The land portion of our trip was exhausting! We were in a different lodge 3 nights with very early morning departures (which didn't help the jet lag). People on the. motor coaches did not wear masks but we did. The actual cruise was very nice. The itinerary is TOO tight. Not enough time to really experience the environment. Not sure why Ketchikan was taken out of the itinerary. Wish we had done a Whale Watching excursion.
Embarkation
3 out of 5
We embarked on the cruise after the land tour. We didn't arrive at the port in Whittier until 8:30pm. We were the last to board. We did not realize that the land/sea tour was so time restrictive. We were rushed at most stops and ports.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
The Alegro and Concerto dining rooms were very good. We did not go to any of the specialty restaurants. The Buffet was actually very enjoyable for breakfast and lunch. Not very crowded and the food was very good. The service in all of the dining areas was excellent!
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
We did not go in the pool due to the temperature traveling in Alaska. The hot tubs were not all working. We didn't use them anyway. My husband used the fitness center which never had more than 5 people using the machines.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
The shows were ok compared to other cruises. The performers were very talented but the shows content was just fair. The comedian, Kevin Jordan was very good. The Princess Royal Orchestra was very good. The entertainment was limited.
Children's Programs
We did not have any children with us so I can't comment.
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
Under the Covid circumstances and the onboard mask mandate, the service was very good.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
The ship is very nice. Could use some updating especially with the carpeting in the halls and stairways. The ship was very clean and well maintained.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
This cabin was actually upgraded to a "mini-suite". The room was nice but a little tight. The balcony was small.
Ship tip
Book a room midship, floors 10 or 11 so you can use the stairs. If you want to do laundry and the machines on your floor are being used, try a floor above or below.
This wasn't a port that you could get off of the ship and the one excursion that was offered was VERY expensive. Unfortunately due to the size of the ship, you can only get so close to it.
This was scenic cruising day. There were naturalists on the ship to provide information while viewing Glacier Bay. We couldn't hear them from our balcony. It would have been nice if someone would tell you what you were looking at.
This was probably our best day because we booked the helicopter excursion to the glacier. It was quite expensive but a once in a lifetime experience. The only downfall was the amount of time we actually explored the glacier and the fact that the helicopter pilot didn't really explain where we were going or what we were looking at from the helicopter.
We did the Fish Hatchery, Mendenhall Glacier, and the Salmon Bake excursion. We didn't have enough time at the Glacier. We felt very rushed and uninformed.
We disembarked at Vancouver and stayed two extra days on our own. We booked a whale watching excursion but it was cancelled due to weather conditions. So we did a lot of walking around. Not very exciting.
Thanks for sharing. We took a HAL 15 day Land Sea and luckily chose the right one. We mostly went off how much time was spent at each location for our decision. We chose 3 days in Denali. Had similar "tight" experiences in Fairbanks and Whitehorse but the rest was fantastic.
That’s a good point actually. A few years ago, we did the cruise followed by the land tour. I hadn’t considered the implications of doing it the other way around. We always try to be at the departure port a day ahead to get use to the time change , if there is one, and to relax after a travel day. Starting off on the land cruise portion, it would be go, go, go.
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