Coral, Island, or Star Princess to Alaska

[CruisingCoral]

Hi everyone! I am planning on taking a cruise to Alaska this summer. We have cruised to Alaska three times-twice on Princess and once on Holland America. We have narrowed it down to the Southbound Route and the ship choices are the Coral, Island, and Star Princess. Which ship would you recommend for Alaska? I have sailed both the Island and Coral to Alaska and love them but I never sailed on the Star which would be a new class of ship for me. We have only sailed on the Island (2007) and Coral (2014). Any recommendations are appreciated!

[Colo Cruiser]

Hi everyone! I am planning on taking a cruise to Alaska this summer. We have cruised to Alaska three times-twice on Princess and once on Holland America. We have narrowed it down to the Southbound Route and the ship choices are the Coral, Island, and Star Princess. Which ship would you recommend for Alaska? I have sailed both the Island and Coral to Alaska and love them but I never sailed on the Star which would be a new class of ship for me. We have only sailed on the Island (2007) and Coral (2014). Any recommendations are appreciated!

 

 

Due to the major structural changes to the Island I would pick

 

1) Coral

2) Star

3) Island (loss of all but 1 aft viewing areas/loss of a show lounge/addition of 200 plus passengers and no additional dining or entertainment areas.)

Edited January 10, 2016 by Colo Cruiser

[Coral]

1. Coral

2. Star

3. Island

[Thrak]

1. Coral

2. Star

3. Island

 

Brought to you by The Department of Redundancy Department

[cr8tiv1]

Coral...is there really a choice here?

 

There are so many threads about which ship to take in Alaska. Coral always wins out.

Edited January 10, 2016 by cr8tiv1

[Steelers0854]

DW and I went to Alaska on the Star and thought it was a great ship. We have never sailed on the Coral or Island so I cannot give you a comparison but the ship was in good condition and had a great covered section at the front of the ship that was great to see the surroundings from, especially on our cruise where it rained during Glacier Bay.

 

I think the more important decision IMHO, is getting Glacier Bay vs Tracey Arm etc.

[shredie]

Coral...is there really a choice here?

 

There are so many threads about which ship to take in Alaska. Coral always wins out.

 

Yes, question is asked all the time, and the answer is always the same. I would take the Coral over any other ship if I had the choice regardless of itinerary.

[OCruisers]

Coral would absolutely be our choice! :)

[CruisingCoral]

Thanks everyone for your feedback! I loved the Coral when we sailed on her and I'm so sad that they "destroyed" the Island with that refit. I've been wanting to try the Star but I wasn't sure if people would choose it over the Coral.

[Coveguy4]

Agree with everyone else, Coral first choice, but Star would be ok too. Would not sail on the Island unless no other ship was available during times I could go.

[Alaskanb]

Sailed on Island Princess in 2012 and loved it. Then we were on the Emerald in the Baltic and really enjoyed "her" especially the aft Emerald deck mini suites. We have sailed on "Grand" class ships ever since --so it's the Star for us. My favorite ship is the Diamond with the Japanese baths :) I'm sure we would enjoy the Coral also as she is a twin to the 2102 Island.

[UpcountryTravelers]

Star Princess we love.... she was our first Princess ship and the reason we fell in love with Princess. HOWEVER: Coral is a MUCH better ship for the Alaska experience. We've done it twice on Coral and can highly recommend her.

[cr8tiv1]

Sailed on Island Princess in 2012 and loved it. Then we were on the Emerald in the Baltic and really enjoyed "her" especially the aft Emerald deck mini suites. We have sailed on "Grand" class ships ever since --so it's the Star for us. My favorite ship is the Diamond with the Japanese baths :) I'm sure we would enjoy the Coral also as she is a twin to the 2102 Island.

 

You sailed the Island before they butchered her. Nothing like the Coral now. And with all the refit...they left out the International Cafe. I am choosing never to cruise on the Island unless there was a fantastic deal. Coral is still my favorite.

