First Time Alaska- Which ship for our scenario?

[Kay S]

A couple things:  the kids' clubs on Princess are good, and there will be hundreds of kids on board.  They have discontinued, I heard, the practice of bringing on board rangers from Alaska to interact with the kids.  That was a great thing.  Sapphire has wonderful views with the promenade and Skywalkers, but you will probably be happy with Majestic.  I second the idea of mini suites, but the balconies won't be much bigger.  When we had little kids, the mini suite bathtubs were almost required. 

[Coral]

1 hour ago, dlca1 said:

I don't want to sound like a broken record, but huge thank you for the outpouring of helpful advice!  I'm going to try to pay it forward by summing up tips so far.

 

 

- Don't miss Glacier Bay! @Kay S @Coral @Oakman58 @muffin

- Other glaciers have potential to be really amazing too. @sunviking90 @san diego spartan @Rick&Jeannie

- Sapphire is a great ship for Alaska-- smaller, better viewing areas @Coral @mtnesterz

- Sail out of Vancouver instead of Seattle- Scenery much more beautiful  @muffin @sunviking90

- Consider HAL ships @san diego spartan : prefers HAL over Discovery @sunviking90

- Discovery Princess is a great ship @Rick&Jeannie @KKB

- Majestic is great ship @Wishing on a star @sunviking90 (but maybe not for Alaska) @minabruuke (if newer/modern is important)

- NCI Encore is best option for our needs @Oakman58

- Search deck plans for best cabins + mark no upgrade @skynight

 

My Current Ranking: 

 

1) Majestic is probably my leading contender out of the Princess ships.  Is relatively new, sails out of Vancouver for our date and goes to Glacier Bay. 

2) Discovery Princess

3) Norwegian Encore-- Nice and modern. Might be too big of ship for tweens and older folks to get around.  

TBD) Need to investigate HAL ships. 

 

Sapphire - It sounds like Sapphire has many loyal fans and might be an ideal size and layout for Alaska. However, there seem to be multiple recent reports of Sapphire showing signs of wear and tear after the shutdown. 

 

Majestic would be my last choice for Alaska. Poor viewing areas on ship - too large to sail inside some areas.

 

Sapphire Princess has great viewing sites and will be in dry dock before Alaska season next year. You need outside viewing areas for Alaska. Don't dismiss this.

[Wishing on a star]

To the original poster here.   I now that you said that spending time on your own balcony is a big thing.  Again, you can look for Premium Balcony cabins, or Premium Deluxe Balcony cabins (on Royal class newer ships)  to have a larger than standard balcony.   I am not readily aware of any 'Premium' cabin that does not have a larger than standard balcony.

(there are exceptions of some cabins with larger balconies that do not come with the Premium category upgrade).  

Fully go over deck plans!

 

I truly hate to continue to derail this valid and wonderful poster's thread here with confusion, disagreement, and argument.   But, there can be misleading stuff about this.  I have seen it said that 'Premium is based on a preferred location".    When they can be forward, aft, different decks, etc.   They have larger balconies...  and I am guessing from some recent info and photos that these that are the category 'premium' balconies are being furnished with a real table instead of the little side-table footstool.

 

Quoting my earlier question.....  Which should actually be another thread.

" I would love it somebody could give me an example of a stateroom that is 'premium' balcony that does NOT have a balcony that is larger than standard."   Without looking at every cabin, I have not seen any.

 

And, to note, this,  quoted below,  is not answering that question.

Quite the opposite.

"Here you go. Some examples of balcony cabins that are not 'premium' that have large balconies. There are other examples....."

 

From what I have seen,  the 'premium balcony',  or also 'Premium Deluxe Balcony ' (which 'deluxe' cabins are on the Royal class newer ships,) will have a larger balcony than standard balconies on that ship.

 

 

 

 

Edited October 4, 2022 by Wishing on a star

[Oakman58]

2 hours ago, dlca1 said:

I don't want to sound like a broken record, but huge thank you for the outpouring of helpful advice!  I'm going to try to pay it forward by summing up tips so far.

