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Star Princess Southbound Alaska mini review

erber

By erber,
in Princess Cruises

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erber "Live from...." Rare

erber

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We just returned from June 2nd Southbound Alaska cruise. It was a marvelous cruise. We have been on numerous north bound Alaska cruises, but this was the first Southbound one we have taken.

 

Captain Tuvo was outstanding. He slowed down near South Marble island twice to see the sea lions, made specific announcements when there was wild life near the ship ( dolphins, whales), and generally was often out and about the ship.

 

We enjoyed the Hubbard Glacier immensely and the longer port time in Ketchikan.

 

There were some minor plumbing issues which were a bit of an issue several days relating to the vacuum toilet system in our area of the ship, but this did resolve.

 

We were in an obstructed ocean view room ( with very little obstruction) near the first set of elevators. It was very quiet and we thought it was a good location.

 

The food was delicious and service was fantastic. We ate a lot of our meals in the Horizon Court and felt there was a lot of variety. They had several themed night buffets - German and Italian. We also had burgers and pizza outside. We thought the pizza was very good and the burgers as well. My husband had the ribs at Trident Grill Smokehouse Bar B Que and thought they were very good. He was not a big fan of the brisket.

 

We enjoyed afternoon tea in the MDR one day. It was a nice selection of tea sandwiches, cookies, pastries, and scones.

 

We were able to use coffee cards from other voyages without any difficulty. We also traded our mini bar for 2 coffee cards. They had the Dec 31 expiration dates but no ship or voyage filled in. As we have heard the coffee card system is changing we brought our extra cards from previous cruises and gave them out to first time cruisers who happily accepted them!

 

Entertainment-- we went to 2 shows: British Invasion and Born To Dance. Both were quite good. The theater was packed. We got to each show 20 minutes early and were able to get the seats we wanted without trouble. We went to the 7:45 show times.

 

We did not go to MUTS as it was so cold. We wished there was the movie on demand in staterooms but no such luck on the Star. We did watch Darkest Hour and enjoyed that immensely.

 

Sorry we did not save the patters so we cannot provide those to anyone.

 

All in all we had a great time!

 

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AZJerry

AZJerry

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They had several themed night buffets - German and Italian.

We were on the Star in March and they had the German Bierfest as well. I was excited at the thought of getting a decent German beer instead of the usual American and Mexican beers. Not so excited to be eating my Schnitzel accompanied by Dos XX. :(

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windango

windango

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Some friends of mine are getting ready to take their first ever Princess cruise on the Star in a couple of months. One of the things I found the most helpful when we first started cruising was when the carpet had a different color stripe on port and starboard to help you orient yourself. On our last cruise on the Royal, they used the same color on both sides and I always had to read the wall display when I got off the elevator to tell which side of the ship I was on. Does the Star have different color carpet stripes on port and starboard?

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erber "Live from...." Rare

erber

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We have been to Alaska 7 times now so we didn't do any ship excursions. In skagway we walked around town and through the little Park area on the way to the ship. In Juneau we almost went to Mendenhall Glacier again but ended up not going anywhere exciting. In Ketchikan we spent the day in town and around Creek street shopping at local merchants to find some special gifts.

 

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erber "Live from...." Rare

erber

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We sent our son and his girlfriend on this exact cruise two weeks before we went on it and told them how to do Mendenhall Glacier via city bus and also how to do Totem Bight via city bus in Ketchikan. They enjoyed both! Also a fraction of the cost of ship excursion to either (although more walking is required).

 

Also-- I got the most amazing calving video at Margerie Glacier. It is way too many bytes to post ...but it was the best I've taken on all our trips to Alaska! The still photo is just the tip of the iceberg!

 

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land lover

land lover

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We sent our son and his girlfriend on this exact cruise two weeks before we went on it and told them how to do Mendenhall Glacier via city bus and also how to do Totem Bight via city bus in Ketchikan. They enjoyed both! Also a fraction of the cost of ship excursion to either (although more walking is required).

 

Also-- I got the most amazing calving video at Margerie Glacier. It is way too many bytes to post ...but it was the best I've taken on all our trips to Alaska! The still photo is just the tip of the iceberg!

 

Sent from my SM-G930P using Forums mobile app

 

I returned to Alaska 4 weeks ago, RT Seattle. Our first time 20 years, Anchorage to Vancouver...really did not excite DH & I to much..we did Heli(called back do to a white out) bears,float plane, but the weather sucked...This time I returned with my adult son,in dry season, his treat and we had great weather.I can now see why people return multiple times with the ports being easy to navigate and views from the ship very nice.I told my DH it is worth it for him to check Alaska out again....so we will...and b4 20 years...lol

 

 

 

My son and I did Taku lodge/plane, chilkoot hike and float and snorkeling in Ketchikan now that was a kick.....in fact I booked that excursion right away cause I just love to get in the water true CA girl...I figured if I did not enjoy anything else at least that would be eventful.

 

 

Thanks gain for the review. I see u are from FL..you really must enjoy Alaska to come all this way....but then again you do get that gain on hours.....I hate loosing hours going your direction....

Edited by land lover
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txwriter

txwriter

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We were on this same cruise. It was our first cruise on Princess and our first to Alaska. We loved it!

 

We thought the ship was very nice, and the crew was excellent. Mom had to rent a wheelchair, and we were able to navigate well. I never noticed green dots or red dots on the carpet and had no problems confusing the port and starboard sides. (I was surprised that people were confused, but many seemed to be even after several days aboard).

 

We were in Caribe 302 which was a handicap accessible room. Mom really appreciated the shower since it had a built-in bench. The room was right by the forward elevators, but we never had problems with noise. We preferred to use these elevators most of the time to avoid traffic jams.

 

There was some rocking motion after leaving Ketchikan. It was not terrible, but we do not suffer from motion sickness. If someone did, it might be a time to take something.

 

Food was excellent at all venues we tried (MDR/Portofino, Horizon Court, International Cafe, and Crown Grill). On the sixth day of a seven day cruise, someone asked me if the food was free at the International Cafe. I was surprised they hadn’t stopped in before then. It’s a great place to get a snack, light meal, or dessert.

 

Beds were very soft and pillows were large and fluffy which made for a great night’s sleep.

 

One thing I noticed was that we could not hear most of the announcements in the cabin. We could tell they were being made, but could only hear them if we opened the door. This allowed us to sleep in when we were in Juneau where we didn’t have an early excursion.

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XBGuy

XBGuy

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One thing I noticed was that we could not hear most of the announcements in the cabin. We could tell they were being made, but could only hear them if we opened the door. This allowed us to sleep in when we were in Juneau where we didn’t have an early excursion.

 

One thing that I appreciate about Princess is the fact that the announcements that I really don't have to hear are not audible in the cabin. If I miss the announcement about the art auction or the sale on wristwatches, it is really no big deal. Believe me, txwriter, if there is an important announcement, you will hear it in your cabin.

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erber "Live from...." Rare

erber

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I never noticed green dots or red dots on the carpet

 

Beds were very soft and pillows were large and fluffy which made for a great night’s sleep.

 

One thing I noticed was that we could not hear most of the announcements in the cabin.

 

We didn't notice the colored dots until someone pointed them out to us.

 

The beds were fabulous and the linens very luxurious.

 

We could not hear the announcements unless we put on the tv to the bridge cam channel.

 

 

So glad you had a great cruise!

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Jdleong

Jdleong

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First formal night was Sunday. We did not attend the second one but I cannot remember which night it was for sure. It was either Wednesday or Thursday.

 

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What were the times for the MDR ? I have 8:15 pm but I have read where they have an earlier time than what was booked.

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