We picked this cruise to see Alaska on a ship departing out of San Francisco. This is a great option for Bay Area residents eliminating the hassle and cost of flying to the port. We arrived at Pier 27 around 1030 and made our way through the departing passengers at the curb to a quick security screening and check-in process. As suite passengers, we were able to wait in the small priority boarding area and board the ship as soon as it opened for boarding - around 12:30. There were plenty of staff on board to direct you to your stateroom and when we arrived, it was ready and waiting for us set up with all the suite amenities. Once we dropped off our carry-on bags, we explored the ship and went to lunch. As has happened to others, everyone we asked (including the purser's desk) said lunch was only served in the Horizon Buffet. However, since we have read other reviews on CruiseCritic, we checked ourselves and were able to have a nice leisurely lunch in the DaVinci dining room.

Since this was a 10 day cruise starting in mid-September, there were very few children as you would expect. The demographic of the passengers skewed older with many elderly passengers needing scooters and walkers. This was not an issue for us but might bother younger people wanting to have a more lively night scene.

We dined in Club Class and at the Crown Grill for most of our meals. The dining room meals were good and varied but were nothing spectacular. Meals at the Crown Grill were, however, excellent with delicious steaks and fish. We ended up eating three dinners (out of 10) at the Crown Grill since we enjoyed it so much. We are not really buffet people and only ate one meal at the Horizon Buffet - it was bland and the food options were not very wide. The pizza at Alfredo's and Prego Pizza were delicious each of the times we ate there; pizza is definitely a strong point on the Grand Princess. We did not eat at Sabatini's as the menu did not appeal to us as much as the one at the Crown Grill. The suite breakfast at the Crown Grill was a highlight of each morning - the food, atmosphere and serving staff were all outstanding and it was a fantastic way to start our day. We also ordered afternoon tea in our room as well as dinner off the main dining room menu one day - the food was delivered right on time and was delicious. Eating dinner on our balcony as the sun set over the ocean was a highlight of our trip. Read more