I Tried the Cheapest Cruise Cabin to Alaska

An Alaskan cruise is one of the best types of cruises out there, but they're also not inexpensive. So, what happens if you try to go for the cheapest cabin? We've got to look at what it's like to try the cheapest possible Alaskan cruise up next. Hey everyone, it's Jenna from RoyalCaribbeanBlog.com. If you don't know me, I am Royal Caribbean Blog's YouTube video editor, and when I'm not sitting behind my computer, you can often find me on a Royal Caribbean cruise. I'm taking over this channel from Matt today to tell you all about the cheapest Alaska cruise I could find. Back in May, I was browsing Royal Caribbean's website when I came across a cheap cruise deal to Alaska, a 7-night, one-way cruise on Radiance of the Seas. The cruise fare was listed at $240 per person, with $293 in taxes and fees per person. As someone who cruises on a budget and loves visiting Alaska, I took the leap and booked the cruise, unsure of what to expect. Booking the cheapest cruise you can find often comes with low expectations, but my expectations were set pretty high. I took an Alaska cruise last year and it remains one of the best vacations I've ever had. The scenery, food, culture, and ports on an Alaska cruise are simply fantastic, and it's definitely my favorite place to cruise in North America. Things would have to be pretty bad on board for me not to enjoy my Alaska cruise experience, so I went into the cruise knowing it would likely live up to my expectations. Plus, I assumed the cruise was offered at such a low price not because the product would not be up to par, but because of low demand at the end of the summer season. In the spirit of booking the cheapest Alaska cruise, I didn't book any excursions, dining packages, or drink packages. Alaska cruise ports are all walkable and full of free activities, so I knew I would be able to find enough to do in port without spending hundreds on shore excursions. So before we get into my cruise experience, let's talk about the cruise fare, flights, and hotel as these were the first expenses I encountered. The total cruise fare with taxes and fees for two guests in an interior room was $1,118, or $559 per guest. Gratuities for each guest were $101.50. I encountered a few more expensive purchases when it came to booking my flights. Because the cruise started in Vancouver and ended in Seward, Alaska, I needed to purchase two one-way flights, bringing the total flight cost to $536. Additionally, because the cruise ended in Seward, I needed to purchase a shuttle bus to Anchorage for $78.95. Another purchase I made before the cruise began was a hotel in Vancouver. I spent $285 to spend the night at the Blue Horizon Hotel in downtown Vancouver. This was about $142.50 per person. I also spent around $10 to get from Vancouver's airport to downtown on the Metro and $15 from an Uber from my house to the airport in the morning. So the total cost of my cruise fare, flights, hotel, and transfers was $1,442.95. I arrived in Vancouver the night before my cruise and spent about 24 hours in the city before heading to the cruise terminal. Canada places the name of Vancouver's cruise terminal and it's located walking distance from any hotels in downtown Vancouver and this was super convenient. I booked this Alaska cruise with my good friend Reham from Egypt. Reham and I arrived at the cruise terminal by foot, eager to board Radiance of the Seas and start our Alaska vacation. The embarkation process was extremely easy and we were on board within 20 minutes of arriving at the terminal. Next up, let's talk about my first impressions of Radiance of the Seas. One of the first things I noticed was the large centrum in the middle of Radiance of the Seas. Royal Caribbean is known for their sprawling Royal Promenades inside the ship, but the cruise line's older cruise ships do not have this feature. Instead, Radiance of the Seas has a large 6-story elevator lobby connecting shops, lounges, a coffee shop, and other onboard amenities. I don't mind the centrum and feel that it connects the ship's decks together nicely, although it seemed a bit cramped. Radiance-class ships are known for the amount of windows found throughout the ship, and this is one of the features I ended up loving most about Radiance of the Seas throughout my cruise. No matter where I was on board, I could relax with a view and enjoy Alaska's scenery. The outdoor decks on Radiance of the Seas were really nice as well, although I didn't expect to spend much time there during an Alaska cruise. Having access to the helicopter pad is always a plus, and the indoor pool area in the solarium was a beautiful space. While Radiance of the Seas clearly did not have all the bells and whistles of a newer cruise ship, I thought the ship was perfect for a cruise focusing more on the destinations as opposed to the ship itself. Almost immediately though, I noticed that the vibe and general atmosphere on this Alaska cruise would be different from not only Royal Caribbean's Caribbean cruises, but also my Alaska cruise last year on Ovation of the Seas, which is a bigger cruise ship. I was told that there were only around 100 kids on board, and the average age of passengers was probably in the late 50s to 70s. I'd say Reham and I stuck out in comparison to the average demographic on the ship, and the atmosphere felt very tame throughout our entire