2025 Alaska and South America itineraries due out the end of July. 🤞

[AtlantaCruiser72]

Another vote for Coral. As it has been a few years since she sailed Alaska I predict the cruise tours on her will sell well and preferred cabins will go quickly. 

[azbirdmom]

Agree that the Coral is a great choice for Alaska.  The "secret" aft and forward decks and the wrap around Promenade deck make it a great choice for glacier and Alaska scenery viewing.  The aft and Promenade decks are covered too in case it's raining.  We spent a lot of time on the aft Caribe deck while cruising Antarctica and it was a great place to see the wonders of Antarctica as well as be somewhat protected from the elements.  Glad Princess is bringing the ship back to the USA.

[LawDog61]

So nice to see a RT Alaska from LA on the list😄

[MamaFej]

Y'all have me extra excited about spending 28 days on Coral later this year, cicumnavigating Australia. 

 

I'm also seeking a good family trip for June or July of 2025 to celebrate Hubby turning 60, our oldest turning 30, two Master's degrees, and a Bachelor's degree for the kids, and I get to go, too. 😉

 

Thanks for this thread, and the helpful information therein. 

 

[LACruiser88]

1 hour ago, MamaFej said:

all have me extra excited about spending 28 days on Coral later this year, cicumnavigating Australia. 

We also enjoy the Coral.  We will be on the Oct '24, 32-day, Singapore to LA, sailing.

 

[cruisingrob21]

I think its pretty unanimous that the order of preference for ships (not considering itinerary) is as follows:

Vancouver Sailings:

Coral - covered pool, fewest passengers for a Princess ship, lacks a climate-controlled upper deck observation lounge other than Horizon Court.

Sapphire - covered pool, wide promenades, fewer passengers for a Princess ship, has Skywalkers as a good upper level, climate controlled observation deck

Grand - covered pool, fewer passengers for a Princess ship, but lacks skywalkers, and is one of the oldest ships (if not the oldest) sailing from Vancouver (not a detriment necessarily, but certainly has some longstanding issues)

Caribbean - does have some unique features like the elevated Skywalkers, but lacks covered pools, has 400 more passengers than Grand and Sapphire.

*Fortunately, all Vancouver based ships should sail the Seymour Narrows route*

 

Seattle Sailings

Discovery - although larger than the Royal, is the newest ship in the fleet and the most updated decor and corrected many of the "wrongs" of the older sisters in the class, has more hottubs and 2 extra pools, but none covered.

Royal - Personally, my least favorite ship in the fleet, previous generation ship decor, useless fountain show, gimmicky skywalk.

*Both Seattle based ships only have the buffet as the only climate controlled, upper deck observation area*

Honestly, if sailing from Seattle, there are better ships that go to GB (Eurodam, NCL Bliss).  I would also consider the Ruby out of SF over the Discovery and Royal, but that's my preference.

Edited July 21, 2023 by cruisingrob21

[danny8826]

7 minutes ago, cruisingrob21 said:

I think its pretty unanimous that the order of preference for ships (not considering itinerary) is as follows:

Vancouver Sailings:

Coral - covered pool, fewest passengers for a Princess ship, lacks a climate-controlled upper deck observation lounge other than Horizon Court.

Sapphire - covered pool, wide promenades, fewer passengers for a Princess ship, has Skywalkers as a good upper level, climate controlled observation deck

Grand - covered pool, fewer passengers for a Princess ship, but lacks skywalkers, and is one of the oldest ships (if not the oldest) sailing from Vancouver (not a detriment necessarily, but certainly has some longstanding issues)

Caribbean - does have some unique features like the elevated Skywalkers, but lacks covered pools, has 400 more passengers than Grand and Sapphire.

*Fortunately, all Vancouver based ships should sail the Seymour Narrows route*

 

Seattle Sailings

Discovery - although larger than the Royal, is the newest ship in the fleet and the most updated decor and corrected many of the "wrongs" of the older sisters in the class, has more hottubs and 2 extra pools, but none covered.

Royal - Personally, my least favorite ship in the fleet, previous generation ship decor, useless fountain show, gimmicky skywalk.

*Both Seattle based ships only have the buffet as the only climate controlled, upper deck observation area*

Honestly, if sailing from Seattle, there are better ships that go to GB (Eurodam, NCL Bliss).  I would also consider the Ruby out of SF over the Discovery and Royal, but that's my preference.

 

The ship that sailed to Alaska for last year was the Majestic.  I love that ship and services from crew members are better on that ship then Discovery or Royal Princess.  I sailed all of those 3 ships last year. I live in SF, but I am not crazy about the Ruby Princess as there are always so many COVID cases reported on that ship.  It makes me wonder why.

