1st time on Princess & to Alaska

[YoDadio]

I have booked the last week of July for the Golden Princess Inside Passage (Alaska) cruise and have several rather specific questions I would like to pose.

 

I would like to be seated at the Chef's table but from what I have read, one can only make reservations upon boaring so they essentially need to board early, race to their room, make the reservations and pray. Is this correct? Any tips to improve my odds?

 

We are flying in a day early and have used the cruise air/hotel package including transfers. Do I have any control over when they bring me to the ship or should I make plans to get a taxi to insure early boarding (see above)?

 

Frankly when on a cruise, the cabin is the place I shower, change, and pass out after a long day of running from/to meals, excursions, and activities. So I am always reluctant to pay extra for a view and/or balcony (that the wife craves). The "Sanctuary" sounds like a "budget balcony" that one has to reserve, but I would be surprised if this particular cruise has much demand for it. Am I mistaken? I simply do no see myself spending a lot of time sitting still, even for the two days at sea/glaciers so the Sanctuary really sound appealling to me. When/where/how do I make reserviations? Can we pre-book it? Can I book specific days once on board or is it a daily first come first serve deal?

 

The 24 hr buffets are ok, but certainly not what we come to a cruise for. We enjoy larger tables in the main dinning room (MDR) so we can socialize, however we have yet to try a specialty restaurant, which we plan to do this trip. The kicker is that one apparently needs to make reservations early, yet they really do not know what the MDR is offering in advance... We would hate to miss out on "free" seafood and/or escargot. Any tips so that we can have it all?

 

Princess offers a Seattle excursion that appears to be a nice way to kill the eternity we have between leaving the ship and boarding the plane home. Is it safe to assume that Princess would either take our luggage straight to the airport or that it would remain in the cargo area of the excusion bus/shuttle? Since we are already spending one night and day in Seattle before the cruise I have my doubts this excursion will bring much else to the table. Any input on this area would be most appreciated.

[wineforhealth]

You are on the right track with all your questions

 

First a taxi will get you to the port earlier, as to when you get on board yes the first thing would be to put yourself in the lottery for the Chefs table.

 

The sanctuary is no place to watch and should not be a very busy place.

 

A balcony stateroom is the way to go, especially when cruising into seeing the glaciers.

 

The Alaska cruise is very senic cruise enjoy your trip.

[Texas Tillie]

I'm one who doesn't think a balcony is necessary in Alaska. What I find necessary is to be outside on a top deck where you have a 360 degree view. If you're on a balcony, you'll only see what's happening on your side of the ship. Also, especially on the glacier viewing day(s), you need to move around the ship as the views vary depending on where you are on the ship.

[FPJC03]

But it gets VERY claustrophobic in an inside cabin. Having a balcony when you are cruising between ports is a fun way to pass the time and to have your morning coffee as you watch the scenery pass by. Also, listening to the sea roll by is so very soothing. You only live ONCE, so spend just a bit more. You can't take it with you anyway!

[Bill B]

Having a balcony...

You only live ONCE...

True, but with an 'inside' you can probably cruise twice (for the same money).

[RAPM5856]

(snip....)

The 24 hr buffets are ok, but certainly not what we come to a cruise for. We enjoy larger tables in the main dinning room (MDR) so we can socialize, however we have yet to try a specialty restaurant, which we plan to do this trip. The kicker is that one apparently needs to make reservations early, yet they really do not know what the MDR is offering in advance... We would hate to miss out on "free" seafood and/or escargot. Any tips so that we can have it all?

 

Princess offers a Seattle excursion that appears to be a nice way to kill the eternity we have between leaving the ship and boarding the plane home. Is it safe to assume that Princess would either take our luggage straight to the airport or that it would remain in the cargo area of the excusion bus/shuttle? Since we are already spending one night and day in Seattle before the cruise I have my doubts this excursion will bring much else to the table. Any input on this area would be most appreciated.

Depends on how far in advance you want to find out about the menus. They are posted outside the MDR earlier in the day for each evening. On our recent cruise we ate at the buffet on a couple of nights when we didn't see anything exciting on the MDR menu. I don't know if you can find out any further than that. You could always ask once you get on board.

