Sky Princess 6/15/24 Norwegian Fjords and Land of the Midnight Sun Review

[milolii]

 Beautiful ,pictures, Ty for sharing. 

[karatemom2]

Alesund and a change of plans:

 

As cruise lovers, we all know the great advantage of cruising is having your floating resort take you far and wide, covering highlights across a wide range of travel destinations. That is the supreme advantage. The downside, which we all face, is that at many of these wonderful destinations, you can’t possibly do all you might want to do in a single port day.

 

When we were planning our cruise, the port of Alesund presented us with one of these dilemmas. I could tell doing my research that this picturesque city had a lot to offer with its interesting history and beautiful Art Nouveau architecture. But just a tour away was the draw of the Trollstigen, or Troll Road, with its 11 hairpin turns down the famous road to the towering cliffs of the Trollveggen, or Troll Wall, below. The opportunity to drive that famous road was a huge draw as well, but the nearly 8-hour bus trip meant that we would not get to spend any time in Alesund.

 

Ultimately, the draw of the Troll Road won out and we scheduled with Norway Excursions. We were content with this decision and looking forward with excitement to getting the chance to experience such a unique drive. The first inkling that there might be a hitch in that plan came on our port day in Geiranger when our tour guide mentioned as we were climbing the shorter, but equally as winding Eagle Road, that it was nice we were experiencing this since the Trollstigen had just been closed. When I asked her for further information, she shared the closure was due to concerns over falling rocks along the road and had been in the news that morning.

 

Living in Southern California, we know all about road closures due to rockslides, and in most cases, they are addressed quickly and are short lived, so I rationalized that since we still had almost a full week before our port day in Alesund, the road would surely be open by then. But sadly, that was not to be the case. Within a couple of days, we received an email from the tour operator informing us the road had been closed for the entire summer season.

So, not only would we not be driving the Troll Road, we also would not make it to Trollveggen to view the enormous cliffs. In all honesty, those were our two main reasons for booking the trip. We appreciated that they were moving forward with an altered tour, spending time at some of the other scenic sites on the way and the overlook of the road, but in the end we just couldn’t justify giving up our entire day in Alesund and spending such a long time on a bus without the main attraction.

 

Instead, we opted to pivot, cancel that tour, and once again, as in Trondheim, become our own tour guides. With high hopes and a beautiful blue-sky day, we were off the ship bright and early ready for a self-made adventure. Our first stop was the Atlantic Sea Life Park, a wonderful aquarium located seaside in a gorgeous setting that may just rival the Monterey Bay Aquarium for its surrounding natural beauty. We easily caught an Uber over and arrived shortly after the 9 a.m. opening in an effort to get ahead of any crowds. We had ample time to leisurely enjoy all the different tanks and exhibits, and weren’t even put off by the very exuberant group of young local children who were running amok, virtually unattended by their teen camp counselors who seemed content to let them do as they pleased as long as no one was bleeding or throwing their chums into a tank with the sting rays. We particularly enjoyed the king crab tank, large main tank featuring multiple species of local fish, and of course the penguin enclosure.

 

After spending a couple of hours enjoying the tranquil sea life and high-spirited children, we caught an Uber back to the harbor in Alesund for our next stop at the Fisheries Museum. Full disclosure, my DH owns a fishing business and runs two commercial lobster vessels in California, so whenever we travel, we are always very interested in the local commercial fishing scene and history. The museum was housed in an old fish processing warehouse at the docks and was very interesting and worth the visit. After spending some time there, we took a walk along the harbor to the small lighthouse and then headed into town, wandering the cobblestone streets admiring the beautiful architecture that resulted when the city had to be almost completely rebuilt after a fire burned it to the ground in 1904. It was as a result of this they chose to use the Art Nouveau style for all of the architecture. These stunning buildings lining each side of the canal running through the town create an exceptionally beautiful panorama, especially on such a sunny and picture-perfect day.

 

We found a lovely spot along the canal to eat outside at Jafs, which boasted it serves “Probably the World’s Best Fish and Chips”. They were in fact quite good but given we haven’t tried them all over the world, we can’t quite determine if it is a true statement. A large number of our fellow ship passengers who were Brits seemed to be enthusiastically enjoying the food here as well, so that seemed a good sign.

