Its Going to Be Majestic - Live Review Princess Majestic Cruisetour - June 10-22

[Stealthdog]

First night in Denali lodge we had dinner at the King Salmon.  We were lucky to get a 730 reservation.  There weren’t any desirable reservation times on the 2nd night, and because we wanted to try on lodge one night and off lodge another night, we went with the King Salmon first night.

 

it was really busy in the restaurant - almost every table was full even at 730-800, and it seats alot of people.  The menu is very similar to the menus we saw at Kenai and McKinley, so it wasnt exciting.

 

We shared the Scallop Caprese, I got the NY strip and Eric got the Salmon.  It was an ok dinner, nothing great and the quality of food was fine.  But, the prices approach prices you pay at a top end steakhouse at home…..depending on where home is - it is almost the price we pay at a high end steakhouse in DC or a good steakhouse near Disney in Orlando (aside - if you to Disney, the further away you go, the lower the prices are).  Given the cost, it was a disappointing experience with just ok-good food - should be excellent or best ever for that price.  
 

Do yourself a favor in Denali - eat outside the lodge property.  You will save yourself the hassle of not being able to eat at a time you want and save your pocketbook.  I’ll repeat this sentiment in another post for our breakfast for our departure day. Unlike the other lodges, you will have a number of places to eat, that will be just as good and much cheaper, right outside the lodge.  If you have vouchers because your landtour package includes food, call the restaurant ahead of time and make reservations. Don’t wait until you arrive - Princess Denali is just too busy.  

Edited June 22, 2023 by Stealthdog

[Stealthdog]

The day after arrival in Princess Denali we wanted to do the complete day at the National Park.  We didn’t have time for breakfast at the lodge so we picked up a couple of pastries to go at the River Run Expresso, which is in the lower level of the Main Lodge next to the gift shift (pic below).  It was fairly quick and they will heat up the pastries if you want.  It was a good option for a quick service.

 

We got on the 830 shuttle from the lodge to the National Park because we wanted to go to the first dog showing.  At the Visitor Center there will be a number of signs outside that post all of the shuttle information, presentation times, and other details about the park.  The day we went, a naturalist was giving a guided tour on one of the trails (not sure which one), which may be a nice option for solo travelers, people in the park by themselves, or those who just want to participate in a guided tour.

 

Inside the Visitor Center is a gift shop, museum, and help stations where park employees will give more maps, help develop your itinerary for the day, and answer any questions you want.  The person helping us warned us that there were moose sightings at the Horseshoe Trail.  
 

Below is a 1 page snapshot of all the trails, distance, time it takes, and difficulty of the trail.  I’m not sure how accurate the time information is - we took our time doing the Horseshoe and spent about 2.5 hours doing it, but the sheet says 1 hour.  
 

There are also seasonal pamphlets and general pamphlets that both include more detailed maps you can receive inside the Visitor Center. 

[Stealthdog]

Here are all the posted information about the Park and Shuttles that can be found outside the National Park Visitor Center.  Not sure what much of it is, but might be helpful for some planning - looks like good information if you are doing the Denali park on your own.  And some looked like programs available for the next week - but gives a good idea of programs that may be available when you go to the Park. 

Edited June 22, 2023 by Stealthdog

[Stealthdog]

For the afternoon of our full Denali Day we did two trails - the Horseshoe Lake trail and the Meadow View Trail - we took about 2.5 hours for the Horseshoe and about 45 minutes for the Meadow View.

 

The trails in Denali are mostly easy to follow.  Occasionally there are Wooden post signs at forks that give trail name, direction, and distance.  There are times where you will come to a fork, or see a small trail lead off.  Always stay on the main trail - it will always the bigger, wider, and probably clearly man-made compared to the smaller and usually dirt paths that lead off. 
 

You will probably see lots of people on the trails - if you don’t you probably wandered off the main trail.  
 

The next two posts will provide information and photos of the two trails we took.  Lots of wildlife on both.  
 

Below is another general trail overview, some safety information they post, and an example of the sign posts you will see on the trails.  

[Stealthdog]

The first trail we did was the Horseshoe Lake Trail.  We took the longer way to get to the lake.  The trail is easy to follow at the beginning - the sign posts help point you in the right direction.  I think I saw a red fox in the area between the visitor center and the rail road tracks, but it went so fast I couldn’t get a picture.  It definitely wasn’t a squirrel.
 

