Trip Report-HAL Nieuw Amsterdam & Royal Princess (6/12/19-7/7/19)

[Italy52]

[Italy52]

Powerful waterfall.

 

[Italy52]

Even calving from a dirty glacier is beautiful.

 

[Italy52]

We passed by a raft of playful otters --- sorry the picture isn't so clear --- the sun was very bright.

 

[Italy52]

Fishermen we passed along the way trying to catch their quota. 

 

[Italy52]

10 minutes ago, 415wcl said:

Thanks for the write up and sharing your pictures! 

 

I think we were on the same Holland Cruise but I remember it starting the 8th not the 12th.

You're welcome.  Our Holland America cruise started on 6/15/19, my pre-cruise information started on the 6/12/19. 

[415wcl]

24 minutes ago, Italy52 said:

You're welcome.  Our Holland America cruise started on 6/15/19, my pre-cruise information started on the 6/12/19. 

Ic so looks like you were the following cruise. Either way sounds like we all had a great time!

[Italy52]

2 minutes ago, 415wcl said:

Ic so looks like you were the following cruise. Either way sounds like we all had a great time!

Yup.

[Italy52]

 

Hubbard:  From the moment we heard that Allen Marine would be offering a unique glacier viewing experience for Hubbard Glacier we were sold on the idea.  We have been to Hubbard multiple times on various cruise lines and enjoyed our visits immensely.  What made this excursion appeal to us was the fact that we would be offloading from the Royal Princess then on to an Allen Marine vessel which would (if possible) get us closer to Hubbard than our cruise ship would be able to do.  I tried to imagine what it would feel like to experience the might of the calving as the ice hit the water and the vibration rippled towards the vessel.  Seeing calving from the ship is wonderful --- we just wanted to take the experience to a whole different level. 

As we sat in one of the lounges with anticipation and hope, our excitement began to ebb.  The foghorn continued to blare, and visibility never got better.  The PA opened and we heard the captain say that we were turning back and our visit to Hubbard was cancelled due to “pea soup” fog.  We certainly understood; safety was most important.  We were crushed and vowed that we would try again next year if the excursion was still offered.

FYI, the money for our excursion was quickly refunded to our onboard account.

[CruisinAg]

Just a quick question about your "secret spot" on the Royal.... I'm guessing you were on the lower promenade deck? Deck 5? How crowded was it down there vs. up on the higher decks? I'm thinking the lower prom deck would be a better angle to take pics from. 

[Italy52]

23 minutes ago, CruisinAg said:

Just a quick question about your "secret spot" on the Royal.... I'm guessing you were on the lower promenade deck? Deck 5? How crowded was it down there vs. up on the higher decks? I'm thinking the lower prom deck would be a better angle to take pics from. 

We were actually on deck 7, aft -- port side.  We also found a few places just outside of Crooners.  The first day we were on the ship we checked out the upper decks and decided that it was not a good location for us. On the day that we were in Glacier Bay and College Fjord we noticed that the upper decks were very crowded and glad that we were not there.  I am short so it is important that we find a place that I can get a good vantage point for taking pictures so that is why we spent a good deal of time looking around the ship.  My suggestion to you is upon boarding, or when you get some time, check out the ship and see what works for you.  Even though we found a "secret spot" we definitely had to make sure we got there early and stayed there otherwise someone else would have grabbed our spot.  We saw one woman with a tripod scrambling to get to our location only to find that we had gotten there first. 

 

Also, have a back-up plan should it rain as the location we were in offered no shelter from the elements.

[CruisinAg]

Good plan, thank you. Since we're doing southbound our first 2 days are both "scenic cruising" days so I'll need to scout out a spot early. I'm staying in an inside only one deck below the pool deck so that might be faster. Also have family who have balcony cabins but I really like the idea of being lower and closer to the water for picture taking. 