 

After lunch we caught the tiny train in town that tours around the city, but most importantly takes passengers up to the Mount Aksla Overlook where you can see for miles and get incredible views of Alesund and the surrounding islands. It was nice to hear the commentary that provided more information on the town’s history, particularly the devastating fire that ended up creating the lovely city that exists today. After the train ride and a bit more exploring through the local shops as we meandered back to the ship, we felt fully satisfied we had made the right call for our day and truly created a tour that will leave us with lasting memories of such a charming and unique destination. The Troll Road will just have to wait for another visit someday.

 

As we sailed away, we enjoyed another excellent meal in the MDR with our fab wait team and then finally saw our luck change with a trivia win at the Broadway/West End trivia challenge. As a lifelong theatre nerd who raised a musical theatre actress, this subject area tends to be my best odds and sure enough we managed a perfect score and walked away with some prized Princess notepads. All around a winning day.

 

Next: Olden and a fond farewell to Norway

[Boatmans Lady]

Thank you for posting as we will be taking this cruise in 2026. 

Your review has certainly given us some different ideas of things to do and see. 

Looking forward to your next instalment. 

[milolii]

Thanks for the pics.  If the Sea Life Park location revels the Monterey Bay Aquarium, then I think that it’s a must see, thank you. I’ve been looking for new adventures for Ålesund, thanks.  We’ve also eaten at Jafs, it’s good, not sure about the best in the world. Nice views, though. 
 

For those who have upcoming trips: 

The Tollistigen Road is closed though 2024. About a month ago, there was another rock slide with rocks hitting a car. There is disagreement among government agencies on who will pay for the repairs and construction of necessary safety measures. Some think the local agency should absorb more of the costs. So certainly not encouraging for 2025.  

 

https://www.lifeinnorway.net/famous-norway-road-trollstigen-closed-for-2024/

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited July 5 by milolii

[karatemom2]

Olden and farewell to Norway:

 

At the beginning of this review, I commented that no cruise is perfect, but this one came close. However, I do believe there is such a thing as a perfect day and if that’s true, then I think our day in Olden came as close to perfect as a day can ever be. After all of the beauty we had already seen, I felt like I was on sensory overload and couldn’t imagine anything getting better, but Norway was about to surprise me again.

 

We woke up early and were ready to get off the ship just after the 8 a.m. all clear in order to meet our tour scheduled with a local company, Olden Adventures. It was a chilly and cloudy morning, so we bundled up and crossed our fingers for a return of the sun that had blessed us in our last two ports. After two consecutive days of walking for miles through cities, we were very excited about returning to nature on our Loen Lake and Kjenndal Glacier excursion. We checked in at the Olden Adventures kiosk at the pier and were directed to two buses that would be taking our groups to Loen Lake, also referred to as Lovatnet.

 

After a short drive through the beautiful area, we arrived at Loen Lake and boarded our boat for our scenic trip across the lake. The boat offered inside seating, but we wanted to be able to get a full view so proceeded right to the top deck and found seats in front where we could see in all directions. The trip across the lake takes about an hour and we were rewarded with incredible views. The lake itself is an almost indescribable color of turquoise and surrounded by towering mountains with more cascading waterfalls in all directions and some farms along its banks on the way.

 

However, as we got closer to the other side, any sign of farms disappeared and the lake narrowed to a small passage that the boat navigated where a terrible landside in 1936 had created a bottleneck, filling in a large section of the lake and causing a devastating wave of water that killed a large number of people and destroyed all the homes and farms in that area. It was sad to see some of the remnants along the shoreline of what was once a thriving farming area.

 

As we approached the other side, we got our first distant glimpse of Kjenndal glacier, a hanging glacier high atop the mountain, as we approached the cove and small restaurant there where we would be stopping. Entering the charming restaurant, we took a seat and enjoyed a nice break for tea and coffee with warm waffles, topped with sour cream, and strawberry marmalade. Our Norway waffle quest remained intact! Afterwards, we had some time to explore the surrounding area which was very scenic. A few brave souls even took off their shoes and socks and dipped their toes into the freezing cold glacial lake water. I wasn’t feeling that brave!

 

We boarded another bus for a short ride to the trailhead in Kjenndalen Valley where a brief hike would take us to the viewing point for the Kjenndal Glacier, one of the Josetedal Glacier’s lowest hanging arms. From the moment we stepped off the bus, we knew we were in for something very special as just from this vantage point we could see the glacier and surrounding waterfalls in all directions. As we walked the path along the rushing glacier fed creek, over a couple of bridges, surrounded by trees and flowers, it was already a beautiful setting, but as we cleared through that into the viewing area at the base of the valley it was like nothing I had ever seen, even in Yosemite or any of our trips to Alaska. The sheer natural beauty was incredible.

