Which Excursion Would You Choose in Juneau?

[cruisejune]

I would like to do a canoe/paddle boat activity in Juneau to get some exercise and see the glaciers upclose. I was researching and narrowed down to Liquid Alaska's tour https://liquidalaskatours.com/tours/mendenhall-lake-canoe-tour/ as well as one from the Travel Agent (less expensive).https://www.shoreexcursionsgroup.com/tour/mendenhall-glacier-river-float/akjnataglflttrp

 

Is it true that the Liquid Alaska and Above & Beyond are the only 2 companies allowed to be upclose to the glaciers?

 

Kindly let me know what you think or experienced. 

 

Thanks so much!

 

[Coral]

If you have a long day in Juneau - this company will get you up close to glaciers: https://www.adventureboundalaska.com It is a long day boat ride to Tracy Arm. You will not get exercise but the trip is amazing.

[wolfie11]

I have not been on the canoe trip in several years, but I enjoyed it a great deal.  However, Mendenhall Glacier is rapidly melting and changing.  I have heard they no longer do a landing and hike by the glacier.

 

The float trip is one of my least favorites. You start at the lake and then float by people's back yards and through bits of forest.  

[HaveWeMetYet]

1 hour ago, Coral said:

If you have a long day in Juneau - this company will get you up close to glaciers: https://www.adventureboundalaska.com It is a long day boat ride to Tracy Arm. You will not get exercise but the trip is amazing.

It looks like they start at 8am which would not work for cruise ship schedules. Do you know if they have later start times?

[Coral]

57 minutes ago, HaveWeMetYet said:

It looks like they start at 8am which would not work for cruise ship schedules. Do you know if they have later start times?

They will work with you if your cruise docks at 8. I will pick itineraries with this schedule to do this. It does work with select cruise ships, but not many of them. 

[Coral]

2 hours ago, Coral said:

They will work with you if your cruise docks at 8. I will pick itineraries with this schedule to do this. It does work with select cruise ships, but not many of them. 

I have heard that they will run a private later excursion (8:30 or 9 am). They did this for a roll call that got quite a few people to go. You still need a long day.

Edited March 2, 2023 by Coral

[Anita Latte]

It could be true that those companies are the only ones that are licensed for commercial tours at Mendenhall, which is Federal land and thus requires and limits licenses for commercial tours, just like Glacier Bay.

 

I think you might be disappointed in the float trip is you’re wanting to get closer to the glacier. I believe that tour starts in Mendenhall Lake and the float trip goes with the current away from the glacier. It sounds weird but you will have views of the glacier but you won’t be close to it. Mendenhall can be seen from quite far away…we saw it from Douglas Island actually before we went to it. It’s a beautiful view but idk, I think the trip is going away from the glacier so you’d be facing away from the glacier? 
 

The canoe trip would bring you toward the glacier but where you land and go around may not be at the glacier. When we went a canoe tour had landed where we had hiked to following the trail to Nugget Falls. The landing spot varies I believe based on conditions and there’s no guarantee of landing on the glacier side.

[cruisejune]

Thanks Anita, Coral, Wolfie11 and Havewemetyet for all your feedback! Will relook into the excursions again. Unfortunately, our Juneau stop is only in the afternoon. Thanks once again

[Coral]

8 hours ago, cruisejune said:

Thanks Anita, Coral, Wolfie11 and Havewemetyet for all your feedback! Will relook into the excursions again. Unfortunately, our Juneau stop is only in the afternoon. Thanks once again

This is unfortunate as there is so much to do in Juneau and those who arrive in the afternoon are at a disadvantage. Good luck in deciding!

Edited March 4, 2023 by Coral

[Figg1437]

We have a family of 8 and I’m debating between a private tour with Harv and Marv to see the whales vs.  cruise ship tour that combines whale watching with the glacier visitor center / can hike to Nugget falls.  Thoughts?  I know cruise tour will be more crowded but Harv and Marv said they can’t do a combo to do it on our own- and not sure how to do that. 

 

Or I love the idea of the Tracy Arm trip! I hear seeing Glacier from a small boat is great and you also have high likelihood of whales and other wildlife. We don’t arrive in Juneau until 230 but stay till 11…. I’ve heard some ships do a one way trip where they drop you at Tracy arm off the side of the ship onto the small boat and then you meet them in Juneau later- anyone know if that’s an option with NCL Encore?  It’s too far out for them to post our excursions (May 2024)

Edited March 8, 2023 by Figg1437

[Hllb]

On 3/2/2023 at 10:05 AM, HaveWeMetYet said:

It looks like they start at 8am which would not work for cruise ship schedules. Do you know if they have later start times?

Allen Marine does this tour from Juneau. Generally you have to book that through your cruise ship. I found a site to book it. It looks like on Mondays they offer an afternoon tour leaving at 1:15PM:  https://truealaskantours.com/tour/tracy-arm-fjord-glacier-explorer/