Golden Princess - Inside Passage Ports??

[getmeouttahere0608]

Hi -

 

Looking to possible go on Alaskan cruise this September with extended family (Golden Princess - Inside Passage: Seattle, Juneau, Skagway, Tracy Arm Fjord, Ketchikan, Victoria, Seattle) and I have a couple of ?s for anyone that's done this sailing already...

 

- Are the stops in Ketchikan (arrive 6a, depart at 12:30p) and Victoria (arrive at 7p, depart at 12a) really that short? If so, any suggestions of how we can best use our time?

- I'll be traveling with my husband and baby (then 11 months) primarily - any excursions that we shouldn't miss out on?

- Also, we may go on an excurision or two with the entire family (5 adults, 2 seniors (1 of which has difficulty walking), 2 kids (ages 6 & 3) and 1 infant (11 months)) any suggestions of all family excursions during this trip?

- How is the Golden Princess? Husband and I have only experienced the Caribbean Princess...

 

Any and all insight/feedback will be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks!

[Budget Queen]

Yes, those are your port times. Best for you to take a look at a shore excursion list and narrow down your interests. There are 100's of excellent tours to consider. But rarely will you get one that everyone is interested in, so I do suggest you just split up depending on what people each want to do.

[dolly2377]

We were a family of 6 on the Golden at the end of May.

Those last two ports not only ARE short on time but because the previous two ports were quite lengthy and it's the last two days of the cruise it makes it feel even shorter!

We did a float plane excursion in Ketchikan but opted not to do any planned excursions in Victoria. My suggestion regarding excursions in the ports with limited time is to do the earliest ones they offer. The float plane we took was with Michelle of Island Wings (excellent). We opted for the earlier flight (7:30am) and were glad we did as the later flight had to come in ½ hour early to make it back to the ship (before we disembarked at Ketchikan the captain announced he wanted everyone back on the ship ½ hour earlier than initially indicated...I still don't know why but it might have something to do with the long lines you encounter getting back on the ship ... being that it's a short time in port most people wait until the last minute to reboard. We did not find any lines reboarding at any other port except Ketchikan).

Victoria seemed like a shorter port time than Ketchikan because it's at night (although it's light out until around 10pm...maybe later when you're going) and you disembark a little way out of town. The younger three of us (ages 30, 35, 58) walked from the dock into town and back but the older three didn't. They have cabs and buses that will take you into town from the dock. I would suggest taking a nap before arriving at Victoria so you don't get too tired that night.