Need advice on two cruise points before booking tomorrow!

[yseone]

Hi all,

 

We have decided to take a RT Alasksa Seattle Princess trip and are torn between two dates because of itineriary differences.

 

Trip A travels through Tracy Arm from 6-10 am and on same day we get to Juneau at 1:30 pm. Also has an extra sea day at end of cruise.

 

Trip B travels through Tracy Arm from 8-1 and does not get to a port until next day. There would be no extra sea day at end of cruise

 

Does Trip B mean that we will have more scenic cruising then Trip A since a final sea day is eliminated?

 

As an added bonus question to you all--which port would you rather have more time in--Ketchikan or Skagway?

 

I am posting this in Princess forum as well and any help you guys can give me would be greatly appreciated since I need to book by tomorrow.

 

Thanks!

Yasmine :)

[Nancyquilts]

I don't know if you are "into" ship's excursions. Personally, I'd take A, and when I get to Juneau take the $6 each way bus to Mendenhall Glacier. With any luck the day of cruising at the end will be down the Inside Passage. Can't help you with the ports - Ketchikan has more totem poles, Skagway has the White Pass & Yukon RR. Each has its good points. Try one this time and, if you get hooked, try the other the next time. :D Nancy

[diverearl]

Hi all,Trip A travels through Tracy Arm from 6-10 am and on same day we get to Juneau at 1:30 pm. Also has an extra sea day at end of cruise.

 

Trip B travels through Tracy Arm from 8-1 and does not get to a port until next day. There would be no extra sea day at end of cruise

 

Does Trip B mean that we will have more scenic cruising then Trip A since a final sea day is eliminated?

 

If I had more time in Juneau in trip B, I pick B.

 

As an added bonus question to you all--which port would you rather have more time in--Ketchikan or Skagway?

 

This is an easy one for me, Skagway. The drive to Emerald Lake and surrounding area is worth all the time I could get at this port. Ketchikan is also a good stop but I would take more time in Skagway.

[yseone]

Thanks for the replies!

 

Is the Inside passage not the Tracy arm? I am confused!

 

The first itinerary says :

seattle

sea day

ketchikan 6:30-4:30

tracy arm scenic cruising 6-10 am

juneau same day 1:30-10 pm

skagway 6am-5pm

SEA DAY

victoria 5-12pm

 

2nd itin says:

seattle

sea day

Juneau 12-10pm

skagway 6am-8:15 pm

tracy arm 8-1pm ( no other port that day so crusing to where?)

ketchikan 6-12 pm (TENDER)

victoria 7pm-12pm

 

HELP!

THANKS!

Yasmine :)

[jtl513]

Is the Inside passage not the Tracy arm? I am confused!

Yes, any time you are not out in the ocean you could say you're in the Inside Passage - but the best part of the Inside Passage (IMO) is along the east side of Vancouver Island (from the city of Vancouver north to the Queen Charlotte Strait), and some people call just that southern part "THE" Inside Passage. However, r/t Seattle you just go out to the west side of Vancouver Island.

 

Click Inside Passage

[jrw]

Thanks for the replies!

 

Is the Inside passage not the Tracy arm? I am confused!

 

The first itinerary says :

seattle

sea day

ketchikan 6:30-4:30

tracy arm scenic cruising 6-10 am

juneau same day 1:30-10 pm

skagway 6am-5pm

SEA DAY

victoria 5-12pm

 

2nd itin says:

seattle

sea day

Juneau 12-10pm

skagway 6am-8:15 pm

tracy arm 8-1pm ( no other port that day so crusing to where?)

ketchikan 6-12 pm (TENDER)

victoria 7pm-12pm

 

HELP!

THANKS!

Yasmine :)

 

OK here is my 2 cents, now that I can see both itineraries (followed over from Princess page posting, hoping to get more details).

