Celebrity lovers try Princess...again!/Star Princess 6/14-21 review w/ pics!

[Infi]

Looking back up Broadway

 

And now we come to DD’s favorite part of the trip…the rock wall next to the pier. No, I’m not kidding. I think I could leave her here for hours and she would be happy. There’s lots of cruise ship graffiti from all the ships that have visited Skagway over the years. It’s interesting if you’re into ships – otherwise, you might not even notice it. I think we have several hundred photos and video of this wall. And since DD says our review of Skagway would be remiss without them, here’s some gratuitous photos of the wall.

 

Old Star…she didn’t find the new Star’s graffiti mark

 

Dinner tonight was the Chef’s dinner. Now, this dinner is definitely not one of our favorites, but the sorbet is great and we also enjoyed the crab legs. Our waitress Agnieszka kept bringing out platefuls for the whole table to share even without our asking for them. Don’t worry, they all got eaten! Here they are – no worries about crackers or anything, they’re very easy to eat.

 

Strawberry lemon sorbet…very yummy. You do have to order it, it’s not brought automatically, so there’s a heads up.

 

The entertainment tonight was a very funny comedian…he was heads and shoulders better than the first one onboard. He kept us laughing through the whole show, he was hilarious. I’m blanking on his name right now, but I’ll look it up in the patter and post it later.

Later that evening, Sea Princess sailed past us…here’s a quick shot.

[Infi]

JSWalk, StLouisCruisers, Clutterlady, bragstarr, and bigjer - thanks so much! Your kind words keep me trudging along on this review, and I'm so glad you're all enjoying it. And thank YOU for putting up with my slow pace!

 

Coming up we have a day in Victoria...now, we didn't get off the ship here (too late and too short on time to really explore), but we did visit Victoria earlier in our trip, on a ferry from Seattle. Would you all be interested in reading about that experience? We went to Butchart gardens and wandered around downtown, which is what we would've done from the ship if we had more time. :p Just wondering!

[Billy and Charlie's Mum]

Coming up we have a day in Victoria...now, we didn't get off the ship here (too late and too short on time to really explore), but we did visit Victoria earlier in our trip, on a ferry from Seattle. Would you all be interested in reading about that experience? We went to Butchart gardens and wandered around downtown, which is what we would've done from the ship if we had more time. :p Just wondering!

 

Is the Pope a catholic?

 

Seriously, I am loving this thread. Alaska is on our bucket list - will definitely get there in the next few years.

[Cruisin'BusyBee]

Infi: u are truly a "Star" in giving us all such a wonderful review of your cruise - I dont know how u can find the time for all of your great reporting. Unfortunately, I am unable to view the pics now :eek:- w/pro photobucket? What do I need to do :confused: - I cannot upgrade by clicking on it? Any help here would be soooooooooo appreciated either by you or someone reading this blog? I want to continue your great review!:)

C/BB

[StLouisCruisers]

Infi: u are truly a "Star" in giving us all such a wonderful review of your cruise - I dont know how u can find the time for all of your great reporting. Unfortunately' date=' I am unable to view the pics now :eek:- w/pro photobucket? What do I need to do :confused: - I cannot upgrade by clicking on it? Any help here would be soooooooooo appreciated either by you or someone reading this blog? I want to continue your great review!:)

C/BB[/quote']

 

I'm not totally sure, but I think Infi has downloaded so many photos to Photobucket, that she has to upgrade to Pro. So there's nothing we can do at this point to view the photos. Let's just wait and see. I have to say, I'm very anxious to view these latest shots!!

[DNArocks]

The strange thing is that the picturess were there last night. I understand if they just didn't take, but I looked at them during the night...maybe midnight (Eastern Standard/Michigan time).

 

I am enjoying this review so much. Please continue. If you write a book, I'll buy it. You have a gift with words. Thank-you for your time posing each review and picture. Ithas been gift.

[Billy and Charlie's Mum]

Yes, they were there yesterday. Nice photos too!

