ChanaC

Out of curiosity, where are all the smoking areas on the Discovery? I'm not a smoker at all, but I would like to know what areas to avoid because I also hate the smell. Edit to add: Does any of the smoke from the cigar room and the casino waft into any of the other indoor public areas? The Take 5 bar/lounge looks like a cool place to hang out, but it's sandwiched between the two. Does it smell like smoke in that area?

We'll be at Hubbard Glacier. When we're out at the glacier we'll definitely be out on deck. This is more about the sea days and when leaving port. I'll brave the weather for the glaciers, but for most of the other times I rather be covered and not in the cold.

We're sailing to Alaska in just a few weeks on the Discovery Princess, and if there is one disappointing thing it's that there is no covered areas or solariums on the top deck. I've been to Alaska on Royal Caribbean and on our sea days and as we sailed in and out of ports we loved just getting a good seat by a window and watching the scenery go by, and potentially trying to spot some whales. Does anyone know where some good indoor/lower deck viewing areas with large windows might be, especially on cold, windy, or rainy days we don't want to be outside? I've tried looking at the deck plans, and on some walkthrough videos, but it's hard to get a good idea of this kind of stuff. Maybe the Vista Lounge, Crooners, or Take 5, during the day, or the World Fresh Marketplace outside of the main dining times?

I would be curious to know if they keep the special Alaska options on the Alaska sailings. I loved the idea that you don't get just the same generic menu and that they incorporated a little of the ports into the menus.

Thank you, that's a good point. This is our first Princess sailing, and we don't have a suite, so we'll not be part of that group. And I know we also have to do the muster stuff first before sitting down to eat (not that it takes very long from what I can tell). Still, it might be worth checking out! Personally I think the MDR lunch option, at least the one posted earlier in the thread, looks a little boring so this seems like more fun. And depending on how early we board we might not be hungry enough to immediately want to eat so the wait might not be too bad. Do you have to stand in the area while waiting, or do you get some kind of pager, or a notification on your phone? If we have a wait and can walk around, at least we could explore the ship a little.

I'm surprised, I would think Alfredo's/Gigi's would be busy! We're sailing on the Discovery which has Gigi's, and I heard it often gets busy for lunch, so maybe embarkation would be a good time to try it out (especially if we are able to get on the ship early). Hopefully the weather is good and we can snag an outdoor table too!

Reviving this again to see if anyone has any thoughts and opinions on this, and even on past experiences with this. We are probably booking our own transportation to Mendenhall glacier in the afternoon, but we are in port until 10pm so we are considering the salmon bake for the evening (it looks like on the day we'll be in port, the company itself has shuttles at 5:30pm and 6:30pm, and we might book directly through them). Is this also one of those excursions that can be booked at the port? Did everyone feel like it was "worth" it for what you paid? Also, we have two non-salmon eaters in our group. I see there is chicken, plus sides and desserts, but would it also be enjoyable for them to join? The area itself looks beautiful!

Thanks, good to know! Last year I also flew out of Seattle and with TSA pre I think we basically walked right through security, which was kind of amazing considering it was Memorial Day. Hopefully the line will also be good this time around, but I rather be safe than sorry. We're doing the Seattle port valet for our bags, so we don't need to worry about checking them in either.

I'll also vouch for Juneau Whale Watch. I had to email them about a change of plans two days before our excursion and they where great about responding and rebooking me. They were also very aware of our sail away time and very much kept that in mind during the excursion, which I very much appreciated. On our way to the whale watch we had a great bus driver who pointed out points of interest as we were driving and told us about her life in Juneau, which definitely added a lot to the experience.

We're sailing on kind of a unique Alaska itinerary where we depart out of Vancouver and arrive into Seattle. Once we get to Seattle, our group is split between two flights, with the first one leaving at 7:30pm. Since we have late flights we have a lot of time to wander around Seattle before leaving. What would you suggest for a group of adults to do for seven-ish hours (assuming we leave the ship around 10:00 or 11:00 and we depart for the airport around 5:30)? I've been looking at maybe leaving the ship and heading to the Space Needle to check that out, and maybe do the Museum of Pop Culture and/or the Chuihuly Gardens since they are all next to each other. Then maybe in the afternoon heading to Pike Place Market to get lunch and snack and shop around before heading to the airport. Luckily with the Seattle port valet we can send our bags out to the airport the night before on the ship so we'll just carry backpacks. This is all touristy, but two in our group have never been to Seattle, and two of us have only been once so we don't mind playing tourist for the day, and really just staying busy. Does this seem like a decent plan? Anything else we should consider?

Thank you! I'm actually also flying Los Angeles to Vancouver! I've never actually flown into Canada before. Is there anything I should know ahead of time?

Thanks all. I'll take another look at the Deadliest Catch excursion but admittedly our whole family has taken a look at all the excursions and this didn't really stand out to anyone, and it might be out of our budget a bit.

