This was not what I expected, but that's my fault for not reading ahead! Arrive early, because this is a large boat and good viewing is a premium. Basically, you spend about 1 3/4 hour cruising to the National park of Misty Fjords, about 1/2 hour viewing it and another 1 3/4 hours back. The boat is large, and seats about 100. There are about 35 seats topside that go fast, then the rest in the larger downstairs cabin, which is a bit like being in a 747. You never get off the boat. It is warm, and they provide beverages, restrooms and extra food for sale. They also give out a small cupful of chili or clam chowder.They do provide binoculars, but ours didn't work. They have a running commentary, that was interesting. Once you get to Misty Fjords, most people go up on the outside deck because it is misty and gorgeous green, waterfalls and deep fjord. We also saw humpback whales bubble-net feeding, a back bear and bald eagles. They also showed a brief movie on the way back. It was good choice for a rainy day.

This was a 3 hour excursion. Our tour guide, Savanna, led us to a bus and we drove about 45 minutes out of Skagway up to the Dog Musher's camp outside Dyea. She gave us a running commentary about the area and history of the camp. We then transferred to a very rugged transport vehicle to go up the steep roads to the dirt paths the dogs run on. These are actual Iditarod dogs at their summer training facility and you get to ride in the sled for about 10 minutes, led by a seasoned musher. They talk the whole time about the dogs and you get to pet them. Then you go back down to the base and there is a presentation by an experienced Iditarod musher and you can hold some sled dog puppies (the best part of course). We thought this was very fun.

You should know that Whittier is just a deep-water port that Princess uses; it is a 60 mile drive up to Anchorage through a 2½ mile, one-way tunnel so you need a “transfer.The ship does rotate 180 once each at Margerie (Glacier Bay) and Harvard (College Fjord) so that each side gets about ½ hour to watch the calving glaciers.

Coral Princess Review

Our Best Cruise Ever, Coral Princess Alaska (detailed) Aug 2017

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