Alaska Inside Passage Cruise Excursions
 

Quick question:

Do I need to pre-book all of my onshore excursions before I go on the cruise (Seattle to Juneay, Skagway, Ketchikan, etc.), or will I be able to find what I want to do when we get to each port? I heard that the cruise lines' excursions are more pricey than doing it yourself?

Thanks everybody!
Daniel

Daniel,
You don't need to pre-book. You can either 1. prebook, 2. book on the cruise after the first day's explanation or 3. book it yourself when you get off the boat. Some excursions are best booked ahead; ones you don't want to miss or ones that must leave early in the morning to make it back on time. Frankly, I'd rather take my time having a lovely breakfast in the dining room while the long lines disembark and then leave at my leisure and book my own. Check out cruise critic.com and you'll get a lot of different opinions but that way you can make an informed choice as to whats best for you.

There is a lot or relevant recent info here: http://tinyurl.com/musrdh

I researched some of the excursions we took to see if I could get a cheaper rate or any other advantage if I booked it independently. I did not find any significant advantage in cost, and for one, I learned from the operators that not only was there no difference in price, people who booked through the cruiseline did not have to pay sales tax, while I, who booked independently, did.

The only reason I found to book independently was when we wanted to do something specific that was not offered through the cruiseline -- for example, my group chartered our own boat for whale watching as we wanted the boat to ourselves, and in Talkeetna we booked the summit flight over Denali that was not offered by the cruiseline.

Have a great trip.

I always recommend people have all their plans and reservations in place before they leave. Including "plans" to pick up tours at the dock. It is a mistake to just get off your ship, then search for something to do. Time is short. There are a lot of limitations on available tours at the docks, and possible less convenient timeframes. IF you know what you want to do, you are far better off arranging this ahead.

Independent tours are superior for smaller groups, more personal attention, longer tours. Do not expect big savings on most.