Sitka and Juneau Alaska Excursions

[Bman]

Taking an Alaska cruise in June with the family. Looking for recommendations for excursions in Sitka and Juneau Alaska.  We have two teenagers and an 8 year old, so not looking for a full day excursion. Anyone ever do Discover Fortress of the Bear?  Any good?  Any other recommendations for Sitka?  On day 4 we are doing the train. Also, any recommendations for Juneau Alaska? 

[Ryan79]

Not looking for a full days in Alaska with 2 teenagers and an 8 year old? Had I NOT done full day excursions with my kids when they went to Alaska at that age, I might have needed to sleep with one eye open!! Alaska is something to be maximized to the fullest…not “we are here, so let’s do something quick”. 

[ChessE4]

The bears stop takes just a little time as crowds are moved through. Thus, it's combined with other venues. We will do a combo thru Royal. In Juneau we are doing the Glacier tour thru Royal. Many options exist to ride from port. Remember most 3rd party vendors don't refund reservation in Alaska when you cancel. Hence, I prefer Royal or booking when  I arrive. I think Sitka is only about a 5 hour stop for us in May.

[Bman]

Which glacier tour are you doing in Juneau?  I am trying to book the glacier and salmon hierarchy. But it is it open yet to book?

[ChessE4]

21 hours ago, Bman said:

Which glacier tour are you doing in Juneau?  I am trying to book the glacier and salmon hierarchy. But it is it open yet to book?

Mendenhall plus salmon bake late May, and we booked it in September. If your cruise is later, maybe there was a delay in posting excursions.

[TimeRacer]

Sitka, we didn't bother with an excursion. We walked over to the National Park, and hiked around. Then explored town itself. Juneau we did the Mendenhall Glacier/Salmon Hatchery, and while we were there in May (too early for the spawning) it was still really interesting and fun for us.

[HeWhoWaits]

If there is an excursion that combines Fortress of the Bear with the Alaska Raptor Center, both are worth doing.

[sleepy425]

We took the city bus to Fortress of the Bear and the bus driver was NOT happy to have tourists on the bus - he only let a certain number of us on and complained about us the whole ride.  But it was a lot cheaper than booking through the cruise line!  The bus dropped us off and then picked up exactly an hour later, and it was plenty of time to see the bears and still make it with time to spare.

I like that we went because the entrance fee goes to help the bears, but I wouldn't choose to do it again.  The walk around the National Park and around town was great.  It was around 4th of July so there was a great area with many local vendors (including the reindeer cart everyone talks about - it wasn't in the normal spot due to the holiday).

In Juneau my husband, dad, and 5 kids enjoyed the tram to the top of the mountain, then hiked for a while up there.  My mom and I walked into town and saw a sign for free transport to a brewery - the ride there was great, we saw gorgeous sights and lots of bald eagles. I do wish we had gone to see the glacier, though. 

[Zenra]

When we (2 x in our 20's) did Alaska last year in September, we did the Zodiac & Finn Island Lodge Excursion in Sitka through Royal. I can't say I remember how long it was because I enjoyed it so much I wasn't really watching the clock.

The Zodiac was cool because you're literally right there on the water. We saw whales, eagles, otters, etc. You also get to see a lot of the nature in general. The guides on the zodiacs were awesome, very personable since there's only like ~14 people on each zodiac (I think there were 3 boats in total?) It was honestly a highlight of the cruise for us.

The Finn Island Lodge was an included meal and the food was fantastic. After that was back to the ship.

By comparison we did a whale watch + lunch in Juneau and, while we did see whales, the guide on the boat of ~100 cruisers was really just complaining about cruise ships the whole time. Which, I get they have their impact but, don't we all? The food where we stopped to eat was also just "okay" especially when comparing to the other excursion.

[Ampurp85]

I did the best of Sitka when I did Alaska. It took us to the fortress of the bear, the raptor center and the national park. Wasn't long and it was the best tour of all the Alaska ones we did. 

[WannaCruise]

On 10/21/2024 at 2:07 PM, ChessE4 said:

Mendenhall plus salmon bake late May, and we booked it in September. If your cruise is later, maybe there was a delay in posting excursions.

I'd love to hear about this after you go on it.  It's one I am considering for our Alaska cruise next year.  Did you get much time at the glacier?  I heard there are nice walking paths there.

[WAAAYTOOO]

On 11/10/2024 at 12:30 AM, Ampurp85 said:

I did the best of Sitka when I did Alaska. It took us to the fortress of the bear, the raptor center and the national park. Wasn't long and it was the best tour of all the Alaska ones we did. 

We are doing this one in September.  Glad to hear that it is a good choice !