Ketchikan was the first stop on our cruise to Alaska which started in Vancouver. After spending an entire day at sea, I could hardly wait to set foot on land! But when we finally docked I was a little disappointed. The town seemed small and very quiet, still covered in the morning fog.
But our day in Ketchikan was going to be anything but dull or boring. Ketchikan may be small, but there are quite a few fun things to doin this fishing village, besides catching salmon.
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Ketchikan First Impression
As the sunlight was melting the fog of the calm, cold morning I was blown away by the beauty unfolding before my eyes. There was majesty, mystery, and serenity.
The scenic fishing village of Ketchikan was once considered the salmon capital of the world. The town still has a pretty big fishing industry, although fishing is no longer the town’s main source of income.
The town’s colorful atmosphere reminds me a lot of the Cannery Row in Monterey, on the Pacific Coast of California. But unlike sunny Monterey, Ketchikan is famous for “liquid sunshine” and rubber boots!
Considering that this area only gets 100 sunny days a year, I guess we were lucky to see the sun shining that day.
Best Things to Do in Ketchikan in a Day
Ketchikan is small enough to be explored on foot, so the best way to go around is walking. The main attraction in town is the historic Creek Street, the former “red light” district of the town. The antique boardwalk lined up with restaurants and souvenir shops was built in 1903 along the shores of Ketchikan Creek.
1. Walk Around the Waterfront
The waterfront is also the dock where the cruise ships arrive. As you get off the ship you are right in the middle of everything. Take time to walk around the beautiful statue in the middle of the square then continue to the adjacent downtown area.
In downtown is where you’ll find most shops and restaurants. I have to warn you though that shops in Ketchikan are very tempting. From fabulous fur coats, to beautiful art galleries and hand crafted jewelry, you can spend more money than you want here!
2. Visit a Former Bordello (Dolly’s House Museum)
One of the most fun things to do in Ketchikan is visit a bordello. Relax! I’m not talking about a real active brothel, but rather a bordello museum. In the mid 1920s there were over 20 bordellos on Creek Street.
During the prohibition, Creek Street was the place to go for a drink. Since Creek Street was built on the water, the bootleggers could smuggle whiskey into the houses of prostitution and the saloons through trapdoors in the floor.
Today, the only reminder of that bygone era is Dolly’s House Museum, the former residence of Dolly Arthur, the infamous madam who once made a career in prostitution here. The museum is crammed with memorabilia of her life. The rooms are the same as when she lived there.
3. Admire the Native American Totem Poles
Ketchikan is home to the world’s largest collection of Native American totem poles. There are over 80 of them located throughout the town. It seems you can’t go a few blocks without seeing one!
Some of these poles are more than 100 years old and have been salvaged or reconstructed in an effort to preserve them. This collection is one of the things not to be missed when you visit Ketchikan.
4. Take a Boat Trip Through the Misty Fjords
Sailing through the majestic Misty Fjords is by far the best thing to do in Ketchikan! If you are ever in town, don’t hesitate to explore this national monument.
The Misty Fjords National Monument lies about 22 miles east of Ketchikan and covers over 2 million acres within the Tongass National Forest.
As the boat slides silently on the still water, you’ll be surrounded by thick rainforests that grow on nearly vertical slopes. The area is an incredible landscape of water: saltwater passageways, freshwater streams and waterfalls.
The landscape of the Misty Fjords was shaped by glaciers. The sheer granite cliffs are heavily marked by the grinding action of the glaciers that once flowed here. Wildlife in the fjords is very abundant. Chances to see Bald Eagles, mountain goats, or brown bears are big.
5. Have Lunch at the Fish Pirates Saloon
If you are in Ketchikan for a day, don’t miss eating some of the local specialties. We stumbled upon the Fish Pirates Saloon, one of the popular joints in town. The place was packed with locals during the noon hour, but a guy invited us to join him at his table (not uncommon in Alaska). We had a good lunch and a great conversation!
