Jump to content

Silversea Alaska: Best Ports, Tips, Ideas?


TLCOhio
 Share

Recommended Posts

I was on the last Alaska voyage of the season on the Shadow last year and I talked to some of those vendors. It's not just like the Caribbean, those vendors in Ketchikan and Juneau *are* the vendors from the

"Rides to marijuana shops?"

 

Absolutely.

 

Employees such as those in Diamonds International, Effy (sp) go to Alaska in April and stay until September and go to the Caribbean the other months.

 

Most stores closes in the off season other than the few that are run by the locals.

 

We still love Alaska but the key is to get away from the towns.

 

Keith

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
Terry....We've sailed Alaska around ten times; once with Silversea. When it comes to the Alaska ports the key is to get away from the downtown areas. Many have become the Caribbean with all of those jewelry stores that one can expect to see over there and they can get very busy with several ships in port. I would try to do private excursions and if not ones that don't have lots of people on them. In Juneau I do recommend whale viewing and would do it on a small vessel where it is just two, or four passengers. It is much better that way with no distraction.

Spend two full days in Vancouver and I would do three if the itinerary does not include Victoria. Each time we have visited Alaska it has been a different experience. Weather has a lot to do with that as does time of year. Keith

 

Super appreciate the colorful pictures from rpfarris, Keith's great comments/tips and all of the other follow-ups. Very helpful. Keep it coming!!

 

We are planning for two and a half days in Vancouver. Have previously visited Victoria and wonderful Butchart Gardens. Both excellent!

 

Agree with Keith on getting away from the crowded small towns. Don't need to waste any time at the jewelry and gift shops in these small Alaska towns. Want to see and explore nature, wildlife, etc.

The Sitka Orthodox church does sound lovely. Have a close personal contact with the Wings float plane folks and have written to them to prepare for those potentials. Private, smaller group tours are our priority. That works so much better.

For that Sunday, July 28, here are the ships that we understand will be in Juneau for this one date:

Island Princess, 6:30 am - 5 pm, 1,970 passengers

Celebrity’s Millennium 9 am - 9 pm, 2,138 passengers

Silver Muse 9 pm - 11 pm, 596 passengers

Royal Caribbean’s Ovation of Seas noon -11 pm, 4,180 passengers

Grand Princess 1:30 pm - 10 pm, 2,590 passengers

Probably more than 11,000 passengers, plus crew, in Juneau on this one day!!??

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 229,471 views.

www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Probably more than 11,000 passengers, plus crew, in Juneau on this one day!!??

That's pretty typical Terry all the way up the Inland Passage. But, the Alaskan cruise industry has been mature for quite a while. The Inland Passage can handle it. I can't imagine Dutch Harbor getting an 11,000 influx...

 

Here's my favorite picture from Skagway, showing two of the identical 'of the Sea' mammoths of our new overlord's Royal Caribbean:

DSC00274-M.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 year later...
On 7/27/2018 at 12:00 PM, JohnGinPBG said:

My wife and I did the SS pre-cruise Denali trip in June followed by our sailing on the Shadow from Seward to Vancouver. For us, it was the trip of a lifetime.

 

The Denali trip was very well organized and executed. We had an exceptional tour director who took care of all the details and requests, however minor. On the two trips on the Alaska Railroad, our group had a private car, and the bus was very comfortable (which is a good thing, because you spend a LOT of time on the bus). Hotels were excellent - Grand Denali Lodge had an incredible hilltop location and great food and Alyeska Resort is the top resort in Alaska.

 

The day trip inside Denali was awesome (great weather helped). Saw grizzlies, caribou, moose and Dall sheep and the big mountain itself. Eight hours on another bus, but that's the only option. The stop at the Iditirod champion's home/kennels was tremendous fun. Overall a great experience and we are glad we didn't try to organize it ourselves.

 

Favorite port was Sitka - took a 5-hour whale/wildlife boat with only 5 passengers arranged directly with the captain (gallantadventures.com) and it was unforgettable! Saw a bear on shore, countless eagles, seals and sea lions, sea otters and many whales. One was so close to the boat he sprayed my wife. Also incredible scenery.

 

In Skagway, we passed on the town and the train ride and booked a tour to Haines, which is an authentic Alaskan town with more great scenery and no crowds. Ketchikan was extremely touristy and disappointing except for our incredible floatplane trip to Misty Fjords. Juneau was our only real rainy day the entire trip, but we enjoyed our hiking and glacier visit. Unibok, I highly recommend taking the tram to Mount Roberts and hiking from there. You can go as high up into the alpine environment as you like.

 

Hope you enjoy Alaska as much as we did!

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now
 Share

  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...