Alaska Excursions through HAL or independent

[supatraveler]

Hello All,

 

I am currently researching excursions for Juneau for my upcoming HAL Westerdam cruise at the end of June.

 

I am thinking about doing a whale watching boat tour combined with a trip to the Mendehall glacier. I'm trying to understand the benefits of doing it through an independent vendor like Harv and Marv/Orca Enterprises or doing it though HAL? The prices are pretty similar between the two (about $40 more pp for HAL). What are things I should look at besides just price? Is it the number of people on the whale watching boat?

 

Also, if I am doing an independent whale watching excursion in Sitka, is it still worth doing one in Juneau as well? (There's no such thing as too much whale right?! ;))

 

Once I get Juneau decided, I'm on to deciding my excursion for Ketichikan.

 

Thanks for the help and advice!

[clueless2]

Harv and Marv uses smaller boats. I believe a max of 6 passengers. The HAL excursion will have many many more that that. That means you can see both sides of the boat and rarely have anyone blocking your view.

[supatraveler]

Thanks! So it sounds like there is a still quite the benefit to going with one of the smaller companies/boats.

 

Thanks!

[Greysandy]

On our first cruise, which was to Alaska, we booked everything through HAL and were not disappointed. We enjoyed all of them. On our next cruise to the Mediterranean, I did lots of research and booked almost all independent tours and it was mind-blowingly better. Basically you get to see twice as much in less time and for, often, less money. You don't have to wait for 50 other guests to get in the bus. I now use TripAdvisor to find the most reputable independent tours and have never been let down.

[supatraveler]

Unfortunately, as soon as I decided to book my own, it looks like Harv an Marv is booked. I'll have to do some additional research to see what other companies are rated well in Juneau and have space. thanks!

[dcsam]

For Mendenhall, I suggest taking the local bus to and from. Reasonably priced and you're not on somebody else's schedule.

[RMLincoln]

For Mendenhall, I suggest taking the local bus to and from. Reasonably priced and you're not on somebody else's schedule.

I agree. It was very easy, got the school bus right off the ship, paid the driver cash - I think it was $10 then but I'm sure it's gone us by now. They picked us up on time a hundred yards from the visitors center (bring your National Parks Pass if you have one) and they returned us to the ship directly. There were several times available for pick-up so no need to decide up front how long we wanted to spend there because we did not know before hand. Great day. Enjoy, m--

 

PS I've always wanted to do the tram to the mountain top in Juneau but the weather wasn't clear enough both times I've been there. If it's nice you may want to consider that; also very easy right off the ship.

Edited May 28, 2015 by RMLincoln

[supatraveler]

Thank you both for your replies--they are very helpful!

 

Do you think since I am going Whale Watching in Sitka, I should not go again in Juneau and just do Mendenhall Glacier? Or should I try to do both? It looks like the ship will be in Juneau from 1pm-10:00pm.

 

Thank you!

[Assateague Island Princes]

The wildlife viewing in Sitka will be more varied than just whales. You may see puffins (if you are lucky!), sea lions, and perhaps gray whales or Orcas along with the humpbacks. We've always been very lucky with varied sea life on our Sitka excursions (we use Capt. Davey w/www.puffinsandwhales.com for the small, six passenger boat experience). While in Juneau, you are almost guaranteed to see humpbacks. If it were me, I'd do both. Never can see enough whales in my book!;)

[sammiedawg]

Unfortunately, as soon as I decided to book my own, it looks like Harv an Marv is booked. I'll have to do some additional research to see what other companies are rated well in Juneau and have space. thanks!

 

Check Captain Larry, I think his company name is Orca Enterprises.

Private tours are the way to go most anywhere in the world, you see twice as much as the cruise bus and the price is usually less.

Check your roll call.

[AlanAllyn]

I second Orca Enterprises. Their boats hold about 40, but they usually book closer to 25. We found it easy to get around and see views in all directions.

[supatraveler]

Thanks for the suggestions! 40 people per boat seems like a lot. I think we were hoping for something a bit smaller.

 

Has anyone heard of "adventures in Alaska" which also runs tours in Juneau? Thanks!!

[catl331]

All these tours are very popular and people do book them well in advance. There are so many different cruise lines doing the Alaska adventures now that making a decision in advance is imperative. Even HAL excursions are getting booked early. Those that wait until the cruise begins miss out. I always advise friends if they want to do the whale watch, helicopter tours and fishing expeditions to book way in advance for both HAL and private companies. No one can predict if you will see many whales or catch fish or be in the middle of rainy weather.

[orca lover]

We are visiting Juneau August 14 and I booked with Juneau Adventures. Six passengers max sounded good to me. Decided to stay away from the cruise ship excursions.

[CruisingSince2012]

Thank you both for your replies--they are very helpful!

 

Do you think since I am going Whale Watching in Sitka, I should not go again in Juneau and just do Mendenhall Glacier? Or should I try to do both? It looks like the ship will be in Juneau from 1pm-10:00pm.

 

Thank you!

 

The real question here is not seeing too many whales (that is impossible), but if you want to walk on trails at Mendenhall. While researching Mendenhall tours, I figured out there is no time for trails on a ship tour. Why not? The visitor center is awesome. So you need to think about how much time you want to spend at a glacier and the land around it.

[xlxo]

The real question here is not seeing too many whales (that is impossible), but if you want to walk on trails at Mendenhall. While researching Mendenhall tours, I figured out there is no time for trails on a ship tour. Why not? The visitor center is awesome. So you need to think about how much time you want to spend at a glacier and the land around it.

I did the "Best of Juneau" with HAL on one trip. I think we were given 1hr at Mendenhall. I guess it depends on how fast you move and how many trails you want to explore.

 

I did Photo Point, Nugget Falls (loved it there) and left me 7 minutes inside the visitor centre. There was a bear at Photo Point which added a few minutes as we wait for him to clear.

Edited May 31, 2015 by xlxo

[CruisingSince2012]

I did the "Best of Juneau" with HAL on one trip. I think we were given 1hr at Mendenhall. I guess it depends on how fast you move and how many trails you want to explore.

 

I did Photo Point, Nugget Falls (loved it there) and left me 7 minutes inside the visitor center. There was a bear at Photo Point which added a few minutes as we wait for him to clear.

 

I am a slow walker and want to spend a whole hour in the visitor center after I walk on the Steep Creek and Photo Point trails. Combined that will take 3 hours when you account for picture taking, so I will take taxis because of the hours in port (1-10).

 

I tried very hard to squeeze in a whale watching tour. Fortunately I can see the wildlife near Ketchikan by taking a Misty Fjords boat tour. :)

[supatraveler]

Hi All,

 

Thank you for the suggestions. Since we are doing Whale watching in Juneau, do you suggest we just do the town of Juneau and Mendenhall glacier and the trails around it, and forgo Whale Watching in Juneau? That would leave us just doing Whale watching in Sitka, though we haven't picked an excursion in Ketchikan yet.

 

My boyfriend and I love walking and hiking (we're in our late 20s and very mobile) so now I thinking we might want to forgo a boat tour and just enjoy walking around and hiking--you all make it sound so lovely!

 

Thanks for all of your suggestion and help, it's tough making these decisions!

[xlxo]

Thanks for all of your suggestion and help, it's tough making these decisions!

Just budget for a return trip another year.... Many of us have...

[supatraveler]

Just budget for a return trip another year.... Many of us have...

 

Yup, our time constraint is more time than budget. We certainly plan on returning to Alaska both on cruise and on land, but it doesn't make the decisions each time any easier.