We recently did an after cruise excursion in Fort Lauderdale (Everglades Airboat ride) and it was a great way to kill that extra time. As for your luggage, if available for your airlines you can do EZ check and you don't have to fuss with any luggage but your carry-on. Otherwise if you do a Princess after cruise excursion they will keep your luggage on the bus for you until they drop you off at the airport.

[nwwinelady]

After my first balcony on the Golden to Alaska, I would do the same again. Yes, you will save money on an inside, but Alaska is worth it. The Sanctuary was never crowded; probably due to the chilly weather. But there are many other viewing places. However, people did enjoy bundling up for MUTS.

The Golden is a great ship.:D

[Bill B]

The 'secret' to inside rooms is to book a specific room (marked 'No Upgrade') with easy access to an outside deck.

 

On the Golden, these are aft on Aloha i.e. A744/45 - only a few feet from your stateroom is the door leading out to the deck around the Terrace Pool; then, it's just a few steps up to the Horizon Terrace on Lido Deck.

 

It's like having the biggest balcony on the ship! Albeit, not private.

[YoDadio]

I was going to simply update my posting with a link, only to find 6 hits already! Thanks for the input, please keep it coming.

 

Based on the link below, the view from the Sanctuary appears to be 90%+ unobstructed. Then throw in wait staff, cozy seating, AND saving enough for another flightseeing tour... I am hard pressed to pony up the money for a balcony.

 

http://www.shipcafe.net/shipcafe/gp/gp09_sports.htm

 

Now if someone tells me the pictures are totally misleading or that the Sanctuary in not all its cracked up to be, then I'll certainly have to reconsider.

[serenity27]

I haven't done this yet myself, but I have heard of passengers talking to the Maitre D' to get a sneak peak of all MDR menus for their entire cruises. If you explain that this will allow you to find a night to try a specialty restaurant without missing out on your favorite foods, they should be accomodating.

[chipmaster]

As to balcony versus inside, hmm opinions vary but I had 3 inside and two balconys. Honestly on a sunny warm day we used them for what maybe 30'. During the scenic cruising they were convenient to pop out and catch the cold air/breeze than hop back in the cabin. The BEST views and experience IMHO came up on deck bundled up, believe it or not. Moral of the story for me, balcony was a premium of minimal value.

 

I'll put money on future trips to excursions, they offer far more memorable experiences than the balcony premium did for us. Or as you mention splurge for spa or other on ship amenities.

[hughdm]

The sanctuary has blue tinted glass that gets spotty. We spent a lot of time on our balcony or at the rear on Promenade deck where we could run through the ship to the other rail when they would announce something interesting.

[myfhn]

We went to Alaska last fall. We saw dolphins and whales while relaxing on the balcony in the room that we would never have seen otherwise....we also enjoyed lounging in jammies eating breakfast while watching the scenery at Tracy Arm. My vote is for balcony :)

 

We went to Sanctuary fairly early after boarding, but all double lounges were rented. This was a blessing in disguise, as we ended up doing a lot of activities on the ship and excursions all day off the ship. I was very glad we didn't spend our money there. We had good weather on our trip, but were always warned that the weather can be very iffy.

 

We signed up for the Chef's table, and gave up after two or three days...and then it turned out we got in! It seems that on our cruise everyone who signed up got to go...pretty lucky. I have food allergies and they were very considerate and careful for me. It seemed pricey, but was well worth the cost.

 

We also got the Seattle excursion after the cruise mainly to get a ride to our hotel after the cruise. The price was reasonable, not much more than a taxi really. I thought it wouldn't be a big deal since we had already toured Seattle a day before the cruise, but it was great to go back to Pike's Market and make purchases that we had seen before but didn't have to lug around the whole trip. It was also convenient to jump off the tour bus and see the needle and jump back on, nice and simple. They also told us about a science fiction museum that we ended up going back to later that we wouldn't have seen otherwise, which was fun.

 

Also, a nice tip: if you go to Pike's Market before the cruise, pick up a bouquet for your room. You can just carry it on.

 

Have fun!! I know someday we will be doing this cruise again!!!

