ALASKA - ship excursions vs. independent?

Hello - This is our first time on Silversea and first time cruising to Alaska - we will be 4 of us, representing 3 generations. We have cruised in the Baltic and Mediterranean and have always booked shore excursions privately with reputable companies who met us at the ship - this enabled us to travel in smaller groups or even just as our family unit. I always found pricing to be better than what the ship could offer.

Since the Silver Shadow is a smaller ship than we've sailed previously - I'm wondering if we should be giving the ship excursions a more serious look. We sail from Seward to Vancouver in June and need to plan for Sitka, Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan. Advice/thoughts on the ship excursion vs. private operators?

Thanks in advance!

Peggy

I think it will be less expensive to just book independently. We cruise a lot with Regent, where excursions are included, and we use their excursions. However, with Silversea, we generally do our own unless we have a big OBC to use up.

We generally use SS shore excursions if it is the first time we are visiting a port or if it is critical that we get back to the ship before it sails. If you are on an SS excursion and it is late, SS will make sure either that the ship waits for you or that you are transported to the next port at no additional charge.

Go with independent tours You will save a ton of money and not have to worry about a bushel of other passengers. In the literally hundreds of private excursions I have taken over the years NEVER ONCE was the driver late for the ship's departure. It is their business to get you back on time.

I highly suggest checking the Alaska port of call board. To some extent your decision depends on what you want to do. In Skagway we did the SS train excursion which was nice because they use the steam engine for that train. Other ports you can go on your own, especially Sitka.

Hi Peggy, I have been to Alaska 4 times over the years and one of my all time favorite excursions is from a company

called Island Wings in Ketchikan.....it is a floatplane that flies over the Misty Fjords. It is one of the excursions I have

taken multiple times:),,,,,,I highly recommend them to you:D

I've sailed Alaska many times including Silversea Shadow.

My advice is simple:

First decide what you want to do in each port. There are lots of sources of information about that including Trip Advisor, The Alaska Ports Of Call Board and Travel Guides such as Frommers. All of this is on line.

Then look at the tours offered by Silversea, and those offered privately. For private ones the Alaska Ports Of Call Board and Trip Advisor are excellent sources.

Don't rule things in or out before you go through this process.

Just a suggestion no mater what route you go. Should you take a tour in places like Juneau that involves Whale Watching my recommendation is to do it on a smaller vessel rather then on a tour where 30 to 50 people will be on the vessel.

For private tours book sooner rather then later. In fact, I would have booked these a few months ago.

Keith

We are also going in June and I have booked all independent tours so far- hope to book the Skagway train and sitka ocean raft thru SS- we are booked on a small boat for whale watching-