Princess Alaska Bearing Sea vs Independent - Ketchikan

[cusematt4]

Hi All,

 

Does anyone know if there's a difference between the below Princess offered tour vs what seems to be the same on the vendor's website?

 

 

Bering Sea Crab Fishermen's Tour 

vs

Princess-offered Tour:

Local Connections: Deadliest Catch Crab Fishermen's Tour Created By Captain David Lethin
Fans of the Discovery Channel TV series, "Deadliest Catch," will recognize the Aleutian Ballad! It was made famous in season two and is your portal to adventure on this intriguing, 3-hour Bering Sea Crab Fishermen's Tour. Perfect for the whole family, you'll see what life is like on an authentic Bering Sea fishing boat as you set off in the calm, protected waters. Relax in the heated and sheltered outdoor amphitheatre as your crew hauls up 700 lb. crab pots and long lines from the depths, revealing massive king crabs and other marine life such as octopus, prawns and various other fish species. The amazing sea creatures are gently placed into an on-deck aquarium for you to view, snap photos and even get hands-on with the catch! A stop near Annette Island may offer up close sightings of bald eagles, seals, sea lions, whales and native Alaska fishermen at work.

 

Does anyone know
-Are these tours identical?

-Does this company have more than one ship?  Or is there one ship that is mixed with cruise passengers and those who book direct with the vendor.

-The vendor price with tax is $235pp.  Princess has a sale that offers the tour for $255pp.  Is there any advantage to spending extra and booking this tour (if identical) with Princess for an extra $20pp?

Thanks so much.

 

[jean-lynd]

Yes the tours are identical. There is only one boat so evveryone will be together. For this one you basically get off of your ship and walk across the pier to get on the crab boat. We ended up booking through Princess because when we booked the Princess price was $219.95. The only advantage I can see to booking through the ship is the fact that sometimes people with excursions are allowed off of the ship first so you might be able to get a better seat on the crab boat. Certainly, not a big deal either way. The only other thing would be if for some reason your ship didn't make it to port it would be an automatic refund through Princess. Not sure how that would work booking independently. I hope this helps!

[goingsailing]

Hi, we did this excursion a few years back.  I loved it, but I'm a huge fan of the show! We got to see them haul up a Crab pot albeit not exactly like out on the bering sea but cool. Held different kinds of Crab and saw about 50 or more bald eagles swarming the boat. Awesome stuff

[BlerkOne]

No difference. It is the same tour, same boat, same time.

[Rick&Jeannie]

We did this tour along with some first-time cruisers from our family. It was a great excursion! Pricey...but most everything about Alaska is.