Crown Princess (July 14-25) Cruise Report ---LONG

[Italy52]

[Italy52]

[Italy52]

Victoria:  We were very excited to visit Victoria.  Normally, cruise ships only make a brief stop in this port.  However, for our itinerary, we were thrilled to have lots of time to explore and see the sights.  In the past, we have gone whale watching and walked around town; this time we booked an independent tour to the Butchart Gardens.  We knew that we did not want to book a ship tour to the gardens as we wanted to be able to explore and not be tied to a short timetable.  So, I booked our tour online with GrayLine Sightseeing Victoria.  The cost of our tour was $176.00 CAD total.  This cost included bus transportation, narration by the driver and admission to the gardens.  The tour stand is located on the street outside of the Empress Hotel.  We opted to walk into town to our tour location.  The walk was about 25—30 minutes.  Once at the tour stand, we gave the representative our ticket confirmation and in turn, we were given our Butchart Gardens entrance tickets and our bus passes.  We were instructed on their use and to keep them available for presentation as needed.  When our bus was ready, we boarded a nice motor coach.  The driver gave a great narration of the area, and we were at the gardens before we knew it. 

Upon arrival at the gardens, we were given instructions about our return trip back into town. Unlike the cruise ship tours, we were not tied to any specific return time line.  However, it was our responsibility to get on a return bus in a timely manner to get back to the ship. The buses were also on a first come first serve basis.  The sky was a little cloudy on the day we went and we kept our fingers crossed that the rain would not disrupt our tour.  Thankfully, there were stands that gave us access to free umbrellas for our use while at the gardens.  We thought that was a nice touch. 

 

Although we were eager to start our visit to the gardens, we needed to stop and refuel our tummies.  We found a nice little coffee shop and ordered a sandwich (which we split), two bags of chips and a soda; the total was around $21.00 CAD.  We thought the price was very reasonable given the size of the sandwich and the rest of the meal.

After lunch, we wandered through the various gardens for a couple of hours.  Unfortunately, our time in the gardens was cut short as the weather was beginning to change and we knew that we had to catch the next bus back into town.  We were happy that we came and will return when the next opportunity arises.

[Italy52]

Here are a few pictures of the Butchart Gardens.

 

[Italy52]

[Italy52]

[Italy52]

Final thoughts:  Alaska is an amazing place and it will always have a special place in our hearts.  As many times as we have visited Alaska we can honestly say that each trip has been different and each trip has given us special memories that we will always cherish.  We are not as young as we used to be when we first began our journeys to Alaska.  As long as we are able, we shall return.

 

 

 

 

 

[Coral]

Great bubble feeding pictures!!!! Love all of your pics! Sorry about the weather in Victoria 😞 

[Italy52]

52 minutes ago, Coral said:

Great bubble feeding pictures!!!! Love all of your pics! Sorry about the weather in Victoria 😞 

Thanks for the comments, I appreciate it. It is so hard to pick out a few pictures to share when there are so many to choose from --- don't want to bore people.  As for Victoria, our shortened time at the gardens gave us a reason to return at a future date.  We definitely will be back at some point. 

[Coral]

15 minutes ago, Italy52 said:

Thanks for the comments, I appreciate it. It is so hard to pick out a few pictures to share when there are so many to choose from --- don't want to bore people.  As for Victoria, our shortened time at the gardens gave us a reason to return at a future date.  We definitely will be back at some point. 

Your pics are amazing. I don't think anyone is bored!

 

The gardens are gorgeous. I always try to go when in Victoria. I would like to go during different seasons such as fall or winter. I have seen some pics in October and it was stunning with the fall colors.

 

I was sort of bored on sea days on the ship. How about yourself? There just seemed to be too many sea days for me. How was the naturalist?

Edited August 10, 2023 by Coral

[High C's]

Wonderful review and fabulous pictures!  Huge thank you for taking the time to do this 🙂

[Italy52]

12 hours ago, High C's said:

Wonderful review and fabulous pictures!  Huge thank you for taking the time to do this 🙂

Thank you for your comments, I appreciate it.  Have a great time on your upcoming cruise. 

[Italy52]

On 8/9/2023 at 5:42 PM, Coral said:

Your pics are amazing. I don't think anyone is bored!

