Khai Cruise Review on Island Princess on Aug 08, 2018

Island Princess Cruise Review

Khai

Contributor Level: Third Mate

44 Days Till Next Cruise

Reviews: 2

Helpful Votes: 27

Overall rating:

5 out of 5

Sail date: August 08, 2018

Ship: Island Princess

Reviewed: 6 years ago

Review summary

The crew make or break a ship. In this case they definitely made it, all members of staff were helpful and friendly. This was my first trip to Alaska and it was incredible! It certainly won’t be my last. We had a long flight to Vancouver from Heathrow to start the trip but were met by helpful representatives from Princess along the way to make the holiday smooth and stress-free. Plenty to see and do in Vancouver, we only had one night but did get out to experience the city. The Westin Bayshore was very nice and in a great location. The food onboard was very good, lots of variation despite other reviews saying there was very little. However, the Horizon Court can get quite busy, although we never waited for a table. Embarkation in Vancouver was quick and easy. We utilised the Platinum embarkation lounge. Plenty to do on the sea days, plan a timetable the night before from the Princess Patter. Icy Strait Point was great. Whale watching and brown bear search - we saw a pod of killer whales, humpback whales bubble feeding and came within feet of three bears, a mother and cubs. The rangers had to load their guns as the bears continued advancing and it was a very tense experience, trapped on a platform by three bears, but it was incredible. Our guide, who had been in the job for 10 years, said they’d never come so close. The group that followed 10 minutes later didn’t see a thing. That’s the magic of Alaska. I’d recommend an excursion in Icy Strait, otherwise there isn’t much to see. Whale sightings are guaranteed so take an excursion! You may see the occasional whale from the ship but not as close or for as long an experience as an excursion will provide. Juneau didn’t disappoint. The weather cleared up and we were the first group in a couple of weeks to be able to fly by helicopter to the Mendenhall Glacier to go dog sledding. Great experience! In Skagway we took a trip to Haines, plenty of bald eagles and again, a bear sighting. Our guide said they hadn’t seen any bears for over a week so clearly the luck followed us on this trip! The provided lunch wasn’t great so we ate in the Horizon Court when back on the ship. There are plenty of spaces for glacier viewing onboard but we booked into The Sanctuary on Glacier Bay day. It was worth it and the crew were always busy. Great service! We had torrential rain and were drenched but we had travelled from the UK for this trip and we were determined to make the long journey worth it. The night of Glacier Bay was the 2nd formal night and the Captain’s Circle Party for Platinum/Elites was very entertaining! College Fjord, I thought, bettered Glacier Bay. The naturalists and rangers were great in Glacier Bay and were absent in College Fjord but the scenery in College Fjord amazed us. 10 glaciers in view at one time, surrounded by Beluga whales and low sitting clouds shaping the landscape. Mark Harris, the onboard naturalist was very informative and I strongly recommend you attend the naturalist talks in the Princess Theatre! Disembarkation was easy in Whittier. Caught the Denali Explorer train for our land tour. The train journey, although 11 hours long, was never boring and exceeded our expectations in terms of service. 2 nights in the Denali Princess Wilderness Lodge, 1 night in the Mt McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge and another night in The Hotel Captain Cook, Anchorage. Both lodges were in a great location and we had a great time. The included history tour in Denali was great, we saw caribou and moose. The photography workshop was also fun. In a small group of 4, our guide, Eva, was very helpful and took us to some great spots to photograph the National Park. A couple of visits to beaver dams didn’t disappoint as one emerged and crossed the lake before us! The Chulitna Gorge tour was also worthwhile in Talkeetna (Mt Mckinley Lodge). Interesting visit to a trapper’s hut and great boat trip up the river networks of the park. Plenty of bald eagles again! The Hotel Captain Cook was great, the restaurants on site were very nice. Food was well priced and of a high standard. Both lodges are expensive to eat in although convenient. We found Vancouver bettered Anchorage. More to see and do, however we didn’t have long to stay as we caught an 8am flight to Seattle and a 2pm flight from Seattle to Heathrow. A lot of travelling but this trip was worth it! My recommendations for this cruise and ship.... There are many complaints about the size of the showers on the ship. I can’t say we experienced this as we had an aft-facing balcony. These cabins were added during the 2015 refit. They have the same layout as the Royal-class balcony cabins. I’d recommend comparing the deck plans of Coral and Island and choosing a newly added cabin for the extra space. Also, the wake view is something you can’t miss! We had drinks packages, yet still incurred charges from the bars. Check your onboard accounts regularly as we were charged for beverages included in our package. Guest services removed such charges after review. The all-inclusive photo package is great value for money. We ended up with around 150 photos and all of the stored electronically on a USB also. If on a land tour, make sure to have 2 nights or more in Denali. If you don’t then the time will fly and you’ll constantly be on the move. You want time to enjoy the experience. The ship is ageing and there are subtle signs of that but if you go around picking at the negatives then you’ll be overcome with misery. Make the most of what the ship has to offer and don’t let a little wear and tear ruin your opinion of the holiday. The ship was always very clean. Finally, I understand that we were incredibly lucky with the weather and wildlife sightings. Many people travelled and barely saw an eagle, let alone 5 bears, caribou, moose and a total of 3 orca pods and 17 humpback whales. Wildlife isn’t guaranteed and had we not seen such animals we would’ve been very disappointed. I do recommend the cruise and if you don’t go, you have no chance of seeing anything! Don’t let the risk of not seeing anything put you off as if you do happen to spot wildlife, you’ll understand why I say this trip is worth every penny.

15 Comments

CLFreis 5 years ago

Excellent review. We'll be doing this cruise in Aug. and appreciate the tips.

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tlou01 6 years ago

Thank you for the great review. You'll have fond memories of this trip. We are leaving for the trip on Friday, starting with the land tour at Fairbanks!

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golfhacker1 6 years ago

Thanks for the great write-up. We were on the Island in April for Panama Canal and loved it. Crew was great. Only wish was for an International Cafe.

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IkeDeb 6 years ago

Great review 😋

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codyman99 6 years ago

Thank you

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lakestu 6 years ago

Thanks for the review. My husband and I are going next July for our Anniversary and we will be on the island princess with club class suite. We are looking forward to the cruise

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rbobl 6 years ago

Awesome review, thank you and glad yall had a wonderful cruise

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rookmate 6 years ago

this is an incredible review, thank you!!

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DebandMarkC 6 years ago

What a review

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joyandjerry 6 years ago

Thanks for the review! We want to take this cruise. BTW, we are big Anglophiles and watch British mysteries constantly. So, cheers for that!

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mwmorristx 6 years ago

Thank you for the detailed review. We arrive in two days and are so excited to see Alaska!

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Emo507 6 years ago

Thanks, great review!

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JazzyClarinet12 6 years ago

Yay. A cruiser who takes the time to give a detailed review. Thank you for the time a detail put into this helpful and honest review.

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Pheznt55 6 years ago

good times

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IkeDeb 6 years ago

Thanks for your review 😋

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