Excurion Itinerary for Alaska - Does this look good?

[UFLaw]

We are on the May 23, 2015 NCL Jewel and I just got our itinerary done.

 

We have 3 children with us (DS 10, DS 11 and DD 11).

 

Does this seem like a reasonable itinerary? My biggest concern is the 3.5-4 hour whale watching in Juneau. Is that too much time on the water for the kids or will they see plenty (they are boaters)?

 

Ketchikan 7 am to 3 pm:

 

Island Wings Float Plane Tour

Lumberjack Show

Arctic Bar

 

Junea 7 am to 1:30 pm:

 

Whale Watching with Rum Runners (3.5-4 hour booked now)

Alaska Brewery (if time)

Tracy's Crab Shack

Tracy Arm Fjord and Glacier Explorer (this is supposed to be outstanding)

 

Skagway 7 am to 5:30 pm:

 

Renting Car and driving to Yukon/Emerald Lake

Dropping off kids and DW at Fraser for the return on the White Pass RR (if desired)

 

Victoria 2:30 to 9:30 pm:

 

Walking tour of Victoria (hitting a few pubs with my DW)

 

Seattle: Family

[Budget Queen]

With your short port day in Juneau, you aren't going to have time for the brewery.

 

What do the kids say about the whale watch?? Was this their tour choice? If not, then you can expect, perhaps some disinterest. Have they whale watched before? IF not- sometimes people have very unrealistic expectations. Expect nothing more the blows, backs and tails- that's it. And a lot of time- "waiting". :)

[SDJen]

We have rum runners booked for August. I'm traveling with my 9 year old. Could you please come back and let me know how it went for you?

 

Thanks

[bonvoyagie]

Sounds ambitious - remember that the ship wants you back onboard 1/2hr prior to the sail time. When we were on the Pearl in 12 our captain was ready and away the instant the last person was onboard - which means that we were often out of port 15-20 min prior to the posted departure time.

 

The Tracy Arm Explorer is well worth it.

 

I am not sure of your background, but the Lumberjack show is OK, Living here in the PNW we see this kind of stuff all the time - I would wait and see - there are always tickets available at the arena - I would not purchase through the ship.

 

Also remember that weather is a factor that can change on a moments notice - and the tours most affected are flightseeing. I would plan a backup tour or two (don't book it) just be ready to go to a plan B or C. I hear that the Crab Fisherman's tour is also very good - even if you don't watch the Deadliest Catch :D

 

I also have to second BQ's comment on whale watching - the photos and videos you can see are amazing - people probably spent several summers out on the water to capture them - YMMV - but if you see a few spouts and tails you are doing good - catch them bubble net feeding and you are golden. If your kids need to be entertained then I would reconsider this tour.

 

Your Skagway plans sound very good - be sure to get to the car rental place early and prepare to stand in line - also note the gas stations in Skagway for tank topping before returning - also watch you time.

 

Victoria is a great city - the inner harbor area is like a park - it is also home to the Butchart Gardens - which should be offered as a ship's tour. The first time we visited here we did the Double Decker Bus - City Highlights and the Gardens - it was a wonderful tour.

[UFLaw]

Thank you for the recommendations.

 

For Ketchikan, what other back ups might you recommend? DW and DD aren't much into fishing. Are there any zipline tours or other recommendations?

 

We will shorten our whale watching your in Juneau to 2.5 hours and then have time for some other things. Thanks.

 

Cheers.

[amarvel]

The time in Juneau is very cramped. And things in Juneau are not close by each other and so you really have to pick and choose what you do in Juneau. the jewel has to make room for the Pearl at the dock and the jewel will be leaving promptly to do that so there's not a lot of leeway time at all. Is the Tracy Arm excursion offered your week? I'm so bummed it's not offered when we go. :-(

Edited May 13, 2015 by amarvel

[Budget Queen]

 

We will shorten our whale watching your in Juneau to 2.5 hours and then have time for some other things. Thanks.

 

Cheers.

 

The "times" listed may not have a lot of meaning. Some are for the whole time- dock to dock, while other's are for boat time, don't include loading times, etc It is variable.

 

More important in my opinion- is the vendor. There are a LOT of newbies- who crossed over from fishing charters. There are some, whos owners have GPS'd their tours- to keep the fuel costs as low as possible.

 

With your Juneau port time, I would not be thinking of adding anything else- outside of the downtown area. Making the most of this time- you also need to consider booking a tour- that is either at the very beginning/end of your port times.

[UFLaw]

Hi BQ

 

We booked with Rum Runners. Great reviews. And they are picking us up as soon as we step off the Jewel.

 

They said they will swing by the brewery on the way back and wait for us to have a beer.

[JillinCalgary]

We are going to Alaska as well! Not till July 26th… we are very excited! Our children are 15, 13 and 11. Just now I am in the process of researching excursions. My 15 year old is desperate to fish. This interests no one but him so I'll take one for the team and go with him lol. We've gone whale watching a few times over the years. In Victoria actually! We are originally from Vancouver and often vacationed on the Island. Victoria is a beautiful city! I would omit Butchart gardens… the kids will definitely get bored. it's beautiful of course but the city itself is a better destination point in my option. Back to whale watching.. I can tell you my kids have said "I am never doing that again soooooo boring!" lol 3 to 4 hours is a very long time to be aboard a boat with very little to "see" as other posters have mentioned.

 

I think we will try to zip line! I'm really torn on what else to do!

[CruisingSince2012]

There definitely is not time to do four excursions in Juneau - especially if one of them is whale watching. You have to decide which excursions are the best for a 10-year old kid. What I did when I planned my next cruise (August 2015 on the Volendam) was figure out what I have time for, what type of transportation will be best for going from one excursion to the next, and how much time I need for each excursion. I finally settled on the salmon hatchery followed by Mendenhall, taking a taxi from one to the other and back to the ship. Krazy Kruizers told me even that schedule is tight because I have only six hours before reboarding just to eat supper at 8:00. So if you want to take more than two excursions, cut out the whales.

[UFLaw]

Thank you all for the input. We have decided on doing the 2-1/2 hour whale watching tour. They are going to meet us right at 7 am and we will make sure we are first off the ship as much as possible (thank you Haven).

 

It is with Rum Runners and they have fantastic reviews. We showed the kids a couple You Tube videos which showed what to expect (no breaching). They were excited about going out on the water in general.

 

I was thinking of doing the Zip Lining, however, they all would have to be 12 or older.

 

Then on the way back they are going to let us grab a beer at the brewery and take us back to the port and from there we will wait till we do the glacier tour.

 

I'll be posting a cruise review when all this is over and will let you all know how it comes together.

 

Cheers.

[sherryf]

Then on the way back they are going to let us grab a beer at the brewery and take us back to the port and from there we will wait till we do the glacier tour.

 

The brewery is not like a restaurant where you can sit and enjoy a beer. They have small samples... though if you have enough of them, it can equal a full beer. There will be nothing for the kids to do but stand around and maybe look at the equipment through a window. There is no "tour". There are no child-appropriate beverages. I think they will likely be more bored by this stop than with the whale watching. Personally, I'd do a longer whale watch and skip the brewery. Besides, if I get your timing right, you'd be getting to the brewery at 10 - 10:30 AM. They don't even open until 11.

[SDJen]

Just FYI... I'm traveling with my 9 year old and we are doing ziplining in Skagway at grizzly falls. They have a minimum age of 6 I believe. There are others with height and weight minimums but this one is not as restrictive. We booked directly with the company for this and we are also doing the dogsledding at the same place - which save an hour of transport time.