Assistance on booking an Alaska Crusie next June

[calimn]

Need the help of experienced Princess Cruisers.

 

I am looking to book a Princess Cruise to Alaska for next June and have a few questions. My DH has always wanted to go to Alaska so this is for him primarily. We want to go out of San Francisco as for once we can drive to the port (only 40 miles!). Looking at a 11 day cruise on June 25th.

 

If I book know and pay the deposit for the minisuite ($800) is that refundable if I cancel before the April 1 full payment date? Hope not to but you never know. Is there a recent policy on this?

 

If I reserve a a cabin is right or left (Port or Starboard for a cruise from SF?) the best side in your view.

 

Is the motion worse in the Pacific? Do I need to be more worried of potenital sea sickness?

 

What is it like on the Star Princess and in general on Princess. We are in are early 50's like good food/wine but not needing to dress up, some entertainment, usually book our own excursions. Will this be a match for us? We have done mainly NCL and doing RCI in October - but really like the idea of near by port.

[Pam in CA]

If I book know and pay the deposit for the minisuite ($800) is that refundable if I cancel before the April 1 full payment date? Hope not to but you never know. Is there a recent policy on this?

 

If I reserve a a cabin is right or left (Port or Starboard for a cruise from SF?) the best side in your view.

 

Is the motion worse in the Pacific? Do I need to be more worried of potenital sea sickness?

 

What is it like on the Star Princess and in general on Princess. We are in are early 50's like good food/wine but not needing to dress up, some entertainment, usually book our own excursions. Will this be a match for us? We have done mainly NCL and doing RCI in October - but really like the idea of near by port.

Your deposit is refundable before final payment.

 

If you're concerned about seasickness, book a cabin on a lower deck. Yes, the Pacific Ocean will be rougher than in Inside Passage. It doesn't matter which cruise ship you're on.

 

Princess is casual during the day, "smart" casual most evenings and you'll have two formal nights. Generally, Princess passengers dress up for formal night with most (if not all from my observation) men in suits and women in dressy dresses. Not exactly formal but dressed up.

 

On Princess, you can go to your cabin as soon as you board. No waiting in the Lido so you can start your cruise immediately. No pre-booking specialty restaurants so everyone has the option to book after boarding. The vibe is laid back and relaxed in a refined atmosphere. Food is subjective but one of the nice things about Princess is that they are very amenable to modifications and special requests. Pastas are among the best at sea as is the pizza. Service is, IMHO, a level above RCI. No singing waiters. If a waiter sings, which isn't often, it's because they want to, not because it's scripted. Drink prices are less than on RCI.

 

Princess is one of the best lines for Alaska since the line has permission to sail in the National parks that RCI doesn't. NCL has limited permits.

 

And, Princess allows OBC from whatever source to be combined. If your TA books a lot of Princess cruises, chances are you can save 10-20% off the published fare price... and get OBC and perks. You can get OBC if you own 100 shares of Carnival Corporation (the holding company, not the cruise line) stock. If you are military or former military, you can get OBC for that. Just check with your TA.

[calimn]

Thx Pam. Love the info on having some park access. We have a hold on dolphin deck ms 415 on this Star, anyone have some insight on that area of the ship?

[sassyredhat]

Pam has it right. :)

If I'm not mistaken, Dolphin deck balconies are not covered.

I would strongly recommend buying insurance. We actually had to file a claim when one of our travel companions ended up in the hospital 4 days before our cruise.

Luckily, it was a family member, and I had booked for all of us.

Pat

[skynight]

The best views in Alaska are from the open decks and not from your cabin or balcony.

[Poohdaddy55]

My wife and I sailed out San Francisco a couple of months ago on the Grand. Mid-ship lower decks you will feel less motion in the cabin. We were halfway between mid-ship and the front on the starboard side. Glacier Bay we took all our pictures from our balcony. But most views are best from the upper decks.

 

We were on the Star for our first cruise in 2007 in the Mediterranean and really loved the ship. Our cabin was Aloha 403 and enjoyed the location of the room that we booked Aloha 403 on our next cruise on the Ruby.

 

We did Alaska cruise in 2011 out of Vancouver (on the Island Princess) and really preferred leaving from there. Not as many sea days and longer in a couple of the ports. But that one was also a cruisetour.

 

Pam gave you excellent information on all the other questions.

 

BTW, we are both in our late 50's and we love Princess!! Food on all of our cruises has been very good. The last Alaska cruise was probably the best. And my wino wife loves the wine on board. One of her favorite wines can only be found on Princess cruises so we usually take as much allowed in our luggage home with us. Most of the entertainment has been superb, but that usually is a matter of taste I guess.

 

Motion sickness has never been a problem on 5 cruises.

 

Enjoy your cruise!!

[skynight]

Need the help of experienced Princess Cruisers.

Looking at a 11 day cruise on June 25th.

 

 

This voyage does not go into Glacier Bay National Park, it goes to Tracy Arm.

[Colo Cruiser]

Some deposits are not refundable, check with Princess or your TA.

[Thrak]

Motion can vary radically. Some folks have smooth sailing to and from Alaska. Others don't. My wife and I sailed a 10-day SF to Alaska. The first night out we hit heavy seas. The ship was rocking and rolling. The first morning at sea people were staggering all over the ship and there were big "BOOM!" sounds followed by ship shudders in Princess Theater as the ship plowed through the waves.

