6 departure ports to start your Alaska cruise (tips!)

Hi there!

Most Alaska cruises leave out of Vancouver, Seattle, Alaska, and California.

Depending on which you choose to start your Alaska cruise, you’ll fly into Vancouver airport, Seattle airport, Anchorage airport, or one of the San Francisco Bay area cruise ports. These are the most common places to start an Alaska cruise.

Cruises that start in Vancouver, Seattle, and Alaska are most commonly 7-day cruises, although you will also find a few 10-day cruises out of Vancouver and Seattle. 7-day cruises usually go to 3 cruise ports in Alaska, while the 10-day cruises usually go to 5 cruise ports in Alaska.

Cruises that start in California will be at least 10-day cruises, because it takes longer to go north to Alaska! These cruises usually go to 3 cruise ports in Alaska.

There are no Alaska cruises from Oregon.

All the mainstream cruise lines that have a major presence in the US have cruises from the west coast that go to Alaska.

This includes Princess, Holland America, NCL (Norwegian Cruise Line), Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Celebrity, and Disney.

I’ve done Alaska cruises leaving out of 3 different cities, and here’s what you need to know about where to leave from!

Below I’ll let you know things to consider when choosing where to start your cruise.

 

 

1. Vancouver (Canada)

Vancouver is one of the most common cruise ports to start an Alaska cruise.

There are round-trip Alaska cruises from Vancouver that are usually 7-days, and you’ll typically visit 3 cruise ports in Alaska.

There are also a few 10-day cruises that leave from Vancouver, and these tend to go to 2 more Alaska cruise ports, and possibly an extra glacier sea day!

There are also one-way cruises between Vancouver and Anchorage, which will allow you to spend extra time on land in Alaska, if you so choose!

The one-way cruises will get you further north in Alaska than the typical 7-day round trip cruise.

All major cruise lines have Alaska cruises that leave from Vancouver, including Princess, Holland America, NCL (Norwegian Cruise Line), Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Celebrity, and Disney.

There is one Disney cruise ship that goes to Alaska, and it is only from Vancouver.

For a cruise from Vancouver, you’ll fly into Vancouver airport YVR.

 

🤓 Know before you go

As an American, you’ll need a passport to fly to Canada. If you don’t have a passport, get it sooner rather than later through travel.state.gov. It’s a good idea to allow at least 2 months.

 

 

If you know you want to spend extra time in your departure port, take a look at the best things to do in Vancouver to see if you’ll like it there! (If you like outdoor things, then yes, you will find things to do!)

You can even make time to take a ferry to Victoria, so also take a look at the best things to do in Victoria. You can even go from Victoria to Vancouver cruise port on the day of your cruise.

See more about the basics of cruising out of Vancouver Canada.

 

2. Whittier (Alaska)

Cruises that leave from Whittier are 7-day one-way cruises to Vancouver.

You can actually start or end your cruise in Whittier.

There are one-way cruises between Whittier and Vancouver in both directions.

Going southbound from Whittier to Vancouver typically has both Glacier Bay National Park and Hubbard Glacier, and these are the 2 best scenic cruising days you can have during an Alaska cruise! (Northbound has Glacier Bay but not Hubbard Glacier. Check individual itineraries to confirm!)

Whittier is a gateway to Chugach National Forest, and you’ll have time to do an excursion in Whittier on the day you board the cruise ship to better take it in!

In 2025, you can cruise from Whittier on the cruise lines of Princess, Holland America, or NCL.

For a cruise from Whittier, you’ll fly into Anchorage airport ANC. You’ll need to arrange a transfer to get from Anchorage to Whittier cruise port. This can be by taking the Glacier Discovery train or by cruise shuttle on the morning of your cruise departure. Accommodation options are very limited in Whittier, so you can spend at least one night in Anchorage. (If you’re staying a few days in Alaska, having a car rental is best so you can see more of the best of Alaska!)

 

🤓 Must-do before a cruise from Whittier

If you choose to do a cruise from Whittier, you must consider doing the 26-glacier boat tour in Whittier before you get on the cruise ship! On the morning of the cruise departure, I took a train from Anchorage to Whittier, handed over my luggage to the tour company (there’s luggage drop-off at the cruise port that’s right there too), did the tour to see glaciers up close, and then after the tour walked a couple of minutes to the cruise port!

 

 

See more about the basics of cruising out of Whittier Alaska.

 

3. Seward (Alaska)

Cruises that leave from Seward are 7-day one-way cruises to Vancouver.

You can actually start or end your cruise in Seward.

There are one-way cruises between Seward and Vancouver in both directions.

Seward is home to Kenai Fjords National Park, so be sure to do a national park tour before you board the cruise ship!

Cruise lines that cruise from Seward include Royal Caribbean and Celebrity.

