Sapphire Alaska 5/16

[ATG]

We just returned from the 5/16 Alaska sailing and I wanted to give you my comments. We are diamond on RC and this is our first Princess cruise for many years. Our group was myself, my DH and our 2 sons (25 & 23). We had a suite (C757) and a nearby inside.

 

Cabins - The inside was similar to any other inside. I was a little disappointed in the size of the suite. Compared to a GS on an RC ship, it was small. But, it was laid out well. And the balcony (aft) was very nice with 2 loungers, a table and 3 chairs. Since the scenery was the reason to visit Alaska, we spent quite a lot of time on the balcony. They even provided nice plaid blanklets for use on the balcony.

 

Food - Always a matter of opinion, but we thought the food was substantially better than the food we had on Freedom in February. I always found several things that sounded good. The fajitas in Santa Fe were very good. Steaks were cooked as ordered and the fish was good. The pizza and burgers on 14 were better than I expected. Horizon Court is not laid out well. It is so crowded that people just form a long line and follow each other through the whole thing. The food was fine - just the layout. One morning there was a long wait for more eggs. There was nobody to ask in sight - and when they finally came, they were cool. That was probably the only food issue of the cruise. We ate many lunches and breakfasts in the dining room. All in all, Princess wins the food contest.

 

Ship- very nice. I did see some worn spots in the carpet, but clean and well maintained. Once you get the idea that the aft stairs cannot get you past the galley on 6, it makes sense. We rarely had to wait for elevators.

 

Misc - I LOVED the lack of announcements. I really don't need to hear about the art auction and bingo over and over.

Embarcation in Seattle was a mess, but that was Seattle - not Princess. It was the same at the HAL ship next to us. Debarcation was not too bad. We did EZCheck and it was easy. The ship was late clearing customs, but we were at the airport by 10:00.

 

Alaska - we were very fortunate to have great weather. We did not wear our coats at all and were in short sleeves one day. We enjoyed all the ports and got to see quite a bit of wildlife. Including a bear eating dandelions by the side of the road.

 

We discussed the differences in the cruise lines and decided that if there was a Princess ship on an itinerary we liked, we would not heitate to sail her.

 

I will be happy to answer any questions.

[MetathoraX]

Great review. We leave in 6 days

[mkkao924]

Hi,

 

I am glad you enjoyed your Alaska trip.

 

We will be sailing on Sapphire this coming Sunday, so I am really excited to get some first hand information from you.

 

My questions are related to the clothes to pack, when you were at Tracy Arm, do you have to wear scarf/gloves? What's the temperature like there? How's the weather at port?

 

Thanks!

[ATG]

We had remarkably warm weather. But, I don't think you can count on it. Sailing through Tracy Arm, we had on sweatshirts and were on our balcony with the nice blankets. I don't know if being an aft there was less breeze - but there was not much wind. We did not use the hats and gloves we brought. But, in every port, the guides talked about the amazing weather - how warm and sunny it was.

[roudy1]

Thanks for sharing...we will be on Sapphire in September and our first Princess cruise. Wonder if the mess at embarkation is due to the terminal being new?

[Woobstr112G]

Thanks for taking the time to post your thoughts.....:):):)

 

Bob

[GigemAggies]

I'm curious why (especially if there were problems) you ate breakfast in the Horizon Court. Since you were in a full suite why didn't you have breakfast at Sabatinis? We leave in 11 days on the Diamond and based on everything I've read on these boards, we were planning on taking advantage of having a suite and having breakfast at Sabatinis. Are there drawbacks we don't know about?

[roudy1]

I'm curious why (especially if there were problems) you ate breakfast in the Horizon Court. Since you were in a full suite why didn't you have breakfast at Sabatinis? We leave in 11 days on the Diamond and based on everything I've read on these boards, we were planning on taking advantage of having a suite and having breakfast at Sabatinis. Are there drawbacks we don't know about?

 

Are Mini-suites included in Sabatinis for breakfast?

[GigemAggies]

No mini-suites are not included. Only full suites. I learned that on these boards. :)

[kayzmarie]

Was the main dining room open for lunch on embarcation day or just the Horizon Court? Thanks...

[ATG]

We had breakfast in HC one morning before an early excursion. We did have breakfast in Sabatinis one morning. It was very nice, but not much different than main DR (except for mimosas). Since I don't drink much alcohol, it did not make a big impression on me. We were able to get whatever food choices we wanted in the MDR. Our sons were not in the suite, so they could not join us in Sabatinis.

 

It was easy to get a table for 4 in the MDR and service there was very good. Maybe not as good as Sabatinis - but very good.

[ATG]

We did not board until about 1:30. Since it was later, we went to HC. One thing I really did like was that the silverware was on the table - you did not have to juggle it along with your plate. Service at the tables was good - we never had to wait long for drinks. Also, I liked the seating being in smaller areas. And there were staff to help you find a table.

[lovevacadays]

Thanks for the review and nice to hear you enjoyed your first Princess experience. The Sapphire is a nice ship.

[Chesie]

Glad you enjoyed the Sapphire. We were on her in May for the first time and really enjoyed our cruise to the MR.

