Juneau - Possible to Arrive Early?

[larcklorn]

We will be on the Millennium and arriving in Juneau on 6/29/14. We would love to do the Adventure Bound trip, but it leaves out at 8AM or so and we arrive at 9AM. Is there any chance that we will arrive early and could make this trip?

 

If so, is it ok to forgo booking anything and leave that as our first choice? Will I still be able to find another activity to do?

 

Thanks CC

[neverbeenhere]

Can't recall ever disembarking early at Juneau, but I guess it is possible (I think port fees are charged on a daily basis). I wouldn't bet on it.

[Aquahound]

On my southbound Millennium cruise last year, we were pretty close to right on time with all our arrivals. We might have been a little early, but certainly not an hour or more. I don't think there's a chance of catching that tour.

[gimletgal]

Don't even consider making an 8AM excursion if your not scheduled to arrive until 9AM. Trust me. They will not arrive early. They really, really follow those port schedules to the "T". Late sometimes, but rarely more than a few minutes early. The ports have schedules to follow too. :)

[ECCruise]

We probably have arrived at 300 or so ports over the years and I can remember (other than due to a medical emergency) arriving an hour early, well, never.

[larcklorn]

Thanks everyone for the quick information. Time to look at activities to do outside of the Fjord travel.

[alcpa1]

I am not familiar with the excursion, Adventure Bound, that you mention but have you contacted the company to see if they also offer a tour geared to cruise passengers?

There are quite a few excursions to take in Juneau. Have you done two very helpful things...checked out the Ports of Call boards for Alaska AND joined your Roll Call. You don't have much time left and many of the whale watch excursions booked with the recommended vendors are probably full but you can catch a local bus to the Mendenhall Glacier and spend a wonderful day there. Also, when you dock there will be vendors on the pier selling almost every kind of tour you might be interested in. They are a little pricier than a pre booked excursions but definitely less than any the ship will offer.

Have a wonderful cruise. Alaska is special.

[TheMediaman]

I think the OP may be trying to do the Tracey Arm Excursion with Adventure Bound which is less expensive than the cruise line offering that is operated by Allen Marine tours.

 

I do agree that cruise line excursions can be pricier. I have arranged my own many times. (Taking the train to the Acropolis in Athens for 2-3 € instead of ship transportation costing considerably more.) I have just done the Tracey Arm Fjord excursion through the cruise line. I actually made the conscious choice to do so because the Allen Marine Tour boats are faster and have top deck viewing instead of bow and stern which appeared more crowded from pictures in my research. Faster to and from Tracey Arm Fjord means approximately 6.5 hors vs 9 to 9.5 hours as I'm lead to believe. Adventure Bound may not spend more time at the Sawyer Glacier...just more time getting to and from.

 

In this case, if it is acceptable to the budget, the higher cost ship excursion through Allen Marine Tours was good value for me and I do not make a habit of the higher cost ship offerings. The boat is roomy, clean, spacious and the crew is friendly and talkative. Tracey Arm Fjord was definitely worth the price of admission. Don't miss it just because you can't go with the cheaper company. How often are you up in Alaska anyway?

 

If it is something like whale watching through Adventure Bound then just ignore everything I just typed. :)

[arielsong88]

I just got back from Alaska 2 days ago, and we booked the Allen Marine tour of Tracy Arm and Sawyer Glacier through our ship (Celebrity Century). I second everything TheMediaman just said. It was a really top-notch excursion. Sawyer Glacier was almost better than the Hubbard Glacier just because the experience was so intimate, and both the wildlife and scenery of Tracy Arm were spectacular. I am not at all sorry that we didn't have much time left over in Juneau.

Edited June 3, 2014 by arielsong88

[Ando]

Strangely enough we arrived early into Juneau on a Cunard cruise many years ago. We were due to arrive at 8am and we arrived at 8pm the night before. It was great for me as I had relatives there and stayed overnight at their place with them :D

 

Now having said that I can only recall this happening at 1 other port (Hobart in 2009) out of 45 cruises. Late arrivals or missed ports......countless lol

 

Like others here I definitely would not recommend booking a tour that departs before the ship is scheduled to arrive. I'm sure you'll find something else - enjoy Alaska and your cruise :)

[larcklorn]

I think the OP may be trying to do the Tracey Arm Excursion with Adventure Bound which is less expensive than the cruise line offering that is operated by Allen Marine tours.

 

I do agree that cruise line excursions can be pricier. I have arranged my own many times. (Taking the train to the Acropolis in Athens for 2-3 € instead of ship transportation costing considerably more.) I have just done the Tracey Arm Fjord excursion through the cruise line. I actually made the conscious choice to do so because the Allen Marine Tour boats are faster and have top deck viewing instead of bow and stern which appeared more crowded from pictures in my research. Faster to and from Tracey Arm Fjord means approximately 6.5 hors vs 9 to 9.5 hours as I'm lead to believe. Adventure Bound may not spend more time at the Sawyer Glacier...just more time getting to and from.

 

In this case, if it is acceptable to the budget, the higher cost ship excursion through Allen Marine Tours was good value for me and I do not make a habit of the higher cost ship offerings. The boat is roomy, clean, spacious and the crew is friendly and talkative. Tracey Arm Fjord was definitely worth the price of admission. Don't miss it just because you can't go with the cheaper company. How often are you up in Alaska anyway?

 

If it is something like whale watching through Adventure Bound then just ignore everything I just typed. :)

 

You are correct Mediaman, I was looking at the Tracey Arm trip, Allen is not providing it on Sunday when we are in town and unfortunately the ship does not get in until 9am and Adventure Bound leaves out earlier than that. Currently looking into Helicopter Glacier Tours or just doing Mendenhall ourselves as whale watching is being planned for Icy Strait. Thanks for everyones help on this questions - you guys are amazing.

[larcklorn]

I am not familiar with the excursion, Adventure Bound, that you mention but have you contacted the company to see if they also offer a tour geared to cruise passengers?

There are quite a few excursions to take in Juneau. Have you done two very helpful things...checked out the Ports of Call boards for Alaska AND joined your Roll Call. You don't have much time left and many of the whale watch excursions booked with the recommended vendors are probably full but you can catch a local bus to the Mendenhall Glacier and spend a wonderful day there. Also, when you dock there will be vendors on the pier selling almost every kind of tour you might be interested in. They are a little pricier than a pre booked excursions but definitely less than any the ship will offer.

Have a wonderful cruise. Alaska is special.

 

Done and done alcpa1, we have whale watching booked out in Icy Strait - so good to go there, just wanted to see if I had any hope of making the Tracey Arm trip. Thanks.