How far in advance to book excursions

[mackfam]

Just wondering when I should book (non cruise ship) excursions for my May cruise.

 

How likely would it be to be able to get a decent whale watching excursion the day I arrive in Juneau as opposed to booking ahead? If I should book ahead, should I do it now or can I wait until a few months beforehand?

 

 

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[CruiserBruce]

As always, if it is a limited capacity situation, book sooner. Large group tours can wait.

 

I believe private vendors are already taking bookings for next year...no reason to wait if it is something you want. As long as either no money is required, or is fully refundable...

[masterdrago]

I've heard that the small boat whale watching tours book up quickly. We've booked two (Juneau and Icy Strait Point) as well as a glacier watching tour in Whittier. If you can plan on more trips and cruises to the big state, then allowing for weather and rough seas might not be an issue. We may only go on one Alaska Adventure so booked two flightseeing tours and both small boat whale watching tours we could. Joy wants to also do a train ride but right now we have a jeep rental reserved in Skagway. Some of the large boats might still have room. If you get into Juneau early enough, look at True Alaskan Tours. https://truealaskantours.com/tour/tracy-arm-fjord-glacier-explorer/ Another thing I would do is start making phone calls to the numerous whale tour groups out of Juneau. Back a couple of years ago, Dolphin Jet Boat Tours still had tickets for sale hours after one of their boats sank ... https://www.juneauempire.com/news/whale-watching-boat-sinks-18-rescued/

[jrmende63]

I agree. Book now if you can. We already have an excursion, train ride and airplane booked for our June Cruise

 

 

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[JT1962]

Another vote for booking as soon as you know what you want to do and the dates. The small boat tours for whale watching and tours of Tracy Arm Fjord and flightseeing tend to fill up quickly.

 

Also have a backup plan in case any of your excursions are canceled due to weather. It happens most often with flights, but can occur with boat tours as well. You don’t want to be wasting valuable touring time trying to decide what else to do if there is a cancellation.

 

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[donaldsc]

Good tours in AK book up. Once you decide what you want to do, book it.

 

DION