lmkucala

Overall impressions/comments:

I should have done this first but forgot. I'll do it now since it might be a day or two before I get back to the day by day (and some may not be interested - in case I get too wordy:))

Alaska

AMAZING!!! Scenery EVERYWHERE you go. I just can't get over how vast it is and the beauty everywhere. We enjoyed our trip so much and definitely plan on returning in the next couple of years. My husband said it is his new "favorite state". I still prefer Hawaii but Alaska is near the top as well.

Princess and the Coral

Princess is a fine cruiseline. The Coral is a nice ship. We are not extremely picky or critical of things (sometimes I chuckle at the things people find to complain about). We found the ship to be in a good shape and well kept. Service was very good and we had a few people who went out of there way - kind of what I would expect. The only thing I don't like is how much they try to sell you stuff you don't need/want but I think that is typical of any cruise or line. If you don't like it ignore it.

Entertainment

We did not do much on the ship. Attended two shows (Welcome show and the comedian - sorry can't remember his name). Both were just "ok". We were just too tired to attend the others after activities in port, etc. I had hoped to see "On the Bayou" but missed it. We did attend a few of the naturalist talks and I would say our naturalist knew his stuff but was pretty monotone and boring to listen to.

Food/Dining

Breakfast - buffet pretty much every day. It was typical buffet food. Edible and good for a fast breakfast. Got a bit boring towards the end and we did eat in the dining room the last sea day for some variety.

Lunch - We did the dining room on the first day, ordered room service on Glacier Bay day, and the grill and pizza on the sea days. Nothing memorable with any of those.

Dinner - We had Anytime Dining and loved it! I think we ate in the DR every night and never had a problem with lines/waiting (unlike what I've heard from others). We usually ate early when they opened or a couple of nights late after we got back from port. One night we went around 7 and had to wait but it wasn't bad (maybe 20 minutes). It was great to meet new people each night and interact with the different servers - some were better than others. Food was very good most nights. Two things I had that left something to be desired were Beef Wellington (overcooked/soggy crust) and the Pot Pie (sounded and looked good but under the crust it was mostly broth).

Gluten-free - my husband and son have Celiacs disease and Princess was very accommodating and they had no issues. They said the gf bread was one of the best they ever had, and there were always gf desserts available both in the MDR and at the buffet. In fact, we had two desserts every night because after dessert in the dining room they wanted to go to the buffet to see what they had. I'm sure glad we did a lot of walking and hiking on this trip!

Kids Program

Our son was signed up for the kids program (the middle group ages 8-12 years). I think there were about 25 kids that were on the ship in that age range. He did attend a few of the activities (I think he went twice) and had an okay time when he went but most of the things they were doing he thought were a bit "lame". I think being on the upper end of the age group and almost 13 he felt much of it was too young for him. That said, the kids program seems well run and organized, it was just an unfortunate circumstance re: where he fit in the age range I think. For the things he did attend, he said there were anywhere from 5-10 kids there, so not a ton but a good % given the number of kids on the cruise.

Ports

We enjoyed all of the ports and exploring on our own. I'll provide more detail later but generally when we did tours we booked on our own, not through Princess.

• Ketchikan - Family Air Tour of Misty Fjords, then explored shops in town
  
• Juneau - Rented car, visited Mendenhall Glacier, Whale Watch with Dolphin Tours, Drove to Eagle Batch, Tram to top of Mt. Roberts and hiking trails
  
• Skagway - Rented Car, drove to Emerald Lake with stops along the way. Late lunch at Red Onion Saloon - gf pizza and nachos - fun place!
  
• Glacier Bay and College Fjord - Enjoyed both of these - again just more beautiful scenery and massive glaciers with some calving. We spent time both on our balcony, on the back deck, and up on the upper decks in both.
  

DIY Land Tour

I'll provide more detail later on what we did, but we went to Palmer for 2 nights (stayed at Alaska's Harvest B&B), Cooper Landing for a quick stayover (Kenai Princess Wilderness Lodge) to break up the drive, Homer for 2 nights (Alaskan Suites), and Seward for two nights (Alaska Paddle Inn). All of the places we stayed were nice. We had tried to pick local places to get more of the Alaskan feel, and I think we succeeded! Our favorite out of the towns we visited was definitely Homer.

