disneyochem

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.

Submitted a request via Stockperks yesterday for our June 2024 cruise. Got the approval by midnight. What I like about the app is that I can use it for getting OBC for Princess as well as HAL. No need (for me) to keep track of the OBC for two different cruise lines. It’s easy to find/use on the app. (I submitted a PDF with all of the important/personal info blacked out. Onc I was uploaded, I’ve been able to use the same document for both lines.)

Not only will you find it safe to walk, but the hotel also offers a free shuttle to the depot (at least it did last year!). Lots of great places to eat in Anchorage that are within walking distance of the hotel. It is an uphill walk to downtown though. We usually walk to dinner and then Uber back. We like the Glacier Brewhouse, Humpy’s, Simon & Seafort and the 49th State Brewery name a few. My recommendation is to get reservations if possible!

Let me give you my opinion about the differences between the two cruise lines in Alaska—go with Princess. Princess has a fantastic destination enrichment program onboard. There will be Alaskan food, drinks (using Alaskan sourced products), lectures, music, totem carving (on some ships), wildlife lectures to name a few. They don’t do any of this on NCL. There might be a wildlife expert on board but not guaranteed. Both cruise lines will have US park rangers on board during your Glacier Bay visit. You said this Alaska cruise will probably be ‘your one and done.’ It also sounds like you are willing to pay for unique (and $$$) experiences in Alaska. So the advice being given from folks who love Alaska and want you to fall in love with her is worth considering! Try to cruise out of Vancouver for better port times to enjoy those excursions. Cruising on a smaller ship will also give you an opportunity to cruise the Inside Passage which is worth the effort to cruise out of Vancouver. Whatever you decide, enjoy your cruise and planning!

And for most cruise lines, this means Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway port stops.

We’ve done the transfer from Seattle to Vancouver a number of times using different modes of transportation—bus, train, flight, rental car! (We have friends/family in Seattle and Portland so we sometimes we like to fly in early, spend the day with them and then head north.) There are two Amtrak trains that leave Seattle daily—8:30 am and 6 pm. My advice is to take train rather than an Amtrak bus. It’s much more comfortable and scenic! You can hop on the light rail from SeaTac and get off near the King Street Station. Once in Vancouver, you can Uber ($15-20 USD) to your hotel or hop on the Sky Train. We like to stay near Canada Place so it’s a short walk to the pier the next morning. I recommend Quick Shuttle if you want to take the bus. It’s a bit longer than a cruise line transfer but it will also deliver you directly to Canada Place. I would also look into flying to Bellingham, WA. The shuttle makes a stop there and sometimes we’ve found good prices on flights. https://quickcoach.com/ A one-way car rental is also an option. We’ve picked up a car at SeaTac, driven to the Vancouver Airport and took the Sky Train to the downtown area. Depending on the size of your travel party, it might be a money-saving option. We do this when traveling with 4 or more—works out cheaper per person. Of course, as mentioned previously, it is much more convenient to just fly into Vancouver. I frequently use airline miles/points to fly from SeaTac to Vancouver. I always get a pencil out and compare costs! We have a number of Alaskan cruises out of Vancouver this summer—two of those trips were flying to Seattle. Saved us over $700 to do so! I also track flight prices to compare costs.

Lots of great advice! I want to give you some feedback on our experience riding Amtrak. We frequently take Amtrak from the Sacramento area to LA and San Diego for cruises. Once in LA, we just Uber to San Pedro and stay at the Crowne Plaza Hotel and walk to port the next day. Round trip cost for two on Amtrak is around $200 and is about 7 hours each way. Cost of Uber normally costs us about $70-100 (RT to/from port). So it generally costs us about $300 in travel costs to sail out of San Pedro. (For a San Diego cruise, we get on the Pacific Surf Liner and stay the night in San Diego.) The worst part about the Amtrak journey is the bus transfer from Bakersfield to LA over the Grapevine. So you go from the train to a bus to an Uber. It works for us since we travel light. After cruise, we also just Uber to the train station and do the journey in reverse. Hubby is tall (over six feet) and really enjoys being able to walk around and stretch during the journey. Amtrak does experience frequent delays so be sure to build that into your planning (or have a Plan B). For our last cruise out of San Pedro, I priced out the cost of a one-way car rental (our home town to LAX) and ended up just driving and then Ubering to the port. Cost a bit more than Amtrak (about $100 more) but it was convenient for that particular trip. For our April 2024 cruise, we’re taking Amtrak both ways.