Celebrity lovers try Princess...again!/Star Princess 6/14-21 review w/ pics!

[Infi]

Ship: Star Princess

Dates: 6/14-21/09

Itinerary: Ketchikan, Tracy Arm, Juneau, Skagway, Victoria

About us:

I took this cruise with my teen daughter (her 20th cruise) and my aunt and uncle (their 2nd cruise). While my daughter and I have visited Alaska twice before, my aunt and uncle had never been and were utterly enthralled with the scenery and sights. It was a real pleasure traveling with them and seeing Alaska through their eyes. We actually weren’t planning on cruising Alaska this summer, but Princess’ 2-for-1 sale drew us in again. Our two previous Alaskan cruises had been with Celebrity, which is our favorite line (with Princess as a close second). I am platinum by virtue of my Sitmar sailings, as this was only my second actual cruise with Princess.

 

We have the patters and B/L/D menus from the dining room. If anyone is interested in them, I’ll be happy to post them soon, as DD is in the process of uploading/sorting her pictures and videos.

 

I will warn you right now that my reviews are notoriously long winded (see “Celebrity lovers try Princess”) and this time I’ll be trying to include photos within the review, so it might take awhile to post. If you have any questions about the Star or ports, please post them and I’ll be happy to answer them.

 

 

Embarkation, Day 1:

We flew in on Thursday to spend time in Seattle and Victoria before our cruise. Since this is the Princess board, I won’t bore you with details and pictures of those days – you’re here for the cruise, after all. I may post a review on the West Coast departures board if people are interested in a Seattle/Victoria review. We stayed at the Seattle Sheraton, which is downtown and about a 20min ride to Pier 91. I was very pleased with the Sheraton and would recommend it to any future Seattle cruiser – there aren’t many hotels on the waterfront/near the piers so I think downtown is your best bet.

 

We used A1 Airport limo service. I cannot say enough good things about this service. The owner, Sunny, is extremely professional and conscientious. He would call prior to pickup to let you know the driver was on his way and also check in again after the ride to make sure the trip went well. His prices were also the cheapest we found. We used him to transport us from the airport to the Sheraton, and then to and from the ship. Even though he didn’t personally drive us on the trips, he made an effort to visit us at our hotel post-cruise to meet us and thank us for our business. He was just as kind in person as he was over the phone. Color me impressed!

 

I know there have been many mixed reviews on Pier 91, and mine (unfortunately) will be similar. Normally, I wouldn’t spend so much time on the terminal, but since it’s new and people have been wondering what it’s like inside, I will post some photos of it. The terminal itself is gorgeous, and the staff inside is very friendly and helpful - the main issue is the traffic mess outside of it.

Firstly, the idea to only have one road in and out of the terminal area is incredibly ill-advised. Our driver managed to skirt some traffic by using an alternate entrance, but we still became stuck in a traffic jam as we approached the horseshoe road near the terminal. I can only imagine how nerve-wracking it would be to be in a taxi stuck in this traffic mess. For that reason alone I would definitely choose the towncar route again. After about 10min, we got as close to the terminal as we were going to get and got out with our bags.

Our first glimpse of Star Princess (and the single road leading into Pier 91)

 

We arrived at 10:15, as we like to board the ship as early as we can. We did expect there to be some passengers still lingering after disembarkation, but certainly not the volume of people that were there. People were everywhere, waiting for car services and taxis. There is a narrow yellow canopy in the center, and the right side is for shuttle/towncars and the left is for private car/taxis. Pickup and dropoff are in the same place. There are cement barricades on either side, primarily there to keep people out of traffic. The crowd was so thick you could hardly fight your way through it.

 

The first porter I found was very gruff when I asked for help, and told me I “wasn’t supposed to be here, come back later”. Not a good first impression. Finally I was able to snag another porter who was only slightly less disgruntled than the first one. All the porters have luggage carts. You must cross two short crosswalks with crossing guards to get to the terminal. In this shot you can see the other side of the canopy, which is for taxi pickups. Princess is on the left,

 

and HAL’s Westerdam is on the right.

