What can I do in Juneau?

[cb2367]

Not long after I booked my cruise, I went to NCL and made a list of excursions I was interested in at each port. I took a closer look at excursions in Juneau and found that everything I has on my list (such as salmon bake, bike and brew glacier tour) aren't listed anymore m so I'm assuming that I'm starting too late getting shore excursions booked. 

 

Is three anything within walking distance of the pier to do? Is it possible to do some of the excursions mentioned, but just not through NCL?

[edinburgher]

What can I do in Juneau?

 

You would probably  find it helpful to read some of the multiple previous threads about Juneau and what to do there. To save having to back page, go to the general Alaska Forum, not an individual thread, and input the word Juneau in the empty search box under your user name, then hit the little spy glass.  Doing that should bring up previous threads and posts containing the word Juneau ready for you to read.  This is an example and a possible good starting point:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/topic/2917240-what-to-do-in-juneau/#comment-64867894

 

Edited May 14, 2023 by edinburgher

[CruiserBruce]

As mentioned frequently here, when you dock, there will be a booth on the dock selling various excursions. Can't promise you what you would like to do will be available, but maybe...

[SightCRR]

The AK museum and government buildings are within walking distance (check if open on day you are there). Salmon hatchery is short city bus ride. May see eagles & seals there along with millions of tiny fish. If you can see the top of the tram it is worth the ride which is also within walking distance but don't book ahead in case of fog. TheSnowCloud Juneau area Webcams. Check the "Milepost" at library or on line.  You didn't ask but make sure you understand that in Ketch you likely will be at Wards Cove 8 miles out of town with short hours. 

sightcrr. 

[wolfie11]

Your ship doesn't arrive in Juneau until 2:30pm, limiting many of your excursion choices.  If you're at the AJ dock, it might take a while to get into town, as it's a 20-30 minute walk or you can get in line for a shuttle.
 

Most of the museums, etc will close around 5pm although I think the Sealaska Arts Center is open later.  You might find an evening whale watch.

[slidergirl]

Go up the little outdoor “Biergarten” setting of Deckhand Dave”s fish tacos, Devil’s Club Brewery and a creperie.  Good tacos and a nice selection of local brews.  

[eileeshb]

Some excursions aren’t offered later in the season or are only offered with an earlier arrival in port. I know my first choice for Juneau isn’t being offered in October due to shorter hours of daylight. I managed to figure out the excursion provider for that one so I contacted them directly to find out if it was full or not offered. 
if you search out reviews on things to do on trip advisor you may figure out the provider for the excursions you are interested in and find out from them directly what the situation is. 

[Kathscof]

I would check Juneau Whale Watch (who operate various combinations of whales/glacier/city tours) and see what options they have....they seem pretty large, so maybe more options might be available? 

[eileeshb]

actually another question on Juneau for the folks that were there on the early sailings this year, did the shops stay open past 6pm if the ship was an afternoon arrival until 8/9pm ?

The whale watching excursion I've booked is supposed to end by 6pm but I won't have much time before that excursion to get to some of the more interesting stores downtown. 

[chiguy67]

We paid for the Blue Bus to take us to Mendenhall Glacier and it runs every 20-30 minutes. It was great. We also did the tram to the top. It was still snowy and the trails were muddy but it was fun as well.

[CruiseMuch?]

We just did whale watching with Jayleen.  She is awesome.  Small operation, personal, yet professional.  She was the best.

[MickeyP]

We contacted Juneau Whale Tours through trip advisor , the 3 hour tour. A small boat Maximium of 20. New boat too and we only had 7 customers. Was great. Whales the entire time. Only thing, the dropped the price once onside the 48 hour window. 

[pink845]

We were on the Majestic May 13th.  The weather was incredible.  Blue skies everyday not a cloud in sight. And very mild. We rented a car in Juneau.  Took the $2.00 city bus to the airport to pick up our car - 20 minutes away.  Drove to Mendenhall Glacier, parked out car and spent three leisurely hours taking in the beautiful area.  Hiked all around. Were there before all other tourists and buses.   Then drove up the scenic highway along the coast stopping at viewpoints along the way up to the St. Therese Shrine. So peaceful and lovely up there.  Meandering our way back down the coast and took in so many different views of Mendenhall.  Went over to Douglas Island and drove around downtown and saw the sights all around.  Dropped off car at the airport and took the bus back.  A wonderful day.  Car rental was a steal at $55 USD plus $8 bucks worth of gas.    We try to stay away from tours and expensive transportation.  If memory serves me correct, I think the bus at the port was $45 USD per person to Mendenhall, Pretty pricy indeed.   And the ride up  Mount Roberts on the tram was something like $50 USD per person.  These are crazy prices.  

[Pluto_fan]

13 hours ago, pink845 said:

Car rental was a steal at $55 USD plus $8 bucks worth of gas.

 

Thanks for your comments...sounds like you had a fabulous day!

May I ask how you found that car rental rate?  For our visit in three weeks I've found $270 for Avis near the port, $170 for Juneau Car Rental near the airport, and $180 for a Turo rental downtown...still better for us (family of 5) than the Blue Bus, but $55 would be a lot better!

