PurpleTraveller

Tuesday June 6 - Skagway Part 3 At midday we arrived at Caribou Crossing, our lunch stop, where we had two hours. As well as lunch there was also animals such as alpacas, donkeys and horses to see, husky dog rides, gold paning, puppies to cuddle and see, a Taxidermy and Royal Canadian Mounted Police Museums and a gift shop. Our first stop was to see the puppies and I was lucky enough to have a cuddle with "Jersey". The puppies were not huskies but rescue puppies who were waiting to be rehomed. They were very cute! We watched the husky dogs take a group for a ride and people gold panning. The other animals also had to be visited. We then went for lunch which was a large leg of chicken, a roast potato and coleslaw. There were bread rolls and donuts that you could help yourself to. Water was available to drink and also coffee. After lunch we visited the Taxidermy Museum and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Museum. Out the front were wagons where you could sit at tables and a welcome sign. At 2.00pm we left Caribou Crossing and a few minutes later we passed a large brown bear on the side of the road. Unfortunately the bus wasn't able to stop and I didn't get a photo but I saw a bear!

Tuesday June 6 - Skagway Part 2 At 9.50am we arrived at the Suspension Bridge and had a one hour and ten minute stop. There was time to walk over the suspension bridge, read the information boards and visit the gift store without being rushed. We left the Suspension Bridge at 11.00am and continued up the mountains, driving through gorgeous scenery. It had been overcast in the morning but later in the morning it had started to clear and we now had beautiful blue sky and sunshine. At 11.55am we had a quick five minute stop at the Carcross Desert. The Carcross Desert is actually the remains of an ancient lake where the silt and sand that had been trapped in a glacier that melted, settled to the bottom of the lake about 10,000 years ago. It was quite strange to be standing on a sand dune in the mountains!

Tuesday June 6 - Skagway Weather Forecast - Clouds, High 46°F/8°C, Low 44°F/7°C This morning we were in port with Royal Princess who was tendering their passengers, Celebrity Solstice, HA Konigsdam and a small ship Columbio. We got off the ship at 7.45am so we could have a quick walk into town before our excursion. We walked past a White Pass Train and along the main street before returning to the dock. We had booked the Princess "The Yukon and Suspension Bridge" tour and the meeting time was 8.15am at the end of the dock. It was very cold and windy while we were waiting so were very glad we had our wind/rain jackets on. While we were waiting for the bus we could clearly see where the landside was last year. When the bus arrived we got on and left at 8.30am. There were 43 of us on the bus. We drove through town and up the road where we were soon amongst beautiful snowcapped mountains. At 9.05am we stopped at a viewpoint overlooking the mountains and the Captain William Moore Bridge for five minutes. At 9.30am we stopped at the Canadian Customs Border where we had to hold our passports up to our faces for the officer who came onto the bus to check. The stop took about ten minutes but we were able to watch a White Pass Train while we waited. As we continued the scenery we could see from the bus was beautiful.

There seems to be some issues with the dining system and to be honest I don't know what the solution is. I found on my cruise that the tender tickets were in alphabetical order as the first four groups of tickets issued were animals starting with "A" then the next four groups of tickets were animals starting with "B" and so it went following the alphabet. When in Juneau the first two "A" animal tickets were on the first non Princess excursion tender and then the other two "A" animal tickets were on the second tender. The third tender was "B" animal tickets and so on. When passengers were asking when they would get on a tender the crew would ask them what animal they had and could tell them if they had a long or short wait depending on the first letter of the animal on their ticket. I don't know why they changed from numbers. Maybe with a set number of each animal tickets it is easier to control numbers on each tender. I agree it would be good to have the tender or gangplank information on the electronic display boards. In Juneau many passengers were crowding the Piazza area leading down to the tenders asking what tender tickets were loading or when they would be able to get on a tender. It was so crowded that it was difficult to get through the crowd to get to the stairs to go down to the tender when our ticket animal was called.

To be honest I had to google to see what a Devil's Club plant is and I'm a horticulturist, though in my defense we don't have these plants in Australia. I don't remember seeing any of these plants in Sitka but I think I did actually see some in San Francisco at the Salesforce Rooftop Garden. Is this some? If so, I definitely didn't see any in Sitka because I would have remembered them as they are so distinctive. We didn't go on a tour in Sitka but just walked around by ourselves. It only took about ten minutes to walk to the Sitka National Historical Park from where we were dropped off by the shuttle bus that took us in to town from the ship. Hope you have a great cruise!

I can understand that. We usually eat in the buffet a few times during each cruise because we sometimes like a quick and easy dinner. This was the first cruise that we didn't eat in the buffet for dinner once. I hope you enjoy both of your future cruises.

Monday June 5 - Hubbard Glacier Part 2 The glacier was a sight to behold! The captain turned the ship so that both sides got a good view of the glacier. We spent all the time at the glacier on the Sun Deck so we had a great view. Whilst it was overcast and the cloud cover was low the glacier was a magnificent sight to see. After both sides of the ship faced the glacier we waited for the return of the small boat excursion then sailed away from the glacier at 12.30pm. We left Yakutut Bay at 1.30pm. We got lunch at the Salty Dog Grill and spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing in our cabin. Dinner was at the Michaelangelo Dining Room where it was Italian night.