 

After a nice amount of time to take it all in and take plenty of photos and video, we made the brief hike back to our bus where our guide shared the old story that many of us were told as children of the Three Billy Goats Gruff, who outsmart an evil troll under a bridge. This old folk tale originated there in the Kjenndalen Valley, and we crossed the actual bridge on which the story is based. One thing we learned in Norway is that they take their troll culture and stories very seriously! Once back at the lake, we reboarded our boat for the trip back across the lake and now the sun was shining and we opted to sit outside on the lower deck on the way back to get a different perspective closer to the water which made the surrounding mountains seem all the more imposing. Once again, I was so happy to have brought along our binoculars.

 

We got back to the dock just after our scheduled arrival time of 12:30 p.m., and still had a few hours before our 3:30 p.m. all aboard – just enough time to fit in the Loen Skylift. We had left the decision on whether we would attempt this until today to make sure the weather would cooperate, since heavy clouds obscure the view, and the crowds can sometimes make the lines at the entrance both at the base and on top a little daunting. But today the skies were clearing, the sun was shining, and the crowds were minimal since we were the only ship in port. Since the attraction is run by the same company, they were able to sell us tickets on the boat as we headed back, and the bus dropped us off at the Skylift entrance which was only a few minutes away. From there, we could catch the shuttle buses that were running every 15 minutes back to the ship.

 

Thanks to the lack of any real line, we were able to jump right on a gondola for the approximately 7-minute ride up to the top of Mt. Hoven on one of the steepest cable cars in the world. The views from the top are absolutely amazing in every direction. Our ship, docked at Olden, looked like a child’s toy in the distance. It is definitely not for those with any qualms about heights, but if you embrace it, the lean against glass at the edge offers a real sense of looking over the edge of the world. We even got to watch a daring wingsuit jumper leap from the cliff and literally fly down the side of the mountain. It was incredible!

 

I would have loved to spend more time here but given our early embarkation time and the need to catch the shuttle back to the ship, we headed back down and as it turned out got back to the ship with plenty of time to spare. DH headed back onboard while I did a little shopping at the stores near the dock and then reluctantly made my last walk in Norway to rejoin the Sky.

 

However, the wonderful people of Olden have a tradition of sending ships off in the most spectacular manner – waving the Norwegian Flag and playing “Con te Partiro”  aka " Time to Say Goodbye”. As we were sailing away, residents in the homes and businesses near the port also came out to wave at us, wave flags, and even giant waving hands and we even got treated to a rendition of Dire Straits’ “Walk of Life”. It was such a glorious and joyous way to part with our last Norway port as we began our long trip out of Njordfjord under a shining sun and brilliant blue sky. I must admit that I may have shed a tear or two.

 

But there was still more to come because, knowing it would take us nearly three hours to fully traverse the fjord back to the open ocean, this was the night I had scheduled our Balcony Dinner. This was a first for us and I had really taken pains to try to pick the right day – but one never knows what the weather will offer when making plans. Fate was on my side, though, and I honestly could not have picked a better evening. Our wait team arrived right on time at 5:30 p.m. and immediately went about setting up the table on our spacious balcony and serving us our cocktails – we opted for the 24k Gold Margaritas. Soon we were comfortably seated at our lovely table sailing through the sunny fjord and enjoying amazing personal service and course after course of wonderful food and champagne. It was beyond anything I had even imagined when I first conceived the idea and a great birthday gift for DH, who would get even more celebrating in the next day on his actual birthday.

 

We finished our dessert just 15 minutes or so before we finally reached the end of the fjord and started our sail back out to the ocean, so the timing worked out perfectly. Our cups were truly running over – filled with wonderful food and drink, spectacular scenery all around, and capping off nearly two weeks of exploring one of the most breathtaking places I have ever been. How blessed we are that this Norwegian adventure had given us all we could have asked and more!

 

Next: Sea Day and Bruges

 

Edited July 5 by karatemom2

[karatemom2]

8 hours ago, milolii said:

Thanks for the pics.  If the Sea Life Park location revels the Monterey Bay Aquarium, then I think that it’s a must see, thank you. I’ve been looking for new adventures for Ålesund, thanks.  We’ve also eaten at Jafs, it’s good, not sure about the best in the world. Nice views, though. 
 

For those who have upcoming trips: 

The Tollistigen Road is closed though 2024. About a month ago, there was another rock slide with rocks hitting a car. There is disagreement among government agencies on who will pay for the repairs and construction of necessary safety measures. Some think the local agency should absorb more of the costs. So certainly not encouraging for 2025.  