Shortly after passing the railroad tracks you will come to some nice overlook areas of the lake below.  The trail to the overlook isn’t difficult and mostly flat.  Once you reach the overlook, you will have a steep decline down to the lake (that you will have to go up on the way back).  At the base of the decline you will have a fork and need to choose to go around the lake clockwise or counterclockwise.  We went counterclockwise and were soon rewarded with a large female moose sighting.  She was about 30-40 yards off the trail, munching away and didn’t really care about our presence.  
 

After the moose encounter we got to the beaver dam area, but sadly no beaver sightings.  We continued on and ran parallel to a river where we saw some animal dropping - too small for bear or moose, so not sure what it was.  Continuing past the river, we looped back to the lake and the cliff side.  We saw some some interesting cave-like structures and had some great views of the lake.  
 

Completing the loop with some wetlands to the right and the lake to the left, we walked on  a path made of boards and were treated with an Eagle vs Crows and Gulls aerial show that went on for about 20-30 minutes with the eagle continuously getting chased away.  This portion of the lake also had about a half dozen ducks.  
 

After the loop, we were tempted to go look for the moose again, but it was already 2 hours in and we had that big incline back to the overlook to climb.  After 30 more minutes we were back to the visitor center and deciding on our 2nd trail.

 

Not unique to the Horseshoe trail, but we saw wild blueberries everywhere.  They are still in their flowering stage, but will probably start fruiting in the next couple weeks.  There will be some happy hikers munching on blueberries in less than a month.  
 

Overall, took about 2.5 hours and the only difficult part was the climb down and up that leads to the river.   Even if we didn’t see the moose, the Horseshoe Lake Trail is great for the beauty, sites, and tranquility.  If you have a half day in the park and want to do a trail, this one was a nice one.  Take your time and enjoy it.  

Edited June 22, 2023 by Stealthdog

[Stealthdog]

Our 2nd trail we took was the meadow view loop.  We picked it up behind the Visitor Center and the trail takes you up a very steep incline (much more than the Horseshoe Lake) to some stunning views of the meadow with mountains in the background.  It’s worth the effort.  At the overlook there are some benches to sit down and take a break if needed, or enjoy the views.  
 

On the other side is an equally steep decline down and you hike parallel to a road that takes you to Visitor Center.  Eventually we crossed the road and what do you think we saw?  Moose!  We finished the remaining short walk back to the Visitor Center and waited for the Princess Shuttle to arrive and bring us back to the lodge.  
 

The total time for the hike for us was 45 minutes.  We could have lingered longer at the top.

Edited June 22, 2023 by Stealthdog

[gottagoacruzn]

So why didn't you linger at the top longer?

[Stealthdog]

17 minutes ago, gottagoacruzn said:

So why didn't you linger at the top longer?

Someone was getting hangry and disagreeable and his name was not Eric.  😂

[gottagoacruzn]

Well in that case, you're excused!!

[Stealthdog]

In transit and almost home (had red eye last night).  Have a couple more Princess Denali Lodge posts, some Princess Fairbanks posts, still have a post for the casino and medallion on board, and will wrap up with some overview thoughts on both the cruise and land tour portions.  Will try to wrap this thread up by the end of the weekend.  

[gottagoacruzn]

Oh shucks, that terrible!!!!🫢🫢 That means, oh oh time to go back to .....:(((

[Stealthdog]

Ok - caught up on sleep, all laundry is done, so time to finish this up!  Second night at the Denali lodge we decided to go off lodge for dinner.  There were 2-3 places we were interested in, but several staff at the lodge recommended Moose Aka’s and it was highly rated on tripadvisor, so off we went.

 

it’s an Eastern European restaurant right across from the lodge, and they don’t take reservations so first come first serve.  We had about a 5 minute wait while they cleaned off a table for us. 

 

It was a pretty good restaurant and I understand the hype.  We got the Meze Platter (was half off with a bottle of wine), Meat Stuffed Pepper, Sarma, and Grandmothers Chocolate Cake. Everything was great - was just as good as the King Salmon Restaurant at less than half the price, and you are supporting a local business.  
 

I definitely recommend checking out this restaurant when at the Denali lodge.  They also had 2 Serbian wines by the bottle to check out.

