Ideas for Juneau / Should We Cancel Tracy Arm Excursion?

[Ileneilene123]

So I’ve been so excited to take the Tracy Arm Excursion on our upcoming HAL Inside Passage cruise but now I’m having last minute second thoughts and thinking of cancelling. I’d love some advice. 
 

We are already scheduled for a 5:15pm Helicopter Dog Sled excursion on Mendenhall Glacier that same day, departing from Juneau. The Tracy Arm Excursion tenders off of the ship that morning at 10:30 am at the Tracy Arm entrance. Then we spend 6hrs on the excursion and meet the ship in Juneau at 4:30pm (it’s about 3hrs to travel from the Tracy Arm to Juneau).

Once in Juneau, we catch the helicopter/dog sled excursion 45 minutes later at 5:15 pm. That’s assuming everything runs as scheduled. 
 

The logistical details of the Tracy Arm excursion are a bit overwhelming. What if the timing gets messed up and we get delayed? I do not want to miss dog sledding. That’s my top excursion.

When/what will we eat all day? There’s no lunch provided on the Tracy Arm excursion and I read in recent reviews that you cannot take food from the ship onboard and there are only snacks for purchase. I also read that sometimes the boat is so crowded that you cannot get even get a seat. Other reviewers have no complaints and love the excursion. 

 

Is trying to see Tracy Arm just too much? Or, is it too special to miss? What do folks think?  

Our alternative excursion options in Juneau before dog sledding would be to check out the Mt Roberts Tram (and hike a bit), or the Mendenhall Glacier Explorer w/ Nugget Falls. 
 

Appreciate any feedback! 

 

 

 

Edited June 30 by Ileneilene123

[Coral]

I would not cancel either. Those are probably going to be your 2 favorite excursions of the trip. Is the helicopter ride excursion through the ship?

 

If they are both through the ship - you will be fine timing wise, They will refund if you are late.

Edited June 30 by Coral

[Ileneilene123]

46 minutes ago, Coral said:

I would not cancel either. Those are probably going to be your 2 favorite excursions of the trip. Is the helicopter ride excursion through the ship?

 

If they are both through the ship - you will be fine timing wise, They will refund if you are late.

I’d love to do both excursions but I’d be sad if I missed the HAL dog sled excursion because of a late return to Juneau from the Tracy Arm, even with a refund.
 

The glacier landing / dog sled is my first choice excursion. Maybe I should consider changing it to the next day in Skagway instead of in Juneau? HAL offers it from there as well, landing on a different glacier. We have the White Pass train scheduled in the morning but the timing could work. Again, only 45 minutes in between but at least we’d already be in Skagway. It was our back up plan in case the dog sled was cancelled due to bad weather in Juneau but maybe it’s actually the better plan. 
 

Yes, I am overthinking a bit but we are talking about bucket list adventures after all.  

[Coral]

1 hour ago, Ileneilene123 said:

I’d love to do both excursions but I’d be sad if I missed the HAL dog sled excursion because of a late return to Juneau from the Tracy Arm, even with a refund.
 

The glacier landing / dog sled is my first choice excursion. Maybe I should consider changing it to the next day in Skagway instead of in Juneau? HAL offers it from there as well, landing on a different glacier. We have the White Pass train scheduled in the morning but the timing could work. Again, only 45 minutes in between but at least we’d already be in Skagway. It was our back up plan in case the dog sled was cancelled due to bad weather in Juneau but maybe it’s actually the better plan. 
 

Yes, I am overthinking a bit but we are talking about bucket list adventures after all.  

I have done Tracy Arm many times but independently, and not through a ship excursion. Hopefully someone who has done the ship excursion can respond on timing.

 

I think both excursions are amazing.

 

Helicopter excursions are the most cancelled due to weather conditions.

