Pleasant at sea, disappointing on land

Grand Princess Cruise Review to Alaska - Gulf of Alaska

Tyderium

Contributor Level: Deck Hand

Cruises: 4-6 cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 32

Overall rating:

3.5 out of 5

Verified Review

14 Night Voyage Of The Glaciers Grand Adventure (Vancouver Roundtrip)

Sail date: August 17, 2022

Ship: Grand Princess

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: B414

Traveled as: Family (young children)

Reviewed: 1 year ago

Review summary

The overall rating listed for the cruise is 3.5, but I would rate it as a 3.0 at best. The cruise itself was fine, but the 3-day land portion was, at its very best, disappointing. A domed-sightseeing train trip into Denali was interesting. The narration was informative, but 8 hours of train travel and nearly 8 hours of constant narration was grating. The whole of the Denali experience was that of a lightly-prodded, very comfortable cow. We were transported en masse to a Princess-owned "resort"/jumble of apartments+restaurant, allowed to check-in to the room and go to a lodge or go an excursion, and wake up the next day and do the very same thing. The schedule of Denali transports and Princess-shuttling to the next Princess motel were incompatible, and several of the more interesting excursions were simply not possible. In addition, the Princess lodge was not located near anything that could be accessed WITHOUT a Princess shuttle or excursion package. So, I couldn't actually go into Denali or hike anywhere, which is a tremendous waste of travelling into the Alaskan wilderness, not to mention money and time. A better arrangement of scheduling between the shuttles and the excursion providers would be appreciated. My family agreed that we will certainly return to Alaska, but not through anything resembling a Princess-administrated package. A shame, too, since the cruise was fairly nice and well-organized.

Embarkation

4 out of 5

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5

The main dining rooms were good, though not as good as other Princess cruises that I have taken. The buffet food was fairly lifeless, though.

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

The on-board activities were catered to a retired crowd, which I and my family are not. My fault for choosing a cruise on which mostly retirees are present, but a more diverse array of activities would have been nice.

Entertainment

4 out of 5

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Service is always top-tier.

Ship Quality

2 out of 5

The layout was fine and navigable. The ship is starting to show its age: wall corners' paint is eroded, buckling of ceiling seams, scratches on cabin bathrooms, and, for our cabin, a loose towel rack that continually fell on the floor.

Cabin / Stateroom

3 out of 5

The cabin was small, though comfortable and clean.