Alaska Cruisetour Selection

[SWACruising]

Looking for guidance for booking a 25 year anniversary cruise for frequent RCCL cruiser back on Princess for the first time in over 20 years. Our first cruise was on the original Sun Princess in the late 90s and for whatever reason never cruised Princess again even though we had a fabulous experience. Going back to Alaska and Princess land/cruise combinations seemed like a no brainer.

 

• 2025 Cruise, ideally May
• Land first followed by cruise
• Flying from the midwest
• Been to Alaska before but never in the national parks
• 3-5 day pre cruise seems like enough
• My wife and I are in our 50s

 

Room

Plan to book a full suite. there doesn't seem to be much price difference between them. Aft facing preferred and wrap around if available would be ideal for Alaska. Do suites have any dining or lounge benefits? We usually book specialty restaurants if there is not a dedicated suite restaurant. Really enjoy a smaller, more intimate  atmosphere. RCCL has a suite lounge for coffee and light snacks/drinks throughout the day. Couldn't tell if Princess has anything similar.

 

Ships

• Caribbean Princess
• Coral Princess
• Saphire Princess

I have no knowledge on any of these ships and favorite ships can be subjective. Most of our time on cruises is spent around quiet, peaceful hanging out. Like good food, shows and intimate bars.

 

Tour Options

• Connoisseur Escorted

This is our preferred option as it seems like a turnkey vacation where everything is arranged for you. Value for the meals and tours included appears to be worthwhile.

• Denali Explorer
• Off the Beaten Path
• National Parks

 

Start Location

• Anchorage (preferred due to the availability of multiple nonstop flights from ORD)
• Fairbanks

 

Lodges

• Denali Wilderness Lodge
• Mt' McKinley Wilderness Lodge
• Copper River Wilderness Lodge
• Kenai Wilderness Lodge

Most seem to do the first two lodges and longer or Fairbanks starts may include the other two.

 

Any thoughts, suggestions or guidance are appreciated. We have only done 1 Alaska cruise previously and that was roundtrip Seattle. Want national parks and Glacier Bay on this one. Also love the train passage through Alaska which I believe is part of all the tours. Thanks for any help from my Princess experts.

[Worldtraveler 4727]

This may help....

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2560841-trip-review-connoisseur-land-amp-sea-rb8-june-19-july-4-2018/

[WisCruiser2]

I know others will chime in with their experiences and preferences, so I'll start off with mine. We did our first Alaska cruisetour in 2002, on the old Sun Princess. Started in Fairbanks (overnight), took the train in the morning to the Denali Lodge for one night, train in the afternoon to Talkeetna and the McKinley Lodge for two nights, then to the ship for the southbound itinerary. Our second time was in 2018 on the Coral Princess (my recommendation) and we did the Beyond the Beaten Path land tour, which started in Anchorage with an overnight there. There were two long bus days, but lots of beautiful scenery, and we chose this one especially for the Copper River Lodge, which we loved! We only did the train on this one from Denali to Talkeetna.

 

The first time we went in mid-August and the second one was late May-early June. I agree with your preference to do the land portion first. We did not do "meals included" on the land tour, that way we were not locked in to specific meals, and in Fairbanks (2-night stay) had dinner at two local restaurants.

 

Whatever you choose, I hope you have a wonderful time! 

Edited August 24, 2023 by WisCruiser2

[roadster08]

Do the connoisseur. You will appreciate having the concierge do all the rescheduling when things don't go according to plan. Alaska is big, but service and options are quite limited. When things go awry, everyone tends to want the same rescheduling option. The concierge knows how to navigate the rescheduling process while you continue to enjoy you vacation.

[SWACruising]

1 hour ago, WisCruiser2 said:

Our second time was in 2018 on the Coral Princess (my recommendation) and we did the Beyond the Beaten Path land tour, which started in Anchorage with an overnight there.