[geoherb]

Thanks for posting the nice review. We are going on the Sapphire in August.

[highheel girl]

Thanks for the review.

[SeattleCruiselover]

Thanks for sharing...we will be on Sapphire in September and our first Princess cruise. Wonder if the mess at embarkation is due to the terminal being new?

 

Terminal is not new any more, they have had a year to get the newbie bugs out. It is just the miserably poor infrastructure, about which the Port of Seattle gave nary a thought before they built it.

[willyguy]

Thank you for all of the information.

[annewithane]

How was embarking messy? What time did you get there? We sail the Sapphire on Sunday with a group of 15 and have never been on a cruise.

Thank you for your helpful information,

[Scotto97]

In regards to the overall food quality, our impression has been similar - Princess has better food and service quality in the MDR, while RCI's buffet is much better (As is Carnival's I might add).

 

As Princess tends to attract a slightly more mature and traditional crowd, perhaps they place more effort into maintaining a great dining room experience.

 

That said, we've enjoyed all 3 - beats a day at the office anytime!

[discus220]

My wife and I were on the Sapphire for the May 16th sailing to Alaska and it was wonderful! I have cruised on the Caribbean, Star and Crown prior to my sailing and was a little nervous with everyone talking about the Sapphire wearing and beginning to show her age. Well, let me tell you that you need not worry. She looks great for a ship with such high mileage under her belt. Besides a few little cosmetic dings and a few random carpet snags she looks just as fabulous as the newer Princess vessels. The original poster was spot on with his critique of the Horizon Court- bad layout that does lead to long lines developing around peak dining times- although I just ordered room service and enjoyed my balcony if I did get hungry between 8-10am or noon-2pm. Room service was prompt and the burgers/dogs tasted fresh from the grill, I often entertained friends for late night card games with coffee, tea cookies/tarts that were always delicious, chili with tortilla chips was good, lasagna was so/so and the room service pizza is SURPRISINGLY tasty. I went ahead and ordered pizza our last night and it turned out to be great “emergency” food as the ship got hung up with customs during disembarkation. I had room service bring pastries, croissants w/honey, fresh fruit, yogurt, coffee and tea for me and friends for breakfast on our sea days to avoid the non-stop Horizon crush that seemed to last most of the day when we were not visiting a port.

Our room attendant (John) was fantastic- knew all six of my party member’s names upon embarkation and kept our busy rooms looking immaculate. We stayed in D231 (mini-suite) and the size, space, layout and balcony were all very comfortable. On my last cruise I was fortunate enough to have stayed in the Owner’s Suite on the Crown as was worried that my return to “normalcy” was going to be a tough transition. Not so. The mini-suite meshed the best of the full-suite – shower and tub combo, seating area with coffee table for friends, with the economy and convenience that balcony and oceanview rooms present. I did miss the ability to order in dining room meals via room service, but as I mentioned earlier, the basic room service menu did not disappoint.

This was the first Princess ship I sailed on that didn’t have MUTS, but honestly, I hardly missed it. Sapphire Princess had so much going on with shows, movies, trivia, games, presentations, and the Alaska itinerary itself keeps you glued to your balcony, windows or upper decks looking for whales or enjoying the amazing scenery; now that I think about it, I really can’t think of a day that I would have made my way up to enjoy MUTS anyway. Decks and pools were used sparingly and loungers and hot tubs were always available. Prego (deck) pizza is AMAZING and the ice cream stand was a welcome treat after a long shore excursion or after fighting crowds in Horizon.

Long story short- the itinerary from Seattle was great (wish we had a few more hours in Victoria), Sapphire was beautiful and Alaska was jaw-dropping. I think I hit the jackpot with my shore excursions- Ketchikan – Misty Fjords and Wilderness Explorer- saw whales, deer, eagles, seals, Fjords (wow) and crew/staff were great, Juneau- Mendenhal glacier was breathtaking, Skagway- White Pass Rail is a must!

[ATG]

I agree with everything said. We did not order room service - but probably should have tried it.

 

One thing I meant to mention was the beds. We had read all about how hard they were and I like a soft bed. We faxed the eggcrate request and they were there when we boarded. I found the bed firm, but not bad.

 

I agree that there was not a time I would have done MUTS. We did watch several movies on the TV in the room since we could look out the windows and see the scenary at the same time.

 

I did miss the Promenade Cafe on RC ships. That's a good place to grab a bite and watch the crowds. But, all in all it was great. We got a coffee card, but didn't think it was worth it. I had a few mochas and my son had expressos. The regular coffee was OK - not great but not bad.

[unboringuy]

Terminal is not new any more, they have had a year to get the newbie bugs out. It is just the miserably poor infrastructure, about which the Port of Seattle gave nary a thought before they built it.

 

Yep. The pier over by Pike Place Market is much better. I believe NCL and Celebrity use that one.

[Coral]

Glad you enjoyed Princess and Alaska!

 

I agree about the Horizon Court - though after awhile, you get used to it. It is nice that it is open all the time vs on RCCL (which had a better layout), it was closed for a few hours here and there.

[Amcdon]

Thanks for the reviews. I'll be on the Sapphire on July 25th and I can't wait!!!