surgie

We did Celebrity southbound in 2015 (loved it) and are doing Radiance with the adult kids and grandkids in July 2024. It is important to note itineraries, as others have mentioned. We saw Hubbard Glacier in 2015 and it was stunning.

Yes we will definitely split up for part of the day. We all want to see the glacier center and some want to hike and/or kayak. Still figuring it out ... And everything is so expensive that I want to choose carefully.

We are in a similar situation -family of 11 (6 adults and 5 kids ages 5-11 - two of whom need boosters which we are bringing). I am finding Juneau hardest of all to plan. We are not planning to do helicopters or whale watching here and we definitely won't rely on drivers at the port to help us. We'd like to get to Mendenhall (all of us) and do a kayak trip (some of us) and the tram (some of us) and walk around town at some point (all of us). Anything I've found has been very expensive as you mentioned. So I'll be watching to see if any solutions appear here.

Yes to one way from Vancouver. We sailed that route on Celebrity 8 years ago - end of May/early June. Great weather but did not see bears. Too early for salmon to run. Magnificent day at Hubbard Glacier. In July 2024 we are taking our adults kids and grandkids (ages 5-11) from Vancouver to Seward. We chose RCCL. It definitely doesn't get the love here that Princess and HAL do but we love the Radiance class ships. Not so many bells and whistles for the kids but Alaska is the star attraction of an Alaskan cruise! And it was most cost-effective for 4 balcony cabins than other cruise lines at the time we booked. Have a great trip!

Is it offered for JS or just the suites above that category? I realize not all perks are applicable for JS.

Thanks for the info.

That's what I was wondering...do the dividers actually have the ability to be opened on Radiance since it is an older ship?

We have 2 sets of connecting cabins - 1582>1580 and 1082>1080. Can the balcony dividers be removed between the two connecting cabins?

Thank you! I am finding Juneau hard to plan with various ages and interests in our group!

Thanks for the information. Am I understanding correctly that if we can get ourselves to the Visitor Center by taxi, there will likely be passes there? (July 14, 2024). The cruise line offers various tours that include Mendenhall but they are paired with things we are not interested in like a salmon bake.

We'll be in port from 1:00-10:00 on July 14. Family members will do different afternoon activities before meeting in town for dinner at 6:00 or so. After dinner some will take the tram and maybe do a short hike. In 2015 my husband and I ate at Tracy's Crab Shack and it was crazy with commotion besides expensive, even then. Looking for a different experience with 6 adults and 5 kids ages 5-11. We don't all have to sit together. Any suggestions that would be convenient to our plans?

We have hired transportation to Bears, Raptors, Park (since there are 11 of us). Considering calling it a day for organized activities and doing the rest DIY. Or...considering a hike with Tongass Treks with some/all of us. Which means we need to grab lunch between. Excursions are generally expensive (a lot more than in 2015!). But I also don't want to miss some key things and sometimes that means a paid excursion.

Thanks for the clarification. No, we are not interested in the city bus.

Thank you for the information. I had thought I had read elsewhere that you needed to walk 1.5 miles from the bus and not everyone in our group can do that. But this sounds easy. When I go to the Blue Bus website it says it is not taking bookings. I realize the seasons over but I have booked many excursions for 2024 and many offered through our ship are sold out already. Maybe Blue Bus doesn't take advance bookings?

I am trying to get our excursions set for our July 2024 cruise on RCCL. In Juneau we (family of 11 people) would like to visit the Mendenhall visitor's center. I know we can take a city bus and walk 1.5 miles but that doesn't work for the make-up of our group. I want to get something booked since I had read about ticket shortages this summer. But our cruise line pairs the glacier with helicopter outings (not interested) or salmon bakes etc. We just want to go to the visitor center and back. How do we accomplish this? And...in 2015 I seem to remember we walked out on the glacier. Could this have been possible then but no longer due to receding of the glacier?

We are traveling with 11 in July 2024 (6 adults and 5 kids ages 5-11). The parents made the decision not to do the train and I think for us it's a good call. We need some activity!! My husband and I previously rented an SUV from Avis in Skagway but it was just the two of us. For next summer though, we booked Midnight Sun Excursions - a private van tour that will fit all of us. It has great reviews for anyone looking for a private tour rather than driving yourselves. We are doing the 7-hr. Yukon tour which parallels the train. But we'll be able to stop at Carcross for lunch and on to Emerald Lake with stops for panning for gold, the suspension bridge and a dogsled camp. We're excited about this excursion!

