Saphire Princess VS NCL For Alaska

[SkeeterPilot]

We are in the process of planning our next Alaska Cruise.  We have previously sailed to Alaska 4 times all on NCL and I am considering the Saphire Princess this time.  One of the things that we like about both the NCL Encore and Jewell is the inside areas at the front of the ship for glacier viewing.  Does the Saphire have an area like this?  If anyone has sailed to Alaska on Princess and NCL I would love to hear your opinion/expierence comparing the two.  Also one of our favorite parts of the One Way Alaska cruises is the train ride between the port and the Airport.  Does Princess offer this as well???

[Lady Arwen]

There are some very recent threads regarding Sapphire Princess.  I would suggest you read these to help with your decision.  Some are favourable and some not so much.  Good luck.

[Ken the cruiser]

We were on the Sapphire Princess for 30 days on an Antarctica/SA cruise and are currently finishing up a 22-day Alaska cruise on the Grand Princess (see Live From threads below), and we would opt for the Grand again over the Sapphire for one reason if we were going on an Alaska cruise.
 
The Grand has the more wide open Vista Lounge where they hold the Comedy Lounge every night as well as a variety of Alaska-based lectures while the Sapphire Princess along with the other Grand-class ships have the smaller Club Fusion. BTW this photo only depicts 2/3 of the size of the Vista Lounge.

 

 

 
As far as comparing Alaska cruises on NCL versus PCL, does NCL even offer professional lectures on their cruises? Just something to think about if you wanted to go to some lectures while on your cruise to learn about the various aspects of this awesome state!

[karatemom2]

We have cruised in Alaska with both Princess and NCL, and while I enjoyed our NCL cruises, I do prefer Princess for Alaska and the Sapphire is one of my favorite Princess ships. It does not offer the same enclosed observation lounge that you find on the NCL ships, but there are ample areas for optimal glacier viewing including the enclosed pool area if you prefer a more sheltered environment. I like to be out on the open deck or on my balcony for glacier days myself to get the best views and really take in the environment.

 

I do prefer Princess for a few reasons in Alaska - first is that the port times are generally better with Princess than NCL which tends to offer shorter port hours, and also docks at Ward Cove in Ketchikan, which is very inconvenient and really reduces your actual usable port time there. Also, Princess just does a better job with the Alaska naturalist program and offers great speakers, including Libby Riddles. And who doesn't love puppies in the Piazza?

 

No matter what, you will have a good experience with either as Alaska, in my estimation, is one of the most beautiful places on earth, but I would always give the edge to Princess and the Sapphire is a beautiful ship. 

[Rick&Jeannie]

We have sailed Alaska 3 times now; twice with Princess and the first was Celebrity.  While I am of the opinion that almost *any* cruise to Alaska is good, I lean a bit more toward Princess now due to the fact that Princess has such a rich history in doing Alaska cruises.  They are basically the defacto standard these days.  I don't recall if Celebrity had anything similar to the onboard naturalist...they may have but it just did not stick in my mind, so maybe they don't do it.  It really adds to the experience.

[SkeeterPilot]

Thank you for the input.  Does Princess offer the train that goes from the port directly to the Anchorage Airport?

[Ken the cruiser]

32 minutes ago, SkeeterPilot said:

Thank you for the input.  Does Princess offer the train that goes from the port directly to the Anchorage Airport?

If you go to www.princess.com/excursions, then select Alaska and Anchorage (Whittier), you’ll find a list of all the excursions they offer, to include airport transfers from Whittier to Anchorage - or - you can just click on this link.

 
https://www.princess.com/ports-excursions/anchorage-whittier-alaska-excursions

 

Edited May 21 by Ken the cruiser

[Geezer Jim]

We've done Alaska on Princess and NCL.  The inside viewing areas on NCL are better, they're forward and have a 270 degree view.  The Princess ships we've been on don't have an inside forward viewing area, the gym and the sanctuary are forward.  That said, Princess is our choice.  The forward decks are available for viewing and the promenade deck is great as well.  Princess has much better berths in Juneau, and Ketchikan.

[MsSoCalCruiser]

Do they both go to glacier bay?

[karatemom2]

27 minutes ago, MsSoCalCruiser said:

Do they both go to glacier bay?

 

Yes, both Princess and NCL cruises go to Glacier Bay.

[MsSoCalCruiser]

The Sapphire Princess was the ship that hooked me on cruising with Princess. That said, she first started sailing in 2004 and lately I have read both positive and negative reviews.
 

As you know, the NCL Encore is around four years old. I sailed on the NCL Bliss when she was new and I really liked the ship, I love that the smoking area in the casino was enclosed. The inside forward area definitely was a plus.
 

I think I would go with what you know you like, the NCL Encore. 
 

ETA: The Choir of Man on the Encore has really good reviews. Have you seen that yet?

Edited May 22 by MsSoCalCruiser

[karatemom2]

36 minutes ago, MsSoCalCruiser said:

The Sapphire Princess was the ship that hooked me on cruising with Princess. That said, she first started sailing in 2004 and lately I have read both positive and negative reviews.
 

As you know, the NCL Encore is around four years old. I sailed on the NCL Bliss when she was new and I really liked the ship, I love that the smoking area in the casino was enclosed. The inside forward area definitely was a plus.
 

I think I would go with what you know you like, the NCL Encore. 
 

ETA: The Choir of Man on the Encore has really good reviews. Have you seen that yet?

 

The Choir of Man is amazing! Honestly, I think I would rank it as the best show I have seen on any cruise.

