Did I make a mistake booking Alaska in May?

[anjuan]

We did late May last year and saw 3 bears and a moose during our bus tour in Skagway as well as other wildlife during our cruise. The weather was great with very little rain.

 

[HappilyEverAfter80]

Where are you located in Canada? I’m also in Canada and I’ve seen bears many times and I’ve never been on an Alaska cruise. Have I mentioned that bears freak me out and I’m always praying I won’t see one??

We are SW Ontario and if we drive about 6 hrs north of us (Muskoka, Algonquin park) I know they have bears... there are warning signs all over the place up there... I would rather not run into one into up there
I was just hoping to see one on an excursion in Alaska. Looking into it a bit more, they do have some from mid May, except for black bears. Obviously too we won’t see any feeding on salmon either... that’s from July through August, but I read through the dcl excursions and there are some that involve possible bear sightings end of May.
However, seems like with bears, the best time is to go July though early August - late August you run into the chance of some excursions being cancelled. One other thing we are really interested in is the glacier dog sledding. Supposedly for this excursion we have a much higher chance of it running in May than we do later in August.

 

[HappilyEverAfter80]

We booked the May 17th Alaska Cruise as well. But we picked it for price and the 22nd is my Birthday. My wife and I talked about seeing bears, but we are fortunate enough that my Sister-in-Law and her Husband are Park Rangers in Alaska, and have offered to take us to the bear sanctuary near the island that they live on. But as everyone has said, wildlife is unpredictable. you could go in July and not see any.

We're going on the 17th as well, for my MIL's birthday. My son is still young enough that the time out of school is okay. I will add, we originally looked at a 7 day on the Fantasy in late June and were priced out of that.

Actually my son’s birthday is May 20th so that would be amazing to celebrate it on an Alaskan cruise!
My son will be middle school (12) so he can still be taken out of school, he’s getting good grades - it’s just less ideal cause we usually plan to take him out in January for the Caribbean

 

[StarSeven7]

We are SW Ontario and if we drive about 6 hrs north of us (Muskoka, Algonquin park) I know they have bears... there are warning signs all over the place up there... I would rather not run into one into up there
I was just hoping to see one on an excursion in Alaska. Looking into it a bit more, they do have some from mid May, except for black bears. Obviously too we won’t see any feeding on salmon either... that’s from July through August, but I read through the dcl excursions and there are some that involve possible bear sightings end of May.
However, seems like with bears, the best time is to go July though early August - late August you run into the chance of some excursions being cancelled. One other thing we are really interested in is the glacier dog sledding. Supposedly for this excursion we have a much higher chance of it running in May than we do later in August.

We’re in SW Ontario as well....and in our campground in Algonquin is one place I saw a bear!! We also saw quite a few just from the road in BC and AB when we lived out west! And we just saw a couple - when we were biking! - in the Smoky Mountains!

 

[HappilyEverAfter80]

We’re in SW Ontario as well....and in our campground in Algonquin is one place I saw a bear!! We also saw quite a few just from the road in BC and AB when we lived out west! And we just saw a couple - when we were biking! - in the Smoky Mountains!

We plan to stop by Smokey Mountains if we drive to Disney world this summer!

 

[StarSeven7]

We plan to stop by Smokey Mountains if we drive to Disney world this summer!

Go to Cades Cove! Your chances of seeing a bear there are pretty high!!!

 

[TBLaube]

If bears are your thing, May is not the best time. Of course that doesn't mean you won't see any, but should be aware. We traveled on our first Alaska cruise early in the season and there were no excursions for bears like there are later in the season. My teenage son was disappointed because he is truly a bear fan and has been all of his life. We did see a very brief glimpse of a brown bear but it was rare according to our guide on our hike excursion.
We booked next year again for my son's 21st birthday and will be booking those excursions not offered earlier in the season. Although we didn't see bears, the wildlife is abundant in other forms. It was beautiful! But if you are looking to see bears specifically, I would change to the later sailing.

 

[vegs1]

One other note on May cruises......

Whales go to warmer waters for the winter months and come back to Alaska in April and May. On our cruise in July, we did the most amazing whale watching excursion and were fortunate to see humpback whales bubble net feeding which is the most incredible sight. According to the Alaska Department of fish and game website, this is more common in the months of June and July.

I believe an Alaska cruise is good at any time but dependent on what you wish to see, some months are just better for some things than others. You will certainly encounter less mosquitos in May!

If you go with the attitude of, I see what I see, you will have an amazing time.

 

[Starwind]

May 18 is a holiday in Canada. May 25 is Memorial Day in the US. So the May 17 sailing should be quite popular. A lot of US schools go back in August. So, low demand close to Labor Day. The weather gets bad in Alaska later in the season.

For the best bear viewing, I would go 2nd week of July through 2nd week August. I went the first week of August to Anan Creek and had fabulous bear viewing. I wouldn't expect to see bears on any excursion that didn't involve flying to a remote location.

In 2021,

Victoria Day (Canada) is Monday, May 24 (last day of the May 17 cruise)
Memorial Day (USA) is Monday, May 31

 

[Starwind]

We also booked the May 17th cruise and were surprised to see that the last couple in August were cheaper [we expected September to be cheaper].

We chose May primarily due to cost and better weather.

For those interested in bears, Vancouver's Grouse Mountain has a wildlife refuge with bears ! And you can do "Breakfast with the Bears". The dates for 2019 are showing but they suggest it might be possible to do a visit after the cruise if dates are similar for 2021. https://www.grousemountain.com/bears

So it may be possible to get your "bear fix" in...

