Paula_MacFan

We have an Alaska cruisetour booked for next month and in addition to posts here on CC (both this Princess forum and the Alaska forum) we found this Princess page helpful: https://www.princess.com/en-us/faq/cruisetours This page compares all the different cruisetour options in chart form: https://www.princess.com/learn/cruise-destinations/alaska-cruises/cruisetour-options/cruisetour-finder/ The attached Princess Alaska PDF also has good info. alaska-cruisetours-overview-what-to-expect.pdf.coredownload.inline.pdf

I just did a search using Google Chrome and it looked the same as usual to me.

Ours changed too with the exact same times (we're on Sapphire June 1) and we got a Booking Notice email from Princess a couple days ago on 4/17. It didn't explicitly say 'hey here's a change in the itinerary' but I looked it over and compared it to our prior documentation and noticed the change. I was actually very happy to arrive earlier in Skagway as we have a Jeep rented and with 3 other ships in port arriving at the same time we were hoping to beat the crowd. Now we should be able to with no problems. And the Glacier Bay time change was only about an hour shorter, so that doesn't bother us too much. Especially given that other sailings have times of 6am - 3pm or whatever -- I'd much rather have our time of 9 - 6 🙂

I just looked at our excursions after your post. We booked Hubbard Glacier for $299 and it's now $475! Others have increased as well, but none as much as that. It pays to book early.

Here's the one we got in February 2024.

We missed a port in January on the Regal. We've had this happen before as well and have always received a credit to our onboard folio. I would recommend double checking your final statement to verify you didn't get credit while onboard. If at the end of your cruise you have a credit balance in your account, they will mail you a check. If it's been 2 months you probably should have received a check by now for any credit balance you had on onboard.

One of our favorite features of the app is the ability to check our folio any time, without having to go to Guest Services. We check it frequently during cruises and take a screen shot on the last day. On our last cruise we got our folio emailed very promptly as well.

Edit to say I just saw your subsequent post about your flight leaving at 5:30 🙂 Sorry!

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We considered using the Princess transfer from Southampton to LHR last fall, but the excursion notes said it was for passengers with international flights leaving after 4:30pm, and our flight left before that so we just took the regular Princess transfer without the Stonehenge stop. If you can see the transfer in your Personalizer you might check the notes and see what the flight cutoff times are for your specific cruise. When I look at the general excursions listed on the Princess website it shows a flight cutoff time of 5:45pm (see attached screen shot). Since the transfer didn't work for us after the cruise, we instead used International Friends transfer with Stonehenge tour at the beginning of the cruise. I know the OP didn't ask about pre-cruise transfers, but we would highly recommend International Friends in general for any transfer or tour.

Since it's your first cruise I recommend reviewing Princess' general FAQs here https://www.princess.com/en-us/faq For an overview of the Princess Plus package benefits see https://www.princess.com/en-us/cruise-deals-promotions/plus-premier-cruise-packages For specifics see Princess Plus Terms and Conditions https://www.princess.com/en-us/cruise-deals-promotions/plus-premier-cruise-packages/terms-and-conditions

Same here! I just checked ours and we are aft as well and it shows Crooners. We usually get an aft cabin and have never had muster in Crooners. It's usually the Vista or whatever rear lounge is on the particular ship.

I was going to post something similar -- that if you're going strictly off spreadsheet math, no one would ever book a balcony, mini-suite, or suite! Cruising in general is a luxury with various options for every budget. I don't know why so many people get their knickers in a twist over the packages and not room categories. We don't have endless threads debating the cost/benefit analysis of inside rooms vs suites. Everyone needs to do the math on the entire cruise and see what works for them 🙂 For us that means balcony or better room every cruise and Plus package. Those options fit our cruising style.

I wondered about the photographer too because it's not listed as part of the package anymore on the Princess website. When they raised the price of specialty dining with the additional service charge, I was comparing overall pricing for 2 specialty dinners vs getting Ultimate Balcony Dining. I still think UBD seems to be a a good value, but would be even better if it still included the photos and other perks.

