Coral Princess Review

4.0 / 5.0
1,032 reviews

Coral Princess - Alaska Southbound

Review for Alaska Cruise on Coral Princess
User Avatar
xene97
First Time Cruiser • Age 50s

Rating by category

Value for Money
Embarkation
Dining
Public Rooms
Service
Cabin

Additional details

Sail Date: May 2009
Traveled with children

My mother, sister, 8-year old nephew, and I were on the 5/24 sailing from Whittier to Vancouver. I originally booked the cruise in mid-March. A couple of weeks after making the final payment (which was due at the time of booking) I saw that there was a $100 price drop. I called our TA and she was able to upgrade our obstructed view cabin to a regular oceanview, and our inside cabin to an obstructed view. Plus we were given $50 onboard credit per adult. A week before sailing I checked the Cruise Personalizer and saw that the originally booked inside cabin was now a regular oceanview. Not bad! We flew in the night before and stayed at the Hawthorn Suites in Anchorage (a steal on Hotwire). We chose to rent a car and drive to Whittier in order to maximize our sightseeing time. If you are interested in driving yourself, Avis is the only option and there is a $100 one-way drop fee. The day was sunny with a few wispy clouds and about 65°F so we stopped at the Alyeska Resort and took the tram to the top of the mountain. Spectacular! My nephew got a kick out of the fact that it was summer and he was playing with snow! Afterwards we had a quick lunch at The Bake Shop in Girdwood before heading to the Portage Glacier and slogged our way through the slush to Byron Glacier. If you drive to Whittier here are a couple of tips to remember: · arrive at the Anton Anderson tunnel a little bit before the half-hour (we arrived at 2:45 and had to wait until 3:30 for the next opening) · big tour buses go first through the tunnel (I didn't know this and since we were the very first ones there I jumped the gun and tried to go before the buses. A definite no-no.) · there is a tiny 2-pump gas station in Whittier at the start of the one-way road that leads to the Inn at Whittier · the Avis office is actually The Harbor Store/Outpost Liquor Store. It's a short 5-minute walk to the ship Embarkation: Since we boarded at around 4pm embarkation was a breeze. We were onboard in around 15 minutes and in our cabins 5 minutes after that. The Ship: Everything was spotless. We saw crew members continually scrubbing, vacuuming, and dusting. Maybe it's because of an outbreak of the Norovirus on the previous cruise or maybe that's how they always do things. My mother was quite impressed when she saw someone scrubbing away in the laundromat and when we saw our favorite chairs outside of the Explorer's Lounge being steam cleaned. Entertainment: Since we had an 8-year old in tow we didn't go to any of the shows. Instead, the scenery was our entertainment. However, do attend the culinary demonstration/galley tour if it's offered. I always enjoy seeing the "behind the scenes" parts of places. This was offered on our last day on ship (a sea day) and was right before the ice carving demonstration on the Lido Deck. Dining: We had anytime dining. The first night we ate in Horizon Court. We were not impressed. It's fine for breakfast but if you have any other options for lunch and dinner I would highly recommend that you go with those. The other nights we dined in the Bordeaux dining room. The first formal night we were served by Adrian and Nikola and enjoyed ourselves so much that we made a standing reservation for the same table on the other nights. The food and service were excellent. The Pizzeria and The Grill (hot dogs and hamburgers) were also very good. Formal Nights: Since we each packed only a carry-on sized suitcase there wasn't any room for formal clothes. Instead we wore the same type of things for formal night as we did on an ordinary night - dark pants, a nice sweater, and heels. No one mentioned anything about the way we were dressed and we didn't notice any strange looks. Service: I have never seen such a large group of people who were as friendly and willing to help out in any way. Our cabin steward Jorge was attentive without being overbearing. However, the attentiveness of the crew members to my nephew was amazing. It seemed like everyone greeted him by name or called him "baby" when they overheard us calling him that. The servers that we had for breakfast or lunch on previous days always went out of their way and stopped by to chat with us. One day at lunch one of the waiters made an origami shirt out of the children's menu for my nephew and the assistant waiter gave him a mouse made out of napkin. At our final dinner Florian, the head waiter, bought my nephew a virgin Strawberry Daiquiri. He enjoyed it so much that Adrian our waiter bought him another one! Ports Cruising with the Glaciers: Both days were sunny and between 45°and 50°. Now this was my entire reason to cruise in Alaska. We went to College Fjord first and it was a nice introduction to tidewater glaciers. Glacier Bay was incredible. I think the entire ship was up on deck trying to find a good view of the Margerie Glacier calving so you really couldn't get a good view. We gave up trying to jockey for position and went into the Horizon Court for some hot chocolate and found the most incredible seats at the very front of the ship with unobstructed views of the glaciers. We could see them calve without having someone jostle you. Skagway: Partly cloudy, windy, and in the low 50s. I can't say much about Skagway. On the way to the WPY Railroad depot my nephew took a very strong dislike to Skagway so we headed back to the ship, had a nice relaxing lunch in the dining room, did some laundry, and explored the ship. Juneau: Rainy, windy, and in the low 40s. We rented a car from Rent-A-Wreck (I think they're the only ones who pick you up at the dock). First, we went to the Mendenhall Glacier. Even though it was raining (thankfully we had waterproof shoes and jackets!) we did the short Photo Point Trail that takes you along the lake's edge. Then we went into the visitor's center to warm up and see the exhibits. Next we stopped at the Glacier Gardens and took the tour through the Tongass National Forest. If you don't have time to return the car to the Rent-A-Wreck offices (over by the Mendenhall Glacier) you can drop it downtown for an additional $15. Also we couldn't find a gas station anywhere close to the dock (we went back to the ship for lunch), but there is a gas option for $5/gallon. Ketchikan: A gorgeous day - partly sunny with one tiny period of light rain, windy, and in the low 50s. We wanted to visit Totem Bight and were planning on getting there by public bus but the bus doesn't run on weekends. Instead we found a tour guide in the Tourist Information center. After a quick lunch we watched the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show - kind of hokey but a lot of fun. Sea Day: Not much to do. We did the culinary demonstration and galley tour and watched the ice carving demonstration. Disembarkation: This was chaos. We opted for the "Express Walk-Off" where you carry your own bags off the ship. We were supposed to line up at 7:00 am in the Explorer's Lounge. All would be fine except that people who were not due to disembark until 9:00 am decided to get there 2 hours early! And then there were the people who were in the wrong meeting area who were using up the limited number of chairs. Thankfully we were off the ship and through customs by 7:45 and off to our hotel (La Grande REsidence at Sutton Place - another great Hotwire find) for a 3-day exploration of Vancouver. Conclusion: My favorite cruise to date. I have cruised twice before with NCL and once with RCCL. Princess is the best by far. The level of service and the condition of the ship is light years beyond what the other two lines can offer. The itinerary, in my opinion, is superior to an Inside Passage only cruise.

Cabin Review

Cabin F
previous reviewnext review

Find a Coral Princess Cruise from $388

Any Month

Get special cruise deals, expert advice, insider tips and more.By proceeding, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

© 1995—2024, The Independent Traveler, Inc.