[mississauga]

I'm not totally sure, but I think Infi has downloaded so many photos to Photobucket, that she has to upgrade to Pro. So there's nothing we can do at this point to view the photos. Let's just wait and see. I have to say, I'm very anxious to view these latest shots!!

 

 

You're right Sandi. I had read that another poster had this same problem and had to upgrade. The problem is not only because she downloaded so many photos but also that they are being viewed so much. Apparently that counts against her account too.

 

I saw the photos last night too. Just as breathtaking as all the others.

[Infi]

Hi all,

I'm so sorry about the technical difficulties! :o I had a moment yesterday where it was "where did all the pictures go? they were there yesterday!" It turns out I used up too much bandwith (too many people viewing the photos), so I am out for the month. :rolleyes: I made a new account on Photobucket and will post the next photos there/repost the latest ones that got lost. Hopefully that will work out!

[Infi]

After a quick lunch onboard in the DR (which was VERY empty), we headed out again for our last chance for Alaskan shopping. (Read: we needed more souvenirs for everyone back home.) I’m not sure if I mentioned this before, but there are free golf cart shuttles to take you to the end of the pier (it’s a long pier). At the end of the pier, you can either catch a shuttle ($2pp each way, $5 for an all day pass) or walk to town (it’s about a 10min walk).

Shuttle pickup area at end of dock:

 

To be honest, there’s not much to see/do in town other than shop. There’s a handful of museums, which we unfortunately didn’t have time for. There’s also some landmarks at the center of town commemorating the railroad’s history and the gold rush. All of the shopping is located on the main street, Broadway, and are in the style of the gold rush era. Oh, and don’t worry about getting lost here – the town is about 12 streets long and 4 streets wide!

One of the stores on Broadway

 

Small gardens and flowers on the streets

 

Skagway news…apparently published “semi-monthly”

 

Red Onion saloon…famous saloon/likely tourist trap

 

Train in the center of town

[Infi]

Looking back up Broadway

 

And now we come to DD’s favorite part of the trip…the rock wall next to the pier. No, I’m not kidding. I think I could leave her here for hours and she would be happy. There’s lots of cruise ship graffiti from all the ships that have visited Skagway over the years. It’s interesting if you’re into ships – otherwise, you might not even notice it. I think we have several hundred photos and video of this wall. And since DD says our review of Skagway would be remiss without them, here’s some gratuitous photos of the wall.

 

Old Star Princess…she didn’t find the new Star’s graffiti mark

 

Dinner tonight was the Chef’s dinner. Now, this dinner is definitely not one of our favorites, but the sorbet is great and we also enjoyed the crab legs. Our waitress Agnieszka kept bringing out platefuls for the whole table to share even without our asking for them. Don’t worry, they all got eaten! Here they are – no worries about crackers or anything, they’re very easy to eat.

 

Strawberry lemon sorbet…very yummy. You do have to order it, it’s not brought automatically, so there’s a heads up.

 

The entertainment tonight was a very funny comedian…he was heads and shoulders better than the first one onboard. He kept us laughing through the whole show, he was hilarious. I’m blanking on his name right now, but I’ll look it up in the patter and post it later.

Later that evening, Sea Princess sailed past us…here’s a quick shot.

[KLLund]

Ohhh Thank you for reposting those :) One really helpful part of this post is what the people in port are wearing. I know weather cannot be predicted this far in advance but what I see them wearing is pretty much what I am figuring on.. if it is warmer that is a bonus.

Thanks again ..great review.

[traceye]

So after the month is over will your other pictures come back? I've been off the boards for about a week and I missed all of your skagway and sabitini's stuff. I think that might be all I missed. I'll keep checking back and I look forward to more.

 

Tracey

[wildweston]

Beautiful photos, can't stop looking at them. :D

[psyfi]

thanks for re-posting! can't wait to see the rest. The wall is kinda cool--you are the first person I have heard mention that. Is is right at the dock?

