Excursion Timing Question

[Shanti]

We'll be cruising Alaska on the Wonder in June. The Wonder is scheduled to be in Ketchikan beginning at 11:15am the day we'll be there. I booked an independent excursion with a respected & highly rated private tour company, who scheduled our tour for 12pm (they'll pick us up at the dock), knowing that the Wonder's port time begins at 11:15.

This seems a bit early to me, but with such long experience and glowing reviews I assume that they know what they're doing. Does anyone anticipate a problem with us making this excursion? Are Disney ships usually on time? The reason I worry is that we missed our much-wanted excursion on the Fantasy due to the ship being late. However, that was the first port of that cruise, and the ship had departed Port Canaveral hours late due to winter weather slowing down passenger arrival. Ketchikan will be the last port of our Alaska cruise, so that exact problem should not re-occur.

Experienced cruisers, is the ship usually on time, and is 45 minutes enough time to get off the ship and onto the dock if you have no special status?

 

[apathetic]

Ships are usually on-time, but there are no guarantees. I don't think we have ever been late for a port, but it can happen. Normally the posted time is all ashore, so 45 minutes is plenty to meet up with your excursion. The tour operators are flexible too, so unless you are really late (and your onshore time is significantly reduced), the tour operators will work with you. That's their livelihood.