Just off Star Princess - Alaska

Thought I would share some thoughts on the cruise we just disembarked yesterday .... overall we had a simply fantastic time, our first cruise in Alaska (despite having cruised 20 times before), with lots of first time cruisers. The scenery was awe inspiring and we thoroughly enjoyed all our tours and our time aboard the ship.

The Great:

Captain Michele Tuvo was finishing his run and exited the ship with us. So glad not to have missed him with his infectious happy personality and trademark, 'nevertheless bye-bye'. Really added to the experience, hoping to sail with him again. Again, the scenery and the ambiance was simply fantastic. Alaska is majestic everywhere you look. We were thrilled to see lots of wildlife, everything from bald eagles, to seals, to whales, bears, moose, I think we saw every native animal. Had a really special experience in Glacier Bay where we saw a mother bear teaching her 3 cubs how to cross waterways, and it was honestly like watching a nature show. So glad our travelling companions had binoculars so we could see it from a distance and close up.

The Good:

We enjoyed lots of good food (much better than our last HAL cruise), ate at both the Crown Grill and Sabatinis. Ship's crew were generally quite good and ship was in good shape in the public spaces.

The Bad:

We were disappointed with our mini-suite. We have sailed in minis before, and like the extra space and full tub. The recent drydock had not touched our cabin beyond the new bed and TVs. Worn carpet, threadbare couch, and we didn't even get the new lamps they put in many staterooms. But worst of all was the bathroom. Tiles were very grungy and dirty, tub was scuffed and ripped up, signage in bathtub (reminder to check temperature before entering) was so worn it was illegible. Our tub would not drain properly either. Very disappointing! Part of this may have been due to age/wear, and part of it may have been that, for the first time, we had a room steward who, while friendly, was not as diligent as we've had on every other cruise. For this reason, if we sail Princess again, especially in a mini suite, I'm going to make sure it's a new ship.

Our Tours:

We took ACT down to the pier from Anchorage - an excellent decision! We stopped at Alaska Wildlife Conservation area and saw lots of animals in a very natural setting, had some great photo stops, enjoyed the tunnel ride, and then made it to the dock on time.

In Skagway, we opted for the Mushers Camp and it was terrific! We loved all the dogs and the puppies, the unimog ride up the mountain, just a fantastic day.

In Juneau, we went with Harv and Marv's whale watching and had a fantastic morning with Brandon and Rebecca. Saw at least 5 humpbacks, many up close and lots of other marine life. So much fun on the smaller boat, with 10 passengers in total, snacks, binoculars, very well organized trip.

In Ketchikan, we did the Duck Boat tour. Now, while I will say we did enjoy this tour (and saw lots of bald eagles), we were horrified to learn what had happened in Branson. If I'm being honest, while I never felt unsafe and water conditions were very calm, the team did make light of the 'safety' protocols, joking that there may not be enough life jackets. The tour is very "schitcky" so this is part of the bad jokes and terrible puns. The company may want to re-think their model and save the jokes for the tour (or eliminate them entirely!). In light of what has happened, I don't think I would do another Duck Tour as it seems the vehicles themselves may not be safe.

Overall we did have a fantastic time - Alaska is such an amazing destination and since many ports and locales can only be visited by boat or plane, cruising is a great way to see everything.

Nice short review. Appreciate you sharing your opinions and experiences. Sounds like you enjoyed some of Alaska's best offerings. We love Princess but agree that the older ships are in need of more cabin updates.

Excellent review !! Certainly agree with you that Alaska is very majestic -- magnificent scenery everywhere.

Thanks for posting both the pros and the cons, and thanks for writing so well and concisely. Much appreciated ! :cool: - EBC

Any Patters to post?

Excellent review. Many thanks.

Cheers

We are booked on the Duck tour in Ketchikan in September -- The vehicle in Branson appeared to be the WWII surplus ones that are often used -- The Ketchikan tour uses modern foam filled vehicles built in the last 20 years. I think I would cancel if it were the ones that are the 70 years old

Thanks for sharing your experience

Thanks for your thoughts.

