Epic 24 Hours in Ketchikan Alaska Cruise Port Guide

Tucked along the picturesque coast of southeastern Alaska, Ketchikan is a colorful fishing town often called the salmon capital of the world. It's a place where rows of boats line the vibrant waterfront, and fresh seafood is served from the docks straight to the table. Flush rainforests and mountains frame in this wild Alaskan wonderland, providing waters abundant with fish and skies dotted with bald eagles. Ketchikan is truly worth the visit, whether it's a port stop on a cruise or a planned destination of your own. Good morning from Ketchikan. We are currently on board Royal Caribbean's Ovation of the Seas, and for the last four days we have been on board enjoying the ship, and we have now made it to Alaska. So we actually started over in Vancouver, had two days out at sea, and now we are setting foot in Alaska for the first time, which is very exciting. But we have woken up at the crack of dawn because we are fishing this morning. We will be cooking some of the fish that we catch and enjoying an Alaskan meal. So without further ado, let's go explore Ketchikan. We're currently walking to our tour, but it is a rainy day. The all-natural Alaskan shower. We have all suited up for our day out on the water. We are extremely waterproof now, and I'm very glad because we were very not waterproof before this. But I've got a bib on, I have a life jacket, rain boots, gloves, everything is waterproof except for my face. High spirits before we're out of the hour. How fun. This is great. Claire, jigging. Impressive. She's jigging, yeah. Yeah, that's my wife. That's a good jig right there. Yeah. Look at that. You ever jig before? Not really. It's a blueback fish. Can we keep this one? No, this is not. Oh, Chad's first catch. Well done. In he goes. Wow, look at how beautiful it is. Well done. Sammy, she's an outdoorsy girl. How are you feeling? Pretty good. We got fish, girl. I know. What? Tell her the truth. I want to catch a fish that I can keep. And that's the truth. Because I want to eat today because I'm getting hungry. Yeah, I am hungry. Oh, ----, food is wearing off on me. We need them all the time to feed us our lines. You're like the teleprompter. Hey, Chad, do you have a fish? Yeah. Oh. Yeah. It's a copper blueback. Oh, he's got big bulgy eyes. Second catch of the day. Wow, he really does look blind. Oh, my goodness. Quick pause as we say thanks to the sponsor of today's video, Factor. One thing Claire and I have learned from our years of traveling is that the days before and after our trip are typically super chaotic. We're either packing or unpacking, editing, finishing up any last minute emails or responding to emails that we missed during a trip or picking up our dogs and getting them resettled into our routine. And honestly, that's why Factor has been super helpful for us. Factor delivers fresh, chef-crafted meals right to your door, and they're ready in just two minutes. So instead of spending time grocery shopping or trying to figure out what we're going to cook for dinner after a long travel day, we can just heat something up and get right back to work. And what I especially love is just having these meals waiting for us either before we go on the trip or after we get back. If you'd like to try Factor out, click the link in the description box below or scan the QR code on screen to get 50% off your first box and free daily greens. Thanks again to Factor for supporting what we do. And with all of that, let's get back to Alaska. Cheers! A very successful fishing trip. Yeah, the most successful. Yeah, I haven't fished in a while. Our fishing experience was a grand success. Everyone on board did catch something, but we were only able to keep four of the fish. And so once we made it on shore, there was a chef over here that actually cooked all of our fish fresh for us. He paired it with a cioppino that's made right here in-house, and it was absolutely delicious. It was actually a bit of a kick to it, but it was very light and refreshing, and it paired so well with the raw fish. And then he had some buttered ciabatta to pair with it. Man, it was just such a great feast to have after being out on the water all day. I just couldn't believe that we actually did catch something despite the rainy weather and the rocky waves. But this meal is kind of like the trophy at the end of our fishing experience. Wow. Thank you. We just wrapped up our Alaskan wilderness and dining experience where us, along with Sammy and Tommy, were on a private fishing boat. And it was so cool to just skip along the water and to fish in so many different locations. And we caught, I believe it was three different varieties of fish. So after we went fishing, we were able to bring our fish to this wilderness camp that was way, way, way out there. And they already had people waiting for us with fires and hot drinks. I had coffee mixed with hot cocoa and a little bit of half and half, and it was really tasty. Yeah, and I had this cranberry apple tea. And then, of course, we delighted in that fresh fish. They made it right then and there. Amazing meal. But actually, as we were coming off from that island, we spotted some bald eagles up in the trees, and we were able to get, I don't know, it felt like a National Geographic moment with the eagles swooping down, grabbing fish from the water and flying away. Yes, it was incredible. It was so close to us. They were huge, absolutely massive eagles. We just don't see birds that big where we come from. So what a treat that was. We have now made it back into Ketchikan. It was really