Glaciers

Previous conversation on parking in Vancouver.

I don’t know about best but Salmon Berry Tours, as Northern Aurora mentioned, gets good reviews. Depending on your group size it might be cheaper to rent a car in Whittier for the day. You can do everything the tour does but you just wouldn’t have the narration. https://www.salmonberrytours.com/tour/whittier-to-anchorage-transfer-and-tour/

We've been to both by boat several times and College Fjord is a better experience although I do read some very good reviews of doing Misty Fjords by plane which is a better experience than by boat.

Above and Beyond has a couple off the beaten path tours up the West Glacier Trail and then down to the glacier. Just hiking the trail itself without going down to the glacier gives you exceptional views from above Mendenhall Glacier and can be done on your own. https://beyondak.com/trips/mendenhall-glacier-guided-hiking-tour/

@kahuna21 Down near the bottom of this page is some information on this hike from a cruiser. https://profcruise.com/tips-for-ward-cove-ketchikan/

The cost difference between lines and independents is pretty insignificant most of the time. I can’t imagine making that a consideration between choosing a line. What we’ve found with booking independent is smaller group sizes and a better experience. I read an article that cruise lines in Alaska can charge a commission of up to 50% for simply booking the excursion. If you want the money to stay with the operator, book direct with them. There are other details that are often overlooked like mandatory gratuities. We were surprised this year on a Panama Canal cruise with NCL that gratuities were $20/day vs. $16 with Princess. If the OP is concerned with difference in excursion cost, this may be a consideration as well. Docking in Ward Cove in Ketchikan and tendering in Juneau would most certainly be higher on our priority list when choosing a line.

Hopefully you can open these links that give pricing for NCL & Princess Excursions. You might have to navigate around a bit. Too bad your friends don’t want to try independent operators. I have not read of any posts that indicate an Alaska independent tour operator getting back to the ship before the ship leaves. Just doesn’t happen in Alaska. https://www.princess.com/en-us/cruise-destinations/alaska-cruises?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAgqGrBhDtARIsAM5s0_n6nbRjtmuC9K0lE8vGQ4xoT_ioA1Pyjv7DJhb6iC4E58G5d1tnmj8aAs3nEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds https://www.ncl.com/shore-excursions/search?destination=Alaska+Cruises&amp%3Bactivities=Featured

I do think there may be a slight advantage of going after the first tours have returned. They will have communicated with the next trips out on where they saw the whales.

Look at the Alaskan Bar. More of a locals place and much less touristy with a rustic local feel.

Yes, in the past it's been $10/person.

When we lived in Anchorage two of our favorite excursions that we’ve done multiple times is hiking on Matanuska Glacier and the Spencer Glacier Iceberg Float. Matanuska Glacier is two hours north of Anchorage and now requires a guide. You can purchase tours out of Anchorage or just rent a car and drive up. The views along the highway are wonderful. Spencer Glacier is best accessed from the Portage train station. It’s a short 30 minute ride to the whistle stop that departs at 1:25pm returning at 5:25pm. https://alaskanrafting.com/product/spencer-glacier-placer-river-float/ .

We hopped off the bus and did some hiking. When done we went back to the road to catch a bus. The first two buses back were full and we were able to catch the third one that had two seats. Waited about 45 minutes total. The buses communicate with each other and make note of where they drop folks off.

Royal uses Smith Cove Pier 91. This is a link to the preliminary schedule that shows the Ovation at Pier 91 on May 17, 2024. https://www.portseattle.org/sites/default/files/2023-10/2024 Prelim Sailing Schedule 10.4.23.pdf

Look at using Port Valet if your carrier participates. After dropping your luggage outside your cabin door the night before disembarking, the next time you see it will be at your destination airport. https://www.portseattle.org/page/port-valet-enjoy-seattle-luggage-free

We used the train after disembarking in Vancouver one trip. Dropped our bags with the bellman at the Pan Pacific and then went exploring for the day. Vancouver has a lot to do. Caught the late afternoon train to Seattle. Worked well and much more comfortable than a bus.

Last year Princess offered a bus from Canada Place direct to the Seattle airport for $79/person. We received a signup flyer in our cabin regarding it a couple days prior to disembarkation. Might check to see if it still operates.

@tobes We live not too far from the Belltown Inn. It’s a good hotel and near many restaurants one block down on 2nd Ave. It’s a 4 block walk to the NCL/Oceania Pier from there. If not cruising on NCL you might consider the Mediterranean Inn on Lower Queen Anne. Also near many restaurants and one of the closest hotels to Pier 91 where the rest of the lines depart from.

There is just so much to do in Juneau. Do all 12 of you want to do exactly the same things? Consider splitting up and have your group chose the activities they want to do rather than just hanging with the rest of the group.

I used to travel with two bodies and 3 lenses and always had them with me. Packed the tripod in the checked luggage. Get a small camera bag, it will also protect against damage.

Be careful with those small ship lines, many don’t have elevators and have stairs to viewing decks and cabins like UnCruise & Alaskan Dream, although they are exceptional. Good cabin selection will help on any ship. Choose a cabin near the venues you’ll be frequenting more often.

Although Port Valet has received, primarily, exceptional reviews, there are other posts on CC that indicate it’s not available to Oceania passengers.

@eileeshb Yes, the longer the better for a whale watch. Actually, there are several areas that you’ll be sailing through that deserves it as well. If your ship has a naturalist, worth-their-weight, they will be able to tell you potential wildlife hotspots along the way. I always took a 600mm for years but just got rid of it for lighter equipment. I believe I saw a post from @pierces a while back that indicated he used a 200mm. The photos were very nice, even at 200mm.

It really makes no difference when you go out on a whale watch. The whales are active all day long. It can be calmer in the morning though. The first trips out are looking for whales while the later tours have an idea of where they are, usually north of Shelter Island or west of Douglas Island, or anywhere in between. Gastineau guiding gets good reviews. There have been storms and several ships have missed ports due to high winds this month. Several small boat whale watch operators have also been forced to cancel trips. Small boats can be good but during a storm can be miserable.

Most tours aren’t canceled due to rain, it’s the wind associated with storms that can increase after Labor Day can create some pretty rough water. There have been at least a couple ships that couldn’t dock this month due to high winds. Like Coral, we go earlier in the season and enjoy the end of May, first of June as the sweet spot.

The Purple Store next to Pike Place Market has luggage storage. If you’re mobile, it’s a 10-15 walk from the Norwegian cruise terminal. https://www.thepurplestore.com/luggage-storage-seattle.shtml