[Stealthdog]

The morning of our transport from Denali to Fairbanks, we stopped at Fannie Q’s Saloon to check out breakfast.  They had a buffet style breakfast for $23/person.  We poked our heads in there and saw some people we saw the day prior coughing and throat clearing, now handling the buffet utensils and just turned around and walked out without even saying anything to each other.  😂

 

The selection didn’t seem great for $23, so even if we didn’t care about the communal serving utensils covered in pestilence we probably wouldn’t have stayed anyways.  Attached is the buffet sign from Fairbanks, but it looked similar with a few differences.  
 

A short walk across the street from the lodge we went again.  We decided on the Black Bear Coffee House.  Inside they had a large pastry section, fresh coffees, and a breakfast menu.  We ended eating there a picked up few pastries to go for the ride to Fairbanks.  The pastries were great, coffee had free refills, and the breakfast was ok.  If we go back to the Denali lodge again, we’ll just grab breakfasts at Black Bear or River Run (lower level of Main Lodge).

 

From Black Bear you can see the Princess Lodge (pic below).
 

 

Edited June 26, 2023 by Stealthdog

[Stealthdog]

Late morning, we boarded the bus to Fairbanks.  This was one weird experience.  We got on about 10 minutes before departure and all the window seats were taken with all the aisle seats open.  I guess people were either tired of talking to the people they were with or they thought it was going to be an empty bus and they would get a whole aisle to themselves.  Either way, most couples and families seemed split up and sat with complete strangers.  Was an awkward 2 hour drive, albeit quiet.  But along the way……Moose!!!!!!

 

We had a scheduled stop at Kenana.  I don’t know if Princess has some kind of deal with them, but alot of buses were stopping there.  There were a couple of small stores and we had about a 30 minute chance to get off the bus and reunite with those we were traveling with.  I used this opportunity to get a root beer float (I have never had one before) - was quite the sugar rush!  
 

A short time later we loaded back onto the bus for a short ride to the Riverboat excursion that’s included in the tour.

[Stealthdog]

After arriving at the Riverboat location, we had some time before boarding.  They have a sizable gift shop, bathrooms, and some lunch options on site.  The restaurant looked very limited (attached) and there was an option for premade sandwiches.  
 

The river boat has 4 levels to it and we went straight to the top after boarding.  On board they had blueberry donuts and coffee for the ride out, and salmon spread and crackers for the ride back.

 

This tour was very nice - the guide gave a lot of history of some of the houses and the dog kennel.  The tour involves about a 45 minute stop at a native village museum where they give demonstrations on clothing, how the locals lived, a chance to see reindeer, and more dogs!  
 

The riverboat tour made up for the awkward bus ride up!  After the tour ended, our bus driver brought us to the Princess Fairbanks Lodge (It is a hotel), across the street from the airport. 

[CruzeQueen2]

Nice to see you back...sharing such useful information. Thank you.💖 

You really lucked out with the weather. Great photos with blue skies. Very nice.

Edited June 26, 2023 by CruzeQueen2
adding info

[Stealthdog]

Upon arriving at the Fairbanks lodge we received our regular envelop with room keys, hotel information, and departure information, which in this case includes airport shuttle time and tags for all your luggage (you will be reunited with luggage from the ship that you did not take to the landtour).
 

The Fairbanks lodge is single building hotel style with a nice lobby for people waiting for their airport shuttle times, a gift shop with a cafe inside, a bar, and a few restaurants (indoors and outdoors).  There is a short river walk behind the hotel with some nice herb and vegetable gardens used by the hotel, and a little trail.  It’s next to another lodge that has some more food options (Pikes Landing).

 

We made reservations for dinner using the QR code from the welcome packet.  We didn’t realize this at the other lodges- but if you can make reservations without going to the restaurant in person, that is easier to us.  The app the Fairbanks lodge used was Open Table.  Nothing fancy this time, cheesesteak and fish and chips.

 

With all of our suitcases reunited, we did some repacking in prep for checkout the following morning.

[Thrak]

If you noticed when doing the river walk at the Fairbanks lodge there is a road that dead ends into the river and continues on the other side. When the river freezes this is a continuous road that is used. They drive across the river until the ice gets too thin.

