Questions about Crown Princess

[chrisrm]

My husband and will be taking our first cruise ever in June. We chose the Alaska cruise and unfortunately, were not able to splurge on a balcony cabin. Instead we have an interior cabin, as we are thinking we won't spend much time in our room.

 

1. I am wondering if there are spaces outside to just sit and watch the ocean? People watch? Where would this be?

 

2. Also, people who have taken Alaskan cruises before in early June, what is the weather like? are you able to sit outside on the deck or is it too rainy etc?

 

3. If anyone has any tips for Alaskan Cruises or Crown Princess we would appreciate any and all advice... thank you!:)

[Colo Cruiser]

My husband and will be taking our first cruise ever in June. We chose the Alaska cruise and unfortunately, were not able to splurge on a balcony cabin. Instead we have an interior cabin, as we are thinking we won't spend much time in our room.

 

1. I am wondering if there are spaces outside to just sit and watch the ocean? People watch? Where would this be?

 

2. Also, people who have taken Alaskan cruises before in early June, what is the weather like? are you able to sit outside on the deck or is it too rainy etc?

 

3. If anyone has any tips for Alaskan Cruises or Crown Princess we would appreciate any and all advice... thank you!:)

 

 

1) Promenade deck!!

 

2)The weather can change in an instant, layers layers layers.

We have had snow/sleet/rain/70 degree days in June/July/August/September.

 

3) Skywalkers is a great place to watch as well, its inside and quiet.

Edited April 2, 2015 by Colo Cruiser

[nitewarrior]

There are spaces all over the ship with deck chairs.. Some out of the way so you can have a quiet time others in the more popular areas like by the pools

[shredie]

Lido deck has several places where you can sit out on the deck and watch the ocean. The area at the far back of the ship where the Terrace Pool is would be a wonderful place to spend time. That pool is never very busy. No kids. There's a bar back there, too.

[rpcv77]

All cruise ships, that I have been on, have plenty of outdoor areas with seating. There are also many indoor areas with window seating where you can just relax and enjoy the view. Enjoying the view is one of the great pleasures of cruising. I will be going to Alaska in June on the Crown as well. I have cruised Princess before but not on the Crown nor in Alaska. The CD is Kelvin Joy. He was the CD on my NZ/AUS cruise and I think he is great! Enjoy your cruise.

[victory2020]

Riviera deck all the way aft has a door out to the aft pool. One of those inside rooms are nice.

[joeyancho]

Congratulations on booking your first cruise. We just got off the Crown two weeks ago. It is a great ship, you are going to love it. Since others have given you advice about Alaska, I will give you my thoughts on the Crown. First my favorite part, the food. There are many places to get great food. There is the main dining room. It is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Great place for a fine sit down meal. The buffet is open from 6am to 11pm. They serve a wide variety of food for every meal. It is a good place to eat when you don't have time for the MDR. Then there is the International Cafe. They serve pastries for breakfast and salads , sandwiches, baked goods, etc the rest of the day. They are open 24 hours. It is very popular. Great for snacking. Also don't forget room service. Available 24 hrs at no cost besides a tip for the server. Their menu will be in your room.

Entertainment. The main theatre has shows every night. They range from review type shows to variety acts. The ship has many lounges that have entertainment every evening, such as karaoke, piano bar, comedy shows, etc. The pool deck has a big screen that shows movies under the stars, showing recent run movies. All the entertainment will be listed in the Patters.

During the day there are lots of activities going on. Everything from cooking demonstrations to trivia to port talks. Something is going on all the time. You can do as much or as little as you choose.

Just one more tip. Deck 7 has an outdoor promenade that goes all the way around the ship. It is a great place to take a stroll or just to look out at the ocean.

Have a great cruise and come back and tell us how you like it.

Edited April 2, 2015 by joeyancho

[cr8tiv1]

The Crown will be my first "big" ship (have sailed Coral and Grand Class ships). I finally have the dining rooms down (locations) and Traditional verses Anytime. Now I am researching Traditional Dining times.

