Wacruzr

There was a news release a few weeks ago that there would be Alaska land tours available, although I can't find it again at the moment. I did a dummy booking on a land tour and got to the point of entering names, so it appears to be available. I don't know if it's going to be Princess or the Princess/Holland America Alaska joint operation. The busses are Gray Line (HAL) and the lodges may also be HAL.

Loren

Try this:  https://www.princesslodges.com/alaska-rail-tours/

Loren

>I live in BC, and am thinking of taking the Amtrak down from Vancouver to Seattle, go to a Mariners game, and then the >Oosterdam back to Vancouver.  Has anyone ever done a single dayer?  Interested to hear what others think....

Assuming that the Mariners are in town on that day, the biggest problem is that you could only see part of the game. Day games last until 3:30 or later and ships leave at 4:00. On-board time usually is at least 3:00, plus time to get from the stadium up to the north end of Elliott Bay and check in. So you'd probably only be able to see the first 4-5 innings.

Loren

Twice we have taken a cruise line transfer to Sea-Tac airport and then Shuttle Express to King Street Station. You could also take light rail from Sea-Tac to the transfer station adjacent to  King Street Station.

There are a several shuttle bus services that go from Canada Place to downtown Vancouver to downtown Seattle to Sea-Tac. I don't know if any of them stop anywhere near King Street Station.

Loren

I just looked at Vancouver arrival times for this May. Most days it arrived before or slightly after noon. It was later than 12:30 only once and still before 1.

One thing to keep in mind is the ride between Seattle and Everett is along Puget Sound and beautiful views. However the stretch is also along hillsides that can slide onto the tracks, forcing a 2-day moratorium on passenger traffic. This usually happens more in the winter than late spring, but it can happen.

Loren

>We are doing the 5 day land tour before our October cruise of Canada/NE to Fort Lauderdale. Getting closer and we still do not know the hotels we will be staying at in Ottawa and Montreal. Has anyone gone on this tour in the last two years and where did you stay and when and how did you find out? We are just alittle over 100 days out and still don't know. When we booked awhile back we knew that we were staying at the Fairmont hotels in Toronto and Montebello. Thanks for any insight. I know it will be what it will be, but am getting excited and would like to have an idea if possible where we may be staying.<

We were on the first tour last year. Princess seems to use the same lodging in Toronto and Montebello, but different lodging in Ottawa and Montreal. We stayed at the Westin Ottawa, and found out that fairly early. We bugged our TA to bug Princess to find out the Montreal hotel, and were told wrong. Were told the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth, which was used for 2 of the busses, but we were at the Sheraton Montreal. I don't know that either was used on any of the other three tours.

Loren

Do you mean the Westerdam? The Rotterdam is in Europe.

Loren

Not getting off in Victoria -- a port of call -- is one thing. Vancouver is not a port of call. Every passenger has to get off and go at least into the terminal for a zero count. If Canada won't let someone off the ship, what would happen? I strongly suspect that your friend would not able allowed to board in Whittier. At the least, better to find out real answers from Princess and/or Canada before it's time to go.

Loren

You might want to follow a live thread for the Sapphire Princess cruise that starts on 12-30. Should provide an indication of the current condition of the ship. I would assume that any changes made for the Asian market will be replaced for European cruises.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2577095

Loren

Emerald Princess is scheduled to go from Vancouver to FLL via the (obviously) new locks in April 2019.

Loren

Hi fellow cruisers.

 

Thinking of doing a cruise to Alaska in 2019 and just starting to research a combined packaged trip.

I have heard that there is a cheaper alternative to the Rocky Mountaineer Train Trip trough the Canadian Rockies. Is that true and if so, what is the company called please.

 

Kind Regards Bob.

The train options are Rocky Mountaineer, Via Rail Canadian and on the US side, Amtrak Empire Builder. You should be able to do a search and find out schedules, prices, etc.

