Tracy Arm Fjord Updates

My son and I just returned home from the June 3 - June 10 Emerald Princess Cruise. We had a great time! We got all the way into Tracy Arm Fjord. Shelley Gill , the on board Naturalist, said we were the first Cruise ship to get in that far. It was definitely a Wow!! experience. She was very excited about it! She had nothing but kudos for the Captains ability to navigate through Tracy Arm. It was one of the high points of the cruise. Tracy Arm is absolutely beautiful. It was awesome watching the ship turn around in such a small area. I think I heard Shelley say that the ship only had a 40 feet clearance. We chose not to do the small boat excursion through Tracy Arm, instead we did the Mendenhall/ Whale Watching tour in Juneau. On the cruise the week before ours, they could not get in tp Tracy Arm or Endicott Arm.

My son and I just returned home from the June 3 - June 10 Emerald Princess Cruise. We had a great time! We got all the way into Tracy Arm Fjord. Shelley Gill , the on board Naturalist, said we were the first Cruise ship to get in that far. It was definitely a Wow!! experience. She was very excited about it! She had nothing but kudos for the Captains ability to navigate through Tracy Arm. It was one of the high points of the cruise. Tracy Arm is absolutely beautiful. It was awesome watching the ship turn around in such a small area. I think I heard Shelley say that the ship only had a 40 feet clearance. We chose not to do the small boat excursion through Tracy Arm, instead we did the Mendenhall/ Whale Watching tour in Juneau. On the cruise the week before ours, they could not get in tp Tracy Arm or Endicott Arm.

Reading your post made my day. We are on the Emerald leaving June 24th. We too did not book the small boat and so glad to hear you were able to get in. We are doing a whale watch in Juneau. So excited now that you posted this. Thanks for posting this.

My son and I just returned home from the June 3 - June 10 Emerald Princess Cruise. We had a great time! We got all the way into Tracy Arm Fjord. Shelley Gill , the on board Naturalist, said we were the first Cruise ship to get in that far. It was definitely a Wow!! experience. She was very excited about it! She had nothing but kudos for the Captains ability to navigate through Tracy Arm. It was one of the high points of the cruise. Tracy Arm is absolutely beautiful. It was awesome watching the ship turn around in such a small area. I think I heard Shelley say that the ship only had a 40 feet clearance. We chose not to do the small boat excursion through Tracy Arm, instead we did the Mendenhall/ Whale Watching tour in Juneau. On the cruise the week before ours, they could not get in tp Tracy Arm or Endicott Arm.

Thank you, this is great news.

I planned my upcoming cruise around this excursion. We are going on HAL in August. Are you still "working" on your husband? Lol I think I read that the boat holds approx. 25 people.

No, the tour boats can hold around 200.

Thanks Budget Queen. Guess they looked smaller than I thought. Kinda like what we call "cattle" boats here for whale watching. I'll still have a blast!

Here's what the boat looks like that we were on. This was through Carnival.

Here's what the boat looks like that we were on. This was through Carnival.

 

 

 

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No, the tour boats can hold around 200.

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Here's what the boat looks like that we were on. This was through Carnival.

 

 

 

Allen Marine has a large fleet. I've been on different boats with them myself.

The pictures in post 10 say it all, IMO. If you really want to experience the glaciers, the small boat is the way to do it. One advantage the small boats have that no one mentioned is the small boat captain can and will stop for wildlife. We saw a bear that, had the captain not stopped, I suspect no one would have seen. He also stopped for some whale watching (saw one breach), and other wildlife along the way. If you stay on the big ship, they can't stop like that, you have to just hope you see it.

We did one June 5, couldn't get into Tracy Arm, went up Endicott Arm to Dawes glacier. Absolutely the best excursion I've ever been on, anywhere, ever.

Thank you for the photo. I was told by someone else who did the excursion that it was about 150 people but they had enough room to see everything and it was worth the money. I think we have decided to go ahead with the Tracy Arm excursion. It looks like a special thing to do [emoji16]

 

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Glad to hear you are going. Please come back and let us know how it was. When is the trip?

Have lots of fun and enjoy. Tracy Arm was truly magical on our cruise. Being able to get all the way in to N. Sawyer Glacier was amazing. Hope your experience will be equally as awesome.

Have lots of fun and enjoy. Tracy Arm was truly magical on our cruise. Being able to get all the way in to N. Sawyer Glacier was amazing. Hope your experience will be equally as awesome.

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Sailing in three weeks on Emerald Princess and would like to know if any ships have gotten to the glacier or close enough for good viewing. We are trying to decide whether or not to stay on the ship or get on the catamaran.

Thanks

 

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Adventure Bound is out of Juneau if you are there from 8 to 6 and does Tracy Arm Fjord.

They offer a wonderful small boat experience also and it was the highlight of our Alaska tours. So rugged and unspoiled nature at it’s best.

