HAL vs Princess (2k vs 3,600 passengers) for Alaska

[redroses]

2 hours ago, geocruiser said:

Are you thinking of four people in one balcony cabin on Princess?

yes since my kids are free.  we would save $2,500 by being in the same cabin.   

 

Appreciate everyone's comments! a lot of food for thought.  I think we if like this alaska  cruise, we might go on another.

[geocruiser]

Just to let you know.  The cabin is small on Princess. A regular balcony cabin has only one chair to sit on.  Have you thought of a obstructed deluxe balcony?  That will have a loveseat that converts t a bed.

[Aquahound]

19 hours ago, redroses said:

OP here, I'm looking at Princess Royal.  The $700 in savings over HAL would help offset the plane tickets to Seattle.  Only thing is Victoria is such a short top, Royal does go to Glacier Bay.

 

 

I whole heartedly recommend HAL in your case.

 

First, no, there is little to no difference between 2000 and 3600 people.  These are well designed ships that disperse crowds well.  I cruised Royal's sister ship (Regal) and it felt no more crowded than HAL's ships.  Can't say the same for Princess' older Crown Class and others of that same general design.  Those ships are very crowded.

 

That said, I recommend HAL because I think Royal Princess is a terrible ship for an Alaskan itinerary.  There are no interior lounges with nice, panoramic views.  HAL has the beautiful Crow's Nest and great outdoor promenade deck.  

 

Plus, as someone mentioned, HAL's cabins are better.  In order to get additional seating on Princess, like a couch, you have to book a mini suite.  Princess' cabins feel very cramped.  

[rkacruiser]

19 hours ago, disneyochem said:

, brought sled dog puppies onboard (yes, puppies to cuddle!), had Libby Riddles give a talk,

 

It's these "little things" that, I think, make an Alaska cruise experience on Princess different from HAL.  

 

Having sailed on Royal Princess, regardless of the number of guests on the vessel, the only time that "crowds" impacted my enjoyment was a New Year's Eve celebration in the Atrium.  Social distancing?  Ha, Ha!  

[rkacruiser]

19 hours ago, disneyochem said:

, brought sled dog puppies onboard (yes, puppies to cuddle!), had Libby Riddles give a talk,

 

It's these "little things" that, I think, make an Alaska cruise experience on Princess different from HAL.  

 

Having sailed on Royal Princess, regardless of the number of guests on the vessel, the only time that "crowds" impacted my enjoyment was a New Year's Eve celebration in the Atrium.  Social distancing?  Ha, Ha!  

[*Miss G*]

40 minutes ago, Aquahound said:

 

I whole heartedly recommend HAL in your case.

 

First, no, there is little to no difference between 2000 and 3600 people.  These are well designed ships that disperse crowds well.  I cruised Royal's sister ship (Regal) and it felt no more crowded than HAL's ships.  Can't say the same for Princess' older Crown Class and others of that same general design.  Those ships are very crowded.

 

That said, I recommend HAL because I think Royal Princess is a terrible ship for an Alaskan itinerary.  There are no interior lounges with nice, panoramic views.  HAL has the beautiful Crow's Nest and great outdoor promenade deck.  

 

Plus, as someone mentioned, HAL's cabins are better.  In order to get additional seating on Princess, like a couch, you have to book a mini suite.  Princess' cabins feel very cramped.  

 

My sentiments mirror Aquahound’s exactly.  I will only add that the outward-focused space on Princess’ Royal-class ships is very limited; even less indoors.  HAL has exponentially more outward viewing space, both indoors and out.  

 

Positively for Princess, the mini suites on the royal class are perfect for a family of four, but I wouldn’t do it in one of their balcony cabins.

[crystalspin]

5 hours ago, redroses said:

yes since my kids are free.  we would save $2,500 by being in the same cabin.   

 

Appreciate everyone's comments! a lot of food for thought.  I think we if like this alaska  cruise, we might go on another.

Eurodam has Kids Sail Free (as of yesterday when I checked). Here is a link to a representative HAL Verandah made up as a quad. The room steward(s) would make up the Pullman bunk and the sofa bed each night while you were at dinner/show, and turn it back into a room you all can move around in the morning.

 

https://halfacts.com/vista-class/10009-oosterdam/

 

ETA: this is not your ship, and the note about the balcony being very small would not apply to your prospective cabin. Do not worry about that!

