tour & activities on our own

We are two reasonably fit seniors who are doing B2B Alaska cruises in late May/early June. We will have:

2 days in Juneau

1 day in Skagway

2 days in Ketchikan

1 day in Fairbanks

We'd like to tour on our own.

I'm looking for suggestions about what to do at these stops, tour companies to use, and coupon books to buy. If you know whether or not your recommendation is included in a coupon book, please mention that.

Thank you.

When my wife and I went on our cruise to Alaska we had such a great time. We are not much for touristy things, so we went off on our own.

When we stopped in Ketchikan we went out fishing with Oasis Alaska Charters http://www.oasisalaskacharters.com , they did such a great job for us. They are also one of the few that will take two people out. Most charter companies require a 3-4 person minimum. I just happened to go on there site and it looks like they have a sale going on.

When we were in Juneau we went to go see the Mendenhall Glacier it was well worth out time.

Buy or borrow from your library, Fodor's 'Alaska, ports of call', or Ann Vipond's 'Alaska by cruiseship'. Both books will provide info about each port and suggestions for sights, activities, excursions, and DIY options.

A great resource are the trip reports listed in the STICKYS above. Many of these reports are photo journals and contain first-hand recommendations for tours, vendors, sights, car rentals, etc. The photos bring an activity to life and give you a better sense of what you will experience.

Also, each town has a web site to encourage tourism in their area and promote local vendors. Google the town's name with visitor information or chamber of commerce. Some towns will send a free visitor guide. Such as http://www.skagway.com or http://www.experienceketchikan.com

The State of Alaska will send a free visitor guide. https://www.travelalaska.com/

But do a little research and learn about all the options available to you.

I would also read down this board. There is so much information if you just read each thread about tours in Alaska and in the ports you have listed.

Keith

Thank you all for the pointers. I am reading through the threads and doing more research.

I see that one of the recommended excursions, Juneau Glacier and Whale Watch Combo is included in the Alaska Discount Coupons book. This discount on that tour would just about cover the cost of the book. Does anyone know whether the coupons from that book can be used to make an online booking at Juneau Whale Watch?

It varies by vendor.

My experience was that I had to call the vendor, and give them the coupon # in order to take advantage of the discount. Then when I arrived at the location, the vendor removed the coupon from the book.

In Juneau I'm looking at a Whale Watch and Mendenhall Glacier tour. The Juneau Whale Watch has good reviews on tripadvisor, as does Weather Permitting. Weather Permitting is a Fordor recommendation and claims to have no more than 12 passengers on a boat. But it costs considerably more than Juneau Whale Watch. Does anyone know how many passengers might be on the Juneau Whale Watch tour? Can anyone recommend one of these companies over the other?

Contact the vendors directly and get the passenger number from them. 6 and 12 packs are common, but vendors can change their equipment.

A factor you may not be aware of, is any combo glacier/whale tour- IF you stay with the "tour", is going to give you, at most only 3/4 hour at Mendenhall. So, figure out what you want to do there and the time required. If more then, you will need to go one direction on your own at an additional expense. You do need to allow at least an hour, if interested in Nugget Falls trail, as an example. Shuttle buses also stop running between 6/7pm- for more information.