My son and I just returned home from the June 3 - June 10 Emerald Princess Cruise. We had a great time! We got all the way into Tracy Arm Fjord. Shelley Gill , the on board Naturalist, said we were the first Cruise ship to get in that far. It was definitely a Wow!! experience. She was very excited about it! She had nothing but kudos for the Captains ability to navigate through Tracy Arm. It was one of the high points of the cruise. Tracy Arm is absolutely beautiful. It was awesome watching the ship turn around in such a small area. I think I heard Shelley say that the ship only had a 40 feet clearance. We chose not to do the small boat excursion through Tracy Arm, instead we did the Mendenhall/ Whale Watching tour in Juneau. On the cruise the week before ours, they could not get in tp Tracy Arm or Endicott Arm.

Thanks for the update! I’m sailing July 10th and am thinking we, too, will be able to make it in if you did (tho we’re on Celebrity). I have a balcony cabin and am traveling with a 10 year old so I’m wondering what you all think the pro’s and con’s are to booking excursion vs. staying on balcony. All this assuming the ship has access like you did. What will we miss (sounds like stopping for wildlife) if we choose to stay on ship? Will we see/hear calving? Not worried about price, just the 5hr trip and daughter possibly getting bored. Advice please!

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Thanks for the update! I’m sailing July 10th and am thinking we, too, will be able to make it in if you did (tho we’re on Celebrity). I have a balcony cabin and am traveling with a 10 year old so I’m wondering what you all think the pro’s and con’s are to booking excursion vs. staying on balcony. All this assuming the ship has access like you did. What will we miss (sounds like stopping for wildlife) if we choose to stay on ship? Will we see/hear calving? Not worried about price, just the 5hr trip and daughter possibly getting bored. Advice please!

Just because they got in last week doesn't mean they will get in next week. It all depends on conditions which are changing all the time.

IMO, if you have the wherewithal to do the excursion, then do it. It's hard to imagine how the excursion wouldn't be a superior experience. As I said above, look at the pictures in reply #10 above.

Also wanted to issue an apology to the OP for hijacking their thread. I hope some of this information has helped you too. Happy planning

 

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Family of 11 on the 6-3-18 Emerald Princess. 5 of the group decided to take the catamaran, the rest stayed on the ship. We were very fortunate that the ship was able to get up to the Sawyer Glacier. Supposedly the first time this ship was able to go that far in. The group that took the catamaran were very pleased with it. They did get a bit closer to the glacier face. If it is worth the price of the ticket to be more sure you can get to the glacier, that is the way to go.

June 11 ... X Solstice did not get into Tracy Arm ... there was too much ice at the mouth. Went to Dawes Glacier in Endicott Arm instead. It's a beautiful glacier. Recommend the catamaran excursion from the ship if you want a close look at the glacier ... especially if this is your first glacier experience. We've seen many glaciers and bergs in our polar travels, but it never gets old for us, and we enjoyed the extended time at the glacier at a considerably closer distance than Solstice was willing/able to get to from the terminus.

Had several humpback whale sightings from the catamaran as well.

Great to know they made it in one week then not the next. For anyone who has been on the tour- are there bench seats or individual seats? I’m wondering if my 10 year old can lay down on the way back?

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Great to know they made it in one week then not the next. For anyone who has been on the tour- are there bench seats or individual seats? I’m wondering if my 10 year old can lay down on the way back?

I suppose it depends on the exact crusie line and excursion, however I think Alen Marine runs most if not all of them and they use boats like you see pictured in reply #31 above.

For the Allen Marine ships, while the seats are individual, I think he'd be able to lay down, depends on how fussy he is.

If you are doing this with NCL, there is no "trip back" as NCL meets you down by the glacier (OK, maybe 10 minutes to get from the glaciers back to where the ship will be)

June 11 ... X Solstice did not get into Tracy Arm ... there was too much ice at the mouth. Went to Dawes Glacier in Endicott Arm instead. It's a beautiful glacier. Recommend the catamaran excursion from the ship if you want a close look at the glacier ... especially if this is your first glacier experience. We've seen many glaciers and bergs in our polar travels, but it never gets old for us, and we enjoyed the extended time at the glacier at a considerably closer distance than Solstice was willing/able to get to from the terminus.

 

 

 

Had several humpback whale sightings from the catamaran as well.

That’s interesting. We went up Tracy Arm the day before, June 10, as did a Princess ship as well.

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That’s interesting. We went up Tracy Arm the day before, June 10, as did a Princess ship as well.

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All it takes is one calving to change the conditions... the ice belt at the fjord mouth was quite thick ... would have been fine with an ice hardened expedition vessel ... not so much with a cruise vessel the size of Solstice. We were there at low tide, which could have grounded some of the bergs for while to further create a jam and access issues.

We were on the Emerald Princess June 10-17 sailing and we also were able to get to the North Sawyer Glacier. It was awesome. They tried for the South Sawyer Glacier but there was too much ice. We took the Allen Marine Catamaran tour from the ship and it is one of the best excursions we have ever done. We first went to the south Glacier then to the north. We were within quarter mile from the north Glacier-Amazing!! Saw so many whales it was unbelievable.