 

I didn't notice in your Denali Lodge pictures but is the Salmon Bake still in the line of buildings across the street from the lodge? The lodge staff told us about "the Bake Mistake" made by numerous new employees. They go to the Salmon Bake and party and, because it doesn't get dark, don't realize how late it is. They end up pretty wasted and it makes for a very rough day of work the "next day".

[Stealthdog]

We had a red eye out of Fairbanks (920pm) so had a full day in Fairbanks before we had to get to the airport. 
 

We placed our luggage outside the door early, skipped breakfast, and took a Lyft to the North Pole.  It was about a 20 minute drive from Fairbanks, passing Fort Wainwright most of the way.  Along the way, you can also see some eagle nests up in the power line poles.

 

We got to the North Pole a little before 10AM and our first stop was the Antler Academy.  This place was awesome.  For  $12-13/person, you get about 30 minutes inside the pen with several reindeer to pat and feed.  The academy employees will be with you to give you the food cups.
 

After the reindeer we went to the Santa Clause House, which was a little bit of a letdown.  I guess I was expecting to see people dressed as elves and a Santa and Mrs Clause in more of a museum like environment.  But, it’s really just a really big gift shop.  My favorite part was reading children’s letters to Santa posted at all the entrances.  
 

Several people we spoke to recommended eating at the local Chinese Food Restaurant at the North Pole, so off we went.  The food good, but if you get a lunch combination, we aware you will get a lot of food!  We learned the hard way 😂

 

After lunch, we wanted to check out the Museum of the North at the University of Alaska, and tried to get a Lyft or Uber to get there.  Our requests kept timing out with no available rides (North Pole only has a little more than 2000 people).  So unfortunately, we ended up calling a local taxi to take us back to the Princess lodge.
 

Our taxi driver arrived in an unmarked vehicle  with a windshield that was cracked across the whole length.  We were really apprehensive of getting in, but we got back to the lodge safe.  
 

At the lodge, the tour desk helpers will give you a pamphlet with a local company that provides shuttles to various local sites (including North Pole and Gold Mines), which is likely a more reliable way of getting out and back.  The cost of those  shuttles are $30/person roundtrip ($90 minimum), our Lyft out was $40 and our taxi back was $60.  
 

The reindeer experience alone made the trip to the North Pole worth it to me.  The town is tiny, but all the light poles and hydrants are painted candy cane style, which was cute. 

[Stealthdog]

26 minutes ago, Thrak said:

 

 

I didn't notice in your Denali Lodge pictures but is the Salmon Bake still in the line of buildings across the street from the lodge? The lodge staff told us about "the Bake Mistake" made by numerous new employees. They go to the Salmon Bake and party and, because it doesn't get dark, don't realize how late it is. They end up pretty wasted and it makes for a very rough day of work the "next day".

I didn’t see the Salmon Bake there, but we didnt walk all the way to the left, or down the right side at all, so it could be.  That sounds like my experience bartending in the French Quarter - after night shifts the service industry went to a locals bar.  I stumbled out the next day several times, surprised by the sunlight. 😂

[Stealthdog]

We got back to the Princess Fairbanks around 3pm and had a couple hours wait for our shuttle.  The lobby area has some comfortable couches with power outlets to charge phones.  The princes shuttle only takes about 5 minutes from the lodge.  After the bus parks, you will find your luggage outside the airport building waiting for you.  
 

The whole luggage part for the landtour was easy.  Princess does a great job throughout getting your luggage from your room and to your next (or final) destination.   It makes the landtour part less stressful. 
 

The airport in Fairbanks is tiny - you don’t want to get there too early.  There are no lounges (there was a military lounge but it had a closed sign on the door).  We asked the lodge earlier in the day about getting to the airport early - they advised against it because the lodge is more comfortable waiting, and I definitely agree with that!

[Stealthdog]

I'm going to backtrack to the ship portion for a few topics.

 

The Casino.  For a ship as large as the Majestic, the casino is really small.  Its likely due to the ship being built for the Chinese market, maybe?  You could tell which of the slot machines are the favorites because they were always occupied.  We didn't play the tables this time, but those also looked to be limited.  I think there was only 1 craps table.  None of that stopped us though!  Eric got a letter from the casino a couple nights before the end of the cruise portion, and it looks like he will be getting some casino offers.  Overall, I was up $150, Eric was down $200, so hours of entertainment only cost us $50, so I'll take it!

