Jewel's 2013 Alaska port times are short

[jlat]

We are booked in August 2013 on the Jewel for Alaska. I notice that we are leaving Juneau at 1:30p and Ketchikan at 3:30p. Is this normal? Makes planning some excursions a bit dicey unless you go with what the ship is offering. We do have a long time in Victoria, but I would rather spend more time in the other ports. Thoughts?

[roger001]

You leave Juneau early to then go sailing up the Tracy or Endicott Arm to view a glacier that afternoon. The ship is in no hurry at Victoria because of the very short distance remaining to Seattle. If you like flowers, Butchart Gardens is a good tour in Victoria. There is an excellent chance it will be raining in Ketchikan but otherwise had ample time to tour the town and local area. The Duck tour is a fun way to get a tour and narrative of the town.

[bonvoyagie]

In Juneau the Pearl and Jewel share the same dock so one gets it in the AM the other gets the PM.

 

I think that if you plan accordingly you can easily book tours through other vendors than the ship.

 

Something I would probably consider at Juneau is the Tracy Arm Explorer tour. Here you leave Juneau in a small boat and travel ahead of the cruise ship into Tracy Arm - you will get up close to all of the sights in the fjord including the glaciers. You will end up boarding the ship in the fjord at the base of the glacier for the exit out of the fjord.