cruise. The relaxed vibe on board was probably due to a few factors. First, the school year had just started, so there was a noticeable lack of families and kids. Second, those passengers and families looking for a more modern, activity-filled cruise will often choose a Quantum class ship over a Radiance class ship. And lastly, this was a one-way sailing, so logistics were more difficult and expensive for younger passengers with limited PTO time, leading to a higher age demographic on board. Honestly, this didn't really bother me, I'm not a huge partier, so I didn't mind the tame atmosphere on the ship, you'll rarely catch me awake after 11pm, and after 12 cruises I still haven't been to the nightclub, so the older and calmer vibes on board were fine with me. Plus, if you really wanted to find a party, you could. There was a nightclub and DJ each night at the Starquest Lounge, and live music and dancing in the Centrum. Even if it didn't have the party vibe of a weekend cruise from Miami, there was always something to do in the evenings. Our cabin was ready around 1.30pm, and we had booked an interior cabin for this cruise. Booking the cheapest cruise to Alaska will almost always mean booking an interior cabin. While a lot of people may think you have to book a balcony cabin when cruising to Alaska, I'd argue that there are better spaces on board to watch the scenery than a balcony, because the balcony only provides views in one limited direction. I prefer hanging out on the pool deck or a lounge with more panoramic views of the outside. Our cabin was room 9009, which was located on deck 9, forward of Radiance of the Seas. The cabin appeared well maintained and had a nice amount of walking space throughout it. There was a ton of storage. Because I travel with so much camera gear along with my clothes, I'm always happy when a cruise ship cabin has tons of storage. Our cabin had two twin beds pushed apart. When traveling with friends, I prefer having the beds pushed apart, not only so we get our own space, but I feel like it gives the room better walking space. I appreciated that this was done before we arrived, as I did not have to track down my stateroom attendant and ask him to move the beds. The bathroom in our cabin was a standard cruise ship size bathroom and nothing too fancy. The bathroom is where I noticed the ship showing its age a little bit, as the light would flicker on and off several times before staying on, and the paint was faded in some areas, but that didn't really matter in the long run. I only had two complaints with our stateroom. First, the walls seemed a lot thinner on Radiance of the Seas compared to other Royal Caribbean ships I've sailed on. One morning, in fact, I was woken up by the alarm in the room next to me. Second, the internet onboard was often not functional in our stateroom. I'm really grateful that Royal Caribbean is going to implement Starlink internet on their cruise ships because it should be a lot better going forward. But enough with the cabin and embarkation, let's talk about the food and beverages I enjoyed on my cruise. I don't think I'm very hard to please, but I've never been disappointed by the food on a Royal Caribbean cruise, and I enjoyed every meal I had on Radiance of the Seas. Reham and I did not dine at any specialty dining venues onboard, and we chose to only eat at the complimentary venues. Thankfully, Radiance of the Seas has several complimentary venues onboard, including the Windjammer Buffet, Park Cafe, Boardwalk Doghouse, and the Main Dining Room. We started most mornings of the cruise at the Windjammer. This is my favorite place to eat breakfast on a Royal Caribbean cruise due to how many options are available, from savory options like made-to-order omelets and bacon to sweets like French toast, cinnamon rolls, and pancakes. I was never disappointed. We had a few lunches and dinners at the Windjammer as well. The dinner theme changes every night, and our favorite was Mediterranean Night, which had fresh hummus, falafel, lamb kebabs, and other Mediterranean delicacies. One of my favorite meals during the cruise though was brunch in the Main Dining Room where I had one of the best dishes of the entire trip, butternut squash risotto. Both breakfast and lunch options were available at brunch, although the special menu was only offered one day of the cruise. I loved the decor and ambiance in the Main Dining Room, and we ate dinner there five out of the seven nights of our cruise. Dinner would usually take about one to one and a half hours. We were assigned to the early seating, which was at 5.15, but I thought that was a little bit early. So a couple nights we missed that reservation, and we saw if we could get seated later at the late seating, and we were able to, which was nice. And we noticed that the late seating often went more quickly than the early seating, and we were usually in and out within an hour compared to maybe an hour and a half or longer for early seating. The French onion soup is by far my favorite item on the menu, and I got it almost every evening, but all of the salad, soups, main courses, and desserts were nice as well. Outside of the Main Dining Room and Windjammer, I spent most evenings in the Diamond Lounge enjoying complimentary appetizers and small bites. Occasionally I would grab a quick snack from Park Cafe or Cafe Latitudes, which were free as well. I