[cruisingrob21]

11 minutes ago, danny8826 said:

 

The ship that sailed to Alaska for last year was the Majestic.  I love that ship and services from crew members are better on that ship then Discovery or Royal Princess.  I sailed all of those 3 ships last year. I live in SF, but I am not crazy about the Ruby Princess as there are always so many COVID cases reported on that ship.  It makes me wonder why.

Yeah I noticed that as well.  I sailed on the Crown and Discovery for Alaskan samplers last year (and sailing on the discovery in 2 weeks).  The presence of Adagio and Skywalkers on the Crown was very much appreciated.  As was the separate pool areas with and without MUTS.  It allowed the pool area to be quieter when just sailing in scenic areas.  As much as the walking track on top of Skywalkers on the Crown is kind of a joke, it truly is about the best place to walk/jog (what I do) and not miss any scenery since there is very little ship structure obscuring views at any given moment.  I also really enjoy the aft terraces of the Grand class ships.  I also appreciate the ability to book a cabin aft on Riviera deck and have very easy access to the terrace pool area.

 

I think in terms of Royal class, for me its a tossup between the Majestic and Discovery.  I appreciate the aft pool ambiance of the Discovery, but the conservatory area on the Majestic is nice, even if it smells too much like chlorine at times. I sailed on the Royal earlier this year and I'll avoid that ship if possible - too many compromises were made in that original design.

Edited July 21, 2023 by cruisingrob21

[snoozecrooze]

Personally, I wouldn't dismiss Royal so fast if you must travel from Seattle as the Glacier Bay ship goes back to Royal for 2025.

[Steelers36]

21 hours ago, Coral said:

did you know our cruise packages are soon going to be an even bigger value – and there’s no cost increase! Plus, we're evolving our dining program and making some key service changes on board that you’ll want to share so your clients get the most out of their Princess cruise. 

I am most interested to see what is coming down the pike for increased cruise fare packages and for dining changes.  I plan to tune in next Thursday afternoon - or at least do the replay.  Will be actually get details or over-the-top Carmen talk?  We shall see.  I am intrigued.  Changes to DMW reservation process?  A return to some TD?  Who knows?

[cruisingrob21]

10 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

I am most interested to see what is coming down the pike for increased cruise fare packages and for dining changes.  I plan to tune in next Thursday afternoon - or at least do the replay.  Will be actually get details or over-the-top Carmen talk?  We shall see.  I am intrigued.  Changes to DMW reservation process?  A return to some TD?  Who knows?

Last presentation was a big splash about new embarkation process.  What I heard was "if you want to board fast, get plus/premiere or pay for shipping.  Those boarding times, which were never enforced, are gone now"  Not much difference so I'm not expecting much with the new plus/premiere features.

Edited July 21, 2023 by cruisingrob21

[cruisingrob21]

23 minutes ago, snoozecrooze said:

Personally, I wouldn't dismiss Royal so fast if you must travel from Seattle as the Glacier Bay ship goes back to Royal for 2025.

I'd take the Eurodam for a GB cruise, more deck room, fewer people, and lately been better pricing.  Older ship or not, it still has a lot of nice features for Alaska cruising and HAL has upped their evening entertainment.  We sailed in 2022 on the Eurodam and booked again in 2024 because the Royal Class ships from Seattle made too many compromises to enjoy the princess experience.  We may switch to the Koningsdam RT from Vancouver.  If Princess ever decided to make a sub 3k passenger ship again, I would hope it would be modeled after the K-dam and other Pinnacle class ships which really have a nice balance of venues, climate controlled indoor areas, and nice variety of cabins.

 

I'd also point out that the Have it All promo, with gratuities is more aligned with what my family prefers.

Edited July 21, 2023 by cruisingrob21

[BabsinTX]

2 minutes ago, cruisingrob21 said:

I'd take the Eurodam for a GB cruise, more deck room, fewer people, and lately been better pricing.  Older ship or not, it still has a lot of nice features for Alaska cruising and HAL has upped their evening entertainment. 

We're sailing on Eurodam to Alaska next year.  HA has great itineraries and we thought we'd give it a try.