READ NEXT: Best Places to Eat on Maui Island
6. Go Salmon Fishing With the Locals
Ketchikan is a fisherman’s dream. Every year, huge runs of salmon migrate from the open ocean into the protected waters of the Inside Passage, near Ketchikan. If you have a passionate fisherman, going on a fishing trip is one of the most rewarding things to do in Ketchikan!
With five species of salmon, you’ll have a blast here. My husband caught 4 huge salmon here, and we had them smoked and delivered to California.
A Final Note
Ketchikan is not only a lovely place to visit, but also a photographer’s dream! No matter where you point your camera, you’ll capture an image suitable for framing. There were so many more things we would have liked do in Ketchikan, but we couldn’t fit more in one day.
After a busy day in Ketchikan we returned on the ship to continue our sailing. As I laid down in my comfortable bed, I was glad for putting so much thought into choosing our cruise cabin.
Did you enjoy this post? Please leave me a comment below and pin this for later:
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Jean dunn
Hi,
We will be in Ketchikan on June 11, 2023. Did you book your fishing with the locals ahead of time or with a tour? And how far ahead did you do this?
Anda
We booked the trip ahead of time because we only had one day in Ketchikan.
Kathryn S Barter
I so enjoyed reading about your trip to alaska. Myself and 2 girlfriends are going on princess in August of this year. Can’t wait to see this beautiful area. I have been to 48 of the 50. Alaska will make 49.
Anda
Wow! Visiting 49 out of the 50 States is something, Kathryn. I envy you. I’m sure you’ll have a lot of fun in Alaska. I’m planning to return there myself someday.
Patty
Thx for the enlightenment. Leaving soon on the Princess 10 day cruise.
Anda
I’m sure you’ll have a lot of fun in Ketchikan, Patty.
Natasha
Wow interesting to look at Ketchikan through a tourist view point I had my boys there and grew up on Prince of Wales Island my dad was a faller on flouting log camps and I lived in Ketchikan have family still lives there so I just see these places as tourists stops not as anything exciting to see. But I guess if I was just visiting Ketchikan I would do same I think of hiking spots waterfalls fishing place Townies go to as more of a true experience of place.
Cheryl MacDonald
Can you tell me where we could hike from the port to see waterfalls? We will be there in two weeks!
Anda
There’s a trail that takes you to the waterfalls, but to reach the trail from the port you’ll need some means of transportation. Our cruise provided a shuttle that took us to the trailhead. I hope this helps.
Julia Reed
Alaska is absolutely stunning. The nothern nature is indeed gorgeous, and your photos show it the best. Hope I’ll see Alaska some day.
Anda Galffy
Hope you will see Alaska, Julia. It’s a very unique place, like no other I’ve seen.
Vicki Green
We took an Alaska Cruise this past summer with Holland America, too. We departed from Seattle on the Westerdam. It is unfortunate that you had unfriendly, rude servers – ours were a hoot and we had a lot of fun with them. We did have some issues on the Westerdam, but they were with the guest services desk. There were some small issues – balloons ordered for my in-laws room that said “happy birthday” instead of “happy anniversary”, that weren’t that much of a big deal, but the ones that really irked us is that we got bumped from our original cruise departure date when someone rented the entire ship so we received some shipboard credits and a free dinner at the Pinnacle Grill for 2 people per cabin. We had booked a cabin for 3 because we brought along our 12 year old granddaughter, but didn’t get a shipboard credit for her dinner. We called the desk and told them that we understood that we only got dinner in the grill for 2 for free and we were willing to pay the $20 charge for our granddaughter so we could all have dinner together. We were told that there was no room for any additional people. (Including the 3 of us, we were with a group of 13) We called the restaurant directly as well and were told the same thing. The night of our reservation we just showed up with her along and they magically were able to find a chair for her and a space at the table. It was ridiculous that they didn’t say that they would add her to the reservation the first time we called. Did they really think we were going to leave one family member, especially a child, to eat all by herself somewhere else?
Anda Galffy
It seems to me the service was not quite that great on your ship either, Vicki. I would have been very pissed if they did that to me.
Linda Bibb
We took a Mediterranean cruise with Holland America a few years ago and I wasn’t particularly impressed. Not only did they (over)charge for every little thing, the food wasn’t all that impressive. To me, the entire experience felt impersonal. I’ve begun to think that’s what you get with those mega-size cruise ships.
