just back from the coral - land/cruise

[virginia600]

Just back from the Coral Princess. May 15- May 22. We did the Land tour first then cruise from Whittier. We had a great time. The weather was perfect. I will write later to give more details. One thing, I brought way too much clothes! Alaska is beautiful.

 

Susan

[Mezzaluna]

Virginia, more, more!!! I'm going on this trip July 5 (cruise is July 10). What did you like/dislike about the land tour? Did you take the tours that were included, or did you pay for others? Please define "way too much clothes".

 

Too many questions... I'll wait for the complete report!

 

Stella Solaris '80

Carnival Celebration '92

RCCL Majesty of the Seas '01

Coral Princess '04

[rnjoel]

Yes, Virginia! More, more!

 

We're doing the same tour on the Island Princess in just 3 weeks! I always tend to overpack, so fill me in on the clothes thing....

 

Glad you had a wonderful time, and we're all waiting anxiously for your remarks!!

 

Happy Sailings!

 

Joel & Ron

 

2004 Alaskan Adventure on the Island Princess departs

 

 

[boston1733]

Yes Virginia, We all want to know how to pack,I also always over pack. Comming from Fla we are afraid to be cold. Hey rnjoel, we are almost neighbors!

 

[rnjoel]

Hey Boston!

 

We're on the Island Princess, 6/19. We're starting the land tour on 6/12 in Fairbanks. By the looks of your clock, you're leaving about the same time! What tour are you doing???

 

Happy Sailings!

 

Joel & Ron

 

2004 Alaskan Adventure on the Island Princess departs

 

 

[boston1733]

Hello rnjoel,

We are sailing on the Summitt June 11, but we are doing the land tour starting in Fairbanks on the 5th, never been to AK before. Looking foward to cooler weather!!

 

[tinydancer21]

Hey Boston! Looks like your a patriot fan, if you get time while your in Fairbanks you should drive out to North Pole (about 20 miles away only a 20 minute drive) the New England Patriot head is North Pole High Schools mascot!

 

9/04 Pride Second Anniversary, First Honeymoon!

 

[Fireplug]

We are doing the 14 day Copper River Land and Sea with the Coral . Is this the one you did?

 

Squid

 

coral Princess 8-04

Disney Cruises 3 + Sept 14th 4 day

RCCL in Jan '93

[virginia600]

Hi everyone- here it goes- It took me 48 hrs to adjust to Florida time (:

[virginia600]

Hi everyone- here it goes- It took me 48 hrs to adjust to Florida time (:

Our tour was- 1 night - fairbanks, 1 night denai, 2 nights Mount McKinley, then 7 night cruise southbound . (3S)

I was fortunate to spend a few days with my cousins in Anchorage before joining in Fairbanks, May 11th. Anchorage is wonderful and it gave me time to adjust to the time zone difference.