 

https://www.lifeinnorway.net/famous-norway-road-trollstigen-closed-for-2024/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It really is a shame about the Trollingsten. I know it is a highlight that many, like us, really look forward to experiencing. But I also got the impression after we learned how extended the closure was planned to be, that this may be a very complicated process. I sure hope they can get it open for the 2025 season, but I guess that remains to be seen. But it was very clear that it was a no go for the rest of this year. 

 

Thanks for your comments - we had such a wonderful cruise. And yes, Jafs does have a great seating view and the fish is very good - but you got admire their bold claim!!

[AF-1]

karatemom2.  wow what a beautiful review and your pictures are stunning.  This makes me want to cruise Norway.  What was the average temperature on your trip? Did you have any rain?  Thanks for sharing

[karatemom2]

1 hour ago, AF-1 said:

karatemom2.  wow what a beautiful review and your pictures are stunning.  This makes me want to cruise Norway.  What was the average temperature on your trip? Did you have any rain?  Thanks for sharing

 

Thank you! Yes, absolutely - I would tell anyone and everyone to take the opportunity to cruise Norway if they can get the opportunity.

 

Overall, our weather was really good though the temperature and conditions can vary quite a bit. I would compare it very much to our Alaska trips where you kind of have to be prepared for anything and dress in layers. Our cooler ports were generally in the mid 50s, the coldest port being Honningsvag which we expected given we were in the Arctic Circle at that point. That day started in the the low 40's and was quite cold at North Cape. But even there, by the afternoon once we were back in town it had warmed into the low 50's. Our nicest days were in Alesund and Trondheim - both reaching the mid 60's and sunny. 

 

We were prepared for the possibility of rain but overall were very lucky - a few showers while we were at sea and on a couple of our early mornings, but clearing quickly. The only day that was really impacted by rain was the first port, Haugesund. Fortunately we got our whole tour in before the sky unleashed, but man, when it came it was a torrential downpour. We got soaked just walking the short way back to our van because it just came so quickly. People did get caught a little bit unaware that day and lots of very waterlogged people making the long walk back to ship from the town there. We, fortunately, were ending our tour when it started and were able to basically just get right off the bus and back on the ship - we had planned to walk into town for a few hours, but the rain changed that. We still felt like we had already had a very full experience there though with our tour, thankfully.

 

So, my motto is - be prepared for the wettest and coldest moments when they do come, but hope for the best which we really did have most of the time.

[karatemom2]

Sea Day and Bruges:

 

We were pretty exhausted after three very action-packed port days, so it was nice just to sleep late and ease our way into the day. My birthday boy was very pleased with the gift of his balcony dinner the night before, but we had another nice evening in store with reservations at The Catch courtesy of his casino host. We were disappointed with our meal there last year but wanted to give it another try because generally the reviews are so stellar. Because we wanted to save up our appetite for dinner, we kept it light, and I skipped lunch in favor of my beloved afternoon tea. I couldn’t miss my last opportunity to enjoy it one last time on this sea day.

 

It was the final formal night, so we put on our dressy clothes one more time before they got packed away. Our reservation was for 5:30 p.m. and we were seated promptly at a lovely table next to the window. This time around we ordered different items, and the entire meal more than lived up to the normal glowing reviews. I had the prawn appetizer and Dover sole for my main and he had the crab cake and Triple S platter, which comes with salmon, shrimp, and scallops. Since DH is not the biggest salmon fan, they kindly agreed to substitute one of the catch of the day options, mahi mahi, and it was perfect. Everything was delicious including all of the sides and our server was wonderful. For dessert we each ordered the Crepes Suzette, and of course the obligatory chocolate birthday cake and candle with accompanying song. How lucky is he to get not one, but two, fabulous birthday dinners.

 

It was hard to believe how quickly our long-anticipated cruise had passed, but we still had one final port day that we were very excited about – Zeebrugge for Bruges, Belgium. Again, we discovered even the best laid plans can go awry when we got a notice from the taxi company we had used to book a van for us and 7 of our fellow Cruise Critic roll call members for transport to and from the port to Bruges that they would be unable to accommodate us due to mechanical issues with their large vehicle. Mostly, I felt bad about letting my fellow CC pals down, but they were super understanding. We were all able to manage finding alternate transport which, as we discovered, was not at all difficult. We ended up pre-reserving an Uber and they all just caught a taxi at the stand at the port.

