Sapphire or Diamond to Alaska?

[zoena]

I know they are sister ships, but does anyone think one is a little better than the other? We are going to Alaska in 2008 and I could'nt decide which one to take. I need to make a decision soon. I would appreciate any personal input.

[Coral]

They are literally the same.

 

And if anyone says the staff is better on one over the other - you should realize that the staff most likely will be entirely different from when they sailed to when you sail. Go with the date that fits your schedule best.

 

Have you considered the Coral or the Island - these ships are fabulous! They would be my choice over the Sapphire/Diamond.

[Host Caroline]

Have not sailed Island/Coral for a variety of reasons.. mainly itineraries and timing but having sailed Diamond to Alaska in '05 (and going on Sapphire in June) I can say that of Princess' "big" ships, these are my favs so far over Caribbean etc. Layout similar but not quite as big and IMHO lovely ships.. the solarium is great for Alaska. I don't think you can go wrong with either.. Coral/ISland have midweek departures this year and that just didn't work for us (again).

[chasetf]

If it were my choice.... I would go with itinerary first.... but they may be identical with each other in 08 as they are in 07. So then I would go with my most convenient date tempered with cost. If there was a great (even a good) cost savings on a specific date, and it didn't conflict with other things.... I would jump on it.

[Colo Cruiser]

They are both excellent, I would take either one. As said above take the one with the better itinerary. :)

[ladysheri]

Sapphire or Diamond to Alaska?

 

YES!!!!

 

As you can see, I have sailed both to Alaska and they are both wonderful. Still very new and as Host Caroline mentions, have a very nice layout. I believe they both hold around 2600 cruisers, but I never felt crowded at all...many places to get away. The area on top of the bridge is one of the best to see the sights in Glacier Bay, the Inside Passage, etc.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[zoena]

Thanks everybody for your input. I will have to wait until they come out with the schedules. My husband and I just went on our first cruise on the Grand 03-24-07. We had a great time exploring that huge ship in our spare time. I guess thats why I was going bigger. The excitment around every corner. I figured we would try one of the smaller ships after Alaska, but I will keep an open mind. Its our 30th Ann. and I want to make it as perfect as I can. Its been my husbands dream for as long as I can remember. I got so much great info from everyone on this board, that the Grand trip will be hard to top.always.

[DanJ]

Have not sailed Island/Coral for a variety of reasons.. mainly itineraries and timing but having sailed Diamond to Alaska in '05 (and going on Sapphire in June) I can say that of Princess' "big" ships, these are my favs so far over Caribbean etc. Layout similar but not quite as big and IMHO lovely ships.. the solarium is great for Alaska. I don't think you can go wrong with either.. Coral/ISland have midweek departures this year and that just didn't work for us (again).

 

Technically, the Sapphire/Diamond are bigger, but they carry fewer pax.

[gambit57]

Are they even going to have different itiniraries? They seem to follow each other around. If doing one way trips, then one is going up while the other is going down. I suppose that can matter if it affects what flights you can take to get there on time since Anchorage takes longer to get to than Vancouver.