Just back from Sapphire Princess - 8/15

[morganrp]

Just returned today from Alaska on the Sapphire Princess. It's difficult to add much to all of the valuable information that we got off the CC board before leaving but will attempt to give our outlook on it.

 

First and foremost - we had the most incredible weather that anyone sailing the inside passage could ever ask for. The cruise summary showed temperatures at noon each day - all in the upper 60's and low 70's through the entire trip. The announcements attested to our opinion - it was the crew's opinion also that it was the best weather all summer!!!

 

We had the transfers in Seattle and still feel this is the ONLY way to go!! We were off the plane and at the ship within an hour. 'Have to agree that embarkation is a little on the slow side - we got there about 1:30 and it was close to 2:30 before we got onto the ship - they said that it has gotten better - the time from noon to 1:30 was the worst. Once we got to the counter it was VERY quick - so really can't complain too much. On board and ran up to the Horizon Court -grabbed a plate of food to tide us over til dinner and we were all settled in. (NOTE- This is something no one has mentioned - several times, when a little hungry or my hubby and I wanted to go up there to eat breakfast - we brought a tray of food back to our room - works great and no one seems to mind).

 

We had PC dining - made reservations in different dining rooms each night for 6:30. We were always seated immediately and saw others come up to the desk - apparently without reservations - they were given a beeper and were called back with in 10-15 minutes. Food was good - can't really RAVE about it but nothing was poor either. I love prime rib - it looked beautiful but has a bit of a microwave taste - sure they have to do that to serve so many at a time. Service in the Sterling, Pacific Moon and Santa Fe was great was great. Vivaidi's ok - but feel it was the individual waitress - her bus girl was great. All other wait staff was fine - no complaints.

 

Our room steward was a gem!!! - Rod - we were in D329 - LOVED our EXPOSED balcony - sunbathed in our shorts and/or bathing suits 2 different days and it was fantastic!!! We had a mini-suite - great room, but the sofabed was not the best for our adult-sized 16 yr old granddaughter - it was VERY flimsy and uncomfortable. On the second day Rod got us a rollaway bed for our granddaughter and it was MUCH better. I would not recommend the sofabed for anyone except a small child.

 

Shows - went to Piano Man - FANTASTIC show! Vantriloquist(sp) was THE BEST, commedian (name escapes me) - just ok, show - "Undercover" (I think that was the name - was ok. (FYI - I have all of the Patters but they are in a bag still in the car to drive to Utah tomorrow. )

 

My granddaughter and I went to Ceramics @ Sea one day - fun activity for the two of us - a littly pricey - mug was $20 - covered dish was $30. Went to the Spa - great service - had a haircut($15 at home but $50 onboard on a port day), granddaughter and I had manicure and pedicure and it was great. One thing I was not considering - anything that is charged to your shipboard accout - they automatically add 15% gratuity - so remember that if you add anything on the gratuity line - I missed that first time around.

 

We did ship with our luggage for home on - a case of beer, box of wine and a 12 pack of soda. All went throught ok and was great to have in our room. We ordered a bottle of whiskey from Room service on arrival.

 

Speaking of roomservice - have to admit that I was not pleased with the continental breakfast in the morning. The melon was warm and not ripe, the juice and milk were WARM and the coffee was barely warm. It is convenient but not that good. As I mentioned, going to the Horizon Court and bringing breakfast back was the best way to go!!! Coffee was hot and not really that bad.

 

One exception - second formal night we opted for room service. - orderd 4 lobster dinners and one Beef Welling dinner, shrimp cocktails, caesar salad and chocolate mousse - all fantastic AND perfect tempature.

 

We wandered Ketchikan and it is a lovely town. Walked to the Eagle Preserve and Totempole ...... - cost $11 each to walk through and really not worth it. 2 eagles there, fish hatchery was a dissappointment when they saidt they were going to "kill the extra salmon" and proceeded to club them!!! Granddaughter was a little upset, though they did warn us. The Totempole .... was nothing outstanding. Nice walk though through a cute town - had some good fish & chips at - ???Halibut & More.

