Alaska on Princess - choosing between two options

[splummer]

We are a party of 3 (2 adults, 1 teen) and have two options that fit our time availability this summer and both have deals for a PH suite that are roughly priced the same:

 

July 29 - Royal Princess Inside Passage (AFT PH B deck S3) - RT Seattle
Aug 5 - Majestic Princess Gulf Northbound (AFT PH B deck S3) - Vancouver - Whittier

The convenience of flying in/out of Seattle is a big plus, and it is also our preferred dates too.  BUT I've read a lot of opinions that doing a one way is far better.  The flights out of Anchorage are abysmal, aside from redeye which we hate.  Is it really worth the inconvenience of flying out of Anchorage for the College Fjord/Whittier portion vs. Victoria on the Seattle RT?  

Is there anything between those two ships that would sway your decision?  

Edited June 25, 2023 by splummer

[Luv2cruz1000]

Port times are longer (some ports) on the one way as well. I believe there is more inside passage even round trip out of/going to Vancouver. Does the Seattle do Glacier Bay? We have booked our second cruise to Alaska to see Glacier Bay.

Our first was out of Seattle, and yes, airfare rates and  convenience are a plus  then our planning out of Whittier. We are planning a few days to see Anchorage and area.

Seattle is also wonderful city also to see.

Enjoy Alaska however you choose to go, it's amazing!

[martincath]

On any Royal class ship, whether RT or one-way, you skip all the BC Inside Passage so both routes will see a little of the Salish Sea coming out west of Vancouver Island for the first few hours, then have nothing but ocean for a day and a bit until first port. Returning on the RT, same thing, no views for over a day until Victoria, then literally sailing in circles until time to dock (cheaper to run an engine slowly, which maintains hotel functions too, than to pay for docking hookups!) while with the one-way, you have a similar day-and-change of bouncy open water across the gulf of Alaska - but then you will see the approach into Whittier. So this particular one-way, compared to this RT, really are much more similar than different... whether the approach to Whittier is better than an evening in Victoria is hard to say - there are some topnotch pubs in Vic, so if your teen is 19 they might really enjoy an evening of responsible, legal boozing with you 😉

 

If you have time at the end to extend your vaycay in Alaska, then the one-way becomes enticing; ditto at the start, Vancouver is better than Seattle (I may be biased though...!) but if all you're doing is fly in, board ship, sail, off ship, fly home - I don't think the hassle is worthwhile at all of worse flight options, probably more expensive to open jaw YVR & ANC too even if you can score nonstops both legs.

 

I'll apologise in advance if recommending a different ship and date is over-stepping, you did only ask for a comparison if these two, but I do have some genuine concerns that you are limiting yourselves too much and missing out on a possibly-better vacay! If you definitely want a Royal class ship, within these data parameters, just skip the rest of this as it'll be no use to you!!!

 

Personally, the advice I'd give is to check out the other main 'rule of thumb' for Alaska - that Alaska is somewhere you cruise for the place, not the ship! Consider other Princess departures on smaller vessels, which might give you hours more extra scenic daytime sailing in some of the most scenic BC waters, and have better proportionate deck space for when your balcony isn't pointing the right way for the glacier/breaching whales/whatever other cool thing might be seen on the other side of the ship.

 

Royal class have lots of bells and whistles, but they are also fundamentally flawed for this region - no promenade, open decks up top have a lot of perspex barriers that makes good photos harder, and most importantly they lack adequate rudder area to make tight turns in high winds or currents, which is why they are banned from BC Inside Passage pilotage waters as none of our pilots are willing to steer them through it!

 

With what sounds like at least July 28 to Aug 13th available, I am sure you can find a big enough cabin to fit you all on another ship, and there are many departures in-between these two - especially since doing South instead of Northbound one-way adds Whittier to the mix. There's even another Princess option, in case you've built Status and want your perks: Sapphire Princess sails SB Aug 2nd to 9th for example - perhaps flight times going TO Anchorage might be a bit less bad, getting the annoying travel out of the way first then the easier flight home from Vancouver at the end? Southbound, with BC Inside Passage on the table, you could also see some outstanding scenery before bed on your last day even if the southernmost portion will be sailed while you sleep.

 

If dates can be flexed forward or back a few days, there are 10/11 day RT cruises from Vancouver all summer on Crown Princess, with a superb itinerary of way more ports and virtually no 'dead days' - you're either in a port or there's something to look at outside! With July 25th to August 4th, or Aug 4th-15th sail times, the dates do fall a bit outside your listed range unfortunately...

 

Based in Seattle unfortunately Princess seem to have nothing but Royals - cheaper to operate than the smaller ships, so the way all lines are going - but if you are willing to consider other lines too, there are an average of ~2 ships per day each from Seattle and Vancouver, most of them mainstream HAL/NCL/RCI/Carnival/Celebrity, so there's probably something price-equivalent?