Star Princess Alaskan Cruise Sept 2019
I treated myself to an Alaskan Cruise aboard Star Princess on my birthday this year.
We flew up to Seattle from LA on the 1st September, it is a seemless process meeting the cruise ship transfer team members once at baggage claim. They tag your bags, you drop them off at the drop off zone at the airport and you don't see them until you are in your cabin.
Once onboad the coach it's approximately 35-40 minutes to the cruise terminal. Again once inside the teriminal it took only 10 minutes all up through security, checked in and we were onboard.
We had a mini-suite which is spacious with a separate lounge area, 2 x televisions and a decent size balcony. We were welcomed with a glass of champagne by our steward and a fully stocked mini-bar (a perk of being an Elite member).
The age group on this cruise is alot older than us, however we were there for the scenery and to create our own memories.
First stop Ketchikan, we did not book a shore tour here and opted to walk the city following the salmon flowing river into the local neighbourhoods. I've never seen so many skinned animals in shops in my life, which I'm not a fan of, however the town was really cute and scenic. I have never seen so many salmon, you could walk across the water without touching the ground there were so many. Loads of float planes, wildlife touring options here.
Next stop was supposed to be cruising through Tracy Arm Fjord, unfortunately the fog was so thick it was too dangerous to navigate so instead we ended up in Juneau alot earlier than expected.
Juneau - we booked the Glacier express bus from shore since we had plenty of time, and went and explored Mendenhall Glacier. It was a stunning experience we also walked the Nugget Falls track which was spectacular. Heaps of funky bars and shops in Juneau as well.
Skagway - we booked a shore tour with the ship to Haines to see Kroschel's wildlife Refuge, if you are a fan of Hamish an Andy they were just there filiming for their upcoming Holiday show. It was all about this family taking in wildlife that had been injured or orphaned. They had a 3 year old brown bear, a 3 month old moose, porcupine, loads of caribou, a wolverine and many more throughout the property. Haines itself is just picturesque, I wish I had more time to explore this town. It was about a 45 minute ferry ride from the cruise terminal, that in itself was stunning.
Victora - this port was a waste of time, only there for 4 hours at night, even though it is a beautiful city by the time you got on and off the bus it was time to come back. We just wandered around the shops for an hour or so, plenty of busy pubs as it was a Saturday night.
The ship review: She looked stunning as we came aboard but still old fashioned furnishings and decor. Activities were aimed at an older generation and the food unfortunately was hit and miss for us this time round. Generally Princess have quality food and is consistent. This cruise was about the destination for me, not so much the ship as this sailing fit into our itinerary so we booked it.