 

The gardens are gorgeous. I always try to go when in Victoria. I would like to go during different seasons such as fall or winter. I have seen some pics in October and it was stunning with the fall colors.

 

I was sort of bored on sea days on the ship. How about yourself? There just seemed to be too many sea days for me. How was the naturalist?

Thanks Coral for the response, I appreciate it.  I'm sorry for the late response, we had a medical emergency with a pet. 

 

The gardens are indeed gorgeous.  When we were there, there were lots of caretakers working on the gardens.  I am sure that they are kept quite busy with the seasonal changes.  Too bad we don't live close enough to enjoy all the beauty the gardens have to offer.  If we lived nearby, I am sure we would probably be season pass holders.

 

Sea days are hard for us to handle as well.  However, this time, we managed to just relax as much as we could on our balcony and just enjoy the experience.  Decent weather and a nice, large warm blanket that was supplied by our cabin steward really did the trick. 

 

We found the Crown to be lacking in activities that would peak our interest.  The ship seemed crowded and not a lot of places to sit.  I don't know about your cruise, but we found quite a few people asleep on the couches and in the chairs.  Lots of crowding near the photo gallery and the rather small plaza area.  Another problem that we ran into was the walking deck on the Promenade.  For some reason, every time we tried to take a walk, we ran into roped off areas so we would have to turn around instead of completing the full circuit.  We realize that ongoing maintenance goes hand-in-hand while on a ship so we just adapted.

 

As for naturalists/enrichment activities, there were some talks and films but we did not go to them.  Because we have seen the presentations in the past, we passed on them.  Here is a list that I took from the Princess Events Listing:  Naturalist:  North to Alaska, Enrichment:  Alaska, What is Was Then and its Importance now, Enrichment:  Lighter Side of Alaska and Steve Hites:  "North to Alaska" show.  There were Puppies in the Piazza for about 45 minutes and I don't recall seeing anything about Libby Ridddles. 

 

One more thing, I don't know if your cruise had any service dogs on it.  On ours, we saw at least 3 of them.  On the Princess Event Listing there was an attention box that stated the following:  "Please be aware that we have working service dogs onboard this sailing.  Service dogs are specially trained to mitigate a disability.  Please do not pet, feed, or play with working dogs."  Good job Princess.

 

 

 

[Coral]

@Italy52I hope the fur-child is doing better! I completely understand!

 

Our cruise did not feel crowded though we only had 2400 passengers. I have to say - I sailed this same ship to Canada NE several years ago and I thought it was the most crowded ship ever and swore I would never get on it again! I have actually stayed away from this class of ship until recently and both sailings I have booked were not full (thankfully).  I am hesitant to get on it when full. I know the sailing after ours was full.

 

Yes - the promenade was blocked off on our sailing also.

 

We had the absolute best naturalist ever. She got off our ship and went home and came back and joined Cunard. I loved her talks (Rachel Cartwright). I think she is permanent on Cunard. The others were just ok. We did have Libby Riddles in the Theatre (location surprised me and it was full). The evening before we had the most recent winner of the Iditarod but I some how missed that entirely.

 

We did not have any service dogs on our sailing. Though - I have been on probably 30-40 cruises with 2 specific service dogs and had to share a cabin with them (and sometimes a bed). My Mom had 2 Seeing Eye dogs (not at the same time) and both of her dogs were well traveled and probably both earned Elite status with Princess. Both of her dogs loved Alaska - they liked the cooler weather and seemed to enjoy the excursions and parks. That is great that Princess put that in their announcements. That itinerary is a great one for service dogs as Canada and US are easy paperwork wise. 

[Italy52]

1 hour ago, Coral said:

@Italy52I hope the fur-child is doing better! I completely understand!

 

Our cruise did not feel crowded though we only had 2400 passengers. I have to say - I sailed this same ship to Canada NE several years ago and I thought it was the most crowded ship ever and swore I would never get on it again! I have actually stayed away from this class of ship until recently and both sailings I have booked were not full (thankfully).  I am hesitant to get on it when full. I know the sailing after ours was full.

 

Yes - the promenade was blocked off on our sailing also.

 

We had the absolute best naturalist ever. She got off our ship and went home and came back and joined Cunard. I loved her talks (Rachel Cartwright). I think she is permanent on Cunard. The others were just ok. We did have Libby Riddles in the Theatre (location surprised me and it was full). The evening before we had the most recent winner of the Iditarod but I some how missed that entirely.