Edited June 30 by Coral

[Northern Aurora]

@Ileneilene123:  We did the ship sponsored Tracy Arm excursion several years ago when we had a great amount of non-refundable OBC to burn.  It was a different cruise ship line but likely the same vendor.  Great trip.

 

It is unlikely that the vendor will be running late to return you to the cruise ship.  This excursion has been running for years and they have the timing down.  You will not be delayed.  And I question any reviews which state that the boat will be so crowded that you will not be able to locate a seat.  This is a moving vessel, and there is adequate seating for all passengers.  It would be a safety issue if all passengers could not be seated.  Regarding food, just have a larger than normal breakfast on the cruise ship.  In our case we were provided free snacks (again -- a different cruise line) on the small vessel.

 

Since the the helicopter sled dog excursion is so important to you  have you considered keeping the booking in Juneau and then also booking the excursion in Skagway?

[Ileneilene123]

23 hours ago, Northern Aurora said:

@Ileneilene123:  We did the ship sponsored Tracy Arm excursion several years ago when we had a great amount of non-refundable OBC to burn.  It was a different cruise ship line but likely the same vendor.  Great trip.

 

It is unlikely that the vendor will be running late to return you to the cruise ship.  This excursion has been running for years and they have the timing down.  You will not be delayed.  And I question any reviews which state that the boat will be so crowded that you will not be able to locate a seat.  This is a moving vessel, and there is adequate seating for all passengers.  It would be a safety issue if all passengers could not be seated.  Regarding food, just have a larger than normal breakfast on the cruise ship.  In our case we were provided free snacks (again -- a different cruise line) on the small vessel.

 

Since the the helicopter sled dog excursion is so important to you  have you considered keeping the booking in Juneau and then also booking the excursion in Skagway?

Thanks everyone for the helpful replies.
 

Yes, we did consider also booking the dog sled excursion the next day in Skagway as a back up in case Juneau is cancelled or we miss it. But, since it’s the next day, we would not be able to cancel Skagway & get a refund if it works out in Juneau. We’d be out $1500 as would our friends, so we decided against it. We will try to register at the last minute is it’s cancelled or we miss it in Juneau. 
 

ETA: I just checked and it appears that HAL is no longer even offering the dog sled excursion in Skagway at the time that we wanted. They were offering it 3 times that day and now it’s only once but it’s during our train excursion. There goes that back up plan.

Edited July 1 by Ileneilene123

[Coral]

1 hour ago, Ileneilene123 said:

Thanks everyone for the helpful replies.
 

Yes, we did consider also booking the dog sled excursion the next day in Skagway as a back up in case Juneau is cancelled or we miss it. But, since it’s the next day, we would not be able to cancel Skagway & get a refund if it works out in Juneau. We’d be out $1500 as would our friends, so we decided against it. We will try to register at the last minute is it’s cancelled or we miss it in Juneau. 
 

ETA: I just checked and it appears that HAL is no longer even offering the dog sled excursion in Skagway at the time that we wanted. They were offering it 3 times that day and now it’s only once but it’s during our train excursion. There goes that back up plan.

You can book direct: https://www.alaska.org/detail/temsco-skagway-dog-sledding-and-glacier-flightseeing-by-helicopter 

[SeeUsCruise]

Can't help with the actual decision, but we did the Dog Sledding and Glacier Helicopter tour in Juneau (to the Herbert Glacier) and the White Pass Train in Skagway. We booked the Dog-sledding/Helicopter through Alaska Shore Excursions and the Train through the ship. Both were amazing and not to be missed. Happy to answer any questions you have about them.

[wolfie11]

When are you sailing? The dog sled excursions close down in late August or early September for the season.  Some camps are closing this week and next.  That may be why you can’t get an excursion in Skagway.

[Coral]

On 8/23/2024 at 12:05 AM, wolfie11 said:

When are you sailing? The dog sled excursions close down in late August or early September for the season.  Some camps are closing this week and next.  That may be why you can’t get an excursion in Skagway.