[Jetswdo]

If you want to enjoy an adult enclosed pool while enjoying the scenery, don't book the Coral. We just got off the partial Panama Canal cruise and were very disappointed with the beautiful Lotus Pool area. For Alaska, we had thoroughly enjoyed our time in that area in a hot tub while going through Glacier Park--

Our plan was if we really like the Coral, to use that ship for Alaska. Well, we will give our business to Celebrity Solstice as the Lotus Pool became the deal breaker. When we were at the pool during the one sea day that it was available- (pools closed on a lot of the sea days due to very rocky ocean)--

a man was bouncing his diaper clad baby in the pool, two children were playing around in pool unsupervised. We complained (politely) to management, was told "crew member made a mistake" BUT children are allowed in the pool area if supervised by parents. (yeah right)---

Also if you wish a table for 2 only, it is a pain in the neck in anytime dining, very few of those available. For that ship, if we were to sail again on it we would be forced to do traditional dining because of that. What a shame, as I really liked the ship itself. But we are planning to do Alaska again but will give Celebrity our business so that we can enjoy their really adult at no extra charge adult enclosed pool area (not as nice as Princess Lotus Pool) and have plenty of restaurant choices with tables for two----

[momto3gr8boys]

I pulled up this thread in a search. I am in the process of choosing which ship for our 2017 Alaska cruise and have the same three choices as the OP. I see the Coral is the clear choice with the exception of one comment. We did an Alaskan cruise on the Star in 2009 and were happy. What are the differences with the Coral that have so many people favoring that ship over the Star?

 

We will have our three boys with us (ages 21, 19 and 16 at the time). When we did this cruise last time they enjoyed the kids programming, but now they would be happy with a pool they could use if it's cool (does the Coral have a covered pool the way the Star does?) and a basketball court. Also, last time we had a balcony and inside room across the hall. This time I am planning on two balcony cabins next to each other. Can the divider be removed on the balcony?

 

And I am pretty sure I have this right, but let me double check - if we are traveling southbound (Whittier to Vancouver) I want to book rooms on the port (left) side of the ship, correct?

 

Thanks for any advice!

[rebeccalouiseagain]

I've been to Alaska 8 times now (4 times on Princess). Last June we did the Star Princess and I LOVED it. I love the movies under the stars, the indoor pool, and most importantly College Fjords. IMO College Fjords is more magnificent than Glacier Bay. Unfortunately it doesn't look like you can do the Fjords if you do the Southbound itinerary though.

 

I've never sailed on Coral so can't comment. But the itinerary IMO is more important than the ship.

Edited April 27, 2016 by rebeccalouiseagain

[Thrak]

I pulled up this thread in a search. I am in the process of choosing which ship for our 2017 Alaska cruise and have the same three choices as the OP. I see the Coral is the clear choice with the exception of one comment. We did an Alaskan cruise on the Star in 2009 and were happy. What are the differences with the Coral that have so many people favoring that ship over the Star?

 

We will have our three boys with us (ages 21, 19 and 16 at the time). When we did this cruise last time they enjoyed the kids programming, but now they would be happy with a pool they could use if it's cool (does the Coral have a covered pool the way the Star does?) and a basketball court. Also, last time we had a balcony and inside room across the hall. This time I am planning on two balcony cabins next to each other. Can the divider be removed on the balcony?

 

And I am pretty sure I have this right, but let me double check - if we are traveling southbound (Whittier to Vancouver) I want to book rooms on the port (left) side of the ship, correct?

 

Thanks for any advice!

 

I'd have to say I enjoyed the forward and aft observation decks on Coral and I also enjoyed the Universe Lounge and the show On The Bayou on Coral. You won't have those items on Star. On the other hand, you will have Skywalker's on Star but I've never really enjoyed that venue much. I always found it too cold during the day for reading or relaxing there and, at night, it's way too loud for me and I don't enjoy the music they play at all.

