Manual cars are no longer as popular as they used to be, with automakers offering increasingly fewer manual options to buyers. The tech isn’t dead yet, of course, as shown by how Subaru is promising three stick-shift models for 2027, but it’s definitely less convenient than automatic transmissions.
That said, some manual cars still offer helpful features like cruise control. It functions much the same as it does in an automatic, too, just with one significant difference: you will need to shift gears when necessary, such as to avoid stalling at low speed. While still a useful feature that can help reduce driver fatigue, it does require more focus, particularly when navigating hilly terrain.
In an automatic car, if you start going up a steep incline, the system will downshift in order to maintain the set speed while keeping engine revs in an ideal range. A manual cruise control system can maintain a set speed within a gear, but requires that you keep an eye on the revs and shift if they get too low. Any contact with the clutch may also require you to reset your speed after shifting.
What about adaptive cruise control?
Adaptive cruise control does even more, in that it will maintain a set speed, but also incorporates additional cameras and radar technology to adjust your speed as necessary. You’ll still want to avoid using adaptive cruise control at bad times, such as during inclement weather, but it offers a big advantage over traditional cruise control.
With standard cruise control, a vehicle slowing down in front of you would require you to press “Cancel,” turn off the system, or manually lower your set speed. Once traffic speeds up, you will need to set your cruise control again. Adaptive cruise control, on the other hand, automatically slows down based on the traffic ahead and will resume the previously set speed once it’s safe to do so.
Manual cars can also come with adaptive cruise control, and the system will maintain distance between your vehicle and traffic by varying speed. But again, you’ll need to shift to prevent lurching or stalling once speeds drop. So, while you can use adaptive cruise control in a manual car, it doesn’t provide the same level of convenience as the system in an automatic.
Cruise control: what’s going on under the hood?
Before understanding how a traditional cruise control system works, we have to understand what the throttle body does. The throttle body determines how much air enters the engine via a valve. Pressing down on the gas pedal opens the valve (connected by a cable in a mechanical setup), which allows more air in. This extra air draws more fuel, resulting in acceleration. Modern systems don’t use physical connections anymore, but instead utilize sensors and electronic controls, but the basic principle is the same.
Traditionally, cruise control systems featured a cable connected to the throttle linkage that ran to an actuator, usually a vacuum unit. Vacuum actuators consisted of multiple chambers separated by a diaphragm, and the engine control unit would vary the pressure on one side of the diaphragm to pull on the cable going to the throttle or create slack. This allowed the car to adjust its speed without user input.
Many of today’s vehicles use electronic throttles that use electric signals instead of physical connections like cables. While the new computerized version provides some benefits, it’s also more complicated than a simple cable connection, and more can go wrong. If you notice the ETC light in your car displayed on the dashboard, for instance, you’ll need to get to a mechanic immediately, as that indicates an issue with your electronic throttle control.
Alaskan cruising is big business, with nearly two million travelers boarding mega ships each year. These floating cities move through Southeast Alaska’s port towns ofJuneau, Sitka, and Ketchikan with long transits to and from Vancouver or Seattle. They must be doing something right. But the real question is: right for whom? Discover why UnCruise offers a more immersive Alaska experience—fewer crowds, closer wildlife encounters, guided adventures, and all-inclusive small-ship travel in Glacier Bay.
We recently sailed on UnCruise’s Wild, Woolly, and Wow with Glacier Bayitinerary and experienced Alaska at a human scale, up close, unscripted, and deeply immersive. What we found was a style of travel that felt less like a vacation and more like a shared expedition. Here’s why we chose UnCruise for Alaska and why we’d do it again without hesitation.
An All-Inclusive Model That Actually Includes You
Traditional cruising relies on a dual-revenue model: low-margin fares offset by high-margin onboard spending like drink packages, shops, specialty dining, and excursions. To make the math work, those ships need 3,000 to 6,000+ passengers and rigid itineraries built around ports and schedules.
UnCruise turns that model on its head. With fewer than 90 guests and truly all-inclusive pricing, the experience feels more like an adult summer camp than a floating resort. Their ships anchor in remote bays instead of lining up at docks, and exploration is led by an in-house team of naturalists and guides, not outsourced excursion operators.
You’re invited, not herded, to experience Alaska on its own terms. For us, that meant forming real connections with the crew, with fellow travelers, and with the place itself. We learned names quickly, swapped stories easily, and capped each day with shared meals and drinks that reflected the region we were sailing through.