 

You can see the cement barriers and crosswalk in this shot.

Once inside the terminal, there are open doors leading onto the pier. Your luggage goes out one of those doors (hopefully, if you don’t have a disgruntled porter) and you continue up the escalator or elevator. The walls here are to separate the HAL and Princess pax, though you all continue up the same escalator. Watch out for the floor in here, it can be slippery for those who aren't steady.

[Infi]

Once upstairs, there’s a narrow hallway with some offices. First you’ll go through the metal detectors and show your documentation to a terminal employee. Again, left (foreground) is Princess and right (background) is HAL.

 

 

There are plenty of check-in desks, all of which were empty and ready because it was so early. There is one separate desk for Platinum/elite and one for international travelers. As you can see, the terminal is extremely clean and fresh-looking. The Port of Seattle did a great job on the interior.

 

 

Looking back on the Princess side of the check-in area. The chairs behind the red rope are supposedly for platinum/elite, though they allowed anyone to sit there. Also note the young woman in the red polo by the boxes. She hands out the wonderful (free!) Alaska coupon book for use in all the ports. If you take a single piece of information out of this review, here it is: GET THIS COUPON BOOK. It has great coupons for freebies, %s off and sale prices, and gifts when you buy a certain $ amount. Our last two trips to Alaska were out of Vancouver, where this coupon book is well-hidden in the terminal, we’re lucky we even found it. In Seattle the young woman was practically begging people to take it from her. If you’re planning to do souvenir shopping, this book is a must. This one is FAR better than the coupon book they try to sell you onboard. Don’t leave Seattle without it!

 

 

Here is the seating area, which is shared by both cruise lines. I’d guess there are about 250 seats here, definitely not enough for pax from both ships. On the plus side, this means the port is almost obligated to get passengers on as quickly as possible, as the waiting area simply can’t hold many people. Or so I thought....

 

 

Another view, almost full of passengers:

[Infi]

As you can see, there is no separation here. On the right is the cubicle wall separating the two sides’ checkins. HAL’s side had refreshments and a clock stating when boarding would start, which I thought was a nice touch. I just can’t help wondering how often people get mixed up and try to board the wrong ship!

 

As the area began to get more crowded, the terminal staff decided to encourage people to go outside and line up on the balcony. Many people took them up on this, probably thinking they would be among the first onboard. There is no priority boarding for platinum/elite here, everyone fends for himself. The staff promised everyone boarding would start “in 15 minutes”. We heard them say this to unsuspecting pax for about an hour before any boarding actually occurred. I guess this is their way of dealing with the limited seating at the terminal! It was very overcast and windy outside and the staff kept the doors open, so we had plenty of unneeded “A/C” in the terminal. DD, upon hearing that Seattle’s high for the day was 75, decided to wear shorts and a tshirt for embarkation, which was definitely NOT a good idea. I think she learned a lesson about weather in the Pacific Northwest! Even my relatives from Chicago felt chilled. You can see the line of people and the balcony in this shot.

 

Boarding actually began at about 11:45am, long after the staff had sent people to stand outside. This is the gangway. It’s a series of about three slight inclines and is not enclosed.

 

The last portion of the gangway is enclosed and flat.

 

Another view:

 

Finally aboard and looking back at Pier 91!

[JSWalk]

Infi,

 

Great photos and information on the Pier. I really appreciate it even though I am on the Golden in August, we leave from the same pier. Thanks again for taking the time to post. I do have one question, like you we like to board as early as possible, but there are 8 of us arriving in 2 private cars that we will need to park, do you think it would be smarter to show up around noon for less crowds?

[judyfssw]

Great Pictures. I've been to Alaska 3 times - all on Celebrity. Looking forward to knowing what Princess offers. Bring us more!

[mii]

I was on the Golden this past may and there was a separation of platinum and Elite sitting areas. It was not the large area of the terminal; it was off to the side. We also got there too early but we just hauled our luggage to the terminal as the porters were still helping prior passengers off of the ship. so we just did it ourselves.