 

Tracey Arm was FANTASTIC!! They announced, due to the great weather, we were able to go farther in than they had ever been able to go. It was cold - put on my longjohns, sweats, hat and gloves and I was comfortable. The highlight of the trip - we passed the Diamond Princess on our way out and, due to a mist coming off the water, it looked like the Diamond was "floating on a cloud." Can't wait to see the pictures - the crew said that they had never seen anything like it. 'Have to admit - it brought tears to my eyes - though I told my granddaughter it was the wind.

 

Juneau - took the bus ride to Mendenhall Glacier and fish hatchery - nice tour and they evern took us on an informative tour of the city.

 

Skagway - White Pass Railroad - SPECTACULAR SCENERY!!!! I stood on the platform between the cars the entire way up and took some amazing pictures - at times I felt like I was standing on the edge of the mountain.

 

Victoria - Tour of Buchert Gardens - I was a little dissappointed - it was pretty but not as spectacular as I expected. The best part - it was on an old double decker bus and the drive gave us a tour of the city on the way through - beautiful buildings and very informative. Next time I would like to have shopped in the downtown. Too little time in Victoria.

 

Debarkation - not as bad as I expected!!! Our flight out was at 12:50 - had red 5 luggage tags and were scheduled to be off about 7:30. Got off at 7:45.

Went through customs with no problem, got our luggage with no problem - got a kid to put our luggage on a cart and take us to our bus - AGAIN - TRANSFERS ARE THE ONLY WAY TO GO!!! We were at the airport by 8:30 - got a kid to take our luggage to the airline ticket counter and were checked in and waiting by 9:00!!!

 

Guess that hits the main things - would be happy to answer any specifics if anyone has question.

 

Love the Sapphire - very nearly the same as the Star which we sailed 2/03.

Enjoy your cruise and hope for weather like we had!!!

Judy

[yancycruiser]

Thanks Judy for posting so quickly after returning. I am sorry that your cruise is over. Thanks for all the great information and reemphazing what everyone has said about a great ship and cruise.

 

We leave next Sunday the 22nd and are looking forward to a great experience.

[MNYTRPS2GO2]

Glad you enjoyed yourselves. I had cousins on the same sailing and can't wait to find out how they made out. It was their first cruise and when I saw them last month at a family reunion, I gave them an idea of what they were in for. It sounds like the weather cooperated which also adds to the enjoyment.

[TJ O'Pootertoot]

Judy - I posted a few of my "Diamond in the Mist" from Tracy Arm photos at:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=68398

[zimmerjulie]

Hi!

Thanks for the Review:) . I am wondering what you thought of the desserts. Anything particularly "do not miss"?

[kkorman]

I always laugh when I read that the ships get closer to glaciers than they ever have before. I hear this every week. I wonder if people on board say this just to make the passengers feel special!

[morganrp]

Kkorman - believe this was not just a line from the crew, since the weather was so warm, likely the truth. Besides - prefer to be positive.

 

TJ O'Pootertoot - still could not bring up pictures - DYING to see them!

 

zimmerjulie - Desserts were good - found out they only serve the baked alaska in the international dining room - was really looking forward to it. The raspberry creme brolet (sp) was GREAT!!! Never had it before but loved it.

 

Judy

[TJ O'Pootertoot]

I've tried to fix my photo link - I think it was because I was linking to my album and it wasn't set to PUBLIC. Hopefully it's okay now.

 

The desserts were pretty good.

I really liked the Kalhua rice pudding in Santa Fe. The ice creams and sorbets (allegedly made on board) were also good. Didn't have the Black Forest cake but it looked good. The "Love Boat" desert on the last night was good but very disappointed that there was no Baked Alaska.

 

The last night of the cruise was weird eating timing because we were in Victoria from 5 to 10:30 so if THAT's when they had the BA it wasn't a good night to do it. I expected it on second formal night and I don't see why it would be difficult to offer it in the other rooms.

 

Oh well - we also had two souffles...I think one was chocolate and one was passion fruit. The former was very good while the latter was a bit too eggy. In general, however, really good eatin'.

