This was my tenth Princess Cruise -- my husband wanted to go to Alaska for his 80th birthday, got sidetracked by an illness which took a year to get under control, and we made it to AK in time for his 81st. I love sea days -- my favorite thing is to sit on the balcony with a book, gaze out at the waves and breathe the ocean air. My husband likes action. This cruise was the perfect combination. In Ketchikan we did the Historic Ketchikan & Creek Street Walk with Joe Williams -- an hour-plus walk around town -- informative, yet laid back. (Recommend!) In Juneau we did the Mendenhall Glacier, Rainforest Garden, State Museum. All three were great. That museum is fabulous and we've been in them all over the world. Loved the small, circular garden and the husband-wife team who created it! (Recommend!) In Skagway we did the White Pass Rail & Klondike Highway. My husband loves to ride trains. This was a little expensive for a relatively short train ride. They give you earphones for the history (good, professionally written story and music). The guide in our car handed out ice cold bottles of water (nice) yakked our ears off (not nice) when the earphones were silent. Imagine having Roseanne Barr scream at you for an hour -- well, that's what it felt like. Then the earphones explained how to get our passports in order for border crossing inspection, then the guide screamed it at us twice more. In Victoria we went to Butchart Garden -- small but gorgeous. (Recommend!)
Some excellent dinners we had were the barramundi, pepper steak, scallops and of course the lobster tails which they saved for the very last night. Crab legs were good because they slice them in half, making it easy to access the crab. Horizon Court was very good for breakfast. Not a big lunch eater, and not impressed with the lunch food with the exception of desserts. The food seemed to slip down a notch from our Princess Cruises in November and December (Crown P. & Royal P. respectively). Entertainers we liked were two talented singers: Charyn Cannon (who did A Tribute to the Queen of Soul) and a gifted tenor, Steven Coleman. Loved the Stardust production show (and others) and the extremely talented singers and dancers, as we have on all of our Princess cruises. Took the backstage tour and we both enjoyed that. Thought the art auction was annoying, but trivia much fun. Enjoyed lectures about Alaska (gold rush), animals, glaciers and sea life by Dr. Ann Burgess. Master carver, Kelly White was often in the atrium carving a totem pole and telling about native history. (Loved that!) Enjoyed watching the little ones pet sled dog puppies in the atrium. By the way -- they skimped on closet space in our balcony cabin -- it was one-half to one-third of what other Princess ships have always offered. Hardly any hanging space and my suitcase took up cabin space the entire ten days. We loved this cruise, but it was expensive -- with 1st class round-trip flight from Florida (TPA), shore excursions, hotel gratuity ($13.50 per person per day), BINGO once, very few drinks, the cruise, and transportation to and from airports, this cost us more than $400 per person per day ($800 per day x 10 days). One of our more expensive cruises. But GORGEOUS scenery and fresh, fresh air. Saving the best for last: the beauty of Tracy Arm! This talented Captain (John Harry Smith) lingered seemingly forever so that we could really take in all of the raw beauty. And he turned the ship so that everyone could get a view. I don't know if that's standard procedure, but if it isn't, it should be. Kudos for that, Cap't Smith, and also for the smooth sailing on sometimes choppy seas.
What happened to the closet? Too small! Otherwise, clean sheets and comfortable bed. We usually slept very well!