Finally, I have started a Disboard Meet group for the May 17th 2021 cruise. Any of you on the cruise are welcome to join ! https://www.disboards.com/threads/m...se-from-vancouver-cruise-meet-thread.3793974/

 

[HappilyEverAfter80]

We also booked the May 17th cruise and were surprised to see that the last couple in August were cheaper [we expected September to be cheaper].

We chose May primarily due to cost and better weather.

For those interested in bears, Vancouver's Grouse Mountain has a wildlife refuge with bears ! And you can do "Breakfast with the Bears". The dates for 2019 are showing but they suggest it might be possible to do a visit after the cruise if dates are similar for 2021. https://www.grousemountain.com/bears

So it may be possible to get your "bear fix" in...

Finally, I have started a Disboard Meet group for the May 17th 2021 cruise. Any of you on the cruise are welcome to join ! https://www.disboards.com/threads/m...se-from-vancouver-cruise-meet-thread.3793974/

Wow thanks for this information! We would definitely be interested in this and hope they will have dates either before or just after the cruise next year!
We were also VERY surprised to see the last couple of Alaska cruises in August cheaper than the May 17. This is the reason we never got a price for aug 23, I was SURE it’d be more! The fact that it’s less than May 17 has me quite perplexed....
Although now I’m reading it’s “generally” more rainy and that the helicopter tours have a much higher chance of cancellation late August.

I know that weather is highly unpredictable in Alaska so not hoping out for any kind of nice weather. We will be prepared for any weather
We are keeping the May 17 cruise unless our preferred cabin pops up soon for the August 23. Only because kids out of school. On the other hand our DS has a birthday May 20 so how amazing would it be to celebrate in Alaska!
Our most preferred excursion (over bear watching) is glacier dog sledding. It’s unlikely that we will change though, I will head on over to the group you created! So excited!

 

[disneylove69]

Unless you go on a tour r sanctuary you won't see bears roaming anyways. Lots of eagles which are awesome. Alaska is beautiful no matter when. Just plan ahead as the weather in each port is completely different. Ketchican rainy, Juneau a hot booger, etc.

 

[HappilyEverAfter80]

Thanks again for everyone’s input, I really appreciate it I actually really warmed up to going in May (after all it’s what we first chose!) but asked my DU agent to change us to Aug 23 if one of our preferred staterooms opens up. Which was a long shot, but it actually did this morning!
I switched mainly because DS is not back in school til second week of September (after labour day) and this way we can add more time in Vancouver as opposed to May when he’s still in school.
We will also have more of an opportunity to see the bears, but I realize that glacier dog sledding has a much higher chance of being canceled in August.
As most of you have said, we will see what will see, it will be amazing either way!
I’m still trying to figure out why Aug 23 is slightly less than May 17... this does not appear to be the case with other lines...

 

[disneylove69]

ourselves. Is at the beginning of the season and less bugs. August is big season and hotter.

 

[cruisehopeful]

What do you think about cruising to Alaska mid-late May v late August? Has anyone seen bears in May?

I've gone late May and early June. Bears were seen in Skagway both times. The first time (May), I was on a small van tour that went into Canada and we saw a mom and her 2 cubs. The second time, I was on the train tour (early June) and a bear crossed the track. I didn't see it, but many people on my train did.

It's not just about the month you travel, it will be about which tours you take, etc. Of course, there's no guarantees at any time.

 

[disneylandlocal]

Thanks again for everyone’s input, I really appreciate it I actually really warmed up to going in May (after all it’s what we first chose!) but asked my DU agent to change us to Aug 23 if one of our preferred staterooms opens up. Which was a long shot, but it actually did this morning!
I switched mainly because DS is not back in school til second week of September (after labour day) and this way we can add more time in Vancouver as opposed to May when he’s still in school.
We will also have more of an opportunity to see the bears, but I realize that glacier dog sledding has a much higher chance of being canceled in August.
As most of you have said, we will see what will see, it will be amazing either way!
I’m still trying to figure out why Aug 23 is slightly less than May 17... this does not appear to be the case with other lines...

I’m sure you will have a great cruise either way! My dad lives part time in south east alaska. The locals always tell me May is their favorite month. They don’t have a lot of bears where he lives and I’ve never seen one in the wild (although frequent signs posted of bear activity). August tends to be a bit rainy. The weather is unpredictable though so it’s hard to say what to expect. It might be worth putting the deposit down for both cruises to lock the prices in and then canceling one as it gets closer. School being out would be a big consideration for me.

 

[HappilyEverAfter80]

I’m sure you will have a great cruise either way! My dad lives part time in south east alaska. The locals always tell me May is their favorite month. They don’t have a lot of bears where he lives and I’ve never seen one in the wild (although frequent signs posted of bear activity). August tends to be a bit rainy. The weather is unpredictable though so it’s hard to say what to expect. It might be worth putting the deposit down for both cruises to lock the prices in and then canceling one as it gets closer. School being out would be a big consideration for me.

Thank you! I do think that overall May (although colder) has better weather. Less rain is what I’m hearing for sure. August average rainfall is like double of what May gets. We ended up switching to August though because it’s still summer break from school where we live. I initially looked at end of June and July and saw the prices for those sailings so went with May. I didn’t realize that second half of August is priced fairly competitively. If school wasn’t an issue we’d probably stay with May.
We are not super opposed on taking DS out of school for one vacation, but usually we will do that in December or January extending the Christmas break.
I’m starting to stock up on all things waterproof now haha. Rain jackets, shoes etc. We’ll be prepared for the rain I hope anyway