 

I get car sick on winding roads if I'm not driving. On this cruise we had a forward cabin on a high deck (12) and it was a smaller ship (Sea Princess). Lots of motion. I got patches from my doctor before sailing and I had NO sea sickness at all. I'm a believer in those patches!

 

If you get sick talk to your doctor but don't be afraid to go to Alaska. I did it just fine and the trip was great. I didn't want to cruise at all but finally did it to make my wife happy. The Alaskan cruise was my first and, when we disembarked back in SF, I wanted to get right back on the ship. We did a 15-day to Hawaii after that and are planning a couple more for next year. I think my wife created a monster. :eek:

[NauticalNelle]

Need the help of experienced Princess Cruisers.

 

I am looking to book a Princess Cruise to Alaska for next June and have a few questions. My DH has always wanted to go to Alaska so this is for him primarily. We want to go out of San Francisco as for once we can drive to the port (only 40 miles!). Looking at a 11 day cruise on June 25th.

 

If I book know and pay the deposit for the minisuite ($800) is that refundable if I cancel before the April 1 full payment date? Hope not to but you never know. Is there a recent policy on this?

 

If I reserve a a cabin is right or left (Port or Starboard for a cruise from SF?) the best side in your view.

 

Is the motion worse in the Pacific? Do I need to be more worried of potenital sea sickness?

 

What is it like on the Star Princess and in general on Princess. We are in are early 50's like good food/wine but not needing to dress up, some entertainment, usually book our own excursions. Will this be a match for us? We have done mainly NCL and doing RCI in October - but really like the idea of near by port.

 

Check out the 3 for Free sale Princess is having now. The Star is included in the sale. All Alaska sailings. Deposit is only $100 and fully refundable. :D

 

http://www.princess.com/cruisedeals/threeforfree.jsp#.Ui-oDsaTiCc

[zalusky]

Check out the 3 for Free sale Princess is having now. The Star is included in the sale. All Alaska sailings. Deposit is only $100 and fully refundable. :D

 

http://www.princess.com/cruisedeals/threeforfree.jsp#.Ui-oDsaTiCc

 

A good deal I saved quite a bit getting my cruisetour updated.

It will be interested to see if they beat it in the spring.

 

I live near San Jose as well but this is my first Alaska so I chose the cruisetour. I also love Vancouver so If I do Alaska again it will be a hard decision between staying in Vancouver pre-cruise and RT out of SF.

[chris2597]

Some bookings do not come with refundable dep. it depends on the special. Also, check out trip insurance. I like the vacation protection that princess offers. It is comprehensive and offers trip cancelation for any reason.

I take meclazine about 3 days prior to sailing as the med needs to be in the system to work. I take it at night as it causes drowsiness. I have never had an issue in AK with motion. However, I heard there is a rough stretch coming out of SFO

[satxdiver]

...

 

If I reserve a a cabin is right or left (Port or Starboard for a cruise from SF?) the best side in your view.

 

...

What is it like on the Star Princess and in general on Princess. We are in are early 50's like good food/wine but not needing to dress up, some entertainment, usually book our own excursions. Will this be a match for us? We have done mainly NCL and doing RCI in October - but really like the idea of near by port.

 

IMO and a lot of others going to AK, get a starboard cabin. They will book up first before the Port side. The days are long in AK in the summer and I would wander out onto my balcony late at night when it would still be daylight.

 

Princess IMO is not a terribly formal ship particularly going to AK. Jeans are allowed in the MDR any night except formal night. Formal night will see men in tux (few), suits, sport jackets, no jackets and w/wo ties. A pair of pants and a button up shirt will suffice. Women wear long dresses (few), cocktail dresses or pants w/ top. Outside the MDR on any night will see most pax dressed informally. It can be cool to cold in AK so standing on the balcony or top of ship can be a cold experience. We were bundled up when we visited Glacier Bay as it was very cold for us.

 

Since AK is part of the US, it is easy to book tours independently. Last time in Skagway, we rented a car and drove it across the mountain into Canada. Although I would not miss going on the train which we did a few times before.

 

We took the train from the port to Anchorage and it was great. We traveled in glass enclosed domed cars so we could see everything and they don't travel all that fast. The road and tracks share access to a narrow tunnel with the train getting priority. The train drops pax off at the airport or downtown.

[calimn]

Thanks to all. This is the info I needed. We will be booking the cruise, but need to push TA on deposit, she listed other 2 perks but deposit was still $800. We are currently on starboard side so will keep that. Since no flights and luggage issues we will not have a problem bringing clothes for formal nights and the cold weather.

[LEtue]

Thanks to all. This is the info I needed. We will be booking the cruise, but need to push TA on deposit, she listed other 2 perks but deposit was still $800. We are currently on starboard side so will keep that. Since no flights and luggage issues we will not have a problem bringing clothes for formal nights and the cold weather.

 

Before you book you may want to check with other TAs. If the one you're using didn't offer the reduced deposit that would be a "red flag" to me.

[NorCal123]

Just a reminder again, that I heard Dolphin Deck balconies are not covered. We are going to AK in June and would not be surprised if it rained here and there. Not a concern for us because that is just like at home :rolleyes:. Our covered balcony on the Emerald deck will protect us a bit from rain and wind (maybe).

 

I am motion sensitive and routinely take 1 or 2 (depending on roughness) daily of the non-drowsy Dramamine (generic version) starting the day before cruising. It does the trick. Used to use the patch until I read about potential risks of that med.