Island Princess – Land & Cruise Trip Report August 16-27, 2014

[Shelladam]

This was our 13th cruise and first experience with Princess. My wife and I are both 40 years old. We flew in to Fairbanks and spent 2 nights at Bear Lodge. The shuttle driver from the airport to the hotel (and this goes for every shuttle driver afterwards between hotels and excursions) was friendly, knowledgeable, funny and had a great personality and stories/info to share. The hotel was very nice and offered an enjoyable breakfast buffet ($10 for continental or $15 for a hot breakfast).

 

FAIRBANKS The first day was an included excursion on the Discovery River Boat on the Chena River. It was wonderfully narrated with three planned stops along the way. First a pontoon plane landed on the river next to us and took off. Then we stopped at in front of the home of 3x Iditarod Champion Susan Butcher and were introduced to her sled dogs and saw a demonstration of a sled dog team pulling an ATV. Finally we pulled up to an example of an Athabaskan Indian fishing village, where we got off and spent an hour learning about their culture. The return trip down the river included smoked salmon (which was delicious). When we got off the boat we enjoyed an included family style “miner’s lunch” of beef stew, salad and dessert. In the gift shop you can go into the 40 below zero room to see what that feels like. It was such a beautiful day I was wearing shorts and a T-shirt. 45 seconds was plenty for me.

 

Then we were bussed from there to Gold Dredge #8 where we saw a part of the Alaskan Pipeline and learned about it. A short train ride took us from the entrance to the Gold Dredge. After panning for gold, we toured the facility before taking the train back to the parking lot and the bus back to the hotel. Evening was at leisure, We took the free shuttle from the hotel into town and walked around a bit along the river before dinner at a great BBQ restaurant called Big Daddy’s BBQ. The next morning we were bussed to

 

DENALI The Denali Princess Lodge is located on a river and was a little “village” of shops and restaurants. Literally across the street were non-Princess souvenir shops and a Subway. We got a couple of subs and boarded a school bus for the Tundra Wilderness Tour. If you want a better chance at seeing wildlife, upgrade from the included Natural History Tour to the Tundra Wilderness Tour. It’s a 7-8 hour drive to mile 66 in the park with rest stops every 90 minutes. We saw 3 grizzly bears, 2 moose (one bull and later a cow), Dall sheep up on the mountains (need a good pair of binoculars or a great zoom on the camera) and too many caribou to count. We were on the tour from 2-9pm and loved it. Back at the Lodge, we had pizza at Lynx, which is part of the Princess property. The next morning we had the breakfast buffet at the Lodge which was tasty and filling. ($15pp). We were then bussed to the

 

MCKINLEY PRINCESS LODGE It is near nothing. On a clear day you can be one of the 30% who see the mountain. We were not. After walking a couple of the trails on the property (nothing special) we sat by the camp fires that they light on the property. We had dinner at the 20320 Grill (named for the height of Mt McKinley). Decent meal. We could have done without the day/night at that Lodge. Even if we could see the mountain I don’t think it would have been worth spending an entire day and a night. The next morning we woke up and took the free shuttle for the hour long ride to the little town of Talkeetna. Had a great breakfast at the very packed Roadhouse. Their pancakes and birch syrup are awesome. The place was packed! We killed about 3 hours in town walking along the river and checking out the little shops. The mayor of the town is a cat. Yes…a cat. Mayor Stubbs. That tells you what the people of that town think of government. It was quaint and quirky. From Talkeetna we boarded the Alaska Railroad in the Princess car for a 3 hour ride to Anchorage. It is a glass domed car. We passed 2 moose along the way (zipped right passed them) and had an eagle fly over the dome for about 8 seconds…that was cool. The ride was not as scenic as I imagined, but there was some scenery and the 3 hours went by fairly quickly. There was narration along the way and a dining car if you wanted to eat, which we did not.

 

ANCHORAGE By the time we checked into the Captain Cook Hotel, it was already about 7pm. Nice hotel right downtown. Would have much rather had 2 nights in the city instead of a night at McKinley Lodge. We walked downtown Anchorage and had a nice dinner (plenty of restaurants to choose from) then watched the sunset (about 9:45pm) from the waterfront. The next morning we had breakfast at The Snow Goose which was “the place to be”. It was packed and very good. Unfortunately, after breakfast we were on the bus and heading out of Anchorage. Seemed like a cool city and we would have liked to spend more time there. There’s an 11 mile bike trail that takes you along the water to a park that is known for spotting moose. We would have loved that.