 

We love Princess, but we enjoy NCL as well and one place where NCL definitely outshines Princess is in its entertainment.

[Torfamm]

I like the Sapphire more than the newer Princess ships, especially for Alaska since Royal class ships are too large for the inside passage. I’m not sure what NCL does.

[MsSoCalCruiser]

41 minutes ago, karatemom2 said:

 

The Choir of Man is amazing! Honestly, I think I would rank it as the best show I have seen on any cruise.

 

We love Princess, but we enjoy NCL as well and one place where NCL definitely outshines Princess is in its entertainment.

I’ve only been on one NCL cruise and that was on the NCL Bliss. We saw the Jersey Boys and it was fabulous! The entertainment on NCL is top notch! 

[karatemom2]

7 minutes ago, MsSoCalCruiser said:

I’ve only been on one NCL cruise and that was on the NCL Bliss. We saw the Jersey Boys and it was fabulous! The entertainment on NCL is top notch! 

 

Six was spectacular as well. Really Broadway quality shows. I wish Princess would take note and do something similar.

[Coral]

I have sailed the Sapphire more than any other ship and like it.

 

I can say the train ride from Anchorage to Whittier is NOT as scenic as the train ride from Anchorage to Seward. I recommend going down early and spending some time in Seward, going back to Anchorage and then going to Whittier to get on the ship.

 

Seward has some great boat rides. Whittier has 1 great boat ride that you can do the day of the cruise if you get to Whittier early enough.

 

Princess usually has great speakers onboard (and other Alaska activities).

[mtnesterz]

6 hours ago, Geezer Jim said:

That said, Princess is our choice...

I understand your comment about the views on NCL ships.

NCL reviewers are sometimes not complementary about the food, but generally prefer the entertainment. For several reasons, which I won't list here, I think we've sailed our last on Princess. We're looking at an NCL sailing. I'd be interested why Princess is your preference in the overall.

Edited May 22 by mtnesterz

[Geezer Jim]

NCL's berths in Alaska required shuttles to get to town.  Princess has in town berths.

 

[BamaVol]

We used the bus to transfer from Whittier to Anchorage. It was quite scenic and the driver offered a non-stop commentary over the course of the drive. It was more than just transportation, and very comfortable. 

[mtnesterz]

2 hours ago, Geezer Jim said:

NCL's berths in Alaska required shuttles to get to town.  Princess has in town berths.

Thank you for responding. I got that from your previous post. I meant why you prefer Princess over NCL in the overall. But last night, I read up more on NCL and I think we'll pass on cruising with them. 

[karatemom2]

3 hours ago, Geezer Jim said:

NCL's berths in Alaska required shuttles to get to town.  Princess has in town berths.

 

 
Just to clarify, this is true for Ketchikan only. In all other AK ports, NCL uses the same docks as other lines. One of the reasons we would not choose NCL in Alaska is due to its remote docking location in Ketchikan, but in fairness to NCL, just wanted to note that is the only port where this setup exists since this comment makes it seem like it’s the case in all ports. 

[Torfamm]

On 5/21/2024 at 5:47 PM, SkeeterPilot said:

Thank you for the input.  Does Princess offer the train that goes from the port directly to the Anchorage Airport?

If you have a later flight, I can recommend this transfer tour that can drop you at the airport on request. We did it in the other direction, from Anchorage to Whittier, as well as the Matanuska Glacier hike, and were very happy with them.

https://www.salmonberrytours.com/tour/whittier-to-anchorage-transfer-and-tour/

[BamaVol]

5 hours ago, BamaVol said:

We used the bus to transfer from Whittier to Anchorage. It was quite scenic and the driver offered a non-stop commentary over the course of the drive. It was more than just transportation, and very comfortable. 

Since everyone is trying to be as concise and clear as possible, I will add that this was a Princess transfer, booked in advance by my TA.  

[cruisequeen4ever]

For the train, you can definitely do that, but you need to book it directly through the Alaska Railroad. Princess used to offer it, but it’s been years. 
 

I haven’t sailed NCL, but I can say that Princess is one of the original cruise lines to sail Alaska and really knows how to do it. There’s a lot of infrastructure here that other cruise lines (excepting Holland America) don’t have. I know NCL does go to Glacier Bay, so that’s the same. 
 

The Sapphire does not have a forward indoor viewing area, but it does have an aft one, Skywalkers Nightclub. That ship is the most beloved of the older ships; it consistently has outstanding crew and has a somewhat unique layout. 

[latebloomer56]

On 5/21/2024 at 1:06 PM, SkeeterPilot said:

We are in the process of planning our next Alaska Cruise.  We have previously sailed to Alaska 4 times all on NCL and I am considering the Saphire Princess this time.  One of the things that we like about both the NCL Encore and Jewell is the inside areas at the front of the ship for glacier viewing.  Does the Saphire have an area like this?  If anyone has sailed to Alaska on Princess and NCL I would love to hear your opinion/expierence comparing the two.  Also one of our favorite parts of the One Way Alaska cruises is the train ride between the port and the Airport.  Does Princess offer this as well???

First thank you so much for posting this question. All the input was great and helped me as well.

We have gone to Alaska 3 time all on Princess, love each one for different reasons. We sailed on the Sapphire in 2022 to Hawaii, love the ship and the crew, mostly the crew.

With all that said I want Princess but our adult sons want NCL. We are platinum on both they are on NCL, but only from the east coast. Keep us informed once you sail curious how things work out.