 

 

- Don't miss Glacier Bay! @Kay S @Coral @Oakman58 @muffin

- Other glaciers have potential to be really amazing too. @sunviking90 @san diego spartan @Rick&Jeannie

- Sapphire is a great ship for Alaska-- smaller, better viewing areas @Coral @mtnesterz

- Sail out of Vancouver instead of Seattle- Scenery much more beautiful  @muffin @sunviking90

- Consider HAL ships @san diego spartan : prefers HAL over Discovery @sunviking90

- Discovery Princess is a great ship @Rick&Jeannie @KKB

- Majestic is great ship @Wishing on a star @sunviking90 (but maybe not for Alaska) @minabruuke (if newer/modern is important)

- NCI Encore is best option for our needs @Oakman58

- Search deck plans for best cabins + mark no upgrade @skynight

 

My Current Ranking: 

 

1) Majestic is probably my leading contender out of the Princess ships.  Is relatively new, sails out of Vancouver for our date and goes to Glacier Bay.

Almost as big as the Encore but it has much smaller crew. 

2) Discovery Princess

Again almost as big and the Encore but a much smaller crew.

3) Norwegian Encore-- Nice and modern. Might be too big of ship for tweens and older folks to get around. 

Much better theater entertainment for the adults, and things $$ for the tweens such as the speedway, galaxy pavilion.  They also have a water park.

TBD) Need to investigate HAL ships. 

The old folks ship.  Great for Alaska but the tweens will probably be bored.

 

Sapphire - It sounds like Sapphire has many loyal fans and might be an ideal size and layout for Alaska. However, there seem to be multiple recent reports of Sapphire showing signs of wear and tear after the shutdown. 

 

 

[disneyochem]

7 hours ago, Kay S said:

A couple things:  the kids' clubs on Princess are good, and there will be hundreds of kids on board.  They have discontinued, I heard, the practice of bringing on board rangers from Alaska to interact with the kids.  That was a great thing.  Sapphire has wonderful views with the promenade and Skywalkers, but you will probably be happy with Majestic.  I second the idea of mini suites, but the balconies won't be much bigger.  When we had little kids, the mini suite bathtubs were almost required. 

Princess has not discontinued the practice of bringing on US Forest Rangers.  Each time we went into Glacier Bay (3x this summer), rangers came on board with exhibits and did narrations and nature talks.  Kids were still able to become Junior Rangers—was fun to see.  
 

Rangers also come on board during our HAL Zuiderdam cruise as well this summer.

[Kay S]

17 minutes ago, disneyochem said:

Princess has not discontinued the practice of bringing on US Forest Rangers.  Each time we went into Glacier Bay (3x this summer), rangers came on board with exhibits and did narrations and nature talks.  Kids were still able to become Junior Rangers—was fun to see.  
 

Rangers also come on board during our HAL Zuiderdam cruise as well this summer.

I am happy to hear this.

[Coral]

34 minutes ago, disneyochem said:

Princess has not discontinued the practice of bringing on US Forest Rangers.  Each time we went into Glacier Bay (3x this summer), rangers came on board with exhibits and did narrations and nature talks.  Kids were still able to become Junior Rangers—was fun to see.  
 

Rangers also come on board during our HAL Zuiderdam cruise as well this summer.

This is a Glacier Bay requirement by National Park services. All ships that go to Glacier Bay, have National Park Rangers embark the ship. This is not optional by the cruise lines. It is required.

[Kay S]

20 minutes ago, Coral said:

This is a Glacier Bay requirement by National Park services. All ships that go to Glacier Bay, have National Park Rangers embark the ship. This is not optional by the cruise lines. It is required.

Yes, I know, but the ranger who meets with the kids is a different thing.  That one just deals with the kids and not the navigation, etc. of the ship.  Two different rangers with different purposes.  I doubt the official rangers on the bridge are there to make the captain a junior ranger.  😁

Edited October 5, 2022 by Kay S
-

[Coral]

5 minutes ago, Kay S said:

Yes, I know, but the ranger who meets with the kids is a different thing.  That one just deals with the kids and not the navigation, etc. of the ship.  Two different rangers with different purposes.  I doubt the official rangers on the bridge are there to make the captain a junior ranger.  😁

According to National Park Service website - this is available on all cruise ships.

