Alaska: Emerald Princess Cruise questions

[Geomom]

My cousin is going on an Emerald Princess Alaska cruise this summer from Seattle (7 nt. roundtrip). She has never been on a cruise before and has questions for me. I was able to answer some general Alaska and cruising ones, but we have only done the 1 cruise on Disney, so I can't answer her 'Princess' specific questions.

1. Dress codes: smart casual and formal--what do those mean on Princess. My cousin has no idea what to pack for dinners. What do most people wear on the cruise in general?

2. Smoking Areas: Where are they? She will want to avoid these areas and it's nice to know in advance!

3. Anything Princess specific she shouldn't miss? She does not drink alcohol, caffeinated beverages, or gamble--so nothing involving drinking or casinos.

Thank you!

 

[PrincessShmoo]

My cousin is going on an Emerald Princess Alaska cruise this summer from Seattle (7 nt. roundtrip). She has never been on a cruise before and has questions for me. I was able to answer some general Alaska and cruising ones, but we have only done the 1 cruise on Disney, so I can't answer her 'Princess' specific questions.

1. Dress codes: smart casual and formal--what do those mean on Princess. My cousin has no idea what to pack for dinners. What do most people wear on the cruise in general?

2. Smoking Areas: Where are they? She will want to avoid these areas and it's nice to know in advance!

3. Anything Princess specific she shouldn't miss? She does not drink alcohol, caffeinated beverages, or gamble--so nothing involving drinking or casinos.

Thank you!

1. Princess is a bit more strict in it's enforcement of formal dress on formal nights. Doesn't have to be a full on formal gown, however. A cocktail type dress, or dress slacks with a sparkly top will work. During the day time, it's fairly casual (not so much tshirt/shorts crowd, however). I typically wear tshirts during the daytime on DCL, but nice blouses on Princess.

2. I don't know specifically what the smoking areas on the Emerald are, but basically there's a smoking area in the casino, and some spots on the outdoor decks. I found this info on cruise critic, but it's from a year ago, don't know if there's been any changes:
Smoking areas on the Emerald
Small area on the Starboard side on the Promenade Deck outside of Club Fusion where there is a cigarette disposal unit attached to the bulkhead. Area with some tables on the port side next to the Tradewinds Bar, Deck 16, fwd. Port side area of the Horizon Terrace, deck 15 aft, where there are some tables with ash trays on them. Casino, some areas are non smoking and some evenings, usually formal nights, are totally non smoking. Skywalker's Nightclub late night. One section is smoking. Skywalker's is normally, but not always, non smoking during the daytime hours. Speakeasy Cigar Lounge, deck 6. This is the only place where cigars and pipes are allowed.

3. There's typically a balloon drop with entertainment in the atrium sometime during the cruise. That's kinda fun. We've done origami, and trivia contests onboard. I can't speak to the Emerald specifically (yet), but the shows are kinda hit or miss (the main production shows). The entertainers we've found to be about 50/50 on whether we liked them.