The original poster sailed July 10th.

Edited August 24 by Coral

[Ileneilene123]

42 minutes ago, Coral said:

The original poster sailed July 10th.

OP here. Thx for the replies. Sorry I haven’t responded to the latest posts. Yes, we cruised 7/10-7/17. 

 

Here’s how it went down: dog sledding excursion in Juneau cancelled due to poor weather; second attempt at dog sledding in Skagway cancelled due to poor weather. 

No one got to dog sled during the cruise — all were cancelled as far as I know. It remains on my bucket list. 
 

We were socked in with rain and clouds for 5 days straight. Tracy Arm was amazing, even in the rain. We changed the clocks during our cruise for daylight savings time so they moved the Tracy Arm departure one hour earlier. We were back to Juneau with plenty of time to spare  — it WOULD have worked beautifully for dog sledding. Oh well, you cannot control the weather. 
 

ETA: we also did the White Rail Pass in Skagway and rainforest zip lining in Ketchikan. Both were really fun, even in the rain. Our only sunny days were heading out of and then into Vancouver. We really enjoyed the suspension bridge and Stanley Park in sunny Vancouver! 

Edited August 24 by Ileneilene123

[Coral]

2 hours ago, Ileneilene123 said:

OP here. Thx for the replies. Sorry I haven’t responded to the latest posts. Yes, we cruised 7/10-7/17. 

 

Here’s how it went down: dog sledding excursion in Juneau cancelled due to poor weather; second attempt at dog sledding in Skagway cancelled due to poor weather. 

No one got to dog sled during the cruise — all were cancelled as far as I know. It remains on my bucket list. 
 

We were socked in with rain and clouds for 5 days straight. Tracy Arm was amazing, even in the rain. We changed the clocks during our cruise for daylight savings time so they moved the Tracy Arm departure one hour earlier. We were back to Juneau with plenty of time to spare  — it WOULD have worked beautifully for dog sledding. Oh well, you cannot control the weather. 
 

ETA: we also did the White Rail Pass in Skagway and rainforest zip lining in Ketchikan. Both were really fun, even in the rain. Our only sunny days were heading out of and then into Vancouver. We really enjoyed the suspension bridge and Stanley Park in sunny Vancouver! 

My first cruise to Alaska was over the 4th of July in 2002 I believe. The whole trip was foggy, we had cold temps and sleet for most of the trip. Even our White Pass excursion was foggy. For about 2 hours one day - we had clear skies and I realized how gorgeous Alaska could be when not raining. I returned the following year and went in May (which supposedly is a dryer month but no guarantees in Alaska) and had perfect weather. I later went back over the 4th of July one more time and it was really, really hot. So difficult to guess the weather. I have been to Alaska a ton and for the most part, have had good weather.

 

I hope you can return and have great weather on your next cruise.

[Ileneilene123]

3 hours ago, Coral said:

My first cruise to Alaska was over the 4th of July in 2002 I believe. The whole trip was foggy, we had cold temps and sleet for most of the trip. Even our White Pass excursion was foggy. For about 2 hours one day - we had clear skies and I realized how gorgeous Alaska could be when not raining. I returned the following year and went in May (which supposedly is a dryer month but no guarantees in Alaska) and had perfect weather. I later went back over the 4th of July one more time and it was really, really hot. So difficult to guess the weather. I have been to Alaska a ton and for the most part, have had good weather.

 

I hope you can return and have great weather on your next cruise.

Thanks, Coral. I’d love to get back to Alaska again. Maybe a land tour. Hopefully with better weather next time! 

[Coral]

8 hours ago, Ileneilene123 said:

Thanks, Coral. I’d love to get back to Alaska again. Maybe a land tour. Hopefully with better weather next time! 

Hoping the best for you!! I never thought I would like (let alone love) Alaska. I have been a ton now. I will take Alaska over the Caribbean any day! Never expected to say that.