I Took My First Alaska Cruise 10 Years Ago - and was Hooked on Coolcations

My first time seeing a glacier in Alaska was unforgettable!

10 years ago today I took my first Alaska cruise - and I quickly became hooked on coolcations. 

For years people were telling me I needed to get to Alaska, but being someone that was always cold I thought why would I want to go on a cruise to somewhere cold?   Since I was a cruise specialist and Alaska was very popular I realized that I needed to bundle up and just go.

I chose a 30 night cruise that started in Fort Lauderdale, went through the Panama Canal, up the West Coast, and lastly Alaska.   I figured this way I still got beaches on my vacation too.   What I hadn't really thought about was that doing it this way meant I was on the first cruise of the Alaska season which could be a bit colder that peak summer season.

Looking back I realize that I had assumed this would be a one and done and I had packed my Alaska stops with all of the popular things to do at each stop.  I did a flightseeing excursion, a dogsled excursion, and a zodiac whale watching excursion.  

I expected to be cold and didn't have a lot of cold weather gear since i had been living in Florida for 12 years so I did have to do some shopping.   I went into the cruise prepared to be cold and was pleasantly surprised to find it wasn't that bad.  Most of the excursions I picked also provided gear so that was helpful too.

Seeing a pod of Orca this close was a core memory moment for me!

My first excursion in Alaska was a whale watching zodiac ride.  It wasn't long into the excursion that we came across a pod of Orca and that that was when I knew I would definitely be back to Alaska!   Getting to see Orca so close was such an core memory experience for me but then we saw the glacier a few days later and I was just mesmerized by something so beautiful and so much bigger than I ever imagined.   Hearing the sound of the glacier calving was like thunder and then the huge splash as that chunk of ice hit the water!   10 years later and I have to Alaska 8 times in total.   Each time was a totally different experience on different ships with different stops but all were just as amazing as that first time!

After a couple trips to Alaska I started seeking out other coolcations like a Norwegian fjords cruise and going around Scotland and up to the Shetlands.  Last year I got to take the most amazing coolcation down to Antarctica.  As I write this, I am about to board an expedition to the Arctic so my list of cooler weather trips just keeps expanding!   

Sure I know most people are probably like I was before my first trip to Alaska and only envision taking vacations that involve packing bathing suits and relaxing on a beach.  Yes beaches are beautiful but the things you will find on coolcations are breathtaking!  Watching a glacier calve or penguins waddle around you feels like you are on another planet  and are things you won't ever forget.  For those of you who seek adventure, or even if you are not usually an adventurous person but want a totally different vacation experience  I highly recommend taking a coolcation!   One word of warning - they are highly addicting!

My first dogsled experience 10 years ago

Flightseeing in Alaska 10 years ago