When Alaska Is Your Window View
Our first morning in Juneau felt surreal. The harbor was wrapped in fog as we walked along an empty dock, with tens of thousands of cruise passengers still waiting behind raised gangways. As the mist lifted, the walkways dropped, and the quiet was instantly replaced by crowds racing toward shops and excursion buses.
I couldn’t help but wonder if anyone glanced out their cabin window and felt a flicker of FOMO. If only they knew what mornings on UnCruise looked like. Day after day, our views were of waterfalls spilling into secluded bays and glaciers calving in the stillness of early morning, no crowds, no commentary, just Alaska doing its thing.
Closer to the Heart (and the Ice)
Growing up, Geddy Lee’s voice urging us to be “closer to the heart” felt like a creative manifesto. Forging our creativity, molding a new reality, and sowing a new mentality… Closer was better. Closer was where new ideas formed and deeper connections took hold. That philosophy plays out beautifully on UnCruise.
In Glacier Bay, we had an unobstructed view of Johns Hopkins Glacier, while a mega ship lingered somewhere farther out in the fog, barely visible. We could hear sea lions barking as we passed and orcas exhaling as they surfed our bow wake.
And when “close” still wasn’t close enough, we boarded skiffs. Close enough to feel the surge from calving ice at LeConte Glacier. Close enough to taste ice that had traveled decades from mountaintop to sea. Close enough to hear bears splashing as they fished below Pavlof Falls. As Rush put it, “There’s something here as strong as life.” We felt it.
Days Built Around Doing, Not Watching
A typical UnCruise day included both a morning and afternoon adventure: skiff tours, kayaking, or bushwhacking through rainforest. Each option took us deeper than the ship alone ever could, with kayaking bringing us closer still.
Trading engines for paddles let us hear waterfalls crash into Waterfall Cove and study freshly calved blue ice glittering in the morning light. Bald eagles watched from high pine perches while harbor seals lounged on stray ice floes, eyeing us just as carefully as we watched them.
Where Boots Matter More Than Deck Chairs
Some experiences require boots on the ground, and this is where UnCruise truly excels. They don’t just provide sturdy rubber boots for muddy landings, they bring the expertise to use them well.
Their skiffs deliver you to remote shorelines and return at just the right moment. On land, you’re guided by wilderness professionals with advanced medical training, GPS navigation, and safety protocols (and gear) for everything from bears to sudden weather shifts.
That preparation opened the door to unforgettable moments: wandering through old-growth forests spared by their isolation, snacking on wild blueberries still wet with morning dew, scrambling up rocky outcrops for sweeping views, and sinking ankle-deep into muskeg bogs. It felt unapologetically, unmistakably like wild Alaska.
Eating as Part of the Journey
Twice-daily adventures worked up serious appetites, and the UnCruise culinary team rose to the challenge. Meals weren’t just filling, they were thoughtfully designed to reflect the region we were exploring.
Our onboard chef, Rachel, originally from the Northeast, described Alaska as New England elevated. She leaned into the freshness of local seafood, serving dishes like butter-poached, fresh-caught halibut. And of course, there was the crab feast featuring sweet, delicate Dungeness crab with tender, flaky meat that exceeded even our lofty Alaskan expectations.
Evenings That Deepen the Day
After full days of movement and fresh air, evenings onboard were about understanding what we’d seen. Instead of shows or casinos, UnCruise offers Arctic education that builds context and meaning.
On bear-watching days, we learned how salmon runs support the entire forest ecosystem, right down to the trees. Entering Glacier Bay, we explored how microscopic life on ice underpins one of the planet’s most complex ecosystems. It was the perfect complement to what we’d experienced firsthand.
Born of Alaska, Not Just Passing Through
Photo Credit: Jenn Coleman.
UnCruise is headquartered in Juneau, and founder Captain Dan Blanchard was adopted into the Tlingit tribe in 2013—a reflection of his deep, long-standing connection to Alaska. For more than 30 years, the company has focused on immersive, active travel with a strong commitment to environmental stewardship.
The “Un” in UnCruise is intentional: unplugging, unhurried, and undeniably different from traditional cruising. For us, choosing this road, or route, less traveled made all the difference. We may never be as truly Alaskan as Captain Dan, but that week in the wilderness left a connection that time won’t erase.
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Hi! We are Jenn and Ed Coleman aka Coleman Concierge. In a nutshell, we are a Huntsville-based Gen X couple sharing our stories of amazing adventures through activity-driven transformational and experiential travel.
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