For Ketchikan, we're mostly playing it by ear. As of now we have nothing booked and want to just walk around the town and explore, and since we'll be there in early May we want to see how the weather holds up before committing to something outdoors. However, we're also potentially interested in the lumberjack show and maybe the duck boat tour. Has anyone ever bought tickets for either day of? Does the duck boat tour have one of those kiosks at the port? From my research the lumberjack show doesn't often sell out and tickets are available at their box office, and it looks like there are three showtimes on our port day. But it also looks like there will be four ships in port on our day, so for both I'm worried about how fast they sell out, even if we are very early into the season. I know the "smart" plan would be to book this all in advance, but if we wait until the last minute will we still potentially be okay?

Just as a thought, although it seems like you already did a lot of research into this, but Jupiter to Boca to Miami is all pretty spread out. It's about an hour drive north of Boca to Jupiter, then about an hour to an hour and half (depending on traffic) down to Miami. If you are spending a lot of time in Jupiter for spring training, you might want to stay closer to Jupiter and hang out in that area, then make one big drive down to Miami for the cruise. As for what to do in Boca and the surrounding area, I already see a lot of good options. Some other choices: - Going to the beach in Delray or Deerfield Beach. No sure where you are staying in Boca, but there are not a lot of public beaches and some require a parking fee in their lots. Delray (to the north) or Deerfield (directly to the south) have lots of metered parking directly on the beach. Deerfield is less popular but there are still a couple of restaurants in walking distance and their is a nice large fishing pier you can just sightsee on for a couple of bucks. Both Delray and Deerfield have restaurants with ocean views, which doesn't really exist in Boca. Also in Deerfield are a couple of restaurants on the intercoastal so you can watch the boats go by. - Take a intercoastal waterway boat tour in Delray Beach. You'll see a lot of nice houses. - Visit Green Cay Nature Center in Boynton Beach to walk on a raised boardwalk over wetlands to look at local wildlife (like birds and sometimes gators).

Last year we cruised in and out of Seattle with the obligatory stopover in Victoria on the way back. We were told to use the Arrive Canada app ahead of time, which we did. Now we are cruising to Alaska again this year, but leaving out of Vancouver, and we are flying to Van from the US a few days before the ship leaves to explore the city a bit. It currently says on the official Canada website "This optional feature is for travellers who want to save time at certain Canadian international airports by providing their customs and immigration declaration to the CBSA in advance." Does anyone know how much time it really saves? It there something you show immigration officials on your phone at customs along with your passport? If you don't use it, is there just some form you get on the plane to fill out? If anyone has flown into Canada from the US (or anywhere else internationally) recently I would love to know what your experience with or without the app was like!

I never cleared customs before at LAX so I can't speak to that, but I will say the Flyaway is a great option. If you haven't already, check out the schedule. If you arrive at 3:00, and let's say it takes you an hour and a half to deplane, go through customs, and grab your bag, you should be able to make the 4:40pm bus. As a note, that 4:40 is when it gets to the first terminal at LAX and B is four terminals in, so it will probably get to you closer to 4:45-4:50ish, depending how many people they pick up. I've found the buses to be pretty consistent and clean, and the drivers will load your bag into the bottom storage of the bus and take it out for you. It usually takes 30-60 minutes to get to Union Station, which yes is a big gap but that's kind of how traffic is in LA. Weekend traffic is usually better so I think you'll be fine, and will probably get to Union Station around 5:30, which admittedly is cutting is close but is still doable. Are you taking Amtrak? You might want to look up what later trains there are, just in case. There is an Amtrak ticketing booth so if you do miss a train you can talk to a human and hopefully get everything sorted out (I assume, I admittedly haven't used Amtrak before). Two things I would consider though. First, the bus is usually a motorcoach type, and has a set of stairs to get up it. If your husband has a walking stick, would he be able to take a large step from the curb to the bus, then be able to go up 3-4 stairs? It says here you can call and request a wheelchair accessible bus if you need it, but from my memory not every bus is accessible. Second, Union Station has a couple of different levels. From the bus plaza at street level you have to go downstairs to the pedestrian walkway, then back up to the train platform (map here). There are lots of ramps and elevators, but I just want you to be aware of this. Also, there are multiple platforms and sometimes you have to walk a bit from the bus plaza to the train platform. This might be hard if you are dragging heavy suitcases and with your husband and his walking stick, and especially if you are going up one of the steep ramps. Once again, this may all be fine, but thought I would let you know!

Apologies if this is a stupid question, I just want to be 100% sure on this. We purchased the Princess Plus drink package (we booked the sailing and the "old" version of the package before the recent changes, if that makes a difference). We should get all drinks, including specialty coffees and alcoholic drinks, included, up to $12. My question is if this also included drinks purchased on the medallion app? For example, if I wanted a specialty tea drink delivered to my room in the morning, would I have to pay extra for it? I'm almost sure the answer is "yes," but once again I wanted to check before getting on board, ordering stuff on the app, and then realizing I had a huge bill. And off this question, on the medallion app can you add notes and requests about the drink? For example, would I be able to ask for a matcha latte with a milk alternative instead of dairy milk, or ask for a plain hot tea to come with some honey?

