flamomo

I've cruised to AK 3 times out of Seattle with Princess (and have done a total of 44 cruises with Princess, with 4 more booked) and will be doing another AK cruise, this time out of SFO in the early Fall on the Grand. I'll be going with one of my 3 adult daughters, who took her very first cruise ever, to AK out of Seattle last year in September, with me.  She LOVED it …. both AK and cruising, and, by the time we disembarked, she wanted to go back to AK but for more than 7 days. Thus, we're doing exactly that. It's definitely worth flying all the way to/from from FL for it.

Princess is pretty well known in the cruise industry for doing a great job with AK cruises. Having a naturalist onboard every AK cruise provides a more in-depth AK experience, as well as her/him being someone on the bridge who is on the lookout for whales and other wildlife to alert passengers to. That person also provides narrative during times of scenic cruising.

IMO, Princess is classy but relaxed. I have always felt that the service onboard has been somewhere between very good and excellent. The crew and staff all seem to be very passenger oriented, and want the passengers to be satisfied with having chosen Princess. The décor is not flashy, and there's no rock climbing walls, etc, but there's plenty to do for those who need to be entertained during the day on sea days, and plenty of quiet spots to relax and enjoy a good book or some other quiet activity. I've never had a problem finding something to eat in the dining room …. often it's difficult to decide which entrée I want that night.

For entertainment, Princess puts on some pretty decent production shows in the theater (just MHO, of course), and there are entertainment options in the lounges in the evening.

I've never had that happen in the many times I have used EZAir on a variety of airlines, including United.

And I seem to recall that after Princess has paid the airfare, at some point after final payment, I did get an email indicating that my flight(s) have been confirmed.

,IMO, it's more cost effective to book your hotels on your own. Princess charge per night is per person, NOT per room per night.

We stayed at that particular Holiday Inn Express last year and were very satisfied with it. It's clean and the beds are very  comfortable, and the staff was pleasant and helpful. It's an easy walk to the restaurants and shopping plaza.

I've done AK cruises in September twice so far. The first time it was damp, drizzly and chilly enough to need an extra layer under the waterproof hooded windbreaker each day. The 2nd time, last year, it was shirt-sleeve warm and nary a drop of rain the whole week.

I'll be going again this coming September, and will pack for any weather possibility!

Got an upsell offer, soon after final Payment, for an upcoming 15 day cruise on the Pacific Princess. Originally booked into a mid-forward balcony on deck 7 and was offered a mid-aft minisuite on deck 8 for the amazing upsell price of an additional $200 per person. Being too good a deal to pass up, I quickly made the call, left a message, received a return call within an hour, and just that quickly, we were moved.

It's the only time I've gotten an upsell offer, after 40+ Princess cruises!!

On ‎2‎/‎26‎/‎2011 at 11:31 AM, Pam in CA said:

The only times I've seen fans or carpet cleaning has been when someone was sick or made a mess, or there was a toilet problem, so it's been very few times. Princess is far more likely to replace carpet, which I've seen done during a cruise on several occasions.

I agree with Pam. I've taken lots of Princess cruises and have only occasionally seen fans being used in the hallway if there has been a cleanup required because of a passenger's illness or a plumbing problem that caused carpeting to become soiled. If it's within a cabin, the fan may be sitting in the hallway but blowing air thru the cabin.

I've had great success with EZAir for international flight to &/or from cruises, but never tried them for domestic flights until recently. Just for the heck of it I decided to look at fares for a flight from Tampa to LAX for an upcoming cruise, and snagged a direct early morning flight on Delta for $60. Yes, sixty!! My cabin mate had originally planned to go out a couple of days early to visit some friends, but decided about a month later to instead fly out when I do. I was able able to book her on the same flight for a good price too … $125, but still way cheaper than booking thru Delta or one of the booking sites like Orbitz, etc.

Later this year my daughter and I are flying to SFO for an AK cruise, and I booked us thru EZAir for about $150 less per person round trip as compared to using other sources.

