Princess Itineraries: Iceland/Greenland vs. Norwegian Fjords

[crawford]

Has anyone done both of these itineraries? I'm surprised that the costs vary so much and that there appear to be quite a few more dates on the Norway route. Thoughts?

[skynight]

Fjord cruise is spectacular. One of the best itineraries I've sailed.

I would place the Iceland/Greenland as very nice but not as nice as the Norway fjord  cruise 

[dvcmember]

Cruise to Greenland in 2019.  Loved the tranquility of the island.  

This year I am headed to Iceland as well as Norway to the Land of the Midnight Sun.  I have a feeling it will be little more impressive than Greenland.  34-days on the Island Princess - dream cruise. 

[Torfamm]

We did a 14 night from Southampton to Norway and Iceland pre-pandemic. For me it was the best of both worlds. It was one of my favorite trips ever

[Anubi]

We are doing Norway next year.  We normally cruise Princess but this time IMO HAL has the better itinerary.  

[Thrak]

We cruised round trip Southampton to Norway on Sapphire Princess about a month before the shutdown. My wife really wants to cruise to Iceland and I have no issue with that other than the fact that the only ship Princess sails there is Island Princess which is my least favorite ship. Given that she really wants the cruise to Iceland I figure I'm doomed to sail on Island Princess again.

[donaldsc]

3 minutes ago, Thrak said:

We cruised round trip Southampton to Norway on Sapphire Princess about a month before the shutdown. My wife really wants to cruise to Iceland and I have no issue with that other than the fact that the only ship Princess sails there is Island Princess which is my least favorite ship. Given that she really wants the cruise to Iceland I figure I'm doomed to sail on Island Princess again.

 

There are lots of other good lines that do Iceland.  If you dislike the Island Princess so much, why not try another line which might also have a better Iceland itinerary.

 

DON

[Seattle Rose]

26 minutes ago, Thrak said:

We cruised round trip Southampton to Norway on Sapphire Princess about a month before the shutdown. My wife really wants to cruise to Iceland and I have no issue with that other than the fact that the only ship Princess sails there is Island Princess which is my least favorite ship. Given that she really wants the cruise to Iceland I figure I'm doomed to sail on Island Princess again.

We are looking at the cruise to Iceland on the Island Princess.  We have never been on the Island Princess.  Can you tell me why it’s your least favorite ship?  Thanks so much!

[TM]

We've only done the Norwegian Fjords cruise and tied that in with a separate Princess ship doing the British Isles.  The Norwegian Fjords had always been on my bucket list and the timing worked out great to be able to do both cruises.  Personally, I thought the cruise to the Fjords was spectacular and would certainly do it again.

[Thrak]

11 minutes ago, Seattle Rose said:

We are looking at the cruise to Iceland on the Island Princess.  We have never been on the Island Princess.  Can you tell me why it’s your least favorite ship?  Thanks so much!

 

Sigh... I will answer but don't let it influence your experience on Island Princess. You will likely have a wonderful cruise.

 

We have sailed on Coral Princess a couple of times and had a great cruise. Island Princess used to be "almost" identical to Coral Princess. I say "almost" because Coral Princess was retrofitted to add the International Cafe. (It's small but it is there.) Island Princess doesn't have an IC despite a bazillion dollar retrofit a few years back.

 

When Island Princess was retrofitted they made several changes that I don't like.

 

As noted above: No IC

 

They removed the Universe Lounge and replaced it with a ton of new cabins. Removing a large public area and replacing it with a ton of new passengers was not a good move. Every time we headed aft we ran into a wall where there used to be public space.

 

Because the aft portion was converted into cabins the Promenade deck is blocked off so there is no longer any access to the aft portion so there is no way to walk the Promenade all the way around. We enjoy the view of the wake when walking and like making a full circuit.

 

The aft observation decks are no longer available as the aft portion of the ship is now all cabins.

 

We have a favorite cabin on Coral which no longer exists on Island. There is no comparable cabin on Island.

