lbeck as far as ships to take while cruising Alaska that really is up to a persons individual taste. You should check deck plans and find a ship that has good viewing from several places because you will want to be looking outside as much as possible. My and my wifes preference so far has been the Sun Class ships of Princess in Alaska.
One reason for this is there is a lot of upper deck space for viewing. Second there is a rap around Promenade deck with great viewing as well as comfortable lounge chairs plus you are under some cover if it is raining. Third there are many indoor public areas with views such as the card room, the library, several lounges and the Horizon Court. Our favorite ship for cruising Alaska no longer cruises Alaska but we have enjoyed ourselves multiple times on the Sun Class ships in Alaska. We have cruised on 5 different cruise lines and enjoyed many other ships but when we look at Alaska we always go back to the Sun Class ships, but that is our personal favorite and may not be yours. It still comes down to what cruise line would you feel most comfortable on.
Another thing important to us is having Naturalists onboard the ship and I do know that Princess and Holland America hire Naturalists for the entire Alaskan cruise season. I am not sure about the other cruise lines.
You say you want to get close to nature. If that is the case and you do decide to do a whale watch, I would suggest Capt. Larry with Orca Enterprises in Juneau. He uses a smaller boat than the cruise lines. A much faster boat than the cruise lines, to get you to the whales. He will NOT fill up his boat so that everyone has a chance to move around and view wildlife. Most importantly he knows his stuff and can provide very interesting and quite humorous commentary. He will provide as much viewing time as possible once whales are spotted as well as other wildlife.
Vancouver to Seward or Whittier would be my prefered cruise for a seven day trip. If you had the time and could afford it a back to back north and southbound is always great. This would afford cheaper air fare. It would also provide the ability to not have to rush and see everything in the port on one stop. I have done this multiple times and found it very relaxing and enjoyable but than I do back to backs even in the Caribbean and I don't care for the Caribbean LOL.
You have a lot of choices to make but you also have a lot of time to do research and make the right choice for you and those going with you.