 

Marilyn

[cruznon]

Thank you for the photos and info. We have heard so much about the crowds and traffic. So it seems arriving too early can be problematic....with many still trying to depart.

 

Terminal looks "nice" but seating area looks incredibly inadequate--especially considering all that open space available.

[alejules]

I was on the 6-13-09 Golden sailing out of Seattle. We arrived at the pier at about 11:15-11:30 and found that there was no traffic or waiting at all. All of the passengers that had disembarked were gone and very few folks were arriving. In my opinion it was the perfect time to arrive. We were on the ship at noon enjoying the afternoon.

[Gator83]

I would like to know if there is much to see during sailaway and a few hours after that. I am thinking of eating at the buffet instead of the DR so that I can see the scenery but I want to know if it is worth it.

 

Thanks

[magictam]

I'm truely enjoying your review and the pictures. We'll be returning to Alaska in August for our 2nd visit but our first Princess experience. We've enjoyed 2 HAL and 2 Carnival cruises so far.

Please share all you know about Princess, especially the Star.

Thank you, Tammie

[themerle]

I'm enjoying your review. I'll check back for more! Thanks for sharing with us

[Billy and Charlie's Mum]

Love a story in pictures. Well done! More, more, more..........:D

[Lynda90]

Looking forward to more installments. Love a story with pictures. I thought pier 91 had the worst embarkation and disembarkation of any pier I've been to. Long lines weaving around outside waiting to get in and for taxi after cruise. But, everything else was fabulous! :p

[Infi]

Infi,

 

Great photos and information on the Pier. I really appreciate it even though I am on the Golden in August, we leave from the same pier. Thanks again for taking the time to post. I do have one question, like you we like to board as early as possible, but there are 8 of us arriving in 2 private cars that we will need to park, do you think it would be smarter to show up around noon for less crowds?

 

Thanks for your kind comments. I was hoping future cruisers would find the terminal section helpful. While we didn't use private cars, I would recommend arriving a little later than we did...closer to 11 than 10. By then you're almost guaranteed everyone disembarking should be gone, and they won't be tying up the parking shuttles either. They really discourage people from walking to the parking lot (I don't know if I'd want to either, with all that trafic mess), so you will have to take the shuttles back. It might even be easier to just leave two of your party with the two cars and wait for them to arrive at the terminal. The main chaos, I found, was from all the traffic on that single road and trying to embark while most were disembarking. If I had to do it over again, I would have arrived later than I did - cruise blasphemy, I know, but true!

 

Great Pictures. I've been to Alaska 3 times - all on Celebrity. Looking forward to knowing what Princess offers. Bring us more!

 

Will do! From one Celebrity fan to another - I hope you enjoy your cruise on the Star...she's a lovely ship.

 

I was on the Golden this past may and there was a separation of platinum and Elite sitting areas. It was not the large area of the terminal; it was off to the side. We also got there too early but we just hauled our luggage to the terminal as the porters were still helping prior passengers off of the ship. so we just did it ourselves.

 

Marilyn

 

Marilyn, yes, you're right - there was a separate seating area for platinum/elite. On our embarkation day, they filled up the area with wheelchair passengers. I don't mind that - they need the more accessible area more than I do - but I was surprised that there was no call for priority boarding for platinum/elite. Oh well, it's minor and it doesn't make or break a cruise, even if it is nice.

[Infi]

Thank you for the photos and info. We have heard so much about the crowds and traffic. So it seems arriving too early can be problematic....with many still trying to depart.

Terminal looks "nice" but seating area looks incredibly inadequate--especially considering all that open space available.

 

You're very welcome, I'm glad others are finding the photos helpful. The terminal is very nice, but the seating...well, they sure could use some more of it! I was pretty surprised when I saw it. It's just not enough for one ship, much less two.

 

I was on the 6-13-09 Golden sailing out of Seattle. We arrived at the pier at about 11:15-11:30 and found that there was no traffic or waiting at all. All of the passengers that had disembarked were gone and very few folks were arriving. In my opinion it was the perfect time to arrive. We were on the ship at noon enjoying the afternoon.