[geoherb]

I also took the Phillips 26 glacier cruise. I booked it through Princess and used the "best price guarantee" to get them to match the price plus 10 percent. It was a fabulous day. I'm sorry you missed Hubbard Glacier. The people I spoke with who did the tour loved it. I thought I had had enough glaciers, though, and didn't want to spend more money. If we're ever on a southbound cruise (versus back-to-back cruises), it's something I'd like to do.

[Italy52]

1 hour ago, CruisinAg said:

Good plan, thank you. Since we're doing southbound our first 2 days are both "scenic cruising" days so I'll need to scout out a spot early. I'm staying in an inside only one deck below the pool deck so that might be faster. Also have family who have balcony cabins but I really like the idea of being lower and closer to the water for picture taking. 

 Hope you have a good trip and everything works out to your advantage.

[Italy52]

50 minutes ago, geoherb said:

I also took the Phillips 26 glacier cruise. I booked it through Princess and used the "best price guarantee" to get them to match the price plus 10 percent. It was a fabulous day. I'm sorry you missed Hubbard Glacier. The people I spoke with who did the tour loved it. I thought I had had enough glaciers, though, and didn't want to spend more money. If we're ever on a southbound cruise (versus back-to-back cruises), it's something I'd like to do.

I have heard about the "best price guarantee" but didn't know how it worked.  So, you booked through Princess and then told them about the Phillips's pricing?  What was the procedure you needed to follow if you don't mind me asking.

[geoherb]

There's a form to fill out and email to Princess. The details and form are here: https://www.princess.com/learn/faq_answer/pre_cruise/shore_excursions_faq/best-price-guarantee.html

I filled out the form and emailed it and received a response the same day.

[puppycanducruise]

Stunning pictures.

Thanks for sharing.

[Italy52]

2 hours ago, geoherb said:

There's a form to fill out and email to Princess. The details and form are here: https://www.princess.com/learn/faq_answer/pre_cruise/shore_excursions_faq/best-price-guarantee.html

I filled out the form and emailed it and received a response the same day.

Thank you.  I am assuming that you filled out the form while you were on board the ship so the credit could be used on the 2nd portion of your cruise --- correct? 

[Italy52]

2 hours ago, puppycanducruise said:

Stunning pictures.

Thanks for sharing.

Thank you.

 

[Italy52]

Since our cruise covered three weeks in Alaska with multiple visits to some of the ports, I decided that I would piggy-back some of my writeups and pictures --- just in case some of my readers were wondering why the narrative and pictures are not in chronological order --- I didn’t want to bore you too much.

Ketchikan:  The Royal Princess arrived in Ketchikan on the 4^th of July.  We had heard rumors that there was going to be a “hometown” parade and we wanted to sit back and watch it take place.  We headed over to our favorite popcorn place, Orca Corn, and got a bag to share.  We found a nice little spot and some shade.  Sirens from fire trucks and ambulances were blaring and music from various attractions filled the air.  People were cheering as motorized vehicles carrying various years of Ketchikan’s high school alumni were transported down the main parade route.  Although the whole event was over rather quickly, we had a nice time reflecting on how it’s the simple things that can bring so much joy into this world.  

Disembarkation:  We disembarked the Royal Princess shortly after 9 AM.  Since we were staying in Vancouver another day, we opted for a late disembarkation time.  When our color tag was called, we made our way over to the ship’s security check point and swiped our medallions one last time.  We headed over to the luggage area and quickly retrieved our bags, passed through Customs and headed over to the taxi area to secure a cab.  Although the line looked long, we were quickly directed to a cab and asked the driver to take us to the Marriott Pinnacle.  Cab ride was about $10 with tip included.

