PurpleTraveller

I had a mattress topper on my very saggy mattress and all it did was make it a very soft saggy mattress. It was the worst mattress I have had on eleven Princess cruises and probably one of the worst mattresses I have ever slept on. That mattress needs to be replaced immediately. I was in E631.

Yes it was very disappointing and then to add that Princess didn't tell us was even more disappointing. No- one could tell me why the decision had been made. Maybe it's cheaper or easier to sail at sea rather than slowly in the Inside Passage or do they have to have a local pilot and there aren't enough available for the southbound sailings. Who knows but whatever the reason, Princess should tell their passengers when such a major permanent change is made to an itinerary. They probably didn't tell their passengers so that they wouldn't get complaints and probably hoped that many wouldn't notice.

Thanks, it was a big disappointment to us and many others on the cruise and compounded by the fact that Princess did not think it was important to notify their passengers of the change. I'm pleased that you had a great southbound day in the Inside Passage. After having a few not so great weather days you must have really enjoyed your day. Sometimes it's pure luck as to what sort of weather you get. We were very fortunate to have no rain at any port and a few glorious days.

Thanks for letting me know about your experience. It's always great to learn new things. I was told that all sailings southbound will now be on the western side of Vancouver Island. It was very disappointing for us as this was our first Alaskan cruise and one of the reasons that we chose this itinerary was because it was supposed to sail both ways on the eastern side of Vancouver Island. When Princess changed the itinerary they should have informed their passengers. Interesting that it is usual to sail to Victoria on the western side of Vancouver island so I wonder why Princess showed the itinerary otherwise. Thanks! We were very pleasantly surprised by the great weather we got, particularly in Juneau, Ketchikan and Victoria.

Yes, that's what we thought. One of the selling points of this itinerary is that it goes both north and southbound through the Inside Passage on the eastern side of Vancouver Island. To remove the southbound portion without any notification is very poor in my opinion.

Sunday June 11 - Sea Day Today we had been looking forward to sailing southbound through the Inside Passage on the eastern side of Vancouver Island. On the itinerary map shown when we booked the cruise it had shown the cruise sailing both north and southbound on the eastern side of Vancouver Island. We were very disappointed to see that we were sailing at sea and as the day progressed it was obvious that we weren't going to be sailing on the eastern side of Vancouver Island as we were on the western side of Vancouver Island out at sea. When I went to Guest Services and asked why we were at sea instead of on the eastern side of Vancouver Island I was told that the itinerary had been changed a few cruises ago and all itineraries would now be sailing from Ketchikan to Victoria on the western side of Vancouver Island. Everyone I met throughout the day was very disappointed by the change in itinerary as all, including myself, had expected a day of scenic cruising. I did mention this change of itinerary in my post cruise survey and I thought it was very poor that Princess had changed the itinerary but not had the courtesy of informing their passengers either before the cruise or even during the cruise. I wonder if Princess thought that no-one would notice the change. This is where we ended up sailing. Since we had planned to be on deck all day enjoying the scenery, we ended up not doing much but reading, relaxing and eating. It was formal night and we ate in the Michaelangelo Dining Room. That evening when we went to bed we turned out the light to find that our cabin was still very light. Very confused we tried to work out why. Upon investigation we discovered that the blockout lining had been removed from our curtains and the lights from the Promenade were shining through the thin curtains! After having difficulty in getting to sleep because it was so light, we were then woken up at 5.00am with the bright sunshine shining through the curtains. It was so bright that we didn't need to turn a light on to see our way around the cabin! When we spoke to our steward the next day about what was going on with our curtains, he told us that his supervisor had asked him to check for any marks on the blockout lining and to remove the lining for cleaning. We told him how very bright the cabin was without the blockout lining and could we please have the lining replaced as we had been up late and woken early because of the light. He apologised and said he would speak to his supervisor. We were very glad to see upon our return from our day out in Victoria that the blockout lining was back in place! Also I forgot to post the Senior Officers previously so here they are.

We had amazing weather in Ketchikan but the scenery will still be beautiful no matter what the weather is like. I hope you have a great time in Ketchikan!

We were so lucky! It was also quite warm and we had a fantastic day.

Saturday June 10 - Ketchikan Part 3 Once we had made our way back into town we made sure to see the "Ketchikan" sign over Mission Street. We visited a number of shops and did a little souvenir shopping. After the retail therapy we walked along the boardwalk past Crown Princess and along the waterfront and enjoyed the sunshine and views of Ketchikan. We were back on the ship at 3.15pm and after dropping our gear in the cabin went up to the Sun Deck to make the most of the beautiful weather. Ketchikan was sparkling in the bright sunshine. We departed Ketchikan at 5.00pm and we had a very scenic sailaway. The scenery was gorgeous as we sailed in the late afternoon sunshine. Dinner was in the Michaelangelo Dining Room and we still had lovely views while eating our dinner. Clocks were put forward one hour that night.

