Sherme

Has anyone done the Tracy Arm small boat excursion from Koningsdam this season?  Tracy Arm was listed as a separate stop on my itinerary on Navigator until recently.  It is no longer listed as a stop on Navigator, however, the Tracy Arm excursion is still listed on MY itinerary (it’s now only listed under Juneau - it used to be listed under Tracy Arm and Juneau).  I am really hoping that this excursion will happen (I have already had the White Pass train  and Yukon expedition canceled).  I am concerned that the Tracy Arm stop is no longer listed as a stop on the itinerary.  I would love to hear if anyone has done the excursion from a HAL ship.

Thank you all for your input.  Per the port schedule, Koningsdam docks at Ore Dock, which looks closest to Yakutania Point.  I had originally booked the combo Yukon/White Pass train tour, but after it got canceled, I decided to do the Yukon bus tour with Chilkoot.  I booked the earlier (8:30 am) departure, which is supposed to return to Skagway by 3 pm, so that I would still be able to do the 4 pm summit train tour IF I wanted to.  Now that I am getting closer to my cruise, I don’t want to commit to another excursion, and since I am more interested in wildlife/nature than shopping, I thought walking to Yakutania Point and possibly on to Smuggler’s Cove would be a great way to spend the rest of my time in Skagway.  Should I be worried about bears on those trails?  

I will be in Skagway at the end of June.  I am doing the Chilkoot Yukon bus tour that day.  The tour gets back to Skagway at around 3 pm, and the cruise ship leaves Skagway at 8 pm.  I have read that the walk to Yakutania Point is really worthwhile.  What is the best way to get to Yakutania Point from the cruise dock and is 3-4 hours enough time?

I heard back from Jayleen’s and they have space on a late afternoon whale watching trip.  I decided to cancel the combo Mendenhall glacier and evening whale quest that I had booked through HAL and go with the small boat experience with Jayleen’s.  I will lose out on the hour at Mendenhall Glacier, but since I am doing the small boat Tracy Arm excursion from the cruise ship in the morning, I am okay with that.  I was worried about being on a whale watching cruise with 100 + people, and Jayleen’s only has 6 passengers on their excursions.  Thanks for your advice, I can’t wait to go!

Since it is offered through HAL, I am not 100 % sure who the tour operator is.  However, when I google the name of the tour, it points to Allen Marine Tours.  I know there is heated inside seating and a topside outdoor observation deck.  From the YouTube Video above, it’s definitely not a small boat.  I am just wanting to make sure that I will be able to stand on the observation deck without having people all around me that will make it hard for me to have a great view.  I have contacted Jayleen’s to see what they have late afternoon.  Harv and Marc don’t have anything after 2 pm that day.  I would have to give up on Mendenhall if I end up going with Jayleen’s, but I know there will be less people on the boat.  Again, I don’t mind more people as long as I can have a good outside view.

Thank you for your responses and Five, thanks for the video.  I arrive in Juneau after doing the small boat Tracy Arm excursion directly from the ship, so the main purpose of doing this evening Mendenhall and Whale excursion is to see whales.  But since Mendenhall is one of the big attractions in Juneau, I was hoping to see it and to be able to do the walk to Nugget Falls.  I have read that the walk to Nugget Falls takes 45 minutes round trip, so I think I will be able to do it in an hour.

If anyone has done this tour, did you feel that there were too many people on the boat?  I am hoping that it won’t be too crowded.  Thanks for any advice.

Has anyone done this excursion through HAL?  I would like to know how long you get to spend at Mendenhall Glacier, because I would love to walk to Nugget Falls and back.  Also, how big is the boat? Did you feel that it was packed on he boat?  I am wanting to do a combo Mendenhall Glacier and whale watching tour later in the afternoon, and this one has availability.

I appreciate any input from people that have done this.

Thank you all for your feedback.  I saw that Chilkoot has an 8.30 am AND 9:30 am bus trip to the Yukon.  If I book the 8:30 am tour, I would get back to Skagway by 3 pm (I confirmed this with Chilkoot).  Since HAL offers the White Pass Summit tour at 4 pm, I could actually do that as well.  It would make it a very long day, but I could do both.

