Juneau/Ketchikan What to Do?

[sette1lm]

My husband and I just booked an Alaskan cruise kind of on a whim. We have never been (to Alaska) before. We have stops in Juneau from 7am-3pm and Ketchikan from 7am-1pm.

 

We are looking at the excursions through Carnival and they are so expensive. We got a really good deal on this cruise and while they are pricey none of them would really break the bank. However, none of them are things we are dying to do so it seems kind of silly to spend $500 per person on something that neither of us care that much about. My questions are:

 

1. Are we wrong? Are some of these excursions so cool that we should do them? What excursions have you done in Alaska that you loved and would recommend? 
2. What else is there to do outside of excursions? Is there a cool hike we should take a Lyft to (is Lyft a thing there)? Some other place to go visit, town to walk around in, other thing to do that isn't on the traditional excursion list? 

[SightCRR]

In Ketch do the crab boat tour. It has great encounters with sea life and bald eagles. Should be around $250p/p. If you are at Ward Cove plan on 30 min bus ride each way into town and back. 

In JUN look into helo glacier walks. $500 may not be enough but you will never forget it. Also the whale watches are pretty spectacular. 

Search youtube for videos by individuals that are not the ad ones and the newer the better. 

sightcrr

[Kansas Gal]

We have been to Alaska twice.  Ketchikan is a very walkable town.  Creek Street is close to where cruise ships dock.  There a number of totem poles all around town.  In Juneau, we have been out to Mendenhall Glacier and both times seen bears wandering around relatively close to the visitors center.  Don't try to pre-book the Mount Roberts tramway - if it is foggy you won't see much from the top.

 

[Northern Aurora]

I wonder if our OP has read the trip reports which are posted at the top of this Alaska index page.  Also, check the visitor and convention bureau websites for Juneau and Ketchikan which are listed in the thread titled ""2019 Resources ...."

[karatemom2]

You don't have to break the bank to enjoy Alaska. If you have an interest in wildlife, Juneau is a great place for whale watching which you may find worth the investment. But both Juneau and Ketchikan are very walkable. You can get taxis easily in either place and also rent a car, which is what we do often. In Juneau I would recommend Juneau Car Rental and in Ketchikan, Alaska Car Rentals. In Juneau, you can go to Mendenhall Glacier and do the Nugget Falls hike. There is also a couple of other nice hikes - Perseverance Trail and Treadwell Mine trail. Both are easily reachable if you have your own car, but I have read that you can taxi there as well. Also, the Mount Roberts tramway is a very affordable option that will provide you beautiful views on a clear day and also offers hiking trails. In Ketchikan, you can get outside of town to visit the Saxman Village or Totem Bight to see the totem poles, you can walk Married Man's Trail and explore Creek Street. There are a couple of nice museums in both Juneau and Ketchikan. I would suggest you go to both of the local Chamber of Commerce pages which will provide a great overview of things to do.

[oaktreerb]

If you want to actually take worthwhile expensive excursions I suggest in Juneau take the Taku Glacier Lodge floatplane  with Lunch.  You will fly over glaciers and take off and land twice since the lunch is on an island across from Taku Glacier.  You may get to see a free roaming resident bear close-up when it comes to lick up the drippings from the grill.

 

The Bearing Sea Fisherman’s tour on the crab boat in Ketchikan is great fun and you will learn a lot about the fishing industry and see eagles swooping to catch fish.  

 

Those two tours have great reviews…..and don’t save money by doing the flight without the lunch..you will miss the two take offs and landings and the possible bear encounter.

[3rdGenCunarder]

Whale watching in Juneau is great. Do some research online to see the various companies. I love Gastineau Guiding, and am going out with them for the third time this June (booked through the cruiseline because it was the only way available when I'm there). Their boats are one-level and have big windows that open, so you can get good pictures and you never feel crowded. There are other companies with similar boats, so check out the pictures on the websites. The downside is that the smaller boats don't have a "head." But it's only a few hours, and there are toilets at the dock for a pre-emptive stop. 

[Travel R]

On 4/10/2022 at 9:25 AM, 3rdGenCunarder said:

The downside is that the smaller boats don't have a "head." But it's only a few hours, and there are toilets at the dock for a pre-emptive stop. 

 

For the smaller boats, they may have a head. I will be on a 6-passenger boat this coming June. One of the first questions I asked before booking was whether they had a restroom. They answered yes - but it is very small - but functional.

[3rdGenCunarder]

55 minutes ago, Travel R said:

 

For the smaller boats, they may have a head. I will be on a 6-passenger boat this coming June. One of the first questions I asked before booking was whether they had a restroom. They answered yes - but it is very small - but functional.

 

Oops, thanks for the correction. I just double-checked the company I use and their boats do have a restroom. I've gone out with them twice and nobody ever asked, so I have no idea where it's hidden. 

 

I took a whale watch tour (not from the cruse line) in Icy Point Strait with a company that has small boats. Probably had a restroom but nobody asked. Later, I overheard a woman who had gone on a larger boat, booked through the cruise line, complaining that for a "luxury boat," it had a terrible bathroom. The "luxury boat" was the typical tourist two-level boat. They never look luxurious to me.

