This was our 15th cruise with Princess, but first to Alaska and first on the Diamond. We normally book a balcony or mini-suite but for this cruise opted for a less expensive option and booked an ocean view obstructed cabin as it did not seem likely that sitting on the balcony in a coat would be particularly to our taste. Being familiar with Princess ships we knew that there would be multiple inside viewing areas that would allow spectacular views, in particular we thought that Skywalkers would be a great place to view the scenery from and that assumption was correct. fortunately very few other people thought of this and typically there were only a handful of people using this massive space.

We booked late and were unable to get our preferred Traditional fixed seating dining option. Our experience with Anytime dining was generally excellent. No issues with accessing a dining room at our preferred times as we generally made a reservation the day before or early in the morning, this also allowed us to get a table for two with no difficulty. We did miss the personal relationship that you can develop with your waiter when using Traditional fixed seating and for that reason we will likely return to traditional dining option for future cruises. On our anniversary we opted to dine at Sabbatini's, first time we have ever used one of the alternate dining options, the food and service were both exceptional. We had a table for two right beside the window so it made a perfect setting for our special occasion. The entertainment was generally excellent. We have seen most of the Princess production shows multiple times but they are always somewhat differently staged and of course the performers are different. On this particular cruise the shows were outstanding primarily based on the strength of one of the lead singers, Tracey Dawdy, who was an absolute powerhouse. Amazing range and handled all the different genres exceptionally well. I suspect that she has an acting background as she displayed a range of powerful emotions when singing that added to the production. A great change from the usually talented singers who simply 'stand and deliver', she didn't just sing - she preformed!

We used ship booked shore excursions at all three ports and found them to be of higher quality than usual. We had exceptionally knowledge and personable guides/drivers on all three. Skagway we did the full day White Pass & Yukon Railway excursion which visits the Yukon. Went for a dog 'cart' ride at Carcross which was a highlight for my wife, not so much for me! In Juneau we did the Mendenhall Glacier and Garden Tour and in Ketchikan the Saxman Village and Totem Pole Park. Read more