Marriott Pinnacle:  When we arrived, the hotel was busy.  Nothing out of the ordinary for us to see as the Vancouver hotels are usually very busy with cruisers coming and going.  We made our way to the check-in desk and had the hotel hold our luggage as our room wasn’t quite ready.  We were kindly asked to check back in about an hour and told our room would be ready --- it was.  We knew that we would have very early check-out and flight times, so we asked for a midnight wake-up call and a 2:30 AM cab appointment.  Going to clubs is very big for the young people in Vancouver so sometimes (not always) there can be a problem getting a cab.  Just to be on the safe side, we reserve a cab.  After taking care of all our requests, we made our way over to Stanley Park for our usual leisurely stroll, grabbed a bite to eat and then headed back to the hotel for an early night’s sleep. 

Leaving Vancouver:  2:30 AM rolled around and our reserved cab arrived right on time.  During our ride to the airport we were amazed at all the people on the streets who were just walking or gathering after visiting the night clubs.  Our ride to the airport was approximately $45 including tip. Airport processing (airline counter check in, luggage scanning, security and Immigration) took about 2 hours as not all check-in locations opened at the same time.  Vancouver has the process down to a science but be prepared for waits – bring your patience.  The first time we went through the “Vancouver” process we were stressed.  Now, we just take things in stride and just relax – it is what it is so there is no use complaining about it.  

We were sad to see our trip come to an end.  However, we were ready to go home after being away so long.

Coming up, our final thoughts about the Royal Princess.

[Coral]

9 hours ago, Italy52 said:

Thank you.  I am assuming that you filled out the form while you were on board the ship so the credit could be used on the 2nd portion of your cruise --- correct? 

You can do it in advance (before getting on the cruise).

[Italy52]

2 hours ago, Coral said:

You can do it in advance (before getting on the cruise).

Good to know, thanks.

[geoherb]

12 hours ago, Italy52 said:

Thank you.  I am assuming that you filled out the form while you were on board the ship so the credit could be used on the 2nd portion of your cruise --- correct? 

 

No. I filled in the form before the first cruise. I prepaid for the excursion with a combination of onboard credit and a charge card. You do have to purchase the excursion before sending in the form. 

[Italy52]

12 hours ago, geoherb said:

 

No. I filled in the form before the first cruise. I prepaid for the excursion with a combination of onboard credit and a charge card. You do have to purchase the excursion before sending in the form. 

Got it, thanks.

[Italy52]

Thoughts on the Royal Princess:  This was our first Princess cruise where we utilized the medallions instead of cruise cards.  We had mixed feelings about this system.  Not being tech savvy, our 13-year-old granddaughter came to the rescue helping us with the initial set-up process.  We laughed with she commented:  “Grandma, this system is way too complicated for your generation.”

Attached is the Princess link that describes the benefits/uses relating to the medallions.https://www.princess.com/ships-and-experience/ocean-medallion/.  For those that would like more information on the medallion system, just go to the Princess website and type in medallions in the search box.

Did we enjoy the medallion system: yes and no.  Yes, we found it convenient when it came to unlocking our cabin door, tapping the medallion when boarding and leaving the ship, playing in the casino and ordering sodas.  What I was not a big fan of was the feeling that we were being tracked.  For example, when we were in the casino or the Internet Café our picture would appear on a tablet indicating that we were in proximity.  On another occasion I was walking by an employee and he called me by name and asked if there was anything, he could do for me.  Some people might not mind the notoriety, but I felt a little uncomfortable with it.  By the end of the 14-day cruise, we were used to the system and wouldn’t hesitate to take a cruise on a Medallion Class ship again.

Entertainment:  The Princess Patters details all the events happening around the ship.  Activities are from sunup to sundown.  I did not keep any of the Patters, but I believe if you go to the Princess board you might be able to find some if you utilize the search box.

For Alaska, there were a few events geared towards the cruise:  Puppies in the Piazza (petting and taking pictures with sled dogs).  Please be aware that this is a very popular event.  If interested, consult your Princess Patter for the timing of the event and make sure to get there early as there was a very big line for this interaction.  Libby Riddles (the first female to win the Iditarod race in 1985) did a presentation and there was also a presentation from one of the members of The Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show.  

We didn’t go to any of the performance entertainment so I can’t comment on them.