Norwegian Joy - Alaska Hubbard Glacier from Seattle
A 10-night Alaska round-trip from Seattle on Norwegian Joy featuring scenic cruising at Hubbard Glacier plus five Alaskan ports and Victoria, BC.
Price Range
$$
Mid-Range
*Prices vary by cabin type, sailing date, and availability. Confirm rates with Norwegian Cruise Line before booking.
Ship Details — Norwegian Joy
View full Norwegian Joy details
Year Built
2017
Tonnage
167,725 GT
Passengers
3,804
Crew
1,821
Decks
20
Class
Breakaway Plus
Itinerary & Route Map
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Where this cruise calls, day by day
9 ports and 2 sea days over 10 Nights.
- Day 1Seattle, WA port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
Seattle, WA
United StatesDepart Day 2 · At sea
- Day 3Juneau port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
Juneau
United StatesPort - Day 4Skagway port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
Skagway
United StatesPort - Day 5
Hubbard Glacier (Scenic Cruising)
United StatesPortHubbard is the largest tidewater glacier in North America and, unusually, it has been advancing for about a century while most others retreat. Ships enter Disenchantment Bay near Yakutat and stop well short of the six-mile-wide face, because submerged ice can surface violently after a calving. The ice reaching the water here took roughly 400 years to travel down the glacier.
- Watching the calving face shed ice the size of a ten-storey building
- The ship holding position and rotating so both sides see the glacier
- Seals and sea otters on the brash ice filling Disenchantment Bay
- The Russell Fiord entrance, which Hubbard has twice dammed shut, in 1986 and 2002
- Getting ashore
- Scenic cruising only - no landing, and how close the ship gets depends entirely on how much loose ice is in the bay that day.
- Best months
- May-Sep (Jun-Aug clearest and least ice-blocked)
- Day 6
Sitka
United StatesPortSitka is the one Southeast Alaska call that faces the open Pacific rather than the Inside Passage, and it was the capital of Russian America until 1867 - St Michael's Cathedral still stands in the middle of the main street. The volcanic cone of Mount Edgecumbe sits across the sound. Its history is also the hardest of any Alaskan port: the Tlingit fought and lost a battle here in 1804, on ground that is now a national park.
- Sitka National Historical Park, with a totem trail through the 1804 battlefield
- St Michael's Cathedral and the Russian Bishop's House
- Alaska Raptor Center's flight training centre for injured eagles
- Wildlife boat tours into Sitka Sound for sea otters, puffins and whales
- Getting ashore
- Larger ships use the Old Sitka Dock about five miles north with a paid shuttle; smaller ships still tender straight into the downtown harbour.
- Best months
- May-Sep (Jun-Aug best; Sitka is exposed to Pacific weather and can be rough at the shoulders)
- Day 7Icy Strait Point port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
Icy Strait Point
United StatesPort - Day 8Ketchikan port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
Ketchikan
United StatesPort Day 9 · At sea
- Day 10Victoria, BC port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
Victoria, BC
CanadaPort - Day 11Seattle, WA port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
Seattle, WA
United StatesArrive
Onboard Amenities
Cruise Highlights
About the Ship
What Travelers Say About Norwegian Joy
Reviews of the ship itself — the same for every Norwegian Joy sailing. Distilled from 333 traveler threads, passenger reviews and travel blogs.
Norwegian Joy is a 2017 Breakaway-Plus mega-ship with an unusual backstory: it was originally built and outfitted for the Chinese cruise market, then pulled to North America in 2018 and refurbished to mirror its sister ship, Norwegian Bliss. A second major refurbishment in early 2024 modernized it further, adding cabins, expanding the Vibe Beach Club to two levels and installing what reviewers call the best Thermal Suite at sea. The result is a ship that looks nearly new and carries the familiar Breakaway-Plus thrills, but with a slightly quirky heritage layout.
What People Love
- The 2024 refurbishment left the ship looking nearly new, with fresh furnishings and a generally well-maintained feel for a 2017-built vessel
- The new Thermal Suite added in 2024 is widely called the best at sea, surpassing even NCL's newer Prima and Viva
- The expanded two-level Vibe Beach Club is a standout adults-only retreat that many reviewers say is worth paying for every time
Common Complaints
- The 2024 refurbishment added 24 cabins, increasing passenger load to over 4,300 on some sailings and worsening crowding
- Reviewers report the ship feels crowded at pools, restaurants and elevators, with only two elevator banks instead of three
- Food draws heavy criticism in recent member reviews, with the buffet and main dining rooms called bland, repetitive and sometimes cold