Princess Alaska Cabin Selection Questions

[NorthCoastCruisers]

We have never cruised before and may never cruise again. This is for our 15th Anniversary and I have been trying to get my husband to agree to it for all 15 years. We have booked a mini-suite on Dolphin deck but I am worried about the lack of a covered deck in Alaska. Should I be worried? We are considering upgrading to a Vista Suite on Emerald Deck or a Vista Suite on Caribe Deck(there are no mini suites available except on Dolphin Deck). Would we have a good view from an Aft Deck when cruising Glacier Bay or is the Port side a better choice? I know that Caribe Deck would be quieter but thought the view might be more obstructed. Thank you for your help.

Edited March 20, 2014 by NorthCoastCruisers

[CruiserBruce]

The views in Alaska are huge. There isn't going to be a place where you have to be on a certain side, in a certain 5 minute window, to see things. Plus, you aren't locked in your cabin...you will be out and about all the time. Plus, Glacier Bay is a "dead end street". You will go in, sail around for several hours, turning around in several places, and sail back out. So at worst case, what you don't see going in, will be visible sailing out.

 

Some good places for info. First, the Princess board, here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=197

 

and the Alaska board:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=55

Edited March 20, 2014 by CruiserBruce

[NorthCoastCruisers]

Thanks for your quick reply. I know my husband will probably spend the time cruising Glacier Bay watching from our room so are the covered balconies on the aft Vista Suites a better choice than the uncovered Dolphin balconies?

[can786]

While the aft Vista suites are wonderful, if you don't want to spend the extra $$$ for a full suite you might want to look at an Emerald deck minisuite. There are not very many of them, and they often sell out quickly because they have fully covered balconies. They are above a lounge but others have reported noise problems only with the last two cabins on the port (even numbered) side.

[NorthCoastCruisers]

Thanks Cathy but the Emerald mini's are sold out. Am I right to be concerned about the uncovered decks on Dolphin for Alaska? We sail on May 31st.

[Sea Gypsy 2]

Last July, DH and I booked a balcony on Lido deck for Alaska cruise. It was covered and we were very appreciative. The day in Glacier Bay was windy and rainy but beautiful. We could stay on our deck and see amazing views without getting wet. It was amazing!

[dorisis]

While cruising the glaciers, you are best to be out on the deck where the ranger will be narrating.

[NorthCoastCruisers]

Thank you Sea Gypsy that was my concern. My understanding is that you can tune your TV into the Ranger's talk and listen from your room/deck. If the weather is bad it sounds like a good option especially if we have a covered deck!

[JimAOk1945]

Here's some "food for thought."

 

Are you or your husband planning to take pictures? If so, you may want to get feedback on whether or not a covered/partially balcony will create problems. Here is an example.

 

On our Star Princess cruise a few years back, we had a mini suite on the Dolphin Deck. The balconies are completely open. Fortunately, the weather was very nice and my wife got some really great pictures from our balcony as well as other locations around the ship.

 

For our next cruise, we sailed on Royal Caribbean's Radiance of the Seas. We had a Grand Suite which we loved, but the balcony was completely covered and blocked a lot of the views. So we spent a lot of time on the outside decks.

 

Happy cruising! Alaska is a wonderful place to celebrate your anniversary!

[cruisin63]

Thanks Cathy but the Emerald mini's are sold out. Am I right to be concerned about the uncovered decks on Dolphin for Alaska? We sail on May 31st.

 

 

Weather is always a crap shoot in Alaska, but the end of May is a great

time to cruise.(before the mosquitoes) My sister and I went around the 20th of May last year, and the weather was perfect. We had a very minor sprinkling while docked in Ketchikan, but it was over in 10 min. But you just never know. Always a good idea to bring one of those foldup umbrellas and clip it to your purse. Also bring a power strip, as there are never enough outlets for all of our cameras, cell phones, etc.

I agree with one of the others on this board, that to fully appreciate what you are seeing, make use of the onboard naturalist when passing amongst the glaciers. They are so informative! He was up on the Lido deck, and we tried to hear him from our balcony, as it was broadcast through the television, but not very clearly, and we had to keep the door propped open in order to hear the television. Be sure to do the Orca Whale watch while in Juneau. Spectacular!

[NorthCoastCruisers]

Thank you all for your wonderful posts - I learned so much, so quickly - just shows that joining this forum was a good thing. We upgraded to Vista Suite C750 - we want to be able to enjoy the cruise (especially Glacier Bay) regardless of the weather so did not want to take a chance it would be pouring besides, as I said, I may never get to cruise again.:)

[Alaskanb]

Did I miss what ship you will be on. We were in a D deck mini on the Island Princess and had a covered balcony.

[NorthCoastCruisers]

Sorry Alaskanb I did forget to say were are on the Golden Princess and, alas, the mini-suites have uncovered balconies.

[janetz]

Thanks for your quick reply. I know my husband will probably spend the time cruising Glacier Bay watching from our room so are the covered balconies on the aft Vista Suites a better choice than the uncovered Dolphin balconies?

 

Please come back and tell us if your husband watched from your balcony or got outside onto the top deck to see an amazing site! Trust me, he will want to see the big picture, not just part of it. ;)

[NorthCoastCruisers]

Janetz back from our cruise and wanted to let you know we did both - we spent some time up on deck and some time on our balcony. Weather was sunny and freezing cold. Dressed in thermals, smart wool socks, warm shoes, sweater, sweatshirt with hood up, jackets with hoods up, scarves, hats and it was still freezing cold up on deck (and we are not from a warm area). Our gloves unfortunately were still wet from the prior days excursion (raft trip down the river through the eagle preserve where it rained and sleeted on us) and the gloves that were for sell on the ship were worthless so our hands were frozen as we tried to take pictures. Our deck was warmer as we were out of the wind and could wrap up in blankets.