Rocky Mountaineer runs 2 routes through the Rockies, northern from Jasper to Kamloops *day 1) and on to Vancouver the second day. The southern route runs from Calgary to Banff to Kamloops, and the second day joins with the northern train on to Vancouver. It is pricey but the reputation is excellent service.

Via Rail Canadian runs 3 or 4 days a week, runs the northern route which lengthens the journey by about a day, and is frequently VERY late. The westbound trains are 8:40 (hours:minutes) a ways from Vancouver, and the next run is 6:12 late near Winnipeg.

On the US side the Chicago-Seattle Empire Builder skirts the southern border of Glacier National Park in the early evening westbound and mid-morning eastbound. It is daily and less expensive than Via Rail.

As I say, you can lookup schedules, rates etc. on the net, and probably find numerous videos.

First US stop after a summer in Europe. Likely to have extensive immigration, safety and health inspections.

Loren

Emerald Princess is scheduled for a full transit in April 2019, Vancouver-LA-FLL.

Loren

"The highlight was getting to stop in front of Trail Breaker Kennels, an elite dog sledding organization run by the husband and family of the late Susan Butcher, the 1st female Iditarod winner."

Not the first, but she won several times. You should have had a chance to meet the first, Libby Riddles, on the ship in Juneau.

Loren

Will have some pre-cruise time in Seattle in mid-August and would like to take in a Mariners game. If there are any local baseball fans out there, can you tell me whether it's necessary to buy tickets in advance, or can we just go to the ticket office the day of the game? Do games tend to sell out?

They don't usually sell out. Buy tickets from team website, or at the stadium.

I assume you aren't talking about seeing a game the day they ship leaves. You'd only be able to see the first couple of innings. By the time the game is over, ships are long gone.

Loren....I could not find the detailed itinerary description on the Princess website, however, the link to the summary on CC is just what I am looking for! That is the tour that we are looking at for 2018. Thank you so much.

I find this page for the Maple Explorer 2018 tour: http://www.princess.com/find/cruiseDetails.do?voyageCode=1826&tourCode=T8N02A Loren

> Does anyone know how to find itineraries for Princess cruise tours, not cruises? We are specifically looking at Canada/New England land tours either prior to or post cruise, not Alaska. I have scoured the website and can't find that information. We would like to see a daily schedule for the land tour. Not sure if you are thinking of the US or Canada tour, but a good account of the Maple Explorer (Totonto-Quebec) tour this last year is at http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2415588 The Princess website has a day-by-day rundown of both tours. Loren

Even those who disembark in Hawaii will be violating the PVSA. At double capacity, they're looking at a $780,000 fine if CBP hits them at the going rate of $300 p/p.

Is it CPB which enforces the PVSA or Dept. of Commerce? It seems to me that it is not a security issue, but one of interstate commerce. Just wondering. Loren

Hello' date=' We are looking into booking a 1 day cruise on the Emerald on 9/24 from Seattle to Vancouver then staying in Vancouver for 5 days traveling by train back to Seattle and boarding the Ruby for another 1 day on 9/30 to Vancouver. Now comes the PVSA question part, We booked the Ruby for a 6 day Pacific coastal cruise on 10/1 during the cyber sale that will sail from Vancouver to LA. We have not booked the 1 day cruises so no worry about canceling.

 

Seattle to Van. 9/24-9/25 (Emerald)

Stay in Vancouver 9/25-9/30

Seattle to Van. 9/30-10/1 (Ruby)

Van. to LA 10/1-10/7 (Ruby)

 

Would we be violating the PVSA by getting on the Ruby in Seattle (9/30) and disembarking in Vancouver on (10/1) and getting back on the Ruby (10/1) in Vancouver to LA. Sorry if it sounds confusing, any help would be great! Thanks![/quote']

 

What counts is where you get on and off the ship. The B2B cruises may be separate cruises to Princess, but for the purpose of the PVSA they count as one trip, and you can't get on in Seattle and off in LA without a stop at a distant foreign port, such as South America or the South Pacific. Loren

<Is Princess has transfer from Vancouver to Seatle,and cost $.Thank you .Jim.>

Needs to be arranged through TA, or directly through Princess if booking directly. TA or Princess can provide definitive answer. In the past, it has been offered, usually has been $49 pp. Motorcoach takes you from Canada Place to border and on to Sea-Tac. Usually get there in early afternoon depending on border times and traffic. About a year ago got in about 2 pm.