 

We were lined up and ready to get off the ship by 9:30 a.m. in order to make sure we caught one of the mandatory shuttles from the ship to the port building as soon as we could exit the ship so we could be in place for our Uber pick up at 10:30 a.m. Never having been to this port, we didn’t realize the shuttle ride is so incredibly short – we had plenty of time and were there well before our driver arrived. It is about a 25-minute ride into Bruges, and we had him drop us off right at the central Market Square which proved a great place to start our day.

 

I was immediately taken with the fairy tale charm of this beautiful little town. Knowing our time was limited, we decided not to take any of our time trying to visit inside of the museums or cathedrals there, but to just try to see as much of the town as possible and enjoy the lovely setting. We happened to arrive at the square just 15 minutes before the open air small bus tour of the city was going to be setting off on its 50 minute tour and choosing that proved to be a very smart decision for us as it provided a great historical overview of the city and all of its major sites, while also giving us some perspective on getting around once we were on foot. Once the tour dropped us back off at the square, we ventured off to explore, backtracking to the areas we wanted to see close up like the cathedral and some of the other historical buildings as well as an open-air vintage market where we picked up a couple more unique treasures to take home.

 

It seemed that at every turn in this adorable town we were surrounded by the smell of chocolate and waffles so we had to find a way to partake somehow. We lucked upon The Old Chocolate House where we stopped for a strawberry and whipped cream topped Belgian waffle and two amazing cups of hot chocolate that we blended ourselves using their specially filled chocolate cups that we dropped into the hot milk they provided and stirred with tiny whisks. I got the Salted Caramel Chocolate Cup and DH got the Pistachio Chocolate Ball – both were heavenly! We also picked up a couple of packaged of chocolates to bring home as well.

 

After this stop, more walking was definitely in order and we continued to wander the narrow and scenic streets until we worked our way back to the canal where we decided it was a must to see this lovely place from the perspective of the water so hopped on one of the boat tours that run regularly through the old canals and bridges. We were so glad we made this decision and really enjoyed the tour. Some of those bridges we passed under were pretty tight, and my extra tall DH really had to watch his head.

 

Following this we did a little more walking and shopping, and I picked up some pretty sachets at one of the Belgian lace shops as we worked our way back to the central square to catch our taxi back to the ship. We opted to leave ourselves a little extra time, not being familiar with how competitive it would become to get a ride later in the day and how long the shuttle lines might get at the port and were pretty happy to have a seamless and stress-free return to the ship.

 

We even managed to get back in time for afternoon trivia and log one final win – the lower than average turnout meaning less competition due to many people still being out didn’t hurt. We still only tied for first place, but pulled out the tie breaker – “How many cups of tea does the average Brit drink per year?” Having no clue, we just guessed the equivalent of 3 cups a day, or 1,095. We were on the right track and ended up with the closest answer which was actually 884. Yay! More Princess notebooks to take home – something we actually use.

 

We headed for our last dinner in Soleil with our fabulous wait team there and bid them a fond farewell. They did take the pause for the traditional Baked Alaska Parade during our dinner – a tradition I know some seasoned cruisers have tired of, but I still enjoy the fanfare and the festive feeling of ending our last dinner service on a happy note.

 

DH already had his offer from the Casino, but given that he really does actually play for the fun of it and not just the cruise perks, after he joined me for the final show in the theatre he headed back for one more night of fun with his gambling pals while I did some packing and watched another movie. Since we do early walk off, no need to put our bags out so it was a relaxing and unrushed packing effort, knowing I would have time in the morning to finish up.

 

All good things must come to an end, and I was ready to get home to our family and furry ones. But I went to sleep that night feeling so grateful for another successful and memorable cruise experience.

 

Final: Disembarkation and final thoughts

Edited July 6 by karatemom2

[ExploringTheGlobe]

2 hours ago, karatemom2 said:

Sea Day and Bruges:

 

We were pretty exhausted after three very action-packed port days, so it was nice just to sleep late and ease our way into the day. My birthday boy was very pleased with the gift of his balcony dinner the night before, but we had another nice evening in store with reservations at The Catch courtesy of his casino host. We were disappointed with our meal there last year but wanted to give it another try because generally the reviews are so stellar. Because we wanted to save up our appetite for dinner, we kept it light, and I skipped lunch in favor of my beloved afternoon tea. I couldn’t miss my last opportunity to enjoy it one last time on this sea day.

