Embarkation and disembarkation were score of 5's! We were able to get on the ship before noon on our embarkation day! Our BEST excursion was in Skagway. We decided to do a Hummer excursion that we booked through Princess. It was AWESOME! We followed Uncle Dean to the Yukon stopping along the way to take pictures and enjoy the scenery. We were able to get a picture at the Welcome to Alaska sign which was REALLY cool since most people didn't have that opportunity. The scenery was incredible and it was nice to be able to stop along the way. DON'T do the excursion in Ketchican with Floatplane and crab feast unless it is in the afternoon. We wound up eating crab first (at 8:30 am) and then got on the floatplane which just took us back to where we started. Best thing we did on the ship was CHEF'S TABLE. As soon as you get on the ship, go to guest services and sign up for this. It is pricey but we enjoyed it more than the specialty restaurants. It's like an excursion on the ship and the best thing we did on the ship by far!! It was frustrating to have to pay extra for specialty coffees, sodas, and lobster and steak in the dining room. We did get steak and lobster one night which was well prepared. We met some great people on the ship and found our servers to be very attentive (dining room, cabin steward) if they were serving us but not so helpful if asking questions to other people onboard. We did not go to the spa even though I was given a $50 gift card because I heard how pushy they were to push products after the service was given. We had not been on a cruise in 15 years and it was our first Princess cruise. I researched the ships thinking this was the best cruise for us, but I would suggest looking for a smaller ship unless you don't mind being around a lot of people all the time.