 

The bus ride to the ship in Whittier was beautiful. We drove on scenic Old Seward Highway along the water and between beautiful mountain ranges. It followed the train tracks all the way. On the way we stopped for 45 minutes at the

 

WILDLIFE CONSERVATION CENTER Would have liked to have more time there. There were 2 injured/rehabbing bull moose that you can get right up next to and a calf as well. There was a bald eagle, red fox, lynx, a bunch of bison & elk. We saw 3 grizzly bear and a black bear up close from a walkway/bridge. They were not at all “caged” and had plenty of space to roam and live with gorgeous mountains and scenery surrounding them. It certainly does not have a zoo feel. We could have easily spent another hour there.

Another 45 minute ride on the bus brought us to Whittier where we boarded the Island Princess.

 

THE SHIP We had no complaints. We enjoyed the food at both the dining room and the buffet. The anytime dining was more like “show up anytime and wait with a buzzer for a table” but it wasn’t too bad. At 40 years old we were among the youngest on the ship for sure. We heard people complain about various things but some people complain about anything and are impossible to please. We go with the flow I guess. We did not see too many shows as we were pretty tired by the end of each day. One of the production shows that we did see (Piano Man) was good. The singers and dancers doing the music of Billy Joel, Elton John and Barry Manilow. There was a comedian one night which we missed. We did see a “comedy/magician” which was pretty corny but it was entertaining. We also saw a ventriloquist who was pretty funny. During 3 nights they turn half of the dinner buffet into The Crab Shack. It was the only specialty restaurant that we did. $20pp cover charge. All you can eat Alaskan King Crab Legs and shrimp. There was other stuff on the menu but we both enjoyed the crab legs very much. Well worth the $40 in our opinion. We also enjoyed the indoor pool (heated) and Jacuzzi tubs. The retractable roof was closed all week and we spent a lot of time in there.

 

CRUISE DAY 1 – HUBBARD GLACIER (Scenic Cruising) We got a table in the breakfast buffet at the windows watching from the front of the ship as we sailed towards Hubbard Glacier. We sat there until lunch taking in the scenery and talking to fellow passengers. By the time we got as close as we would, we went outside to hear the onboard naturalist (who was excellent and very informative). The scenery was incredible. We were 5 miles away from Hubbard Glacier but it looked much closer to me. Just goes to show you how massive it really is. They turned the ship around 360 degrees so people on both sides could enjoy. We did not have a balcony as we would rather be out on the decks looking at both sides of the ship all day.

 

CRUISE DAY 2 – GLACIER BAY (Scenic Cruising) We spent the day the exact same way as yesterday. There were 2 bald eagles sitting on an iceberg as we sailed in. There were 3 seals lying on the ice as well. The scenery in Glacier Bay surpassed my expectations. It was incredible to see. The highlight was Margorie Glacier, which we spent an hour in front of. It was calving about once every 10 minutes. The thunderous sound that it produced as these huge chunks splashed into the sea was amazing. We stopped in the stateroom that afternoon to grab something and happened to see a puffin float by our window. That was a treat.

 

CRUISE DAY 3 – SKAGWAY We booked a private tour through Chilkoot Tours and loved it. Rode a bus into the Yukon. Amazing scenery. Informative driver. Went all the way out to Emerald Lake and then stopped for an included BBQ chicken lunch at Caribou Crossing. There was a musher’s camp where you can hang out with the dogs and the puppies. If you wanted you could take a dog cart ride for an additional fee. There was also a museum of taxidermy animals that was interesting. Gave you a good look at all of the wildlife that Alaska has to offer. We stopped in the town of Carcross and back to Fraser, where we boarded the White Pass Yukon Railroad. This was a highlight of the trip. Incredible scenery as you drive the route that the stampeders walked during the gold rush of 1896. The bus and the train took pretty much the same route but offered different views, I recommend the bus ride out and the train back to Skagway. Back in town we walked the historic Main Street, stopping for a look inside the famous Red Onion Saloon, a gold rush era bordello. Across the street in the visitors center was a nice little exhibit about the gold rush days.

