FTPCruiser

BTW, Glacier Bay it is !

Thanks to all!!!

:)

One thing about glacier viewing anywhere is that by September the top cover of snow is one. Then you will see the crevasses and the blue color much better.

 

I am wondering how you are going to keep your hands over her eyes till you get to the ship.....?

She will know that we are going a 10 day cruise but will not know the destination until the day before the departure!

Last year we did our very first cruise to Mexico for 10 days and she loved it. She thinks we will be doing that again but since I know how much she wanted to see Alaska, this will be the surprise destination for her.

No brainer, GLACIER BAY, it is a National Park. While Tracy Fjord and the Glaciers at the end are beautiful they can't compare to the grandeur of Glacier Bay and why that is a National Park ;)

Thanks for your reply.

Do you mean the beauty of the Glacier Bay can be viewed from the boat or do we need to get of the boat and get on a tour?

I am planning surprise my wife with a 10 day Alaska Cruise with Princess departing from San Francisco during September.

There are 2 options offered and since this will be our first time in Alaska, I have no idea about the difference of each route.

Which one is better?

Inside passage with Tracy Fjord or Inside passage with Glacier Bay ? ....and the reasons please?

Thanks,

You must be kidding. It depends on the cruise line, but figure a decent (not "2 buck chuck") glass of wine will cost you about $10. One glass at lunch and two at dinner is $30. Add an afternoon cocktail and nightcap

with other than "well" swill and you're at $50. Our preferred line has an unlimited alcohol package for $60/day. But it has many better brands and includes the 18% tip. Basically, it amount to four drinks per day- hardly a lot on vacation.

 

 

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You may be right for a day or two or three but remember everybody in your cabin have to buy this deal.. They do not give you the choice to say I want $49/day deal but my wife doesn't drink and she doesn't want it...

Oh no! She has to buy it too.

So? at $100/day for 10 day cruise $1000 for alcohol of limited choice (not those over $10 glass beverages and other stuff included).

So it is NOT an all inclusive deal to begin with.

And even though I've been all around the world, I never remember spending $1000 just on certain mid-level quality alcoholic beverages!

Does the cabin comes with a dancer?

Or maybe that pole is what they meant when they mentioned exercise program on the brochure!

Thanks for the replies I have just done a bit of research and it looks like his passport will be fine. It's a British passport traveling within the EU except Turkey and the Turkish government web site states that no visa is required for cruise ship passengers

 

 

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I am from Turkey.

Yes Turkey doesn't require visa from cruise ship passengers and on those occasions where a Visa is required for a long term ( longer than 8 hr cruise stop at a port) type of entry to Turkey at a port or at an airport it is a "give me your passport and a $10 or $20 bill (depending on your citizenship type) and heres your Visa stamp"

It is a 2 minute process at any entry point for a U.S. or E.U. passport carrying passenger.

And yes, Turkish officials don't care how long after your trip your passport will be expiring.

Aft corner. Caribe deck. c753. Google princess c753. Best sought after balcony

Yeah I saw those two but they were not available! I am happy with D705 just by the elevators. I like easy access... Plus close to laundromat!

Thanks again!:D

 

you get no perks with a mini suite-- except the added space and a sofa.

I agree... But we are planning to spend more time in the cabin and relax on those 5 AT SEA days and relax in a quiet atmosphere.

So we needed a little larger sitting area for that.

Also for our 1st trip we tried to treat ourselves a little. But I am planning to have a Balcony room for our next trip probably!

Most sought after balcony - D733 or D732

 

Are you aware that the dolphin deck is completly opened and people above can look down into your balcony?

 

have ou considered the Emerald deck?

No I wasn't aware any of that. Like I said we are Cruise Virgins!:o

This is our first time and nobody mentioned that but to be honest I don't care if people can see our balcony from top, as long as they don't spit on top of our heads I am OK with that.

We changed the cabin to D705 just by the elevators.

And NO, Emerald Deck were not an option offered to us.

I have no idea why but the only option for a mini suite was offered us at Dolphin deck.

Thank you for the picture and info!

Thank you friends... Since being a boat Captain is my profession, motion of the boat was not an issue for me. I just wanted to be closer to the cafe, lounge like areas and therefore we changed our cabin to the aft area also close to the elevators!

Thanks again friends!

I see from your other posts that you will be on Star Princess. One of our members created a spreadsheet that can be used as an evaluation tool. It can be found here: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=43468321&postcount=205 It is based on prices in effect as of July 2014.

