What is it like Cruising to Alaska in October?
Cruising to Alaska in October: Introduction and Background
Those who follow me via my blog or on social media know that I cruise to Alaska frequently, both because Alaska owns significant real estate in my heart and also because I live within walking distance of the two cruise terminals in Seattle, so I regularly take advantage of last minute Alaska cruise deals. I’ve cruised there dozens and dozens of times (including from San Francisco for my honeymoon several years before moving to Seattle and from Vancouver a handful of times) on almost every line and itinerary and throughout the season. Speaking of which, I’ve watched over the past few years as the Seattle to Alaska cruise season has gradually gotten longer, now starting in early April and extending through late October. And, let me tell you, I’m HERE FOR IT! It’s always a sad day when the last cruise ship sails away for the season. I live in a high rise apartment in downtown Seattle, so I can literally see it sailing away and have been known to shed tears while drowning my sorrows in a chocolate martini (my favorite cruise drink).
Anyway, last year I decided to hop on the very last Alaska cruise of the season in late October to experience what it’s like to cruise to Alaska so late into the fall (my prior latest season cruise was in September). I also followed closely the other October Alaska cruises, both to have an idea of what I might expect, but also for research purposes knowing I was going to publish an article about October Alaska cruising. I had a good friend onboard the cruise just prior to mine, so she provided me with a lot of detail about her experience (I ended up getting really lucky on a number of fronts with my cruise while, sadly, she had a much different experience.).
So, based on both my own experience and extensive research, here are 12 things you can expect on a cruise to Alaska in October. I’ll start with 5 advantages to cruising in October before moving on to some (possibly) problematic things to consider before you decide to book an October itinerary.
12 Things you can Expect on a Cruise to Alaska in October
1: Prices will be MUCH lower and solo supplements may be waived
For a 10-night Alaska sailing including Glacier Bay and long stays in every port (all this to say it was a very desirable itinerary), I paid less for my cruise in October than it costs for hotel room for one night and a dinner out in Seattle. And I paid NO solo supplement. Honestly, I think I ate more than my cruise fare in ice cream alone.
Looking at current prices for 2024, a 7-night Alaska itinerary on the Encore or Bliss will run you from around $1300-$1600 per person for an inside cabin in July (that’s the cruise fare only, not including taxes and extra packages). In October the same itineraries and cabins are currently listed for $600-$700 and prices are likely to drop even lower closer to the sail date. There’s even a 9-night itinerary in October on the Jewel listed for just $497 (interior, per person)!
2: Almost no kids will be onboard
Are you one of those people who says, “I looooove kids, buuuuuuut I prefer vacationing without them? No shame, I hear you! Even though I have my own kid and cruise with him frequently, I relish my relaxing solo cruises, booked intentionally during times with few kids onboard (because the whole point of a solo cruise is to have a BREAK from kids).
So, what’s the kid situation on an Alaska cruise in October? Having grown up in Utah, the average family in my neighborhood had more children than the total under 18 population of my October Alaska cruise, and 90% of them were under five (still adorable and not running wild and painting the walls with ice cream).
3: You may see the Northern Lights
Prior to this cruise I had three remaining items on my bucket list: (1) make out with Justin in his Honda accord; (2) see the Northern Lights; (3) see penguins on ice. Number one is currently the only item remaining even though I really should have crossed it off the list twenty years ago when Honda Accords stopped being cool and Justin phoned to tell me he’s gay. I crossed number three off this January on a cruise to Antarctica. And I crossed number two off on my October cruise to Alaska!
Seeing the Northern Lights is only a real possibility on the last cruises of the season in late September and October. Be sure to download an app or join a Facebook group that tracks the aurora forecast and shares current information, so you know when you need to head outside (usually in the middle of the night) to look. Some ships will also have a sign-up at Guest Services where they will call you in the event of any activity. Be sure to also connect with the naturalist onboard your cruise ship. They’ll be on the lookout too and will share any information they have with you. Good luck! Be sure to share pics with me if you’re lucky enough to catch it!
