Best Of | 7 Things to Do in Juneau, Alaska

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For the full story, including all the transportation mishaps, imaginary bears and the Anchorage half of the trip, read my Wander Log: 6 Days in Alaska | Juneau & Anchorage.

Juneau was only the first stop on my six-day Alaska trip, but it was the part I had the hardest time leaving. In three days, I watched humpback whales bubble-net feed, walked to a glacier-fed waterfall, hiked through dense forest and open muskeg, and found a waterfront brewery that became my unofficial neighborhood bar.

Some of it was planned. Some of it I squeezed between work meetings. At least one outing began shortly after I accidentally sent my suitcase away in a Lyft. It was not a perfectly optimized Juneau itinerary, but it gave me enough time to find several places and experiences I would recommend without hesitation.

If you are trying to decide what deserves a spot on your own itinerary, these are the best things I did in Juneau, plus one cultural stop I missed and would make time for on a future trip.

1. Go whale watching in Auke Bay

If you only book one excursion in Juneau, make it a whale-watching tour.

I went out with Harv & Marv's Juneau Whale Watching on an 18-person boat with a captain and naturalist. The small group made it easy to move around and get a clear view without fighting through a wall of people every time someone spotted a tail.

We found humpbacks almost immediately, and they were bubble-net feeding. Humpbacks are generally solitary, but a small subset of Southeast Alaska whales has learned to work together to corral fish with bubbles before lunging through the concentrated school to feed. It was one of those wildlife experiences that made me forget I was cold, which is saying something because this Texas gal was very cold.

At one point, we saw a whale the crew said they had not spotted in more than a decade. It rolled upside down, slapped its tail against the water, flipped back over and kept going. We saw a partial breach - and between the feeding, dives and constant flashes of tail flukes, absolutely no one on the boat left disappointed.

You can book a whale-watching tour. You cannot book the whales. We got ridiculously lucky, but simply being on the water surrounded by the mountains of Auke Bay would have made the morning worthwhile.

2. Visit Mendenhall Glacier, Nugget Falls & Steep Creek

Mendenhall Glacier gives you five potential Juneau experiences in one stop: a glacier, a huge waterfall, several hiking trails, salmon spawning, and bears.

I opted for Nugget Falls Trail, an easy, mostly flat walk along Mendenhall Lake with views of Mendenhall Glacier and Nugget Falls. The trail is roughly two miles round trip and mostly paved or hard-packed, with an excellent payoff for very little effort.

I also walked Steep Creek, where salmon were spawning. Bears sometimes come into the area to feed, which created two additional potential Juneau experiences in one stop.

If you want a longer hike, East Glacier Loop was the one I wanted to add but ran out of time for. It remains firmly on my next-time list.

Nugget Falls Trail Snapshot

• Distance: Approximately 2 miles round trip

• Difficulty: Easy

• Trail type: Out-and-back, mostly paved or hard-packed and flat

• Highlights: Nugget Falls, Mendenhall Lake and glacier views

3. Hike Auke Nu Trail through forest and muskeg

Auke Nu Trail was the most distinctively Alaskan hike I did in Juneau.

The trail begins at Spaulding Meadow Trailhead and climbs steadily through dense forest toward a series of open meadows. It genuinely felt moderate to me, with varied terrain, plenty of incline and wooden plank walkways crossing the wettest sections.

The muskeg was the real surprise. Muskeg is the local term for the open, spongy peat bogs found throughout this part of Alaska. One minute I was hiking beneath towering evergreens, and the next I stepped onto a boardwalk surrounded by open meadow and sunlight. The contrast was beautiful, and I had no idea it was waiting for me farther up the trail.

The full route continues to John Muir Recreation Cabin and is approximately 6.6 miles round trip. I started around 4 p.m. with only a couple of hours available, so I turned around at the second meadow after hiking roughly three to four miles total. Even without finishing, this was easily one of my favorite trails of the trip.

Auke Nu trail snapshot

• Distance: Approximately 6.6 miles round trip to John Muir Recreation Cabin

• Time: Approximately 3.5 to 4 hours for the full route

• Difficulty: Moderate

• Trail type: Out-and-back, with dense forest, steady climbing, wooden plank walkways and open muskeg

If you want a hike that feels different from the more heavily visited trails around Mendenhall Glacier or downtown Juneau, Auke Nu deserves a spot on your list. Just give yourself more time than I did.

4. Wander the grounds of the National Shrine of St. Thérèse

I visited the National Shrine of St. Thérèse because I had heard the property was beautiful, and it absolutely was.

The stone chapel sits on a tiny island connected to the mainland by a causeway, surrounded by water, forest and mountains. The chapel was built using rock gathered from the beach at the shrine, and the waterfront grounds include gardens, walking paths and the Merciful Love Labyrinth.

It was peaceful without feeling like I needed to approach it as a formal religious visit. After spending the morning on a boat and the afternoon hiking, strolling around the grounds was an ideal change of pace.

I had also heard that the area tends to get more sunshine than Juneau and that locals sometimes drive north when downtown is covered in clouds. