Princess to Canada questions

[alwalaska]

• Any idea when we can expect to see the 2013 Canada/New England itineraries?
  
• Is there a preferred side for a balcony? Or should we splurge and go aft. We've never had a balcony before.
  
• I know weather changes year to year, but what are typically the best weeks to see the colors?
  
• With the new smoking policies, will most of the lounges have both smoking and non-smoking sections still? I haven't sailed Princess since 2006.
  
• Any other hints I need before booking? Once its booked I will have plenty more questions I am sure. :D
  

Thanks in advance for any and all help.

[Kamloops50]

I would expect to see 2013/2014 cruises to come on the market

in Mar 2012.:cool: I'm waiting for waiting for the fall/winter or 2013/14.

[Pam in CA]

Itineraries are released in March or April. Keep checking either on the Princess website or here; someone is bound to post something.

 

The best weeks for fall foliage are the first two weeks of October. Color will be just starting in New York, be approaching peak in the Boston/Maine region, and peak further north. This can vary by a week or more, depending on the fall weather: rain and temperature.

 

Smoking hasn't been allowed in inside lounges or public areas on Princess in several years except for the cigar bar on some Princess ships. It's also allowed in the casino although there are some non-smoking nights. Smoking is allowed on one side of the ship on Lido deck (I think the port side) and outside on Promenade deck.

[Coral]

I would also expect March/April time frame for release of itineraries.

 

Balcony - if you are doing the one way (Quebec to NYC or reverse) - people generally like land side. If RT NYC - it doesn't matter. Ironically - this is not an itinerary that really needs a balcony. If you are doing a one way - there is a sea day where you will see colors (or trees with out colors) outside of Quebec (St. Laurence River - sp?) but otherwise, you are in port most days and sail at night and the ship goes far enough out that you won't see much from the ship as far as colors. While we have had mini suites both trips - we could easily have done with out the balcony- we just wanted the extra room in the mini suite.

 

Colors - it depends if you are doing one way or round trip. Quebec City will change before NYC for example. It is also a crap shoot but I would aim for Columbus Day and after. We left October 15th one year (RT NYC) and we were too early for colors. Two years later we left around October 23rd (ish) from Quebec City and had snow! We were too late for colors until we got to Boston and in Boston (October 31st) - we were perfect (best peak day) and then we sailed to FLL and we were too early for the rest of the trip (anything below Boston). New England individuals often say Columbus Day is usually a good bet but that would not have been true for my 2 trips. Also - inland seems to get better colors it seems. I followed foliage reports for several years and determined Oct 15 is a good time frame. You can look at this website: http://www.foliagenetwork.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=section&id=6&Itemid=53 and look at previous years and maps. Good luck.

[alwalaska]

Thank you all for the wonderful information.

 

Coral, thank you for the information about not needing the balcony. This would make the cruise much easier for us to afford. I really missed not having a balcony on our Alaska cruise. I thought this would be the same.

 

Hmmm, lots to think about before pricing comes out in March.

[Talisker92]

We had mini suites , but dropped down to a balcony cabin. The differences are the sofa, second TV and tub. The difference in price helped pay for shore excursions.

We just did the Canada and New England cruise with a balcony and enjoyed it.

If you would like to read our trip story, e-mail me at highlandpark"at mindspring.com and I will send it to you. I cannot post it because of all the pictures.

[Travelw]

We did the Canada / New England cruise this past fall. We had a balcony on the port side of the ship. It seemed that the starboard side of the ship had better views of the ports.

 

Dennis