See this lengthy thread for more information 🙂

Here is the cruise ship schedule so you can see exactly where you'll be docked. It looks like the Majestic typically docks at the Alaska Steam Dock, but you can check your specific date. https://claalaska.com/?page_id=1551 Several years ago we rented a car in Juneau from Avis. They have a seasonal office that is under a mile from the cruise docks (see Google maps for specifics). We were happy with the car, the price, and the walk to pick it up was fine. The only caveat I'd offer for this year is demand seems to be very high for Alaska cruises and as such, prices for everything seems to be at a premium. I wouldn't wait long to investigate a car rental or any other excursion choices 🙂

I agree with the advice you've gotten already -- layers and light jacket vs a heavy winter coat. I would bring a head covering of some sort and gloves just in case -- they don't take up much room and better safe than sorry 🙂 I also wanted to chime in that temperature and comfort is such a personal issue. We were on a Caribbean cruise in January and coming from our home where temps were in the teens, the local and ship temps felt wonderful! But we saw people walking around the ship, even on the dance floor, in full winter/puffer coats, and some walking around wrapped up in blankets! Meanwhile we were in shorts and t-shirts. Since you're from a colder climate it probably won't seem that cold to you. Our last Alaska cruise was in May and we hardly wore hat and gloves, only on Glacier Bay day. The rest of the time we wore layers with light jackets and were quite comfortable. We are also going the same time frame as you this year -- our cruisetour land portion is the last week of May and the cruise portion is the first week of June. I've already got the packing list made and can't wait to go!

The last time we were on an Alaskan cruise we spent most of the Glacier Bay NP day on our balcony and loved it. We had an aft cabin on the lowest deck, close to the water line. We could hear the ice popping in the water, and see birds and other animals in the water fairly closely. We were able to pop in and out of our room for drinks, jackets, binoculars, cameras, etc as needed. We could hear the ranger narration just fine by slightly leaving our door ajar (I realize for climate control purposes on a ship that is discouraged, but I suspect on scenic cruising days it's normal for short times). Once we went to the top deck because we'd heard 'you have to go to the open decks to enjoy anything'. The open areas were packed with people, it was hard to see anything, and it was SO NOISY with people talking. We couldn't hear any of the nature sounds up there as we had from our balcony. We stayed up there for less than 30 minutes and retreated back to our balcony 🙂 We did visit the ranger station onboard early in the morning and picked up some printed materials. We have another aft balcony booked for next month and can't wait. It's a very secluded and fully covered balcony so we shouldn't have any wind issues. Different strokes for different folks when it comes to cabin choice and cruising style.

We always do self-disembark and carry off our own luggage. You can select that option if you don't want to put your luggage out the night before. We only did that once on our very first cruise and then we said 'never again'. Just in case you want another option 🙂

We are there the same day but on a Princess tour 🙂

We have the Tundra Wilderness Tour booked for 5/28. The NPS website has posted these dates for 2024:

Same here -- when we drive to port we take lots of extras. Unfortunately we can't drive to Fairbanks so off to the airport we go 😀

Maybe I misunderstood the OPs question but I took it to mean 'can I get by with one suitcase for the cruisetour vs two'. Maybe the mention of 'carryon' is the term that is confusing people but I took it to mean one suitcase for the land and cruise, not two separate suitcases. At any rate, we are doing a cruisetour next month as well and plan on only taking one suitcase each for the whole trip, in addition to the 'day bag' as noted above (under 17"). We aren't participating in formal nights onboard so there's no reason to send ahead a separate suitcase for the ship. We plan to pack carefully and do laundry along the way as needed. Apologies if I misunderstood the question.

I just logged into Princess to check my own excursions and this banner is on the website. I've never seen it before -- Princess is being pretty blatant now about raising prices later onboard! 😮

From the home screen click on the 'All Set' button, then you'll see the 'Complete Required Check-In Steps'; scroll all the way to the bottom of this screen and you'll see the 'Add a Celebration' option. See attached screen shots.