Princess Help Needed for Alaska 2024

[CherylFlorida]

Hello and advanced thanks for any help! I need to decide which Princess ship is right for us 🙂 

 

I have been watching videos and reading all about Alaska cruising for the last 2 years. I have narrowed it to the Princess line due to the  line's longer port times over other cruise lines (please correct me if wrong). 

 

We are a 59 year-old married couple. We are used to mega-ships out of Florida, but Alaska seems to be a 100% different experience so size and bells&whistles do not matter. We want longest port times, tight to the coast scenery, a decently furnished ship not showing its age. I'd like to experience the SeaWalk unless it takes away the coastal itinerary. I noticed this was the case with Discovery Princess.  We'd prefer a round-trip, but most of the Inside Passage with Glacier Bay NP seem to be one way so we can try that if it gets us all our "wants." We have no interest in touring upper Alaska as we've done that via land touring.

 

Here are our wants in order of most to least: Longest port times, Glacier Bay NP, Skagway (railway), balcony views of inside passage, whale watching, Naturalist talks (and puppies!), seafood restaurant, Ketchikan, SeaWalk and decent food. Shows & activities take a backseat on this one.  

 

I'm so afraid I will miss something if I choose the wrong ship!

[cjpj]

SeaWalk is no bug deal. Criss that off your list.

[Steelers36]

7 minutes ago, CherylFlorida said:

Hello and advanced thanks for any help! I need to decide which Princess ship is right for us 🙂 

 

I have been watching videos and reading all about Alaska cruising for the last 2 years. I have narrowed it to the Princess line due to the  line's longer port times over other cruise lines (please correct me if wrong). 

 

We are a 59 year-old married couple. We are used to mega-ships out of Florida, but Alaska seems to be a 100% different experience so size and bells&whistles do not matter. We want longest port times, tight to the coast scenery, a decently furnished ship not showing its age. I'd like to experience the SeaWalk unless it takes away the coastal itinerary. I noticed this was the case with Discovery Princess.  We'd prefer a round-trip, but most of the Inside Passage with Glacier Bay NP seem to be one way so we can try that if it gets us all our "wants." We have no interest in touring upper Alaska as we've done that via land touring.

 

Here are our wants in order of most to least: Longest port times, Glacier Bay NP, Skagway (railway), balcony views of inside passage, whale watching, Naturalist talks (and puppies!), seafood restaurant, Ketchikan, SeaWalk and decent food. Shows & activities take a backseat on this one.  

 

I'm so afraid I will miss something if I choose the wrong ship!

You can see the Seawalk on any Royal Class ship another time.  Review the offered itineraries and pick the places and port times that suit and try for a non-Royal Class ship to meet your desires.

Edited July 23, 2023 by Steelers36

[LeeW]

Best ships are not there this year - Coral and Island.  Smaller, with glass-enclosed adult pool.  Sapphire, Diamond, Star, Grand and Golden are larger ships that also have indoor pools.  We always liked Coral and Island because you can sit in padded lounger in shorts and watch scenery and step outside for photos.

 

Last trip we didn't bother with a balcony because we were in the enclosed area all day.  However, avoid the area above a lounge - the off-key singer was terrible at night.

 

Sail B2B from Vancouver and do the 26 glacier Phillips trip on turnaround day.  Did that last time on Island.  All ships do Inside Passage in Alaska but Princess Royal class (and larger other lines) can't go between Vancouver Island and the mainland.

 

Seawalk might be worth 10 minutes of your time, nothing more.

 

You might also want to look into Celebrity.  They tend to longer port stays and have mostly musical entertainment rather than big shows and water slides.  But they don't hit Glacier Bay.  Viewing of Hubbard Glacier is from farther away unless you take the Glacier Explorer excursion (around $400pp).

 

Son is currently on 11 night Oceana Regatta cruise.  A bit more expensive but hits other ports than normal and is sailing roundtrip from Seattle.  Much smaller ship,

[Purplsmurf]

We actually did Celebrity Millenium and it was FABULOUS! Seward to Vancouver. Stopped in Juneau. (Puppies and delicious seafood), Skagway (train), Icy Straight Point (phenomenal whale watching) and Ketchikan (don’t recommend what we did there 😂. Let’s just say it ended with a visit to the ER). We also cruised and got real close to Mendenhall Glacier and sailed the Inside Passage, which was beautiful. We will likely do it again.

[e3c1f4]

I'm similarly a first time cruiser who's been obsessively researching the 2024 Alaska itineraries. It seems to be a give and take without there being one perfect choice. I actually just booked today and went with the May 4 discovery princess since it has glacier bay it's a one off itinerary that goes from Vancouver to Seattle so you get a long time in Ketchikan because you don't need the nighttime Victoria stop. I think we'll miss the lack of observation lounge but booked a balcony. And think we'll miss some of the bells and whistles of NCL (go-karts) or RC (ifly), etc but figured those things would be like 30 min one time enjoyment and the longer port times and glacier bay were more important. Hope that helps some and you have a great trip!

[PacnGoNow]

1 hour ago, LeeW said:

, Star, Grand and Golden are larger ships that also have indoor pools

• Star Princess (1989), in service with Princess Cruises between 1989 and 1997.
• The Golden Princess is no longer in the fleet either.

[mtnesterz]

1 hour ago, CherylFlorida said:

I'm so afraid I will miss something if I choose the wrong ship.

Sightseeing from the ship is what you want. The best for this is the Sapphire for it's Skywalkers lounge and the wraparound promenade.

