Taking an Alaskan cruise/tours off the boat?
And I was told to book online with the cruise ship any tour I want to do in the port cities of Sitka, Ketchikan and Juneau. Then I read that you shouldnt buy with the cruise ship as it is too expensive and you can get your own when the cruise docks. Does anyone have any advice regarding which is better? The cruise of course does not recommend me taking any cruise other than theirs, but I would like to save money if it is a possibility. Thanks!
Go to http://boards.cruisecritic.com and join (it’s free)
There is a section called “Ports of Call”. This is the one for Alaska: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=55
You can get advice from cruisers who have “been there, done that” with both ship’s excursions and independent excursions. Do recognize that certain kinds of tours – like helicoptering to land on a glacier, or going on a dogsled ride – are going to be very expensive even if you manage to find an independent tour.
If you’re going to go the independent route, I recommend doing your homework and making your reservations in advance – not just walking off the ship hoping to find something. The best tours fill up well in advance, especially when capacity is limited.
When I took my Alaska cruise, the only excursion I booked through the ship was in Juneau; it was a “Photo Safari by Land and Sea”. I found the exact same excursion independently – but it turned out to be the company the cruise line uses, so they couldn’t book me for the day I was in port because it had sold all its slots to the cruise line. In all my other ports, I booked independently, and had an awesome time on a whale watch in Hoonah on a little boat that could only take 6 passengers, and was small enough to get into areas that the big boat that the ship’s tour used couldn’t even get close to.
Alaska Wilderness Lodges & CruiseTours Denali Princess Wilderness Lodge
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