 

TJ

[unboringuy]

We just got back, as well, from a sailing aboard the Sapphire (8/8-8/15). Two couples who did different things. We are in our 40s. We have been on many cruises before (this is our third Alaska cruise). The other couple's first Alaska cruise and first aboard Princess. We were on the inaugural cruise of the sister-ship Diamond in March, so we knew the ship like the back of our hands. Here's our brief report:

 

Embarkation--We do not like the Princess transfers. You have to wait around for their buses, and be herded around like cattle. From SEA to the pier is about a $22 cab and it's well worth it. We got to the pier about 12:15 p.m. and were aboard by 12:30. The Seattle operation is one of the worst I've seen. One line for Platinum/Suites, and about 13 lines for everyone else. It went reasonably quickly for everyone else, I guess, but didn't seem very efficient. We got through the Platinum line quickly.

 

Ship--Stunning. Like the Diamond, perhaps the nicest ship we've been on. Laid out very well, and even though there were 2600 passengers aboard, it rarely felt crowded. We were very happy with our category AD mini-suites on the Emerald deck. They are fully covered, private, and perhaps the best category of mini on the ship.

 

Entertainment--Athough we generally are not big fans of the shows, we thought Piano Man was very good (we had seen it previously on the Diamond) and Undercover also was good. The comedian was pretty funny. We didn't care for the ventrilloquist, but the other couple did.

 

Food--We have always thought the food aboard Princess was good to very good. On this particular sailing, we would have to say it was simply o.k. Mostly edible, but in some cases not. A few examples--the food all seemed very bland, with no spice and little flavor. The lobster had no taste (this was true on formal night and also, surprisingly, in Sabitinis). Souffles on three separate nights were not edible. They were undercooked and instead of being light and fluffy they were dense and doughy. Most of the other deserts were good. Particularly the cheesecake, according to our desert afficionado friends. The Horizon Court buffet was o.k. As always, the fresh salad was very good, and generally the vegetables were tasty. The fruit was very good most of the time, but a bit inconsistent. The pizza out by the pool tasted like authentic pizza from Italy, and we liked it. The food in the International Dining Room at breakfast and lunch was generally better tasting than the buffet in the Horizon Court. We chose Personal Choice dining for dinner, and based on our experience aboard the Diamond, we made reservations when we arrived, and had no problems getting our tables at the assigned times. We would prefer to simply walk up whenever we want, but that is not possible. Perhaps traditional dining is the way to go. You can still order from the theme restaurant menus, but you get to know your servers and they likely treat you a bit better. On the Diamond, the specialty pasta in the Vivaldi restaurant was outstanding, with flavor and spice. On the Sapphire, it was not worth eating.

 

Sabitini's--This has been our third visit to this restaurant, which charges a $20 per person cover. Make sure you are hungry, because you will be served way too much food. The food was generally very good, except for the lobster. The chicken and the sea bass, according to the others, were very good. This is worth a visit one night.

 

Spa--Princess is experimenting with using their own employees in the spa, versus licensing the operation to a British outfit. The massages were very good. Make sure that your therapist knows how to adjust the table. It is a bit different than the ones I am familiar with, and can be uncomfortable if not adjusted properly. The relaxation area, with heated stone lounges, and various types of steams and saunas, is not to be missed, and can be used the day of you services. They fitness area is quite adequate, with lots of treadmills, a few elliptical trainers, machines, and some free weights. There also is an aerobics studio where free aerobics classes are offered, as well as spinning and pilates (both for a $10 fee).

 

Track--Surprisingly, the track is closed between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., requiring runners to use the promenade deck during that time period. Since the promenade deck is blocked in part by a machine room, it does not make a complete circle, forcing running to "up and back". This is a nuisance.

 

Casino--What can I say, it's a casino. They've added some new table games, and you can bet that the odds on new games give the house an even greater edge. Blackjack is dealt from a whopping 8 deck shoe. Craps offers double odds.

 

 

Ports--

Ketchikan--We did the Clover Pass Bike tour. The other couple did a seaplane expedition. The bike ride was ok. We did it because we are active and wanted to do something. The ride was over a road, and was a bit disappointing, but fun. Nice 27 speed TREK bikes. Seaplane was reported to be fun.