Upon arriving in Fairbanks, Princess was there to meet us in the baggage area and take us to the Fairbanks Princess Riverside lodge for 1 night. Since you are only allowed a small overnight bag for Denai, we re packed again, sent 2 bags directly to the ship, 2 bags to Mt. Mckinley, 2 small overnight bags to take with us to Denai. We took advantage to take the courtsey bus into Fairbanks. The shop owners were surprise we were there! One shop owner came right out and told us -"If Princess told us they were opening up ,we would have stayed open unitl 10 pm! But anyway, We ate at Gennnaro's - It was great! Overall the lodge was clean, room was great etc. Up bright and early, all of us- outside by the busses, we loaded up and went to the train depot. Princess is organized with moving people around in a uniformed manner. On the Ultra dome rail car, You have assigned seating. the scenary is wonderful. We ate breakfast very late( we were next to the last) on the train, that was just so-so. They ran out of most of the food, so what we heard it was very good. We arrive at the princess wilderness lodge on time. This is a new lodge and they were still finishing it as we drove up. The housekeeping staff was still putting sheets on our beds. But our room was clean, and decorated very nicely. Princess has done a wonderful job with the lobby, it is beautifully decorated. The shops accross the street were not open either. Our first tour- was -White water rafting - grade 4/5-down the Nenana River- Oh boy, this was Fun! I felt 10 years younger! What a ride! You wear Rubber suits over your clothes/ head with just your hands and face exposed. The water was cold and I did get on my hands and face wet. But with the adrenaline pumping- who cares! The staff did a great job with our safety with guys in the water on on land supervising our ride. We did see Moose, eagles and a beaver. After taking taking hot showers, We just ate at the pizzeria/ bar on the property. It was good! In fact, it tasted just like what you get on board any Princess ship! Up early again, board the buses, We took a 3 hour tour of Denai- 30 miles in. It was beautiful. We had this gracious Native Indian women speak to us about their culture and spiritual beliefs about nature and the world around them. we were taken back on her honesty and gentle ways and made us appreciate the land even more. Then back on the train, same seats, same people. This time we had early lunch and it was very good. SPECTACULAR SCENERY to Talkeetna. Upon arriving in Talkeetna, we elected to stay in the town and look around and took a later Princess bus to the lodge.( over 50 miles away) Now this lodge is pretty, we ate in the dining room, very good but pricey. Of course we got seafood. We awoke the next morning - looked outside- Mount McKinley was staring right at us!, a clear blue sky , a slight chill in the air- What a great day to be alive and what a day to take a plane ride to Mt McKinley. After breakfast, in the cafe, that is exactly what we did. Took the bus into Talkeetna, booked a grand tour with K2 Aviation. This was spectular and the highlight of our trip. Words can't explain it, we landed on Ruth Glacier. We met several climbers, spoke with them, they showed us how they lived up there and explained us how they do the climbing etc. For this florida gal to make snow angels overlooking Mt Mckinley, I felt very lucky. The trip was about 4 hrs long. Ruth Glacier was about 70 degrees! So it was warm! we were in short sleeves. After the trip, we ate late lunch at the Roadhouse and did some shopping. We found the locals to be very genuine and friendly . By the time we took the bus back to the lodge early evening we were on first names basis with a lot of them! We really liked that town! We got back to to the lodge, went out to the deck, sipping on a drink we enjoyed the view of the ("ourmountain, it was now midnight- what a way to end paradise. Saturday morning- it's cruise time, we took the long bus ride to Whittier. Embarkation was a terrible, the staff did not have a clue. We had all ready done some of the paper work with staff at Mt Mckinley and it still took over hour! Hopefully, this will improve. The Coral Princess is a beautiful ship. The first 2 days were sea days, we relaxed and enjoyed ourselves. The food was good, some of the entree's were so so, but they tried. We had PC dining, but made reservations 5 out of 7 nights. The weather was great when we went thru Glacier Bay. We saw eagles and seals from our balcony. Our first port was Skagway. We took the Yukon expedition/White Pass train tour. It was great! Our bus driver- Cal was energetic and friendly and I think that makes a big difference. Still alot of snow on the ground . We did see beautiful Emerald Lake. At Carcross we enjoyed lunch and looking around at the museum and petting zoo. The train was wonderful also. It was different than the ultra dome train ride. We did have a little time to wonder about in Skagway before returning to the ship. Thursday,- Juneau- we went with Captain Larry. Had a great time, saw eagles, humpbacks and seals. It did get cooler on the water, so we were glad we brought our mittens/hats/coats etc. Then we did the Tram ride, that was okay, we were warm and by then we just in short sleeves and jeans. Ketchikan we did the Land/Sea tour. we had a native Indian as our guide, she was very knowledgable and I think gave us an overall view of life in Ketchikan, but the real highlight- the sea part- 2 pods of Orca's! Breeching, splashing and tail waving! what excitement! we were closer to them than Captain Larry got to the humpbacks. Another lucky day! We had time to look around Ketchikan and do some shopping. Another sea day and then reality-- the adventure is over! It took us 3-1/2 hrs to get thru the Vancouver airport. But I still high on my adventures and I was not going to let anyone ruin my trip! Hints- well I brought too much clothes! Since the weather was so nice, layers is the best bet. Your tee shirt can serve as undergarment under a long sleeve shirt and then a sweat shirt/ sweater etc.. I was so use to sweating in florida, I prepared for 2 clean changes a day.- dumb thing to do, I could have worn my jeans x 2 . etc...Everyone is very casual and wears jeans all the time at the lodges and during the day on the ship. You will need sunglasses, sunblock, hat and mittens, socks, shoes x 2 , night mask to keep the sunlight at night at the lodges. I did use my london fog ( no lining) as a over coat/ wind breaker. The Coral is a great ship and was impressed by her staff efficient manner. When the ship docked, it never woke me up ( it usually does). There were only a few really cold days,but I never felt that I had to stay inside and miss something. The weather was perfect, I felt like I was in living in a travel book. The land tour really added to my experience of the great land of Alaska. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. susan

[Fireplug]

Thanks for the great review. We will be on the 9/4 sailing of the Coral. Your info is very helpful.

