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Alaskan cruises: Where to get excursions, where to not?


KerrisMan720
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We are going on an Alaskan cruise this coming summer for the first time, and we're on a bit of a budget. Our stops include Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan, and Victoria. What stops have shopping/restaurants/museums, etc. close by? Do any of these stops have really nothing around where we would definitely want to do an excursion?

 

We would like to do a couple of excursions, but which stops have fun close by on their own?

 

Thanks in advance!

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It's been a few years, but I've noticed that ports don't change all that much. Ketchikan was an easy walk into town and lots of shops along Creek St. There was a town square like area where tours left from and day of the independants were offering them at really low rates to fill the busses. It was just a short walk to the lumberjack show which wasn't too expensive. Cheesey but entertaining. Skagway was a nice walk into town and again, lots of shops. Juneau had a shuttle bus that took you into town, although you could walk if you wanted to. Went right to downtown. We did a whalewatching and Mendenhall Glacier excursion here and we had the choice of going back to the ship afterward or staying downtown and catching the shuttle. Victoria was later in the evening and with such a short time in port didn't even get off the ship. My opinion - Juneau is the place to take an excursion. You can also google walking tours of the various ports. Hmmm.... I think it's time for me to book another Alaskan cruise.

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Just off the Alaska Journeys cruise.

Alaska is expensive. Lunch ashore ran about $20/pp. Some was a bit less.

Skagway - can purchase walking tours thru the National Park Service. We walked around and ate at the brew pub.

Juneau- we picked up a city and glacier tour at the dock. Several museums here.

Ketchikan- we went on a Duck tour. Take a walk up to Creek Street, take a tour of Dolly’s House. Rainforest museum through the Park Service.

Victoria-IIRC you’re there from 6p-midnight? Not much time. Manynof the things I’d recommend are already closed. Could take a ship tour to Butchart Gardens or walk into town.

Longer port calls we walk Governor Street up to China Town, eat at Don Mees. Stopping along the way at Murchie’s Tea, Rogers Chocolates and a drug store for Macintosh Toffee.

 

 

 

 

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One excursion that I think is worth every penny is the White Pass & Yukon Railway in Skagway. As with all Alaska excursions, it's kind of pricey, but it is such a great trip.

 

There is shopping a short way from where the ships dock in Juneau. I bought a few bars of soap that were made there from glacier silt and they were fun and were nice on my skin. Going to Mendenhall Glacier is easy from downtown Juneau.

 

Juneau also has a fun saloon. It gets really crowded in the afternoon, but it's kind of hokey, but sort of like the old days of mining saloons.

 

In Ketchikan we just walked around and went into the various shops. There were some interesting souvenirs including the ulu knife. Our time there was relatively short, so shopping was all we did.

 

In Victoria, we stayed on the ship as we were there for only a short time and it was the last night of the cruise and we wanted to go to dinner in the dining room and finish packing.

 

Overall, Alaska is my favorite cruise of all. The scenery is so peaceful and relaxing and I got the feeling of how wonderful nature can be.

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We are going on an Alaskan cruise this coming summer for the first time, and we're on a bit of a budget. Our stops include Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan, and Victoria. What stops have shopping/restaurants/museums, etc. close by? Do any of these stops have really nothing around where we would definitely want to do an excursion?

 

We would like to do a couple of excursions, but which stops have fun close by on their own?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

 

I suggest you do your homework and find out what EACH of these ports offer. Each is very different from the other, unlike the Caribbean. :) There are HUNDREDS of tours available. Head over to the Alaska Port of Call board, and spend some time, thoroughly reading trip reports, also do web searched of each port. since there is a small list of the "popular" tours, but there is so much more. Don't be quick to "follow" the crowd.

 

Frankly Alaska is for what's outside and the beauty. Yes there are museums, but be sure if that is your choice compared to others. Rework your choices and jump into booking your first choices. The more you find out, the more fine tuned your choices will be, giving you a great trip. KNOW what YOUR priorities are for this trip. Why did you select it, how often are you going to go there, how long did it take to get there this time, what are your priorities for this trip? Knowing this, can help focus on your direction for choices.

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We are going on an Alaskan cruise this coming summer for the first time, and we're on a bit of a budget. Our stops include Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan, and Victoria. What stops have shopping/restaurants/museums, etc. close by? Do any of these stops have really nothing around where we would definitely want to do an excursion?

 

We would like to do a couple of excursions, but which stops have fun close by on their own?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Having done 3 Alaskan cruises, I can tell you there's a lot that can be done on a budget. What it comes down to is this: What is a must thing for you to do there? Whale watching? Glaciers? Overall sightseeing? Nature?

 

IMO, Skagway is the place where you should look to do an excursion. You have the White Pass railroad, or you can look to do one of the eagle/nature excursions (LINK), or even whale watching tours. Yes you can get a whale watching tour in Juneau, but if you want to blow the budget completely, look into a helicopter tour to Mendenhall Glacier. Just book it after 11am to avoid possible cancellation due to fog.

