Overall, we would have enjoyed seeing the Alaskan outdoors so much more if the weather had not been raining every day. Just a rainy week. As we were told, "It's real Alaska!" The weather did dampen our enjoyment of being able to explore the towns and be able to even hike around. We limited our time outside exploring the towns to a minimum because of it. The ship was nice. The food was good and so nice to have it prepared for us all day/every day. The cabin was a comfortable temperature for us and the bed also comfortable. There were only 2 of us adults in our cabin so we had plenty of room. It was also quiet. We did not hear anything through the walls or overhead. We sandwiched our room between other floors of rooms so as to eliminate any excess noise. Alaska was a one time experience for us southerners. Now, back to the warmer destinations!
Embarkation
5 out of 5
We preordered our medallions to ship to our home before the cruise. This made our boarding about an hour.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
We enjoyed the buffets upstairs for both breakfasts and lunches. Tables were crowded as always, but you could always find a table within a few minutes. We reserved a table in all 3 different dining rooms for dinner in order to sample each one. In hindsight, I would have preferred to just pick one and stay with the same waiter and table location. We had a private dining table with our party of 5 and were always seated right away according to our reservation time. We were satisfied with the meal selections and did not eat in specialty dining. We are not particularly "foodies" and can enjoy most food cooked and served to us!
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
This was our first Alaskan cruise. We have cruised in warm weather several times in the Caribbean and have decided that cold, wet, weather is not for us! We just happened to get a rainy and cold week so the pool decks were empty except for the last day when the rain stopped. We did enjoy the gym on most days. It has a large cardio area with machines and a reasonable sampling of weight equipment. Outdoor activity was shut down. The day on Glacier Bay was interesting to see the glaciers. We really enjoyed the local naturalist who was giving insights to the area. We were fortunate to be awakened by the captain on the final night to see the aurora lights in the sky over the ship. This was the highlight of the cruise and I really appreciate that the captain decided to wake people up in their cabins with the cabin speakers in order that those who would like to see the lights outside could wake up and not miss the once in a lifetime experience. I was hoping to see whales or other Alaskan wildlife from the ship, but we did not. I heard that those who took the whale watching excursions did see whales.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
We only watched a couple of the stage shows. Elton John music was good. The Las Vegas entertainer who performed the show was quite talented. We missed the magic show. Other than that, I think the variety and entertainment on Royal Caribbean is much better. The best part of the ship's "entertainment" was the three naturalist speakers that gave talks on different days. They were very interesting and made the Alaskan experience more inclusive.
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
Some of the dining room waiters were great. Others were mediocre. I would have liked to keep the same one instead of shifting around trying the different dining rooms. Next time, I will pick one place. I did not see any difference in the main dining rooms. It is the same food options and the layout is similar. Our room steward did his job but nothing out of the ordinary.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
The ship was lovely. It was always clean. The medallions did a great job of keeping our location and locating the others in our party wherever they were on the ship. This is a feature of Princess that was excellent. The medallion also served as our room key and worked perfectly.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
We enjoyed our cabin. I'm sure that we would have made more use of our balcony if the weather had been better. But I prefer a balcony to see outside and will always get one. The deluxe balcony included a small couch which we utilized every day. If you bring wine with you from home, make sure to include a wine opener. Our steward furnished us with wine glasses but had to have room service open our wine as there were no wine openers available to the room. They did not charge for this, but we had to wait on them to open them.
Ship tip
Be aware of the date that you are booking your cruise. Early May was too cold and rainy for us. The weather is probably nicer in the mid summer but prices are also higher. So choose what is more important to you. I also hear that the weather is unpredictable, so you get what you get.
We loved Vancouver. The weather was nice so that made our extra day more enjoyable. We took the hop on/hop off bus and thought it gave a nice overview of the city. We spent most of the day in Stanley Park. It is beautiful and peaceful. Some of the city is run down with homeless people, but we were able to stay on the bus or get off wherever the bus stopped.
We took a private taxi to Mendenhall Glacier. I'm glad we went but it was cold and rainy (43 degrees but felt colder). We still walked bundled up with coats, hoods, and umbrellas. The taxi returned for us when we called. I would recommend it for time flexibility and price.
We rode the train and purchased the tickets from Princess. It was again cold and raining, but we got to see the upper landscape away from the coast with snow. I was able to take some beautiful pictures standing outside of the train car and be able to go in and out. There were bathrooms inside each car and the seating was comfortable. You have to line up out in the weather to wait to board the train for about 45 minutes, so always prepare for the outdoor weather conditions. We took the afternoon train but the weather was similar to the morning.
We enjoyed seeing the glaciers and especially the insight of the naturalist that spoke over the ship speakers. We could hear him from our balcony with the TV turned up full blast. We were disappointed that we didn't get to see a glacier calving or any whales, but you can't command nature!
We did not stay an extended time in Seattle. Our plane was scheduled to take off at 2:30 so we chose to go directly to the airport. We took advantage of the free luggage transfer from the ship to the airport. Highly recommend! We also bought tickets to the airport on the Seattle Shuttle bus leaving the port. Also highly recommend.
Princess does have you wait in a designated lounge before you disembark for up to an hour. It was ok. They call out each assigned section and you line up to walk off the ship. All ships vacate early to prepare for the next passengers.
On Princess ships all 3 dining rooms serve the same food. On your first night in MDR and yiu like table and servers, you can reserve that table for duration of cruise, and one of the benefits of it is that you don't have to wait in a long line, you can just go to your table, but it has to be the same table and same dining time, but if you dont show up on time, after 15 minutes, they give your table to another party for that day.
Appreciate your detailed feedback. We found it odd that we had to come inside to get warm. Sorry the weather was poor. Glad you enjoyed your cruise in spite of it.
Glad you enjoyed your cruise. We have cruised in early May 3 times, and for the most part, the weather has been fabulous. Wearing tshirts and capris in port. Love the balcony too…so much to see from your room when you cruise Alaska.
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