Just Returned Coral Princess 6/5

[rogeralan]

Just got back from a wonderful time in Alaska. After spending 2 hours at immigration in Vancouver, I wondered if it would have been better to have left from Seattle. However, the two days in Vancouver and one day in Victoria erased all doubts. Vancouver remains one of my favorite places. However, if we weren't spending anytime in Vancouver I definitely would have considered going out of Seattle. Those passengers going directly to the ship had to go through immigration at the Vancouver airport (a 2 hour nightmare) and then go through another hour and half US immigration at the ship. A real disadvantage.

Princess breezed us through their part of the embarkation process but US immigration took about an hour and a half. Once that was done, however, we never had to do it again since we flew from Anchorage to destination within the US.

The Coral Princess was ok. We had a great stateroom (mini-suite), excellent service, and outstanding food. However, the dining areas seemed caustrophobic to me. Both the dining room and the Horizon Court Buffet were one floor with low ceilings. I know it sounds picky, but I much preferred the Celebrity Millenium class ships with the soaring dining room and wide open buffet area. A hightlight of the Princess cruise was the naturalist on board, Barbar Bennet, who gave a running commentary over the speakers in the public decks and on a channel in your cabin. She was extremely knowledgeable and provided so much insight into what we were seeing. A real plus for Princess.

The weather was perfect. In fact, in Ketchikan they considered the 80 degree temperatures a major heat wave that was unwelcome. In other ports the temps were more moderate but always comfortable. We only had rain on the Yukon side of the mountain out of Skagway.

In Ketchikan we took a prearranged (website) Duck tour which was very nice. Saw lots of eagles and salmon (in river by Dolly's House). We still had time to wander around town and shop. We were only in Ketchikan from 7:30am to 2:30pm so didn't have a lot of time. At the vistors center we could have picked any one of several tours, including flights to Misty Fjord. Everyone seemed to have availability. They were like circus harkers trying to outshout the others.
Juneau we rented a van from Rent-A-Wreck and saw everything we wanted to see with time to spare. Rent-A-Wreck were at the dock within 15 minutes after our call. They drove us back to their office (Mendenhall Valley) to pick up our vehicle and showed us where to leave the car in town when we were done. They had lots of suggestions on what to see and do; very helpful. The van wasn't a wreck, but it was new either. With 3 in the back seat it kept making strange rear end noises which made us a little nervious. Nothing went wrong. We particularly enjoyed the view of the ship from Douglas Island, St. Therese, the Glacier gardens, and of course Mendenhall. At Mendenhall the hike to the falls is very nice and you get some wonderful views of the glacier.

Skagway we rented a van from Sourdough and drove to Emerald lake. Enjoyed the drive very much, even though it rained once we entered Canada. Had a wonderful time at the Cinnamon Cache with Bobo and Barb. What a great couple and the sandwiches were unbelievable. Emerald Lake is just what the name implies; just spectacular greens. The best waterfall we saw was back in Skagway at the cemetary.

Glacier Bay is spectacular but without a doubt the highlight of the trip for me was College Fjord. To me it should have top priority in picking an itineary. As you enter the fjord you look ahead to see a total of 7 glaciers coming down to the water. Back in the fjord, the water is almost completely covered with ice. It was breathtaking. We saw seals, sea lions, otters, whales and one lonely bear here. The Bryn Mawr glacier was quite active which made it even more exciting.

What a wonderful experience and I envy those of you who still have there cruise to look forward to. I will be happy to answer any questions. This Board was so beneficial in my planning our trip for my 90 year old mother and 5 other relative. Thank you everyone who participates here.

[Fireplug]

Great review, sounds like you had a memorable trip!

Squid

coral Princess 8-04
Disney Cruises 3 + Sept 14th 4 day
RCCL in Jan '93

[Mezzaluna]

Thanks for the report! We're doing the southbound trip July 10. I couldn't be more excited!

Stella Solaris '80
Carnival Celebration '92
RCCL Majesty of the Seas '01
Coral Princess '04