Loren

We'll be on board the Star in 3 weeks and have some questions which can hopefully be answered here.

 

I see the information about the Gastropub says available on selected ships - is the Star selected? I have been reading reviews but have never seen it mentioned so I think not but it would be good to know for definite.

Not unless it's been added in the past couple of months. I suspect it might be added while the ship is out of service for drydock in late October next year.

Loren

Quote:

Originally Posted by cgkoch

My wife and I are looking at several Princess Cruises that leave the west coast of the US and visit several Hawaiian Islands over about 4 days and then return to the mainland. As we have friends on Maui, we'd like to disembark at the first island and spend 2-3 days with them, rejoining the ship at another Hawaiian port before it leaves Hawaii, but obviously at a different port. Does Princess allow this?

Actually, it is possible to not violate the PVSA - just book a cruise leaving from Vancouver. But Princess still may not let you get off mid-cruise for a few days because you might not get back on, which would be a violation. Thought I saw some one-ways, but just looked and not seeing any for the next few years.

Actually, I believe what the OP is proposing is - for the purposes of PVSA - 2 cruises - Vancouver to Hawaii, Hawaii to Vancouver. Both are allowed by law. Whether Princess would allow it is another question only they could answer.

One consideration is that bad weather could make the ship skip the second stop, especially a consideration at Maui, where Pricess tenders.

Loren

So, we had reserved an excursion through Princess for our Hawaii cruise, and I just received an email that said it was "cancelled due to operational reasons". Now I'm curious - what does that mean? The tour operator no longer has a contract with Princess? Something is or will be closed (We are in port on a Sunday)?

 

It was the Pearl Harbor/WWII Military Bases. We are mostly interested in ensuring that we are able to visit Pearl Harbor memorial, and rather than attempt to schedule myself, I'm going to pay the extra just to be sure :)

 

Thank you, hive mind!

 

~Blondee419

We took that tour last October. Really enjoyed it. It was run by the Home of the Brave Museum, a family operation. I just looked on their website and they have stopped doing the tours.

From their site:

Due to economic conditions, a substantial decrease in tour bookings, and competition from larger companies, our small mom & pop family tour business has ceased operations. The Home of the Brave Museum & Brewseum will continue to operate – please check out our websites

at http://www.hotbbc.com and http://www.brewseums.com

There should be other Pearl Harbor tours, but they had the only tour access to several other bases in the Honolulu area with WWII connections. Too bad.

Loren

Quote:

Originally Posted by cruzsnooze

I'm booked on the April 27 2018 Alaska cruise already so May should be coming out soon.

That cruise you booked is a one-off round trip Los Angeles to Alaska that based on its timing was opened for booking with the 2017-18 California Coastal season.

 

The actual Summer 2018 Alaska season could be released anytime between late November and next spring, though in another thread asking about Summer 2018 Europe it was indicated that all of Summer 2018 should be released fairly early in that range. So a little more patience required of the OP.

cruzsnoozecould be referring to the Golden Princess Tokyo-Vancouver cruise leaving the same day and incorporating a full southbound Voyage of the Glaciers.

Speaking of which, does that mean the Golden Princess is returning to Alaska for 2018?

Citizenship doesn't matter. Can't get on in Seattle and off in Los Angeles (or any other two US ports) without a stop along the way at a distant foreign port. Vancouver doesn't qualify.