Alaska with pre-teen

[Sev1020]

We are planning a 2025 family Alaska Cruise.  We've cruised on Freedom, Quantum, Oasis and soon Icon class ships in the Caribbean. By far, larger ships are our favorite. So I know we would enjoy the Anthem or Ovation over the Radiance. The North Star in Alaska must be breathtaking …

However, doing a cruise + land tour combo looks really appealing. 

What are your experiences to keep the kids entertained on the Radiance? Kiddo be 12 next year, so the dreaded age of over the Adventure Ocean age, but to young to be roaming on her own (at least according to this mama).  

I would also love Shore Excursion recommendation. Dog Sledding is on our bucket list. 

Happy cruising everyone

[JeffJaje]

My wife and I just finished an Alaskan cruise on Ovation in September. 

To us, the ship was big enough, and there were enough activities, that we never got bored. I worked out in some mornings on the running track and climbed the rock climbing wall several times, and we did the bumper cars a bunch of times (and it was a blast). The whole area of the ship (seaplex) with bumper cars has lots of activities a 12 year might do (foosball, ping pong, video game consoles, etc). 

North Star is cool, especially when in port, make sure to reserve a time though. The sky diving simulator was very fun also, and I suspect a 12 year old would love to do that. Excursions are quite a bit more expensive than your typical Caribbean cruise, and while we thought dog sledding would be fun, it was very expensive and the reviews say you actually sled for just a short amount of time. 
In Sitka we did the Yukon White Pass train ride, and it was incredibly scenic, lots of pictures from that. In Juneau we did whale watching and went to Mendenhall glacier park, both of which I'd do again. 
I hope this helps.