 

Juneau: Slightly less time (by 1-1/2 hrs) on first itinerary, but still a long day (8-1/2 hrs)

Skagway: Less time (by 3-1/4 hrs) on first itinerary, but still a long day (11 hrs)

Ketchikan: More time (by 4 hrs) on first itinerary; second is quite short (just 6 hrs) AND it is by tender (read: takes time each way)

Tracy Arm: 4 hrs on either trip

 

As much as I loved Skagway, I would have to ask if you would really take advantage of the extra time vs. heading back to the ship, given you'd have had 11 hrs if you choose the first itinerary. Contrast this with Ketchikan, where on the second itinerary you will really have very little time. I enjoyed Ketchikan, and it might be difficult to see much with such a shortened stay there, combined with tendering (I'd guess most everyone will be clamoring to get ashore, so potentially long lines). Just trying to give a more thorough analysis of the time in Skagway vs. Ketchikan. It's not as simple as "which one is better to spend more time in?" In this case, one is quite long and the other is quite short. I'd lean more towards trying to balance things out and not short-change yourself on Ketchikan.

 

Juneau & Tracy Arm times are pretty much a "draw".

 

As for the extra sea day on the first itinerary, I'd guess that adds a bit to the cost of the cruise. If that is a non-issue for you, I would find it nice to have another day towards the end to enjoy the ship & find spots you had not yet seen, or re-visit spots you enjoyed...or just relax & enjoy the scenery going by.

 

If cost is no concern, I would definitely take the first itinerary -- for the reasons above on Skagway/Ketchikan time balance, plus the extra sea day.

 

Enjoy your trip, whichever one you choose! :)

[Toyz711]

tracy arms is your glacier viewing...sawyer glaciers are in tracy arms.

http://www.alaskacruises.com/alaska_glacier_viewing.asp

the port towns on juneau, skagway and ketchikan can only be gotten to by the "inside passage". a full inside passage would be to seen entering or leaving from vancouver.

[qiangf2]

Thanks for the replies!

 

Is the Inside passage not the Tracy arm? I am confused!

 

The first itinerary says :

seattle

sea day

ketchikan 6:30-4:30

tracy arm scenic cruising 6-10 am

juneau same day 1:30-10 pm

skagway 6am-5pm

SEA DAY

victoria 5-12pm

 

2nd itin says:

seattle

sea day

Juneau 12-10pm

skagway 6am-8:15 pm

tracy arm 8-1pm ( no other port that day so crusing to where?)

ketchikan 6-12 pm (TENDER)

victoria 7pm-12pm

 

HELP!

THANKS!

Yasmine :)

 

My $0.02 here: if you want to do some serious excursion in Ketchikan, such as floatflpane, you should consider #1 as you get more port time and no tender. But if your excursion is focused on Skagway for a drive to Emerald Lake, you should consider #2. In term of the time in Tracy's Arm, it does not matter.

 

Your itinerary sounds like princess' ones. In either case, you will see the other ship running the opposite itinery at Tracy's arm. :)

[yseone]

You guys are so awesome! Thanks so much for posting your replies!

 

Qiangf2--you are correct sir--Princess it is. Since we don't fly it will be train from San Diego, RT Alaska 7 day, Princess bus transfer to Vancouver,3 night coastal from Vancouver to L.A. then drive home. Whew! Thanks again for your help!

 

Toyz711--thank you for the clairifcation-I'm such a newbie at Alaska. Now Hawaii I can tell you about inside out!

 

JRW-thanks for all of the fantastic insight into our days. I really thank you for helping with such a detailed post. I will put a lot of thought into your suggestions and let you know the outcome :)

 

jtl513--thank you for being patient with my question!!! I appreciate being treated so kindly!

 

Cruise critic people are the best!

Yasmine

[NancyIL]

On #1, you have a long distance to cover between Skagway and Victoria, so the following day is a sea day. It's not that you don't have a 2nd sea day on #2 - you just don't have a FULL one. That's because you don't have as far to travel after leaving Ketchikan at noon to get to Victoria. You are also at sea until noon on the day you arrive in Juneau.

