Confused about Tracy Arm Inlet / Juneau port of call - Holland America

Monday, August 28

Tracy Arm Inlet, Alaska, US

Arrive: 10:30 AM Depart: 11:00 AM

Juneau, Alaska, US

Arrive: 2:30 PM Depart: 10:00 PM

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Hi Cruise Critic,

I am helping plan my mother's excursions for her upcoming cruise and I have a question about the above port of calls.

I originally wanted to book her with the cruise line excursion up Tracy Inlet but this excursions is full up through her cruise ship. Are there private companies that offer this excursion separate from the cruise line? Also, on the Holland America website it says the Tracy arm inlet excursion is 6 hours long but the port of call is from 10-11:30 so I am confused. Basically, is my mom out of luck to see Tracy Arm Inlet on a smaller boat if the excursion through her cruise ship booked up?

Thanks so much!

For Tracy Arm- you have to take a ship excursion. It's a one way transit. It is likely there will be held back space for on board booking. So, I'd suggest heading right to the shore excursion desk right when it opens. Also- at this time= see if there is a wait list.

Juneau port time is not going to be

If the cruise line offers a Tracy Arm excursion, those passengers board the smaller boat in Tracy Arm (via the tender platform), go see the sights/sounds/smells, then head to Juneau where those passengers reboard the cruise ship and are then free to do whatever they wish in Juneau. If the port of call for TA is 1000-1130 and the excursion is 6 hours, assume they'll get back to the ship around 5PM in Juneau.

If the cruise line offers this excursion, it is most definitely an exclusive offering, and not available for independent booking.

There are independent excursions to Tracy Arm, but those are round-trip from Juneau and longer. If a ship visits Tracy Arm and Juneau in the same day, the independent excursion round-trip from Juneau inevitably doesn't work in the time allotted. The only time I've seen it work if both TA and Juneau are on the schedule, TA and Juneau were on two different days of the itinerary (it was a 14-day itinerary).

As others have said this is an excursion only via HAL and it does load from the ship onto a smaller boat which then does the tour and meets up to your ship back in Juneau. We were unable to take it last year since it was sold out, but our tablemates took it and raved about it and showed us their tremendous photos...including bears, whales, etc. not to mention the glaciers.

The time on your itinerary is really just a "sail by" the entrance to Tracy Arm.

My HAL-sponsored Tracy Arm excursion started with a pick-up in Juneau at the pier, a 5-minute drive to the boat dock, and then a long day (delicious lunch provided) on a 42-passenger Allen Marine boat into Tracy Arm.

Here are my photos of Tracy Arm:

http://www.rogerjett-photography.com/place/alaska-2/juneau-2/tracy-arm/

Get your mom on the waiting list if there is one, or try to book the minute she gets on board.

We did this last week from the Volendam which is one of the main reasons we picked the cruise we did. This was a highlight of our cruise. We were one of the first small boats to get to North Sawyer this season, and watching South Sawyer Glacier calve repeatedly was phenomenal! Words fail to express the awesomeness.You board the boat to Tracey Arm from the ship, travel through Tracey Arm to the glaciers, and then back through the ship docked in Juneau. You will get back about 4pm. Our ship had docked at 2. Be aware most all the public buildings, museums, etc close at 5 in Juneau.

I wish the NCL Pearl had the tender option. We sail out of Juneau at 2:00 on a jet boat and don't get back to 10:00 pm. Hope it will be worth it!

Thanks so much! your responses have been very helpful!