 

It was the final formal night, so we put on our dressy clothes one more time before they got packed away. Our reservation was for 5:30 p.m. and we were seated promptly at a lovely table next to the window. This time around we ordered different items, and the entire meal more than lived up to the normal glowing reviews. I had the prawn appetizer and Dover sole for my main and he had the crab cake and Triple S platter, which comes with salmon, shrimp, and scallops. Since DH is not the biggest salmon fan, they kindly agreed to substitute one of the catch of the day options, mahi mahi, and it was perfect. Everything was delicious including all of the sides and our server was wonderful. For dessert we each ordered the Crepes Suzette, and of course the obligatory chocolate birthday cake and candle with accompanying song. How lucky is he to get not one, but two, fabulous birthday dinners.

 

We ended up pre-reserving an Uber and they all just caught a taxi at the stand at the port.

 

We were lined up and ready to get off the ship by 9:30 a.m. in order to make sure we caught one of the mandatory shuttles from the ship to the port building as soon as we could exit the ship so we could be in place for our Uber pick up at 10:30 a.m.

 

 

They actually have Uber there?  The bartender at our first bar told us Uber wasn't an option in Bruges.  Interesting.  At least we were able to get back to port!

[CalLuvsCrusingToo]

LUVED your report and wow what terrific memories!

Gorgeous pics!  Thanks so much for taking the time to do this!

Hope to be in your shoes over there next summer.

 

[karatemom2]

3 hours ago, ExploringTheGlobe said:

They actually have Uber there?  The bartender at our first bar told us Uber wasn't an option in Bruges.  Interesting.  At least we were able to get back to port!

 
Yes, it’s through the Uber app, but the car that it brings is a certified taxi. We discovered this in Alesund as well. You can schedule the ride through Uber like you would anywhere, but it is actually bringing a certified taxi - only they are available to provide services even though you are booking and paying through Uber which made it super convenient. 

[karatemom2]

47 minutes ago, CalLuvsCrusingToo said:

LUVED your report and wow what terrific memories!

Gorgeous pics!  Thanks so much for taking the time to do this!

Hope to be in your shoes over there next summer.

 

 
Thank you so much! I hope you are able to experience this cruise next year. It’s amazing. We are eyeing a Baltic itinerary for next year - still deciding. But I don’t know if anything will ever match this cruise. It was really special. 

[ExploringTheGlobe]

12 minutes ago, karatemom2 said:

 
Yes, it’s through the Uber app, but the car that it brings is a certified taxi. We discovered this in Alesund as well. You can schedule the ride through Uber like you would anywhere, but it is actually bringing a certified taxi - only they are available to provide services even though you are booking and paying through Uber which made it super convenient. 

Interesting.  I wonder why the local said it wasn't an option.  Hmmm.

[karatemom2]

19 minutes ago, ExploringTheGlobe said:

Interesting.  I wonder why the local said it wasn't an option.  Hmmm.

 
Yeah, that’s odd. Maybe because technically it isn’t Uber in the traditional sense since independent drivers are not allowed. Perhaps he wasn’t aware that the local taxi services apparently contract with Uber to provide service and payment through the app. I know when a taxi showed up to pick us up in Alesund at the ship when we had ordered an Uber we were very confused. He was literally sitting right in front of us but because of the taxi sign we didn’t realize it was our car - he had to roll his window down and ask if we were waiting for a ride. And even then, we said no we had an Uber coming and he explained he was our car - and then we realized the license plate and car matched. He explained to us Uber as it functions other places is not allowed - no private drivers. But they have adapted to connect it with legal and certified taxi services. 

[ExploringTheGlobe]

10 hours ago, karatemom2 said:

 
Yeah, that’s odd. Maybe because technically it isn’t Uber in the traditional sense since independent drivers are not allowed. Perhaps he wasn’t aware that the local taxi services apparently contract with Uber to provide service and payment through the app. I know when a taxi showed up to pick us up in Alesund at the ship when we had ordered an Uber we were very confused. He was literally sitting right in front of us but because of the taxi sign we didn’t realize it was our car - he had to roll his window down and ask if we were waiting for a ride. And even then, we said no we had an Uber coming and he explained he was our car - and then we realized the license plate and car matched. He explained to us Uber as it functions other places is not allowed - no private drivers. But they have adapted to connect it with legal and certified taxi services. 

Good to know!  Thank you

[karatemom2]

Disembarkation and Final Thoughts:

 

All good things must come to an end, and we woke up our final day back in Southampton feeling very happy with our experience and ready to take all of these wonderful memories home with us. So, just thought I would share a few final thoughts on our overall experience on the Sky.

