bermudafan8

I really wish Princess would do the LA to South Pacific roundtrip in summer for those of use who can only take a large chunk of vacation time during summer.  

I would try to select a cruise that goes to both.  They key for both places is if you have good weather.  Both can be spectacular.  College Fjord is also great.  Ideal cruise would visit all 3!

Below is part of Hubbard #1 / College Fjord #2 / Glacier Bay #3

We are not even being offered a transfer from Whittier to Anchorage!  Our ship leaves Vanc on 6/18.

and now they just disconnected me after 2 HOURS on hold.

The only one of these places we haven't been to previously is Kenai.  I don't understand why they cancelled it all.  Still on hold - 2 hours.  Very short notice to plan it all independently.

I have been on hold with the 3rd varied Princess office for more than an hour. Our travel agent is not in today.  Our ship is to leave on 6/18. Then land of Copper, Kenai, Denali, McKinley, Fairbanks.  They cancelled ALL of our land.  No rerouting to Anchorage or anywhere.

And to make matters more complicated, we have a southbound that starts in Fairbanks, then Denali, Anchorage and the ship.  

Really ticked off at Princess.  They earlier cancelled our Hawaii cruise for this summer and the California / Mexico coastal cruise.

Thank you everyone for the swift replies!!

Has anyone applied to leave a ship at a port earlier than the end of the cruise and had the request denied?

We sailed on the Radiance 7/21 and weren't impressed with the big shows but really enjoyed the behind the scenes tour on the last day and the comedians.

The theater shows included - Welcome Aboard, Piano Man, 2 man comedy / juggling act, Jonathan Clark comedy and impressions, City of Dreams, and the Farewell Show.

Also, there were parties in the centrum in the evening that were fun - 50's & 60's, 70's and Rock On.

We did not have to book ahead for any shows and had no trouble finding seats.

Another thing to consider is sometimes after you exit the ship there is a ramp to connect to an upper level pier. We noticed sometimes these ramps are very steep depending on tide levels. It seemed sometimes the cruise lines had people available to push wheelchairs etc up the ramps.

5) Weather: I know that this is the most unpredictable in Alaska and we expect some cold and rain, so we should dress in layers (coming from Vegas, this is actually welcome!). However, I am wondering--is it likely we could experience severe storms to the point of skipping ports around that time of year? Is the rain around then usually the type that's a downpour or off and on rain? My husband thinks that he can get by with a ski cap and regular jacket with layers, but I'm trying to convince him to get a waterproof rain one, or at least a poncho!

****************************SUGGESTION: The key is to stay warm and dry. If you're not warm and dry you can't fully enjoy the scenery or wildlife etc. We use either a heavy duty poncho (this protects a backpack / purse / jeans from rain as well) or a water proof jacket. Bring gloves and a hat or head band. I like to use light wool socks with polypropylene sock liners underneath - keeps my feet warm and dry whether I'm on a rainy / windy whale watch boat or hiking on a wet path etc. Have layers available. Get shoes / hiking shoes that are semi water repellent.

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6) EXCURSIONS--the big question. As of now, will probably just stick to excursions in Juneau and Skagway; I've read that just walking around the town of Ketchikan is fun, plus we aren't there too long. We were also just in Victoria in April (where we did the Gardens) and do not arrive until 7 p.m., so we will probably just walk to Fisherman's Wharf.

We are not looking for anything super adventurous and still want it to be reasonably priced. Since it's our first time there, I'm thinking of going with Princess's excursions, unless I can find something reasonable yet still dependable on our own; here is what I'm thinking:

Juneau--Mendenhall Glacier bus tour; however, has anyone done the Salmon Bake that can go along with this; is that worth it? I've also read that the more ships in Port on that day, the busier the visitor's center is and the tour might not be as enjoyable...thoughts?

Skagway: White Pass Rail--$131/pp seems steep but I read it's not to be missed. Would you recommend going up with the train then down via the bus, or round-trip on the train?

********************SUGGESTION - I would recommend going on some sort of excursion. The towns are kinda cute but full of Diamonds International etc. Wander around town AFTER your excursion. For SKAGWAY, take the train in 1 direction only and pair it with visiting the Yukon. Beware, if the weather is bad the train isn't that exiting. However, the weather seems to often be better in the Yukon. Or take a tour to Haines and go on a jet boat or wildlife quest. In fall the Eagle preserve in Haines should be loaded with thousands of eagles.

