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WE went on a Princess cruise to Alaska a few years ago, and it was out of Vancouver, Canada. The ship was great and so was the food service and staff. The scenery is awesome and the ride is as smooth as you will get anywhere.

We actually did a cruise tour that included a land tour, mostly by train, after the cruise. The cruise-tour is really the best way to see Alaska because because in the inside passage you will see mountains, fjords, glaciers and maybe a few animals. The land tour part takes you by train from Anchorage to Fairbanks with a stop in Denali if you want to tour the park. That's the best way to see bears, moose, wolves, and caribou.

But the cruise part is great and Princess hs some of the best ships of any cruise line and you will enjoy it.

I will answer the most important question first. You DO NOT need a passport IF your cruise leaves from California and regardless of where it stop, it ALSO returns to California (OR any part of the US .. any US state) BEFORE December 31, 2007. But, if your cruise returns to the US AFTER December 31, 2007 then you will need a passport. The new passport law requiring ALL who enter the US by car, train, bus, plane or cruise ship to have a passport goes into effect on January 1, 2008. Unless your cruise ends in Ensenada your cruise ship stop there is more than likely a regulatory stop; only to meet a regulatory requirement that all US cruise ships stop in a foreign port. That is usually the case in cruises from the west coast of the US. Carnival and Princess cruise lines are actually owned by the same company; actually Carnival owns Princess. BUT, Carnival is the budget cruise line and the one that most young people ages 21 to about 35 go on, and also the ship that most first time cruiser go on. Its the party cruise line by reputation and actual. People who go say that they have a great time on Carnival ships (for the most part). Princess is a more upscale cruise line and that means the cabins are a little better, the food is a little better and the ship has a more reserved crowd. Now that does not mean that the people, many of whom will be in the 40 to 65 age range, do not have a great time. There will be some young people on the Princess ship but not as many as on Carnival. I have been on three Princess ships and they have great discos and lounges and the people have a great time. You just do not see people staggering down the hall or being loud at the pool areas. If I were making the selection I would go with princess since I absolutely loved all three of their ships that I have been on. We did the cruise to the Mexico Rivera, Cabo, Acapulco, and Puerta Vallarta in October 2004. The weather was great with one exception. The sailing was smooth and the weather was very pleasant but a hurricane came across Mexico and dissipated near one of our planned port stops. Because of that they diverted the ship to a different port. But we never had any bad weather, not even rain and it was sunny and warm enough to sit on the balcony or most anywhere on decks all day long. Since your cruise date is outside the hurricane time frame you should not have to worry about any of that type weather. My bet is that you will have great weather for the whole cruise like we did.

Hi.

I used to work on the Coral, so I am probably bias, but it really is a beautiful ship, plus the itenary you are doing is fab, one of the best, there are many beautuful tours to go on, although you can jump in a taxi at the ports...do your home work before you go on the ship about the ports and you can let the taxi driver know where you want to go. Although in Skagway I would reccomend the husky dog sleighing!!!! Anyway back to the ship, its fab.....I have been on the Grand, Golden, sea, sun,and Star, the coral was my favourite........

Have a great time

Well, I haven't gone on this cruise, but I'll answer anyway, because I can put you in touch with many, many others who have. Go to CruiseCritic.com, click on "Boards" and/or "Reviews" at the top of the page and you can get info on this ship and all aspects of cruising.

Princess cruises parking is equipped with modern facilities. It comprises three passenger terminals and provides both embarking and disembarking facilities with good speed and efficiency. http://parkright.com/670-w-43-st-new-york.shtml

Me and my mom and my bro do Carnival....great ship!!!

ive been its awesome. i might go again... maybe we could go 2gether :P