Enjoyed our cruise beginning to end. Love the vibe in Crooner's bar. It was fun and enjoyed all of our excursions. Crew was friendly and helpful. Ship was in good shape. Did not see any issues with plumbing or anything in disrepair. Everyone on the cruise that we talked with had no serious complaints or issues.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Very smooth at Pier 27
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
MDR food was typical for Princess. Most nights it was good. The service in the MDR was great. We ate one meal in the Crown Grill. Service was subpar as waiter was slammed most of the time. Food was about a C+. Steak was good, halibut was very dry and overcooked. I complained and was told something like you have plenty of other food to eat. Lobster tails were stone cold as served. NOT GOOD. Buffet was typical food. On other Princess ships they have a server to hand out the plates and have a sanitizer as you enter. On the Grand they have a hand wash station which was bypassed by most people and you pick out your own plated. Witnessed a person pick up a plate while talking on her cell phone, walked around the buffet area while still on cell phone, then put her plate back on the rack with other plates. YUCK.
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
Did a few activities to include the 5 round putting contest. It was fun and the person running the event was excellent.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
Born to Dance and Carlos Oscar (comedian) was great. Other shows were acceptable ship entertainment. Missed some shows due to scheduling of traditional dining and show times. Theater venue was packed most of the time.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Room steward was excellent. Always keep our room clean and fresh. Other staff on ship was friendly and helpful as needed.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
The Grand is an older ship but it was clean and seemed to be in good shape. It is still a large ship with a lot of amenities. Like to Promenade deck both inside and out that goes up to deck 8. I would definitely cruise on the Grand again.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Caribe premium balcony. Cleanliness is good. Carpet needs to be updated but otherwise was exactly as expected. Larger balcony is nice but did not use it too much on this cruise as it was cold and rainy in Alaska.
Ship tip
Enjoy your cruise as the overall experience is great.
Been here before. Did whale watching excursion and it was good. Saw humpbacks and orcas. Not a lot of whales as expected to see more. Did not have time to go into town but not much there to see. Getting on the buses for our tour was not organized well with a lot of confusion as to which bus to get on.
Did the Whitepass railroad tour. It was great. Bus first then back down on the railroad. Great scenery. Lot's of bugs at the pier got a lot of bites which stayed with us for the rest of the cruise. Also had a salmon bake and tour of the Red Onion Saloon. Both were good. Skagway as a small town is inundated with tourist shops and jewelry stores. Not much to see there.
Did the Crab boat and crab feed at St. George Inlet. Great tour as we pulled a crab pot, held crabs, etc. Saw a lot of bald eagles. Tour guide was excellent. Crab feed is outstanding with Dungeness crab (all you can eat). Really fresh and tasty. Walked around Ketchikan as had been there before. I think there was 5 ships in port that day so we had to tender in. Ketchikan was some nice shops of local stuff vs. just a lot jewelry stores.
We walked from the pier to fisherman's wharf and then onto the Fairmont Empress. Nice easy walk and nice scenery. We road the water taxi back to fisherman's wharf ($6/Canadian each). It was nice. Had a nice lunch at fisherman's wharf and then walked back to the pier. Not much time to do anything else. Had already seen Bushart Gardens.
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