 

Disembarkation: We always do walk off these days. Now that we aren’t traveling with young children anymore, it is just so easy to manage our own luggage. We always have a single rolling suitcase each and one carryon that sits nicely on top, so very easy to roll off. We had a 1:20 p.m. flight home on Virgin Atlantic out of Heathrow so we scheduled our Blackberry car service for a 7:30 a.m. pickup. Walk off started at 7 a.m. and we were out of the terminal waiting for our car well before its arrival time. We had an easy drive to Heathrow and were there before 9 a.m. and through luggage drop off and security quickly and, in our lounge by just after 10 a.m., with plenty of time to kill before our gate was posted and boarding began. It was a nice relaxing way to end our trip and another nice flight with VA who got us back to LAX right on time at 4:40 p.m. PST.

 

Sky Princess: This was our second year in a row sailing out of Southampton on the Sky, and it has become our favorite Royal Class ship. We really prefer it over both Royal and Discovery, the two other Royal Class ships we have sailed on most frequently. Although the design is basically the same, we find it better maintained and more welcoming. It still features the flaws of the Royal Class ships in the lack of outside viewing areas and promenade deck and inadequate space in areas like Princess Live, but we find that we still really get the same great Princess experience we have come to expect and the same beautiful public areas, nice theatre, good casino, and nice dining areas. The Vista Lounge continues to be a totally underused space onboard – I will never understand why they keep trying to crowd people into Princess Live to overflowing when they have that wonderful lounge sitting empty. But this seems to be the case on every Princess ship.

 

Stateroom: This, for us, is one of the big pluses of the Royal Class ships as we have grown to really love the forward-facing balconies and have booked them multiple times now. Our stateroom, M103, was particularly wonderful for this sailing with the multiple days of scenic viewing. Many people on our “friend” group were disappointed in the lack of areas onboard for scenic viewing, and we felt so blessed to have our own private space from which to enjoy every second. It is a shame though, that there is not more space for others onboard to be able to get the same experience in a public setting. Given the option, we like the Lido level best as there is even less obstruction, but we were so happy to get this cabin when we booked because it was the last one available. As always, our room steward was fantastic – we are always so fortunate to just get the best service from our stewards on Princess, especially with the number of rooms they are handling these days. We do our best to not make their job any harder and be sure to show our appreciation, because they really work so hard.

 

Entertainment: We have been cruising with Princess for over 20 years now, and I can say with absolute love for the brand, that the entertainment onboard is not one of the main reasons for our loyalty. That said, we do enjoy it and embrace it for what it is without expecting Broadway quality shows or headliners. Most of the production shows we have seen numerous times, and we still like to see them again in many cases like Rock Opera and Spotlight Bar, which are two of the better shows. In particular, Max Himmelreich, the guest tenor for Rock Opera who we have seen before, is absolutely spectacular, and his one man show is excellent as well. I won’t comment on Five Skies, except to say, seeing that once last year was enough. We are generally underwhelmed by the hypnotists, comedians, and magicians, so rarely attend those shows. But I was very favorably impressed with several of the guest singers they brought onboard this cruise – particularly Claire-Charlotte, Cleopatra Madonna Higgins, and West End star, Matthew Croke. They all provided really exceptional shows and it definitely felt like Princess was upping their entertainment game with them as featured performers.

 

Other entertainment with the CD crew was pretty standard – we enjoy the trivias, especially the music trivias – they were ok, again, overcrowding is a big issue as are the repeat cruisers who kind of take the competitive fun out of it when you know they already heard all the questions the cruise prior. But we always have a good time and there were a few standout CD staff who did a nice job.

 

Food: This is such a subjective area, but for us, the food on this cruise, just as last year on the Sky, was above average from our perspective. Our MDR meals, with one glaring exception for each my DH and I, were really great. All of our specialty dining meals – Crown Grill, The Catch, and Balcony Dinner were outstanding. Afternoon tea continues to be better on this ship than on our other Princess sailings and the buffet, on the few occasions when we went there, was fine and had a good selection. DH really loves the breakfast options of the egg bites at the International Café and pretty much ate there every morning, while I would just grab a croissant and some tea. And we only got food at the grill once – but the hot dogs are always good. The only thing to disappoint this cruise the two times I tried it was the pizza at Slice – the sauce was bland, and the crust was overcooked both times. Normally I love Princess pizza, but it was kind of a bummer this trip. Service everywhere, however, was amazing – from drink service to food service at every venue onboard, we had the best experience – so much better than our Discovery cruise in January – like literally night and day better. The crew was fantastic, smiling, and super on top of their game. We were very impressed.

