Alaska cruise-Seattle or Vancouver rountrip?

[Sequim88]

One-way via Inside Passage a smaller ship works better. Able to navigate smaller, tighter, channels as well as get closer to glaciers.

 

For R/T that goes outside Vancouver Is. a bigger ship might be more comfortable and have more to do on sea days.

[need2cruisesoon]

I think that is true for some itineraries, but not for Alaska. I would pick itinerary over ship any day when going to Alaska.

 

Just bumped in to a friend at the gym, they just got back from Princess Coral Alaska, said the cruise was sub par and wouldn't cruise with Princess again. So yes, they had a great itinerary (north-south) but the ship ruined otherwise a good trip.

Edited July 11, 2016 by need2cruisesoon

[Coral]

Just bumped in to a friend at the gym, they just got back from Princess Coral Alaska, said the cruise was sub par and wouldn't cruise with Princess again. So yes, they had a great itinerary (north-south) but the ship ruined otherwise a good trip.

 

Imagine what a bad itinerary would get?

Edited July 12, 2016 by Coral

[LEtue]

Just bumped in to a friend at the gym, they just got back from Princess Coral Alaska, said the cruise was sub par and wouldn't cruise with Princess again. So yes, they had a great itinerary (north-south) but the ship ruined otherwise a good trip.

 

What part of the cruise was sub par? The Coral normally gets great reviews and having sailed this same itinerary on the Star and the Island - I can't imagine not sailing Princess again because of an experience on this itinerary :confused:

 

I have sailed one time RT from SEA and will never do that again. In our case the first port was Juneau and the Oosterdam stayed in open water longer than the Princess ship that left Seattle behind us and was headed to Ketchikan.

 

A quick transfer to Vancouver (if airfare is an issue) is easy and relatively inexpensive. I have not found a difference in fares from FL so it is worth checking. I don't like the stop in Victoria either and would rather spend more time in Alaska on an Alaskan cruise ;)

[NancyIL]

What part of the cruise was sub par? The Coral normally gets great reviews and having sailed this same itinerary on the Star and the Island - I can't imagine not sailing Princess again because of an experience on this itinerary :confused:

 

I have sailed one time RT from SEA and will never do that again. In our case the first port was Juneau and the Oosterdam stayed in open water longer than the Princess ship that left Seattle behind us and was headed to Ketchikan.

 

A quick transfer to Vancouver (if airfare is an issue) is easy and relatively inexpensive. I have not found a difference in fares from FL so it is worth checking. I don't like the stop in Victoria either and would rather spend more time in Alaska on an Alaskan cruise ;)

 

I loved the Coral Princess on our first Alaska cruise - way back in 2007. My sister and brother-in-law sailed on her this past January in the Panama Canal, and I heard no complaints. I most recently sailed on the Star Princess for 14 nights in March, and the ship was fine - contrary to some reviews I read. I think some people are just more persnickety than others! :D

 

I have sailed roundtrip to Alaska from Seattle twice, but the second time was on the 14-night HAL cruise that sailed east of Vancouver Island going north. (That was the last year [2011] that HAL sailed east of Vancouver Island on the 14-night cruises.) The 7-night Seattle roundtrip was on the Golden Princess in May 2009, and the ship was great. Unfortunately - we didn't get to the glaciers in Tracy Arm, nor could we dock in Victoria due to high winds. I enjoyed the few days we spent in Seattle on both sides of the cruise at least as much as I enjoyed the Alaska components! However, I hadn't planned to go to Alaska at all that year, but booked it 4 months out because it was CHEAP. I definitely got my money's worth! :D

 

I really enjoyed my 2 northbound cruises that were followed by independent land trips. I'll be on b2b one-way Radiance of the Seas cruises next May, and I especially love the 9-night northbound itinerary. I wish I could do a land trip after it - but the PVSA prevents me from boarding the ship in Honolulu and disembarking in Seward.

[Lisichka]

Imagine what a bad itinerary would get?

 

Right?!