Which Excursions?

[spraynet]

Hello everyone, fairly new to this site, only posted a few times. My bride and I have cruised before but it's been well over 20 years so we're a tad rusty!  We're cruising from Seattle to several ports of call in Alaska on the Ruby Princess with Princess cruise Lines this Sept 14th till the 21st. 

 

Ports of call are:  

 

Juneau:                          Arrive 11:00    Depart 22:00

Skagway:                       Arrive 07:00    Depart 20:15

Glacier Nat Park:          Arrive 06:45    Depart 15:00

Ketchikan:                     Arrive 07:00    Depart 13:15...Also our 32nd Wedding Anniversary.  Anything special folks have done please post up!

Victoria B.C.:                 Arrive 19:00   Depart 23:59

Vancouver B.C:             Arrive 07:30 and depart ship.  We do have 2 entire days in Vancouver before our flight home.

 

 

We are first time explorers to the great state of Alaska and are really looking forward to this trip. My bride has been suffering from cancer going on 3 years now and this will be a trip of a lifetime for us after she gets her Pet-Scan that states she's free of cancer this May.

 

We're looking for all the advice we can get from great restaurants on the ship, to the better excursions at each port of call. We're ready to spend a good amount on the excursions, but don't know if we should do all of them with the cruise ship?  If we don't book early, are we going to be left out?  Which are the nicer ones, including all the up-grades we should take.  Anything you can help us out with would be greatly appreciated.  

 

[Dee_Jay]

I'll let others give the excursion recommendations; they're all going to list the same things I would😀

For your anniversary, make sure it's listed in the Special Occasions section of your Cruise Personalizer on the Princess website.  You'll get a sign and balloons on your cabin door, and a card for a really good chocolate dessert.

I would also recommend going to a specialty restaurant that night.  We really liked Share, but other people hate it.  You can view the menu on the Princess website to see if it appeals to you.  If you're more of a carnivore, the Crown Grill has good steaks.

[spraynet]

Thank you so very much for your guidance and insight.  I'll do exactly what you've mentioned, my bride would like that very much!  If you could I would really like to hear your recommendations for excursions as well. Just need to know what folks thought of some of the one's they liked and those they thought did not meet their expectations.

[Crew News]

There is lots to see in Alaska so you just have to pick something and vow to return on another cruise.  My favotire excursions

 

Juneau:  Any whale watching, Taku Lodge flight and salmon feast, small boat to Tracy Arm

 

Skagway:  Dog sledding in the snow, train ride to Lake Bennett

 

Ketchikan:  Flightseeing with crab feast, Crab fishing on Aleutian Ballad from Deadliest Catch TV series with eagle feeding, Flightseeing to Misty Fjiords

 

Victoria, BC:  Stroll through downtown

 

Enjoy your cruise planning.

[BarbinMich]

Here are our favorites:

Juneau -  Mendenhall Glacier (you don't really need an excursion, the Park Service runs shuttles from pier to Visitors Center)

Skagway - White Pass RR or White Pass bus tour (one goes along one side of the "Pass", the other along the opposite side so different views)

Ketchikan - we have always stayed in town and like to ride the tram up to Cape Fox Lodge area for the views; also the SE Alaska Discovery Center is interesting, Creek St. has interesting shopping

Victoria - Butchart Gardens; walking around downtown (we've been there several times on cruise and by fly/drive vacation)

 

Enjoy!

Edited March 30, 2019 by BarbinMich

[spraynet]

Awesome, thank you both very much!  I'm eying a tour in Ketchikan that will take up all of the port time while there, so we will not get to see the area at all!  Is ketchikan a really nice "true" Alaskan town with lots of Alaskan owned shops and cool stores to check out, or is it a tourist trap built by the cruise lines themselves like several others I've read about? 

[PittsburghNative]

I don’t have any tips for Alaska, as it will be my first time in May, but I will say Vancouver is AMAZING! Make sure to take a sightseeing tour or read up on the “not to miss” sights. When we get off the ship, our flight doesn’t leave until 11pm at night, so we are doing the 7-hour Vancouver Delights tour with Landsea. The company offers several tours if that one doesn’t interest you.

 

https://vancouvertours.com/tour/vancouver-delights-capilano-tour/

[Crew News]

1 hour ago, spraynet said:

Awesome, thank you both very much!  I'm eying a tour in Ketchikan that will take up all of the port time while there, so we will not get to see the area at all!  Is ketchikan a really nice "true" Alaskan town with lots of Alaskan owned shops and cool stores to check out, or is it a tourist trap built by the cruise lines themselves like several others I've read about? 

 

Ketchikan is a fishing town with a cannery that is not taken over by the cruise lines but it does have its tourist shops.  Lots of float planes that carry cargo to the interior as well as tourist stuff in the summer.  Just walking around is enjoyable.

[spraynet]

Pittsburgh & Crew, Thank you very much! 

 

We also have a 7 hour tour planed for Vancouver, but ours is more like an adventure tour. Whale watching, float plane, etc. I'm now re-thinking that due to your recommendation. Since while in Alaska we will have our chance at doing both item's I've mentioned, I think a city tour might be better now that you've mentioned that, thank you!

 

Crew.....Trying to decide whether or now to take in the town of Ketchikan, which by your post sounds very interesting and something that may suit us more.

 

Thank you both very much!