Planning a Sept Alaskan Cruise - Regal Princess - 7 days roundtrip from Vancouver. Trip is mostly for relaxation-would appreciate recommendation if we decide to only take one or two(at the most)shore excursion. <BR> <BR>Understand Sitka is very interesting!!

I would recommend whale watching in Juneau and the White Pass and Yukon Railway in Skagway.

I agree with Allen. We took both those excursions, but the BEST was the flight and float excursion. A small plane flew through the glacier park-unbelievable sights all choreographed to music. After we landed we rafted back to the ship. It was an incredible day. If you limit yourself to one or two shore excursion, you won't really get to see much of what's really Alaska.

I did both the flight seeing tour and whale watching Juneau. I cannot remember the name of the company for the flight tour and I have misplaced their business card. I included walking on a glacier. It was awesome! <BR> <BR>But as wonderful as that tour was, absolute nothing can equal the whale watching tour that we took. It was with Rum Runner Charters; I booked at a booth on the dock; the flight tour that morning and the whale watching tour in the afternoon. The one thing that made the whale watching tour so unique were the owners of the boat....Chris & Teri Conder who had moved to Alaska to pursue their American dream. Their boat only carried 8 passengers and they took us right out to where the locals were fishing and after getting them on the radio, found out where a whale show was. I have never seen anything like it! I would say that we were within 15 to 20 ft. of the Humpbacks. At times, they got so close to us that the sides of the boat rocked. Chris and Teri are A&M graduates and knew all of the pod members by name just by the markings on their fins. I knew we had made the right choice when I saw the HAL "cattle barge" cruise by and it was so far away that people were having to use binoculars and they were packed onto the sides like sardines. Believe me when I say that you DO NOT need binoculars with Rum Runner Charters. I highly recommend it. <BR> <BR>A side note: HIGHLY RECOMMENDED: The Alaskan Hotel.......a great place to unwind after a long day of sightseeing. We had stopped briefly at the Red Dog Saloon but tired of it because of the crowds. Thanks to my "boning up" with Fodor's Alaska Cruise Guide, I suggested we walk up to the hotel for quiet reflection and a glass of wine. Good choice. It is on the National Register of Historic Places. When you walk in, you will almost feel like you have walked back into time. It is quaint, quiet, and has wonderful overstuffed chairs to sit in and soak up the great atmosphere. Don't miss it. <BR> <BR>Sharon <BR> <BR>

Just curious about previous post-on our whale watching tour (which carried a naturalist onboard) all boats were required to stay a certain distance away (can't remember how far but not that close) to protect the whales. I respect those rules,hope everyone else does!

I agree with the last post,I've just returned from a cruise and the whale watch outing we were on had the Federal guidelines for whale watching posted and boats are to stay at least 100 yards away and can observe each whale for no longer than 30 minutes.I would hope that the rules are followed.

I was just on the Regal Priness last week. I highly recommend the Nature/ City walk in Sitka (wish we had more time there). I agree about the White Pass Scenic Train in Skagway. <BR>I was not that inpressed with Juneau although the helicopter/glacer walk was fun but pricey! <BR>If you plan on doing any shopping in Skagway do it early (before a tour) because the shops get very crowded. <BR> <BR>A side comment about the Alaska Priness cruise - I was on the Regal Priness in the Carribean in 1994. I would have wanted more activities on the ship. As far as the service, I think Princess has joined everyone else - they have cut back some (assistant waiters scarce and the waiter doing more work). <BR> <BR>I had friends would were on the Royal Carribean's Vision of the Seas the same time that I was on the Princess and we compared notes on our cruises. <BR> <BR>To close - I wish I sailed on Royal Carribean instead of Princess.