Google "Hotels in FLL on 17th Street" and you'll see what's handy to the port. If you stay in that area there are restaurants, a Publix grocery store, a wine store, as well as other shops within easy walking distance. A taxi from that area to the pier would be a fairly short ride without a big tab to pay.

We stayed in that area and found it worked out very well.

On ‎4‎/‎17‎/‎2019 at 5:33 PM, capriccio said:

Chamina (and anyone else reading this thread) - I picked this website recommended from someone here on cruise critic and found it very informative:  https://www.cruisedeckplans.com/.

 

After locating your ship, pick your cabin deck and then click on 'drag decks' on the menu.  Then you can place the deck above the one you are interested in to see exactly what is located above you.  Looks like you made a good decision to move to 8055!

Thanks for this helpful link. I just checked and 8050 is under the seating area of the buffet. As I recall that's carpeted, so I think we'll be okay.

On ‎4‎/‎17‎/‎2019 at 5:45 PM, kennicott said:

On one cruise we were in # 8000, a mini, which I really liked. We like it forward. Better flying fish viewing. On another we were in # 8050, next to you. Only mini we could get. When we first moved in there was quite a bit of engine or exhaust stack noise, mostly in the corridor and I thought, Oh-Oh. The lady next door wasn't happy. But after a few weeks her and I compared notes, we both agreed we didn't hardly notice it after the first day or so. I even woke up one night and it was perfectly quiet, I thought maybe we lost power or something and were adrift.

 

No noise at all in 8000 since we were directly below the card room. But I was concerned about 8050, so I measured it off, and found it is under the short corridor on the port side after one gets off the lift or stairs or comes in from the pool. So no tables there and as for foot traffic noise we never noticed any. 

We've got 8050 on a cruise in a few weeks. No chance of switching cabins as the cruise is completely sold out. Guess I'll make sure to pack some foam ear plugs, just in case.

Personally, I hope not. With the deck area being pretty small, as compared to the other ships in the fleet, the audio would be disturbing and possibly even annoying to those trying to relax or read on a lounge in the pool area.

Even on the larger Princess ships (Grand class),  just walking thru the section of the open deck below the MUTS screen, the audio is often ridiculously loud.

The first time I experienced MUTS, quite a few years ago, the audio was not broadcast into the area from speakers; back then everyone who wanted to watch whatever was being shown on the screen was give earbuds and a little device that looked like a small portable radio (much like the system used on many of the guided tours in Europe) to listen with. The experience was much more enjoyable than the way they do it now, with the speakers blasting.

Just curious ..... With the MedallionNet, will Elites and Platinum passengers still get a block of free minutes, or will that become a perk of the past?

Can't speak for the location in the bar outside the Club dining room on deck 5, as I've never ventured to that one in the early AM, but the one just inside the doors to the buffet area doesn't open till 0600, which to me, as a very early riser, is later than I would like. And the buffet coffee is generally not ready yet either before 6.

Cruising is one of the best things about being retired, along with ME being able to do what I want when I want, instead of being controlled by my career. I'm now in my late 70s and have been retired almost 15 years, and seeing the world one cruise at a time has made it simply wonderful. Since retiring I have done 40+ cruises with Princess, and currently have 4 more booked. I'm planning to keep on going and doing as long as I can.

Life has been very good to me, and I am most grateful!!

We have 8050 on a upcoming sold out cruise and are hoping there won't be noise issues overhead.

On ‎4‎/‎4‎/‎2019 at 1:17 PM, BarbinMich said:

 [Note:  this is my first visit to the board; it's title seems quite general, sounds like place to ask for advice].  We've been on 51 cruises, mostly on Princess.  Our favorite kind of cruise is a TA, either WB or EB--we've done a number both ways.  Love the sea days when there are interesting lecutres and many other activities onboard.  Also, TAs are the best value IMHO and one only has to fly overseas one-way.  Our favorite itinerary that wasn't a TA was a 10-day northern Med cruise from Civitavecchia and included Rhodes, Santorini, Athens, and Mykonos in Greece; Istanbul (overnight) and Ephesus in Turkey; and Naples (Celebrity Galaxy, 10/2008).  Another interesting itinerary was on the Celebrity Eclipse RT from Southampton in 9/2014 which stopped at Gibraltar; Malaga, Spain; Genoa, Livorno & Civitavecchia, Italy; Villefranche, France; and Lisbon, Portugal (4 new ports for us).