Monday June 5 - Hubbard Glacier Weather Forecast - Clear, High 50°F/10°C, Low 48°F/9°C This morning we had breakfast in the Horizon Buffet. We entered into Yakutut Bay at 9.00am and we went to Skywalkers to wait for our arrival at the Hubbard Glacier. At 10.00am we arrived at the Hubbard Glacier. The ship slowly approached the glacier. It was overcast and quite cold with low clouds but there was no rain. We waited for a while for the small boat excursion to be loaded and set off. We then sailed closer to the glacier. The surrounding scenery was lovely. There was a lot of ice in the water of all different shapes, sizes and colours.

That's the joy of cruising! You can speak to three different people and they've all done different but equally great things in the same port. We loved Sitka and would definitely chose it to be on another Alaska cruise itinerary.

Thank you! As our introduction to Alaska we loved our day and the beauty in Sitka.

Sunday June 4 - Sitka Part 3 When we had finished our walk through the forest we then walked back towards the town centre. As it was a Sunday there were little stalls set up by the local children outside their homes selling cookies, lemonade and other drinks to raise some money for their particular cause. We stopped to buy cookies from a lovely boy who was saving to go on his summer vacation. The cookies were delicious! We walked through town and visited the Russian Blockhouse which is a replica of a wooden Russian fortification from the 1800's. Next we went to the grave of Princess Maksoutoff who was the wife of Alaska's last Russian governor. Just up the road was the Russian Cemetery one of the most atmospheric cemeteries, I have been to, with the graves amongst the trees. We walked back into town to Castle Hill, the historical site where Tlingits and Russians had fortifications. It is where Alaska was formally transferred from Russia to the United States in 1867. There were views across to the lighthouse. We made a quick stop at the "Prospector" statue in the grounds of the Sitka Pioneer Home. Lastly we walked past St Michael's Cathedral which was unfortunately closed. There was a very long queue for the shuttle back to the ship but fortunately the sun had come out so it was pleasant standing in the sunshine chatting to people in the queue and enjoying the view. We waited 30 minutes in the queue to get on a shuttle and we were back on the ship at 4.30pm. At 6.00pm we went to the Michaelangelo Dining Room and spoke to Maddela. Maddela had been informed of our experience the previous night and after apologising for what had happened, he assured us that he would personally look after us for the remainder of the cruise, which he did. He took us to a lovely four top table by a window and we sat there each night for the rest of cruise. Each evening Maddela personally greeted us on our arrival at the dining room and ushered us to "our" table. We were treated to excellent service from our waiters Allan and Chiril every night and I was able to preorder my meal with Prahran each night for the following night. As I usually ordered sorbet for my dessert each night as it was an easy option with my food allergy, occasionally Prahran would order me something extra that he thought I would like and be okay for me to eat. He was always right and the flambe pineapple was divine! Ten out of ten to the team at the Michaelangelo Dining Room!

Sunday June 4 - Sitka Part 2 At the Sitka National Historical Park we walked along the Totem Trail looking at the Totem Poles and watching the many bald eagles soaring above us. The walk through the very tall trees, past the beautiful scenery and towards the Indian River was just lovely. We saw bald eagles flying over the river and managed to photo one that landed in a tree near us. It's a terrible photo but the best I could get on full zoom on my phone. We continued walking along the trail until we arrived at the river. We crossed the river and walked along another trail and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves walking through the lovely forest.

Sunday June 4 - Sitka Weather Forecast - 60% Chance of Rain, High 54°F/12°C, Low 46°F/8°C After breakfast at the Horizon Buffet we sat on the Sun Deck to watch the scenery. We arrived at Sitka at 11.00am which was one hour later than the itinerary but one hour earlier than the captain had announced that we would be arriving. We were in port with Ovation of the Seas. The weather was cool and overcast but it was not raining despite the forecast for rain. We were off the ship at 11.30am and as we left the ship we passed passengers arriving with their luggage. We were soon on the free shuttle which took about 15 minutes to get to the town centre. The road in the centre of town was closed to traffic so that the main street was pedestrianised. We made a quick stop at the outside of the Russian Bishop's House, admired a nearby shop and then walked past the marina to the Sitka National Historical Park.

Ewww! That is unpleasant. I think that occasionally things don't go as well as they should in the dining rooms but in my case it was handled well and I was very happy with the outcome. I have never had an issue on any other cruise. I would recommend that you try dining in a dining room to see if you enjoy it or not, maybe at a shared table. The food was very good and service excellent in the Michaelangelo Dining Room on Crown Princess.

Strange indeed! The afternoon tea we had did not cost any extra and was in the Da Vinci Dining Room on each sea day from 3.00pm to 4.00pm. We went to line up at about 2.50pm and the line grew very long behind us. When we left at about 3.30pm there was still a very long line of passengers waiting to get in. We only went once on the first sea day so maybe that was why the line was so long.

