LEtue

I just did a mock booking of an Alaska cruise (no cruise tour) next june, and the 30% off was applied.

Really? Then I guess I better go through the mock booking process. I was going by the information on the flyer link.

Thanks for the heads up!

The 30% off doesn't seem to apply to Alaska cruises - just cruise tours according to the flyer :(

So, I guess it really isn't 30% off all cruises......

Have you ever booked a regular booking and then cancelled, changing it to last minute when the date gets near?

Do you mean before final payment? If so, you can always get the rate reduction applied as long as the final payment date hasn't passed - so no need to cancel.

Unfortunately, I have had to resort to last minute bookings too since Princess eliminated the 150% supplement on their inside cabins.

Last year in May all of the inside cabins were discounted to $399 pp (plus port & taxes) for August sailings on the Star Princess and then the double occupancy rate was affordable for solo travelers. I will be trying the same strategy in 2016.

Just as a way of updating we have decided to stay on the crown I was glad to see that some people like the crown and others the star. I didn't realize the crown had the extra deck. I am glad to know that even though the star is older it is just as good. Because of the posts on this we decided that for US the star and crown were equal. I don't like the smell of a covered pool so I won't miss that and because we live in a tourist town we are use to crowds so hopefully it won't be that bad. For us, with both crown and star having good points we went with the trip that had less time flying. For us flying in and out of a US city (Seattle) and having the flight home be shorter tilted the decision towards the crown. Thank you again for the help and the reassurances.

I just thought that I would add that I found no smell in the pool area of the Star however, with the roof closed then entire trip is sure was noisy in there! I couldn't find a peaceful place anywhere between the ping pong tables and the people in the pool below. I don't remember it being that loud on the Coral or Island so it could have been the passenger mix during our SB sailing on Aug 29 :confused:

I am seriously considering the Crown next year from SEA myself even though I greatly prefer the one way itineraries. But since I will be traveling solo I need to FF seats work to keep expenses down and I'm still not willing to give up Glacier Bay ;)

If HAL offers some lower fares later I will do transfers between SEA and YVR just to avoid Victoria though ;)

We had a beautiful trip SB on August 29 but I wasn't expecting to have fantastic weather. We got very lucky this year and the ports were dry and sunny for the most part.

Those who did pre-cruise trips to Denali got snow and most weren't happy about it.

My three previous trips in May/early June were not nearly as nice weather wise - so who knows from year to year. I enjoyed all of them though :D

I slept through the Northridge earthquake, so people in California can understand that. (My house did not collapse.) I will have a Plaza deck room next year on an Alaskan cruise. I'm looking forward to it so I can get to the IC faster. I guess light sleepers have problems with ship noises.

I normally sleep through the worst storms that FL can produce but there was no sleeping in P323 on the Star - starboard side - inside cabin. This is not the lowest inside either but an IC (we were upgraded).

Outside cabins may be better.

kayred, I would pick based on the itinerary. The one way itineraries on Princess are very nice and come with longer port times.

Having sailed on the Crown and Star (SB on 8/29/15) I would pick NB on the Star :)

Yup, lets keep this thread alive so that others know to avoid the Plaza Deck if you want a quiet cabin. I recently returned from the Star Princess and stayed in P323. From the loud entertainment in the Piazza to the banging from below once you managed to fall asleep - it was awful :mad:

From the Princess site:

Star Princess®

Star Princess is aglow with Princess’ signature features, including the Piazza, with an ever-changing array of street performers!

Wish I had seen that before I picked this cabin - in what I thought was a prime area near my morning cup of coffee.....

I just returned from the Star on September 5 (inside cabin - as normal) and the mattress was the worst I have had on any cruise. And as mentioned, no matter how many toppers you add to a bad mattress - it doesn't help. It also doesn't help that the mattresses are about 6 inches thick to begin with so I can't imagine that they can be supportive for very long....

To add to the problem I couldn't seem to get a good pillow either. The cabin steward brought many - but all were either flat or so soft you could make them into a ball.

Overall, it was a rough week and I normally sleep like a baby on a cruise. :mad:

I have had wonderful mattresses on HAL too :)

My vote goes to the southbound itinerary ffrom Whittier.

I just returned from my third southbound sailing on September 5 and really enjoyed taking the railroad to Whittier followed by the 26 Glacier Cruise - before boarding the ship just before dinner time. It was a great way to start off a cruise the includes Hubbard Glacier and Glacier Bay.

The longer port time in Ketchikan is nice too and the northbound sailings depart in the early afternoon :(

Lastly, I like the Whittier or Seward area more for precruise since I am sailing for Alaska :D

Good luck in choosing and enjoy your trip!

Hello Linda,

 

Forget about any negative reports on the Celebrity Millennium. This ship is wonderful. We felt the services levels were very high. Housekeeping & MDR exceptional. Bar service could be slow at peak times.( usual on all ships )

We found this vessel to clean & tidy. The staff, crew, & officiers were very friendly. Everyone seemed to behaving a good time. This ship is slated to go into dry dock in the spring for some retro-fitting & be ready for the Alaska season. Captain informed all the passengers on the Millennium that they were voted #1 in the Celebrity Fleet.

 

We chose the early seating for dinning at a table for 6 & we were very happy with our new table-mates throughout this voyage. Good weather & company made for a super trip. ( I don't think you will be disappointed )

Celebrity caters to the 55 plus crowd, few children, & we thought the food was very good. John

John, thanks for the additional details! I know I won't be disappointed since all I really need is a clean bed and some food for the week. The trip is my priority but friendly service does go a long way :)

Glad you enjoyed your cruise!