 

I would choose #2. Trying to be up at 6 a.m. to see your entrance into Tracy Arm AND staying in Juneau until shortly before the ship leaves at 10 p.m. is one long day on #1. Yes, time in Ketchikan is shorter, but that was my least favorite port and Skagway was my favorite - so that's my preference.

 

**However - thinking some more, you get 2 more hours in Victoria with #1! But I still much prefer Skagway to Ketchikan. :)

[Chat Noir]

Since we don't fly it will be train from San Diego, RT Alaska 7 day, Princess bus transfer to Vancouver,3 night coastal from Vancouver to L.A. then drive home. Whew! Thanks again for your help!

 

Since you don't fly...

 

I'm curious as to why you aren't considering one of the RT Alaskan cruises from SF??? The itinerary for actually cruising Alaska is very similiar to what you've posted, plus you wouldn't have all the transfers and added expense.

 

For the Dawn Princess, Sitka takes the place of Skagway, but otherwise ports are the same, but with better times in port. It's RT San Francisco, but it would still shorten your 'in transit to ship' time considerably.

 

I'd like to take one of those, and I DO fly!:)

[Budget Queen]

. You are also at sea until noon on the day you arrive in Juneau.

QUOTE]

 

No this is not true, this is ALL scenic sailing, the "sea" portion would have been done the night prior to the Juneau arrival day.

 

 

I would select your second choice, for the more scenic sailing.

[NancyIL]

No this is not true, this is ALL scenic sailing, the "sea" portion would have been done the night prior to the Juneau arrival day.

 

 

By "sea" I meant cruising until arrival in Juneau at noon.

[roothy123]

We were only in Ketchikan until 2 (1:30 all aboard) and it was short but enough time to do what we wanted to do. I got off the ship early (around 7, I think - wonderful, because nobody was wandering the town then) and then came back to the ship around 11 (forget which) for a floatplane excursion to Misty Fjords. So we got to see a lot, even though our time was short in that port and even though there were lots of ships there when we got there. I really liked Ketchikan - although I wasn't sure I would before I got there! I took the public bus to Totem Bight, saw the Creek Street area, and flew on a float plane - all wonderful experiences.

 

We did not tender anywhere - although we were on the Pacific Princess (smaller ship).

 

Juneau was my least favorite place - but possibly because we were on the gulf cruise to see glaciers, so Mendenhall was a letdown after Hubbard Glacier. Tracy Arm was nice, but not as spectacular as Hubbard. However, if you're doing the Seattle to Seattle trip, Tracy Arm and Mendenhall would appeal more....

 

To choose between more time in Ketchikan or Skagway would be hard for me -we drove up to Emerald and Carcross, after taking a helicopter ride and landing on a glacier (truly spectacular for scenery - pricey but fun). It was a packed day, and I wished I had had more time in Skagway. I know the helicopter is not everybody's thing, but if you're game, I highly recommend it for the scenery and hands-on experience of walking on a glacier. By the way, Princess excursions like the helicopter or floatplane, by the way, are not over-priced, except perhaps if you're doing city tours or Mendenhall. I looked up prices on the internet before we went, and they were about the same.

[yseone]

Hi everyone and thanks so much again for all of the great, informative replies!

 

In the end I did choose the first intinerary because of time constraints with the second. We did not like the idea of a tender shortening our already short day in Ketchikan (we did too many tenders in Hawaii over our last 3 years/trips on Princess) and there were other factors as well. Everyone helped so much in our decision so THANK YOU!!!!

 

NancyIl and Budgetqueen thank you for your help--I did take your posts into consideration as well and thanks to roothy123 for your things to do list!

 

sym1966--the train does not go direct from San Diego to San Fran and 3-4 hours on a bus each way was not appealing to my family. I am working out the details now of the whole trip and it is not as scary (well kind of!)

I just wish Princess did L.A. to Alaska RT--it would save me a lot of time and money!

 

You guys are the best to this newbie Alaska cruising family!

Yasmine :)