More to come including pictures when I have some time.

Day 0/1 - Vancouver and Embarkation

We arrived in Vancouver around 9:30 the night before the cruise on 6/24. Had a pretty uneventful direct flight from Minneapolis and grabbed a taxi to our hotel - the Hyatt Regency Vancouver - which we had gotten for a pretty reasonable price on Priceline. We had originally thought about renting bikes on Saturday morning and touring Stanley Park a bit, but the weather was a bit drizzly and chilly and our pre-cruise email from Princess suggested arriving either early (10am-12pm) or late (2pm-3pm) to avoid congestion at Canada Place. There were only 2 ships in port but after reading some of the other stories on cruise critic we decided to arrive early. Had breakfast at DeDutch near Canada Place (they had gluten-free options which my husband and son need). It was decent enough - nothing spectacular. Wandered around Canada Place a bit to look at our ship. Quick walk (maybe 4 blocks?) back to check-out of our hotel and grab a taxi back to Canada Place with our luggage. So excited for the adventure to begin!

We arrived about 10:00 or so and embarkation was quick. We were through the lines in about 30 minutes, and then sat and waited until they were ready to start boarding, so still had to wait:(. I think we were on the ship around noon - still pretty good.

Checked out our cabin (Mini-Suite on Caribe - C728 port side), and met our steward, Robert. We LOVED our location, our cabin, and our steward was one of the nicest and most friendly that we saw on the cruise - not just friendly to us but everyone that walked by him! I think we got lucky as some of the others seemed to be pleasant but just not as sociable as ours was. Location was all the way aft (end cabin). Our balcony was great with the wrap-around glass so we could see out the back and even a bit on starboard side if we stretched). It was not covered but our weather was great (I think it sprinkled a bit on glacier bay day but nothing to keep us inside), and we also had the back covered deck right outside our door when we wanted a better view or if we needed cover. I was SO happy with our choice and would book this cabin again in a heartbeat!

Cabin was roomy and worked great for the 3 of us. They had obviously just freshened up the balcony. It was not wet or sticky but the signs were still up.

We had lunch in the main dining room. Can't remember what we had but it was good and nice to relax without the crowds of the buffet. Then explored the ship a little bit before the muster drill and sailaway, and organized our room.

On our way - enjoyed the sailaway from one of the back decks saying good-bye to Vancouver!

After sailaway we headed to dinner and then attended the welcome show in the Princess Theatre, where they introduced the cruise staff, gave us a taste of the Princess dancers, and had a short performance by the comedian that would have a show later in the week.

Great first day - first impressions of Princess and the Coral were great and everything so far is non-eventful (in a good way!).

Pretty tired at this point so just headed to bed early. That will be a theme for the week:)

We did the Coral NB two years ago so it will be fun following along with you on your trip! Got my fingers crossed that you will include the photos with the review! :)

Yes I read your trip report more than once! We did many of the same things as you did! For one, I think you did Family Air in Ketchikan yes?

Paying back for all of the great reviews and wonderful advice I received on Cruise Critic! Returned home on Sunday from a FABULOUS trip!

About us:

It was husband and I (early 50's) and our 12-year old son. We are fairly seasoned travelers but this is our first trip to Alaska. We have cruised before but not for a few years ago and only on Carnival, so also first time on Princess. This was a trip we had originally planned 13 years ago with our two oldest kids, who are now 26 and 27, but then right before we were ready to put down our deposit for the trip we found out I was pregnant and would be close to delivering our now 12 year old while on the cruise. So - it was delayed just a few years. The two oldest our now married and doing their own thing so they missed out - but the 12 year old didn't! I guess you can say it's been on the bucket list for awhile now:)

Itinerary:

Day 0: Fly to Vancouver

Day 1: Embarkation/Leaving Vancouver

Day 2: At Sea

Day 3: Ketchikan

Day 4: Juneau

Day 5: Skagway

Day 6: Glacier Bay

Day 7: At Sea/College Fjord

Day 8: Disembark in Whittier/Drive to Palmer

Day 9: Palmer/Matanuska Glacier

Day 10: Drive to Cooper Landing

Day 11: Drive to Homer

Day 12: Homer

Day 13: Drive to Seward

Day 14: Seward

Day 15: Drive to Anchorage

Day 16: Travel home

More to come, including pictures if I can figure out how to upload them:)

We just got off our ship (Coral Princess) yesterday and we rented a car in Juneau. Our port time was 8am-9pm but we did a whale watch also. I believe we got back to the ship around 5:30 and we had plenty of time. Here is what we did to give you an idea of how long things took.

• 8am - got off ship and walked straight to car rental (15-20 minute walk depending on where your ship is docked.
  
• Drove straight to Mendenhall. Saw the glacier, did Nugget Falls trail, and another very short wooded trail while there.
  
• Drove to Eagle Beach - I think it was about a half hour or so from Mendenhall - there was some road construction going on that made it take a bit longer than it would normally.
  
• Quick stop at McDonalds.
  
• Met our whale watch tour at Auke Bay - I think we were there by noon.
  
• Whale watch was over at 2:30 - husband dropped us off at the ship to drop off
  
• Stopped at a grocery store for some soda to bring back to the ship, and got gas.
  
• Husband dropped us off at the pier to bring soda, etc. to the cabin, and we met him back at Mt. Roberts tram. Bought our tickets, rode the tram up, took a trail at the top up to the cross (beautiful views up there), rode the tram back down.
  
• Stopped in a couple of gift shops on the way back to ship.
  
• Back on ship around 5:30 or so.
  

For us it was definitely worth having the car given it was no more expensive than the bus (there were 3 of us).

Hope this helps you with your decision.

We just got off the Coral today and the ship and the water was fine! In fact, water pressure in the shower, as well as temp was great!

We had a wonderful time and awesome weather all week!

We are on the Coral Northbound now and no issues. I agree the water pressure and temperature on Caribe deck are surpringly amazing!

We board the Coral NB in two weeks. If I don't see an answer before that I will try to remember to post the answer

Thanks - but we board tomorrow so I'll have the answer before you:).

I'm getting super excited! About ready to leave for the airport to fly into Vancouver - we leave in an hour!

Bumping this in the event anyone recently off the Coral Northbound Alaska can answer this question.

Was there any open dining on the late port nights in Juneau and/or Skagway?

I'm sure some of the folks with experience will chime in as well, but here is what we learned from our research and are doing next week.

There is a bus that I believe is $30-$35 per person to Mendenhall, however you can also rent a car for the day from Avis, which if you have 3 people is about the same price if not more economical - I think our car is about $95, and this will allow us to explore other sites after we are done at Mendenhall - at our leisure - much our preference as well!

My understanding is you can also purchase a ticket on your own to Mt. Roberts Tramway, which is near the pier (walking distance). That way you can wait and see if the weather is good - as I believe I've heard it is not really worth it if it is not.

What about mini suites that sleep 3. Is the balcony accessible when the sofa is folded out into a bed?

I'm wondering if anyone who was on the Coral in June has an update on the plumbing issue. It would be nice to get some good news!

Here's at least one good report. We are leaving Saturday - getting SO excited!

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2369357

Thanks everyone!

Budget Queen - you should have a side job as a TA :)

One of my favorite things about Alaskan cruises (and the overwhelming part) is the scenery is everywhere. You're constantly surrounded by picturesque views.

 

As trophy mentioned, the whales are everywhere. Paying for something like Harv and Marv is great and gets you up close, but you're likely to see some whales from the ship as well.

 

 

 

 

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Thanks and yes we do have a whale watch booked in Juneau as well!

The Vancouver NB cruises go through Seymour Narrows the first night, and really you're surrounded by land except between Vancouver Island and Graham Island. 6/26 keep your eyes peeled for birds hovering/landing on the water in a pack...humpback whales may be bubble-net feeding and they'll emerge with mouths open.

