you know, if you needed or gloves. But it's to go prepared. The only exception I would say is that with Alaskan Dream Cruises - if you indicated that you wanted this, which was included in your cruise fare - to borrow during your trip was waterproof pants and a waterproof jacket. If you click the show notes and want to see me modeling either, please by all means click the link to our article that we discuss our Alaskan Dream Cruises Inside Passage Sojourn.

For both, one of the things that I would say do not forget, or two of the things that I would say do not forget, are a telephoto camera lens and binoculars, and that is also linked up in our Alaskan packing list on Amazon that's also in the show notes.

Dan (21:07)

Speaking of cultural immersion and authenticity.

There's going to be a noticeable difference between large and small ships. So, just specifically when we're talking about those local connections, so Alaskan-owned versus international corporation. The cultural programming, educational content also on board. On the Celebrity Edge, the gift shop supported local, and they changed everything over for the season in Alaska. So that was great.

One thing about the big ships is you have the comfort of knowing what you're going to get. So think of it like if you go to Starbucks in Madrid vs. Starbucks in Seattle. For the most part, it's gonna be the same exact thing, maybe slight differences. But you still have reasonable expectations of what that cup of coffee is gonna be like and what that experience is gonna be like.

Mikkel (21:58)

And the same coffee cup design even, to your point.

Dan (22:00)

Right, right.

So on the big ship, you've got that comfort of knowing what it's going to be like on the ship and the surroundings. Whereas it may not be as immersive in the local community and the authenticity may not be there.

Mikkel (22:17)

Right, right. And I felt like with Alaskan Dream Cruises, they were going into the community into a place like Wrangell - that we said on our episode talking about our Alaskan Dream Cruises experience that we both noted was one of our favorite places we went that a big ship can't get to like we could on the small ship - that they really spoke to the Native people there and took us to a Native museum and everything and like made sure that our options there were local and the dollars were supporting the local community. 

Whereas on a big ship, I don't think that they are giving you as many, I hate to use the word again, but I'm gonna say it, authentic Alaskan experiences. They seem more commercial, these experiences, and that's not to knock them because they are pumping money into the local economy for sure.

It cannot be overlooked that the big cruise lines with the big pockets pump resources into places like Ketchikan and help revitalize the community in terms of improving the salmon ladder experience that we had referenced in our Ketchikan episode and investing in jobs by way of these cruise ports for a place like Icy Strait Point that, you know, partners with Huna Totem Corporation to support Native Alaskans and the Native Americans there. So that's an important point to stress that the ways that the cruise lines support local are simply different. And that difference in where their money is going is trickled down to the consumer and us, the cruisers, in different ways.

I think they're both important. They're just different.

Dan (24:14)

Right. And like we said in the beginning, it's hard to do a apples to apple comparison because there's so many different options. Even within the small ship category or the large ship category, there's so many different options within all of those. So conversation is very high level, but

Mikkel (24:21)

They're so nuanced. Yeah.

Dan (24:37)

The big takeaway, truly, is you have a lot of different options, especially in Alaska.

Mikkel (24:42)

I like that because you have different options, but I'm really proud of what we're doing here because we're making you, the listener, aware of them. And you can choose your own adventure, not in where you decide to spend your budget and invest in your vacation on your preferred cruise line. But you can also make a decision that even if you go on a big ship, know that you can eat a meal off the ship and pick your locally-owned restaurant that you are paying for your meal and those dollars are going back into the local economy.

Dan (25:15)

So let's talk about the economy and let's talk about the price and value comparison of a large ship and a small ship.

Mikkel (25:22)

Nice transition.

Dan (25:27)

These are just ballpark numbers. So I definitely encourage each of our listeners to do their own research. And like we said, there are so many variables that go into this, but this is just gonna get you an idea of what you're gonna get and how much it's gonna cost you.

Mikkel (25:42)

A good starting point, a jumping off point for your own research, but this is based on our own research currently. It's just that things change so frequently depending on how many rooms are left on a sailing or the dates you're looking up.

Dan (25:58)

For Celebrity Edge in Alaska for a seven day cruise with an ocean view, this doesn’t include excursions, is going to be just over $1,500 per person.

Now if you start adding on big excursions like helicopter rides and dog sledding, or if you upgrade into The Retreat suite class, you could easily start to see a bill of $13,000 per person.

Mikkel (26:28)

Mm-hmm. Specific to Alaska, we just looked this up today to make sure. It sounds like a big jump, and it is, but that is with the suite class. And the reason we're bringing this up is because it's not true that a small ship you more than a big ship. It depends. It depends on what you're booking.

And also, if you don't want to book The Retreat class, but you want to upgrade your experience on Celebrity, specifically, let's say Celebrity Edge - for any of their Edge Class series - they also have Concierge class. That sells out really quickly, as does The Retreat. The Retreat and Concierge class are great. You might be wondering what the differences are. And we have an article comparing all of these suite class: Concierge, AquaClass, The Retreat class - on Celebrity. So please look at the show notes if you are interested in learning more about that. But we will stay on topic and go into the pricing for small ships.