 

https://www.nps.gov/glba/learn/kidsyouth/beajuniorranger.htm 

Edited October 5, 2022 by Coral

[Kay S]

Just now, Coral said:

According to National Park Service website - this is available on all tour cruise ships.

Again, I'm thrilled to hear it.

[Coral]

2 minutes ago, Kay S said:

Again, I'm thrilled to hear it.

Park Rangers come onboard all cruise ships visiting GB. This is for navigation/environmental reasons for officers. They also provide for adult and child education programming. This is a requirement for all ships entering Glacier Bay.

Edited October 5, 2022 by Coral

[Kay S]

1 minute ago, Coral said:

Park Rangers come onboard all cruise ships. This is for navigation/environmental reasons for officers. They also provide for adult and child education programming. This is a requirement for all ships entering Glacier Bay.

Again, happy and thrilled and tickled to hear it.  Chuffed, even.  

[Coral]

11 minutes ago, Kay S said:

Yes, I know, but the ranger who meets with the kids is a different thing.  That one just deals with the kids and not the navigation, etc. of the ship.  Two different rangers.

And they are all on the ship.

[Kay S]

1 minute ago, Coral said:

And they are all on the ship.

Did I mention that I was happy to hear it?

[dlca1]

19 hours ago, Cruise Raider said:

Otherwise the balconies are tiny on these ships.  I would suggest at least one of you get at least a deluxe balcony on this ship as it has a small couch in the cabin…the ones that are aft facing one that Baja deck are fabulous.  Of all the places to get a balcony, Alaska is the place.  

 

19 hours ago, Kay S said:

I second the idea of mini suites, but the balconies won't be much bigger.  

Would love to hear experience/thoughts on:

 

1) Reserve big block of obstructed balcony rooms?

 

I was originally planning to get combo of inside rooms + balcony rooms (didn't figure out which flavor-- regular, premium/deluxe, mini-suite, etc) As I was playing around with the price quotes I saw big blocks of obstructed rooms available.  I'm now toying with the idea of getting a connected block of obstructed balcony rooms instead.  

 

Reserve block of 5 or 6 obstructed balcony rooms (Looks like availability is primarily on deck 8 for Majestic and Discovery).  Even better if I can get connected obstructed/unobstructed rooms.  Remove balcony dividers. This way everybody has some access to a balcony.

 

Note: My wife is a sensitive sleeper and gets grumpy if she doesn't get a good sleep. Would need to scrap this if I can't avoid the entertainment areas above/below.

 

2) Family of 4:  Mini-suite vs two obstructed balcony connecting rooms?  

 

3) For a Northbound trip,  is it essential to get Right/Starboard rooms?

 

Edited October 5, 2022 by dlca1

[Wishing on a star]

Again, if  enjoying time on your balcony is important, then you might want to have, at least for yourself, an UN-obstructed balcony.

Doesn't matter if you get a standard or a deluxe balcony, especially on the newer Royal Class ships.  These balconies are small.  (plenty of room tours on youtube).  A deluxe balcony will have a slightly larger inside cabin area.  Allows for the small two-seat sofa.  But, this does not mean the balcony is any bigger.  Just the cabin interior.

 

If there are mid-ship so-called Obstructed Balconies along that mid-ship bump-out still available.  Look at those.  Many of these, in the middle area, will have larger extended balconies.  These are the Obstructed pricing, but do not have obstruction.  No lifeboats.  just that open deck area below.

 

If you book Obstructed, deck 8, then be aware of what is just below you.  You are fine if you are not above a loud entertainment venue, like Crooners.

 

Most all other balcony cabins, deluxe or not, have the standard balcony size for that ship.

 

Again, look closely at deck plans.  There are a few exceptions.  But these will be booked up quickly.

Look at Dolphin, deck 9, mid forward.

 

[Wishing on a star]

Here is what I am seeing on the Princess website.

I am more familiar with the Royal Class ships, so I looked at those.