As a bonus, there’s another fascinating natural phenomenon you’ll have a shot at seeing on an October Alaska cruise: “hair ice.” While I’d crossed hair ice off my hiking bingo card a few years prior near Seattle, it was exciting to see it again on a hike in Ketchikan during my late October cruise. The conditions required for the formation of hair ice are extremely specific: rotting wood from a broadleaf tree, the presence of a certain fungus, moist air, a temperature slightly below 32°F, and latitudes between 45°N and 55°N.
4: Ports will be far less crowded
No port visit to Skagway is complete without greeting some of the town’s many ghosts (and I mean many, it’s rumored that every building has at least one), the most famous being Lydia of the Red Onion Saloon. But normally during the peak of the cruise season, you’ll be visiting said ghosts with about 40,000 fellow cruise ship passengers. Ports, including Skagway, will be PACKED full of tourists in June, July, and August. But not in October. Upon disembarking your ship, you may find yourself saying, “man, this place is like a ghost town!” And not for the reason I stated earlier. You’ll almost feel like you have the towns all to yourself and will have a much less chaotic and more authentic Alaska experience (you’ll experience the port towns much more like the locals do in the off-season). Here’s what downtown Skagway looked like during my October visit:
And this was Juneau from the top of the tram with only ONE ship in port (normally there are at least five).
5: There will be end of season sales at local shops
Fancy some half off ice cream in Skagway where, with the windchill, it feels like it’s -15°F? You’re in luck! But seriously, many of the shops that remain open (see #7 below), will have great end-of-season sales where you can pick up souvenirs or local foods to try.
6: Many shops and restaurants will closed and fewer tours offered
However (and here’s where we’ll start getting into the potentially negative aspects of cruising to Alaska in October), many shops and restaurants will be closed in October and fewer tours will be offered. Why? Because many of them are staffed with seasonal employees who have already returned home (many back to college). I’d estimate about half of the shops and (touristy) restaurants were closed during my October sailing.
7: Weather will be a crapshoot
Weather at port in Alaska even during the peak of the cruise season can vary greatly and be unpredictable, especially over the last several years (which have trended warmer). However, it’s useful to look at average high and low temperatures and rainfall totals by port to get a sense of what you’re more likely to experience. Here’s what those look like for October:
Average Temperature and Rainfall by Alaska Port for October
| Average High | Average Low | Average Rain | City/Area |
| 45 °F | 37 °F | Glacier Bay | |
| 47 °F | 37 °F | 8.4″ | Juneau |
| 51 °F | 41 °F | 18.4″ | Ketchikan |
| 51 °F | 42 °F | 11.8″ | Sitka |
| 48 °F | 39 °F | 3.6″ | Skagway |
| 58 °F | 48 °F | 2.6″ | Victoria, BC |
As for me, I got extremely lucky! I didn’t experience a single drop of rain and skies ranged from partly cloudy to full sun. The temperature was chilly at some ports and downright cold (especially in Skagway with the wind) at others. Overall, it was way (WAY) better than I expected for that time of year and I was able to hike at every port. However, remember the friend I mentioned who was on the cruise just prior to mine? She had terrible weather, so bad that her ship had to be completely rerouted to avoid a serious storm and one port was missed entirely. See, a crapshoot!
8: Rough seas are a possibility
Just like the weather, sea conditions are also unpredictable in October. Again, I lucked out on my sailing with calm waters, but my friend experienced swells of up to 20 feet (she reported that even crew members were sick).
9: You’ll have fewer cruise lines and ships to choose from
Below you’ll find the October 2024 cruises that dock in Alaska. You’ll note that a handful of these are extended sailings onboard Oceania’s Regatta, not dedicated Alaska sailings. And ALL the others are on NCL. If you don’t like NCL, you’re out of luck for October.