Dan (27:23)

For Alaskan Dream Cruise the starting price was $6,000 per person. Now this included excursions. this, think of everything from guided tours in small towns to kayaking in the sound, to seeing plenty of whales. It was a whale watching...

Mikkel (27:44)

Extravaganza.

Dan (27:44)

Well, yeah. The other thing to keep in mind for those excursions is we didn't have to get on a bus. We were directly right there in the ports and small enough to dock at a lot of places. Well, most places that we docked that big ships can cannot go.

Mikkel (28:02)

And in terms of any hidden costs on these ship types, just keep in mind gratuities that could be a significant charge for you. It could be anywhere from five to 10 % of the price of your cruise or maybe the guideline of the cruise is something like $15 to $27 per day. Just make sure you know what your particular cruise line recommends. Signature dining on big ships is usually not included. It usually costs extra. 

Signature dining on a ship like Alaskan Dream Cruises is not an option. There's one restaurant, like it or not. Alcohol could also be a consideration for you if you want to add on a package or not. Totally up to you.

As Dan always says, there's more opportunities to spend money on a big ship. The smaller the ship, the smaller the less venues there are, the less opportunities there are to spend money.

So who is each experience good for? I would say a small ship is great for people who want more Alaska. I would also say when time is more important to you than money, consider that a small ship is spending less time on the transportation, like the buses and disembarkation and embarkation, and more time in the ports, more time in the destinations. And you have an opportunity to spend more time in Alaska if you want to extend with a pre or post cruise stay because it starts and ends in Alaska 99 % of the time.

Dan (29:39)

Also, when you're thinking about your cabins - if you're traveling multi-generational family - you may want to look at a big ship because there's going be more to do for everybody. And then especially if you're traveling with somebody with mobility or accessibility challenges, a small ship likely will not be great. A big ship:

They're used to dealing with mobility concerns and they have bigger hallways, elevators, etc. to really accommodate for that. So just another thing to keep in mind.

Mikkel (30:08)

And also with family considerations, a big ship has the capability to have a door between the rooms that conjoins the room. So if maybe you're a family of, you know, two parents and four children, you're a family of six, or maybe you're traveling with your parents and it's a grandkids trip, you're not going to have that option on a small ship like Alaskan Dream Cruises for conjoining rooms. So if that's a consideration for you. Also with the family consideration, there's no kids club on these smaller ships. 

So if you want your kids to have other friends their ages and options to check them into daycare, you're gonna wanna go with a big ship for those reasons. And the starting price of a big ship is lower. And again, it's nuanced with how much money you choose to spend on a big ship, depending on the class you book, depending on the suites category and such and where your cabin is and all those things. 

But the starting price - the introductory price - is lower and will get you into Alaska and cruising in Alaska for less money. And again, just to remind you of the point that you are embarking in Alaska with the small ships 99% of the time. And for the big ships, you are likely embarking or disembarking - not all the time, just with a lot of these Inside Passage itineraries - in Vancouver or Seattle. 

There are other itineraries in Alaska outside of the Inside Passage that might start and end in Alaska. Princess does that, I believe. But just another thing to keep in mind when we're talking about what experience is good for whom. Another consideration is if you don't have a passport, you're going to want to go on a small ship that only makes calls to ports in the United States. This is a big one. If you don't have proof of residency, if you don't have a passport, you cannot go on a big ship that you need a passport to go to Canada. You need the documents to do that. So keep that in mind as well. It could be good for somebody without a passport. You can get to Alaska on a small ship.

Dan (32:21)

As we wrap up, let's talk about our personal preferences and why. So I'll start and that found that there was more Alaska in my Alaskan trip when I was on a small ship. So I'm gonna go small ship.

Mikkel (32:35)

I'm going to support your small ship notion. It's not a secret. This is called Small Ship Cruise Talk. Size matters. And we love small ships and we are very much advocates for it. But what I really appreciate about a big ship is that it gives people more options to get to Alaska for different price points and more of a "choose your own adventure" with various options that a small ship can't get you.

I agree with you. Alaskan Dream Cruises in Alaska was truly an exceptional experience, and I loved it. And I look forward to returning to Alaska and maybe doing a mid-size ship next time just for our own knowledge and point of reference. But I appreciate that a big ship is providing variety in a way that small ships can't.

Dan (33:27)

Right.

So for you, the listeners, when you're looking into Alaska, keep in mind that there are a lot of different options and a lot of different ways to cruise in Alaska. So just make sure when you're comparing prices or comparing itineraries that you really understand what each cruise line is offering, because there is a lot of choices.

Thank you for tuning into this episode of Small Ship Cruise Talk. We've really enjoyed discussing the nuances of Alaska and the types of cruising you can do in The Last Frontier.

Join us for our next episode, Top River Cruise Line Showdown: Viking vs. AmaWaterways. We'll dive into both exquisite cruise lines.

Thanks again and please review the show and share with a friend. Bye bye.