Edited August 22, 2022 by crystalspin

[JesseLivermore]

On 8/20/2022 at 8:30 PM, sunviking90 said:

We’ve been in a number of HAL and Princess cruises, but I would pay more for the HAL for this itinerary. HAL ships have the retractable roof over the pool, meaning your family can use it even in poor weather-it looks like you’re planning on May. You’ll also have much more deck space for viewing on the Eurodam. As far as staterooms, HAL veranda cabin will be larger and the balcony will be much larger too. The Standard balcony cabins on the Royal Princess are very small, the deluxes a little bigger, but for most the balconies are tiny. I don’t see your family enjoying time out there viewing wildlife comfortably. We don’t travel with our son anymore, but when we did we took HAL to Alaska and it was nice to have more space. We love the Royal class ships, but I just don’t think they’re suited to Alaska.
As far as food, they each have their strengths, and we’ve always been able to find enough that we like. 
I realize HAL is more expensive in this case, but prices fluctuate. Deals come up all the time. HAL isn’t necessarily a “more expensive” line than Princess. Your itinerary may go down. We used to be able to take advantage of some great “kids sail free” offers with HAL. We used to joke that if they knew how much our son ate, they would never have let us have that offer!

Good Luck!

+1 HAL was only $100pp/day for us with 2 Kids "free" all in. Princess didn't have the deal at the time.  but given your info I will try them next..

[JesseLivermore]

1 hour ago, crystalspin said:

Eurodam has Kids Sail Free (as of yesterday when I checked). Here is a link to a representative HAL Verandah made up as a quad. The room steward(s) would make up the Pullman bunk and the sofa bed each night while you were at dinner/show, and turn it back into a room you all can move around in the morning.

 

https://halfacts.com/vista-class/10009-oosterdam/

 

ETA: this is not your ship, and the note about the balcony being very small would not apply to your prospective cabin. Do not worry about that!

 

bunk beds were weird that they're over head to the main vs over couch like we were expecting.

 

So we had them remove the mattress to our parents double K interior. Worked out well by us spreading out and their room was bigger

[JesseLivermore]

11 hours ago, Andi Land said:

I’m not sure it matters all that much. The 2100 HAL cruisers and the 3600 Princess cruisers will all be in port at the same time anyway making for crowded port areas. So, pick the ship, itinerary, and price that work best for your family. 

 

made ports crowded, but  ship lines were great on HAL. 

[rj59]

I was on Discovery Princess in June at 3400 pax and it was too much for me. Waits were long outside Gigi's pizza, both early and late production shows had no seats (going early to get a seat got me Covid), and embarkation was awful, since everyone had to drop off luggage inside at x-ray machines. More importantly, it didn't visit Glacier Bay or Hubbard, as HAL does, and the ship was too big and unwieldy (propeller vs. HAL azipod) to get within viewing distance of Dawe's Glacier. Also, HAL has the forward-view crow's nest and a covered pool deck, whereas Princess has neither, nor does it have a wraparound promenade that I use for whale watching and exercise. I went on Majestic Princess twice to Mexico at 30/40% capacity, but the Royal class ships at near-full capacity aren't good for Alaska. I went on my first Celebrity cruise a few weeks ago, Solstice, and I found it better for Alaska than Princess also. I have Discovery and Konigsdam and Solstice booked for Mexico, but I'd go on Celebrity or HAL for Alaska, unless it's the smaller Crown Princess, with a promenade and Glacier Bay visit. I also enjoyed NCL in Alaska, since the newer ships have an amazing observation lounge, Beatles tribute band, and Broadway shows, and last September I was on Ovation of the Seas at 30% full, so I got to skydive and do bumper cars all I wanted, on a gorgeous ship with great shows.

[rkacruiser]

18 hours ago, rj59 said:

the Royal class ships at near-full capacity aren't good for Alaska

 

That is the opinion of many, many cruisers who have sailed in Alaska.  I sailed on Royal Princess in the Caribbean.  She is well suited for that itinerary.  I would not consider her or one of her sisters for an Alaskan cruise because of her size and the number of potential guests.  

[occruiselady]

We did the Glacier Bay cruise with Princess several years ago and loved it. There was ample seating outside and they provided blankets and had waiters with carts going around serving hot drinks like Baileys and coffee and hot chocolate. The naturalist on board was amazing and made the trip one of the best cruises we’ve ever taken. I find the Mini Suites on the Princess ships to be a great value. HAL does not have that category and the up charge to go from a Veranda to a small suite is substantial. We did the Mediterranean on the Royal and it is a great ship. We had many ports and were traveling with our son in a wheelchair and the staff was great. I don’t recall any issues with crowds, so I would say take Princess.

[redroses]

OP here, I ended up putting a deposit on the Princess cruise for next summer.  I was able to get a large forward cabin, they are suppose to have an extra large balcony.   There is the risk of being choppy since the balcony is forward, but the views should be amazing.  HAL sounds great too.