Getting to Juneau
No road reaches Juneau: you arrive by ship, plane or ferry.
By Greg Peters, editor · Updated October 2026
New to Juneau? Our cruise port guide covers the docks, walking times, the town bus and getting back on time.
Cruise ships in port
No road in
No road connects Juneau to the rest of North America, so everyone arrives by sea or by air. Travel Juneau
By cruise ship
Ships tie up at berths along the downtown waterfront and South Franklin Street, or at the AJ Dock about a mile south, where a shuttle runs into town. Since 2026 the city and the cruise lines have kept to a voluntary limit of 16,000 passengers a day, 12,000 on Saturdays. Our cruise port guide covers each dock.
By air
Juneau International Airport is about 8 miles northwest of downtown. Alaska Airlines flies year-round and Delta adds summer flights from Seattle. Taxis, Uber and Lyft serve the airport. The city's airport bus, Route 6, has been suspended since April 20, 2026; Routes 3 and 4 stop about 0.4 miles away. Capital Transit
By ferry
Alaska Marine Highway ferries dock at Auke Bay, about 13 miles from downtown, with sailings to Haines, Skagway and other Southeast towns. No bus serves the terminal, so plan on a taxi. In summer the private Fjord Express fast ferry runs between Juneau, Haines and Skagway from Statter Harbor in Auke Bay. Travel Juneau: ferries
Weather
Summer highs average the low 60s °F, and rain is likely on any visit: Juneau gets about 67 inches a year, more than half of it from August to December. September is the wettest month. See weather for your dates.
Juneau news before you go
Want to know about a road closure, a festival or a change at the docks? These three Juneau newsrooms report on the capital every week.
- Juneau Empire: the city's longtime newspaper, in print twice a week and updated online.
- KTOO: Juneau's public radio and TV station (104.3 FM), with daily local and statewide stories.
- Juneau Independent: a nonprofit online paper started in 2025 by a former Empire editor.
Questions visitors ask
Which dock will my ship use?
Your ship’s daily program names it. Four docks sit on the downtown waterfront (the Alaska Steamship Wharf, the Cruise Ship Terminal’s two berths, the Intermediate Vessel Float and the Franklin Dock), and the AJ Dock is about a mile south. In Port Today will list docks once the 2027 schedule is loaded.
Can I walk into town from the ship?
From the Steamship Wharf and the Cruise Ship Terminal you are already downtown, a few minutes from South Franklin Street. The Franklin Dock is about 10 minutes from Marine Park on foot. From the AJ Dock most people ride the shuttle, though the walk takes about 10 minutes through an industrial stretch.
Is there a limit on cruise passengers?
Yes, a voluntary one. Since 2026 the city and the cruise lines have held to 16,000 passengers a day, 12,000 on Saturdays, with no more than five large ships a day. Peak days before the limit reached about 20,000 to 21,000.
When is downtown most crowded?
From mid-morning to mid-afternoon on ship days. Popular stops are calmer early and late, so start or finish there.
Where does the ship schedule come from?
From the schedule Cruise Line Agencies of Alaska publishes for Juneau. The 2027 one is not loaded yet, so for now your cruise line has your dock and times.