For KETCHIKAN, you could do an excursion to the wildlife / rainforest refuge where you walk on elevated bridges and can view black bears below. Then you would still have time to walk around town after the tour. JUNEAU - the salmon bake we have done there has always been at Orca Point Lodge (I think that was the name; on an island during a whale watch. You have the option to sit inside or outside. This yr it was raining so we sat inside; last year was warm and beautiful so we enjoyed the deck.). The Juneau whale watching excursions guarantee whale sightings. Although I'm not sure when the whales depart for Hawaii....We like the excursion where you go whale watching, have a salmon bake lunch, and visit Mendenhall. When the salmon are running be sure to go to the boardwalk area by Mendenhall to view black bear. On that tour there isn't much time to hike at Mendenhall.

Also, if you like southeast Alaska, I would recommend on another trip including an inland cruise tour - inland Alaska is much more spectacular than southeast Alaska.

Enjoy whatever you do!

I've been to all 3 - my fav was Xunantunich. It is near the western boarder - I recommend only using a ship sponsored tour due to the distance and traffic.

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Yup it's just a tiny building - we were there a few days ago. They have a sign suggesting donations.

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So...rumor has it that Princess actually reads posts on cruise critic....so Princess, if you're listening, note the interest and love for Alfredo's Pizza - and how about expanding this treasure to more ships in the fleet? We enjoyed it on the Sapphire a few years back. We were on the Crown last month and noted the large area in the piazza for the internet - which didn't seem to get much use. This would be a perfect area for Alfredo's!!!!!

Hi

We have done the train several times. I would recommend pairing it with a tour of the Yukon area - it's beautiful and often sunny when Skagway is cloudy. Schedule it so the Yukon is the first leg and the train is the second portion of the tour.

Enjoy!:)

Wonderful review!

We have visited the sanctuary twice, most recently in July 2015. Each time we did this as a shore excursion thru the ship. It doesn't seem as though they let you wander around the bear area without a tour group. There is a series of platforms and hanging bridges as well as walking paths they guide you on depending on where the bears are and where the other groups are. They separate tourists into small groups - our last group was maybe 10. We had to turn in any food items, sanitizer, etc - anything that might smell and attract the bears before starting the walk. Got our stuff back upon return. Portapotties are available right before starting out, and rain ponchos were provided. The guide also carries bear repellent. The first time thru 3 years ago we saw about a dozen bears; this time maybe 6 - 8, in the river, sitting on trees eating salmon, cubs climbing trees etc. Groups also zipline above here, and after the walk you see samples of trees in Alaska, someone carving a totem pole, a few birds of prey and a gift shop. On our first visit we had 2 guides in our group - one at the front and one at the back. A member of our group freaked out and was given the option of walking back to the start with one of the guides or remaining with the group - walking back to the start by themselves was not an option.

Hope this helps.

-We sailed on the Dawn out of NO on 4/5/15. We had a nice time. The balcony of our deck 10 cabin was larger than the very tiny balcony we had while on the Breakaway in a similar cabin. We were very disappointed with our balcony on the Breakaway. The balcony size on Dawn was similar to most of the other balconies we've had on NCL ships.

-The pull tabs - a few years back it seemed NCL was selling these 'crackits' everywhere, like peanuts at a baseball park and it was so annoying. I think they have toned this down, as the only time we saw them being sold was just prior to the evening show in the theater.

-We would sail on Dawn again.

We did the Dolphin swim and snorkel at Anthony's last April. We wanted to do it again this year but it was all booked up by the time we checked on it - thru the cruise line and thru their site directly. The setting is so beautiful. The excursion included walking into the water from a beach (not a platform), a 30 minute encounter where the dolphin does the usual tricks, your photos are taken w/ a dolphin kiss etc, and then you get your snorkel gear from the beach and get to snorkel with the pod of dolphins for 30 minutes. It was so cool! You don't get to do that at the other dolphin places!

We sailed on the 4/5/15 cruise on Dawn. We have become somewhat jaded when it comes to the evening show - it takes a lot to impress us after having been on 20 cruises and seeing many shows in NYC, London, Toronto and LA. That being said, the show called 'Elements' was incredible. If it is still being performed when you sail - do not miss it!

Has anyone been on this recently - Chacchoben, Beach & Lunch shore excursion w/ NCL Dawn? Specifically, we are wondering what beach is included.

Thanks in advance for your info.

Has anyone been on this recently - Chacchoben, Beach & Lunch shore excursion w/ NCL Dawn? Specifically, we are wondering what beach is included.

Thanks in advance for your info.

Thanks! Just the info I was hoping for!

Ok great thank you!

Getting ready to sail on the Dawn in April. We know she isn't one of the newest ships, but wondering if they changed the cabin lighting to require a card to activate / deactivate the cabin lights such as on the Breakaway?

If so, is it possible for just a piece of paper to be in the slot to activate the lights or does it have to be a magnetic card? We sailed on the Breakaway but don't recall.

Thanks in advance for your help!

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