was impressed with the food overall, and never got tired of visiting the same venues for meals. I thought there was enough variety both in selecting where to eat as well as the varying menus at those locations, so I never got tired of it. And I'm glad I did not purchase a dining package, as this allowed me to save money for a nice fresh lunch and port each day. As far as drinks go, I am a Diamond member in Royal Caribbean's Crown & Anchor Society, this is their loyalty program, and I receive four free drinks per day of the cruise. This is definitely my favorite benefit of the loyalty program, so I was able to order fresh orange juice, specialty coffees, and cocktails every day. I only went over my limit twice, adding a total charge of $19 to my account balance. There were a lot of venues where you could enjoy a drink as well, my favorite was Starquest and the Diamond Lounge, which are both located on the top deck of Radiance of the Seas. They offered what I think are the best views from the ship, in an indoor space, so it's very climate controlled, which is nice in Alaska, and there were always fewer people there than in other bars and lounges. Next up, let's talk about the onboard activities that you could do on the cheapest Alaska cruise. The first activity I tried was a movie, at the cinema. Yes, a movie theater on the cruise ship. Something that makes Radiance Class ships unique is the movie theater onboard, which plays a different movie each day of the cruise. There were five showtimes each day, so it was the perfect thing to do on a chilly day at sea. We also attended a round of trivia at the Schooner Bar. Trivia is offered several times throughout the day, each day of the cruise, and it's a low effort activity that can be pretty fun. There were other activities of course, like bingo, spa seminars, dance classes, and all those were available, but I did not partake in any of these activities. In addition, there was always some kind of entertainment or live music every night of the cruise. Guitar music was offered at the pub, piano tunes at Schooner Bar, singers and instrumentalists in the Centrum, and production shows in the Royal Theater. I checked out Piano Man in the Royal Theater, and this is a show combining music from Billy Joel, Elton John, and Barry Manilow, combined with dancing and singing. I got the impression that the show was definitely geared toward and designed for an older age demographic, not necessarily someone in their 20s, but it was still entertaining to watch, and Avion was of course very talented. I'm not typically a huge theater person outside of Royal Caribbean's Broadway shows, so I didn't attend any other performances throughout the week. My favorite activity I attended though was called Captain's Corner, and this is where the ship's captain had a question and answer session, and it was fascinating to learn more about what goes on behind the scenes of a cruise ship. I was feeling extremely seasick during this event, but I still had a good time. And I wasn't traveling with kids, but I did feel like there was enough to keep kids busy on board. There's Adventure Ocean Kids Programming, a basketball court, mini golf, and rock climbing. There's also a children's swimming area with a small slide, which looked pretty fun, although this remained closed during our cruise due to the weather. The rock climbing wall was also closed, I'm pretty sure the entirety of the cruise just due to weather and rain, but if you go on the peak of summer those things should be open. I think smaller cruise ships can sometimes get a bad rap, but I enjoyed my experience on board overall. Now that we've gone over what it was like on the ship on the cheapest Alaska cruise I could find, let's talk about the ports, so where can you visit on the cheapest cruise? We stopped at 4 different ports on our Alaska cruise, Juneau, Icy Straight Point, Sitka, and Skagway. We were in port between 8-10 hours each day, and I felt this was plenty of time to explore without getting bored or feeling like we were in a rush. Pretty much every Alaska cruise itinerary stops in the state's capital of Juneau, and it's one of my favorite ports because of how many activities are available. A lot of Juneau's best attractions must be visited either by car or through a tour, so I knew we would probably spend a little more money here than any other ports. Radiance of the Seas docked at the dock furthest away from downtown Juneau, and while there was a shuttle available for $6 roundtrip or so, we decided to save money and make the 20 minute walk into town. We initially planned to spend $45 to ride the Gold Belt Tram to the top of Mount Roberts, but as there was a ton of fog on the mountaintop we decided against it as the view would be severely blocked. Instead, we found a shuttle bus to and from Mendenhall Glacier for $45. Shore excursions can and do get really expensive on an Alaska cruise, so this is a pretty good budget option for those who still want to see Alaska's landscapes and glaciers and everything you can't see at home, but do so a little more affordably than spending hundreds of dollars on one excursion. I thought the trip was well worth the cost because Mendenhall Glacier is stunning and easily accessible from downtown Juneau. The bus ride only takes about 20 minutes, and it's a roundtrip shuttle bus that leaves every half hour. We spent a few hours