 

As background:

 

Just about every beverage served to you will have a base price plus a 15% gratuity added. The all-inclusive bar package is $49 per day (base price) and is sold as a cruise package (10-day cruise = $563.50)

 

The AI Bar Package is really an all-inclusive beverage package. If it comes in a cup, glass or water bottle it's included. (fresh brewed coffee, specialty coffees, premium teas, various juices, soft drinks, milk shakes and adult beverages priced $10 & under per serving)

 

This could be a money saving option if you were a heavy beverage consumer aboard ship and factor in the time you spend ashore on port days (lost drinking time).

 

Enjoy your first cruise!

I really appreciate this. Thank you very very much !!!

I know we are NOT going to get this deal(!).. But just out of curiosity let me ask this.

Let's assume that myself and my wife both (unfortunately many years older than 21) got this deal.

Does this mean we can drink like 2 fish whatever we want and wherever we want and whenever we want on the ship during our cruise for 10 days?

Again this is my first cruise and I understand things are more expensive onboard compare to Wal-Mart prices but how much it cost if you ask a diet coke during your lunch? $5, $10, $20?

Does our messages disappear from the board time to time?

You really need to read the info on your cruise ship website to see what is included and what the rules are. Most cruise lines it is $49 per day and everyone in the cabin has to buy the package.

Now got it. Thanks friends... It seems like I will pass that wonderful(!) deal...

Don't forget that $49 per day applies to port days too. Are you really going to drink $49 worth of drinks each after being on shore all day (probably drinking cheaper drinks than what you buy on the ship). This makes the package not worth the price for us.

I appreciate your help but I am completely confused on this issue.

I've made a search here as suggested but couldn't find anything related specific to this issue other than few advice how to save money buy not going to spa or buy anything on board extra...

#1) Is $49 deal for the whole trip or just for a day? I mean I am going to 10 day cruise with 5 days "at sea" time. If $49 for the whole trip it sounds like a great deal since I assume I will have normally spend over $49 in 10 days even if I try an extra coffee in the morning and a beer at evening.

#2) Or is this a package sold $49/day which means $490 for 10 day cruise and is that why you are saying it applies to the port days too?

Plus I won't leave the boat on cruise days... I chose a Cruise because I want to rest and relax while my hotel/restaurant and bar moving to different scenic locations.. My goal is not run to shore at ports and buy useless crap or go for hiking, golfing, horseback riding, scuba diving.

If I wanted that kind of vacation I'd go to a hotel in Hawaii or to a Caribbean Island.

I worked as a Captain in many ports around the worlds including in Avalon, Catalina. I never understood those people who were on a 3 or 4 night on Carnival cruise and they live across the channel in Los Angeles but when they come with a cruise ship they attack the gift shops.

Of course the same T-shirt they purchase for $30 is only $15 after the ship leaves.

There are threads about this all over these boards. Use your search feature.

 

Whether it's worth it, depends on you & how much you drink. You have to read the specifics from your cruise line to determine what's included & what is excluded.

Thanx:o

Which one is better for our 10 day cruise to Mexico?

In order to save money yet still get a cabin with a little room to move we chose a mini-suite.

But of course the cabins in the middle section of the ship were $400-$600 more expensive.

So they gave us a cabin close to the front of the boat.

But I do not like the walk all the boat length in order to get a vista cafe or some lounge where we can sit, relax and observe the scenery outside of our cabin.

Is bow cabin a good choice or should I ask to get a cabin towards the back of the boat?

Any advantages and disadvantages of being in a front or aft cabin on Star Princess????

Does it worth to get this for a 10 day cruise?

What does it include? Any and all kind of drinks all over the boat during the trip or just drinks you have with your meals or both or what?

We decided on a mini suite at Deck 9 (Dolphin) but which choice (front or back of the boat) is better in order to be close to the fun areas like vista cafe for 2 senior citizens?

What does your carpenter husband wear to weddings and funerals? :confused:

Heyyy Jesus was a carpenter and I don't remember him wearing "Dockers" !:D

She had a complicated "name change" issue which requires few other documents to be obtained before a new passport could be issued.

That was going to cause some delay. That was our worry!

Her SS Certificate and DL was already changed but the current passport had the old name.

We will be on Princess from San Francisco.

This is our first cruise and it is for 10 days from San Francisco to Mexico. Cruise lines indicates at their website that a passenger's passport to be valid at least for 6 months after the cruise ending date.

My wife's passport expires 4,5 months after the date our cruise ends.

Our cruise end date Feb 7th.. Her passport expires in May 20th.

Is this a deal breaker or just a recommendation by the cruise lines?

We are not even planning leaving the ship while at Mexico for any shore excursions...

Plus it is a "Close-loop--cruise" which begins and ends in San Francisco and since we live in the area, no International flights are involved.

Most US Residents say they don't even take their passports during these cruises and instead they use their drivers licenses+birth certificates as an ID for boarding...

Any ideas?