Saturday June 10 - Ketchikan Part 2 Our destination was the Deer Mountain Trailhead which is on Ketchikan Lakes Road on the right just past the intersection of Nordstrom Drive. The walk up Ketchikan Lakes Road from Deermount Street (where the Totem Heritage Center is) was quite steep but we were on a paved footpath. The car park for the trailhead was easy to find. We got to the trailhead at 10.30am and started making our way upwards. I had read that the trail was well maintained but if this trail is well maintained I would hate to see a poorly maintained trail. The trail started off fine but soon the trail was pretty rough with washouts, trees had fallen and taken part of the trail away and generally in poor shape. In some places we had to scramble and climb up where the trail stairs were missing. However the forest was beautiful with ferns lining the trail and magnificent trees. We found it interesting that the huge trees that had fallen over had very shallow root systems for the size of the trees. A short time after we had started walking two young men passed us, one with a snow board and one with skis, attached to their backpacks. When we asked what they were going to do they told us that it was their one day off work and they were going to walk up the trail for two and a half hours and then go skiing and snowboarding in the snow at the top of the trail before walking for two hours back. Oh, the joy of being young and energetic! After a fairly strenuous (for us) walk of one and a half hours, with plenty of photo taking, we got to the Mile One viewpoint at 12.00pm. We had walked one mile and gained 1500 feet in elevation. The view was stunning! We took photos and then sat down for a snack and to enjoy the view. A short time later we were joined by a couple who were also from Crown Princess. Another couple on their way down the trail told us that it was possible to get to the next viewpoint but from there on the trail was under snow. We decided not to go any further as we still wanted to walk around Ketchikan and to be honest we were a bit tired from the walk up. It took an hour and ten minutes to walk down and we had to be very careful where we placed our feet, making sure to not twist an ankle. We only saw about twenty people on the trail and the younger ones were much quicker than us going up and down but I don't think we did too bad for an "older" couple.

Saturday June 10 - Ketchikan Weather Forecast - Clear, High 63°F/17°C, Low 52°F/11°C We sailed into Ketchikan at 7.00am and docked at dock number 3. At 7.30 the captain announced that we were able to get off the ship. In port with us was Silver Whisper and Disney Wonder joined us later in the day. The views from the ship were beautiful. Ketchikan looked lovely in the morning sunshine. At 9.00am we left the ship and walked to Creek Street where we walked past Dolly's House and the colourful buildings to the Yeltatzie Salmon sculpture. It was a beautiful day and the colours of the buildings were bright in the sunshine. We walked up to the Salmon Ladder and then continued walking along the river.

Thank you! Sapphire is my favourite Princess ship so you should have a wonderful cruise. Pleased that you like the photos. 😊

Thanks for reading. Hope you have a great cruise! 🛳️

What time of year will you be going? I will be spending four nights in Istanbul in June 2024 before going on a 7 day Celebrity Infinity cruise to the Greek Islands out of Athens and then a 10 day Celebrity Constellation cruise of Italy and Croatia out of Rome (Civitavecchia). We will also be staying in the Sultanahmet area. Allison

Friday June 9 - Sea Day We had not purchased any type of package for this cruise so on this sea day I decided to buy one day of internet just to check on emails and family. It cost USD10.00 with my 50% Platinum discount which I thought was reasonable. I went to the Internet Cafe and it took just a couple of minutes to set up. We did very little throughout the day other than relaxing, reading and eating. Since I didn't do much I'll show you some more photos of the ship that I took in Vancouver. Movies Under the Stars Star Deck Skywalkers Sabatinis Adagio Bar And a couple from around the ship. That evening we used our free specialty dinner that we had got through a promo when booking the cruise. We chose to go to Sabatinis and had a lovely meal and ate far too much of the lovely food. The Captain's Circle Cocktail Party was on at Club Fusion at 7.00pm but we were unable to go as we were at Sabatinis.

Oops, I meant the information relating to Crew Appreciation on the Australian site. 😊

I was on the Crown Princess for the June 2 cruise and the ship was in great condition except for our mattresses (in E631), which were terrible and needed to be replaced. Despite this I would happily sail on Crown again.

This is the information relating to Crew Information on the Australian site. I always thought that the reason we (in Australia) pay more for cruises out of Australia was because crew appreciation is included in our fare and that anyone else, from outside of Australia, still had to pay crew appreciation unless they have a package. However from the link you have posted, which is the same as I get in Australia, that does not seem to be the case.

These are the prices in Australia in AUD for the packages which do not include crew appreciation. AUD65.00 converts to about USD44.00 and AUD95.00 converts to about USD65.00 to account for not having crew appreciation.

Were the bears close? I was just glad we saw one as there are no guarantees to see any wildlife. Glad you enjoyed your tour.

Sadly just the one bear, way in the distance. Fortunately the scenery was lovely and we enjoyed being in the nature.