 

With that all said, last time my wife and I were there, we opted to do DIY walking tours of both Skagway and Ketchikan. We had done all we want to do excursion-wise the previous two times. Here's a walking tour map of Ketchikan: LINK. I'd also suggest ending up at a place called Burger Queen for lunch, especially if you like "dive-y" type places. Plus you can go next door to Asylum Bar and they'll bring your food to you there. And yo're very close to where the ship docks, too, so it's a short walk back on board!

 

In Skagway, we did another DIY walking tour. Here's a walking tour map of Skagway: LINK. Halfway through the walk, we took in The Days of '98 Show at 10:30, which was really a fun thing to do. If you have really young kids, probably avoid it. It's definitely a PG show. Also, here's a link to all the maps of Skagway: LINK.

 

 

Finally I suggest heading over the Alaska part of the forums. LOTS of info there.

 

 

Hope some of that helps!

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Where are you from? I think that plays a big part in what is going to me a must do for you. We are from Denver and have access to the Rockies year round so going on the train rides to see trees and waterfalls just wasn't that appealing to us. We did a whale watching tour and took the smaller boat to see the tracy arm fjord glacier on our trip. We spent time in each little town and had amazing food, saw bald eagles, bears and some really great crafts and knives. We did hike in skagway that went through an old west cemetary and led to a nice waterfall for free. Went to several local breweries and pubs and had the crabs at Tracy's in Juneau - that was truly amazing crab!

 

As other have said, I'm not sure how you could do Alaska on a "budget" and do it all but you can definitely find some gems that aren't all that much. We probably spent about $1000 total in the ports for the two of us.

 

Have a great trip.

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Having done 3 Alaskan cruises, I can tell you there's a lot that can be done on a budget. What it comes down to is this: What is a must thing for you to do there? Whale watching? Glaciers? Overall sightseeing? Nature?

 

IMO, Skagway is the place where you should look to do an excursion. You have the White Pass railroad, or you can look to do one of the eagle/nature excursions (LINK), or even whale watching tours. Yes you can get a whale watching tour in Juneau, but if you want to blow the budget completely, look into a helicopter tour to Mendenhall Glacier. Just book it after 11am to avoid possible cancellation due to fog.

 

With that all said, last time my wife and I were there, we opted to do DIY walking tours of both Skagway and Ketchikan. We had done all we want to do excursion-wise the previous two times. Here's a walking tour map of Ketchikan: LINK. I'd also suggest ending up at a place called Burger Queen for lunch, especially if you like "dive-y" type places. Plus you can go next door to Asylum Bar and they'll bring your food to you there. And yo're very close to where the ship docks, too, so it's a short walk back on board!

 

In Skagway, we did another DIY walking tour. Here's a walking tour map of Skagway: LINK. Halfway through the walk, we took in The Days of '98 Show at 10:30, which was really a fun thing to do. If you have really young kids, probably avoid it. It's definitely a PG show. Also, here's a link to all the maps of Skagway: LINK.

 

 

Finally I suggest heading over the Alaska part of the forums. LOTS of info there.

 

 

Hope some of that helps!

 

That helps tremendously! Especially those Links!

 

Thanks so much!

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Thoughts....

  • I would say Juneau and Skagway are best explored with excursions if you can afford it.
  • Consider combo excursions where they save money and time by bundling activities
  • you might find savings on excursions by buying at the dock
  • return to the ship for lunch is another strategy on food savings

Good Luck!

 

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The White Pass train at Skagway is pretty cool. We combined a one-way trip on the train from Fraser back to Skagway with a bus tour with Dyea Dave to Emerald Lake. Dave picked us up at the dock around 7:45 AM, we had lunch in Carcross, did a u-turn at Emerald Lake (after stopping for pictures) then he dropped us off at the train in Fraser. Dave also picked us up at the train back in Skagway for a drop-off back at the dock or wherever we wanted to go in town. The one-way train ticket is about $85 plus Dave's $80 tour - that $165 excursion was well worth it in my opinion. We took the morning bus at Dave's suggestion because there can be clouds/fog that block your view from the train that will typically burn off by the afternoon. We were up and over the mountains into nice weather relatively quickly in his bus. If you didn't care a thing about the train (you do see some pretty nice scenery!) you can do the whole ride with Dave for only the $80 - a dang good deal! I give Dyea Dave Tours two thumbs up - I already have reservations for May '18. :D

 

At Juneau, renting a car is a great budget option. If you have two people wanting to see Mendenhall the bus is about $30 each roundtrip. You can rent a car for about $70 for the entire day and be at your own pace - you'll be free to see much more. If you have more than two people the savings will be greater. A great place to by Alaska/Juneau souvenirs is at the Fred Meyer "supercenter" on the way to Mendenhall - they have a full aisle of shirts, caps, mugs, shot-glasses, postcards, etc. It's quite a bit cheaper than the shops in the touristy areas.

 

Good luck!

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Ketchikan - super easy to just walk around yourself.

Juneau - first time we took a bike excursion that went to Mendenhall Glacier, then the second time there, we just took the public bus for $2 to about 1 mile away and walked to it, on our bus ride back, we stopped at Alaskan Brewing for a free tasting. We spent all our money at Tracy's Crab shack and that was very much worth it.

Victoria - is easy enough to walk ~1 mile into town. This time we are renting bicycles to tour around. It's typically only around $20-25 pp.

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