 

Next to the Casino, there is a large room with a bar (I think it was called Casino VIP lounge, or something like that).  This was another place that was empty most of the time and quiet.  So if you are looking for a nice place to relax that many people don't use, check out the lounge next to the Casino.

[Stealthdog]

The Medallion. 

 

I am really split on my feelings about the medallion.  I like the concept of the medallion being your room key because I've left my card key in my room and locked myself out so many times, that having a lanyard with the medallion is great for me.  I also love how its customizable.  Its fun.  

 

If I was a market researcher, I would love the medallion, all the information it provides, and how that could really help optimize renovations and changes to the ship based on GPS tracking usage of various areas of the ship.  Its also great for room stewards, because they will know when you are not in your room and can clean.  I can also see how it is great for people in the security area with the information the medallion can provide.

 

I don't know how I personally feel about a business GPS tagging me and knowing where I am, and what I am doing, at all times.  The first time I saw my face on the screen the bartenders use to ring up the drinks when I walked up to the bar, and without me giving them my room number, I was not ready for that.  Part of it feels really invasive.  

 

One aspect I didn't like with the medallion is when you leave a slot machine, it loads your balance back to your medallion.  I prefer the paper slips because it helps me track how much I have spent (I'm not a big gambler) better.  I imagine people have forgot they have a balance on their medallion and didn't cash in the last night.  I wonder how they get their money in those cases.

 

There are alot of pros and cons to it, and I like the innovation that Princess has with a concept that is so different from every other cruise line.  It does feel a little like Big Brother.  Will it stop me from sailing with Princess again?  No, but its something that I am really torn about.  

Edited June 26, 2023 by Stealthdog

[Stealthdog]

Internet on the Ship.  No complaints at all.  It seems like all the cruise lines are getting much better with internet at sea.  The wifi is included in PrincessPlus (we had a free upgrade to Premier).  One device each was all we needed.  Often, I'll bring my laptop on board a cruise ship, but with a pre-cruise stay in Vancouver, the cruise, and the cruisetour, I didn't want to bring my laptop everywhere, so left it home this trip.  When I bring my laptop, I'll log onto a server of a MMORPG (online game) to check for lag or disruptions in connection.  For personal, general use (checking email, web browsing, texting, and video chatting), we had no problem with the wifi and it was always operational.  For people doing work while on the ship, sending large files, or streaming content, I'm not sure if it will be same experience.

 

Internet on the lodges. 

-  All of the lodges have wifi in the main lodge.  Sometimes that wifi extended to your building/room (probably depending on how far you were from the main lodge).  At both Kenai and Denali, we were able to maintain the lodge wifi from our rooms.  At McKinley, we weren't at our original room, but were after we were moved into the main lodge.  And at Fairbanks, you are in the same building and the wifi extends throughout.  

-  Without wifi, you would still be ok at the Denali lodge and Fairbanks.  We switched wifi on and off and didn't notice any difference in speed.  At Kenai, the internet speed was a little slower without the wifi.  At McKinley, we couldn't access any internet service from most of the lodge areas, so without wifi, you will have internet challenges there.

 

Internet in Alaska.  None of the buses or rails we used (both excursions from the ship and cruisetour) had available wifi.  The areas between towns, you probably won't have access to any internet or phone service.  So, look to download movies, shows, games, or whatever you want before leaving a lodge for your bus/train rides.  

[Stealthdog]

The Princess App.

 

I think this was my least favorite of all cruise line apps I have used.  I really didn't like it.  On embarkation day in Vancouver the app was often glitchy (which was a problem with trying to make dinner reservations or watch the muster drill video).  After we set sail I didn't have any additional problems accessing the app.  Navigating the app was too time consuming.  I want something that I can have immediately and not take minutes to try to find.  I particularly didn't like the "reservation" system for activities and how it affects personal schedules.  Once activities reach a certain number of people who select it on the app, you can no longer add that activity to your personal schedules, making that aspect of the app useless.  Thankfully, Princess still provides the daily events to your stateroom in paper copy, so I didn't have to waste time trying to find activities and events on the app.  Princess should hire a couple of 7 year olds to do app testing and completely revamp it to make it much simpler.