 

I think you're exactly right - 11 might just be the perfect arrival time. After the disembarking crowds but before the embarkation crowds. Live and learn, I suppose!

 

I would like to know if there is much to see during sailaway and a few hours after that. I am thinking of eating at the buffet instead of the DR so that I can see the scenery but I want to know if it is worth it.

Thanks

 

We had early traditional seating (which begins at 5:30), but considering the ship leaves at 4, I don't feel like we missed a lot of sailaway. By that time I felt most of the interesting sites had passed by. The naturalist will narrate a bit after you leave Seattle, and you'll see a lot of Washington coastline. If you have anytime, you can always go later if you want to stay out on deck longer.

[Infi]

I'm truely enjoying your review and the pictures. We'll be returning to Alaska in August for our 2nd visit but our first Princess experience. We've enjoyed 2 HAL and 2 Carnival cruises so far.

 

Please share all you know about Princess, especially the Star.

 

Thank you, Tammie

 

Thanks! I'll try my best to include Princess-specific details, and hope you enjoy your cruise on the Star.

 

I'm enjoying your review. I'll check back for more! Thanks for sharing with us

 

You're welcome - glad you're enjoying the review!

[Infi]

Love a story in pictures. Well done! More' date=' more, more..........:D[/quote']

 

More is on its way! Slowly but surely. :)

 

Looking forward to more installments. Love a story with pictures. I thought pier 91 had the worst embarkation and disembarkation of any pier I've been to. Long lines weaving around outside waiting to get in and for taxi after cruise. But, everything else was fabulous! :p

 

Thanks, Lynda. I've seen reviews with photos on other boards and enjoyed them, so I decided to try one of my own. I agree with you about Pier 91. There's just so much confusion and traffic jams, it's awful. Once you're inside the terminal, it's fine, but outside is really rough.

[Infi]

Now that the business of Pier 91 is out of the way, onto the ship itself. They had two security stations, one at the midship entrance and one at the aft entrance. Because our cabins were at the aft end, we used that one and it was much faster than the midship one where everyone else was going in. Make sure to smile for the camera when you insert your cruise card here!

 

Our cabins were A709 and A705, category BC, covered balconies. This is the highest deck of balconies (in the aft, there are some forward balconies on the Lido deck above), so you look down on all the other open and partially covered balconies. We would have liked having next door cabins so the balcony dividers could be opened, but the cabin in between us was taken. These cabins are right off of the elevator area, and we never heard any noise from traffic or the elevators. It was a very convenient location. There is a bit more motion being so high up in the ship, but nothing problematic. Finally, being so far aft means that you may occasionally feel a rumbling from the ship’s thrusters, but again, this is nothing major. On our first Princess cruise, we had an outside, which we almost preferred because there was more living space in the room.

But, for Alaska, a balcony is a must. I can’t begin to describe how many great sights we saw from the balcony – it was well worth it!

 

Hallway from door into the cabin:

 

 

Closet area, immediately to your right when you enter. Plenty of room for hanging clothes, and we stashed suitcases on the floor as well. There’s also a tall cabinet with about 6 or 7 deep shelves and the safe next to the closet.

 

 

Bathroom, also immediately on your right:

 

 

Beds, separated into twins. There’s not much room between these (about a forearm’s length), so hopefully you like your travel companion!

 

 

Desk, desk chair, and one of the nightstands:

 

 

Armchair and the balcony, with two chairs, a footrest, and a large table:

[Infi]

Next up: lunch in the Horizon Court. Though it was barely after 12, the HC filled up very quickly. The best plan of attack for this area is to get one member of your party to hold a table while the rest of you get your meals, and then trade off. The food in the HC is not my favorite, but it’s passable for buffet food. Even after seeing the HC layout and seating on a smaller ship as compared to the Emerald, I still think it’s inadequate for the amount of people aboard. The HC was very busy at all hours on this cruise, due to the number of early shore excursions and large groups who just plain camped out there daily to watch the scenery go by (this was especially an issue on Tracy Arm day). There were notes posted about this in the patter – “the Horizon Court is a dining facility, not an observation lounge” – but no one paid them any heed.