Looks like the Coral Princess is their smallest ship (not a bad thing for us). Anything specific about the ship compared to the other two?

[voljeep]

book at least 2 days at each lodge - otherwise you're just unpacking, dining, sleeping, re-packing

[WisCruiser2]

3 hours ago, SWACruising said:

Looks like the Coral Princess is their smallest ship (not a bad thing for us). Anything specific about the ship compared to the other two?

While we have been on and enjoy the Caribbean and that class ship, as well as the Royal class ones, I did like the smaller, more intimate feeling of the Coral. There are plenty of open deck areas for glacier and scenery viewing. It had about the same number of passengers as the old Sun Princess, I think. I haven't been on the Sapphire, but have seen good reviews about it. If you haven't yet read any blogs by Pescado Amarillo (pescadoamarillo.blogspot.com), she just completed a back to back Alaskan cruise on the Sapphire - great reading!

[SWACruising]

32 minutes ago, WisCruiser2 said:

While we have been on and enjoy the Caribbean and that class ship, as well as the Royal class ones, I did like the smaller, more intimate feeling of the Coral. There are plenty of open deck areas for glacier and scenery viewing. It had about the same number of passengers as the old Sun Princess, I think. I haven't been on the Sapphire, but have seen good reviews about it. If you haven't yet read any blogs by Pescado Amarillo (pescadoamarillo.blogspot.com), she just completed a back to back Alaskan cruise on the Sapphire - great reading!

Thanks, I'll look her up

[Torfamm]

For me, any ship that is small enough for the full inside passage would work, but I would probably focus on itinerary after that. Glacier Bay would be a must and Hubbard Glacier a priority for me.
 

I definitely agree that land first is best. Starting in Fairbanks and heading south was the option that seemed to give us the best chance to see all we wanted to. Our priority on land was Denali so McKinley and Denali lodges were musts. I picked a Princess Lodges rail tour that was completely separate from my cruise and loved it. There was no bus travel nor were there lots of organized group excursions or planned meals. We could pick the excursions we wanted at each lodge or book something on our own. To me it was the best of all worlds - hotels, train tickets and transfers arranged, leave luggage outside your door each departure morning and find it in your room at the next destination but spend each day as you wish. To me, traveling every leg by train was way better than doing half by bus on a land tour.
 

https://www.princesslodges.com/alaska-rail-tours/learn/

 

I chose this unescorted 6 night tour from Fairbanks to Anchorage and would highly recommend it. 

https://www.princesslodges.com/alaska-tours/itinerary-3ts/?from_search_query=dG91clR5cGU9ZXhwbG9yZXImc2VhcmNoT25seT0w#3TS

[SWACruising]

Thanks, the princesslodges is a site I didn't even know existed. I'm learning. Did you cruise after the unescorted 6 night tour?

[roadster08]

I don't want to appear like I am disagreeing with the majority but I want to offer a different point of view.

 

On our 13 day Alaskan cruisetour in June we did cruise first and land second, which I would do again. 

 

We had 3 port days in a row on the cruise and did active excursions in each -- ziplining, glacier dogsledding, river rafting. The land portion was a chill time for just relaxing, enjoying leisurely hikes, amazing views  etc. We didn't add land excursions beyond what was included because we were only going to do those if we needed to replace a missed cruise excursion. Fortunately, those all went as planned, so no need to repeat anything at the lodges.

 

Not saying those who prefer land first are wrong, just that cruise first worked well at least for us. 

[wallyj]

@SWACruising, there was a great, imo, live from Majestic from June of this year, where they did the cruise first but also land tour after and had great pictures and recommendations regarding food, activities and the lodges. I do not know how to copy the link, but search for thread title ‘its going to be majestic’ by @Stealthdog. 
 

Going in May, animals are not as active and Salmon will not be running yet. NB , with Princess you usually get Glacier Bay and College Fiord, SB usually includes Glacier Bay and Hubbard Glacier.