 

Juneau--We love Mt. Roberts so we took the tram up there and hiked around. There is a "rescue" bald eagle there and it's nice to see one up close. Previously, we've done the whale watching expedition here, and it was outstanding. They guarantee you will see whales, or your money is refunded. We saw lots of them. We also went to Mendenhall Glacier, and we liked it a lot. The other couple did the Pilot's Choice helicopter excursion and raved about it. They landed on two glaciers and tromped around for a while. Do this in July or August when the snow isn't covering the glaciers and you can see all the crevasses.

 

Skagway--The 6 hour wildlife exploration was a bit disappointing. You take a ferry to Haines, then bus around looking for wildlife. Before heading back, you walk around it a rainforest and that was pretty nice. The ferry operator managed to find some whales on the way back to Skagway, and everyone appreciated that. I'd recommend the pilot's choice or even the White Pass R.R. in lieu of this excursion.

 

Art Auctions--We have purchased lots of art over the years on cruises, but we don't even attend the daily art auctions anymore. Princess is one of the few lines that actually owns its art (although I don't know if the other Carnival sister lines now do as well--I'd be surprised if they don't). RCCL/Celebrity and NCL have a professional art auction house (Park West Galleries) handle it for them. The quality of the art, in my opinion, has declined and it just doesn't seem worth our while to go.

 

Disembarkation--If you can take your luggage off with you, it's a breeze. Just register for express disembarkation, and you can leave whenever you want, beginning around 7 a.m.

 

Overall Impressions--Great ship. Great Alaska. Great weather. Very relaxing time. I don't know whether it's the integration into the Carnival family, cost cutting, or simply an off week, but the food was disappointing. I truly hope that Carnival is not ruining what has been our preferred line of late (I believe this is number 11 on Princess).

 

If anyone has any questions, I'd be happy to try to answer them.

[morganrp]

Guess I didn't expect to have my posting of opinions picked apart by a CC member - we are all entitled to our opinions. I have seen various reviews, but most members start one of their own, don't don't go through and give differing views on most all of some one elses thread. Sorry - just felt like like I was being beaten down!!

 

Embarkation - thought my review was accurate of the majority of us who are not Platinum members(we are only gold)! Also, we were in an AB mini suite on Dolphin deck - did not do anthing out on the balcony to require privacy, in fact had many enjoyable conversations with our neighbors above. Seems like the ones on Emerald would be surrounded by life boats - not my idea of a great view!. We even sat out in our bathing suits on Fri and Sat and got a nice tan!

 

Entertainment - after living in Las Vegas for 23 years - have seen MUCH better comedians/jugglers. The vantrilloquist was extremely talented.

 

Food - Like I said before, it was all ok - nothing to write home about (we actually agree on this and I was formerly a home ec major). Pizza - that's another story. I guess if you like thin crust it's ok - but even our 16 year old granddaughter didn't care for it. (FYI - I'm 59!! so not an true senior citizen by many standards).

The lobster - unless you like lobster semi-cooked - can't see why anyone wouldn't love it. Both my husband and granddaughter raved about it - cooked to perfection and delicious!

 

Debarkation and transfers - carry your own luggage????? Three people carrying 8 pieces of luggage - sure formula for a disaster - or at least back problems!! We only waited 45 minutes longer (7:45) and carried only our small overnight bags. Found our remaining luggage immediately and found a Princess rep to load them onto a cart and take them to the bus - no wait and never "mooed" once(??hearded like cattle??). The transfers helped us to avoid picking up our luggage and loading and unloading it into and out of a cab. All was done for us - what service!!! Never had to wait on the bus - departed within 5 minutes of sitting down - had time to relax and the driver even pointed out highlights of Seattle!!

 

Oh well, just had to reinterate some of my original opinions that were "shot down" by a seasoned traveler - guess I will be one some day. Thanks for listening.

Judy

[Hornet]

Judy ~ Thanks for your review.

