Princess Cruises, Sapphire Princess Alaska

The food was plentiful but had no taste and lacked healthy choices. The entertainment was not very good. Staff were quite efficient and the cabin was ok. Princess Cruises, Sapphire Princess definitely not a holiday I would recommend unless all you want to do is get away to rest.

The Sapphire although a large ship was very friendly and easy to get around the crew at all levels were very friendly and helpful at all times

Crew members were exceptionally polite and helpful, great food served in a clean environment. Excellent gym with latest equipment. But not much time to take tours. Exceptional accommodations with welcomed security.

We are a 30ish couple and we cruised on the Princess Sapphire in June 2007 from Whittier Alaska to Vancouver BC. Overall it was great and we'd highly recommend it for anyone. We regret not taking the time to go inland and if we had to do over we would, probably prior so that jet lag was over before embarking. Here are the highlights:

Rooms:

We booked the least expensive room category and our only real complaint was the bed being hard. We paid 1/5 the price that the balcony cabins were going for at the time of booking. We saw only a handful of people out on their balconies at any given time and since it's light 20 hours a day, the lack of windows was a plus for sleeping.

Service:

Service throughout the ship was fantastic - no language barriers.

Food:

Also fantastic. The 24-hour buffet is for real - a full selection of foods whenever you want with plates that are temptingly big. The dining room food was a notch above and a great opportunity to try new things. Pizza is good - especially the 4 cheese. I am a vegetarian and it was heaven for this - dedicated vegetarian station at the buffet and a designated section on the dining room menu.

Tours:

Overpriced and in some ways disappointing. Having said that we would still go on some tours if we had to do it over, we'd just do more research on which ones are worth it and of course book it ourselves once we got off the ship rather than through Princess. Special Note: The Yukon Suspension Bridge is not in the Yukon. We went on this tour specifically to go to the Yukon and in fact you don't leave British Columbia.

Nightlife/Entertainment:

Lively until a little after midnight and a sparse crowd after that. There are lots of choices for all ages so you won't be bored. A newsletter is delivered to your room daily outlining the next day's events and they are broadcast as well for a reminder. We loved this.

Demographic:

Mostly Americans, a few fellow Canadians and about 50% over the age of 40. You wouldn't feel out of place at any age.

Attire/Weather:

Don't let other reviewers make you think you need to dress up all the time. Other than the formal nights (on which jeans were still sparsely noted) people can and do wear whatever they want including tracksuits.

It was an average of 12 degrees each day with partial sun and we were told this was great weather for Alaska. Depending what climate you are used to you may even need a light hat and gloves. You'll want closed toe shoes mostly and a warm waterproof jacket.

Extras:

We underestimated how many extras there would be to pay for on top of alcohol, tours and service charges. Eg: Bingo, Yoga, wine tasting, bottled water, hot chocolate, internet - which was crazely expensive. The formal night photos are $25 each.

Although the Sapphire Princess is a huge ship, it never felt overly crowded. Events began and ended on time. Stage shows were standing-ovation quality. The list of shore excursions was extensive, offering something for every budget. All the excursions we took were well-executed. The Personal Choice dining allowed us to reserve dinner times and locations of our choosing which made for convenient planning of our evening entertainment. All reservations were honoured promptly.