[danny8826]

42 minutes ago, cruisingrob21 said:

Yeah I noticed that as well.  I sailed on the Crown and Discovery for Alaskan samplers last year (and sailing on the discovery in 2 weeks).  The presence of Adagio and Skywalkers on the Crown was very much appreciated.  As was the separate pool areas with and without MUTS.  It allowed the pool area to be quieter when just sailing in scenic areas.  As much as the walking track on top of Skywalkers on the Crown is kind of a joke, it truly is about the best place to walk/jog (what I do) and not miss any scenery since there is very little ship structure obscuring views at any given moment.  I also really enjoy the aft terraces of the Grand class ships.  I also appreciate the ability to book a cabin aft on Riviera deck and have very easy access to the terrace pool area.

 

I think in terms of Royal class, for me its a tossup between the Majestic and Discovery.  I appreciate the aft pool ambiance of the Discovery, but the conservatory area on the Majestic is nice, even if it smells too much like chlorine at times. I sailed on the Royal earlier this year and I'll avoid that ship if possible - too many compromises were made in that original design.

 

The conservatory on the Majestic was very nice and so I am looking forward to sailing on this ship again for South America.  If indeed, the Dec 19, 2024 sailing is from Santiago, I would book it once it becomes available.  Of course, I am not a elite member so I would have to wait.  

 

 

[cruisingrob21]

8 minutes ago, BabsinTX said:

We're sailing on Eurodam to Alaska next year.  HA has great itineraries and we thought we'd give it a try.

We really enjoyed the extra evening call in Icy Straight Point.  While there isn't enough there for a full day to do (yet), my wife did the zip line and the kids and I walked around the little boardwalk.  Seems like there are some nice hikes or just "beach sitting" that one could do there.

 

The ship seems to stay in GB longer than previous Princess voyages we took.  As a tip, try to have a late breakfast in the dining room when approaching glacier bay.  We got a window seat and it was a very memorable breakfast/brunch.

[AtlantaCruiser72]

I’m also intrigued by the 22 day sailing of the Ruby for the summer solstice. Sadly I think it will be priced above my budgetary range. 

[cruisingrob21]

1 hour ago, AtlantaCruiser72 said:

I’m also intrigued by the 22 day sailing of the Ruby for the summer solstice. Sadly I think it will be priced above my budgetary range. 

Intrigued because its the solstice or the 22 day sailing?

[AtlantaCruiser72]

4 minutes ago, cruisingrob21 said:

Intrigued because its the solstice or the 22 day sailing?

Itinerary primarily, and length secondly.  Sailing from SFO has the advantage of making flights more cost effective as well.  Weighing that against the UB8 Cruisetour on the Coral. 

[cruisingrob21]

7 minutes ago, AtlantaCruiser72 said:

Itinerary primarily, and length secondly.  Sailing from SFO has the advantage of making flights more cost effective as well.  Weighing that against the UB8 Cruisetour on the Coral. 

ah, well perhaps its more cost effective to do a 14 day RT from vancouver?  even with the more expensive flight to YVR

[HaveDogWillTravel]

2 hours ago, AtlantaCruiser72 said:

I’m also intrigued by the 22 day sailing of the Ruby for the summer solstice. Sadly I think it will be priced above my budgetary range. 

That is an incredible itinerary.  The launch prices are in post #84.  2nd attachment down in right column.

[PacnGoNow]

49 minutes ago, HaveDogWillTravel said:

That is an incredible itinerary.  The launch prices are in post #84.  2nd attachment down in right column.

I like that itinerary too.  Hope the price comes down, we’ll see.  
How do you all feel about the Ruby?  Haven’t sailed on her. TIA

[Coral]

These maybe repeats but I got these for South America:

 

South America - Standard FaresItin FOR DISTRIBUTION.xlsxSouth America - Princess Plus FaresItin FOR DISTRIBUTION.xlsx

[danny8826]

6 minutes ago, Coral said:

These maybe repeats but I got these for South America:

 

South America - Standard FaresItin FOR DISTRIBUTION.xlsx 69.46 kB · 3 downloads South America - Princess Plus FaresItin FOR DISTRIBUTION.xlsx 69.75 kB · 3 downloads

 

Thanks Coral.  How do you get these?

I am so excited about these itineraries, but can't book them yet.

 

 

[Coral]

22 minutes ago, danny8826 said:

 

Thanks Coral.  How do you get these?

I am so excited about these itineraries, but can't book them yet.

 

It is super secret 🙂 . I think it is best to not answer this for all parties involved..... 

 

I hope you are able to get the cabin/ship that you want!

[LACruiser88]

3 minutes ago, Coral said:

It is super secret 🙂 . I think it is best to not answer this for all parties involved..... 

 

I hope you are able to get the cabin/ship that you want!

The source of the information is not important, the information is invaluable!  Thank you!!!