To book Private Tours or Not - That is the question

[WildcatCruiser99]

My husband and I just booked our first cruise to Alaska. This will be our 5th cruise. Our past cruises have been in the Caribbean so packing sweaters and coats will be a little strange for us.

My question is excursions. Do most people book through the cruise line or private. Last year Caribbean Cruise, we booked all of our excursions privately and it worked out great. But, I haven’t seen to many people on the Alaska board talk about private tours. We will be visiting – Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway, and Victoria, BC. Any “must do” tours (booked through private or cruise) or a list of private tour companies at any of the ports above would be greatly appreciated.

Happy Cruising!

WildcatCruiser99:D

[tee_harbor]

But, I haven’t seen to many people on the Alaska board talk about private tours.

Gosh, I'd say it's about evenly split. Or some people seem to do some cruise tours, some independent, depending on their interests.

For example, in Juneau, there's no need to take an expensive tour to Mendenhall Glacier--there's a $14 shuttle. Most people seem to prefer the smaller, independent whale watching tours out of Juneau, even though the cruise tours are similarly priced.

Some tours are available both through the cruise line and independently. Some are cheaper independent, and some aren't, but just realize that obviously more of the profit will go to the local, independent contractor instead of to the cruise line when you book directly.

What are your interests/activity level?

[Kerry&LuAnn]

In Ketchikan we simply picked up a free self-guided walking tour map from the visitor center and explored the town on our own. In Juneau we booked a wonderful whale watching tour with Harv & Marv's (www.harvandmarvs.com). In Skagway we booked the White Pass Railroad excursion through the cruise line because we could get on the train right alongside the cruise ship.

[MercedMike]

Wow -- read this board and you will find constant recommendations of private tours in all Alaska ports. It is a lot of work to sort through all the posts but there is lots of good info.

 

We usually tend to do a mix of private and ship's tours, and occasionally independent touring.

 

You can get some idea of the different things we have done on seven trips to Alaska at

http://www.bully4.us/cruising.html

 

Have a GREAT cruise!

[atv girl]

wow Mike great website

[CC Help Michell]

My husband and I just booked our first cruise to Alaska. This will be our 5th cruise. Our past cruises have been in the Caribbean so packing sweaters and coats will be a little strange for us.

My question is excursions. Do most people book through the cruise line or private. Last year Caribbean Cruise, we booked all of our excursions privately and it worked out great. But, I haven’t seen to many people on the Alaska board talk about private tours. We will be visiting – Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway, and Victoria, BC. Any “must do” tours (booked through private or cruise) or a list of private tour companies at any of the ports above would be greatly appreciated.

Happy Cruising!

WildcatCruiser99:D

 

Actually, there is a lot of discussion here on this board recommending various private tours -- Harv & Marv, Orca Enterprises, FISHES, the Esther G, Island Wings, Adventure Bound, renting a car and using Yukon's guide in Skagway, Chilkoot Charters -- those are all private (non-ship-sponsored) tour options. This board's literally full of discussion of private tours.

 

What kind of tours were you interested in? I suspect that if choosing private tours was something you were comfortable doing in another country, it likely is a good choice for you in Alaska.

[MercedMike]

wow Mike great website

 

AW, Thanks for them kind words!

 

I really enjoy doing it, and I hope it is interesting and useful to some people. From the number of hits I get, I guess it is ...

[Beachside395]

We used a mix of private and cruiseline tours on our Spirit SB (July 16-23).

 

Try to consider the logistics if that is possible. Our first port was Sitka on this cruise. Sitka is a tender port so I booked the Sea Otter & Wildlife Quest through the ship. I booked the first tour so that we would be picked up at the ship avoiding one tender boat ride. This actually turned out to be a blessing since we hit one heck of a storm the day before (our 1st sea day) going through the Gulf of Alaska. I think we were 3 hours late arriving in Sitka. But I didn't have to worry about any of it, the cruise line changed all the times for us!

 

Also in Skagway we booked the train through Carnival and we were happy to board it right next to the ship.

 

Terri

[SFAM]

When we went to Alaska last year, we booked everything through the ship. For the most part, that worked out well, but in retrospect we paid too much for some things (Mendenhall, Totem Bight, etc.) and could have gotten better excursions some cities (Juneau Whale Watching, for instance). So next year's trip, we'll be doing a mix. We'll probably still be doing the some through the ship like the Deadliest Catch in Katchikan (unless there's a huge difference doing it independently), but others such as the whale watching in Juneau, we're going to go for a much smaller boat.

