JT1962

It is likely that the ship will stop at the mouth of Tracy Arm and those on the small boat excursion will transfer to the small boat, but the ship will continue on to Juneau and not sail Tracy Arm. The small boat will sail to the glaciers, then return to Juneau several hours later, where those on the excursion will re-board the ship.

There are tours available at the dock. If there is something you are really interested in, I would consider booking in advance, just to make sure you have a spot. I did the whale watching / Mendenhall glacier combo tour with Juneau Whale Watch last month and would recommend it. The boat only held about 25 passengers and there was plenty of room on deck to view the whales without feeling crowded. They also go to the glacier after whale watching tour and have return buses every 1/2 hour so you can stay as long as you choose at the glacier, as long as you leave enough time to return to your ship. https://www.juneauwhalewatch.com/tours/mendenhall-glacier-juneau-whale-watching-combo-tour/

My opinion is that there are 2 possible reasons the cruise lines are still listing some of the train tours into Canada: 1. They are hoping Canada changes their Covid requirements at some point and the White Pass Railway will decide to go into Canada. That is why they are only canceling 2-3 weeks ahead of the cruise. 2. They are short staffed and don’t have enough employees to update the websites and / or process the refunds if they cancel all the longer train tours that have been booked at one time.

Owned by Carnival, great snorkeling and easy beach day.

Carnival, like most cruise lines and other businesses, are having staffing shortages. I was on the Ecstasy last week and experienced lines and slow service at all food venues, but not as bad as what you mention (10-20 min at most locations unless peak times). I think this will continue to be an issue for a while. The cruise lines need to get back to full passenger capacity to make money, but that may be a mistake in the long run if passengers are disappointed in the onboard experience and decide not to return in the future.

I used Juneau Whale Watch and would recommend them as a good fit between the smaller 6 - 10 passenger boats and the large boats used by the cruise ship excursions. There were 22 passengers the day I went (the boat holds around 25). There was plenty of space for everyone to have a good view without having to look over or around others. They have outside viewing areas on the front & rear of the lower deck and the full top deck, if you don’t mind climbing the ladder. They also handed out bottles of water and a snack choice of chips or cookies.