[latebuyer]

Is the Robert Tramway worthwhile? It seems pretty expensive.

[rada628]

On 5/22/2023 at 9:29 AM, chiguy67 said:

We paid for the Blue Bus to take us to Mendenhall Glacier and it runs every 20-30 minutes. It was great. We also did the tram to the top. It was still snowy and the trails were muddy but it was fun as well.

Did you book the bus in advance? We only have a 5 hour port stop and I just found out we’re at the farthest dock. 😢 I’m not certain if we want to do both the bus and the tram. Was wondering if we could play it by ear or it will be all sold out at the port? 

[chiguy67]

51 minutes ago, rada628 said:

Did you book the bus in advance? We only have a 5 hour port stop and I just found out we’re at the farthest dock. 😢 I’m not certain if we want to do both the bus and the tram. Was wondering if we could play it by ear or it will be all sold out at the port? 

There are booths near the dock and we booked the Mendenhall glacier there. The tram was near the port as well.

 

There are shuttle buses that pick you up near your ship and will drop you off near the booths to book excursions.

 

 

[PhotoDennis]

You can take public transit to Mendenhall. It is cheap but slow, and you'll have to walk about a half-mile.

 

There is also a skyway, but I haven't taken it.

 

I'm back in Juneau in just over a week. I'm doing a brewery tour. 😄  I'll report back here on what I find.

https://kelseaventures.com/bus-to-mendenhall-glacier/

Edited June 4, 2023 by PhotoDennis
Forgot the link!

[Coral]

Those 2-10 pm time slots are the worst for tours.

[PhotoDennis]

1 minute ago, Coral said:

Those 2-10 pm time slots are the worst for tours.

My last cruise had a 7-12 pm stop. I didn't bother getting off the ship.

[latebuyer]

Can someone speak to which is more worthwhile to go to: mt. Roberts tramway or mendenhall glacier (i would go to nuggets falls).

[Coral]

1 hour ago, latebuyer said:

Can someone speak to which is more worthwhile to go to: mt. Roberts tramway or mendenhall glacier (i would go to nuggets falls).

Many people do it and enjoy it. They are inexpensive excursions..

 

I would only do Mount Roberts tram if the weather is clear. If not, don't bother. You can buy tickets the day of. Mendenhall has retreated so much, I wouldn't go back (and I have been several times early on but it was easier to do back in the day with whale watching) but as a first time cruiser, you may enjoy it, especially with the hike.

[kj_connections]

On 5/31/2023 at 10:13 PM, pink845 said:

We were on the Majestic May 13th.  The weather was incredible.  Blue skies everyday not a cloud in sight. And very mild. We rented a car in Juneau.  Took the $2.00 city bus to the airport to pick up our car - 20 minutes away.  Drove to Mendenhall Glacier, parked out car and spent three leisurely hours taking in the beautiful area.  Hiked all around. Were there before all other tourists and buses.   Then drove up the scenic highway along the coast stopping at viewpoints along the way up to the St. Therese Shrine. So peaceful and lovely up there.  Meandering our way back down the coast and took in so many different views of Mendenhall.  Went over to Douglas Island and drove around downtown and saw the sights all around.  Dropped off car at the airport and took the bus back.  A wonderful day.  Car rental was a steal at $55 USD plus $8 bucks worth of gas.    We try to stay away from tours and expensive transportation.  If memory serves me correct, I think the bus at the port was $45 USD per person to Mendenhall, Pretty pricy indeed.   And the ride up  Mount Roberts on the tram was something like $50 USD per person.  These are crazy prices.  

 

Where do you pick up the bus to the airport?  Do you remember what bus # it is?

[jerseygirlinAZ]

On 6/1/2023 at 9:05 AM, Pluto_fan said:

 

Thanks for your comments...sounds like you had a fabulous day!

May I ask how you found that car rental rate?  For our visit in three weeks I've found $270 for Avis near the port, $170 for Juneau Car Rental near the airport, and $180 for a Turo rental downtown...still better for us (family of 5) than the Blue Bus, but $55 would be a lot better!

 

We just rented from the Avis by port last Saturday.  I was a bit concerned when we arrived because the office was closed since ship time was different than Juneau time.  At first, we thought we might have to Uber to the airport location, which was $45 when we looked it up.  

 

Our car was electric so we didn't need to pay for gas, which was nice.  And we were the only ones there, no crowds.  It was super easy even though it was pricier than the other locations or Turo.

[tetleytea]

On 6/4/2023 at 12:39 PM, Coral said:

 

I would only do Mount Roberts tram if the weather is clear. If not, don't bother. You can buy tickets the day of. Mendenhall has retreated so much, I wouldn't go back (and I have been several times early on but it was easier to do back in the day with whale watching) but as a first time cruiser, you may enjoy it, especially with the hike.

 

Words to live by:   if you can't see the top of Mount Roberts, you can't see the ground from the top of Mount Roberts, either.