Now to decide……

I booked the 8 hour White Pass and Yukon expedition (up by bus and return on the train), and now I am so disappointed to hear that the train will only be able to go to the summit this year.  This means that I will have to make a choice:  either the train to the summit and back or the bus trip into the Yukon with no train.

For anyone that has done the combo tour:  If you had to choose, which one do you recommend that I do?  Why?

This is my first trip/cruise to Alaska and I don’t know if I will have the opportunity to go back.

Thank you all for your input.  I am looking at doing a late afternoon whale watching excursion with Harv and Marv.  They have a 5 pm to 9 pm trip, and they confirmed that I will be back on the cruise ship on time.

rostbp - I am also on HAL and doing the June 27th Tracy Arm excursion. 🙂

I booked the White Pass Rail and Yukon Expedition excursion through HAL.  The description of the tour does not state that the tour makes a stop at Emerald Lake, however, some older reviews of the excursion do mention Emerald Lake.  Has anyone on this board done this tour through HAL?  When you did the tour, did you stop at Emerald Lake?  Do you know which local tour company does the HAL tour?  
I am wondering if I should cancel the HAL tour and rather book the same tour with Chilkoot.  I would love to hear from anyone that has done this tour through HAL and/or Chilkoot Tours.  Thank you!

Thank you for your response.  Yes, I am really excited to do the Tracy Arm excursion!  I think this excursion gets into Juneau around 3:30 pm, and we only leave port at 10 pm.  I don’t have anything booked for once I am in Juneau, but I was planning to take the shuttle to Mendenhall Glacier and then walk the trail to Nugget Falls. If the weather is great I may also do Mt Roberts.  But now I am wondering if I should do a whale watching tour instead.  

I am booked on an HAL Inside Passage cruise at the end of June.  I have booked the Tracy Arm small boat excursion (transfer to small boat from Koningsdam at Tracy Arm and then meet up with cruise ship in Juneau a few hours later).  I think we will be on the small boat for 5 -6 hours before we get to Juneau.  I will still have at least 6 hours in Juneau after getting there.  I had originally wanted to do a whale watching trip in Juneau….but after booking the Tracy Arm excursion, I decided not to book the whale watching trip, because I thought that after being on a boat for about 6 hours, I may not want to get on another boat an hour or so after getting to Juneau.  I am spending a couple of days in Victoria after the cruise, and I was going to book a sunset whale watching cruise there instead.  After reading repeatedly that Juneau is the place to see whales, I am now second guessing my plan.

1. Has anyone done both Tracy Arm and a whale watching cruise on the same day?  Was it okay, or did you feel it was too much time on small boats?
2. Is it common to see whales during the TracyArm excursion?  I realize that the objective on the Tracy Arm excursion is glaciers and not whales, but I am wondering if going on a separate whale watching trip in Juneau would be worthwhile?

3. Since I am doing the Tracy Arm Excursion on the Juneau port day, and I am hesitant to spend another 4 hours on a boat, would doing the whale watching in Victoria be a good alternative?

Glaciers and seeing wildlife are my biggest priorities.  My other stops are Skagway and Ketchikan.

I appreciate any advice.  Thank you in advance.

I booked Atlanta - Vancouver, with a connection in Toronto.  When I made my original booking, I chose flights so that I had over 3 hours in Toronto.  Yesterday, Air Canada emailed me to inform me that my flights had changed.  I noticed that I now only have 1 hour and 15 minutes in Toronto.  I called Air Canada, as I am worried that this is not enough time.  I was told that it's more than enough time.  I hope they are right, as I don't want to miss the connecting flight.

I am going on my first Alaska cruise next June.  I researched binoculars for this cruise and ended up ordering the Celestron DX Nature 8 x 42.  They are $146 on Amazon, but I got a great pre-Black Friday deal through Academy Sports ($89).  I have been trying them out in my neighborhood, and I like that they are small and light and they have a strap and a case.  They feel very comfortable to use, and I get really good and clear images.  I also picked them because it says that they are fog and waterproof.  Hopefully they will be great on my cruise (and beyond).

