Alaska city puts limit on how many cruise passengers can visit after being overwhelmed by tourists last year

[ontheweb]

Juneau, Alaska

 

Alaska city puts limit on how many cruise passengers can visit after being overwhelmed by tourists last year (msn.com)

 

And note many residents do not feel this goes far enough as they want to effectively ban all cruise ships on Saturdays and on July 4th.

[Essiesmom]

Hmmm…maybe July 4.  It’s on Thursday this year.  But most cruise ships are in their homeport on Saturday or Sunday and if not in port they are arriving the next day or heading for their first port.  The exception would be ten day cruises.  EM

[navybankerteacher]

I think this attitude is likely to spread - as more ports come to realize that cruise passengers bring very little real value to the communities they impact - while actually damaging much of what makes those places worth visiting in the first place.

[SoloAlaska]

As someone who use to live near a port I’ve experienced how overwhelming it is to be a local when a cruise is in port. Setting limits will help create a balance and I 100% support this as a cruiser as well. When the port is too crowded it isn’t enjoyable for anyone really. Looking forward to my Alaskan cruise when we are the only ship in port every day.

[ontheweb]

1 hour ago, SoloAlaska said:

As someone who use to live near a port I’ve experienced how overwhelming it is to be a local when a cruise is in port. Setting limits will help create a balance and I 100% support this as a cruiser as well. When the port is too crowded it isn’t enjoyable for anyone really. Looking forward to my Alaskan cruise when we are the only ship in port every day.

As the OP, I thank you for your input given you in the past experienced this as as Alaskan.

[Charles4515]

2 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

I think this attitude is likely to spread - as more ports come to realize that cruise passengers bring very little real value to the communities they impact - while actually damaging much of what makes those places worth visiting in the first place.

They bring value to some business's but take Juneau as an example most of the stores now are not local. Same stores as th Caribbean with the same foreign workers brought in. Also the larger ships each year bring in more passengers per ship. Cruise lines greed for supersized ships is coming around to bite them. 

[mnocket]

Overtourism is becoming a serious issue. Rightfully so, cruise ships have become the focus of much of the local pushback.

 

It ultimately comes down to a basic supply and demand imbalance - too many cruise passengers and too few ports of call.  The only real solution is to either decrease the number of cruise ship passengers or increase the number of ports of call. Since the former is unacceptable to passengers and cruise lines alike, I suggest that that the industry must embark on a program to develop new ports of call. The only progress to date has been the development of a few private islands in the Caribbean. That's a start, but nowhere near sufficient to address explosive overtourism.  Yes, it is expensive to develop the infrastructure to support cruise ships in new locations, but what is the alternative?  What does the future look like if this imbalance isn't addressed?

[jsn55]

I'm sailing Crown Princess out of San Francisco in August.  My main goal is R&R, but I do want to see something in each port.  Discovered that there will be FIVE ships in Juneau ... horrifying.  No interest in strolling around the town amid hordes of pax, so have to book ship's tours or risk a miserable day.  I guess the only way to avoid this is to check cruising schedules before booking.  Crazy!  

[ShipsandDipper]

20 minutes ago, jsn55 said:

I'm sailing Crown Princess out of San Francisco in August.  My main goal is R&R, but I do want to see something in each port.  Discovered that there will be FIVE ships in Juneau ... horrifying.  No interest in strolling around the town amid hordes of pax, so have to book ship's tours or risk a miserable day.  I guess the only way to avoid this is to check cruising schedules before booking.  Crazy!  

Ship’s tours aren’t the only choice. We have had multiple lovely independent whale watching excursions out of Juneau. 

[Mary229]

1 hour ago, jsn55 said:

I'm sailing Crown Princess out of San Francisco in August.  My main goal is R&R, but I do want to see something in each port.  Discovered that there will be FIVE ships in Juneau ... horrifying.  No interest in strolling around the town amid hordes of pax, so have to book ship's tours or risk a miserable day.  I guess the only way to avoid this is to check cruising schedules before booking.  Crazy!  

