Ken the cruiser

FWIW in most cases Princess excursion prices usually go up, sometimes quite significantly, the closer you get to cruise time. I know, who knew!! In our case 9 of the 10 PCL excursions we have booked had gone up. However, there was one that dropped $10 per person (from $279 to $269 pp) and there were seats still available. So we cancelled the existing 2 reservations and immediately rebooked them saving a whopping $20! 🕺💃 The nice part is when we initially cancelled the original reservations, the refunded funds were immediately provided in OBC which we subsequently used to rebook the same excursions moments later rather than having to pay the "new" excursion fees with our credit card. I'm also guessing since we're so close to going on the cruise, the extra $20 will be made available as refundable OBC in our shipboard account once we board the May 8th leg of our cruise where the excursion is booked. Just thought I'd pass this experience along in case someone was curious what happens when you cancel and rebook a PCL excursion to take advantage of a drop in price.

So true. Just like when someone pays $75 pp/day for Celebrity's cheaper Basic Internet and the Classic Drink packages when they book one of their cruises with the All Included package. 🙂

I seem to be missing what this thread is suggesting. When I did a mock booking today on the NCL website, it still says "Excl. taxes, fees and port expenses, they will be added at checkout." after the Subtotal entry. Where should I be looking to see the taxes/fees?

Thanks for the heads-up, as knowing the estimated times when we might pass through Johnstone Strait helps. Now, whether we see any wildlife or awesome scenery as we pass through is another story. But then for us it's all about the "hunt" for memorable photos as well as having a great time while on a cruise! On our recent Antarctica/SA cruise, I was surprised when I woke up briefly to see we were cruising through Beagle Channel's Glacier Alley around 5:30 am with no pre-notification from the ship. Another time as we were cruising from Iceland to Greenland, we went out on the balcony just before midnight where we watched some Northern Lights for about 10-15 minutes.

No problem. We will definitely be attending all of the lectures and will provide a brief summary of who was the lecturer and what was discussed.

I was just reading about Johnstone Strait. Pretty fascinating, especially with the potential of seeing so much wildlife on our first day after leaving Vancouver. Luckily, we’ll be cruising through this narrow passage 3 times! 😁 Johnstone Strait is a deep and narrow glacier-carved passage located between the east coast of Vancouver Island and the British Columbia mainland, extending roughly from Telegraph Cove in the north to Rock Bay in the south. Johnstone Strait serves as an important thoroughfare for marine vessels that include cargo freighters and cruise ships bound for Alaska in the summer months. Johnstone Strait is home to the largest resident pod of killer whales (orcas) in the world, with a population of approximately 200 whales. There is no better place to view these amazing marine mammals. In addition to the orcas that can be viewed around Robson Bight, Johnstone Strait offers up a wide variety of other marine life, including minke, humpback and grey whales, Pacific white sided dolphins, harbour porpoises, Dall’s porpoises, harbour seals and Steller’s sea lions. Bald eagles and an abundance of seabirds will also be encountered in the area. https://vancouverisland.com/plan-your-trip/regions-and-towns/vancouver-island-bc-islands/johnstone-strait/

I just took a sneak peek at the NOAA Northern Lights forecast for the next 2 nights and wouldn't it be awesome if there was a similar forecast while we were on the cruise! NOAA Aurora Viewline for Tonight and Tomorrow Night

We are Elite+ and my DW will be so excited when she hears hot chocolate is free at Al Bacio, as we will no longer book a cabin with the All Included package and get our bottled water and glasses of wine during Happy Hour!

That's a very good point on the theater seating, especially if you go to the early show. We usually arrive 20-30 minutes early to get the seats we want and play gin while waiting for the show to begin. However, if you happen to arrive only 5-10 minutes early, especially if it's a good show, most of the good seats are usually pretty much gone.

Nope. Well, they have a separate Reserve Dining area and get to have breakfast in Sabatini’s, and if you optionally purchase their Princess Plus package for $60 pp/day, you get free drinks, gratuities and unlimited internet. But Princess does have awesome Vista Suite cabins, with huge fully-covered aft-facing balconies on their Grand-class ships, with some pretty cool perks, for a lot less than a Sky Suite cabin on a similar itinerary. For example, with the Princess Plus package included, the Alaska cruise we’re getting ready to go on runs around $425 pp/day (with the Plus package) whereas a similar cruise in an S2 Sky Suite costs around $645 pp/day with a refundable deposit.. And best of all, you don’t have to pay extra for butler service! 😁

FWIW for those that may not have noticed on my initial post, I added a link to some of the entries to provide more information (e.g., detailed wildlife information, excursion description, etc.) regarding that particular underlined entry.

Understand. The comments on this thread just reminded me of this unusual moment in time. Funny thing was, there were still slots available to book a ship transfer to the airport when we arrived that day in Reykjavik. I'm sure there are plenty of private means of getting to the Seattle airport at a reasonable price.

This is not meant to sway you in either direction. The above examples of taking a taxi or Uber to the airport reminded me of when we arrived at Reykjavik, Iceland back in August 2022 on transition day of our B2B. As we were headed out on a ship excursion, this was the line of folks disembarking the ship that we’re waiting for a taxi or any other private means of transportation to the airport. Unfortunately, there were two other ships in port that day disembarking passengers as well.

Here's a fun Alaska memory to look back on. While I was stationed there in the early 70s, a small amount of marijuana in your home became legalized through the court system because in Alaska "your home is considered your castle", which includes your personal space such as the clothes you are wearing, and you can pretty much do what you want in "your castle". What triggered it was a lawyer purposely got pulled over for speeding with an ounce of MJ on his person and wouldn't sign the ticket causing him to be searched and subsequently arrested. Like I said, the memories have come rushing back, especially when we tested that law in my barracks room! 🤣 Ravin v. State - Wikipedia

OTOH we are low stress cruisers. We usually book the ship-to-airport transfer in advance and then just head to the bus after disembarking the ship, have the driver stow our luggage, find a seat in the back of the bus, and kick back and enjoy the ride. Now, if there is enough time for an excursion on the way to the airport, we will usually book one of their enhanced transfers as the cost is usually pretty reasonable. Princess Cruises - Port - Seattle, Washington