For a cruise from Seward, you’ll fly into Anchorage airport ANC. You’ll need to arrange a transfer to get from Anchorage to Seward cruise port. This can be by taking the Coastal Classic train or by cruise shuttle on the morning of your cruise departure. Or you can arrive early and stay a night or 2 in Seward before your cruise.

 

🤓 Must-do before a cruise from Seward

In Seward, you can also do something similar to what I did in Whittier. The boat tour you must consider in Seward is the Kenai Fjords National Park boat tour!

On the morning of the cruise departure, you can take a train from Anchorage to Seward, do the national park tour, and then board the cruise ship! You can also arrive in Seward a few days early to give yourself some extra time to explore the national park!

See more things to do in Seward.

 

See more about the basics of cruising out of Seward Alaska.

 

4. Seattle (Washington)

Seattle is the most common US port to leave for a cruise to Alaska.

Cruises to Alaska from Seattle are round-trip cruises. The most common length is a 7-day Alaska cruise from Seattle, but there are also 10-day cruises from Seattle too.

With the 7-day cruises, you’ll usually go to 3 cruise ports in Alaska, and on the 10-day, you’ll usually go to 5.

Round trip cruises departing from Seattle are required to stop by a “foreign port” before returning to Seattle, so you’ll often see Victoria Canada on a cruise itinerary that starts in Seattle. (Alternatively you might see Prince Rupert.)

Because the main purpose of the stop in Victoria is to satisfy maritime legal requirements for a round trip cruise out of a US port, some cruises have extremely unfavorable port times for Victoria.

Sometimes it’s so short and at night that you literally might be like “what’s the point in even stopping in Victoria?!” Now you’ll know before you even ask the question!

Most major cruise lines have Alaska cruises that leave from Seattle, including Princess, Holland America, NCL (Norwegian Cruise Line), Royal Caribbean, Carnival, and Celebrity. Notably, Disney does not have Alaska cruises from Seattle.

For a cruise from Seattle, you’ll fly into Seattle airport SEA.

 

🤓 Know before you go

All Alaska cruises from Seattle have a port stop in Canada. Round trip cruises are considered “closed loop” cruises, so even if you would otherwise need a passport for Canada, you won’t need one during a round trip cruise from Seattle.

Be sure you understand what travel documents you need if you won’t be traveling with a passport: Can you cruise with a birth certificate?

 

 

For a few extra days before your cruise, take a look at the best things to do in Seattle.

See more about the basics of cruising out of Seattle.

 

5. San Francisco (California)

San Francisco is the only city in California that has regular Alaska cruise departures.

Because San Francisco is much further south compared to Vancouver and Seattle, it takes longer to get north to Alaska!

This means that you’ll have extra sea days. So it’s a good idea to like sea days if you’re going to choose an Alaska cruise that leaves out of California compared to other ports!

The cruises from SF typically have 3 port stops in Alaska. And since this is a round-trip cruise leaving from a US port, there will also be a port stop in Canada, again usually Victoria.

Princess and Carnival have Alaska cruises from San Francisco.

A cruise from San Francisco gives you an iconic sailaway under the Golden Gate Bridge! This is a cruise bucket list item, and it might be a reason to choose to start your Alaska cruise in San Francisco!

I had a repositioning cruise from Vancouver with a port stop in San Francisco, and it was an epic sailaway!

For a cruise from San Francisco, you can fly into a San Francisco Bay area airport which includes San Francisco SFO and Oakland OAK.

 

 

See more about cruising out of Seattle vs San Francisco.

 

 

6. Los Angeles (California)

Los Angeles is even further south than San Francisco, and this means that it will take even longer to get to Alaska!

So you really need to like sea days if you’re leaving out of Los Angeles to cruise to Alaska.

Alaska cruises from Los Angeles are rare, but there is a 16-day round trip cruise from Los Angeles to Alaska on a Princess cruise ship in August 2025! It goes to all the major Alaska cruise ports, plus Glacier Bay National Park!

 

 

Map of departure ports to start an Alaska cruise

👆 The red icons on the map indicate where Alaska cruises leave from along the west coast and Alaska. How to use this map: Click on the top left icon for a list of what’s on the map! Or, just start clicking the icons on the map! Each icon has more details, so click to expand for the information! If the map isn’t loading well for you, you can also open it directly in google maps. Like maps? Also see my map of Alaska cruise ports!

 

 

Of course, there is a lot more you may want to consider in choosing your Alaska cruise! For starters, you can decide which of the best Alaska cruise ports that you may want to make sure are a part of your cruise. And it’s not just about the ports. 7-day cruises typically also have at least one “scenic cruising” day that includes glacier viewing from a cruise ship. The best scenic cruising day is Glacier Bay National Park!

 

 

More reading to do before you book your first Alaska cruise: Cruise Alaska 101

Also check the homepage on the blog for the beginner’s guide to Alaska cruises!

 

Happy choosing a departure port to leave from for your Alaska cruise!