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Have you checked it out? I am talking $2,000.00 for 7 days. This was two months ago when we were considering flying to Anchorage and doing a land based tour.

Thanks for sharing your holiday cruise with us. We were on the Sky last June and really enjoyed this gorgeous ship!

Yes, we encountered this "new convenient" light nuisance on the Sky this last June. Good grief! DH covered the sensor in the hall by the bathroom with some paper and it worked well. I placed a throw pillow in front of mine on the base of the nightstand. Our NOT so user friendly steward removed the one in the hall. So we just began placing it at night and then removing it in the morning. He was the least favorite steward we have ever experienced. He may have been new; very slow and inefficient. If I need a light in the middle of the night, I will use the one on my phone; thank you very much.

Sitka! We really enjoyed our time there on a great tour. However, we are from the Northwest and have been to Victoria many times. Even so, we would choose Sitka again.

My DH and BIL really enjoy Alaskan beer. They have a storefront in town and you take their shuttle from there to the brewery and tour. It is really popular beer here in the Northwest. https://www.alaskanbeer.com/

FYI- We recently considered doing a land based tour and renting a house. Guess what??? Renting a car in Alaska is NOT CHEAP!!! You might want to check that put first before cementing your plans.

We are Princess fans and from what you have described; you may find it more to your liking as well. HAL is more sleepy and did not have many activities. Princess always seem to have a wealth of Nature Commentators and lecturers onboard. Our first Alaska cruise included Hubbard Glacier which we prefer over Glacier Bay, but take what you can!

The OP has excellent points. The cruise lines are doing a disservice to their customers (especially newbies to Alaska) and leading them to believe that they could cruise beginning at the end of April through end of September and have a full tourist experience. I hope people will notice this thread.

We absolutely relish our aft balconies, however, be careful in your selection because some are the nice larger ones. We typically get one on the Baja or Dolphin deck (corner depending on the ship) and really use it. You can spot wildlife without even being dressed yet for the day. It sounds as if Glacier Bay is not on the itinerary of the ones with which you can afford a balcony. That is understandable. BTW- Princess has fantastic programs for kids in Alaska (and other itineraries too).

Agreed that Alaska is expensive. We have loved our whale watching tours out of Juneau. We did one through the ship one time and it was a large crowd and challenging to see but we enjoyed lots of "bubble netting" by the whales. The second time, we booked one of the private companies (may have been Harv & Marv) and it was great. The boat only fit 6 passengers and the Captain. These tours are not cheap, but so worth it.

We have also been in a similar cabin on the Regal. It was not a suite, however, the balcony was HUGE as well. We NEVER were required or asked to lock our balcony door. The only requirement is that you close the drapes at night so your lights do not interfere with the bridge. Turn off your lights if you want to enjoy your balcony at night. For short people, the only negative is that you can't enjoy the view when sitting down. Another CC member, suggested that she stacks the chairs and sits on them to see the view.

I think it needs to be transferred within 60 days of the original booking.

That was exactly my first thought! The OP could speak with someone else instead of her PVP who is on vacation.

For fun, I went to look at Alaska cruises for the Summer of 2025. I was able to find our personal favorite balconies available; however, not all decks were able to be selected. Very strange.....

We will not book an unknown cabin. As @Cruise Raider has stated, "They really are not all created equally!" We have our favorite aft cabins/ balconies; even if it is on an older ship that lacks a loveseat.

As @Pevil stated in Post # 13; the Grand had an electrical issue, moving many passengers to other cabins. We had booked this cruise and cancelled. We were booked for our usual corner aft balcony and would have been moved for the 5 days. In hindsight, it was a good call to cancel. The itinerary was fabulous but I think 1 or more ports were missed. However, we were on the Grand in September 2022 for Alaska and we loved it! But we also loved the Golden (now with a different company) and the Crown.

@Host CJSKIDS Thank you so much for taking us along AND feel better really soon! We really enjoyed the Sky last June.

Agreed........ "Those tiny balconies though...." We always select a cabin with the larger balconies, even if it means no loveseat. We use our balconies extensively, so it is a priority.

My apologies for misreading your post. My mind interpreted that you stated that the balcony was larger, not the cabin. I am well aware of the different classes of cabins.

Actually, the balcony is one of the smaller ones. Take a look at the deck plans on the Princess website. Compare M131 to those on the Dolphin deck (145 through 227). M131 is basically at the very front of the ship, so you will be walking to most everything.

I am sorry that you have not enjoyed the Sky. We so loved our cruise last June on the Sky to Norway and Iceland. We had fabulous weather except for really just one day. Our cabin steward was a disappointment but we did not let that bother us a bit.

When on the Golden (now retired from Princess), we were above the Princess Theater and yes, we were able to hear things from rehearsals and the shows.

It was also available on the Sky last June for Norway and Iceland.

We do the same. It does not take up much space.

I am glad you are giving Princess a try. We experienced quite the opposite when we were on the Celebrity Reflection (Fall 2018) and swore to never return to Celebrity. We have only experienced excellent service in the buffet on Princess.