 

CRUISE DAY 4 – JUNEAU Another trip highlight. We booked a private Whale Watch excursion through Marv & Harv. Not only was it less expensive than the Princess tour, but it was a 6 passenger boat. They picked us up at the port on a bus and took us to Auke Bay. Plenty of room on the front and back of the boat for us all to sit and enjoy. Captain Liz was awesome. Very knowledgeable and loved seeing the whales as much as we did. We saw about 20 humpback whales plus seals and sea lions. Even more of a treat, as we arrived to the Bay for the 7:30 excursion, it was low tide and we saw a dozen eagles on the shore, about 30 yards away, eating fish. After 3 hours of whale watching we boarded the bus for a stop at Mendenhall Glacier. The tour offered a 15 minute photo stop before bringing us back to the ship. We opted to stay there and take the shuttle which runs back to town every 30 minutes ($10pp). The weather was nice for the whale watch but it started raining at the glacier. We walked the 1 mile Nugget Trail to Nugget Falls. Brings you within a quarter mile of the face of the glacier. The 20 minute walk each way was flat and scenic. After spending about a half an hour at the falls/glacier, we walked the mile back to the Visitor’s Center, which is worth a visit. On the other side of the street is a trail on a raised boardwalk that offers views of a river. The last of the salmon were spawning. That was cool to watch. There is frequently bear there feeding on the salmon. We did not see bear, but saw plenty of ripped apart salmon. The ranger said the bear were eating there the night prior. Took the shuttle bus back to downtown and walked Main Street and took a look inside the Red Dog Saloon. Behind the bar is Wyatt Earp’s unclaimed revolver.

 

CRUISING DAY 5 – KETCHIKAN It was raining as it usually is there. We walked to Creek Street and checked out the historic buildings (now shops). Watched some more salmon swim in the river below. Checked out a couple of totem poles in town. We were planning on taking the city bus to Totem Bight Park ($2pp round trip) but we just missed it and didn’t want to wait the hour for the next one. Instead, we checked out the Ketchikan History Museum which was very nice. Small but packed with cool photos and period pieces from the days of the Indians through the gold rush and had nice artifacts from the 1920’s. $3pp and a great way to spend 45 minutes. After that it was back to the ship and the indoor pool for us.

 

DAY 6 AT SEA – Throughout the day we saw some porpoises playing near the ship. Just before dinner we saw a pod of killer whales swim past the ship. We had been looking for orcas throughout the cruise and finally saw them the final night.

 

Questions? Feel free to Email me at adam.webster@cumulus.com

[KroozFoolz]

Great trip report - thanks so much for taking the time to post!

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thank you for taking the time to write your review.

[sweetsleep]

For the OP-did you at all look into excursions offered at the McKinley lodge?

Apparently there are many which could have been entertaining and/ or interesting.

My travel friend and I will have 2 nights there and we are just starting to look at those options for the end of May,2015.

Did any other guests talk about excursions that they found interesting while you were there?

We are doing the Connoisseur tour with Princess but understand that we should look at some additional options both at McKinley and Denali.

Have you heard if people booked any of the musher camp/dog sled tours and if they enjoyed it?

[pklein9747]

For the OP-did you at all look into excursions offered at the McKinley lodge?

Apparently there are many which could have been entertaining and/ or interesting.

My travel friend and I will have 2 nights there and we are just starting to look at those options for the end of May,2015.

Did any other guests talk about excursions that they found interesting while you were there?

We are doing the Connoisseur tour with Princess but understand that we should look at some additional options both at McKinley and Denali.

Have you heard if people booked any of the musher camp/dog sled tours and if they enjoyed it?

 

Sweetsleep...we are also on the Connoisseur Tour beginning May 24. Are you on that one? If so, come join our May 30 Grand Princess Roll Call. I also agree...there are lots of excursions and things to do in Talkeetna.

[sweetsleep]

Oh darn, we arrive in Anchorage on 5/29 and sail on the Coral on June 3 southbound.

Sorry we will miss you but if you see or hear of any good excursions at those lodges let me know.

I personally am not a water raft kind of person so those excursions won't interest me!

Thanks for asking us to join you though!