[StLouisCruisers]

thanks for re-posting! can't wait to see the rest. The wall is kinda cool--you are the first person I have heard mention that. Is is right at the dock?

 

I can answer this question. In 2002 we took the Star on a southbound Alaska cruise, and right at the main dock across from the ships is a rock wall plastered with insignias and names of ships, etc. that people over the years have painted. I didn't even take a picture of it, but this time I will. We're going again (back2back) in September.

[psyfi]

neat - thanks!

[Cruisin'BusyBee]

Thank u soooooo very much for taking the time to re-upload pics again for our viewing. I missed out on the train ones :( but I will pick up w/your reporting from Skagway & Chef's Dinner! U are absolutely a "top notch STAR" in doing this for those of us going soon to AK!!! :)

 

C/BB

[Infi]

Our next day was at sea, so I’ll take some time here to point out some activities and little spaces around the Star Princess. First up, some of the treats at the international café. In addition to serving specialty coffees, they have a great selection of pastries each morning and sandwiches, snacks, and desserts each afternoon. These are all free of charge. In the evening there are tapas for a small fee (I believe it was $3/3). There was no gelato case or strawberries/fondue for sale as on the larger ships, at least not that I saw.

I can’t tell you how many folks don’t discover this area/think it’s extra charge and don’t use it. Find it early and enjoy, it’s a wonderful addition to the newer Princess ships.

 

 

Before lunchtime, there was a dessert buffet outside the Horizon Court. Sadly, this was one of those times where the desserts looked much better than they tasted. It happens!

 

 

 

Shortly before the dessert buffet was an ice carving demonstration in the covered pool area. Somehow, ice carving takes on a slightly different connotation in Alaska than in the Caribbean!

[Colo Cruiser]

Hi all,

I'm so sorry about the technical difficulties! :o I had a moment yesterday where it was "where did all the pictures go? they were there yesterday!" It turns out I used up too much bandwith (too many people viewing the photos), so I am out for the month. :rolleyes: I made a new account on Photobucket and will post the next photos there/repost the latest ones that got lost. Hopefully that will work out!

 

 

They did the same to me with my Golden Alaska photos. :rolleyes:

[Infi]

Lunchtime was up next. We all loved this four-cheese pasta

 

Now for some ship exploration…here is the Piazza. I really enjoy this space on Princess ships, it’s very pretty and a great location to sit and people watch. The international café is here on deck 5, as is the internet café/library, and Vines wine and sushi bar (and shop, though I have to say I didn’t see it getting a lot of business during our cruise.) I will say the Piazza on the gem-class ships is a little better than the retrofitted ones, as there’s more seating, which is great for performances and just daytime relaxing.

International café

 

Vines…there is additional seating and tables not pictured here.

 

Vines shop

 

While the internet café is large and has plenty of computers, the library is woefully cramped and inadequate. It’s simply a wall of books on the unused end of the internet café with a few chairs. Like the Crown Grill, I feel the library is another casualty of the renovations – there just was no other space for it anywhere else, so it ended up here. If you’re looking for a quiet place to read, you’ll have to look elsewhere, unfortunately.

 

Internet café entrance…plenty of computers here, you’ll never have to wait for one. However, the café manager on our cruise was pretty grumpy. He did not give the bonus embarkation day signup minutes to platinum/elite, nor would he let you combine coupons/specials when purchasing an internet package. Additionally, the internet was very slow, which angered a lot of passengers. I can understand occasional inaccessibility (for example, the internet was out the whole morning we were in Tracy Arm), but it took forever to even log onto the system, much less access a website. By the end of the cruise, passengers would take to warning each other when the internet was slow so others wouldn’t end up wasting their minutes. The café manager did credit back minutes for those who “complained enough”, as they say.

[Infi]

Piazza from deck 5

 

Moving up to deck 6, where the passenger services desk and the souvenir and formal clothing shops are located.

Passenger services desk

 

One of the shops, Calypso Cove.