[caribill]

We are flying in a day early and have used the cruise air/hotel package including transfers. Do I have any control over when they bring me to the ship NO

 

Sanctuary really sound appealling to me. When/where/how do I make reserviations? At the Sanctuary Can we pre-book it? No

 

 

we have yet to try a specialty restaurant, which we plan to do this trip. The kicker is that one apparently needs to make reservations early, yet they really do not know what the MDR is offering in advance... We would hate to miss out on "free" seafood and/or escargot. Any tips so that we can have it all? In most cases, you do not really have to rush to make reservations at the specialty restaurants. If you go to the restaurant to make the reservation, they can tell you what the themes of each night's dinner in the MDR are.

 

Princess offers a Seattle excursion that appears to be a nice way to kill the eternity we have between leaving the ship and boarding the plane home. Is it safe to assume that Princess would either take our luggage straight to the airport or that it would remain in the cargo area of the excusion bus/shuttle? The luggage will normally be in the cargo area of the tour bus.

 

See above in red

[Gabrielle R.]

Mh DH & I almost always book an inside state room... Just so we can cruise more often. IT never bothered us to be inside- since we always get out and explore.

 

EXCEPT for Alaska. WE wanted a balcony. Was it worth it? Yeah, we REALLY enjoyed it. We are both early risers- so walking out to see what was going on was neat. I often saw whales from our room. We LOVED having light LATE at night- we fall asleep early- but when the sky is still light we find we are awake longer..... It was something we wanted to do

 

As i said we generally get an inside. But the balcony was so nice. We could get away from the crowds. We also were on the Emerald deck (On the Island) when we liked- it was all enclosed so we stood out on the balcony in the rain- stayed dry.)

There's my two cents don't know if it helped- but gave you the view of a insider want to be an 'outsider'.

ENJOY your trip- it is awesome!!!

Gabrielle

[Budget Queen]

I have booked the last week of July for the Golden Princess Inside Passage (Alaska) cruise and have several rather specific questions I would like to pose.

 

I would like to be seated at the Chef's table but from what I have read, one can only make reservations upon boaring so they essentially need to board early, race to their room, make the reservations and pray. Is this correct? Any tips to improve my odds?

 

We are flying in a day early and have used the cruise air/hotel package including transfers. Do I have any control over when they bring me to the ship or should I make plans to get a taxi to insure early boarding (see above)?

 

Frankly when on a cruise, the cabin is the place I shower, change, and pass out after a long day of running from/to meals, excursions, and activities. So I am always reluctant to pay extra for a view and/or balcony (that the wife craves). The "Sanctuary" sounds like a "budget balcony" that one has to reserve, but I would be surprised if this particular cruise has much demand for it. Am I mistaken? I simply do no see myself spending a lot of time sitting still, even for the two days at sea/glaciers so the Sanctuary really sound appealling to me. When/where/how do I make reserviations? Can we pre-book it? Can I book specific days once on board or is it a daily first come first serve deal?

 

The 24 hr buffets are ok, but certainly not what we come to a cruise for. We enjoy larger tables in the main dinning room (MDR) so we can socialize, however we have yet to try a specialty restaurant, which we plan to do this trip. The kicker is that one apparently needs to make reservations early, yet they really do not know what the MDR is offering in advance... We would hate to miss out on "free" seafood and/or escargot. Any tips so that we can have it all?

 

Princess offers a Seattle excursion that appears to be a nice way to kill the eternity we have between leaving the ship and boarding the plane home. Is it safe to assume that Princess would either take our luggage straight to the airport or that it would remain in the cargo area of the excusion bus/shuttle? Since we are already spending one night and day in Seattle before the cruise I have my doubts this excursion will bring much else to the table. Any input on this area would be most appreciated.

 

You may want to rethink your package purchase of air/hotel/transfer. You are probably paying significantly more for this option. Flights to Seattle can be pretty cheap and there are a whole range of hotels to choose from. A cab is an easy transfer to the ship. At the least, I would look at what the hotel costs booked direct. With the per person pricing you are paying, it may be worth your while for a change.

 

As for the inside/outside debate- it's all over the Alaska board, perhaps take a look. There is no right answer. I go with cheap, and frequent- and I will speculate, I see WAY more than any balcony purchaser, due to my priorities. You will have to figure this out, and what will be your best choice for your priority in visiting Alaska. Be advised that your round trip Seattle sailing, is the least scenic of the Alaska cruises anyway. Also has the most rough sailing potential. I've seen ill people every one I have taken out of Seattle, which is several, out of 28 total Alaska trips.