Since you are apparently a Princess fan …. I know I am …. have you tried the Pacific Princess, Princess' only remaining small ship, with about 670 passengers? There used to be 3 of the little ladies, as one of the Captains referred to them, but two have been sold off to other cruise lines, and I worry about how much longer the Pacific will stay with the fleet. 

I too love TAs and all of those wonderful Med and European ports you mentioned. We'll be back on the Pacific Princess in a month for a couple of weeks, and then again late in the Fall for a nice long TA itinerary, starting in Venice.

The two-tops are scattered around the dining room. I have never really paid attention to how many of them there are. 

Whichever one you are assigned to will likely be the one you dine at every night, with the possible exception being the occasional open seating nights that occur when the ship is staying in a port until late evening. I've noticed that on open seating nights, the people at nearby tables are sitting at their usual spots anyway.

On a recent PP cruise, there was a two-top positioned within inches of the end of our 6-person table. Every night we at our table greeted the couple assigned to that table when they arrived, and then left it up to them if they wanted to join in our conversations. Sometimes they did and other times not. 

I have observed that on cruises that begin in  European ports, there are quite a few European passengers sailing, and the European cruisers seem to get more dressed up for dinner than what a lot of American cruisers do, both on formal nights and on "resort casual" nights. We plan accordingly and pack more of the type of clothes for the dining room that, if at home and going out to a nicer than average restaurant, would be appropriate.

But that's just us.  

I have never not tipped the guide, and also almost always the bus driver, on any tour anywhere in the world.

The amount I give depends on how well each did their job. For a half day tour, if USD, I give $5 each … if Euros, I give 5 Es.

Double that amount for an all day tour. More for both lengths if the tour was outstandingly well done.

However, if they post a sign on the bus or make a comment about tips, hinting they are expected, I often reduce the amount I give, as I don't appreciate begging for tips. Do a good job, and the tips will come from grateful passengers!!

I enjoy the taste of my morning coffee more when using an International Delight flavored creamer than with milk and sweetener, which is what I have to settle for when on cruises. I've often wished there was some sort of flavored non-dairy creamers offered aboard.  I have considered bringing my own supply of the little individual containers, but haven't so far because of the added weight to my luggage. I may be rethinking that for my next long cruise.

Oh WOW!! I did that 10 day one years ago, and would love to do it again. Or maybe the one at the end of the season that comes back to the US. I've done the 28 day r/t LA too, and really loved it.

I'll be watching for the Elite early offer to show up!

For me, the delightful Pacific Princess is the be-all and end-all of cruise ships, and it doesn't matter where the itinerary is going!!

My favorite itinerary …. well, that's difficult question because I've never not enjoyed a cruise, no matter which Princess ship it was on. But I would have to say it was the 28 day r/t LA to Hawaii, Samoa, Tahiti, LA. A close second was the one that began in FLL and went all the way around South America.

I'd say you can rest assured that Princess would not reserve a berth in a port that was known to be unsafe, and would cancel the stop there if it becomes unsafe. The ship itself is worth millions of dollars, which they're not going to risk, and the safety and wellbeing the passengers and the crew is of primary importance to them.

I will add that a chance to visit Ephesus would be a huge deciding factor for me. It was the most awesome tour I have ever done. The ruins are beyond amazing, and I'd LOVE to go back.

There are numerous hotels in the S 17th Street area, which is not far from the airport and very close to the port. There are restaurants and shopping available within easy walking distance, including a Publix grocery store, which is where I always like to pick up some wine to take on board. Most recently we stayed at the Holiday Inn Express, which was clean and comfortable, ad a decent breakfast buffet, and helpful staff.

Just Google "Hotels on 17t Street in FLL" and you'll see what the possibilities are.