 

Moving forward on deck 6, we come up to the casino. It’s very large and takes up the whole width of the ship, so you must pass through here. There’s a wide variety of slots, in addition to quite a few tables. Of course, it can also get pretty smoky in here at peak times, so be prepared.

 

After passing through the casino is the entrance to the Princess theater. Right before the entrance is Shooters, the sports pub. There’s a large bar and about four flatscreen TVs in here, along with sports memorabilia.

 

Finally, at the forwardmost part of the ship, is the Princess theater. It looks quite different empty vs. full! I’m not a fan of the theater design, so I’ll spare you my issues with this venue. There are stairs to enter the theater on both levels (deck 6 and 7), so if you’re of limited mobility, go to deck 7 where there is a ramp in between the forward stairwells that will take you into the theater. There’s only three seats on either side of the theater for handicapped/folks who can’t walk down stairs…all the other seats, you must climb up/down stairs for. This shot was taken from the upper level, deck 7.

[Infi]

Deck 7 is the final deck of the Piazza. There’s a jewelry and perfume shop and the Promenade bar here. The bar was very popular on our cruise, as we had an excellent pianist here who developed quite a following.

 

Right off the Piazza is the Crown Grill. I found the location of the Crown Grill a bit strange – I think it’s a casualty of the most recent refit – as it’s basically smack in the middle of the ship. This is fine during the day, as you can walk through the restaurant without a problem. But at night, you’re only able to access the theater via the port side of the ship, which is a bit narrow considering all the traffic that goes through.

 

Continuing aft is where you’ll find all of the other entertainment venues onboard. The first of these is Explorers, which was used for a dance-through-the-decades party and other live music. One thing I found interesting is that on our cruise on the Emerald, comedians and other guest acts all performed here, and parties were held in Club Fusion. The exact opposite was true on the Star, with guest acts in the Vista lounge (more on that coming up) and parties and games in Explorers.

 

Hallway outside Explorers

 

The Wheelhouse bar is next. This bar is a bit smaller and narrower than on the larger ships. Trivia and live music take place here.

 

At the back of the ship is the Vista lounge. The production show Motor City was held here, in addition to gameshows, bingo, the comedy shows, and the Captain’s Circle party. I really liked the Vista lounge a lot. I thought it was head and shoulders nicer than Club Fusion on the larger ships, and had great sightlines (there’s so many support poles and railings blocking your view on Club Fusion that it’s hard to see anything). It reminded me of showrooms on the older ships, with the slightly terraced sofa style seating.

[Infi]

Speaking of the Vista lounge, the Captain’s Circle party was held that night there. There were two parties to accommodate the all the members, and ours (at 5:15, which is less-than-stellar timing for early seating) was very empty. As expected, there were plenty of watered down drinks and some surprisingly good hors d'oeuvres. Captain Craig Street did the usual welcome back speech and champagne was given to the most traveled passengers. There were very few platinum/elites on this cruise (about 100 total), and about 200 gold members.

 

As this was the second formal night, the menu was the Captain’s Gala dinner. Yes, this was lobster night. But first, some escargot (you have to ask for this. It, along with the French onion soup, is not on the menu – usually your server will inform you).

 

Beef Wellington, which was excellent. Lobster was also on the menu, though I don’t have a photo of it to share. The lobster is very small (about the size of large prawn), so be aware…you can always order more if you need to!

 

And, of course, the Baked Alaska for dessert. The Baked Alaska parade is only done in traditional dining, so if you have anytime, you will not see it. (Baked Alaska is still on the dessert menu, however.)

 

Finally, the production show tonight was “Ticket to Anywhere”, featuring songs and dancing from various regions all over the world. This show was a little strange (The Police’s “Roxanne” performed as a waltz in London?), but still enjoyable.

The finale shot – check out those headpieces – we later found out on the backstage tour that they’re worth $15k…each!

[judyfssw]

Thanks for everything Infi. We leave for the Star in about one hour and then we'll see what you've been showing us. Again, many many thanks.