 

Please correct me if I am mistaken:

 

Deck 5 Mid-aft / Michelangelo Dining Room. Anytime Dining

5:30 PM - late

 

Deck 6 Mid-aft / Da Vinci Dining Room. Early Traditional/Anytime after that.

 

Start time???? 5:30, 5:45? 6 PM?

 

Deck 6 aft / Botticelli Dining Room

Early and Late Traditional Dining

 

Early time ???? 5:30, 5:45, 6 PM? / Late seating ???

 

Thank you in advance.

[chrisrm]

Thank you everyone for your generous responses! This will really come in handy. Also, I am glad that many of you have said that Crown is a great ship and we are both really looking forward to our first cruise experience!

[RetiredNTraveling]

Thank you everyone for your generous responses! This will really come in handy. Also, I am glad that many of you have said that Crown is a great ship and we are both really looking forward to our first cruise experience!

 

Just one thing! You can never take too many pictures. ;) After all, you can always delete those that you don't want.

As for the Promenade area of seating, get there early or you will have trouble people watching. We just love PW'g! :eek:

Alaska is a great 1st cruise, but watch out because you will get hooked/addicted like we did and then watch out!! :eek: :p

[skynight]

My husband and will be taking our first cruise ever in June. We chose the Alaska cruise and unfortunately, were not able to splurge on a balcony cabin. Instead we have an interior cabin, as we are thinking we won't spend much time in our room.

 

3. If anyone has any tips for Alaskan Cruises or Crown Princess we would appreciate any and all advice... thank you!:)

We have been on the Crown Princess as well as many other cruise ships. When you board take a walk around. There are soooo many places to sit and lounge, you will find your favorite. These outdoor places can change as the sun moves during the day. For the scenic cruising days in either Tracy Arm or Glacier Bay (not sure which voyage you are on) it is best to be on the upper open decks where you can move around and see the views for all directions. You may wish to bring along binoculars.

 

Make sure you visit the International Cafe in the atrium for espresso drinks (there is a charge) as well as free soup, salads, sandwiches, desserts, doughnuts, pastries, late nigh snacks. It's a very popular venue open 24 hours. You can purchase a coffee card for $31 which includes punches for 15 espresso drinks plus unlimited brewed coffee and special teas for the voyage. Unused punches can be used on future cruises.FYI, free coffee and tea is available all the time in the buffet.

 

Dress in layers, and bring a rain jacket.

 

If you haven't already done it visit the Princess Roll Call section of Cruise Critic and find your specific cruise. There you will find other fellow passengers with information.

 

If you have any specific questions just ask on this forum.

[Bemidji Ty]

You will have a blast. We are going on the Crown in July.

 

We have gone on over 50 cruises. And while balconies are wonderful, one of our favorite family cruises was a last-minute inside cabin with my wife and I traveling with our 2 early-teen kids. It was tight, but we had a ball and didn't spend much time in the cabin.

 

There are many, many places to relax and enjoy the magnificant scenery that is Alaska. Just take a short walk out of your cabin and enjoy,

 

Smooth Sailing.

[Qcruise]

The only thing you'll be lacking on the Crown for an Alaska sailing is an indoor pool.....the sister ships in her class all have indoor pools along with the outdoor ones. Hope you'll have nice weather and it won't be a problem.

[AKman2495]

As for the weather....Alaska has had an unusual winter this year. In Anchorage, we say we didn't have a winter this year. It has been unusually warm and they are predicting a warm summer too.

 

Down in Southeast, I would expect maybe more rain than normal-which is a lot anyway. But who knows, you could have a week of sunshine and 70 degrees.

[Colo Cruiser]

I agree, its an excellent location! :)

[judygund]

Do the inside and oceanview cabins on the Crown have a refrigerator and a sofa or 2 chairs?

Thanks,

[RickEk]

Do the inside and oceanview cabins on the Crown have a refrigerator and a sofa or 2 chairs?

