Hi Fox Friends! I’m Nikoletta Czimer, Vacation Travel Branch Manager for the Brookfield office. Prior to Fox World Travel, I spent five years working onboard Holland America Line Cruise ship and was so lucky to spend five amazing summers in Alaska! By far, Glacier Bay National Park was my absolute favorite destination while cruising onboard.

Here are my top 5 tips for cruising through Glacier Bay National Park.

Cruise ships typically spend a full day (9-10 hours) in Glacier Bay including a stop at a major tidewater glacier which include the Margerie Glacier as well as the Johns Hopkins Glaciers. It is important to note: cruise ships will not dock in Glacier Bay – it is a scenic cruise with amazing views!

National Park Service park ranger will board the ship to provide a narrative about important aspects of the visit, give special presentations about the park, and explain all the wonders of the wildlife and the park history.

While approaching Glacier Bay National Park in the morning, turn on your television so you  can listen to updates on where the ship is at in that moment and what is coming up. Equally, guests can listen to other informative information about Glacier Bay from the park rangers both on the stateroom televisions as well as at the Explorations Center.

Leave your stateroom and explore the different view of the beautiful landscape in Glacier Bay National Park by circling around the ship.

Guest can enjoy a mug of hot Dutch pea soup if they go to the bow, also known as the front of the ship. The view from the bow is absolutely stunning!

The best spot to take a picture of Glacier Bay is deck 5 and 6 of the bow. If you would like to take a picture where no people are you have to wait for the last turn of the ship while at Margerie Glacier, visit the deck three stern, or the back of the ship. This is absolutely where you want to be while leaving this spectacular glacier.

Another piece of useful information for first time cruisers: You will hear a lot from the captain through the ship’s public announcement system at the port side and the starboard side of the ship.

Here’s a great way to remember:

PORT side (the word itself includes 4 letters) is the LEFT side of the ship (which is again a 4 letters word)

Therefore, the Starboard side is the right side of the ship 😊

Of course to be able to locate yourself this way, just simply face the direction the ship is heading.

Thank you for reading! I loved my time with Holland America cruising through Glacier Bay. If you are interested in taking an Alaskan cruise next year, we still have limited space available. Reach out to one of our expert travel advisors to help you plan your next trip! It’s an immersive experience that will not disappoint.