10: There may be scaled back Alaska programming onboard
The most disappointing aspect of my October cruise was the lack of park rangers onboard during our day spent sailing through Glacier Bay National Park. Normally 2-4 park rangers board the ship to provide highly enriching commentary and programming, to stamp your national park passport book, and to offer educational resources and souvenir merchandise. By the time our cruise ship arrived in late October, their season was already over. I’d been to Glacier Bay many times before, but I felt really bad for those who hadn’t (including a fellow cruiser and national park aficionado I met hiking who booked this itinerary specifically to get his national park passport stamped).
11: You’ll experience less daylight
During my October sailing, it was fully light from around 7:45am until around 5:30pm. Great if you want to sleep in a bit and still catch a sunrise or watch the sunset on a nice pre-dinner walk around the promenade deck (which I did almost every day). But I also missed out on the incredible views arriving to or departing from most ports, because it was completely dark (that may not be as much of an issue depending on your particular itinerary – many of the NCL itineraries depart from Alaska ports quite early).
12: Fewer opportunities for wildlife viewing
Hoping to see whales on your cruise to Alaska? An Alaska cruise is one of the best places to see humpback whales as over 500 of them (the type you’re most likely to see on an Alaskan cruise) begin arriving back in southeast Alaska, to feed in the rich waters of the inside passage, from their winter homes in Mexico, Hawaii, and Asia around April and stay through most of the cruise season. However, they start making their way back to warmer waters from late September to early October, so you’ll see far fewer whales on an October cruise (you may still see some though – I did).
What about salmon and bears? The best time to see salmon spawning on an Alaskan cruise is typically between mid-July and mid-September. However, the unusual heat over the past few seasons moved that timeline up some. In October you’ll smell salmon (corpses, rotting along river banks), but the salmon run will be long over. It should also come as no surprise that the best time to see bears at port in Alaska coincides with the salmon run as they feed on salmon near the mouths of streams and rivers. It’s possible you’ll still see them in October (as evidenced by the sign I saw displayed on the forest trail in Icy Strait Point about 10 feet from my cruise ship in October), but far less likely.
Would I Cruise to Alaska in October Again?
I cruise to Alaska so many times every year that I’ve started telling people I summer there. Well, after the experience I had on my first October cruise, I might starting “fall-ing” there too (I’m already watching prices for the Norwegian Jewel’s October Alaska itineraries and will jump on one when they drop low enough)! However, if Alaska is a one-time bucket list itinerary for you, I’d avoid October (you might get lucky like I did, but the odds are against it). And, if I’m being totally candid, I’d avoid NCL. If I only had one shot at Alaska, I’d go in July (maybe August) on either Holland America or Princess on an itinerary that includes Glacier Bay. I love NCL and have cruised more days on the line than any other (including many cruises to Alaska on the Bliss, Encore, Spirit, and Sun), but the line remains my least favorite for Alaska (terrible docking location in Ketchikan, short times at port for many itineraries, and no special Alaska-themed meals or beverages onboard).
Who should cruise to Alaska in October? I think these October cruises are perfect for someone (like me) located on the West Coast looking for a cheap, and I mean CHEAP, cruise in October with low expectations regarding the weather and ports. If that sounds like you, maybe I’ll catch you onboard (because I plan on doing it every year from now on)! And with that…
Class Dismissed!
Be sure to check out some of my additional Alaska and Seattle cruise content here:
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We were on the same cruise as the Professor and totally agree with everything she said.
Last time to Alaska was about 15 years ago and being old, could not remember anything about that trip except it was a cruise. One of the big draws for us was the price, much less than mid season prices, so we could afford a balcony cabin and very few children.
The one tip i would add is dress warm and in layers. Living in Phoenix where we define “cold” as anything under 70 and “I can’t feel my toes anymore” as temperatures under 50, we were not completely equipped for the temperatures.