I have cruised Alaska before on Carnival and found it it to be beautiful. I think the inside passage is worth seeing more than once. This time we chose Princess because we had sailed on Princess in Europe the year before and found the boat to be very nice. That was not really our experience this time. First, the food on the buffet was not up to snuff. I mean it wasn't bad, just the same thing, over and over, very little variety. I also found the boat crowded. When you go to eat and there are no seats, that means the buffet area is not big enough or they booked too many people on the cruise. I have sailed on about seven different boats and five or so different cruise lines and have always been able to find a table to eat at.
The crew was very nice and the seated dining in the evening was good. Wait staff was very accommodating.
Work out room was small and in the bottom of the ship, no windows. It was always hot and stuffy. No place on deck to run or walk for exercise. The promenade deck was altered to make more balcony rooms, so the walking track was not all the way around the ship.
Great hiking trails right as you walk into town. Beautiful and a great way to relax as you walk around a glacial lake.