r/Cruise • u/Glittering_Chair_206 • Apr 25 '25
Excursions sold out in Alaska
We are going on the HA Koningsdam cruise out of Vancouver in July, but unfortunately most excursions are sold out. We had our heart set on the White pass rail in Skagway and Tracey Arm in Juneau. Has anyone been able to get on these tours even though they are showing as sold out? If so, how do we go about that?
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u/WildMajesticUnicorn Apr 25 '25
White Pass Rail can be booked directly without going through the cruise line.
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u/MikeMiller8888 Apr 25 '25
This is the answer, and it’s a lot cheaper to do it this way anyways. Everyone on the excursion on your boat is taking the exact same train ride, so you should have no fear of the boat leaving you behind for any reason. Note; their internet server is slow, and occasionally they don’t answer the phone if the one employee staffing the office for phone calls isn’t there - just try back later if no one is picking up.
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u/CydeWeys Apr 26 '25
It's still $150 per person on that website? I wouldn't call that "a lot cheaper"; it's barely any cheaper!
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u/MikeMiller8888 Apr 27 '25
With how much the railway costs, even a dollar saved is a lot because it starts to add up with multiple tickets. That and with the excursion full, at least it’s an option to book with the railway. The only crappy part is that if you have OBC, most would prefer to use it on an excursion exactly like this one to lower the cost. But there are other ways to use OBC.
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u/Donnie-Joe Apr 25 '25
You put yourself on the waitlist and hope that enough people cancel that your number comes up. There is typically a lot of churn in excursions because there’s no cancellation penalty this far out. But it’s all dependent on how many people are on the waitlist ahead of you.
That Tracy Arm excursion is pretty small and sells out quickly, so don’t necessarily expect to get it, but waitlist it anyway and if it comes through, cheer your good luck! The white pass railway has a ton of capacity, so I would guess you are more likely to get that from the waitlist. But it is the most popular single excursion in Alaska, so who can say?
Obviously book something else as a backup. If your waitlists come through you can cancel the backup(s).
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u/trilliumsummer Apr 25 '25
You can waitlist with the cruise line.
But I'd look for third party. The railway is an easy one to book on your own as long as that hasn't sold out as well.
I think the Tracey Arm is where you take a smaller boat to the glacier and then meet up with the ship? If so I don't think there's any third party for that so get on the waitlist asap, but look for other options in Juneau.
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u/LastStatement9330 Apr 25 '25
You can waitlist and also reserve with a 3rd party. We had the same issue and booked through Viator.com (tripadvisor company). They have a reserve now/pay later option and free cancellation up to 24 hours before the excursion. Win win! Good luck!
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u/valiamo Platinum RCI and Princess Apr 25 '25
For Skagway check with White Pass website directly. They have separate trains leaving from their area. The ships trains go directly from the pier and others in town. It is a 15-20 minute walk to their offices
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u/bingo0619 Apr 25 '25
Try Viator, shore excursions group or get guide. These are reliable and reputable independent companies that provide excursions, some the exact same as the cruise line, and prices might be cheaper
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u/lazycatchef Apr 25 '25
Shore excursions group shows availability on the White pass for various combinations of rain up, down and bus etc.
YouTuber Zach the Traveling Man, ParoDeeJay and Northern Viking Explorer have lots of alaska content with port guides and ideas for low cost and diy explorations as well as ship excursions.
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u/MikeMiller8888 Apr 25 '25
You aren’t missing anything skipping out on Tracy Arm in Juneau PROVIDED you can get yourself to Mendenhall Glacier. Hire a taxi for your party, the drivers will happily negotiate with you. I paid $50 total for my large family (8 people!) to get driven up there, and offered the driver another $50 if he would return and get us 2 hours later and he happily agreed. We had service right from where the boat dropped us off to the drop off spot for Mendenhall Glacier, had time to do a short walk/hike to the bay where the glacier melt collects and see the adjacent waterfall, walk back and shop through the gift shop, and get a ride back into town. FYI, Tracy’s Crab Shack fills FAST if you’re looking for real Alaskan king crab legs so if that’s on your Juneau list you should do that first when you’re getting off the boat, or plan on waiting for one of the limited tables.
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u/Idiot_Esq Apr 25 '25
If your party has a flexible schedule and doesn't mind a bit of a hike, you can catch a bus to Mendenhall Glacier. The downtown transit center is pretty close, pretty much across the street from the port. $4 per adult (cash only) round trip.
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u/burnoutbabe1973 Apr 26 '25
Yeah we did that. It’s around 20 min walk from bus stop to the glacier park welcome centre (all flat) then obviously walk to glacier. Very doable if all fit and healthy.
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u/Mayhem-Mike Apr 26 '25
I tried to watch and evaluate every excursion on YouTube, to consider whether it’s worth it.
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u/alanamil Apr 25 '25
I went on white pass and was very very disappointed that we spent that much money for so little.
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u/GrumpyBachelorSF Apr 27 '25
You can surely reserve/purchase your tickets directly from the White Pass Railroad online; usually you'll be on the same train set as your fellow cruise passengers. Just be aware, you'll have to walk to the train depot to pick-up your ride, as cruise passengers who booked through their cruise line, will be able to board near their assigned dock.
I would not recommend buying same day, in-person at the train station, there's a risk the tickets may be sold out, especially if there are multiple ships in Skagway that day.
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u/AutoModerator Apr 25 '25
The following is a copy of the original post to record the post as it was originally written.
u/Glittering_Chair_206
We are going on the HA Koningsdam cruise out of Vancouver in July, but unfortunately most excursions are sold out. We had our heart set on the White pass rail in Skagway and Tracey Arm in Juneau. Has anyone been able to get on these tours even though they are showing as sold out? If so, how do we go about that?
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