cool to venture out, but now we're going to take in this funky little town. We've heard a little bit about the history. We're excited to scroll through Greek Street. We have walked over to Creek Street, which is the historic red light district here in Ketchikan, which operated from the early 1900s to the 1950s. And now prostitution is illegal, and so it is no longer in operation. There are about 20 different brothels along the street. Apparently, back in the prohibition era time, the tide would rise, and a lot of these homes actually had trap doors underneath them in order to get the liquor or alcohol in the middle of the night in secret and in private. But as you walk along the street, there's so many plaques that will talk about the history of each of these homes. I was just reading one that's talking about the Star House, which is named after an inlaid star that's on the floor of the home. It is the only registered brothel that was in the state of Alaska, and it was built back in 1902. Claire and I are going to keep wandering along Creek Street until we meet up with Married Man's Trail, which is where apparently the married men from town would take the trail in order to come into the red light district at night. Very naughty. Naughty married men. At the very end of Married Man's Trail is a salmon run where you can watch salmon jump upstream when they are here. Currently, they are not here. It is May, and we had come previously in September, and we were able to see a couple still trying to swim upstream during this time of year. Not a single one in sight. Just a lot of flowing water. I typically do the entries for my mini travel sketchbook on site. There was no way I could have done this on site while we were fishing. I really wanted to draw one of the fish that I caught today, and this is the copperhead rockfish or copper rockfish. Something with copper, and it's a rockfish of some kind. But it was just such a beautiful fish. Very spiky, and yeah, that's my entry for Ketchikan. Before we made it to Ketchikan, we actually started our adventure all the way back in Vancouver, and we had two sailing days to get to Ketchikan, and during those two days, we were really delighting in the amenities of the ship. We want to give you a little recap of all we've been up to for the last three days. There have been so many experiences to do on board. We have been enjoying their specialty dining. We actually headed over to Teppanyaki, which is their hibachi restaurant, and that was a very exhilarating and stimulating experience. You get entertainment while getting some really delicious food. I've never had filet mignon or lobster as a choice of meat for a hibachi, and so that was very delicious. We also drove bumper cars. All right, seatbelt. Oh, yeah. Get away, get away. Along with surfing some waves on the FlowRider, even though I actually didn't make it too far this time, I got to keep trying and practicing. It's time to fly in the sky. I was able to try their iFly, which is their skydiving experience, and it was so cool to feel the weightlessness and how however you move your legs or your arms, it'll affect the direction that you go. We also got a 50-minute hot stone massage at the Vitality Spa and Salon on board, and that was absolutely amazing. We almost fell asleep, but I always try to stay awake so I can really appreciate the artistry that is massage therapy. My favorite part was at the end. It was the most wholesome ending. They put Chad's hand in mine, and I was just like, oh my goodness, what a special touch. I've never gotten that in a couple's massage before. And then we were able to go over to their thermal suite and lay on some of these wonderful hot beds, just relax those muscles even more. One other experience that I've been so giddy to try is actually rock climbing. I love rock climbing so much, and I was able to go up on somewhat of a windy day, and it was so funny because I literally felt like I was on an old-timey ship where you're trying to get to the top to look out for pirates or something because it was just blowing so much up there, but I loved it. It was so exhilarating. We've also been able to delight in a lot of their live music and some of their performances. We actually went to Live Love Legs last night, and the performers were just so talented. It's so cool to see the passion they have for what they do and just a wonderful way to end the night with such great entertainment. One of my favorite places on board is their solarium, which is kind of like this indoor greenhouse with heated pools and whirlpools and plants, and it's such a good place to go if you want to just go read a book or dip your feet in the pool or have a little drink. It is just so relaxing in there. Tonight for dinner, we're dining at Chop's Grill. It's the on-board steakhouse here. You guys have been once before for brunch, right? We have. We have been to brunch before, and now we are hoping to get a surf and turf tonight. I don't know if you know what you're getting, but... I don't know what I'm getting, but something yummy. Cheers. Here we have the old 32-ounce tomahawk steak. Was it necessary to pick up? It was necessary. You're like, we're the trip's sunstone. Tommy, what'd you get? And then we got lobster to share. We ordered the same thing, the tomahawk too, and the lobster. We got every appetizer. Amazing bottle of wine. Cheers, you guys. Another fantastic dinner here on board for again. Thank you so much for joining us here in Ketchikan. If you'd like to see where we go next, hit subscribe. And with all of that, we'll catch you all next time. Bye.