That said, the itineraries are pretty good. I’m looking forward to reading your Alaska stories because we haven’t been there yet. Judging from your beautiful photos, I’d guess that Ketchikan is a must-do destination.
Anda Galffy
I totally agree with you, Linda. I wasn’t impressed with Holland America at all either, but Alaska was really beautiful.
Yasha Langford
Hi Anda, thanks for hosting #TheWeeklyPostcard.
It’s really a fun way to see where other travel bloggers have been.
I particularly like your post about visiting Alaska because it brings back such lovely memories of our trip in 2006. We were driving ourselves on that trip too and took the inside passage ferry from Prince Rupert in Canada to Haines. Your photos of Ketchikan evoke some amazing memories for me – such a unique and beautiful place – and only reached by water.
Thanks again
Anda Galffy
Thank you, Yasha. You guys are so good with road trips and truth is that you get to see so much more when you travel by yourselves than with organized groups.
Tondalaya Gillespie
We leave Hawaii for a Holland cruise out of Seattle soon. Ketchikan is high on our list to see. Hope our Holland experience is a good one.
Anda
Immure you’ll love Ketchikan, Tondalaya. Have a safe trip!
Paul
Great post!!!! Thanks so much for the information!!!!
Pinay Flying High
My oh my! Ketchikan is absolutely stunning! I am absolutely in awe as I was going through the photos, what more if I was really there? In my head, I immediately thought of Monterey’s Cannery Row and then you mentioned it yourself. Hah!
That’s too bad re: Holland America Line service and I’ve been hearing about how ridiculous internet fees are while on board a cruise ship. Would you do a cruise again after your experience?
Anda Galffy
Yea, unfortunately service onboard Holland America was pretty bad.
Esther
This looks amazing!! Alaska holds such a mystery to me!
Paula McInerney
I would love to do this as Alaska intrigues me. Interesting observation about service – either aloof or too friendly. Finding that correct balance is difficult for some companies it appears. Great photos
Anda Galffy
I see this problem with the service in many places nowadays. Unfortunately, it’s harder and harder to get good service today, except for the very expensive places.
Shobha
That carpeting on the cruise ship confirms all my stereotypes about cruise ships! The town looks amazing; I can’t imagine 31 days straight of rain. It would be like living during the Great Flood. you were so lucky – the photos are gorgeous.
Anda Galffy
Yea, indeed like during the Great Flood. It must be terrible to live there.
Rhonda Albom
We went about two years ago and fell in love with Alaska. The fog in your photos gave Ketchikan a really magical feel. Spectacular photos of such a lovely town. The ship looks nice too.
Anda Galffy
Thank you, Rhonda. We were very lucky to have a sunny day in Ketchikan if you think that it rains almost 300 days a year.
samiya selim
Alaska is definitely very high on our bucketlist! Mostly for the nature and marinelife, but enjoyed reading this article, with a different take on what I normally read about Alaska 🙂 As always, your images are really beautiful and I learn so much of the history!
Lydia C. Lee
Wow! All I can say is WOW!! The earth is so beautiful….
Suze the Luxury Columnist
Ketchikan looks so picturesque, I would love to see all those totem poles. Alaska is firmly on my to visit list now
Anda Galffy
You definitely should go see Alaska, Suze. I’m sure you’ll love it.
Lyndall
Wow Anda – what a stunningly beautiful place! Your photos are gorgeous. I’d love to go to Alaska someday – this just makes me want to go sooner 🙂
Anda Galffy
Alaska is grandiose and beautiful, Lyndall. Hope you’ll see it someday.
Lyn @thetravellinglindfields
As you know we travelled to Alaska earlier this year. Rather than a cruise ship we took the Alaska Marine Highway which calls in at many of the same ports as the cruises. I look forward in the coming weeks to reading how your journey unfolds and to compare your impressions of Alaska with my own.
Anda Galffy
I know about your journey, Lyn. We thought about driving too, but didn’t have too much time to prepare so we opted for the cruise.