We have done the duck tour in Ketchikan. As long as the water in the bay is calm, there is no problem. The likelihood of a storm coming up like it did in MO is not going to happen. Motoring in a port that is used by ships is a lot different than being on a large lake.

Thanks for the review.

Thanks for sharing. Nice review. :)

Tony

We were disappointed with our mini-suite. We have sailed in minis before, and like the extra space and full tub. The recent drydock had not touched our cabin beyond the new bed and TVs. Worn carpet, threadbare couch, and we didn't even get the new lamps they put in many staterooms. But worst of all was the bathroom. Tiles were very grungy and dirty, tub was scuffed and ripped up, signage in bathtub (reminder to check temperature before entering) was so worn it was illegible. Our tub would not drain properly either. Very disappointing!

Did you mention any of this in the post-cruise survey?

We were on the same cruise. Definitely agree with the comments about Capt Tuvo. He's fantastic and joins Capt Justin Lawes as our favorite captains. First time I've had a captain stop the ship (multiple times!!!) so we could observe the wildlife on shore.

This was my first time in Sabatini's and I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would.

Crowne Grille was another story. Despite having reservations, we had to wait behind several groups that did not have reservations. Once we got to the front of the line and complained, we were given a nice table by a window. We had to ask several times for a third place setting. They were out of two of the wines on the wine list. We got standard bar wine glasses rather than the Reidels that Sabatini's used. Our steaks were served on a plate with two pieces of asparagus, far from the elegant presentation shown on the multiple TV monitors throughout the ship. Our waiter was so so. And still too much seafood in the first two courses for my taste.

We were in an Aloha deck balcony and were generally pleased with the cabin and bed. I did note, though, that we also did not have the new lamps with built in phone chargers.

I didn't get the post cruise survey but my wife did.

The recent drydock had not touched our cabin beyond the new bed and TVs. Worn carpet, threadbare couch, and we didn't even get the new lamps they put in many staterooms. But worst of all was the bathroom. Tiles were very grungy and dirty, tub was scuffed and ripped up, signage in bathtub (reminder to check temperature before entering) was so worn it was illegible. Our tub would not drain properly either. Very disappointing! Part of this may have been due to age/wear, and part of it may have been that, for the first time, we had a room steward who, while friendly, was not as diligent as we've had on every other cruise. For this reason, if we sail Princess again, especially in a mini suite, I'm going to make sure it's a new ship.

Sorry to break it to you, but here's what you need to know about drydock periods: the PRIMARY purpose of a drydock is to repair/maintain things that are otherwise always underwater. That's why they put the ship up on blocks. The SECONDARY purpose of a drydock, with final scope dependent on length of drydock, is to perform renovations on public spaces that couldn't be done overnight: things like painting in muster drill spaces, or rearranging of buffet tables that are screwed to the floor, etc. Any cabin maintenance is done while underway: they rotate which cabins are kept empty and some of the ship's crew does necessary maintenance, either on a "most-recently-used" (i.e. cabins that have gone the longest since maintenance) or "most-critical-need" (i.e. cabins that have registered complaints, or possibly cabins where the occupants cannot or will not stay there).

So any expectation that they would redo all of the signage in every cabin is simply beyond what the cruise line can or will do.

We were on this cruise also and can't say enough about Capt Tuvo. What a treat. We had an aft balcony on Caribe and spent so much time out there. Our room was old but had the updates so not bad. I'm not sure if the picture will post but have a nice one of mama bear and cubs trying to cross the river. I loved it when you could hear cheers when #3 finally made the leap across. Wonderful week.

We will be on the Star in Oct to Hawaii. Thank you for your review. I got email from Princess a few days ago saying that we get Capt Tuvo too. :D:D I've heard a lot of great things about him. We also will have a mini and hope it's in good shape as by far, most of the cruise is at sea and we'll be spending a lot of time in the room. Do you have any pictures you can post?

Sailing on the Star in a few weeks. Do you mind if I ask the min-suite cabin number? Thanks.