walking on nature trails around the glacier and taking in the beauty around us. I'd say this is a must-do activity in Juneau. Once we returned to downtown Juneau, we visited a few local shops and discovered a cool food truck park in the middle of the city. In total, we spent $9 each on fudge and chocolate and $6 on a salmon taco. Yes, I know there's free food on the cruise ship, and some people refuse to spend anything extra in port, but I think you're doing yourself a huge disservice if you do this by not tasting local cuisine because the cuisine in Alaska is really, really good. So the total cost of my day in Juneau, again for the Mendenhall Glacier tour, for the fish taco and for the fudge, was $69 per person. Our next port was Icy Straight Point. This is a unique port in that Icy Straight Point is privately owned and operated by the Hoonah, a Tlingit tribe located in the nearby town of Hoonah. I wasn't sure what to expect at this port, and honestly I assumed there would be little to do because it was privately owned, but I ended up enjoying the day a lot more than I initially expected. Icy Straight Point is well developed and has many free attractions, including a nice walking pass, a museum, and a beach. The natural beauty of Icy Straight Point is pristine, and we spent the morning looking through our binoculars trying to spot whales, bears, and sea otters. Honestly, Reham and I spent a lot of time on this cruise looking through our binoculars trying to spot whales and bears, and we didn't have much luck. So if that's really important to you, I would probably just book a whale watching tour or visit the bear sanctuary or something that you could see wildlife because we were cheap and did not do this, and then we didn't really see anything. Icy Straight Point is a pretty small port, so Reham and I decided to walk to the nearby town of Hoonah. Free shuttles are available, but we decided to walk the 40 minute coastal path to town. While Icy Straight Point is only the port area, Hoonah is where the locals actually live, and I enjoyed observing local life in a remote town of only 850 people. We visited a grocery store where jars of salsa were over $8 and bags of beef jerky over $20 each. We watched a free demonstration of locals carving a traditional totem pole, and we enjoyed lunch for about $15 each at a local seafood restaurant. There wasn't too much to do in Hoonah, but it was worth a two hour trip. Once back at Icy Straight Point, the aroma of cinnamon and sugar filled the air, and we enjoyed a bag of mini donuts, which were $5 per person, before walking around a bit more and getting back on board. If I visit Icy Straight Point again, I'd probably choose to spend the money on a shore excursion for half the day and explore on my own for the other half. We were in Icy Straight Point for the longest time of any ports on the cruise, about 10 hours, but I ran out of things to do in the early afternoon. Booking a whale watching tour in addition to walking around on my own would be a nice way to fill up the entire day. So the total cost of my day in Icy Straight Point was $20 per person. Our third port of call was Sitka, the former capital of Russian Alaska. Like other ports, we planned to explore freely without a prior plan, and it led to a fun yet busy day in town. I was impressed with the amount of free activities in Sitka. I had never been to this port before, and sometimes you really don't know if there's going to be enough to do without spending extra. One of my favorite parts of the day was walking around the Sitka National Historic Park, which had gorgeous rainforest nature trails. The salmon were also running when I was in Alaska, so tons of visitors gathered to watch as the salmon frantically swam upstream. The rainforest was gorgeous, and initially I started to walk on a couple trails, but Riam had to go back to the ship at this point, and I was alone, and with all the warning bear signs, I was pretty terrified to say the least, so I didn't venture too far on my own. I also made a trip to the Alaska Rafter Center, which is a rehabilitation center for injured birds of prey. Admission to the center was $15, which felt fair as I was contributing to a good cause. We ended up spending most of the day though in downtown Sitka, exploring local businesses and attractions. In total, we spent $12 each on fish and chips, $4 on fudge, $3 on hot chocolates, and $6 on magnets. My favorite place in town was the Baranoff Castle State Historic Site, the location where Russia formally handed off Alaska to the United States. This site is free, and the views from the top were beyond beautiful. I think these were the best views of the whole town. So the total cost of my day in Sitka, Alaska was $37 per person. Our last port of call brought us to Skagway, Alaska, the town most known for Alaska's gold rush. Last year I spent $100 to ride the White Pass and Yukon Railroad from Skagway, and this is the most popular thing to do in the town. I would definitely recommend doing this, I mean like 100%, while you're in port if you haven't been there before, but since I had already done this, I decided to simply walk around town without a plan. Skagway is probably the most picturesque town we visited on this cruise, and I could spend hours walking up and down the town's streets, which are lined with historic saloons, museums, souvenir shops, and restaurants. This