So very pleased to hear that you are home and on the mend. I was very concerned when I heard that you weren't well and thank you to Carol for keeping us up to date. Take care of yourself as your health and wellbeing is of the utmost importance. By the way I have been thoroughly enjoying your review and beautiful photos and hope to get to Iceland one day. Allison

When I was speaking to the manager on the phone about what had happened she said that she had checked our medallions and she could see that we had ordered drinks from the Tradewinds Bar on deck 16 at about 6.30pm and said that we obviously hadn't left the Botticelli Dining Room to go up to deck 16 to order drinks, so they can see some things via the medallion.

What are the chances that you also had table 89! 😀 Interesting to hear that it was a good table location as we never did get to see where it is. Glad that you enjoyed the table and great food. Also interesting that they didn't have a hotel manager and are bringing back crew early from their vacations.

My sailing was completely full so I could only peek in when a cabin door was open when the steward was cleaning. Good to hear that they were taking the opportunity to clean the carpets while they were empty.

Fortunately this was the only crew member that we had an issue with. Every other crew member we came across was great, especially those in the Michaelangelo Dining Room. We had a fantastic experience there and excellent service. It seems to be dependent on who you happen to deal with and no-one should have to struggle with their dining on a cruise.

The whole conversation was totally bizarre and very surreal! We thought the food in the dining room was very good and just as good if not better than we have had on previous Princess cruises before the shutdown.

The next time I'm on a Princess ship I'm going to check the carpet in every cabin I get to look into to! I'm glad that you bed was comfortable but a pity about your duvet. Sydney and Vancouver are very similar and the sail in and out of both ports are beautiful (though I could be a bit biased towards Sydney 😀)

Thank you, that's really good to know. $10 is very reasonable and worth every cent!

I don't know who is responsible but I think it is a combination of the terminal not being able to cope with the huge numbers of passengers, poor organisation, larger ships, maybe too many ships and probably a whole lot more than I can know or think of. I certainly don't blame Vancouverites who are lovely. We had a fabulous time in Vancouver and during our six week holiday were in Vancouver three times. I would love to come back again.

Saturday June 3 - Sea Day, Inside Passage Part 2 At 6.00pm we went to have dinner at Botticelli Dining Room. We had made a reservation for each night of the cruise for a table for two at 6.00pm. It was formal night and we were seated at table ten. We had a nice meal and as I have a food allergy arrangements were made to preorder my meal for the following evening. We asked if we could be seated at table ten for the remainder of the cruise so that I wouldn't have to explain my food allergy every night and was told to talk to the hostess at the front desk. On our way out we went to the front desk and made our request to be seated at table ten for the rest of the cruise. To our surprise the hostess asked us why we had been seated at table ten as we had been allocated to table 89. We replied that we had been taken to table ten when we had arrived at the Dining Room. She then said that we should have been at table 89 as we had been seated at table 89 the previous night. When we said that we had never been to the Botticelli Dining Room before she then told us that we had been seated at table 89 the previous night. Very confused I told her that I had cancelled our reservation in person the previous night at 5.00pm and had eaten pizza on the Sun Deck. Her reply that we had not eaten pizza on the Sun Deck but had definitely been at table 89 in Botticelli the previous night astonished us. We asked her if she thought we didn't know where and what we eaten the previous night. She stated again that we had sat at table 89 in Botticelli the previous night. She went on to say that she remembered us, our cabin number and name from the previous night. My husband and I looked at each other totally bewildered. All we could say was that we definitely had not been there the previous night. The hostess was getting quite abrupt with us and was adamant that we had sat at table 89 the previous night. Trying to lighten the tense atmosphere my husband joked that he hoped that whoever had sat at table 89 last night hadn't charged any drinks to our account. She replied that no-one else could have charged drinks to our account as we were the ones sitting at table 89 the previous night. By now she was speaking to us in a very terse and quite unpleasant manner and refused to accept that we knew where we had eaten dinner the previous night. It was all quite bizarre. My husband asked her where table 89 was in the Dining Room and she very rudely replied that it was the table where we had sat last night and where we would be sitting for dinner for the remainder of the cruise. At this point we said goodbye and left the Dining Room. We have never been spoken to by any crew member on any ship, Princess or any other, in this manner. By the end of the conservation she was being positively rude and was adamant that we did not know what or where we had had dinner the previous night because she was correct. What the....... !!! We have never made a complaint on a Princess ship before but we went straight to Guest Services to make a complaint about her completely unacceptable behaviour. The following day I received a phone call from a manager who apologised profusely and said that we could be seated at table ten for the rest of the cruise. I told her that I no longer wished to eat in the Botticelli Dining Room as I was so upset at the experience we had had and could we please eat at a different dining room. She put me on hold for a short time and returned to say that she had arranged for us to eat in the Michaelangelo Dining Room at 6.00pm for the remainder of the cruise and gave me the name of who to ask for when we arrived that evening for dinner so that they could look after us. She also apologised profusely again and said that the hostess would be spoken to. I feel that the matter was handled quickly and appropriately and I was satisfied with the result. When we returned to our cabin the Disembarkation Form was on our bed to be completed and left on our desk for our steward to collect. Clocks were turned back one hour that night.