Coral Princess Voyage of the Glaciers (Northbound) : seeking info

[bluejay555]

I have never been on an Alaskan cruise and never been on Princess. I have had a hard time finding reviews of this particular sailing and am hoping to get any information/advice I can!

 

Specifically I'd like to know what nights are formal nights in the dining room?

 

Any must-haves for packing?

 

Does the ship have Tea Time on sea days?

 

We are used to Carnival.....does Princess have trivias and karaoke activities? I'd love to know more about what to expect.

[Sea Day Cruiser]

I don't know about formal nights but yes Princess does have trivia and karaoke. Take a warm hat, jacket, and gloves. It can be very cold outside viewing glaciers. Princess always has afternoon tea in one of the dining rooms, usually at 3:30.

 

 

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[Beachiekeen]

We got off Coral July 1. Formal nights were Sunday (1st sea day) and Thursday (Glacier Bay). I kept the Patters if you have any questions. I really enjoyed the afternoon tea.

 

I don't remember karaoke but they have a contest called Voice of the Ocean and I really enjoyed it.

 

For Alaska they have special activities like naturalist presentations and learning about Alaska.

 

You spend a lot of time out on the decks and in port but there's plenty to do on the ship also. You'll love it!

Edited July 12, 2017 by Beachiekeen

[easyboy]

7-day cruise have 2 formal nights. 1st is the 2nd or 3rd night of the cruise, usually the first sea day. 2nd is the 2nd or 3rd night prior to end of cruise, not on the last night.

We usually pack layers for clothes. You can also back a light jacket with hood in case it rains in port.

There is an Afternoon Tea at one of the MDRs.

There are trivia handled by the CD & staff,

[LoriPhil]

We also pack binoculars for Alaska.

[bluejay555]

Thanks for the great info, everyone! I appreciate it!

 

We got off Coral July 1. Formal nights were Sunday (1st sea day) and Thursday (Glacier Bay). I kept the Patters if you have any questions. I really enjoyed the afternoon tea.

 

I don't remember karaoke but they have a contest called Voice of the Ocean and I really enjoyed it.

 

For Alaska they have special activities like naturalist presentations and learning about Alaska.

 

You spend a lot of time out on the decks and in port but there's plenty to do on the ship also. You'll love it!

 

Oh I would love to see a picture of one of the seaday patters!

[Beachiekeen]

Thanks for the great info, everyone! I appreciate it!

 

 

 

Oh I would love to see a picture of one of the seaday patters!

 

I will try and post it when I get home. Sunday is the only true sea day, Thursday and Friday are scenic cruising days, although you won't arrive to College Fjord until later Friday afternoon.

[satxdiver]

The ship will enter Glacier Bay and will position itself so that first one side of the ship will face the glacier and then turn 180 degrees so the other side can see it. It will be cold and windy and feel like you are in a deep freeze with wind. Take warm clothes, hat and gloves as they will be needed. When parts of ice fall off the glacier, it is called calving and the noise is tremendous. You may want to be on one of the upper decks to witness it.

 

Ketchikan is in a rain forest (yep right there in AK) that gets over 200 inches of rain each year. Your chances of getting rained on in Ketchikan are excellent so take rain gear.

 

If you take the rail trip up the pass in Skagway, when you get to the top there is likely to be snow on the ground. Take warm clothes. The train stops at the Canadian border.

 

Most pax go to Mendenhall Glacier just outside Juneau so once again you will need something warm as the wind will be cold.

[Beachiekeen]

Agree with the PP, I wore a heavy jacket, gloves and a hat on glacier days, as the temperatures were in the 40's. We stayed on the promenade deck (Deck 7) as it is partially covered from the wind and any mist or rain. (I read that tip on a trip report here and it was a good one!)

[bluejay555]

I will try and post it when I get home. Sunday is the only true sea day, Thursday and Friday are scenic cruising days, although you won't arrive to College Fjord until later Friday afternoon.

 

Thanks so much!

[bluejay555]

The ship will enter Glacier Bay and will position itself so that first one side of the ship will face the glacier and then turn 180 degrees so the other side can see it. It will be cold and windy and feel like you are in a deep freeze with wind. Take warm clothes, hat and gloves as they will be needed. When parts of ice fall off the glacier, it is called calving and the noise is tremendous. You may want to be on one of the upper decks to witness it.