[WildcatCruiser99]

I would like to thank everyone for their suggestions. :D

[mom2agr8boy]

I haven't booked anything though the ship for my upcoming trip. In Jeneua we will go to the mendenhall glacier and do some of the walking trails. I love taking pictures so I am looking very forward to this. We are also going to do the tram up Mount Roberts. With what ever time we have left we will go and do a walk around the town and maybe do a little shopping. We are going to make it back to the boat early to eat and get to bed because it will be an early day the next day in Skagway. I booked the train/bus tour that has been raved about on the board. I can't wait. I understand we will be back in Skagway around 2-3:00. We will spend the rest of the time walking around the town and do some shopping. In Katchikan we are going to do the walking tour.

[Budget Queen]

This board is mostly about private tours. I suggest you look over your shore excursion list FIRST, and narrow down your interests. Choose your top tours of your selection. THEN find vendors, if you want to go independent. I never recommend booking agents in Alaska, It is superior to deal direct.

Do NOT expect big savings, but you can definately get a more personal tour with smaller groups. Sometimes longer tours.

[sunsetbeachgal]

We did a mix as well, after doing what Budget Queen suggested which is narrowing down your choices and interests, as there are so many.

 

However, for whatever it's worth, do keep in mind that the cancellation policies of independent excursions is much more restrictive than those booked on ship. We considered cancelling our privately booked kayak excursion when my husband injured his shoulder during a fall on our land tour prior to the cruise, but pulled out the paperwork and there was a 2 week cancellation policy so we went anyhow (and had a wonderful time!) as we did not want to lose over $350! Had the excursion been pre-reserved via Princess, we could have cancelled with no penalty when we got on the ship. Just something to consider!!

[Springchicken]

My husband and I just booked our first cruise to Alaska. This will be our 5th cruise. Our past cruises have been in the Caribbean so packing sweaters and coats will be a little strange for us.

My question is excursions. Do most people book through the cruise line or private. Last year Caribbean Cruise, we booked all of our excursions privately and it worked out great. But, I haven’t seen to many people on the Alaska board talk about private tours. We will be visiting – Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway, and Victoria, BC. Any “must do” tours (booked through private or cruise) or a list of private tour companies at any of the ports above would be greatly appreciated.

Happy Cruising!

WildcatCruiser99:D

 

WildcatCruiser99, check out the website for our June 2008 cruise. There's an entire page of links to information. I did our entire 2-week trip myself with no problems. http://alaskacruiser.home.sprynet.com.

 

You will have a wonderful time!

[whale-watcher]

We always prefer to book privately with a few exceptions:

 

- the desired excursion is not open for booking privately (ie Klondike rock climbing in Skagway)

- the port times do not allow for a privately booked excursion

- we are trying to fit multiple activities into a single port visit and the timing will be very tight.

 

Otherwise, we have had excellent experiences with privately booked excursions throughout the world, including Alaska.

[acud]

Used ships bear-creek fly in fishing in juneau and worth every nickel. saw eagles, seals, caught lots of fish, flight beautiful. did not have as much luck w/alaska river adventures in seward on kenai river - okay but nothing to write home about. mix up w/fishing licencse - fishing was in a river near road. advantage of course w/ship bookings is that they ensure you get there and back and never at risk of being left behind.

[KreinKrunker]

If you are looking for recommendations, we have used both Orca Enterprises(Capt Larry) and Harv & Marv, in Juneau, for whale watching. Both were good, but preferred Harv & Marv, as there were only six of us on board. Prices were similiar.

[me00930]

Springchicken,

 

What a great website! Can't wait to sit back and read it all. We are going next July for the first time and I am trying to get as much information as possible before we leave. Thank you.

[Springchicken]

Springchicken,

 

What a great website! Can't wait to sit back and read it all. We are going next July for the first time and I am trying to get as much information as possible before we leave. Thank you.

Thanks me00930. I hope it gives you a lot of help. You can also check out our Roll Call as it probably has a lot of information on it, too. We sailed June 9 on the Coral P. Our group was so much fun!