Thanks for taking the time to post a review and I enjoyed it.

I was on the Star Princess one week before you and had great weather too!

How did you like the ship? I haven't sailed on Celebrity for a long time but have plans to next year on this same itinerary.

We took the shuttle and toured independently about 2 weeks ago. They really cater to tours and those that are paying to blow glass.

We were able to watch from outside the structure but the view was often obstructed by those participating. Walking around the grounds afterwards only took a few minutes but it was very pretty.

Overall, I guess it was worth the price of the shuttle but not any more IMHO.

 

Be sure to look at the bottom line when booking a solo. I'd rather pay 200% of a $1000 fare, than 150% of a $2000 fare. So the fare itself matters as much as the supplement :).

Absolutely :)

It is hard to imagine that Celebrity is so much cheaper. At full 200% it will be over $800 less to sail on the Millennium :eek:

Knowing that Princess will drop their fares later really doesn't matter now. I waited this year but even the last minute fare wasn't much lower than the current price on Celebrity. So I won't have to wait to book, can pick my cabin, and reserve my FF seats on Delta in about 2 weeks :)

Nice! Can't wait to sail on the Millennium next year :D

Hi Linda, thanks for the kind words.

 

For 2014, we went to Anan Creek on July 2nd (pictures can be found under my signature in Alaska 2014 pictures.) For 2015, we went to Anan Creek on July 1st. Both trips might be considered early by some. However, for us, the dates were the only times we could go and we didn't want to miss an opportunity to see the bears. I had contacted Island Wings prior to making our booking and was provided with a level of comfort that resulted in our booking.

 

We are thinking of taking the Star in 2017 ----- how was your experience on her? Did you do a review?

Wow, that is good to know! I was thinking that I had to time something for July 10 or later. This opens up some more possibilities for me next year.

We had a great time on the Star and Princess does a nice job in Alaska. I think I like the smaller Island/Coral better though for Alaska. It was neat to meet Libby Riddles in Juneau. She comes aboard the Princess ships with one of her dogs and does a nice presentation about her Iditerod win - very cool!

I put a cabin a hold on a Millennium for the same time frame next year but I need to look at options for late June and ending Ketchikan around July 1. That time of year works well for me.

Does Island Wings still require permits for the early trips? I was scheduled to go with them this year and they couldn't get them - so I switched dates and ship. Ended up on a kayak trip and the weather was just beautiful :D Best weather I have ever experienced on any Alaska trip and we sailed Aug 29 - Sept 5. Maybe we were just lucky!

Are you shopping for balcony or above? I haven't seen solos on them at less than 200% of double occupancy fare in quite awhile. When I have seen (and booked) 160-170% recently, it has been for insides and OVs only.

Inside cabins only and they are priced at the double occupancy price plus taxes and fees for 1....:confused:

I have booked them for 150% to 170% recently too but not for Alaska. I have heard that HAL doesn't discount insides for Alaska sailings so maybe Princess has changed....

Karen, your review and pictures are terrific!

What day did you visit Anan Creek? It looks like your cruise ended on July 3 so you must have been there before peak and yet there were plenty of bears around :D

Karen,

I just came across your review and the pictures are awesome!

What day did you visit Anan Creek? I was thinking you may have been too early in the season but apparently the bears were out :D

I just returned from the Star Princess and am already planning a return visit for 2016.

Unfortunately, I just realized this change.

I am shopping for Alaska 2016 and can't find anything less than 100% :(

Not enough vacation time for B2B and I don't want to spend more time on the cruise portion anyway. There are so many areas to visit from Anchorage that I can't get them all in - so I find myself breaking them up over multiple trips....and I was thinking 2 weekends on each end of a cruise would help some.

Oh well, just wishful thinking for me :)

Wouldn't it be wonderful to have options for a RT cruise from Anchorage with a stop in Vancouver for the day? Or would that not satisfy the Jones Act regulations?

Just think of all the precruise options:D

Just returned yesterday and sailed SB from Whittier on the Star Princess. The weather was the best I have ever experienced (sailed in May and very early June before).

On the train from Anchorage to Whittier the weather was cool and overcast but no rain. Whittier was bright and sunny when we arrived just after noon and we had a wonderful trip on the 26 Glacier Cruise. (temp 61)

Hubbard Glacier - overcast but still bright enough to enjoy the view (temp 58)

Glacier Bay - foggy when we entered but cleared up nicely about mid day (temp 57)

Skagway - cool and overcast but no rain and it cleared in the afternoon (temp 61)

Juneau - sunny skies and it felt warmer than 62 that was announced. We hiked the Mendenhall Glacier trails in short sleeved T's. Wonderful day!

Ketchikan - never been here when it was dry! It was 64 and sunny :) Great day for kayaking!

So, even though our forecast was dismal before we sailed - you never know. I could have used a pair of shorts on this trip :)

Ship: Star Princess

Class: Grand

Deck: Plaza

Cabin #: P323

Category: IE

Port/Starboard/Bow/Stern: Starboard

Connects With Cabin #: N/A

Accessible: N/A

Quiet: No, very noisy at all times of the day. Noise from late night entertainment in the Piazza, people congregating in the Art Gallery, noise from above (area between the Passenger Services Desk and Casino Cashier).

Balcony Size: N/A

View: None- inside cabin

Privacy Issues: None

Wind: N/A

Soot: N/A

Problems: None other than noise issues

Comments: Even with ear plugs it was very difficult to sleep soundly in this cabin. Avoid if possible!