 

We don't use the fitness center but, if we did, we would be very unhappy that it was moved to a lower deck and now has no windows.

 

One of our favorite Princess shows was designed specifically for the rotating platform stage in Universe Lounge. As noted above, that space was replaced by cabins. NoteOne of our favorite Princess shows was designed specifically for the rotating platform stage in Universe Lounge. As noted above, that space was replaced by cabins. Note: We did see that show - On The Bayou - performed on Island Princess but it was not the same as it was done on the elevated, flat, and stationary stage in the Princess Theater. Since it was designed to be performed on a multi-level rotating stage that is actually lower than the seating the performance in the theater didn't thrill us at all.

 

We had just sailed on Coral Princess shortly before sailing on the revamped Island Princess. It was disappointing to say the least.

 

[United_11]

I have not done the Iceland/Greenland itinerary yet (although on my bucket list), but I did do a 14 day Norwegian Fjords cruise on the Sapphire Princess nearly 3 years ago.  It was a great cruise, and I highly recommend visiting Norway and seeing all the beautiful scenery. It's my favorite cruise so far!  It was more expensive than other itineraries but completely worth it in my opinion. Here is a link to a review I did at the time (in the comments there are references to reviews by fellow passengers on the same cruise): 

 

 

[jimbo1683]

They both fascinate me although I would be more tempted by iceland/greenland because cruises to the norweigan fjords are ten a penny but the iceland itinery is less frequent.

[hlperez]

23 hours ago, Thrak said:

We cruised round trip Southampton to Norway on Sapphire Princess about a month before the shutdown. My wife really wants to cruise to Iceland and I have no issue with that other than the fact that the only ship Princess sails there is Island Princess which is my least favorite ship. Given that she really wants the cruise to Iceland I figure I'm doomed to sail on Island Princess again.

Sky Princess sails to Iceland on June 25.

[MamaFej]

For those willing to consider other cruise lines: Celebrity offers some very nice Iceland itineraries, and has a couple with both Iceland and Greenland. 

 

We are currently booked on an Iceland to Boston cruise, including Greenland. Prices have gone up considerably, but may go down again after final payment. 

[Thrak]

1 hour ago, hlperez said:

Sky Princess sails to Iceland on June 25.

 

Thanks. Sending the link to my wife now.

[trvlwrld]

IMO there is no comparison between them...Norway has spectacular high mountains with  steep cliffs that you cruise between, Iceland has mountains that you drive to (much like ours in the US).  Norway is a different experience when cruising through the fjords!  IMO...Norway without a doubt!!

[yamanid]

On 2/22/2022 at 6:01 PM, Thrak said:

We cruised round trip Southampton to Norway on Sapphire Princess about a month before the shutdown. My wife really wants to cruise to Iceland and I have no issue with that other than the fact that the only ship Princess sails there is Island Princess which is my least favorite ship. Given that she really wants the cruise to Iceland I figure I'm doomed to sail on Island Princess again.

 

Sky Princess is sailing to Iceland in June this year, we are for the B2B 28nights

[Dididi]

We did a Norway/Iceland combo similar to the Sky Princess's June 2022 version back in 2014.  Phenomenal.  Sipping tea at the buffet after our day in Olden as we sailed past farms with red barns on the fjords was an unbelievable "postcard photo every second" experience.  In Iceland we took "small bus" tours with a local outfitter in Reykjavik and Akureyri (including a dip in the Mytavn Thermal Bath) and went horseback riding in Issafjordur.  As we learned from planning our 2018 land vacation to Iceland, driving to Issafjordur would have taken forever because of all the switchbacks around each fjord.  Taking a cruise to the two ports in the northwestern fjord region in Iceland is definitely a better option than driving.  Norway and Iceland are wondrous destinations in their own ways.  If you have two weeks, the combo cruises offer a fantastic introduction to fjords, waterfalls, volcanoes, geysers, hot springs, ...and sheep.