Paula_MacFan

We regularly check our bill using the app throughout the cruise. So easy! Beats schlepping down to guest services and/or using the kiosk. On our most recent cruise I took screenshots of the bills on the final morning before we disembarked, and they matched the bills we received by email shortly after.

I agree with this and just wanted to chime in that all Princess shows are only 45 minutes. Just for full disclosure and the OP's mom isn't disappointed 🙂 A few years ago Princess moved pretty much all their entertainment options to 45 minute blocks. I can't answer for any of the other cruise lines.

Yes Princess offers self-disembarkation where you walk off with your luggage. You'll recieve a questionnaire during the cruise and you mark your preference. After our first cruise 20+ years ago we've always done self-disembarkation and are usually off by 7:30am depending on port. We've caught a flight from FLL at 11am with no problems but book at your own risk 😊 If for any reason the ship is late getting into port you're probably out of luck.

Agreed -- it took me about 10 seconds to open the app and look under Profile.

I don't think so because the fee doesn't come out of your onboard account, and is charged separately to your credit card on record. At least that's how it's been on the cruises we've been on where we've purchased FCC. I believe it says that specifically on the form you fill out and/or the app at the time of purchase.

I'm no vegan/vegetarian expert by any means, but on both of our recent Princess cruises we saw a separate section of the buffet area marked 'vegetarian options'. Edit to say I just did a Google search for 'Princess vegetarian options' and this popped up immediately. https://www.princess.com/en-us/news/news-releases/2023/10/princess-cruises-introduces-expansive-vegan-menus-for-plant-based-cruisers

We were on the Island last September/October and had a wonderful meal at the Bayou Cafe. You are correct that the menu is no longer New Orleans inspired and is simply a Crown Grill venue under another name. We found the menu identical to the Crown Grill on the Regal in January. Enjoy!

It must be hit or miss because we were on the Island last September/October and our bed was amazing! We had the best sleep ever on a cruise. Meanwhile on our January Regal cruise the bed was awful with horrible sagging areas. To the OP -- I applaud your ingenuity and am sorry you had to resort to this solution.

Interesting that the article attached by the OP states ships will be capped at 5 per day in 2024, but according to the CLAA schedule there are many days this year with 6 ships. Granted, they are staggered in port times, but that's not the way the article reads. We will be in Juneau the first week of June so I've been keeping an eye on the schedule. We have our excursion booked for early in the morning to hopefully avoid some of the port congestion. https://claalaska.com/?page_id=1551

We've done a New England cruise from NYC and it was great! When I do a search with NY as a start/end port I get 24 results.

If you've booked directly with Princess you can also book your own transfers. Log into the Personalizer, click on the 'flights' tab, and you'll see transfer options at the bottom of the page. If you booked with a TA then they have to book the transfers for you. Or as the others have said, if you're looking for post-cruise transfers you can book them onboard the ship.

On all of our recent cruises the schedule wasn't updated until much closer to sailing. The app should reflect the daily schedule as you get closer. Even then we had schedule changes day by day during the cruise. On our last cruise in January they reprinted the paper daily schedule due to so many changes. Rest assured there will be many entertainment options 😀

I noticed that too! 🙂 Get the (younger) party started! LOL

Our Off the Beaten Path tour doesn't go to Copper River -- ours is Fairbanks, Denali, McKinley, and Kenai. Our longest travel day shows 7.5 hours and that includes a 2 hour stop in Anchorage for lunch on our own. I thought about doing the one that stopped at Copper River but decided it was a little 'too' off the beaten path for us 🙂 We've been to Alaska on a cruise before too, but really wanted to see more of the interior and go to Kenai Fjords National Park. We're very independent travelers but after pricing everything out, the cruisetour seemed reasonable when we factored in the convenience.

I don't live in Florida so I'm not invested in this news, but I just noticed the demographic they are apparently marketing to. Looks like a much younger crowd 🙂

My Travel Summary lists all the transportation details. If you've already booked log into the Princess site and download your Travel Summary PDF document. If you haven't booked yet I believe you can see sample itineraries on the Princess website.

You're welcome! We are also doing the Off the Beaten Path next month (last week of May/first week of June) and also plan to pay as we go. We aren't big breakfast eaters, and lunch is included in a few of our activities, so we decided to pay for evening meals as we go.

Here's the Princess PDF with all suite benefits. PrincessSuite_eFlyer.pdf

Here's the CC Alaska forum. There's no separate forum just for Princess Alaska. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/33-alaska/ Breakfast is included in the Connoisseur land cruisetour, not the other tours. You can purchase a meal plan separately if you want. Here's more information from the Princess website. https://www.princess.com/en-us/faq/cruisetours Here's the info on the separate meal plan if you don't book the Connoisseur option. 2024-alaska-meal-plan-flyer.pdf.coredownload.inline.pdf

We saw a brown bear on the shore when we were in Glacier Bay last time. That was so exciting for us 🙂 The ranger did a great job of pointing things out and we had a fabulous day. Can't wait to go back in a couple months!

Here's more info from the National Park website, specifically for cruise ship guests: https://www.nps.gov/glba/planyourvisit/cruise.htm https://www.nps.gov/media/video/view.htm?id=C3DE800C-1DD8-B71C-0770772C503276A4 I really like this cruise ship map, also available on the NP website: https://www.nps.gov/glba/planyourvisit/typical-cruise-ship-route-in-glacier-bay.htm We're on the Sapphire the week prior to the OP, and our Glacier Bay schedule is 9am to 7:30pm. Glad we don't have to get up at 6am! 🙂

Yes, my Travel Summary looks exactly like that when I log into the Princess site. I'd advise you to log into the Princess site and save your docs, regardless of how you booked (TA or direct).

Google Princess suite benefits: PrincessSuite_eFlyer.pdf

They rent them at Princess Cays, but I can't imagine paying more to rent them for an afternoon than they cost to buy 🙂

Our Alaska May/June cruise has shown sold out for months. Right after bidding opened up one cabin in each category opened up for a few days, but now shows sold out again. I chalked the brief window up to the final payment date thinning the herd, and bidding adjustments being made. But all the online anecdotal evidence I've seen points to very strong seasonal bookings, at least for Alaska.