Coral, sapphire or Caribbean princess in Alaska?

[cbowls30]

If you had to pick, which ship and why?, leaning towards coral due to promenade deck which is obviously good to view scenery! Thanks 

[dockman]

I picked sapphire....never been on it and seems to get good reviews...plus i like the 14 day itins...we shall see...

[Coral]

Coral or Sapphire. I would not do the Caribbean Princess.

[capriccio]

We've been on 2 Sapphire Princess cruises (California Coastal and Norway), 3 Coral Princess Cruises (Alaska X2 and Round Australia), and 3 Caribbean Princess cruises (Round Britain, Caribbean X2).

 

Coral and Sapphire both have covered pools; the Caribbean Princess does not.

 

Coral's full complement of passengers is 2,000.  Sapphire's is 2,670.  Caribbean's is 3,140.

 

Sapphire and Caribbean both have Alfredo's but the Coral does not (but on our April cruise they offered a pop-up Alfredo's in Sabatini's on certain sea days). 

 

For us it would be either the Coral or Sapphire Princess due to passenger count and the covered pool with preference for the Coral due to the size.  But to make a really informed decision, it would in the end depend on the itinerary including time in each port.

 

Added:  OP - all three have covered promenade decks.  The Coral also has small viewing areas on some (if not all) of the aft decks open at all times and 2 forward viewing areas open on scenic viewing days (Glacier Bay for example).

 

 

Edited January 9 by capriccio

[Tyskie]

Definitely the Coral (we chose that ship in 2018 - had already been on her for the Panama Canal)

Great viewing areas - easy to navigate - IC 

We chose to do the Sanctuary for Glacier National Park Day - hands down was the best decision for us. 

Caribe deck has the larger 1/2 covered balconies.

Enjoy!

[Essiesmom]

I did Diamond in 2010 and Coral in 2013 (I side cabins both times).  So either Coral or Sapphire for me.  EM

[wolfie11]

Coral is my favorite.  Saphire is also good.  Not Caribbean.

[cr8tiv1]

Caribbean P does not have Alfredos.  I would choose the Coral for size and viewing areas.

[capriccio]

1 minute ago, cr8tiv1 said:

Caribbean P does not have Alfredos.  I would choose the Coral for size and viewing areas.

You are absolutely correct (as I was on it last summer, you'd think I would remember)!

[nini]

Hands down, Sapphire! It has Skywalker's which is a fabulous viewing space as well as a quiet hanging out place. We used Skywalker's (on the Crown and Golden) on Glacier day for viewing when cold, and then when warmed up, we could just step outside.

 

We do not care for the Coral: 1. No Vines 2. No Alfredo's 3. International Cafe is next to the very smoky Casino and tough to stand and make an order 4. Yucky buffet in the front of the ship with dirty windows to prevent seeing out (they are also slanted) 3. No lovely Terrace Pool

[cruisequeen4ever]

Definitely either the Coral or Sapphire. Both have indoor pools. The Caribbean was an absurd choice of ship for them to put in Alaska, for the name and because it was built for warm weather cruises. It was one thing having a Royal class ship here because those are at least new with all the bells and whistles, but the Caribbean is just old and not well suited for Alaska.

[1025cruise]

What is the difference in itineraries? That should be first consideration.

[Oceansaway17]

1 hour ago, cruisequeen4ever said:

Definitely either the Coral or Sapphire. Both have indoor pools. The Caribbean was an absurd choice of ship for them to put in Alaska, for the name and because it was built for warm weather cruises. It was one thing having a Royal class ship here because those are at least new with all the bells and whistles, but the Caribbean is just old and not well suited for Alaska.

as was the Grand Princess.  I did her on summer of 2023 and the crew never tried to dry any decks around the pool or in the aft area.  I did not feel so save on this ship.

On RCI and the new CCL Celebration, the crew was constantly whiping up the decks.

And for the Grand, they use the boarding deck higher up and so the entire middle of the ship and atrium as well as guests services was very chilly.    

[rmsmith]

I would probably go with the Coral. Having done a cruise on both the Coral and the Island we really like the size of those ships, they have great viewing areas as well.  Sapphire, never sailed on her, would be my second choice.  Have sailed on the Caribbean just after the pandemic ended (3rd cruise after she returned to cruising I think) and despite having had a year or more to work on maintenance items she was showing a fair bit of wear - at least I thought so.

