My husband and I of 39 years sailed the beautiful Island Princess on July 21. This was his choice as a celebration retirement cruise. We have previously sailed with Celebrity, Azamara, Carnival, RCCL, and NCLA. We were anxious to try Princess and were not disappointed in the least. We booked a guarantee cabin for the 1st time, and I must admit it was a bit nerve-racking for me not to know where on the ship we would be. We eventually found out our assignment 3 days before sailing. It was a 1 category upgrade from AD to AC mini-suite. We enjoyed the cabin and our room steward, Jessy. The food was good in the restaurants (anytime dining). There were always choices that were available on the left side of the menu....ex. shrimp cocktail, Caesar salad, fett. Alfredo, etc. in addition to the always available entrees...steak, salmon, chicken, etc. One of our favorite meals was the crab legs. They were split and very easy to eat. Our waiter said he would bring a double order if we wanted. I couldn't even finish my first portion. The desserts, in my opinion, were lacking in variety and flavor. We are from NY so I was a bit disappointed in the texture of the cheesecake. The mousse was quite heavy, also. We did eat at Sabitini's. I thought the food was very good. Just taste a bit of each dish that is brought to you and you will be fine. I could be more specific if anyone would like, please email me.

We did attend some of the entertainment on board. The Piano Man show was quite good. Also, Glen Smith on the piano was very good. The CD kept talking about the show with Adrian Zmed (he used to star on TJ Hooker). The show, in my opinion was awful. Some people left in the middle. To sum it up, it went something like this....Look at these clips of me I used to be really famous, REALLY, and you should remember me....and then he would sing...pretty sad. I must make a comment here about the CD. I think she was the weakest CD I have ever encountered. Her asst. had more personality and charisma than she could ever have. Service on the whole ship was fantastic. No problems at all.

Now on to Alaska itself. We did a 5 day land tour before the cruise. We flew from JFK to MSP and then to ANC for an overnight at the Capt. Cook Hotel. It rained when we arrived in Anchorage. That should have been an omen of things to come. The hotel is very nice. It is centrally located and it is easy to walk to many places, IF it's not pouring. I had made reservations at Simon and Seafort's on line before leaving NY so we were really looking forward to their early special that was advertised on their website. We went to the ULU factory first and then took the trolley back and had to walk again in the rain to the restaurant. No problem... we were in Alaska and that happens, right? The restaurant is not in a separate building so it took some searching but finally we found it. Wet and hungry, we were excited to be having our first true Alaskan meal. When we were given the menu, I told the waitress that we were interested in the early special, but I didn't see the choices on the menu...you can see where this is going. She said that they didn't offer that special in the summer. Really? How would I have seen it on the website? Oh that must be a mistake. So we stay and have a great meal, but that is a bit of foreshadowing of the remainder of our trip. Next morning got the train to Talkeetna. The train ride was good, but saw no wild life. I really liked this little town. My husband did a jet boat safari and enjoyed it, but again no wildlife. I shopped a bit in the rain again. Also, no one told me that mosquitos could be biting in the rain! Live and learn. Took shuttle to McKinley Lodge. Mt. was not visible at all. We could barely see the lodge let alone the Mt. There were bugs in the bed that bit me so we had to change rooms. I kept trying to enjoy myself still. Next day Train to Denali. Scenery is great even though it's still raining. BTW Food on train is good and reasonable. Bus ride to Denali Lodge is short (10 min.) as compared to McKinley Lodge. Upon arrival we went to Outfitter's desk and got tickets to Music of Denali show and Whitewater rafting for next morning. Show was cute and food was ok. My husband enjoyed the rafting. Since I was so bitten by bugs I wasn't able to do much outside; couldn't even walk without being attacked...still trying to have a good time. The rooms at Denali are "interesting". As an example, the bathroom sink is in the bedroom. This didn't bother us but some people were very upset. I understand that the new rooms are different. We were supposed to go on the NHT but opted not to do it. Princess did not offer a refund although we asked. After my husband returned from the rafting and we had lunch at LYNX pizza (OK) we boarded a bus for Fairbanks. I was amazed that there were just 6 of us on a full size bus. It was a very pleasant 4 hour ride. We enjoyed the scenery and looked forward to spending 2 nights in 1 place. When we got in our room there was an awful smell as if someone had been smoking and they tried to cover it up with an air freshener. Both of us had difficulty breathing. It almost sounds comical now, but they said to open the window and they brought in a fan of about 4 inches in diameter. We just laughed and and said to find us another room...hopefully, on a ship. LOL Of course, the first response was that there was no room in the inn, but I told them that we were going to the salmon bake and when we returned we expected to be given a room change. It was a "miracle". When we returned there was a room available. BTW the salmon bake was good, but "buggy" again...at least no rain. Could our luck be changing? Next morning nope rain again... We went to the El Dorado Mine, stopped to see the pipeline, then back to the lodge for lunch and then a riverboat on the Chena River. A very full but fun day....except for the bugs and the rain. It seems like a theme here. We walked to Pike's Landing for dinner. It is right next door to the Riverside Lodge. The food was very good and the prices were what we expected to pay in NY. I know it seems like I'm complaining alot. All I did was try to have a good time. Trying is not what I want to do on a vacation. Even my husband who is the most positive person I know started to get discouraged. This really bothered me since the trip was one he wanted to do so badly. So the next day we flew to Anchorage from Fairbanks. Then a 2 hour bus ride to Whittier. I was never so happy to see a ship in my whole life. Embarkation was smooth but we got soaked as it was pouring and there was not complete cover. No problem we were on the ship and all would be well...at least for 1 day. We had a great dinner in the buffet that night, went to the casino, and to sleep. The next morning my husband woke up with bronchitis, went to the Dr., then I got the same thing, it rained every day, my favorite shore excursion was cancelled, etc. I know we can't blame our lack of a good time on the weather or getting sick, but I must admit I was disappointed in Alaska in general. As I stated we are from NY. The scenery here is also spectacular. Some would say how can you compare that to Alaska? We can compare it to the Alaska we experienced. I was almost afraid to write this review because there have been so many positive ones about Alaska that I'm sure I'll get some hate letters. Just remember different strokes. I have to mention again how much I enjoyed Princess. Their cruise/tour package was great. They really have their act together. I would definitely cruise on one of their ships again...just never to Alaska. In case anyone is interested I will email you a picture of myself with a yellow poncho on at the Mendenhall Glacier. My husband says it is priceless. I was not going to let the rain stop me from seeing that glacier. It was spectacular! Lorraine and Terry D tjld123@aol.com