Alaska Cruise in a Month - Last Minute Questions

[jlacy1987]

My family of 4 (including a 15 year old stepson and 3.5 year old daughter) cruise next month out of Vancouver to Alaska on the Sapphire Princess. Excursions are booked, final payment date is passed. I've currently also made dinner reservations at the MDRs every night as well. We have the original Princess Plus package (before the first price increase). 

 

1) I know medallions will be shipped out a couple of weeks before departure and we've selected the free ones. I need to order something to carry them with, does anyone have a favorite accessory? My stepson and I would probably prefer a wristband. My daughter would be most likely to keep hers on if we can find a wristband that fits a toddler's wrist or ankle. She'd take a necklace off in two seconds. Husband will probably just keep his in his pocket. 

 

2) Self-service laundry, we plan on doing laundry once or twice on the ship to minimize the amount we have to pack (since we are a family of 4). If I understand correctly, I don't need to bring quarters on board? I just scan my medallion and get tokens which go into the washer and dryer? Can I also scan and get detergent, or should I bring single use detergent packs? Is the laundry 24/7?

 

3) There is no pre-booking of production shows. With our daughter being 3.5 years old, we'd obviously want any 7 or 7:30pm shows. How early would we need to get to the theater to insure decent seats? We prefer having an aisle seat in case one of us needs to make a break for it with the toddler so that we disturb as few people as possible.

 

4) Also related to our 3.5 year old, which MDR has the most 4+ person window tables? On our NCL pre-Christmas cruise last December, our daughter struggled to stay seated the entire meal at dinner in the MDRs and I usually had to bring out my phone and let her color on a toddler drawing app. I think if we can have a window table, she'll be better able to stay content, so we'd probably prioritize our dinner reservations to those we'd most likely be able to get a window table at. We will do the buffet and other complimentary venues for breakfast and lunches, most likely. 

 

5) In the kid's area, are parents allowed to stay? She's old enough to make use of the kid's area, but we wouldn't want to check her in and leave her, but I know she'd love to play in the area. 

 

6) Are you able to track your party through the Princess app? We generally let my 15 year old stepson have free reign on cruises. He's old enough and responsible enough that we are fine with letting him wander. But sometimes we obviously want to find him. When you have the medallion on you, is there a way to track the others in the app? So that we could know, ok he's in the arcade or he's at the buffet, etc. 

[WAvoyager]

For the medallion, I’m always wearing a watch, so I got one of the holders that fits onto a watch strap.  For my daughter we use one of the clips.  My wife prefers the lanyard.  Plenty of options on Amazon - just search for Princess cruise medallion holder.

 

I believe one parent can stay with a toddler - I know they allow that when the toddler isn’t potty trained, but I’m not 100% sure about other scenarios.

 

The app (or on ship monitors) can track other members of your party.  It’s the most useful feature for us.

[jlacy1987]

1 minute ago, WAvoyager said:

For the medallion, I’m always wearing a watch, so I got one of the holders that fits onto a watch strap.  For my daughter we use one of the clips.  My wife prefers the lanyard.  Plenty of options on Amazon - just search for Princess cruise medallion holder.

 

I believe one parent can stay with a toddler - I know they allow that when the toddler isn’t potty trained, but I’m not 100% sure about other scenarios.

 

The app (or on ship monitors) can track other members of your party.  It’s the most useful feature for us.

 

The tracking will be very useful for us too. On our NCL Christmas cruise, I swear we must have kept walking circles around each other when we'd try to find one another. 

[Steelers36]

2. YES

3.  For an aisle seat at a popular show, 1/2 hr early should be good as long as don't care too much about location.

4.  Without an accurate floor diagram of all 5 DR's probably impossible to say.  They can also adjust many of the tables into 2x2 or 1x4 - at least on ships we have been on.

[cruisequeen4ever]

1) We like the sports bands. Everyone can choose the color they want, they’re comfortable to wear, durable, and affordable. 
2) Yes, you scan your medallion to pay for the laundry and the detergent. 
3) Get there 20-30 min early to be safe. 
4) The Sapphire is unique in that it has 4 identical layout dining rooms. You can go to any of them; the difference is the theme in decor. Each used to have a specialty dish but not sure if that’s still happening post pandemic.  
5) I don’t know

6) Yes, you can add all of your family members to your app, so you can track them all. Beware though that there is a delay. One night, I wanted to surprise my husband, so I used the app to find him. Well, I kept missing him because the app would be a few min behind. I finally had to use Facebook Messenger to call him. 

[Steelers36]

On 8/22/2023 at 10:45 AM, jlacy1987 said:

My family of 4 (including a 15 year old stepson and 3.5 year old daughter) cruise next month out of Vancouver to Alaska on the Sapphire Princess.

If you go by Alfredo's, would you mind posting back here the cost of a pizza?  Is it $8.50 or $12?  Thanks (there seems to be some debate on this).

[jlacy1987]

9 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

If you go by Alfredo's, would you mind posting back here the cost of a pizza?  Is it $8.50 or $12?  Thanks (there seems to be some debate on this).

Yes, I can try to pop by! We don't typically dine at pay restaurants on cruises, but I can still go by and see what the price is. 

[deltahog]

42 minutes ago, cruisequeen4ever said:

there is a delay. One night, I wanted to surprise my husband, so I used the app to find him. Well, I kept missing him because the app would be a few min behind.

Seems good for locating books or purses or keys; not so much people.

[ggprincess2004]

Laundry - pack a few detergent pods and a few fabric softener dryer sheets. You can buy detergent on board, but it is just as easy to pop a few supplies in your luggage. Bon Voyage!!!