[JerrySueW]

11 hours ago, Tyskie said:

Definitely the Coral (we chose that ship in 2018 - had already been on her for the Panama Canal)

Great viewing areas - easy to navigate - IC 

We chose to do the Sanctuary for Glacier National Park Day - hands down was the best decision for us. 

Caribe deck has the larger 1/2 covered balconies.

Enjoy!

I second this. Glacier Bay in the Sanctuary on the Coral is my favorite day of cruising ever. And we lucked into it while checking out the ship after embarking. The steward convinced us to book the whole day and it was well worth the cost. Great location for photographers.

[john watson]

Sapphire Princess is one of two Grand Class derivatives built in Japan to a widened design as opposed to their Italian built sisters.  Caribbean Princess is 36 metres or 118 feet wide whereas Sapphire Princess is 37 metres or 121 feet 5 inches wide.  The wider design had Alaska in mind with more than the extra width being used on the Promenade Deck to allow loungers in that area. I would suggest not choosing Caribbean Princess the name of which sounds like a warmer area of operation design.

 

Regards John.

[BamaVol]

We sailed Sapphire in September to Alaska and she felt perfectly designed for the voyage. Lots of viewing spots, inside and out. Our cabin on Aloha had a covered deck that kept us dry. Something to consider as some are more open to the elements than others. 

[MississippiMom]

On 1/9/2024 at 7:15 AM, Tyskie said:

Definitely the Coral (we chose that ship in 2018 - had already been on her for the Panama Canal)

Great viewing areas - easy to navigate - IC 

We chose to do the Sanctuary for Glacier National Park Day - hands down was the best decision for us. 

Caribe deck has the larger 1/2 covered balconies.

Enjoy!

Are there certain balcony cabins on Caribe that are 1/2 covered, or is it all of them?

 

Thank you so much!

[capriccio]

Coral mini suite balconies on Dolphin deck aft (700 series of cabins) are fully covered which we prefer on cruises with highly variable weather like Alaska.

[cbowls30]

Anyone have any thoughts on royal princess for Alaska? We just realised it's another option. Like the idea of a slightly newer ship after recent bad experiences on ships circa 15/20 years old! 

[Coral]

4 minutes ago, cbowls30 said:

Anyone have any thoughts on royal princess for Alaska? We just realised it's another option. Like the idea of a slightly newer ship after recent bad experiences on ships circa 15/20 years old! 

Royal is many people's last choice, especially for those of us who have done Alaska many times. It is too large to do inside passage in areas. No promenade deck, no covered pool area. If you cruise for the ship, chose Royal Princess. If you cruise for Alaska, avoid Royal Princess.

[Tyskie]

13 hours ago, MississippiMom said:

Are there certain balcony cabins on Caribe that are 1/2 covered, or is it all of them?

 

Thank you so much!

 

We just had the basic balcony - not the mini suite. 

From my memory it was 1/2 covered 

We were on the aft bump out for the Panama Canal and those balconies were smaller.

Stick with mid-ship, you should be fine.

 

 

[Coral]

14 hours ago, MississippiMom said:

Are there certain balcony cabins on Caribe that are 1/2 covered, or is it all of them?

 

Thank you so much!

On Grand class ships (Grand and Sapphire) - all of the balconies on Caribe are larger and half covered, half open.

 

The Coral Princess is a different class of ship.

Edited January 13 by Coral

[cookok]

Have been on all 3 ships, Coral thru the Panama Canal and Sapphire 14 day round trip Alaska this past Aug-Sept 2023.  Sapphire for Alaska was great, loved Skywalker's lounge for that voyage.  

[Yehootu]

On 1/9/2024 at 5:15 AM, Tyskie said:

Definitely the Coral (we chose that ship in 2018 - had already been on her for the Panama Canal)

Great viewing areas - easy to navigate - IC 

We chose to do the Sanctuary for Glacier National Park Day - hands down was the best decision for us. 

Caribe deck has the larger 1/2 covered balconies.

Enjoy!

 

4 hours ago, Tyskie said:

 

We just had the basic balcony - not the mini suite. 

From my memory it was 1/2 covered 

We were on the aft bump out for the Panama Canal and those balconies were smaller.

Stick with mid-ship, you should be fine.

 

 

Caribe deck covered balcony rooms, fully covered are C232-C310, and C419-C502, the non corner bump out cabins.

Dolphin, D206-D309 and a ccombo of mini's and balcony D624-D724. 

Aloha 312-623.

The Caribe deck balconies that are larger and partially covered are C312-C412.

Edited January 13 by Yehootu