I switched out my Alaska journey this year. Far too many people there this summer.  Some extra ships were repositioned there after the Israeli conflict started

[GeezerCouple]

1 hour ago, jsn55 said:

I'm sailing Crown Princess out of San Francisco in August.  My main goal is R&R, but I do want to see something in each port.  Discovered that there will be FIVE ships in Juneau ... horrifying.  No interest in strolling around the town amid hordes of pax, so have to book ship's tours or risk a miserable day.  I guess the only way to avoid this is to check cruising schedules before booking.  Crazy!  

 

Have you checked independent excursions/tours?

It might be a bit late for August, but you might want to see what is available.

Juneau was where we had one of our most special private excursions (and if space allows, you can always invite others from the Roll Call).

Unfortunately, it's no longer being offered, but I do watch to see if it returns after Covid has settled down so that I can recommend it.

 

GC

[clo]

https://www.newsbreak.com/news/3494868651768-alaska-city-puts-limit-on-how-many-cruise-passengers-can-visit-after-being-overwhelmed-by-tourists-last-year?noAds=1&_f=app_share&s=a3&share_destination_id=MTA3NTY1MzM2LTE3MTg3NDAzODI1MTQ%3D

[clo]

7 hours ago, SoloAlaska said:

When the port is too crowded it isn’t enjoyable for anyone really.

It was so not enjoyable that we have talked about it for a long, long time. We did a shore excursion that took us to Denali. Now THAT was wonderful.
 

Edited June 18 by clo
typo

[clo]

3 hours ago, Mary229 said:

I switched out my Alaska journey this year.

You go frequently? Curious what kind of new things you see.

[Mary229]

5 minutes ago, clo said:

You go frequently? Curious what kind of new things you see.

I live in Texas, I go where it is cool.  A lot of Texans go to Colorado every year, we like the cruises.  We are hikers and big fans of the National and State Parks.  This year we are instead making our second trip  to Iceland and our 6th to the Canadian Maritimes. One could visit for 20 years and never repeat a hike or park. For us cruises are means of transport, a comfortable hotel and decent restaurants. 

Edited June 18 by Mary229

[clo]

1 minute ago, Mary229 said:

I live in Texas, I go where it is cool.  A lot of Texans go to Colorado every year, we like the cruises.  We are hikers and big fans of the National and State Parks.  One could visit for 20 years and never repeat a hike or park. For us cruises are means of transport, a comfortable hotel and decent restaurants. 

After going there I was interested in the Alaska State Ferry. Do you ever do that? I understand that you can choose to camp on the deck.

[Mary229]

10 minutes ago, clo said:

After going there I was interested in the Alaska State Ferry. Do you ever do that? I understand that you can choose to camp on the deck.

We were campers and backpackers  in our youth but have settled on a little luxury in our retirement.  We have considered the ferries but I think we would rather do the North Atlantic islands by ferry.  We have driven as far as Vancouver Island and in the other direction to Prince Edward Island from Texas but those road trips are becoming burdensome too.  We travelled throughout USA and Canada for a living and now like to be transported.  

[K32682]

The limits mentioned in the article seem quite reasonable for a community 32,000. 16 thousand beds during the week and 12 thousand on the Saturdays. I've been in Key West when the boats discharge their respirating cargo and have see how comparatively fewer cruisers than Juneau is facing can disrupt a place. Some cruisers have a massive sense of entitlement and can be profoundly obnoxious. 

 

 

Edited June 18 by K32682

[clo]

16 minutes ago, K32682 said:

Some cruisers have a massive sense of entitlement and can be profoundly obnoxious. 

THIS^^^^^

[Charles4515]

6 hours ago, jsn55 said:

I'm sailing Crown Princess out of San Francisco in August.  My main goal is R&R, but I do want to see something in each port.  Discovered that there will be FIVE ships in Juneau ... horrifying.  No interest in strolling around the town amid hordes of pax, so have to book ship's tours or risk a miserable day.  I guess the only way to avoid this is to check cruising schedules before booking.  Crazy!  

There are plenty of independent tour operators in Juneau. I have never done a ships tour in Alaska. 

