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Ditto the recommendation to go whale watching in ISP. Glacier Wind company is fantastic—I go with them every time we’re in ISP. As noted previously, one could do both activities (kayaking and whale watching) in one day depending on the time you’re in port. I’ve been kayaking in Juneau, Ketchikan and ISP. All were enjoyable but my favorite was at ISP. Saw a number of whales while out in the water. The Ketchikan tours are outside of town so they involve a bit of a drive to and from. But, good fun as well. In Juneau I went on the kayaking/Mendenhall Glacier combo. Any time spent out on the water is great but that was my least favorite. My suggestion is also to take the train combo—the train one way then a tour down. We’ve used this company many times: https://chilkootcharters.com. What is it you want to do in the rainforest? Ketchikan has some great hikes that will get you out in the rainforest as does Juneau.

What hotel have you booked in SF? Please let us know so we can help with suggestions about getting there and then on to the pier.

We have cruised in Alaska every year (except dur8ng the shutdown) in May since 2009. May is our favorite month because of the lack of rain! Tad bit chilly at times but minimal rain. I asked my husband if he remembers if it ever rained during a May cruise. He could recall it raining once— and that was in Ketchikan. Our wettest Alaskan cruises have been in July. OP, my suggestion is to look at those cruises in late May/early June. The weather has been consistently good for us. We are booked for our first cruise this summer in late May.

It is a scenic train ride from Whittier to Anchorage. Since you’re only in that part of Alaska for that one travel day, you might want to look into taking bus with add ons. There are bus transfers from Whittier to Anchorage that will make stops at the Alaskan Wildlife Center (opportunity to see bears, moose, caribou etc), Alyeska Resort (scenic tram, lunch), other scenic stops along the way (Beluga Point, Portage Glacier) in addition to touring Anchorage before an airport drop off. A couple of companies we have used are the ACT Big Bus and Salmon Berry Tours. The Salmon Berry tour is small (about 12 people) so one can customize the stops. https://alaskacruisetransfer.com/whittier-tours/ https://www.salmonberrytours.com/alaska-tours/cruise-transfers/ Both companies will pick you up at the dock.

I bring a travel French press and just get the hot water from the buffet. That usually lasts me until the cafe opens.

Hubby has found numerous ducks onboard a Princess ship—me, not a single one! He’s tall (6’4”) and has been able to see ducks that have been place up high. We take them to our cabin and ask our steward if he/she/they want the ducks. If not, then we put them back. They’re cute and certainly elicit a smile.

Since you’re on a southbound cruise, my suggestion is to go on the 26 Glacier Cruise offered by Phillips out of Whittier (HAL may also offer it as an excursion). It is a spectacular cruise. You will get that up close glacier viewing. The glacier cruise docks adjacent to your HAL vessel so it’s easy to embark and start your southbound journey. https://phillipscruises.com/26-glacier-cruise/#

It’s a limit of 5 gift cards per month per email regardless of value. So one can purchase $2500 per month. We buy 10 per month using mine and my hubby’s email accounts. You should be able to view your account by logging on to Princess with your confirmation number. If not, you might have to call Princess to link it. I have used your TA before and have been able to access my cruise. And yes, sometimes the website is wonky and I’ve had to call Princess to apply the gift cards. You cannot prepay crew gratuities with a Princess gift card. If you want to do so, you have to apply the gift cards to your account while on the cruise. BTW, one is not suppose to mention who one uses as a travel agent. Just refer to your TA as a big box company.

The AARP gift cards are located in the Rewards Center not the main website. One does not have to be a member to purchase the Princess Cruise cards (other cruise lines like HAL you have to be a member). The cards are e-cards delivered to your email and are limited to 5 per month per email. Once purchased you can apply them to your balance online, through your TA (if applicable) or directly through Princess. Keep in mind though that if you cancel the cruise, the monies go back to the gift cards. Just be sure to keep the cards (with the PINs) until after the cruise! We also take these gift cards on a cruise and use them to pay off our onboard account at the end. Nice to be able to get 8% off everything!

You can go to your Princess Cruise personalizer and pre-pay for gratuities. Just log on to your account and click on the Payment tab. Gratuities are $16 pp interiors, ocean view balconies. More if you’re in reserve class or suites. A strategy that we use to save money is to purchase AARP gift cards for Princess—you save 8% (i.e., you buy a $500 card for $460). We buy OBC ahead of time or just apply the cards on our account while on board. Internet is about $25 per day now. You can buy it on board and then apply any OBC to offset the cost. One can purchase it by the day or the week. I don’t think you can buy it precruise ? Not sure—we always wait to purchase it on board due to a loyalty discount.

On our January 2024 cruise on the Crown, we got the Elite discount back on our OBC during the cruise. Said shore excursion discount. We had used the shareholders OBC to book a tour prior to embarkation.

I use this site in researching obstructed views. It’ll give you an idea of what’s an obstructed view on the Sapphire. Though keep in mind you don’t have the ability to chose a cabin—and there is a pretty wide spectrum! https://www.cruisedeckplans.com/ships/ov.php?ship=Sapphire-Princess&cabins=E600-E633

I’ve been on this tour through NCL (also had excursion credit to use up). Note that the tour does NOT say a bear tour. When we went, we did not see any wildlife (other than birds). It was a lovely walk but don’t go expecting to see bears and count yourself lucky if you do see bears/wildlife. Took a bus from the port, walked about a mile (both wooden board walk and dirt trails). There were viewing sites overlooking the river (more like a creek). Not strenuous at all and it was nice gett8ng out of town. Would I do it again? No. We have been on several bear tours while in ISP— as with all wildlife tours, there are no guarantees! On one trip, we saw about 10 bears, another saw none and one we saw more bears wandering around town than on the tour. These days, in ISP, we just go with Glacier Winds on a whale watching tour.

