We will be taking the the Alaskan cruise in September 09.We will be touching Juneau,Ketichikan and Skagway.I am looking for suggestions for shore excurtions.In Ketchikan there is the Bering sea crab fishermans tour or the Misty Fjord Flightseeing.
In Juneau there is the Whale watching or the Mendenhall Glacier and finally the train ride in Skagway.Confused as to which one to take in each port!

I suggest doing what appeals to you the most. We did the heli to Mendenhall in Juneau and the train ride in Skagway. The latter provides amazing views that will be memories for a lifetime and its very relaxing too. The former was amazing as well and for us we did the whale watch in Voctoria. Tough choices to be sure but pick what floats your boat the most. Cheers, Larry

My wife and went the end of August, '08 and hit the same places. We did the helicopter trip to Mendenhall on Juneau, the train on Skagway, and a boat trip on Ketchikan. One tip: these excursions give you the time to stroll each port city. I know some people who went on "full day" excursions in two ports and were sorry they could not stroll the port. So you might want to think how important that is to you.
Also, we got lucky with the weather in that we were not hampered by rain. I feel so fortunate that the rain came during our days at sea, not the days of our excursions.
1) Loved the glacier helicopter trip, a very unique experience. It was 59 degrees and sunny the day we did it. We did talk to people who enjoyed the whale trip a great deal.
2) Skagway train trip-nice but I got a bit bored since the train has no stops and you go up a mountain and come back the same way again. Still, the weather allowed me to stand on the platform and breathe the freshest air I have in a long time(we live in the Los Angeles area). From that aspect, a very relaxing trip but if my wife was not recovering from a foot stress fracture, we would have done a trip where a bus takes you up to the top and you bike down.
3) On Ketchikan, we did a boat trip(something like "Eagles, Totems,and lighthouses") that takes you around the shoreline and out to sea. I loved it but when the small boat moved out from the bay and into the sea, nausea had several riding it out inside. If you don't like small boats, don't take this one.
4) Victoria,we just walked around, no excursion. We enjoyed it but again, 62 degrees and sunny really helped matters. Can't report on any Victoria excursions EXCEPT the one trip to botanical gardens is where I heard some say they wished they could have strolled the city. Our stop there was only from like 4Pm to 10PM.
I sort of feel like we "rounded out" our excursions by doing one by air, one by boat, one by train, and one by foot.


Enjoy!!

Actually we had a great excursion in Victoria, the best of our trip really. We did a whale watch to see a pod of Orcas. Some of them live around 90 yrs. Pretty amazing to see. BTW if you go to Mendenhall or anywhere else that it may rain be careful for your camera. Ours was ruined as it got fouled by the rain. Have fun. And if you like a brew try the Alaskan Amber. Larry
JJgittes: Cool user id. I wonder how many remember who he was??

misty fjords was amazing although it was clear and sunny when we went, skagway rail ride was also fantastic, didn't do the heli, felt it was waste of money since we did glacier bay . there is a tour of eagle nesting areas but i forget which city, which was really great tour was in flat bottom boats along this VERY shallow river.

I am reading lots of bad reviews regarding the Skagway train trip.Is a coach trip better?Can you suggest a tour operator.

The WHitepass Yukon train ride is great. I have not heard too many negative except for the price. Coach is definietly inferior. Some had suggested car rental where youahve better control.

My suggestions:
Keichikan: Guard Island/bald egale/Totem combo; Misty Fjord
Juneau: whale watching/Mendenahll Glacier combo
Skagway: Whitepass Yukon Railway

can I buy tickets when I get off the ship at Skagway? the reason being I can schedule my trip according to the weather conditions.we will be in Skagway mid September.
Also I have mailed several times to Orca,Scania and dyea Dave for Whale watching tour in Juneau without any response.
Any suggestions as to what to do?

The train station is a quite a bit of distance from the dock. You have to check their train scheduloe first (on lne), find out what time they are going up and what time they are coming back. It's $99 one way 2 years ago. If you book through the ship, they will either get you on board at the dock or bus you to the station. The ship excursion usually have a train up/coach down combination.

re Orca, Scania, Dave etc. You mean email to them, right?

We booked a dog sled experience in Juneau. It was less expensive than the cruise's excursion but still expensive around $400 or $450 each. You helicopter to a glacier and drive a dog sled over the glacier. It was the highlight of our trip and I'm glad we did not miss it! We booked with Costal Helicopters. They were recommended and they were terrific!