 

Crew Chat: We were really impressed with this feature and give it a huge thumbs up! We used it three different times for different issues. First was a problem with our beverage package delivery when we couldn’t get through to room service after trying to call multiple times with no answer, second was a plumbing issue with our shower drain which appeared to be clogged, and third was for our shore excursion concerns. Each time we received a prompt response and resolution within the day from the appropriate department, along with a second follow up from Guest Services to make sure we were satisfied. It is a really nice option and one we will not hesitate to use on future cruises for any concerns we might have – way better then standing in line at the desk or holding on the phone.

 

Casino: This is the report from DH, as I don’t log much time there. He really had a great time in the Casino this trip – a more active group of fellow gamblers onboard this year, especially Craps players, so he felt less all by himself. He made some nice gambling buddies and a good time was had by all. He made a point of mentioning that the casino staff continues to be great, a few still there who remembered him from last year. Even when he doesn’t come away a winner, which is often, he has a really good time and appreciates the casino host and staff, and the nice perks we get from his “habit”. : )

 

Elite perks: We continue to appreciate the Elite perks – especially managing to squeeze in the half price on the old WiFi rate for this trip before it went up. The nightly Elite/Platinum Lounge in Vista was very good – even better this year with some additional hot items including breaded shrimp that was so yummy. They also had a live band and singer performing there each evening which was a nice touch. Our Elite laundry benefit worked great – we sent out a bag almost every day and it was always back the next day, with only one exception where it took two days. We really, really, really, appreciate our laundry benefit!! Since we only ended up with one tender port when the Geiranger Sea Walk wasn’t used, we didn’t really need our priority tender benefit this trip since we had a Princess excursion that day – but I’m sure our fellow Elite passengers onboard appreciated it since it turned out to be kind of a long process for most. I know some feel like the loyalty benefits aren’t a big deal, but honestly, these perks and our Casino benefits are a big part of what keeps us coming back to Princess, so they do matter to us.

 

So, as I close out this rather long-winded review – I just want to reiterate what an absolutely wonderful cruise this was – great itinerary, great ship, great food, great service, great fun! I hope some of the information I have shared might help those of you thinking of a similar cruise or contemplating a trip on the Sky Princess. We love sailing out of Southampton and are looking at a Baltic cruise for next summer – maybe on the Emerald this time because I do also love and miss the Grand Class ships. But we will be back aboard one soon when we sail on the Ruby in Alaska in September.

 

Thanks to all who have allowed me to share our experience!

[ColoradoMom!!]

What an incredible trip and wonderful review! Thank you so much for all your time in putting together such a detailed and helpful account. For those of us, enjoying it now, and those who find it insightful in the future, we really appreciate it! 

[JordanF]

Loved your writing, your photos and your attitude!  We are going to Norway (on our own) in November and will be on the Sky in February, so it was all particularly interesting to me.  Thank you!

[karatemom2]

54 minutes ago, JordanF said:

Loved your writing, your photos and your attitude!  We are going to Norway (on our own) in November and will be on the Sky in February, so it was all particularly interesting to me.  Thank you!

 

Since you are doing a land trip to Norway, which sounds awesome by the way, I'll share that if you visit Alesund, the Hotel Brosundet there actually rents out the suite in the lighthouse at the harbor there. If I ever go back not on a ship, I would totally do this!

 

 

[ebeluga]

Thank you for your very thoughtful and balanced review. I enjoyed it very much.  We did the midnight Sun on Crown Princess in 2017.  Some ports are slightly different. This makes me want to do it again, esp for Geiranger which our itinerary didn't cover!

[fenny7cats]

Thanks for the great review.  I am on the Sky next month, are you able to show me a pic of the notepad won at the trivia quiz?  I ask as my hubby and I are quite good at quizzes sometimes and I wondered what the prize was? Thanks.

[karatemom2]

2 hours ago, fenny7cats said:

Thanks for the great review.  I am on the Sky next month, are you able to show me a pic of the notepad won at the trivia quiz?  I ask as my hubby and I are quite good at quizzes sometimes and I wondered what the prize was? Thanks.

Sure! They are cute and quite handy. I keep one in my purse to use when I need to make old school notes. 

[fenny7cats]

Thank you - I agree they are quite cute - I will have a go at winning one next month!

[karatemom2]

40 minutes ago, fenny7cats said:

Thank you - I agree they are quite cute - I will have a go at winning one next month!

Good luck!! There are plenty of trivia options - so no doubt you will find one that plays to your strengths!