I'm also on a Princess cruise to Hubbard and I also don't see an excursion for it. On a previous Alaska cruise with Royal Caribbean we did Dawes Glacier in the morning and Juneau in the afternoon. We booked that excursion and after we viewed the glacier the excursion boat took us to Juneau, vs getting back on the ship and sailing back. The tour company was based out of Juneau, so going back Juneau was also them ending their day and bringing the boat back to its dock. Our Hubbard glacier day is on it's own with no other port that day. I'm wondering if they don't offer excursions because it's hard for the tour companies to come out and just turn back around without paying customers? We're also one of the first cruises in the Alaska season, so maybe the tour company wouldn't be up and running by then? A couple of months ago when we booked I thought it might pop up as we get closer to the sail date and as Princess finishes negotiating with its partners/vendors, but still nothing yet. In a weird way, I'm also glad they aren't offering it. There is no FOMO is no one on the ship gets the excursion! If there was the excursion and we didn't book I would feel guilty and always wonder if I should have done it, but I guess it's just not an option and thus not something to worry about. However, I am concerned about how well we'll be able to see the glacier and the surrounding areas, especially since we'll be on the Discovery Princess and it doesn't seem like they have a whole lot of outdoor viewing areas, like a full wrap around promenade.

We also booked with Juneau Whale Watch this May and I would recommend them. We went back and forth on timing because we were getting inconsistent info about when a previous excursion (the Dawes Glacier up close boat tour) would end. We originally booked a combo whale watch and Mendenhall glacier tour, but when we found out the previous tour would end later than expected I emailed Juneau Whale Watch and asked if we could move our whale watch back and hour and cancel the glacier part, and they were super quick to respond and accommodate us, and almost immediately I got an updated receipt with the updated price. They also responded to one of my previous emails quickly, and all in all they seemed to have great customer service. What I liked about their tour options is that they did the whale watch first, then Mendenhall, but they had buses leaving Mendenhall every half an hour so you could theoretically stay for 30 minutes or 4 hours, just depending on your schedule. I liked the idea of not having a set time to get back on a bus so you can explore on your own pace. Our whale watch was okay, but there were a few things out of their control, mostly the whales who didn't feel like cooperating. We saw three from a distance but they all dived when we got close and didn't really make much of an appearance, but hey, that's nature. We also got dropped off at the dock by the bus drivers (who were great btw about pointing out things on our drive and talking about living in Juneau) but the previous boats came in a little late, so we were left standing around waiting for a bit, and I think our tour was a little shorter because of that. All that being said, we are going back to Juneau next year and I'm planning on booking with them again, and hopefully doing both the whale watch and Mendenhall this year.

Good to know, thanks everyone!

We're possibly booking the Brilliance of the Seas to Alaska next year. We're looking at two standard balcony cabins next to each other, and while we don't particularly need connecting rooms (aka an internal door between the two) it would be nice if the balcony dividers between the rooms could be removed so we could share a wider balcony. Does anyone know if those dividers can be moved between two non-connecting rooms on this ship?

Awesome, thank you this is very helpful! Unfortunately we are limited on times to really that first week of May, which limits our options in general. One of the other options is Brilliance of the Seas which is a smaller ship and might have a better inside passage route, and two Holland America ships, one from Vancouver that goes east of the island and one from Seattle that goes west. But Princess does look promising! At this point I think we just need to price all the options out.

We're looking at potentially booking our first Princess cruise, our second one to Alaska (first was with Royal). One of the dates we are looking at is April 30th, which seems to have a bit of a unique route. It's on the Discovery Princess and it leaves out of Vancouver and returns into Seattle. This is interesting to us because it's hard to fly in and out of Vancouver (we're in the US), so with this route we would only need to do it once and then we can hopefully fine an easier flight home out of Seattle. Has anyone done this route before? It says there are two sea days to and from Alaska, but they don't indicate if either would be through the inside passage and be scenic, although on the map (attached) it looks like the return sea day back south might be scenic. Anything we should know as a pro or con to this route that may not be obvious before we book? Personally I like that we wouldn't have to "waste" a day in Victoria (it's a lovely city but with so little time in the port it doesn't feel worth it). Also, it looks like Discovery Princess it brand new. Has anyone sailed on her, especially in Alaska, and have any thoughts? And if I'm not asking too many questions (sorry in advance lol) anyone have any thoughts about how Royal and Princess compare? It seems like Princess is more of an Alaska "expert", and will have more nature and culture talks on board, which is better than Royal which had none, to my disappointment.