[AtlantaCruiser72]

@CherylFlorida have you considered the Konigsdam round trip from Vancouver at all?  Relatively new ship, beautifully decorated, good Alaska centric programming, excellent dining options and hits all your desired ports. Only downside is lack of wraparound promenade deck, but the Princess Royal class ships have that same issue. Konigsdam makes up for it with expansive top decks, including forward facing viewing sports that many Princess ships lack, both indoors (Crows nest) and open decks. She is ideally suited to Alaska, and weather permitting the bow is open on Glacier Bay day. Just a suggestion if Princess is not ticking all the boxes. 

[SCX22]

2 hours ago, CherylFlorida said:

balcony views of inside passage

 

You've nixed the entire Royal-class fleet, with this desire.

[snoozecrooze]

Hi Cheryl,

I strongly agree with everyone who's said the SeaWalk is an utterly forgettable feature. It might sound harsh but it really doesn't serve a particular utility in general and doesn't help you get any particularly better view of anything relevant (I feel like the windows are not particularly regularly cleaned either).

 

I think if you are interested in sticking with Princess and are planning on visiting Alaska next year and do not want to undergo the hassle of the one-way Vancouver-Whittier (and vice versa) itineraries, I would strongly suggest you take a look at the Ruby Princess. That ship will be doing round-trip Vancouver itineraries, 7 days, that will visit Juneau/Glacier Bay/Ketchikan/Skagway. The caveat is that it leaves every Tuesday. It's an alternative to taking the Discovery Princess from Seattle next year (which leaves every Saturday), but I think the Ruby Princess will give you a lot more space to spread out while walking around and get much more up close to the scenery around you.

 

I agree with AtlantaCruiser72 that if you must leave on a weekend and still want something round-trip for just 1 week, the Koningsdam will likely be your best bet (but I personally also suggest taking a look at the Zaandam as well).

[AtlantaCruiser72]

@snoozecrooze I avoided suggesting the Ruby or Zaandam due to age. The op seemed to have a preference for a newer ship.  I’d personally take the Zaandam any day over the Konigsdam, but she lacks reasonably priced balcony rooms, and does have some bumps and worts due to age that I can live with, but her benefits to me outweigh those.

[CherylFlorida]

Thanks so very much everyone. So much to think about! Seawalk is off the list 🙂 

 

I am a teacher so I have summer available for June & July. Hubby will only get about 8-9 days so it will be a traditional 7 day cruise, but we can depart any day of the week. If I really think of our most desired, it would be Glacier Bay & being able to sit on a balcony and see the Inside Passage as we sail past so it looks like we probably have to do a N/S cruise in order to get that in 2024. Plane travel from Florida to Anchorage, Vancouver, or Seattle probably isn't much different in dollars anyway. 

 

I would say I'm a bit of a "newer ship" kind of gal as I just got off Carnival Liberty and will NEVER sail that line again. Disgusting! But, I am willing to try any age CLEAN ship to get those 3 biggies on our bucket list (time in port, GNP & Inside Passage balcony views). The main reason I am looking at Princess over HAL is the amount of time in port and the National Park Rangers that come on board Princess, but maybe HAL has those too? I'm not even certain how to see the time in port on the websites.... Guess I need more School of YouTube!

 

Again, thanks to all! I am adding your ideas to my ever-growing spreadsheet. Hoping to book it by the end of the month 🙂 

Edited July 24, 2023 by CherylFlorida

[AtlantaCruiser72]

@CherylFlorida  below are three itineraries.
 

#1 is Princess Glacier Bay itinerary  on Discovery Princess r/t Seattle which has 4 ports but cuts Ketchikan short to be able to meet the US government required stop in Victoria. It also does not sail the lower portion of the inside passage.  

#2 is Ruby Princess r/t Vancouver w Glacier Bay - note some dates call on Haines instead of Skagway

#3 is HAL Konigsdam or Zaandam r/t Vancouver - itinerary does not vary between the two ships. 

 

#2 & 3 are arguably better than #1 as they sail the lower portion of the inside passage. The evening call in Victoria is a throwaway. Better to have more time in Ketchikan. HAL has better docking positions in Juneau and Ketchikan compared to Princess. All sailings to Glacier bay have onboard US park rangers. Both HAL and Princess will have their own resident naturalist to give additional commentary and enrichment lectures. 

 

 

Edited July 24, 2023 by AtlantaCruiser72

[CherylFlorida]

@AtlantaCruiser72 Thank you! 

[Coral]

34 minutes ago, CherylFlorida said:

The main reason I am looking at Princess over HAL is the amount of time in port and the National Park Rangers that come on board Princess, but maybe HAL has those too? I'm not even certain how to see the time in port on the websites.... Guess I need more School of YouTube!

Any ship that goes to Glacier Bay includes National Park Rangers. It is a requirement.

 

Princess does have very good Alaska infotainment (several speakers, naturalist, Libby Riddles speaking, etc....). Hopefully someone can chime in on what HAL offers.

[RV Queen]

You might look at 11 day r/t San Francisco. We are doing that May 15, 2024. It has all your ports, inside passage AND Glacier Bay. Two relaxing sea days on the front end and 2 on the back end.  Win, win, win, win for us. 

[SCX22]

6 minutes ago, RV Queen said:

You might look at 11 day r/t San Francisco. We are doing that May 15, 2024. It has all your ports, inside passage AND Glacier Bay. Two relaxing sea days on the front end and 2 on the back end.  Win, win, win, win for us. 

SF sailings don’t sail the true Inside Passage.  They sail west of Vancouver Island.  They do this to cut distance and save on fuel.