 

6/27 departing Ketchikan for the next few hours you'll have great sights and a potential for whale sightings. Your ship won't go into Tracy Arm Fjord, but you'd probably pass it around 5:00 or 5:30am so if you were really curious you could be up for a peek (I doubt it'd be useful). TAF is a dead-end so it's always an in/out visit; you wouldn't go in without time in your schedule to do so.

 

6/29 be ready for whales at the entrance (and therefore exit) to Glacier Bay National Park.

 

Regardless, your Patter will give you key reference points and presumably pages in the book to read. As long as you have the current edition, you'll be all set, and I suspect prior editions are close enough for government work.

Thanks for the tips - I was not aware that Princess may reference Joe Upton's book! I'm glad you said that because I was thinking of just bringing the map with and leaving the book at home - but now I will bring it!

Is Sabatini's Alfredos pizza available for lunch on embarkation day on the Coral Princess?

We've been reading Joe Upton's Alaskan Cruise handbook in anticipation of leaving Saturday (so excited!). It's got a great map and interesting history, but been a struggle to follow honestly to determine where some of the scenery, places to look for whales, etc. is along the way. It's not clear in the book which exact routes the cruise ships take, so a bit hard to follow. For example the book talks about getting up early on the way into Juneau for Tracy Arm, but since Tracy Arm is not listed on our itinerary not sure if we would travel through any of that?

I believe I have seen (possibly from you Budget Queen) others get feedback on where and when to be out on deck looking if you post your itinerary, or feedback from others on what they have seen where. We are hoping to spend time out on deck with binoculars just looking and enjoying the scenery, and don't mind getting up early/staying up late if there is something to see/be looking for. So here goes - any suggestions/feedback:

Coral Princess Northbound - leaving Saturday, 6/25

6/25 - Depart Vancouver 4:30

6/26 - At Sea

6/27 - Ketchikan - 6:30am - 2:00pm

6/28 - Juneau - 8am-9pm

6/29 - Skagway - 5:30am - 8:30pm

6/30 - Glacier Bay - 6:15am - 3:15pm

7/1 - College Fjord - 6:00pm - 8:30pm

7/2 - Arrive Whittier - 12:30am

Thanks in advance for any advice at all!

Glad you had a great time! Looking forward to your review!

Great photos and great review - I had so much fun following along anticipating our upcoming Alaskan cruise leaving this Saturday!

To the OP: I assume you are back from your trip by now and hope you had a wonderful time! I've seen a few trip reports from the last couple of weeks and folks have said that weather has been nice, so I'm curious how weather turned out for you after your rainy forecast?

We leave on Saturday and rain is forecasted most of the time also. We will have a great time I'm sure either way - just curious.

Wow. You seem to have been very underwhelmed with most of your vacation. We will be on the Coral in early September. Alaska is not a bucket list item for us (never been but heck why not just do it on a cruise which we've never done either) nor are we foodies-it's usually fine whatever. However, we travel a lot and usually manage to find good things to say about nearly every place and tour we've been on.

 

It's called enjoying travel experiences. It's all personal I guess. Hope you enjoy your next adventure.

 

 

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"Underwhelmed" was the word I was looking for when I read this review too - it didn't look like they really enjoyed it at all. I kind of decided I was going to pretend that I didn't read it as it was a bit depressing to read right before leaving for our trip (we depart Saturday). I am much like you - we find a way to have fun with any new experience and am really looking forward to it! I was shocked when every other review I read talks about how amazing things are on pretty much any Alaskan cruise!

Thanks for your review - we'll be leaving on the Coral Northbound on Saturday. You've got me a little worried about the food - I had heard it's not great at the buffet but others said MDR was good so I'm curious what you didn't like about it?

Did you happen to keep a copy of the patters and if so would you mind posting them (or emailing them to me at lmkucala@gmail.com)?

Thanks again!

Good to hear - thanks!

We are scheduled to leave next Saturday 6/25 from Vancouver. Any recent reports from last two weeks? I know folks were having issues in late May/early June with water just wondering how it is now?

I'm curious - what exactly are some of these Curtis Stone menu items that people don't care for, and why? Are they cooked poorly or are they just weird items that people don't like? I don't know who Curtis Stone is (not a foodie I guess) :)