Enjoyed the YouTube video, Sight CRR, and have also watched several others.
Thanks rkacruiser - I plan on going to Butchart Gardens without a tour, so I will be able to spend as much time as I want.  I am in Victoria for two nights (1 1/2 days), so I will have time to do some other things in Victoria as well.
Trying to find out as much as I can about cruising the Inside Passage, port stops, Koningsdam, etc through this forum, YouTube, Pinterest, google, etc, is becoming a full-time job…but so much fun!  😀

Thanks for your input.  I looked at the description and reviews of Bering Sea Crab Fisherman’s tour and am tempted to book it too.  Before booking Tracy Arm, my plan was to do the whale watching tour with Harv and Marv in Juneau.  After booking Tracy Arm, I decided not to do the whale watching, since Tracy Arm is 6 hours on a small boat and I may not want to get back on another small boat after getting to Juneau.  That’s why I thought I could do the sunset whale watching trip in Victoria instead…. But, if Juneau is truly better, I may need to rethink that. 
Thank you for suggestions for Victoria.  Was planning to do Butchart Gardens and walk Inner Harbor to Fisherman’s wharf.  I will have additional time, so I’ll check out your suggestions too.

Will go and check out “eatsleepcruise” on YouTube.  235 days until my cruise….so excited!

SightCRR, thanks for the tips with regards to finding great viewing spots!  I will definitely check that out!

Thank you all!  SightCRR, I have already booked Tracy Arm - I will be boarding the small boat directly from the cruise ship.  I should still have 6 hours in Juneau before I will need to get back on board the cruise ship.  Still trying to decide what to do in Juneau for the 6 hours. 
In Skagway I will do the Yukon bus and train tour to Carcross and Emerald lake with train ride back to Skagway.  Hoping to see wildlife during Tracy Arm and the Yukon excursion.  Wasn’t going to book anything for Ketchikan.   Was planning to check out totems and Creek Street.  Never thought about fishing tour because I have never been interested in fishing….however, I do see that it probably would give me a great chance to get close to some of the marine wildlife, so I will check that out.  
I will spend 2 nights in Victoria after the cruise and will book a sunset whale watching trip with Eagle Wings there.

Thank you for all your responses.  

Thank you for the great information Tapi.  I am researching binoculars at the moment and also want to order a map of the Inside Passage.  

My first Alaska cruise is next June.  I am booked on a 7 day Inside Passage cruise leaving from Vancouver.  Other than glaciers, I am really interested in seeing as much wildlife as possible.  Since I am booked in an inside cabin, I plan to spend a lot of time on deck.  Where on Koningsdam would be the best spot to view wildlife?  (Deck and location on deck?).  Also, any specific areas during the cruise that I need to pay special attention?

Thank you for any advice!

Thank you your your response.  I recently booked the  Tracy Arm excursion, boarding the small boat directly from the cruise ship just outside Tracy Arm, and then arriving in Juneau a couple of hours after the cruise ship… I think the small boat gets to Juneau around 3 pm, which leaves me a little over 6 hours in Juneau.  Since I should get fairly close to a glacier during Tracy Arm (or Endicott), do you think it’s worth going to Mendenhall as well?  

For anyone that has done the Tracy Arm excursion, what did you do in Juneau once you got there?  I think I will get to Juneau at around 3 pm, and our cruise ship only leaves at 10 pm.  Would you still want to go to Mendenhall Glacier after doing Tracy Arm?  Or, if the weather is clear, would Mt Roberts be better?  Before booking Tracy Arm, my plan was to go to Mendenhall and Nugget Falls, and then do a whale watching cruise.  

Thank you for your responses.  I booked it today!!!  Really looking forward to it!

I am booked on an Alaska Inside Passage cruise next June on Konigsdam - this will be my first time in Alaska.  The cruise stops at Tracy Arm and we also spend a full day at Glacier Bay.  I have read many great comments on the Tracy Arm excursion, where passengers get on a smaller boat directly from the cruise ship at the entrance of Tracy Arm.  How far in advance do I need to book the excursion to make sure that it isn’t full?  Thank you for any advice.