Absolutely! I also use CrewChat to comment on improvements/great service during the cruise as well! (That in addition to using the post cruise survey.)

I think it’s great that Princess is actively looking to improve guests’ experiences while on board. I however do not wait for an ‘undercover boss’ to approach me if I receive bad/poor food or service while on board. I am celiac so I need to have gf food available—sometimes there is not the attention to provide tasty and fresh gf food. If I get something that is subpar, I use CrewChat if I feel that the issue is not resolved by the staff at the venue. I politely inform GS of the issue (i.e.,hockey puck gf muffins at the IC, no gf syrup at the MDR), usually receive a same-day response from the appropriate department and then, many times, receive a follow up call. Once while talking to a supervisor, I told him that the item was so bad that they needed to use a different recipe. Two days later, I had a delivery to my room with freshly made muffins and a note asking me what I thought about the new recipe!

My recommendation is to NOT walk into town or get on the bus line from Ward Cove. It is not pedestrian-friendly! No sidewalks, busy traffic. Take the cruise-line free shuttle into town. Once in town, you can explore the area—take the public bus to the totem park, go to the Totem Heritage center, visit Creek Street, visit the science museum, see the Lumberjack show or go on a hike. Docking at Ward Cove is one of the many reasons I will not sail on NCL in Alaska. Just a pain to get into town. Port times in Ketchikan are sometimes short—it takes port time away getting to/from downtown. Booking a tour with NCL will get you on an early shuttle; some private companies will pick you up at Ward Cove. Just ask.

Ditto the advice to explore Holland America and Princess cruises for access to Glacier Bay. In addition, both cruise lines will have many enrichment programs/activities on board that will make your Alaskan cruise extra special. I know most will tell you that you have to have a balcony/veranda on an Alaskan cruise but you and your mom will still have a wonderful cruise even if staying an interior cabin. There will be outdoor viewing areas for Glacier Bay as well observational lounges for views. Also by staying in a more economical cabin may free up funds for excursions. We have cruised Alaska in a wide variety of cabins (interior, ocean view, balcony, mini suite)—never had a bad cruise! If financially you can swing it, try to cruise out of Vancouver. You’ll find that the port times and scenery are better than a cruise out of Seattle. Enjoy!

I thought so too but after I said no, the survey ended. It was weird…

I got the survey this morning as well. I was asked to video tape my responses to three questions…….never have had a survey that asked that required that!

I too enjoy the coffee served in the Lido. My problem is that it is rarely put out for guests until about 5 a.m. in the morning. Yes, I'm a morning person and like to have my coffee first thing (about 4:30 a.m.). I bring Starbucks Via (freeze-dried) on board for early mornings--just add hot water! It works until the Dutch Cafe opens or coffee is available in the Lido.

Yes, but AARP sends digital cards not physical ones.

I always check the port times on an Alaskan cruise. That sometimes helps me decide which cruise/itinerary to book! Not a frequent traveler to the Caribbean so I generally book based on itinerary.

And taking the tram to Mt Roberts in Juneau is less than $100-200 per person! OP, there are a number of activities to do in port that won’t break the bank! I would recommend splurging on a whale watching tour while in Juneau. It will be your best opportunity to see whales. That being said, you might be able to see whales from the ship during the cruise. This past summer, we had many whale sightings from the ships. One of our favorite was watching a whale from the back of the ship while in port in Ketchikan. It was frolicking around and was a joy to watch! In Ketchikan, I also recommend taking the public bus out to Totem Bight Park (we’ve done it a couple of times). Also while in town, you can walk to the Totem Heritage Center ($6 pp), visit the Tongass Museum, watch the salmon in Creek Street (depending on the month) and stop in at the Science Discovery Center. Skagway has great hikes of varying difficulties. I also recommend downloading All Trails but you can also stop by the visitor center for a map. We like to hike to the Lower Dewey Falls, Yakutania Point/Smuggler’s Cove, and the cemetery. There is the Klondike National Park as well that offers exhibits and Ranger-led tours for $1 pp. We’ll take a hike in the morning, have lunch at the Skagway Brewery and then take another walk afterwards. I love Victoria but I suspect your ship will be visiting the port in the early evening for just a couple of hours. There will be shuttles to downtown—I think about $5 pp? We’ve never taken them but prefer to walk into town. It takes about 20 minutes. If you have more time, the Hop On/Hop Off bus is an economical option. Alternatively, you could turn right out of the port area and just walk along the sea walk visiting the Ogden Point Breakwater. Beacon Hill Park is also a nice place to visit. Enjoy your planning!

So do we! We also each get a birthday cruise each year.

We took Amtrak to SD for our Thanksgiving cruise this past November on embarkation day. Arrived in SD around 1 pm, walked to the pier and then boarded. That being said, I did have back up plans—one-way car rental reservation, Metrolink, and Uber (would have cost us $150 from Anaheim to SD). We frequently take Amtrak to SD from Northern California—we usually travel the day before, stay at the Springhill Suites or BW, walk to dinner in Little Italy, and then walk to the pier. This past November was the first time taking Amtrak the day off but since we were only going a couple of hours, I wasn’t too worried. We always take Amtrak from our home in the East Bay to our SF cruises the day off. Only once did we end up taking an Uber ($120) to the port. We also like to take Amtrak the day we get off the ship in SD. The Surfliner leaves around 10 am—plenty of time for a last breakfast in the MDR, a stop at a deli for a bagged lunch before leaving.