[donaldsc]

What I think is interesting is that people visit AK on a 7 or maybe even 10 day tour.  They visit the same 3 or 4 ports.  They never get more than 20 or 40 miles from the coast and never get part the southern ports and say that they have seen Alaska.  

 

We did 3 1/2 months driving Alaska and got far away from the coast there was still many places in AK that we did not get to.  We did not get to the Aleutian Peninsula.  We did not get to Nome.  We did not get to some of the more isolated National Parks.  We did not get into the fly in places.  

 

 

As of June 2024, over 1.4 million people visit Alaska each year, but some estimates say the number is closer to 2 million or 2.7 million. Tourism is a major contributor to Alaska's economy, generating $3.9 billion in direct spending in 2022–2023 and a total economic impact of $5.6 billion. Visitors typically spend 8.5 nights in the state. 

 

No wonder the 3 or 4 ports that most visitors visit are over crowded.  

 

DON

[donaldsc]

7 hours ago, mnocket said:

Overtourism is becoming a serious issue. Rightfully so, cruise ships have become the focus of much of the local pushback.

 

It ultimately comes down to a basic supply and demand imbalance - too many cruise passengers and too few ports of call.  The only real solution is to either decrease the number of cruise ship passengers or increase the number of ports of call. Since the former is unacceptable to passengers and cruise lines alike, I suggest that that the industry must embark on a program to develop new ports of call. The only progress to date has been the development of a few private islands in the Caribbean. That's a start, but nowhere near sufficient to address explosive overtourism.  Yes, it is expensive to develop the infrastructure to support cruise ships in new locations, but what is the alternative?  What does the future look like if this imbalance isn't addressed?

 

Completely disagree.  That will just ruin the more interesting smaller towns.  Just keep the numbers down.  Way down.  That is the only solution.

 

DON

[Mary229]

4 minutes ago, donaldsc said:

What I think is interesting is that people visit AK on a 7 or maybe even 10 day tour.  They visit the same 3 or 4 ports.  They never get more than 20 or 40 miles from the coast and never get part the southern ports and say that they have seen Alaska.  

 

We did 3 1/2 months driving Alaska and got far away from the coast there was still many places in AK that we did not get to.  We did not get to the Aleutian Peninsula.  We did not get to Nome.  We did not get to some of the more isolated National Parks.  We did not get into the fly in places.  

 

 

As of June 2024, over 1.4 million people visit Alaska each year, but some estimates say the number is closer to 2 million or 2.7 million. Tourism is a major contributor to Alaska's economy, generating $3.9 billion in direct spending in 2022–2023 and a total economic impact of $5.6 billion. Visitors typically spend 8.5 nights in the state. 

 

No wonder the 3 or 4 ports that most visitors visit are over crowded.  

 

DON

Princess has done this somewhat with their lodges but you are right there could be more private facilities like the private islands.  And there is an economic benefit to locals as they can be employed there without having to be overwhelmed in their own neighborhoods 

[AKStafford]

24 minutes ago, K32682 said:

Some cruisers have a massive sense of entitlement and can be profoundly obnoxious. 

A couple of decades ago I drove tour bus, taking cruise passengers between the Anchorage and  Seward.

People going to the ship were excited and giddy.

People coming off the ship, where they had been pampered and cared for over the last 7 days where demanding and full of themselves. One guy asked when the stewardess would come through the coach and take the breakfast order. I just stared at him and shock, then when I realized he was serious I began to laugh. I did not receive a tip from him that morning...

 

 

[jsn55]

7 hours ago, GeezerCouple said:

 

Have you checked independent excursions/tours?

It might be a bit late for August, but you might want to see what is available.

Juneau was where we had one of our most special private excursions (and if space allows, you can always invite others from the Roll Call).

Unfortunately, it's no longer being offered, but I do watch to see if it returns after Covid has settled down so that I can recommend it.

 

GC

Thanks so much, but no problem choosing an excursion out to see the sled dogs.  My rationale was that if there were 5 ships in town, I didn't want to get involved with any of that ... the ship's tour will be much more convenient.  I just added a salmon bake, based on all the rave reviews.  As a solo traveller, I feel more comfortable not having to think about logistics, I like to just enjoy myself.