First Time Princess & Alaska Cruiser - Lots of ????

[MistyRo76]

Hello fellow cruisers! 

 

I have started doing research on a potential family cruise to Alaska. I am looking at 2025 since this would be a bigger trip for us. I want to have plenty of time to research, plan, budget, etc. I have done some initial research on the Alaska Port of Call board here on CC and from that it sounds like Princess is the best option for our cruiseline for this trip. I am an experienced cruiser.....when it comes to Carnival and the Caribbean! So this is out of my element a bit! The initial feedback I got also pointed me in the direction of considering a one-way cruise going Vancouver to Whittier (or the reverse). Right now I am looking closely at the early June sailings on the Caribbean Princess with stops in Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway and also cruising thru Glacier Bay and College Fjord. 

 

This cruise would be myself, my husband and our (then) almost 11 year old daughter. My in-laws may join as well. And once we are booked, I always through it out to the rest of my family and cruising friends and welcome anyone else to join us. So who knows what this could grow into! 🙂

 

My initial questions are this (and I'll probably have a lot more as we get further into the planning): 

 

We usually like to book balconies anyway, but would for sure want one for an Alaska cruise. Is there one side of the ship vs. the other that would be more beneficial for seeing the sights on a Northward one-way cruise? I would assume starboard side (right if your facing forward on the ship). Is that correct? Or would we benefit more by booking an aft balcony? 

 

How do the Princess Plus/Premier packages work as it relates to children booked as the 3rd guest in the cabin? Hubby isn't a drinker and our days in port are longer ones. So not sure if the value of the package is there for the two of us or not. 

 

I assume Princess has the option to book airfare through them like other cruiselines offer. How does this work and is there any benefit to using this service? 

 

Anything else I should know as I get started with my research?? 

 

Thanks! 

 

 

 

 

[konatyme]

Depending on the time of year you cruise, you may have an opportunity to see the Northern Lights. When we went on the Inside Passage cruise in late August several years ago, we found out that we could ask Guest Services to call us if and when the Northern Lights appeared. (We had an inside cabin.) They called about 2:30 AM the next day, we found a fairly dark spot on the ship, and watched the lights as we heard whales blowing around us. It was awesome!

[MistyRo76]

23 minutes ago, konatyme said:

Depending on the time of year you cruise, you may have an opportunity to see the Northern Lights. When we went on the Inside Passage cruise in late August several years ago, we found out that we could ask Guest Services to call us if and when the Northern Lights appeared. (We had an inside cabin.) They called about 2:30 AM the next day, we found a fairly dark spot on the ship, and watched the lights as we heard whales blowing around us. It was awesome!

That would be amazing! We will probably be looking to go in early June, but I'll have to keep that in mind just in case we change dates. 

[skynight]

Some information.

Balconies & cabins. Really no difference, port or starboard. In the scenic parts of the cruise it is best to be on the upper decks where you can walk around and get larger vistas. On the Caribbean Princess port and starboard balcony category cabins on deck 10, Caribe Deck, are 9ft x 9ft with 5ft of cover and 4ft uncovered. On other decks they are 5ftD X 9ftW. Balcony cat cabins at the aft of the ship, facing the wake, have various sized balconies. Look at the deck plans. All balcony category cabins have the same sized interiors. There is one desk chair and a fridge. Cabins with 3 berths have two lower berths and an upper berth that lowers from the ceiling. You can find these on the Princess.com deck plans by selecting the number of passengers. The word 'Premium' only refers to location on the ship, nothing else is different. 

Mini suites are larger. Almost all are on deck 9 with 9ft x 6ft uncovered balconies. There are around a dozen all the way aft on deck 8 with covered balconies. Mini suites have a 3 seat sofa that converts into a bed. Bathroom is a little larger with a tub/shower. Reserve mini suites included some extra benefits the most important of which is walk in anytime Reserve Class dining.

You can also locate connecting cabins to book or avoid on the Princess.com deck plans by check that box.

Airfare.

You can book yourself on line using EZ Air. It really is easy to use.  To see how it works go to the Princess.com website. Select any 2024 cruise like the one you are planning. You will see a flight quote tab. Flexible fares are the way to go. They are usually less than non-flexible, can be changed up to 45 days before sailing, and are payable at the time of final payment.

Plus fare. The first two in the cabin must take the plus fare. It is optional for the 3rd person. Each adult person with the plus fare will receive unlimited wifi internet, daily gratuities which for a balcony cat cabin are $16/pp/day, mini suite, $17/pp/day, unlimited non alcoholic beverages with a few exceptions, and up to 15 alcoholic beverages per day menu priced $15 or under. Probably 90% of all alcoholic beverages are under $15. The breakeven point is between 2 and 3 alcoholic beverages per day.

[Torfamm]

The itinerary you mentioned would be one I’d suggest, but I prefer going north to south to get the longer flight over with at the beginning of the trip. It also gives you the option of a land tour first which I highly recommend!

 

One thing to know is that the narration at a Glacier Bay is usually given from the port sid perspective so if you are on the starboard side in your balcony you won’t see what is being described until the ship rotates (it always turns 360 degrees so everyone gets the view). Obviously it’s not a problem and most people like to be on deck. 
 

The view in the inside passage is on both sides.

