Alaska April 26, 2025

[PKClinton]

We will be docking in Ward Cove. Will need transportation into Ketchikan. Tips please.

[dfilpus]

Your cruise line will supply a shuttle. There may be a line for the shuttles. Pay attention to when the last shuttle leaves Ketchikan and try to be on the next to last one. 
Cruise line excursions will leave from Ward Cove.

Taxis may be available.

City bus stops near Ward Cove, but is tricky to get to. It runs once an hour.

[PKClinton]

Have you heard of the boat that takes you into town?

[1025cruise]

I believe there is only one line that docks at Ward Cove, NCL. A shuttle is provided to get you into Ketchikan. Also note that April is very early in the season. 

[wolfie11]

On 8/17/2024 at 12:01 PM, PKClinton said:

Have you heard of the boat that takes you into town?

It’s a $100 tour by boat.

[wolfie11]

On 8/17/2024 at 12:24 PM, 1025cruise said:

I believe there is only one line that docks at Ward Cove, NCL. A shuttle is provided to get you into Ketchikan. Also note that April is very early in the season. 

Regent and Oceania also dock there.

[PKClinton]

We’re booked on Norwegian Bliss for April 26, 2025 Alaska. Hoping to see more snowy landscapes than our first trip. It was in July and was 77° in Juneau. Any tips for this time of year? 

[Ferry_Watcher]

I would expect chilly mornings, and potentially early morning icy decks, sidewalks and boardwalks.  Chose your footwear carefully.

 

I would highly recommend Icy Strait Point's Glacier Winds for your whale watching excursion.

 

https://www.g-wind.com/

 

Also, make sure that you are traveling with either your passport (book or card), or with your US gov't issued birth certificate.  For some reason an unusual high number of folks from TN will show up to board a ship to Alaska thinking that they just need their driver's license.  Again, please bring your passport or US gov't issued BC.

Edited August 19 by Ferry_Watcher

[XBGuy]

We have taken a couple Alaska cruises in late April.  

 

Yes, it will probably be noticeably cooler, but, certainly, not frigid.  We seem to have encountered a bit more fog and drizzle, but with only two April cruises under our belt, that may be too small a sample to generalize.  Regardless, neither the drizzle nor the fog negatively affected our enjoyment.

 

Generally, I would say, "Yes, you will see more snow."  The snow levels on the various mountains seemed lower in April/May than later in the season.  In fact, one year our scenic cruising day was very sunny, albeit cool, and the reflections of the snow and the glaciers were spectacular.

 

One thing that we did notice is that we saw fewer whales from the ship.  That early in the season many of the whales have not completed their migration from Hawaii or Mexico.  That being said, we have never been on an Alaska cruise in which we have not seen whales from the ship.  The previous poster recommended a whale watching excursion at Icy Strait Point, and I would not discourage anybody from taking such a tour.

 

Bon Voyage.  You're going to have a great cruise.

[wolfie11]

12 hours ago, PKClinton said:

We’re booked on Norwegian Bliss for April 26, 2025 Alaska. Hoping to see more snowy landscapes than our first trip. It was in July and was 77° in Juneau. Any tips for this time of year? 

WOW! You don’t have a lot of time in port on this cruise.  In Sitka you need to get in line to get off as early as you can.  The dock is a 7 mile bus ride into town.  With 3000 to 4000 people on board it can take a couple of hours to get everyone into town.  Either that or sign up for an excursion that leaves from the dock area.  It’s early in the season so some shops may not be open and some excursions may not be operating.  The same situation applies in Ketchikan, where you will be around 11 miles from town with a shuttle ride back and forth.  I believe the last shuttle back to Ward Cove leaves around 11 am.  Juneau is a tender port so also get in line as early as possible.  It takes longer to tender people in than bus them.

 

the weather can be nice in late April but it’s still pretty chilly.  Expect highs in the 40‘s and lows in the 30‘s. There will likely still be plenty of snow around and the mountains are beautiful, although the trees may not have leaves on them yet depending on how cold it is next spring. I’ve done several cruises in late April and early May and I love the fact that there aren’t crowds that time of year.

[PKClinton]

Thanks for the info. I saw on YouTube that renting a car in Sitka is better and just take in in on your own.???

[aussielozzie18]

We left Vancouver on the 30th April.  Beautiful snowy scenes when we self drove from Skagway up to Emerald Lake. Would have been the same for those that did the White Pass Railway on the same day.   I expected Emerald Lake to be completely frozen over but it had melted enough for us to see the beautiful colours.

 

Be aware that some tour companies do not open until mid-may.  Chilkoot Tours which are hugely popular in Skagway for their rail/small bus combo up the Yukon - did not offer tours until the week after our cruise.  A couple of other tour companies were the same.  Nevertheless there are plenty of excursions still available in the early season.  
 

Dressing in layers is always the key in Alaska but even still we were surprised how warm it was in the first couple of days.  I didn’t pack swimmers for the open pools.  I should have.

[donaldsc]

On 8/19/2024 at 6:01 AM, PKClinton said:

We’re booked on Norwegian Bliss for April 26, 2025 Alaska. Hoping to see more snowy landscapes than our first trip. It was in July and was 77° in Juneau. Any tips for this time of year? 

 

Are you stuck w that cruise.  That has to be one of the worse port times of any AK cruise that I have ever seen.  

[DougH]

Thos are terrible port times. I would look at another cruise line. Princess does a great job, I've sailed Alaska 35+ times. Is this RT from Seattle? Those have the shortest port times

[PKClinton]

I’m starting to think the same thing.

[Coral]

On 8/19/2024 at 8:15 PM, wolfie11 said:

WOW! You don’t have a lot of time in port on this cruise.  In Sitka you need to get in line to get off as early as you can.  The dock is a 7 mile bus ride into town.

I agree. Awful times in port 😞 

[zqvol]

12 hours ago, PKClinton said:

I’m starting to think the same thing.

If you can at all swing it do a one way cruise from Vancouver to Seward or the reverse. Much better port times and the scenery in the northern part of that is incredible. Plus you have the option of small boat tours out of Seward or Whittier that put Glacier Bay to shame. 

[PKClinton]

Thanks for all the input! I’m going to look at other options. I don’t have anything invested in this cruise yet so I won’t lose anything.