 

I have a question about the 15% tips. Did you mean they add 15% on the spa bill? I tiped in cash to the spa people when we were on the Island. I never reviewed the bill to see if a tip was also added.:confused:

[TJ O'Pootertoot]

I can add my 2-cents to some of the semi-disagreements.

 

The balconies...covered vs. uncovered etc. is really all personal choice. I think that someone who enjoys something like Tracy Arm from their balcony is missing 1/2 the picture. I can see waking up, having the champagne breakfast etc there and then heading uptop but unless you're on deck getting a 360...I think you miss a lot.

 

I wish I could afford a suite but have no regrets about my surprisingly spacious inside cabin - it gave the incentive to always get out on deck and enjoy the view as much as possible.

 

Embark/Disembark - obviously express is not going to work for you if you have 8 bags. My wife and had 3. Thanks to getting off the boat at 7 we got standby on an 8:55 flight instead of waiting for the 12:30 flight we booked. The haul was WELL worth the 4 hrs we saved - especially after missing our flight TO Seattle thanks to riddiculously long customs line on the way in (as I mentioned elsewhere, if you are flying from Toronto to the USA you go through Customs here so it's like a domestic flight. We stood in line for 2 hrs with our bags, watching our plane go).

 

I'm not a platinum member so I can't speak to that but I thought that despite the length of the check-in line, it moved at a good pace and was well-organized.

 

Give the efficiency and prices of cabs, I never really considered the transfers. Unless there's a lot of you and/or a lot of bags, I don't know why anyone would do them aside from the apparent convenience.

 

Like the balconies, it's not a question of right/wrong - it's a question of WHO you are and what you need/like.

 

If I'd taken transfers I'd have gotten home much later, but Judy would have had to haul a lot of bags if she'd taken express embark. The important thing - like the PC dining - is that you make the CHOICE and have the option!!

 

 

Entertainment - As I've said elsewhere, the shows were good but not great. Undercover was particularly hokey with only a couple of good bits (like the Black Light Green Hornet). The comedian, Kevin Hughes, was above average and the magician, Lornezo Clark was okay but disappointing.

 

Similarly, we thought Eric Stone (from Crooners) was solid but with a healthy sprinkling of cheese.

 

Food - We had one good souffle and one eggy souffle. The cheesecake was indeed good and surprisingly light tasting for an NY style cake.

 

The pizza we had was a bit floppy once or twice but overall very good and tasty.

 

The guacamole in Santa Fe was very good and, though I'm not from the SW, it tasted authentic and fresh to me. As a side note, Santa Fe is a bit weird in terms of its concept. When I think of Catfish, I think of Louisina, not New Mexico...but that's just me. The fajitas were good, with a nice chili kick.

 

I disagree that it is "not possible" to simply walk up to the PC rooms. We did it twice (albeit at 9 p.m.) and never had trouble. I never saw lineups and have never heard of anyone waiting longer than 10-15 mins which, if you have any capability for pre-planning whatsoever, should not be a problem. Walk down, get a pager, walk around the atrium, get a drink, stand on the Promenade whatever. On vacation that 15 mins should not be such a premium.

 

Unboringguy also mentioned the art auctions. I'm not a huge buyer or anything but my wife wanted to go so we went to see. They did have some nice stuff but I can't comment on relative prices. Some seemed good and others excessive. There did seem to be some quality items.

 

On the other hand, there were two "final" auctions (one real, and then one on the last day) complete with promises of never-to-surface biddiing wars. This might be standard practice.

 

That's enough for now!

TJ

[unboringuy]

I'm sorry that Judy felt that I was attacking her post. As you can see, I only have posted 5 times, so I really didn't know that there was a protocol for how you post around here. I was merely putting in my two cents worth. One man's garbage is another man's treasure, and everyone has their own viewpoint on things. There was no intention to pick on anyone, and in fact when I saw the message topic, I simply posted my observations without even reading Judy's post or any of the replies. So, to the extent that my views differ from Judy's (or anybody else's) it's simply because my view was based on my experience. And my experience obviously was different than Judy's.

