Will we dock at Haines or Skagway?

[mkkao924]

We will be sailing on June 7 2020 Westerdam, and based on the itinerary, we will be docking at "Haines (Skagway)" on June 10.

https://www.hollandamerica.com/en_US/find-a-cruise/A0S07B/W033.html

 

Typically, I would assume the "Haines" is the actual docking port, where "(Skagway)" is the "big city" name that people recognize.

 

However, when I check with the port schedule, looks like we will be docking at Skagway, not Haines.

Skagway - http://claalaska.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Skagway-–-SKG-2020.pdf

Haines - http://claalaska.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Haines-–-HNS-2020.pdf

 

More interestingly, for the May 27 Westerdam itinerary, it has exact same title as "Haines (Skagway)", and it docks at Haines per above schedule.

https://www.hollandamerica.com/en_US/find-a-cruise/A0S07B/W028.html

 

Now I am really confused. Will we dock at Haines or Skagway??

[dfilpus]

The Holland web-site is a piece of junk. I would consider the port schedule to be more reliable. I would ask my TA to call HAL and verify the information.

[Melinda Brasher]

That's really weird.  HAL's southbound cruises generally stop at Haines, not Skagway, as your itinerary says.  That the cruise schedule says differently is a big mystery.  But you notice the Westerdam in Haines on other weeks.  I agree that I would contact the cruise line to get the final word.

 

And yes,  Haines and Skagway are completely separate towns.  If you wanted to get to Skagway from Haines, you'd have to take the ferry, which is a big chunk of time (though gorgeous sailing time) and money.  And it might not work for your port schedule.  Or you have to take a guided tour to Skagway, with prices and length adjusted to compensate for the boat ride   If you indeed stop in Haines, I would recommend staying in Haines (which I quite liked, being that it's not inundated with thousands of tourists every day).  Otherwise, I would consider changing your itinerary so that it goes to Skagway.  But that's just me.

 

A few pics from Haines:  https://www.melindabrasher.com/2019/01/haines-alaska.html 

Edited October 3, 2019 by Melinda Brasher
typo

[mkkao924]

To be honest, I am OK with either port. Just want to know exact port so I can schedule my activities accordingly.

 

I called the cruise line yesterday and the person on the phone assured me it’s calling Haines, but he didn’t sound very confident...

 

If if we are calling Haines, I plan to visit Kroechel wildlife, and if we are calling Skagway, we will probably just walk around the town. We visited Skagway 10 years ago and used Dyea Dave. That’s why I am looking forward to visit Haines this time.

 

The last thing I want to do is to book the tour and rental car in Haines only find out we dock at Skagway...

[Cruise_More_Often]

mkkao924, check the excursions HAL has listed for your itinerary. If you're docking in Skagway, there should be way more excursions listed for Skagway. There might be one or two listed for Haines, such as the Glacier Point Wilderness Safari, which they do from both ports.

[mkkao924]

7 hours ago, Cruise_More_Often said:

mkkao924, check the excursions HAL has listed for your itinerary. If you're docking in Skagway, there should be way more excursions listed for Skagway. There might be one or two listed for Haines, such as the Glacier Point Wilderness Safari, which they do from both ports.

That's a great idea! I checked the excursions, and looks like we will indeed dock in Haines since there are things like golf, City bus tour of Haines, and a few other Haines related tour. Maybe just the port schedule was mixed up?

[Cruise_More_Often]

5 minutes ago, mkkao924 said:

That's a great idea! I checked the excursions, and looks like we will indeed dock in Haines since there are things like golf, City bus tour of Haines, and a few other Haines related tour. Maybe just the port schedule was mixed up?

 

That's definitely Haines. I remember the golf excursion as a choice. 

[mkkao924]

Update: We just got an email from HAL indicating the itinerary has been changed from Haines to Skagway.

 

"ITINERARY CHANGE NOTIFICATION

Due to operational reasons, the call to Haines (Skagway), AK, has been replaced with Skagway, AK."

 

Another interesting thing, is that this cruise (6/7/2020 Westerdam), is no longer on HAL website now.

 

It's interesting how HAL is handling itinerary change, that customer have no idea the itinerary is changed when they book the cruise.