port felt the most crowded of all the other ports we'd been to before, there were two other ships docked with us, and everyone must have arrived around the same time. It was fine, there were just lots of crowds of course, but it didn't hinder my experience in any way. Reham and I made a pit stop to one of my favorite places to eat in Skagway, Kwanzak Doughboy. They specialize in Alaskan fry bread, which is kind of like an elephant ear, and Reham and I shared a cinnamon sugar fry dough for $7. Next is where our day got a little... unique. As I mentioned, Reham is from Egypt, and she abruptly stopped in her tracks in front of a jewelry shop when she saw a variety of Egyptian souvenirs and decor inside the shop. The shop was owned by an Egyptian, and in true Egyptian culture, he invited Reham and I inside to chat. Mohamed, the shop owner, and Reham enjoyed talking to a fellow Egyptian in a town as remote as Skagway, and we stayed in the shop for a while to learn more about local life in Alaska. Mohamed then treated us to lunch, in true Egyptian hospitality, and we treated him and us to ice cream before getting back on board Radiance of the Seas. The total cost of my day in Skagway was $27. So with all this being said, how was the weather on our Alaska cruise? Well, when I cruised to Alaska in October last year, we encountered truly awful weather. It basically didn't let stop raining the entire week. Because this cruise was at the end of August and into September, I did not expect the weather to be nice this year either, but I was pleasantly surprised by the weather conditions. While we encountered some rain on and off most days of the cruise, there was usually only a light sprinkle with a couple rare downpours. We saw the sun nearly every day, and in Skagway we did not have any rain whatsoever. Weather is unpredictable anywhere in the world, but especially in Alaska, so I think we lucked out on this cruise. I even took my jacket off a few times to walk around in just a long sleeve shirt and remained comfortable. The last full day of our Alaska cruise was supposed to include a visit to Hubbard Glacier, but unfortunately we were unable to approach the glacier due to low visibility. Bad weather was the theme of the day, and we encountered the roughest waters I've experienced yet on a cruise. I spent most of the day feeling seasick and laying in bed, which was definitely not fun. This was also the first time I've ever felt seasick. As evening approached, though, Rahim and I began to feel better, thankfully, and we were able to enjoy our last night on board before disembarking the next morning in Seward. We arrived in Seward early on disembarkation day and took a three-hour shuttle bus to downtown Anchorage. Soon enough, it was time to say goodbye to Alaska's beauty and return home. Let's talk about the total cost of my cruise. Was it actually the cheapest Alaska cruise? Spoiler alert, it probably didn't end up being the cheapest cruise. While I may have booked the cheapest Alaska cruise based solely on the cruise fare price, the extra add-ons like the one-way flights, shuttles, hotel, added a significant cost to the cruise. Let's do a rundown of all the cruise costs I incurred. My base cruise fare was $559. Gratuities were $101.50. My transportation and hotel costs were $782.45. Purchases in port were $153.00 and my on-board expenses were $19.00, bringing the total cost of my cruise to $1,614.95. Looking back, I probably could have booked a more expensive cruise fare on a newer ship from Seattle and still saved money due to cheaper flights and other transportation expenses. If you're truly looking to save the most amount of money possible, definitely research flight costs and shuttles before booking an Alaska cruise. I had no idea a shuttle would cost $80 one way to reach Anchorage from Seward, for example, and this could easily get way more expensive when cruising with a large family. That being said, I definitely saved hundreds of dollars by not booking excursions and instead choosing to explore ports freely on my own. I didn't feel we missed out on anything by not booking excursions. However, I've already been to Alaska and will cruise to Alaska again in the future. If you're only going to visit Alaska once in your life, I'd book at least one to two excursions, like a whale watching tour or the railroad in Skagway. This ensures you can make the most out of Alaska's main attractions. In the end, I made some amazing memories with my friend Reham, and we were able to explore four unique Alaska cruise ports and discover more of Alaska's culture, cuisine, and nature. Alaska cruises remain my favorite cruise itineraries in North America, and I'll never get tired of relaxing on board with a scenic view out the window. Cruising to Alaska on a budget can be done, and while I'm not entirely sure this ended up being the cheapest cruise overall, it was certainly an incredible experience, and I'm already looking forward to returning to Alaska. If you asked me, an Alaska cruise is what you make of it, and even the cheapest cruise in the smallest cabin is still a really impressive cruise vacation. If you found this video helpful, hit the like button, subscribe to our channel, and turn on notifications. That way, YouTube lets you know when we have a brand new video to share. This has been Matt from RealCaribbeanBlog.com, and we'll talk again real soon.