Planning an Alaskan cruise vacation? It might not come as a big surprise, but not all Alaska cruise ships are created equal.
When you choose the type of adventure you're looking for you can better determine which of the Alaskan cruise lines you'll want to travel with.
A lot of Alaskan cruise lines offer combination cruises, where you can spend time at sea on their Alaska cruise ships and also enjoy a day or so exploring the Alaskan wilds at different ports along the way.
If you've been on cruises before you know that it's not unusual for an ocean liner to stop and spend a couple of hours in port for passengers to get a taste of some of the local flavor - and then move on.
It's different in Alaska.
Many Alaskan cruise lines put their passengers on a bus or a train and take them inland for a day or two before continuing with their ocean voyage.

• Some Alaskan cruise lines owners even own and operate their own buses, trains and lodges and incorporate land based adventures into their Alaska cruise packages.
  

Because these choices are available on a lot of Alaskan cruise lines you'll want to look over all your options before you decide which of the Alaska cruise ships you'll want to board.
Ultimately your decision about which Alaskan cruise lines to book will, in part, be based on three criteria.

• How much of this untamed state you want to explore.
  
• If you want to spend a day or two in the frozen Yukon.
  
• If you want to get off the boat and explore or just stay on your boat for the entire voyage.