 

We did not have any service dogs on our sailing. Though - I have been on probably 30-40 cruises with 2 specific service dogs and had to share a cabin with them (and sometimes a bed). My Mom had 2 Seeing Eye dogs (not at the same time) and both of her dogs were well traveled and probably both earned Elite status with Princess. Both of her dogs loved Alaska - they liked the cooler weather and seemed to enjoy the excursions and parks. That is great that Princess put that in their announcements. That itinerary is a great one for service dogs as Canada and US are easy paperwork wise. 

Coral, thanks for your understanding about our fur-grandbaby.  Unfortunately, we found out that he has to have his gallbladder removed and he has a tumor on his spleen.  He is also dealing with high blood pressure.  Once his blood pressure is under control, the vet team will go in and remove his gallbladder and then take out the tumor with the hopes that it is not cancer.  We have a few challenging weeks ahead.  The little guy is near and dear to my heart; it is heart breaking.

 

With regard to the class of ship, I am with you.  Our ship was completely full.  The ONLY reason we went on the Crown was because of the itinerary.  We made it work, but it did have its drawbacks. 

 

We've seen Libby Riddles a couple of times and have enjoyed her talks.  I will have to remember Rachel Cartwright's name for future cruises.  Who knows, perhaps our paths will cross on one of our future Alaska cruises and we will be able to listen to her presentation.

[Coral]

Wishing your fur child the best!

[Mell76]

We were on this sailing.  It was our first time to Alaska and will definitely not be our last!  We stayed away from the buffet;  we found it very small and pretty much the same offerings everyday.  We found the food overall to be just ok, but that's us.  The bar tenders at the Good Spirits Bar were fabulous.  We did see some of the shows and they were fantastic!  The crew was very attentive and were always able to answer questions or assist when needed and our room steward was outstanding!  I loved this itinerary as the 3 sea days were great for some relaxation.  The activities overall we found similar to most cruise lines; trivia, karaoke, music etc.  I miss my balcony and just sitting out there watching the glorious scenery pass by.  

[MississippiMom]

This is all such great information!  I definitely appreciate it, @Italy52, as we are at the very beginning of researching Alaska as a cruising destination.

[sailorcrew]

@Italy52  I would like to ask your opinion on going to Alaska mid-May to early June.  As a first trip should we try and get to Glacier Bay - that would have us either NB/SB.  You are so well travelled in Alaska would appreciate your input

[Italy52]

On 8/16/2023 at 5:40 PM, MississippiMom said:

This is all such great information!  I definitely appreciate it, @Italy52, as we are at the very beginning of researching Alaska as a cruising destination.

Sorry for the late response, I just returned from Alaska today.  Thank you for your response, I appreciate it.  Have fun researching Alaska --- so much to see --- something for everyone's taste.

[Italy52]

On 8/23/2023 at 11:28 AM, sailorcrew said:

@Italy52  I would like to ask your opinion on going to Alaska mid-May to early June.  As a first trip should we try and get to Glacier Bay - that would have us either NB/SB.  You are so well travelled in Alaska would appreciate your input

Sorry for the late response.  As I mentioned above, I just returned from Alaska today and did not have Internet during our visit (we try to unplug as much as we can).  With regard to mid-May to early June, we have sailed during that time but it has been a few years as our vacation schedule did not allow us to do so due to work constraints.  However, we are now free to cruise whatever month we want and we are looking forward to returning to Alaska during the May, mid-May and June time frames.  What we especially like about cruising during mid-May is that there is still snow on the mountains.  Cruising through Glacier Bay with the snow still around is quite beautiful to see --- at least we think so. 

 

The one thing we have learned over our years of traveling to Alaska is that you really have to be prepared for all types of weather. One year May might be beautiful with no rain and the next year you might have rain.  We go with no weather expectations, pack in layers and no matter what, we make the best of whatever the weather gives us.  This past week we were told that we would have nothing but rain.  You know what, we didn't have any.  I am sure other Cruise Critic members can give you their experience as well.  This board is a wealth of information.  Another fun thing to do is look at YouTube videos of cruises during your time frame and see what other cruisers have encountered during the time you are considering.  Videos are also a great way to get acquainted with shore excursions and see what others have experienced.

 

Have a fun time planning your adventure to Alaska.