Packing list
Alaska cruise packing list
An Alaska cruise packing list: warm layers, a waterproof jacket, a hat and gloves for glacier days, binoculars, dinner outfits and shore excursion gear.
Alaska cruises sail in the summer months, but summer along the Inside Passage is cool, often wet and changes by the hour. A bright morning in port can turn into a cold, windy afternoon on deck in front of a glacier.
If you are wondering what to pack for an Alaskan cruise, this list is for seven days of mild, rainy weather with excursions on the water, plenty of photos and dinners on board. It leans on layers you can add and take off rather than one heavy coat.
The checklist
Alaska cruise packing list · 7 days · cool and wet (highs around 63°F / 17°C) · flying to the port · one adult · Wayfold
Documents & money7
Clothes14
Shoes4
Accessories8
Toiletries11
Health5
Electronics6
Gear2
Odds & ends4
Names in the list use American English, with the British name underneath where it differs. Quantities assume 7 days · cool and wet (highs around 63°f / 17°c) · flying to the port · one adult.
How to use this list
Start a day or two before you leave and pack one category at a time, ticking items off as they go in the bag — your ticks are saved in this browser. Quantities follow the trip above: clothes scale with the number of days, with a little extra for spares. Travelling longer, in different weather or with more people? Open the list in Wayfold and it recalculates for your dates, the forecast and everyone travelling.
Packing tips
- 1
Dress in layers: a thermal or long-sleeve base, a fleece or sweater (jumper), and a waterproof jacket on top. Add the warm hat and gloves for glacier viewing, when it gets cold on deck.
- 2
Waterproof pants (overtrousers) and shoes that can get wet make rainy shore days far more comfortable than an umbrella alone.
- 3
Bring binoculars, one pair per person if you can. Whales, eagles and bears are often too far away for a phone camera.
- 4
Many Alaska cruises start, end or call in Canada, at Vancouver or Victoria, so bring your passport and check your cruise line’s ID rules.
- 5
US and Canadian plugs are Type A/B, so visitors from the UK need an adaptor. Most lines have a dressier evening or two each week; check the dress code before you pack the dinner outfit.
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