 

The ships you are considering are smaller and do not have a ‘concierge lounge’ which are on the Princess Royal Class ships. Booking a full suite will give you access to ‘suite’ breakfast usually held in the morning in one of the specialty dining venues, which gives you made to order ‘attentive’ waiter service. Full suite will also entitle you to ‘reserve class’ dining in the assigned dining room where a section is specifically only for reserve class, has different table cloth and usually ‘orchid’ flowers instead of ‘princess lily’ flowers on the table. See suite benefits on the Princess website. 
 

Unless you have a plus or premier pkg, if you choose Sapphire, this is the only ship of your choices, with Casual dining venue ‘Alfredo’s’ that would have a charge. Caribbean Princess may be scheduled to have Planks BBQ and Steamers Seafood reactivated by 2025.

Edited August 25, 2023 by wallyj

[Torfamm]

13 hours ago, SWACruising said:

Thanks, the princesslodges is a site I didn't even know existed. I'm learning. Did you cruise after the unescorted 6 night tour?

Yes. We spent a couple of nights in Anchorage then cruised to Vancouver out of Whittier. In Anchorage, we did a day tour to hike at the Matanuska glacier and then a transfer from Anchorage to Whittier that included a tour. We booked both of those with https://www.salmonberrytours.com/  and were very happy with them

[Torfamm]

9 hours ago, wallyj said:

 

Unless you have a plus or premier pkg, if you choose Sapphire, this is the only ship of your choices, with Casual dining venue ‘Alfredo’s’ that would have a charge. Caribbean Princess may be scheduled to have Planks BBQ and Steamers Seafood reactivated by 2025.

Steamers and Planks are currently open on alternate evenings on the Caribbean Princess

Edited August 25, 2023 by Torfamm

[SWACruising]

10 hours ago, wallyj said:

Going in May, animals are not as active and Salmon will not be running yet. NB , with Princess you usually get Glacier Bay and College Fiord, SB usually includes Glacier Bay and Hubbard Glacier.

Also considering late August which might be better for both animals and salmon. Last time up there we cruised in September and the weather was perfect but I know it can be a crap shoot, 

[SWACruising]

10 hours ago, wallyj said:

@SWACruising, there was a great, imo, live from Majestic from June of this year, where they did the cruise first but also land tour after and had great pictures and recommendations regarding food, activities and the lodges. I do not know how to copy the link, but search for thread title ‘its going to be majestic’ by @Stealthdog. 
 

Found the thread. Got some reading to do. Really appreciate all the knowledge this group brings.

[MudderBear]

3 hours ago, SWACruising said:

Also considering late August which might be better for both animals and salmon. Last time up there we cruised in September and the weather was perfect but I know it can be a crap shoot, 

I went in May last year, and have scheduled May again in 2025.  However, I was very disappointed in the lack of animal sightings in May.  Am reluctant to book late August or September as I want to see SNOW.  Am I missing something?  I guess I can still change, although I LOVE the cabin I booked on Sapphire for May 25.  Maybe if a spectacular sale comes along and I can book a suite......... But anyway, will I still see snow in August?  We moved from the North East to the South ten years ago and I loved seeing snow......and knowing I'd never have to shovel it again!

[SWACruising]

2 hours ago, MudderBear said:

I went in May last year, and have scheduled May again in 2025.  However, I was very disappointed in the lack of animal sightings in May.  Am reluctant to book late August or September as I want to see SNOW.  Am I missing something?  I guess I can still change, although I LOVE the cabin I booked on Sapphire for May 25.  Maybe if a spectacular sale comes along and I can book a suite......... But anyway, will I still see snow in August?  We moved from the North East to the South ten years ago and I loved seeing snow......and knowing I'd never have to shovel it again!

My understanding is unless you are very early of very late in the season it will be unlikely to see snow other than up on the mountains. Lots of rain and but less chance of snow between June or August. 

 

The best animal sightings for us were the whales. Could watch that all day.