Royal Princess Sails Through Glacier Bay National Park

 

The main reason I chose this Inside Passage cruise with Princess was the full day exploring Glacier Bay National Park by ship. Glacier Bay is one of the least accessible national parks in the United States. With this itinerary, I would be able to see a lot of it from the Royal Princess.

Only a few cruise lines are able to spend a day going through Glacier Bay. It starts in the early morning when a boat arrives with park rangers. They stay on board until late in the afternoon, telling us about the park and everything we are seeing.

Brittany and I got up at 5:00 am. We had decided to start out with as much as we could see from our balcony. We pre-ordered breakfast and coffee delivered to our cabin, so we didn’t need to get out of our pajamas, but we did need to bundle up. We put on our sweatshirts and the warm blankets Princess Cruises supplies to take outside.

After enjoying 70+ degree temperatures in Alaska the previous days, we were starting this day in the 40s. It was also a cloudy so we were afraid we wouldn’t get to see everything. None of that upset us as we set ourselves up for the scenery in front of us. It did not disappoint.

There are no words to describe what we saw, which included whales, sea lions, sea otters, glaciers, waves, and mountains. We also saw some of these breaking as ice melted and went into the water. This has been happening a lot the last decade as our planet warms.  

As we went through the glaciers it continued to get colder. We put on layers and even took out hats, scarves, and gloves. When it got colder and the ship was in a quiet area, we decided to take a break to get pizza from Alfredo’s.

We were still able to watch Glacier Bay from the window and listen to the ranger. The warm, fresh pizza was as delicious as it was on the first day of our cruise.

After we ate, we went up to the theater where the rangers had set up information and were on hand to answer questions and stamp National Park Passports. They also had some merchandise for sale.

We left Glacier Bay National Park around 3:00 pm and it was time to shower and get ready for a very special night. We were honored to receive an invitation to the Chef’s Table Lumiere dinner. You can request it before you sail, but the odds are not good. It is something only done once a cruise and only a half dozen people on the ship are invited to join.

When we arrived in the bar area of the Crown Grill, Executive Chef Fabrizio Fazzini and Director of Restaurant Operations Paul Ciobanu were waiting for us. They had an amuse-bouche of an Alaskan Crab Margarita with avocado and mango waiting along with glasses of one of my favorite champagnes, Veuve Clicquot Brut Yellow Label.

 

The chef then took us on a tour of the kitchen, which is actually an entire floor. He told us about the thousands of dishes prepared for each meal. Everything was sparkling clean throughout.

We then headed to our seats. The table setting was magnificent. Wine was poured throughout, including more champagne, Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc, Nikiara by Le Vigne, and an Oremus Late Harvest at the end.

Here is the menu of courses:

Salmon Gravlax and Caviar

 
Fois Gras on Toasted Brioche
 
Seafood Bisque with Brandy Cream
 
Entremet of Lemon Sorbet & Champagne

 
Roast Salmon Fillet (for Brittany)
Veal Oscar  (for me)

 
Lemon Mousse
Chocolate box

See more details about our special dinner on this video I put together…

The gluttony continued when we returned to our room to find a note from Chef Fazzini and Director Cioubanu with petite fours and more wine. We didn’t get too far with it as we were so full from the exquisite meal.

It took a while to fall asleep after all that food, but we knew we needed rest for another busy day as the Royal Princess sailed to Ketchikan, Alaska.

 

I was hosted on this trip, but opinions are my own. 

 

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Discovering Skagway with Princess Cruises

Our first day in Alaska was special, but I thought about the one we were going to have as the Royal Princess pulled into the waters of Skagway early in the morning.

We had coffee, breakfast sandwiches, and pastries at the International Café. Brittany was heading out early for her Animal Planet Exclusive Kroschel Wildlife Refuge excursion. I had a few hours and was anxiously waiting to see if my scooter could be repaired in time for me to go. The one the ship had let me borrow was too big to go on the tender.

I did use the loaner to take a ride in the scooter to the upper deck pool area.  It gave me a stunning view of Skagway despite the cloudy day.

I was told the scooter was ready and I took the tender to town. I knew it would be close and I did just miss my bus tour, however, a contingency plan was worked out. I would drive the scooter into town and spend the time looking around—and shopping for souvenirs—while I waited to catch up with my tour group.

Skagway is picturesque, with mountains peaking throughout the city. It also offers a lot to do just in the downtown, with small museums, many kinds of shops, and restaurants, including the infamous Red Onion Saloon. It was crowded and I didn’t have a lot of time to wait since I was going to meet my tour at the Days of 98 show.

I met the group at the theater downtown. The Days of 98 show was so much fun! There was a lot of comedy and some audience participation. Even the songs were hysterical. I could see why this show has been around since 1923.

When it was over, I got on the bus with my scooter and we took a short tour of Skagway on our way back to the port. 

                      

I took the tender back to the ship and rested for a bit. Brittany had been on a completely different Princess excursion. She took a boat to Mosquito Lake and then a bus to Haines, Alaska, to visit the Kroschel Films Wildlife Center.

At the refuge, Steve Kroschel homes orphaned wildlife, most of which are indigenous to Alaska and Canada. Creatures there include a snowy owl, silver and red foxes, a brown bear, and a lynx. They are accessible for guests to get up close with in small groups, while Kroschel tells them about each one.

She had stopped for lunch and a tasting at the Skagway Brewing company and some shopping before coming back to the ship. We arrived at about the same time.

We weren’t back on the ship long before it was time for a fun Princess Cruise exclusive, Puppies in the Piazza. A trainer comes onboard to explain mushing, which is more commonly known as dog sledding. He brought some of the puppies in training with him. Passengers were able to pet the dogs as they learned more about them.

As soon as the puppies left, the Royal Princess pulled out of Skagway. It was a short day and there was so much more that we didn’t get to do there, including the White Pass Railroad ride (Brittany got a  photo of it going by while she was in town) and Klondike Gold Rush National Historic Park. I would definitely want to go back there on another trip to Alaska.

We were hungry and early for a special dinner. I had heard a lot of good things about Sabatini’s, the specialty  Italian restaurant on the Royal Princess, but it went beyond my expectations. Every dish was perfection, and that comes from a woman who is very particular about her Italian food.

We started with some bruschetta and cheese, arancini, and fresh warm rolls and focaccia, with glasses of Prosecco.  Then we went on to a four-course meal.

Antipasti
I had the Burrata and Brittany had Calamari and Shrimp

First Course
I had the Pappardelle Bolognese and Brittany had Lobster Tortelloni

Second Course
I had the Osso Bucco Milanese and Brittany had Lasagna Bolognese

Dessert
I had the Chocolate Bomb and Brittany chose an after-dinner drink

After we left Sabatini’s we spent a little time in the casino. There were no big wins, but we were too tired to play long. We were back to the cabin to crash early once again. We were both excited for our upcoming day going through Glacier Bay National Park. It was going to start bright and early, at 6:00 am. 

*Specialty restaurants are an extra charge unless you have the Premier Package, which includes two specialty restaurants per cruise.

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I was hosted on this trip, but opinions are my own.