iloverags2 Posted June 6, 2010 #1 Share Posted June 6, 2010 Hi All! I am helping my mom plan her dream cruise to Alaska this July (yes, she booked just over a month out!). She chose the ms Rotterdam, and has a list of shore excursions she is interested in. Of course, she doesn't want to make reservations until she decides just which excursions she actually would like to go on. I want to be sure she doesn't miss out on anything! Soooo...could someone help me out with which shore excursions are the most popular? I can then persuade her to at least book those before they are waitlisted! Thanks in advance!!! If this helps, these are the ones she has narrowed it down to... Juneau Mt. Roberts Tramway Whale Watching & Wildlife Quest Grand Tour of Juneau Ketchikan Best of Ketchikan by Land & Sea City Highlights, Totems and Creek St. by Trolley Ketchikan Horse Drawn Trolley Ketchikan Duck Tour Saxman Native Village - Exclusive Look Totem Bite Park & City Tour Sitka Colonial Russia America & Cultural Tour Historical Russian America & Raptor Center Sea Life Discovery by Semi Sub Sea Otter & Wildlife Quest Sea Otter & Alaska Raptor Center Silver Bay Nature Cruise & Salmon Hatchery Victoria British Columbia Butchart Garden (Evening Call) Orca Whale Watching (Evening Call) Victoria Highlights Victoria by Horse Drawn Trolley Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlessedX7 Posted June 6, 2010 #2 Share Posted June 6, 2010 It's so sweet of you to help your mom plan her trip. She's going to love Alaska! We just returned home last weekend, and we'd love to go back! We did the Whale Watching Wildlife Quest in Juneau and enjoyed it (booked through HAL). I was surprised at the number of whales we saw, and the crew was great. Our favorite part of the entire cruise was the Deadliest Catch tour in Ketchikan (also booked through HAL). I can't say enough to express how impressed we were with this excursion. It was my husband's choice, and I wasn't sure I'd enjoy it, but I loved it! It is totally awesome! The crew is wonderful - they are so friendly and truly touch your heart with their entertaining stories. You just sit back and enjoy the beauty. Hope she has a wonderful trip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willsot Posted June 6, 2010 #3 Share Posted June 6, 2010 Don't know your mom's interests or if she has any special circumstances such as mobility issues, but here are the excursions we chose: Juneau - whale watching Ketchikan - Bering Sea Crab Fishermens tour (the Deadliest Catch one, I just added after reading very positive reviews). Best we've ever taken out of Ketchikan to date is the Misty Fjord Flightseeing tour. Sitka - Sea Otter and Wildlife Quest (did this once before and enjoyed it) Victoria - Butchart Gardens Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuthC Posted June 6, 2010 #4 Share Posted June 6, 2010 If this helps, these are the ones she has narrowed it down to...Juneau Mt. Roberts Tramway Whale Watching & Wildlife Quest Grand Tour of Juneau The Mt. Roberts Tram can be booked as a walk-up. Wait until she sees what the weather is like that day to decide if it's worth going up. Whale Watching is very good. She will see whales. I don't know what's included in the Grand Tour. KetchikanBest of Ketchikan by Land & Sea City Highlights, Totems and Creek St. by Trolley Ketchikan Horse Drawn Trolley Ketchikan Duck Tour Saxman Native Village - Exclusive Look Totem Bite Park & City Tour The Horse Drawn Trolley and the Duck Tour cover the same land portion, with essentially the same commentary. I like the Duck Tour better as it adds the water. Both are fairly short tours. I haven't been to either Saxman Village or Totem Bight, but plan to rectify that mistake in August. It's Saxman for me. I just read a report which said that those with mobility problems were given rides while in the Village. The rest of the report made the tour attractive. SitkaColonial Russia America & Cultural Tour Historical Russian America & Raptor Center Sea Life Discovery by Semi Sub Sea Otter & Wildlife Quest Sea Otter & Alaska Raptor Center Silver Bay Nature Cruise & Salmon Hatchery The Sea Otter & Wildlife Quest is excellent! Your Mom will see lots of wildlife, and the catamaran is comfortable. The Russian tours which include the New Archangel Dancers is worth it. I haven't seen them in a while, and want to go back this year. Victoria British ColumbiaButchart Garden (Evening Call) Orca Whale Watching (Evening Call) Victoria Highlights Victoria by Horse Drawn Trolley Butchart Gardens was beautiful. I haven't been to the others, so can't comment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iloverags2 Posted June 6, 2010 Author #5 Share Posted June 6, 2010 Thank you so far for your responses! Would you suggest she book the whale watching in advance? Or is there a good chance she will get a spot on the excursion if she waits to book until boarding? Decisions, decisions! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuthC Posted June 6, 2010 #6 Share Posted June 6, 2010 Would you suggest she book the whale watching in advance? Or is there a good chance she will get a spot on the excursion if she waits to book until boarding? Decisions, decisions! Check the tours to see if they are listed as "limited". If so, then book those asap. But even if they are not, why wait? It's nice to have the tours booked, and all that out of the way. And, it's nice to have them paid in advance, and reduce the final bill by doing so. If you Mom has any concerns after she has booked in advance, she should stop by the Shore Excursion Office after she boards. She can discuss her concerns, and if there's a problem, she can cancel or switch to a different tour (assuming availability). She can't see everything this time. She'll just have to go back! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canadianbear Posted June 6, 2010 #7 Share Posted June 6, 2010 My son and his girlfriend will be arriving back home late tonight from their week in Alaska aboard the Rotterdam. They are taking the train back home from Seattle to Vancouver. From what I heard from them the weather was great in all ports. He is a CC member and will probably do a report either tomorrow or Monday. I know they booked the whale watching in Juneau, the Esther Sea Taxi tour in Sitka and the Bering Sea tour in Ketchikan. I agree with Ruth C the tram in Juneau is something your mom can do just as a walk up depending on weather. I would also suggest seeing the Mendenhall glacier if possible in Juneau. When we were in Alaska last year we found the duck tour in Ketchikan was fun and it provided you with a little city tour and then into the water of course. We didn't book it but instead just walked right up and picked the time we wanted to go on it. It isn't very long so you can certainly fit in something else as well. The hardest decision will be which ones she wants to do for sure. Just means she will have to go back another year to see what she missed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iloverags2 Posted June 6, 2010 Author #8 Share Posted June 6, 2010 So much great information! Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magpie5998 Posted June 16, 2010 #9 Share Posted June 16, 2010 Hi...we just got back from the June 5th sailing...I agree with all the responses...as far as in Victoria I would definitely not reccomend the whale watching...we spent over $300 and didnt see one whale and it was completely non-refundable...we were very disappointed with this excursion!! Other than that we had a blast...we loved the trip!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.