 

Having sailed both ships I will say I enjoyed them both but would pick Coral over Star. I just seemed to "like" it better. Oh, I also enjoyed Alfredo's for lunch on Coral and it wasn't available on Star.

 

I'm not a highly experienced cruiser but I have done a 10 day and a 15 day on Star and a 17 day on Coral so I feel I've given each of them a fair try for comparison.

[momto3gr8boys]

Thanks for the replies! I noticed that the deck plan is changing after February 2017. Is the Coral scheduled for dry dock? Anyone know what they are changing? As far as I can tell on the deck plans the only thing that seems different is that they are taking away the lower Universe lounge and adding a fitness studio. I'm just wondering if they are going to make changes like they did to the Island that seems to have upset people.

[eandj]

Whet is the Universe Lounge used for?

[peety3]

Coral just has a certain feel to it. The "lower central core" is a bit easier to get lost in, but things are more accessible, including both MDRs. Can't get to either MDR (or the lower central core) directly from the forward lifts like other ships (forward lifts only go down to 7, then walk aft to midship and proceed down to 6/5 from there), but otherwise it just seemed "better". For Alaska, it's nice to have Horizon Court forward; go camp out and (if you don't mind looking through blue windows) just enjoy the view going by.

 

I concur with the general consensus here: I'd pick Coral first, then Ruby or any of her true sisters (the Adagio Bar is an oft-overlooked spot that's quiet and cozy, and usually has decent entertainment after 9pm), then Grand or her sisters, then Island (because of the changes). If Diamond and/or Sapphire were back on Alaska runs, that'd make it a tough vote IMHO, as the alternate MDR concept they have (had?) made Anytime Dining far less of a headache for the most part.

[Whimsy]

I had similar choices for our upcoming Alaska cruise and we chose the Coral because the ship is perfect for scenic cruising. There is a covered pool area that should be heated for the voyage. Perhaps someone who has sailed on her in the past can confirm but I did sail on her thru the Panama Canal. The decks foreward and aft are perfect for viewing. It's a shame they took some of that away from the Island.

[Hallsey1231]

I am faced with the same decision. It is the Golden or the Island in a vista suite. Most of you have said the Coral but not why. Would you please state the reasons? Thank you.

[Buckeye10640]

Thanks for the replies! I noticed that the deck plan is changing after February 2017. Is the Coral scheduled for dry dock? Anyone know what they are changing? As far as I can tell on the deck plans the only thing that seems different is that they are taking away the lower Universe lounge and adding a fitness studio. I'm just wondering if they are going to make changes like they did to the Island that seems to have upset people.

Where did you see the info that the deck plan is changing? I am booked on her for Alaska next summer and chose this ship specifically for some of the readons already mentioned...ie all of the changes made to Island etc.

 

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[Steelers0854]

Where did you see the info that the deck plan is changing? I am booked on her for Alaska next summer and chose this ship specifically for some of the readons already mentioned...ie all of the changes made to Island etc.

 

Sent from my SCH-I605 using Forums mobile app

 

 

 

That post was over a year old. When you go to view deck plans on Princess' site it will sometimes have options to select if you are sailing before or after a particular saildate. This almost always means they have just adjusted cabin categories of particular cabins. So no major changes.

[nimiq]

Hello all,

We have done both the Star and the Island (before the refit) and did live the feel of the island a bit better.

To answer your question if you have done but the coral and the Island then go for the Star as it is a great ship as well.

We where just off her in June on an Alaskan cruise and thought it was a perfect fit for it.

Lots of deck space for outside viewing,covered pool and I love Skywalkers for the view during the day and oh so beautiful at night as well.

Also if your a fan of the production shows, the Star has one of the best four singers I have head in a long long time. On our June cruise the were spot on.

I always like to try s ship I haven't been on but that's me.

 

Have fun

Sea ya

Éric

 

 

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