Thursday June 8 - Icy Strait Point Part 4 At 5.00pm we sailed away, cruising past lovely scenery. We had dinner at the Michaelangelo Dining Room and we had the enormous pleasure of seeing whales from the window as we were dining. After dinner we spent some time on the Promenade and Sun Deck enjoying the beautiful scenery and gorgeous sunset.

Thursday June 8 - Icy Strait Point Part 3 We chose to walk to Hoonah on a paved footpath around the shoreline which took us about 45 minutes including a stop to have a snack and take photos. The distance is one and a quarter miles each way. Along the way I got some photos of this little fellow. We stopped at the supermarket to see the very expensive prices. A 12 pack of coke cans which had cost us CAD6.79 in Vancouver was USD19.99. In Hoonah we watched a totem pole being carved. There were a couple of churches, a marina, a few gift stores, a couple of bars and a small aquarium to see. It was the most "genuine" town we visited on the cruise. We started our walk back at 1.30pm and walked back through the "tunnel", an area of the coastline that used to be a tunnel between Icy Strait Point and Hoonah until they had to blast it open to widen the road, towards Icy Strait Point. Just after we walked through the "tunnel" we could see a couple of whales in the bay. We sat down and watched the whales frolicking for quite a while. A couple of times they came right out of the water but of course I didn't get a photo. This is a terrible photos as the whales were quite a distance away. When we got to Ocean Landing we went into the old Cannery which has lots of gift ware for sale as well as a display about the Cannery. There is also a donut shop, restaurants and restrooms. At 3.00pm we got the free Green Gondola to the Wilderness Landing and went back to the ship.

Thursday June 8 - Icy Strait Point Part 2 After ten minutes we walked for five minutes through the rainforest to a second platform. Once again the scenery was lovely but no bears. We spent ten minutes there enjoying the view and all looking for some movement but had no luck. We walked for another five minutes to platform three. More lovely scenery and everyone looking intently for an elusive bear. After ten minutes and just as we were about to leave someone with binoculars called out "look a bear!" Way in the distance we could see a small brown dot moving through an open grassed area of the river plain. Those of us who had binoculars or cameras with good zoom lenses were trying to describe to others where the bear was and there was a collective excitement. I was so glad that I had taken my good camera with a reasonable zoom lense so that I could see the bear clearly. Occasionally the bear would disappear from view into a creek bed but then he would reappear a short distance away. The bear may have been a long way away in the distance but it was still exciting to see it. This is the bear. Sorry the photo is a bit fuzzy but I had to use my full zoom to get a photo. Our guide said to us that only because we had actually seen a bear she would admit that we were the first group to see a bear in days. The walk took approximately one hour and we had four stops of about ten minutes each time. At the pickup point there were also two portable restrooms. The drive back to Ocean Landing and Cannery area took 40 minutes and we arrived back at 12.00pm. From there you could walk to the free Green Gondola to go back to the ship, enjoy the Cannery area, get the shuttle bus to Hoonah which cost USD5.00 or walk to Hoonah.

Thursday June 8 - Icy Point Strait Weather Forecast - 60% Chance of Rain, High 62°F/17°C, Low 45°F/7°C We arrived at Icy Strait Point at 7.00am and docked at the Wilderness Landing which is close to the Skyglider Gondola. Norwegian Sun was docked at Ocean Landing which is close to the Cannery area. There is a free Green Gondola that travels between the Wilderness and Ocean Landings or there is a path between them. We left the ship at 8.45 and had a walk around the Wilderness Landing where there is a tourist information desk, restrooms, a gift store, the Skyglider (Red Gondola) that costs USD49.95 + tax and you use to go up to the Zipline, the free Green Gondola and the Departure Den where the shore excursions met. At 9.15am we went to the Departure Den which is basically a large shed which had a desk to buy tickets for the Skyglider, a desk for those checking in to do the Zipline and an area for shore excursions to meet. While waiting I asked the person at the Zipline desk how much it cost to go on the Zipline but he told me that he was unable to give me a price as the tourist information desk sold the tickets and the price depended on which cruise ship you were on. At 9.30 our tour "Remote Wildlife and Brown Bear Search" loaded onto a small 24 passenger bus. We drove for 40 minutes through Hoonah and through a logging area into the countryside. When we got off the bus there were two portable restrooms. Our tour guide was Shelley and we also had a security man with a gun to protect us from bears. We were given instructions of what to do in case a bear came too close to us and to also not step off the boardwalk particularly when we were in the muskeg. Muskeg is an area where the ground is very spongy and waterladen with sinkholes throughout that is a bit like quicksand that can swallow a person. We walked for about five minutes along a boardwalk through the muskeg. The area was lovely and very tranquil. The trees were stunted due to the excess water and size is irrelevant to the age of the trees. We stopped at a platform for about ten minutes to take in our surroundings. We then walked about five minutes to a platform overlooking the Spasski Valley River. It was just beautiful but no bears to be seen.