The Golden Princess Cruise Ship to Alaska

Our Cruise to Ketchikan Alaska - This was the first cruise for my spouse and I and I can honestly say it was a joy. Just a word of warning, make sure you have all of your paperwork, passports in order before you get to the security check points; if you join the Captain's club you will have a quicker pass through some of the points before getting onto the cruise ship.

The second picture to the right is on deck 14 of the Golden Princess and a common lounging place for passengers when the weather permits. I spent quite a bit of time there when it was sunny out, Thursday May 24th to be exact, beautiful day to spend on deck. My spouse had some meetings to attend, so for the day I was pretty much left to my own devices and I chose to lounge by the pool with my iPod.

As you can see in the third picture there is a bar right there by the pool so you don't have far to go if you get thirsty. One thing about the cruise is, it is cashless, so whichever credit card you signed up with, all that you spend on ship goes onto the cruise ship card which is issued to you, you pay the bill on the last night of your cruise, pretty simple. I would recommend settling your bill the last night of the cruise to avoid the morning rush.

In the fourth picture you see the Sanctuary on the Golden Princess. The sanctuary is a place to relax, there is no charge for the pool. There is also a spa where they offer many services from massages to teeth whitening, you can even get your hair done. If you want to make sure you get in for the spa treatments you desire, book early, the openings fill up quickly.

I'm not really here to try to sell this to you but I am going to say that I truly enjoyed this short cruise, I was most impressed with the staff, they are all polite and friendly, always said hello, even the Captain of the Golden Princess did not fail to say hello. The staff on the Golden Princess cruise ship is from all over the world, on their name tags it says which country they are from, this was very interesting for me. The people who clean your cabin are so pleasant and helpful, they introduce themselves and make sure that you are happy with everything.

If you like to shop, as many women do, there is no shortage for that. There is your typical souvenir and sundries shop, where you can also purchase duty free alcohol. If you like jewelry, there is plenty to browse through and you can even take a gander at some clothing, in case you forgot to pack something for your trip. Don't forget the perfume, there is an abundance to choose from if you want to make a gift of it to your spouse or anyone else on your shopping list.

As a bonus to those of us that like to browse, the Golden Princess does set up different sales on tables in the Atrium, can be jewelry to purses, bags and all kinds of knick knacks. They spread the merchandise out on tables for you around the Atrium and you can browse to your hearts content. Don't miss the $10 sale!

I like to shop, well I more like to browse, I will buy if I find something that I feel I truly need, other than that I just look.

We only missed going to an evening show one night, I've gotta say you have to take in the shows while on board the Golden Princess cruise ship. Our favorite show was the Stardust, we also watched the magician and another musical. Of course you can also watch movies on the big screen on deck 14, if this is what you prefer. In my experience the movies play at scheduled times during the day and evening, weather permitting I would imagine. Not many want to go on deck when it's raining and cold outside, at least I don't.

I have included a small video with some of the other pictures we took while on our cruise, hope you enjoy. Members of the crew were also willing to pose for a picture or two, very accommodating staff all the way around on the Golden Princess, would highly recommend this short tour to anyone.

On a side note if you have a tendency to get motion sickness I would make a couple of recommendations. I tend to get motion sickness very easily and I took precautions against it and I did not actually get to the point of throwing up when the seas got a bit rough. I wore sea bands and also took a gravol pill, my motion sickness was held at bay; whereas others that claim to never get sick went and got a bit green in the gills and paid a visit to the facilities. So, to make sure motion sickness does not put a damper on your vacation, take precautions; sea bands alone can do the trick they say, but I wanted the extra insurance so that I would not get ill.

I nearly forgot, the Food! Great food, we went to the buffet for most of our meals, a great variety, absolutely loved it. We did go to a restaurant one evening, was fine, but we just prefer the buffet. It's quick and it's simple and you have a lot to choose from at the buffet. The servers are quick to come and get your drink order once you sit down, there are several options on where you can sit once you get your food from the buffet. You can sit in the open air or you can stay within the immediate closed in dining area, your choice. We did have room service one morning, which was also fantastic, I definitely cannot complain about the food, it was great and it certainly wasn't lacking at all.

If you wrap it all up in a tidy little bundle and factor in all that had to do precisely with the cruise, I would say it was fantastic. I found it relaxing and different, as it was my first time on a cruise I was a bit skeptical, must say it turned out quite well indeed. I have already started looking into other cruise possibilities for the future. I'm thinking along the lines of a cruise to Disneyland. How about you, have you been on a cruise? Do you want to go on a cruise now that you have read more about it? Or, are you a cruise junkie?

On the other side of the coin, the tour companies when off ship, well, that seemed to be a lot of waiting and disorganization in my experience. I'm not that patient of a person and I can't stand around waiting for an hour or more; I mean stand and wait, no sitting down, there was nowhere to sit. But, I suppose a person could say, I am not a group kind of person, I like to strike out on my own and not be herded as if I am a bovine or something similar. Get your own private small group tour or a self guided tour I say. I've been on a few group tours and I tend to like them less each and every time.

FYI: The cruise ship, at least the Golden Princess, has it's own broadcast television channels on ship. You can tune in to see what happened throughout the day and they also let you know what is coming up; I found this very helpful, you can plan your day accordingly and take in what you find appealing while on the ship. The cruise director has people put together some videos of events throughout the day that you may have missed out on and perhaps take in the next day. The ship photographers also take photos of you and your spouse/family when you board and also when you get off at ports of call, these pictures are posted in the gallery later, and if you like them, you can purchase them.