 

Ketchikan is in a rain forest (yep right there in AK) that gets over 200 inches of rain each year. Your chances of getting rained on in Ketchikan are excellent so take rain gear.

 

If you take the rail trip up the pass in Skagway, when you get to the top there is likely to be snow on the ground. Take warm clothes. The train stops at the Canadian border.

 

Most pax go to Mendenhall Glacier just outside Juneau so once again you will need something warm as the wind will be cold.

 

Agree with the PP, I wore a heavy jacket, gloves and a hat on glacier days, as the temperatures were in the 40's. We stayed on the promenade deck (Deck 7) as it is partially covered from the wind and any mist or rain. (I read that tip on a trip report here and it was a good one!)

 

Thanks! I went ahead and bought us rain jackets and will be packing cold weather gear. And yes, we will be going to Mendenhall Glacier!

[skynight]

[quote=bluejay555;53512123

 

Does the ship have Tea Time on sea days?

 

We are used to Carnival.....does Princess have trivias and karaoke activities? I'd love to know more about what to expect.

Tea, yes around 3:30pm in one of the DR's, no charge.

Trivia, normally twice a day on sea days. Most port days they also have trivia, but very few are there. There are also trivia style games some evenings.

Karaoke. There is usually karaoke later in the evening. Some of the karaoke sessions could be try outs for Voice of the Ocean. If you don't wish to be in Voice of the Ocean or don't think you are good enough you can still sing a song during the try out sessions. Just have fun. If you do participate in Voice of the Ocean treat it as a show, not a contest, even though there is a winner.

[bluejay555]

Tea, yes around 3:30pm in one of the DR's, no charge.

Trivia, normally twice a day on sea days. Most port days they also have trivia, but very few are there. There are also trivia style games some evenings.

Karaoke. There is usually karaoke later in the evening. Some of the karaoke sessions could be try outs for Voice of the Ocean. If you don't wish to be in Voice of the Ocean or don't think you are good enough you can still sing a song during the try out sessions. Just have fun. If you do participate in Voice of the Ocean treat it as a show, not a contest, even though there is a winner.

 

Great info, thanks! My husband enjoys karaoke and I could see him wanting to try out just for fun.

[jb008]

You might find my trip report (and the links to the menus and patters) to be of interest for your upcoming trip.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2508384

 

Cheers!

[bluejay555]

You might find my trip report (and the links to the menus and patters) to be of interest for your upcoming trip.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2508384

 

Cheers!

 

Great info, thanks so much!!

[gradydude]

One tip for packing is to pack a highlighter pen. That way you can highlight the activities you want and won't miss anything. This worked really well for out party of eleven. We loved Coral , just the right size. The employees seemed really happy. The dining rooms very well run. We were northbound Vancouver to Whittier, and the weather co operated. Didnt need any cold weather gear. Have been on Alaska cruises in May and Sept. and needed fleece and rain gear,

[Jetstreamer]

As others have confirmed the formal nights are the first sea day and Glacier Bay day.

 

My tip for packing is to pack for every eventuality. We packed for the cold weather at the glaciers, for the rain we knew could happen anywhere, but the one thing we didn't have was a plentiful supply of shorts and t-shirts. We travelled at the end of May and it was hot! Nobody really mentioned that.

 

My other tip is don't get too caught up with Glacier Bay and forget about College Fjord. By far the highlight of our trip was the few hours we spent in College Fjord. Harvard glacier put on an amazing show with so much calving it left us speechless. Thing is this was happening at around 7pm when many people were eating and it was amazing how few people were on deck. So on the last day plan to eat late and enjoy an amazing end to the cruise!

[ncstatefan]

We just returned from this itinerary. My comments are in a thread near this one.

 

I believe other posters have answered all the questions you had. If you are a coffee drinker the one tip I can give you is to be sure to pack a couple of insulated mugs. While at Glacier Bay, you will not be served in any type of plastic or paper cups. At IC you could only get coffee in china cups on that day, and if you take it to your room, not only is it not enough coffee but also is getting cold. We were able to enjoy our hot coffee and chocolate on our balcony all day because of our Yetis. Or, if you prefer you can buy insulated mugs in the ship gift shop and have them as souvenirs.