We are going for our second cruise in July 2024 and are doing northbound from Vancouver to Seward (which we did in 2015 - this time will be with kids and grandkids). We prefer one way to allow time do something on the land afterwards (we are doing our own plan - not a land tour). I also like that the cruises leaving from Vancouver (or Seward) use smaller ships so can get to more ports. Plus we didn't want time at sea that the Seattle routes must do. We are "balcony" people so doing that again. There are many places on the ship for views but I love morning coffee on the balcony - under a blanket though! We took Celebrity first time and RCCL this time - both go to Hubbard Glacier (which was stunning) rather than Glacier Bay. If you definitely want Glacier Bay which many do, look at Princess or HAL - there may be others. We chose based on fewest days at sea - we want to see ports - and also based on time in port so look at those carefully.

We have two tours booked in Sitka in July 2024 - the first one ends at the Visitor's Center and that's where the second one will pick us up. We'd like to get a quick lunch or lunch-to-go between tours. What are the options within walking distance of the Visitor's Center?

I'll be following your topic since we are taking a multi-generation AK cruise next June...6 adults and five grandkids who will be 5-11. We think it will be great, especially for the oldest 4 of the group. We have some fun excursions booked so I don't think they will be bored. There is only one day at sea on our itinerary. We will be taking the Radiance which I am really looking forward to. This class of ships seems made for Alaska with their abundance of glass and smaller size allowing them to get to more ports. I don't know anything about the Ovation but we didn't consider leaving from Seattle because we wanted to get to the inside passage as quickly as possible and not have time at sea getting there. We are not interested in British Columbia for this trip. Also we wanted to end in Seward and make our way to Anchorage to see more of the state....which I know is just a sliver of what is there. Advice given to me was to look carefully at the ports and the times in port no matter which you choose. Princess and HAL have their fans for sure so you might look at those but for various reasons we wanted RCCL.

I am looking for hiking options (or our own, not guided is possible) in Tongass National Forest. The government website brings up too many links to sort through. https://www.fs.usda.gov/activity/tongass/recreation/hiking/?recid=78613&actid=50 We plan to walk there from the cruise port and there are varying hiking abilities in our group - those who would like a 1 mile hike and those who would like a 4-5 mile hike (but can do less based on time). We are taking a 2-hr. tour around 9:00 (Fortress of the Bear, Raptor Center and Totem park). So we'd have the afternoon available for lunch in Sitka and a short hike in Tongass. Cruise departs at 4:00 pm. Any suggestions for a hike that is not too far into the park - maybe we could all start together and some would go further? I've reached out to Tongass Treks but their hikes max at 7n people (we have 11). And if we could DIY that might be better. Thanks.

I was just looking this up as I make Sitka plans and it looks to be just under a mile.

Thanks so much for the detailed review of your tour. I have been on the fence about a Sitka tour as this trip is our treat and wow do those excursions add up! But having kids who aren't cranky translates to adults who aren't cranky lol. So we will try to keep it all easy!

Thanks for all of the advice. If not for our group size and ages of the kids I might have been more willing to DIY. But Baranof agreed to take 11 of us on the private tour (Fortress of the Bear, Sitka National Historic Park and Raptor Center) and didn't charge for the 11th person. This will be very helpful they will provide a booster seat for the youngest and we can't count on that in a taxi.. (There is room in the van for 14 but they generally max at 10). It's only a 2-hour tour and that will give us time to split up after and explore the town on our own or do some hiking.

Traveling mid-July 2024 - Family of 11 - 6 adults and 5 kids ages 5-11. We are interested in Fortress of the Bear, Sitka National Historic Park and Raptor Center. The ship has an excursion that is nearly sold out but I prefer non-ship excursions anyway. The ones I have looked at max at 10 people except for Baranof which will take 12. It is over $1000 which is ok if that is the better way to go vs. individual travel. Appreciate advice on this port.

My husband and I took a cruise on Celebrity in 2015 and are going with RCCL next June with our multi-generation family. We thought Hubbard Glacier was stunning! We had a perfectly clear day and got fairly close to the glacier. This is the luck of the day whether you can see any particular glacier/s. But I can't compare it to GB having not been there. For us, paying for 4 cabins, RCCL had better pricing for our dates and we are happy with the ports and time in port.