 

I see that I forgot to mention our visit to Butchart Gardens in Victoria. We went on our own via cab with another couple, and I think that was a wise move, since we had more time there and were able to stay for the fireworks display, which was fabulous. The tour through Princess left before the fireworks started. Also, for reasons later explained as being a desire to get the crew back on the ship (they apparently had problems the prior week), we departed Victoria at 11 p.m. as opposed to the originally scheduled 11:59 as shown in the itinerary. The gardens are beautiful, and if you are a flower lover, you probably will enjoy the trip. It was very crowded because many of the locals go there on Saturday in the summer to see the fireworks prior to closing.

[TJ O'Pootertoot]

I didn't think boringguy was attacking - I think it just might have seemed that way if you read the two back to back.

 

Great that you managed to do Butchart AND see the fireworks!

 

My wife and I went back and forth on it for weeks.

Then we found out that the boat was leaving at 11 instead of 12.

THEN the lady at the excursions desk said (incorrectly) that the fireworks start "very late" and so the tour wouldn't catch them.

We had already decided we didn't want to do the gardens if:

a) We weren't going through the ship

b) We woudln't have time to see at least some of Victoria

c) We couldn't see the fireworks

 

We'd already heard how crowded it would be on Sat night but were willing to brave it if we were with an organized tour and still had time to see some of the town.

 

What time did you get back to the boat after the fireworks?

 

No regrets - it was a beautiful night in Victoria but too bad we couldn't split the cab fare!

 

TJ

[Regan]

Does anyone remember the name of the Cruise Director?

[morganrp]

Yes, 15% gratuity was added to the Spa bill - I noticed it when I got back to the room, after adding additional gratuity to the slip. On reviewin all slips, I found that any charge had 15% gratuity added - even the $2.95 coffee in the internet cafe. Guess I know now.

Judy

[TJ O'Pootertoot]

Regan - I forget his last name but the CD was Trevor something...

 

TJ

[unboringuy]

Hmmm....we got back to the ship around 10:30 p.m. Thirty minutes to spare! I have to admit I thought the ship really wouldn't leave until midnight, but I was surprised when the Captain cranked her up sharply at 11 p.m. Since it only takes about two hours to get from Victoria to Seattle, I think Princess should give us more time in Victoria. Of course, they want to be away from the dock by midnight so they don't have to pay for a second day of moorage.

[zimmerjulie]

Thank you for all the great information!

 

I am wondering what time the dining room serves breakfast on the final morning of the cruise. Would you have that info? Thanks:) .

[unboringuy]

I believe the international dining room served breakfast on the last day beginning at 6:30 a.m.

[Irishjayne]

What is the earliest time that the evening shows start? Can you go to a show and then have time for 2nd seating Traditional?

[morganrp]

3 of the show were at 8:15, one was at 8:00. We ate at 6:30 (PC)

[kkorman]

Kkorman - believe this was not just a line from the crew, since the weather was so warm, likely the truth. Besides - prefer to be positive.

 

Judy

 

I wasn't saying this to be argumentative. I am laughing because I have heard this on my cruise and you can probably find it in one out of every 2 reviews. I'm laughin more at the crew than anything else.

 

BTW, I love Princess pizza... best onbard any ship.

[jbeagle2]

This is great info. Thanks to all of you for sharing. We're booked on the 9/5 departure and would like to do one of the two options out of Ketchikan for seeing bears. I know it's expensive, but we're big wildlife enthusiasts and this is our 4th Alaska cruise, so we've done most of the other things already. Has anyone done either of the "see the bear" tours? Thanks!

[morganrp]

Sorry I can't be of much help on the excursion in Ketchikan. We opted not to take any there. Instead my granddaughter and I went to the spa for a manicure and pedicure (cheaper on port days). Then we headed into Ketchikan to wander. Went to the internet cafe right next to the ship ($8 for an hour) then walked up to the eagle preserve, fish hatchery and totem pole center. We paid $11 each to wallk through all 3 and decided it was a waste of money, but we had a nice walk on a beautiful day in a darling town.

I am sure you will have a wonderful time - the Sapphire is fantastic and the Alaska scenery is breathtaking!

Judy