 

The third person in a cabin doesn’t have to have the Plus package. The math breaks down to $15 per day for internet and $16 for crew appreciation. That leaves $29 of the cost for beverages. That about $25 plus the automatic 18% gratuity.

For me, the bare minimum on the busiest port day would be a cappuccino in the morning at about $5, a bottle of water to bring on an excursion at about $3, Pellegrino at dinner $4 and a couple of glasses of wine for $30 so I save a minimum of $13 per day. You’ll have to do your own math based on your routine. If your husband drinks coffee, juices, bottled water, or soda, you might still come out ahead with the package.

[Crystabel]

We always book an aft cabin, as the views from the balcony are better. I don’t know if any aft cabins can accommodate three people, but as @skynight said, you need to check the deck plans on the Princess web site. When in Glacier Bay, the captain will stop the ship and then after a few minutes, he will rotate it, so the other side of the ship has a view of the glacier. 
 

We have booked EZair through Princess a couple of times and had no problems, but if you read these boards, you’ll see that many have encountered problems with either cancelled flights or time changes. The luck of the draw, I guess. 
 

Have fun planning, and enjoy your cruise. 

[JimmyVWine]

2 hours ago, MistyRo76 said:

The initial feedback I got also pointed me in the direction of considering a one-way cruise going Vancouver to Whittier (or the reverse).

 

This one is purely subjective and may depend on what travel arrangements you can work out in terms of flying into and out of ANC.   That said, my preference is to sail Northbound, as each day brings you deeper and deeper into Alaska and the wilderness.  Purely a psychological thing, but I prefer the cruise to take me further and further away from civilization rather than having each day bring me closer and closer to Vancouver.  The Northbound itinerary also puts your Glacier Bay day of cruising toward the end as something to look forward to instead of having it hit you up front and then be over.  Again, this is purely my own psychological (psychotic?) preference.

 

2 hours ago, MistyRo76 said:

We usually like to book balconies anyway, but would for sure want one for an Alaska cruise. Is there one side of the ship vs. the other that would be more beneficial for seeing the sights on a Northward one-way cruise?

 

This one is not as subjective.  Unlike most cruises where the ship travels in several directions, often opposite of one another (such as a round trip from/to Fort Lauderdale in the Caribbean), this cruise goes all in one direction.  So if you travel Northbound, east and the rising sun will always be on the starboard (right) side and west, and the setting sun will always be on the port side (left). Are you a sunrise person or a sunset person?  Also, along the Inland Passage there will be land on both sides of you, so the scenery will be similar. And that land will be mountainous.  As a result, in the morning, it will take a while for the sun to creep over the mountains to the east, so the starboard side is often case in shadows much longer than the port side which can receive the warming glow of the sun while the other side still looks a bit gray.  Here is an example of what I am talking about.  This photo was taken in the early morning off of a west-facing balcony.  The sunshine was bathing the middle and tops of western mountains with light.  If you were facing east, everything would be in the shadows as seen in the bottom of the frame of the photo. 

 

 

This next picture was taken facing north from the bow.  You can see how to the left (west) there is light from the rising sun, and to the right (east) there are shadows.

 

 

This is going to repeat pretty much every day, except when the clouds and fog get in the way, which can be frequent and tends to level the playing field.  So in choosing which side of the ship you want to be on, first choose which direction you will sail, north or south, and then decide if you want to see morning sunshine on the mountains, (choose to face west) or prefer the darkness of the morning shadows, (choose to face east).  But don't stress it.  By 10:00 a.m. any advantage that one side has over the other will be gone and you are going to be out of your cabin, either up on deck or off the ship for most of the day. 

 

Edited October 26, 2023 by JimmyVWine

[cruisequeen4ever]

You’ve clearly done good research because yes, Princess is the best for Alaska, and yes, the one-way cruise is the best!
 

You are correct that for a northbound cruise, the starboard side would give you the land view. An aft view would be the very best, especially when sailing out of Glacier Bay. I have sat on the aft deck on several Alaska cruises while sailing out of Glacier Bay, and it is absolutely magnificent. It allows for much longer viewing opportunities, and you don’t miss out on one side because you get to see both sides.
 

Early June is a good time to go. I live in Alaska, and our weather is generally pretty good at that time of year, though you do need to plan for everything from sunny and warm to windy and rainy and cold. Layers are key.

 

Yes, Princess offers EZ-Air, and it’s fantastic. Always choose the “Flexible” option. You can lock in a rate that you like and not have to pay for it until final payment. That means that if a better rate comes along, or if you change your mind and want to book directly through the airline, you can always cancel the airfare prior to final payment. Technically, you can cancel it up to 45 days before departure, but I just always told myself final payment date is the final time to be safe. The other wonderful thing about this airfare is that if you are going to be late for the cruise or miss the cruise, Princess can reroute you at their cost. The same goes for the end of the cruise. If there were to be a delay, they would change everything for you.

 

Happy planning!

[Potstech]

Also be sure to arrive the day before your cruise at least. This way you have some leeway in case something happens.  Also try not to book hotels thru Princess as they will charge each passenger the price of the room instead of one rate for all occupants.  Sounds like you are doing good research and getting good info from others.

[Micahs Grandad]

To me it does not matter where the cabin is.

 

Best to go up on deck and go back and forth as scenery changes.