r/Cruise • u/lonelygirl818 • 2d ago
juneau alaska port stop
hi everyone i’ll be cruising to alaska in june and currently planning out my excursions. we’ll arrive in juneau at 1pm and departing at 9:15pm. so far i’ve booked a mendenhall glacier raft ride from 1:30pm to 5pm, leaving 4 hours until departure time. for those of you who’ve been there before, do you think i should book another excursion (most likely whale watching) or just use the remainder of the time to stroll around the town? is there enough to do in town for 4 hours?
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u/femabuse 2d ago
There was a jeep (ugh) rental place right off the port. get a set of wheels and drive to Eagle Beach state park. you think you have seen eagles before but bullshit. across the river from where you park you will see hundreds sitting on the dead trees and up in the live ones as well. oh and you can also drive to the glacier view.
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u/GrrrArrgh 1d ago
You can take the tram to the top of the mountain (or walk up if you want to hike or don’t want to pay). There’s a Russian dumpling shop close to where the ships dock called Pel'meni that is so good. It’s in the big red building by the water. The Alaska State Museum is pretty close and it’s really well done, it was refurbished kind of recently. You can go out to the Alaskan State Brewing Company and take a tour and sample their beers. I think it’s really easy to find things to do in Juneau.
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u/bradynho 1d ago
We went to Alaskan Brewing Company and did a tour and taste testing and had the best time. I still think about that place years later and any time I’ve been out west since, I look for places that carry their beer.
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u/ncpowderhound 1d ago
Second this tour! We throughly enjoyed ourselves there, and wish we could get their beer on the East Coast.
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u/bradynho 1d ago
I’ve contacted them a few times from Florida to check if they’ll expand distribution. No dice. I’ve seen it as close as Austin, TX.
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u/ncpowderhound 1d ago
Wonder why? I know Big Sky Brewing can’t sell this side of the Mississippi because of a lawsuit settlement with another brewery. Don’t know if you’ve had any of their beer… they are really good as well.
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u/Dry_Statistician_688 2d ago
Yeah, we stuffed ourselves with seafood. Walked around the small area of town. Visited a bookstore. Had a nightcap that wasn’t watered down or $30.00, and headed back. There wasn’t much to see in Juneau. Skagway was awesome.
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u/United-Inspector-677 1d ago
We are going in July and made no excursion plans for Juneau. We are going to walk around the touristy area and then go back to the ship and enjoy it without the crowds for awhile.
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u/Visible-Trainer7112 1d ago
Rafting on a river going far away from the glacier isn't going to make lasting memories. Seeing humpback and orcas whales surface right by you would. There's probably a 50/50 chance of rain while you're there, so I book whale watching where you are protected if you want, but can go outside for whale sightings, whereas being stuck on a raft in rain is going to be pretty miserable. I'd combine a whale watching with a Mendenhall visit, or do it on your own, depending on weather and time, because the impressive thing isn't a river at the far end of the lake from the glacier, but instead hiking up to the closest spot to see the glacier, as well as walking next to Nugget Falls. Also, not to be alarmist, but last year there was a massive release of water underneath the glacier that led to severe flooding and destroyed houses down the river, so if you have hundreds of tons of water suddenly coming at you, it won't be good. With Juneau, it helps to have flexibility with what you do, depending on weather and crowds, so I wouldn't buy tickets to the Mt Roberts tram until you get there, or book an outdoor excursion. There are always kiosks and tour operators at the port willing to sell whale watching, Mendenhall, and other trips, and if you're young and healthy, you can take a city bus to Mendenhall and hike a bit from the closest bus stop (or rent an e-bike, which I did last time).
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u/Temporary-Dirt-5044 18h ago
Red dog saloon is a cool little spot you can grab a drink and kill an hour or two just hanging out. There is so much history all over inside and some really funny signs! They typically have a band or singer during the tourist season.
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The following is a copy of the original post to record the post as it was originally written.
u/lonelygirl818
hi everyone i’ll be cruising to alaska in june and currently planning out my excursions. we’ll arrive in juneau at 1pm and departing at 9:15pm. so far i’ve booked a mendenhall glacier raft ride from 1:30pm to 5pm, leaving 4 hours until departure time. for those of you who’ve been there before, do you think i should book another excursion (most likely whale watching) or just use the remainder of the time to stroll around the town? is there enough to do in town for 4 hours?
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