Juneau, Alaska, recorded its highest cruise passenger total for the 4th consecutive year in 2026, despite introducing voluntary daily limits on cruise visitors for the first time. The season, which ended on October 6th, saw 1,733,016 passengers arrive aboard large cruise ships, according to Alexandra Pierce, tourism manager for the City and Borough of Juneau.
The total represented an increase of ~2.6% compared with the 1,688,738 passengers recorded in 2025. Passenger numbers have risen steadily from 1,677,935 in 2024 and 1,638,902 in 2023.
Pierce said the results were broadly in line with expectations, noting that passenger totals typically exceed projected lower-berth capacity. Juneau operated at 104% of that capacity in 2026. Lower-berth capacity is calculated on the basis of two passengers per cabin, although actual occupancy can exceed this level when additional guests use pull-out beds, bunks and cradles.
The 2026 season was the first to operate under a voluntary daily passenger limit of 16,000, reduced to 12,000 on Saturdays. According to Pierce, the objective was to moderate the pace of growth and improve predictability for local residents and businesses rather than reduce the overall number of visitors. The city expects passenger volumes to remain relatively stable in 2027 and 2028, with annual lower-berth capacity projected at between 1.6 million and 1.7 million passengers across the 2023–2028 period.
The limits have also influenced cruise deployment patterns in Southeast Alaska. Royal Caribbean reduced its calls at Juneau in 2026 and is scheduled to make further reductions in 2027, directing some itineraries towards alternative destinations, including Icy Strait Point near Hoonah. The latter recorded a significant increase in passenger numbers during the latest season.
Earlier in the year, these changes prompted speculation that Ketchikan could surpass Juneau in cruise passenger arrivals for the first time. However, Ketchikan tourism manager Laurie Booyse said on October 7th that the city was projecting ~1.67 million passengers for 2026. Although this would remain below Juneau’s total, it would represent a substantial increase from the ~1.5 million passengers recorded in Ketchikan in 2025.
Ketchikan also recorded more cruise ship calls than in the previous year. Booyse attributed much of the passenger growth to the deployment of larger vessels, in addition to the increase in calls.
Meanwhile, the smaller Southeast Alaska community of Wrangell recorded ~75,000 cruise passenger berths through the end of its season in the final week of September, marking a strong summer for the destination.