[dog]

Car rental at pier Ketchikan - on Discovery.in May.

any recommendations?

[karatemom2]

20 minutes ago, dog said:

Car rental at pier Ketchikan - on Discovery.in May.

any recommendations?

 

There is no car rental agency at the pier in Ketchikan, but Alaska Car Rental has a location not far away. They do have a shuttle for pick up and drop off service that they will make available when they can. Also, it is a short and easy taxi ride to their offices. We have rented from them numerous times and have always been very satisfied.

 

Here is the link: http://www.akcarrental.com/

 

[PACD_JG]

All I have planned for Ketchikan is taking the bus ($4 round-trip per adult) to Totem Bight State Park (free) and then walking around the town after.

 

As far as Juneau - one of the best places in the world to go whale watching, so if that's a priority, then you have to pay (about 60% more expensive than Anacortes, fwiw).  But you could just walk the town there as well.

 

[ImperialLady]

On 4/11/2022 at 10:39 AM, Travel R said:

 

For the smaller boats, they may have a head. I will be on a 6-passenger boat this coming June. One of the first questions I asked before booking was whether they had a restroom. They answered yes - but it is very small - but functional.

Ditto for us..we booked with Harv and Marv a small 6 passenger boat and they said the same thing small but functional. A must for me!

[familycruzinnewbie]

I’ve heard there is a city bus of some type in Juneau to Mendenhall glacier. I am checking out diy options first. And then possibly excursions 

[Dancing Shoes]

The city bus to Mendenhall drops you off about 1 mile from the glacier.  There is a BLUE bus that provides R/T for $45 includes entrance fee.  

[Elaine5715]

On 4/23/2022 at 9:08 PM, ImperialLady said:

Ditto for us..we booked with Harv and Marv a small 6 passenger boat and they said the same thing small but functional. A must for me!

Went with them last August, it was amazing experience

[kona_wahine]

5 hours ago, Dancing Shoes said:

The city bus to Mendenhall drops you off about 1 mile from the glacier.  There is a BLUE bus that provides R/T for $45 includes entrance fee.  

this is the one I’m looking in to. (The blue bus, not the city bus) It says it runs every 30 minutes on cruise ship days. My granddaughter picked the dog sled thing first, but we have time to go to this after, and it look spectacular. 

Edited May 6, 2022 by kona_wahine

[J0Y0US]

On 4/8/2022 at 5:33 PM, sette1lm said:

they are pricey

 

Do the research but if you want to get by "cheap"

 

Juneau - $45 bus ride per person to Mendenhall (see the glacier and walk the trails), walk around the town (bar there supposedly has Wyatt Earps Gun), do the tram up to the mountain (not positive on pricing as we hiked to the top and just rode it down)

 

Ketchikan - shops, self guided tour around town (walking), others can comment on the Lumberjack Show or Crabfeast (if they are worth it and how good it is)

 

There are tons of options though and you need to research if it might be worth the splurge to do/see something. For us we know we will go back to Alaska so doing everything is not required but with my parents going this summer we are splurging a little more since it will be a 1 and done for them likely.

[Live in the moment]

2 hours ago, J0Y0US said:

 

Do the research but if you want to get by "cheap"

 

Juneau - $45 bus ride per person to Mendenhall (see the glacier and walk the trails), walk around the town (bar there supposedly has Wyatt Earps Gun), do the tram up to the mountain (not positive on pricing as we hiked to the top and just rode it down)

 

Ketchikan - shops, self guided tour around town (walking), others can comment on the Lumberjack Show or Crabfeast (if they are worth it and how good it is)

 

There are tons of options though and you need to research if it might be worth the splurge to do/see something. For us we know we will go back to Alaska so doing everything is not required but with my parents going this summer we are splurging a little more since it will be a 1 and done for them likely.

We want to hike up and ride down on the tram too - how long did it take you to hike? What did you think? And do they still let you buy something for 10.00 to ride down free?

[Discus16]

On 5/5/2022 at 9:24 PM, Elaine5715 said:

Went with them last August, it was amazing experience

We went with them our last cruise and would use them again. A wonderful excursion 

[J0Y0US]

17 hours ago, Live in the moment said:

We want to hike up and ride down on the tram too - how long did it take you to hike? What did you think? And do they still let you buy something for 10.00 to ride down free?

 

Really liked the hike and has a couple overlook spots where you are looking down on the city. 

 

From the Port it's 2.7 miles, lot of elevation be aware of, I would recommend hiking shoes if going (might be hard in tennis shoes), and took us about 1.5hrs not setting a fast pace but taking it all in. 

 

You get a discount then on the tram for just doing it on the way down. 

 

I will say we only went to the tram station there is a long trail past the tram station. Note that we also walked around Mendenhall the same day so we were allowing time to make sure we were getting both places.

 

For comparison we walked the same distance at Mendenhall even with a bunch of stopping in like 45 mins. 

 

Attached some photos from the hike. 

Edited May 7, 2022 by J0Y0US