Here are some of those mid-ship not-really-obstructed extended balcony cabins.

 

Majestic -  Has a row of mid-ship extended cabins, deck 8,  E437 - E421.

                    Might have shade-tarps over restaurant seating below you on the Port side.

                    D227 (standard balcony with large balcony but without the 'premium' fare)

Discovery -  E436 - E432.  

                     Again, might have shade-tarps below you on Port (or on both) sides???)

Royal -        E433 and E437

 

[fishin' musician]

For me, the inside passage east of Vancouver Island is also a must.  Without this you have essentially 2 sea days.  The Royal Class ships all go west of Vancouver Island and don't enter the Inside Passage until they are almost to Ketchikan. Glacier is Bay is also a highlight.  So the dilemma is newer ship vs incredibly scenic route.  Personally, I'd take an older ship with larger balconies on a northbound (the scenery gets more spectacular each day) out of Vancouver in June, July or early August (for the longer days).

[Wishing on a star]

Yes,  I agree that a Vancouver departure is nice!

I had thought about mentioning that.

Too bad, for me, it is a choice between the ship and the route.

[cruisequeen4ever]

For your specifications, I’d go with the Majestic, Discovery, or Royal. They’re all in the same class of ship with some variations. The Majestic has an indoor pool, which is wonderful for Alaska. As others have said, definitely do Glacier Bay. Happy planning!

[Kay S]

A brilliant gentleman whose name I forget used to have a web site with photos of obstructed balconies.  Someone with a better memory might know the web address for that site (and hoping it still exists.)

[Tedferg]

16 minutes ago, Kay S said:

A brilliant gentleman whose name I forget used to have a web site with photos of obstructed balconies.  Someone with a better memory might know the web address for that site (and hoping it still exists.)

Cruise Deck Plan Database and Pictures (cruisedeckplans.com)

 

Scroll down for Obstructed views by ship.

Edited October 5, 2022 by Tedferg

[Jammu2]

I've done 3 Alaska cruises this past season. My comparison is here. I would say, however, that overall one of our favorite cruises ever was on Coral Princess southbound from Anchorage to Vancouver, but this was some time ago. I am not too fond of Norwegian in general.

 

Also, HAL is having a killer sale right now. Since value is important to you (it is to us, too.)

 

 

Edited October 5, 2022 by Jammu2

[Casey12]

Here is the deal as someone who has done probably 25 cruises to Alaska.

 

Older and smaller are better! They will get you to more scenic spots - large ships can't go these routes. Coral Princess was great in Alaska but I don't think that is an option. I agree with those who say Sapphire Princess. She has a covered pool, large promenade deck for covered viewing, large viewing areas. Remember -you are going here to see Alaska. The newer ships have very limited viewing. The balconies on Sapphire Princess are pretty good size compared to the newer ships. Disregard the recent bad reviews - she just came back after not operating since 2020. She is due for dry dock and it will work itself out. There were similar reports about every ship that came back after not sailing.

 

I would not go on NCL and would not do a newer Princess ship to Alaska. Holland America has some good ships also and they are smaller in size. Others are posting preferences based on larger buffets. Who cares - it is Alaska you want to see.

[Wishing on a star]

All the ships stop at all the main ports from Seattle or Vancouver to Anchorage (Whittier)

All ships can visit Glacier Bay.   

The prevailing conditions can be what will determine exactly how close the ship can get to specific sites or Glaciers.

The inside passage is great for Vancouver departures.

Seattle departures sail on the west side, along the 'Inside Passage"

The more protected waters of the Inside Passage can mean calmer waters/sailing.

 

To get even closer to Glaciers, two options can be a boat tour from Whittier like the 27 Glacier tour.

Or, on itineraries that allow, there can be a small boat tour that tenders right off the ship in the fjord, and goes up into Endicott Arm or Tracy Arm Fjord.   Check for the available excursions on the sailing for that.  It can sell out very fast.   While everyone mentions Glacier Bay,  These other two boat tour options are another great way to get out on the water and see Glaciers.

 

Edited October 5, 2022 by Wishing on a star