DougH

What has the weather been like overall?  Average temps? What have been the topics of the guest lectures? Worth going to? I board when you get off next week and am getting excited.  Does the ship seem full? 

Anyone have any info on this hotel? Last time I was in Sydney was 20 years ago and stayed at The Russell hotel in the Rocks. Loved the location but see they are undergoing rennovations. Would like something close to the Rocks and Circular Quay and I'm on a budget. The Tank Stream seems nearby and is at a good price

I sailed on the 50th Anniversary cruise, May have to do the 60th also.

I have stayed at the Days Inn downtown a couple of times. Nothing fancy but one of the cheapest downtown and just a short walk to Canada Place and Gastown

You will be able to board early. The late sailing is because a lot of people are coming in by train from the land portion of their trip. Be sure to be out on deck for several hours after sailing from Whittier IMHO this is some of the most scenic viewing on your cruise. The times at Hubbard include the approach and departure. I would say you will be at the glacier itself from 5 to 6 pm. For me the scenery is why I sail Alaska,  you can eat anytime. 

I fly into Vancouver a day early. Vancouver is a nice place to visit but hotels are pricey in cruise season. I have been staying at the Days Inn downtown , one of the cheapest in the area but still almost $300 per night. Hotels by the airport are not much cheaper. Seattle is cheaper but then you have the long bus transfer to and from the ship. Cost would be closer to a night in Vancouver I think Mid June is great, my favorite time

I like doing the 14 day North/South from Vancouver combo. I have sailed Alaska 30+ times with at least half the 14 day. My only sea/land combo was my first cruise. The land portion can be very pricey (I travel as a single) and it is nice to have two visits to the ports. My trip this year the second half of Aug the first week weather was lousy but second week perfect. If it was my first trip and was a combo I would have been very disappointed with the first week

32 minutes ago, Coral said:

Though the Sun Class ships all had a pizzeria (at no charge) around the same time.

The original Crown and Regal both had a free sit down pizzeria

There is a nice Discovery center museum in downtown Ketchikan. It is just across the street from the Lumberjack show

Personally I find late May to Mid June my sweet spot. Cooler weather but drier and lots of snow still on the mountains. Nice long daylight hours. Just returned from two weeks late Aug, 1st week poured all week, 2nd decent. FYI this was my 32nd trip to Alaska.

I always pick up at the pier, it takes maybe an extra 2 minutes

It's a one for one trade. But you cannot trade soda/water for liquor 

Take the longest one you can afford. The train bus combo is nice. I usually go with Chilkoot Charters.  Even just the bus trip is nice, again take the long one

42 minutes ago, chamima said:

 

I agree with @StevenUS above.

If you order from the app you get it delivered to wherever you are on the ship, which should include your room.

If you order from the phone that is room service.

If you pay the $14.99 and order from the app and get a $5 fee on top of that I would go to Guest Services and complain.

I don't have a drink package,  two different people say I have to pay the room service charge even ordering from the app. 

If I activate for $15 I can order from the app but still pay delivery charge. If I order by phone I only pay the $5 so why should I activate? No room service for me, they should add this back as an Elite benefit 

I'm on the Sapphire now and also noticed no room service menu on the TV. I booked my cruise as a 14 day trip but was told I would have to pay the $15 activation fee for both 7 day segments, and still pay $5 delivery each time since I only have standard package. Not a happy Elite cruiser with 600+ days. I did have pizza today and paid $8.50

I've sailed on the Grand 15 times the latest in Dec 21 and June 22. Thought she was in fine shape. Go for it, she is one of my favorites.

Thanks, that is a similar program to the one I was thinking about. The other one you sent your luggage directly to the airline and never saw the bag again until you got home. This one does help a bit getting thru the Vancouver airport. Sure hope the weather holds up for the next couple of weeks, forecast is mostly shows with 60% chance of rain almost daily. I know it changes rapidly but in 30+ cruise to Alaska I have had great weather almost every time even with similar forecasts. Negative is most of my cruises have been in the May/June time frame

28 minutes ago, 1025cruise said:

Due to needing to clear US immigration/customs at the Vancouver airport, I would heavily doubt this is an option.

I'm pretty sure I did this last year

I like booking an inside aft on Aloha. You are very close to the open aft deck and just below the buffet. Aft elevators are usually less busy than miship and forward ones

I'm like you and love the aft interior cabins on Aloha. Being just steps from the aft open deck is liking having your own balcony. Can you let me know if they have I think they call it Luggage Direct when you get off in Vancouver? This is the program where you pay extra cost and they take your luggage from the ship and you then claim it when you arrive at your final home airport.

It looks great but the price is crazy high. I also looked at the 17 day from Seattle and price is high also

I've done this B2B about 10 times and am not worried about making the cutoff as I have 600+ days. I'm just not thrilled with the cocktail party. Last year on the Grand we had a nice luncheon both North and South

Can you tell me if the Most Traveled is a luncheon or a cocktail party? I much prefer the lunch. #'s to attend?

1 hour ago, Geoffa30 said:

What are the odds of this being the thread with the most pages ever on the Cruise Critic’s Princess board? On Facebook, my feed is just post after post about it too. 

Still a long way to go. I sailed on the Pacific Princess official 50th Princess Anniversary cruise. Thread reached 205 pages before CC shut it down for being too big. Part 2 reached 80 pages

As far as I know 285 pages is the record. FYI it was a fantastic cruise with the entire Love Boat cast onboard for two weeks