DIY excursions on 11 day Alaska cruise?

[shanna135]

Looking for ideas for things to do on our Alaskan cruise out of San Francisco  on August 26th.  What are some of the things you've done on your own?  The price for excursions seem very high.  Like to fish, hike, historical things. food, and anything with some views. Only our second cruise. Thanks

[klfrodo]

Not knowing what ports you will be visiting kind of makes it difficult to assist.

[Essiesmom]

Go over to the Alaska board under Ports of Call.  Lots of experts there.  EM

[Old Fart Cruisers]

We rented a 7-passenger car in Juneau last August for our party of 6 for under $200 total.  We drove to the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center and spent a couple hours there.  According to the website, "day use passes sell for $5 per person", but when we got there we were told admission was free.  Considering Carnival's 3-hour bus excursion to Mendenhall would have cost $54.99 per person, or $329.94 for our group, we were already ahead over $125😀. 

 

We had planned on hiking some of the trails, but it was raining so hard we decided against it, and we were happy that we hadn't pre-paid for any hiking excursions.  We spent a few hours just driving around sight-seeing at our own pace, did a little shopping and had diner at a nice seafood place outside of town.

 

We just rented another car for our upcoming trip where we'll be in Ketchikan on April 25th.  This time it will only be the two of us so we got a 2-passenger gas SmartCar, which is small enough for even the narrowest streets in Ketchikan.  They also had electric, but I didn't want to worry about returning it charged.  The car cost $84.20 total (other than the cost of a few gallons of gas), so again less then any of the available excursions, and we will be able to explore at our own pace.  There is quite a bit to see within walking distance in Ketchikan, which we will do, but also want to see the surrounding area this time.

 

We rented through Turo.  It's car sharing, like Airbnb for cars, so each car is individually owned.  Note: If you plan on using Turo, make sure you put the actual address of the port as the pick up & drop off when checking prices.  Some will include the cruise port pick up, others can add $20 to $50 for that, or you might have to find other transportation to the car's location. 

 

The two prices that I mentioned were total including all fees, taxes and picking up at the port (not including the cost of gas) and we declined their insurance.

[firstjourney]

I did Alaska solo almost 2 years ago and had an amazing time. Take a hike up to Reid Falls in Skagway, it’s beautiful. Ride the tram up Mt Robert’s in Juneau, you can even hike farther up from there if that’s your thing. Lunch Creek Trail in Ketchikan. The best fish tacos ever from Deckhand Dave’s truck in Juneau.The only paid excursion I booked was canceled due to such heavy fog, float plane up to Taku Lodge. I did all days on my own and had a blast!

[kdr69]

Doesnt just "seem" that way. They are.  Its Alaska, everything about it is expensive.

[jimbo5544]

On 3/30/2024 at 7:24 AM, kdr69 said:

Doesnt just "seem" that way. They are.  Its Alaska, everything about it is expensive.

It sure is.  That said, if it i a once and done experience, I would be reticent at recommending a DIY mentality.  Just not the same level of experience for most cruisers.

[shanna135]

Thanks for the help. Liked just getting  a taxi on only other cruise. More freedom and less waiting.

[Micahs Grandad]

Lots of private stuff available, from whale watching, to taxi rides and totum visiting. Go to ports of call.

[shanna135]

I was amazed on our first cruise the number of people who never got off the boat.

[DukeASUGirl]

In Juneau, we walked through town to get to the trailhead for the trail that goes up Mt. Roberts. Hiked that for free, then bought something in the gift shop up at the top and got the tram ride for free with our receipt (not sure if that still works - this was over a decade ago). Then we took a city bus ride to Mendenhall Glacier and toured that on our own and came back on our own time.

 

In Skagway, we bought tickets for the White Pass Railway and got off at a stop about halfway along the route (didn't have to buy tickets to the terminus because we got off in the middle of the wilderness at a trailhead). Hiked to a waterfall, then turned around and hiked back, meeting the train as it returned along the route. Cruiseline charged like $80/person for this excursion, but we did it for about $20/person because we did it on our own.

 

[Tennessee Rose]

In Skagway, we rented a car and drove up the Klondike Highway into Canada --- you MUST have a passport for Canada. I prefer to be in control of where I stop so the rental was great for us.

 

NOTE:  Skagway is a tiny town and, at least when we were there, there was only one car rental place in town and they get booked up many months ahead of time. Yes, it's expensive. I think it was 2017 when we were there and a compact car for one day was about $154  (Hertz??). But still cheaper than the ship excursions. I still kept checking the Hertz website every week or so, and about 2 months before our cruise, they had a sale where my same car was only $125. I cancelled the rental and IMMEDIATELY, WITHIN MINUTES, booked and got the same car at the sale price!

We drove up to Emerald Lake area, had lunch in the boonies at Spirit Lake, then headed back. Some of the most incredible scenery I've ever seen. Would definitely do it again.
We were in Alaska the first week of September. The fall colors were gorgeous along with some wildflowers still blooming.

 

[KarmaCruisers]

Skagway:

it’s a small town to walk through, if it’s your first time. Definitely book the White Pass Railway to ride. 
Juneau:

It’s very easy to do whatever you wanna do here, MUCH cheaper than the cruise line sells. When you get off the ship, at the base of the Mt. Roberts Tramway; they have little booths setup with all kinds of tours (bus to Mendenhall Glacier, whale watching, etc) all very reasonable prices ran by locals. Also if you want to try King Crab, Tracy’s crab shack is right there too.

Ketchikan:

Usually this port stop is so damn short; we either just walk the little creek Street, or go to the LumberJack show.

[CantWait08]

The drive in Skagway is awesome. We are scheduled to do it for the 4th time this year.

 

There are now 5 car rental options as well. Ranging from $100-$400 a day.