Thanks,

 

There's refrigerators in every cabin on Princess. You'll also have a desk chair and possibly one other chair. No sofas in inside or oceanview cabins.

[Jagggg]

Just got off the Crown last week and really enjoyed the ship.

Make sure you go to Vines where they have complementary tapas and suchi when you order a drink or soda. Also on the first formal night, we sat at Vines and had a great seat to watch the Captain's Champagne Waterfall in the Piazza. Complementary champagne and 'Chocolate Love Pop' truffles were handed out. They are wonderful.

[Colo Cruiser]

Do the inside and oceanview cabins on the Crown have a refrigerator and a sofa or 2 chairs?

Thanks,

 

On the Crown sofas only in mini's and suites.

[Ahhh]

You've chosen a wonderful itinerary for your first cruise! If you like nature and hiking, there are great trails within 15 minutes of every dock. Few people partake of them, so you'll be bonding with nature in all it's glory.

 

You also picked a beautiful ship! The only down side is that you may get spoiled by her beauty. The staff and the crew on board are the best as well. Celebrate a special evening and have dinner in the Crown Grill, one of their specialty restaurants. It's well worth the extra price to dine there. There's even a bar inside (5 or 6 stools) where you can enjoy a glass of wine or cocktail prior to your dinner. The bartender, Rock, is very entertaining, plus you get to see a lot of restaurant and kitchen "action" sitting there.

 

Don't fret about an inside cabin, as you'll probably want to be on one of the top decks to get a full panoramic view, rather than a partial view of Alaska's majesty.

 

Enjoy your voyage! David

[Tink928]

We are sailing on the Crown Princess to Alaska on May 23. This is our first Alaska trip! For anyone who has previous experience. ..is there any reason to pack bathing suits? How about shorts?

Our cabin is intentionally near the laundry so to minimize what we need to bring. How much do people dress for dinner on the non formal nights? We are used to cruising in warm climates. So packing for a different climate is a bit of a challenge. Trying to figure out if we need sweaters...or long sleeve shirts...if it is cold outside is the ship kept at a warm temp inside? We tend to be casually dressed in general...don't have to dress for work at all. Could we just go to dinner in a short sleeved blouse and be comfortable?

Any advice would be appreciated!

[VibeGuy]

We've done late May/early June Alaska sailings and never felt compelled to put on long pants before dinner; one call in Skagway we had record-setting triple-digit temperatures. Granted, we live in Seattle, where shorts and sandals are frequently accessorized with wool socks. I would save space by bringing a very packable windbreaker with water repellency - it is more likely to mist or drizzle than any other form of precipitation.

 

I would definitely bring a swimming suit and shorts.

 

Smart Casual nights tend to be heavier on the casual than the "smart". I see way more "nice jeans" on these itineraries than others. I, too, work in an extremely casual environment, but would be uncomfortable in just a short-sleeved blouse in the MDR at dinner, as I have a long torso, hairy legs and a beard. I would think slacks or a skirt of some sort would really add to the comfort of other guests.

Edited April 18, 2015 by VibeGuy

[RJAM3]

Highest temp recorded in Skagway 91.4

[Colo Cruiser]

We are sailing on the Crown Princess to Alaska on May 23. This is our first Alaska trip! For anyone who has previous experience. ..is there any reason to pack bathing suits? How about shorts?

Our cabin is intentionally near the laundry so to minimize what we need to bring. How much do people dress for dinner on the non formal nights? We are used to cruising in warm climates. So packing for a different climate is a bit of a challenge. Trying to figure out if we need sweaters...or long sleeve shirts...if it is cold outside is the ship kept at a warm temp inside? We tend to be casually dressed in general...don't have to dress for work at all. Could we just go to dinner in a short sleeved blouse and be comfortable?

Any advice would be appreciated!

 

Layers, layers, layers.

 

We have seen snow in May/June/July/August/September on our cruises to Alaska.

We have also been sunburned on all 5 too.

You just don't know, it can change in minutes.

I know we are always glad we brought jackets, hats, and gloves.

 

Be prepared!!!