 

The servery, taken late at night on the closed side. The islands in the background are for hot dishes, the center islands are the salad bar and breads/cheeses, and the islands on the left are for fruit and desserts.

 

 

Horizon Court seating, also taken late at night:

 

 

DD (the photographer)’s lunch. No trays on Princess, so there are very large plates. Only problem with the plates is that they get filled way too easily!

 

 

And dessert…not as delicious as it may appear. The little chocolate pecan bars (cousins of the chocolate pecan pie in the DR perhaps?) were great, though. Please note the glass of lemonade in the photo. This, to my daughter, was the highlight of her embarkation day. On our last cruise on the Emerald, both of us (but especially my daughter) were refused lemonade every time we asked for it. The servers constantly told us it wasn’t available and pushed us to buy the ultimate kids’ card instead. It was frustrating, to say the least. It was such a pleasure to ask the servers on the Star for lemonade and have them bring it without any fuss. Sometimes it was even in pitchers at the serving stations. There also were signs posted at the drink stations indicating its availability, so kudos to Princess for that. DD was thrilled to finally try it and says the lemonade is wonderful.

 

 

Muster drill was held at 3:15 in the Vista lounge. I think the other stations were the Princess theater, Explorers, and the Wheelhouse, because I remember them all being on deck 7. I really like how Princess does their muster drills – no unnecessary trip outside, and you don’t put your jacket on until the very end of the drill. Most of the time I feel people are so interested in playing with the lifejackets that they don’t pay attention to the drill itself. The crew even corrected people who put their jackets on before it was time.

[bragstarr]

Leaving in three weeks on Star to Alaska and my first Princess cruise. Any and all information appreciated; would love to see Patters and Menus. We are also staying in an BC although Forward on Aloha rather than aft.

 

Were those blueberry (cheese?) blintzes I saw on the buffet plate?

 

Note to self: look for lady in terminal with red shirt.

[Billy and Charlie's Mum]

Thank you for your picture story - much more enjoyable than just text. Feel like you are actually there.

 

"Please sir I want some more?"

[i_love_cruising]

I agree, I am really enjoying this review and can't wait for more!

[Solstice23]

Thanks for the review, as you can see my wife and I love Celebrity also they just suit us best!

 

But we are going on the Caribbean Princess this August for Canada New England and looking forward to it, but then its back to X and the Solstice in March! we will slip in a princess or rccl cruise every so often...but will always be based as X customers

[PeggySand]

Thanks, loving the great pictures with the written descriptions! Hubby & I will be on the Star for the October 2009 30-night cruise from Sydney to Los Angeles, so we will have lots of time to get to know this ship. Please keep this review going, ok?

 

Peggy

[Infi]

Leaving in three weeks on Star to Alaska and my first Princess cruise. Any and all information appreciated; would love to see Patters and Menus. We are also staying in an BC although Forward on Aloha rather than aft.

Were those blueberry (cheese?) blintzes I saw on the buffet plate?

Note to self: look for lady in terminal with red shirt.

 

My daughter is working her way through the photos, but as soon as she does, I'll post the link to them. If you can't wait, I do have some menus posted in my signature from our last cruise. A lot of the menus were the same, so those might help you some.

Yes, those were blueberry blintzes on the buffet plate! Good eye. They were very good, almost dessert-like.

Definitely look for the red polo woman! Chances are she will find you first, as she couldn't give those coupon books away fast enough...she tried to give one to my daughter three times!

 

Thank you for your picture story - much more enjoyable than just text. Feel like you are actually there.

"Please sir I want some more?"

 

Thank you! Putting pictures in is a little more time consuming' date=' but it makes the review much better, I think, so it's worth it. :)

 

I agree, I am really enjoying this review and can't wait for more!

 

Thank you!