 

Squid

 

coral Princess 8-04

Disney Cruises 3 + Sept 14th 4 day

RCCL in Jan '93

[ruvidu]

Hey Virginia600

Were you the lady I talked to on the Orca tour. I am the white beard man.

We too enjoyed everything but Princess' "didnt knwo you were coming attitude."

Vancouver airport was wild. I never thought we would be standing in line for 3 1/2 hours. We were beat when we got on the plane.

See you next trip.

Russ

 

SC Traveler

Until our Alaska Land/Sea Tour & Cruise

[virginia600]

Hi russ,

yes, I was the gal on the Capt Larry's whale watch tour! Glad you made it back! What a mess that Vancouver airport was! My pictures came back today- I did get some great shots. Will try to post them ASAP.

susan

[schoolmarm]

Did you folks have to lug your luggage through all the lines at the Vancouver airport? I'm thinking about changing our flights to the next day to avoid the crowds. I know that there is a fee to change but it might be worth it to stay an extra day in Vancouver!

[ruvidu]

YES we did. Luckily all of ours either had wheels or we had them in a cart so all we had to do was push and pull for 3 1/2 hours. This was to check in and then go through customs twice before dropping the luggage at a common point.

Please note that not all people had to do this, just the ones flying Delta to Atlanta which happened to be 250 people who had just been crusing. I think everyone made the best of it and took the opportunity to meet more new people.

I don't think I would have spent more money just to avoid the line.

Have a great trip and take your sense of humor. You will need it.

Russ

 

SC Traveler

Until our Alaska Land/Sea Tour & Cruise

[vlpala]

Hi virginia600,

 

Thanks for the review. Who did you book your rafting trip through? Did you paddle or was it guide paddled? We do not leave until August 6th but hope to pin down all of our tours this weekend and my husband really wants to go rafting. My parents are traveling with us, they are approximately 65 do you think they would enjoy this trip?

[goblue]

Hi Russ/Virginia600,

 

can either of you tell me which days are formal nights for the southbound trip ?

also what themed nights they have ? (like Italian night, French night, etc.)

thx ...

[virginia600]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by vlpala:

Hi virginia600,

 

Thanks for the review. Who did you book your rafting trip through? Did you paddle or was it guide paddled? We do not leave until August 6th but hope to pin down all of our tours this weekend and my husband really wants to go rafting. My parents are traveling with us, they are approximately 65 do you think they would enjoy this trip?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

 

Hi Vipala,

We booked this thru Princess when you get on the train. Try to seek out the tour person to book the tour before it fills up. We took the 6pm trip. The guide paddled, we just sat there and had a great time! Your parents would be fine. The other person that I was traveling with is over 60, and I am over 50. We are both not "active seniors". So go for it!

susan

[ruvidu]

The formal nights were Monday and Thursday if I am not mistaken.

We had an Italian night, a French night and an American night. I remember that on French night Escargot and Frog Legs were on the menu.

 

SC Traveler

Until our Alaska Land/Sea Tour & Cruise

[Mezzaluna]

Virginia, thank you so much! We will be on tour 11S, which is a bit different I think in timing only.

 

Now I really can't wait for July 5 to arrive!

 

I am a bit concerned about getting through the Vancouver airport; our flight leaves at noon.

 

Stella Solaris '80

Carnival Celebration '92

RCCL Majesty of the Seas '01

Coral Princess '04

[goblue]

Russ,

thx for the info.

now another q :

do they have Love Boat Dream (the heart-shaped chocolate-flavored dessert) available every night ?

[ruvidu]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR> do they have Love Boat Dream (the heart-shaped chocolate-flavored dessert) available every night ? <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I got mine on the last night. I am sure I would have it more often if it had been available.

R

 

SC Traveler

May 11-22-2004 Princess Land and Sea Tour

[goblue]

Russ,

thx for the info.

 

(guess I need to talk to dining room staff and 'reserve' it daily )

[Ann-Marie75]

Virginia, do you remember if there were hair dryers in all the hotels that you stayed in on the tour? I leave 6/20 on the same tour that you did. Thanks, Ann-Marie

 

Ann-Marie

[ennajean]

Sounds like you had a perfect trip.

We are looking for a trip like you did.

Land and cruise.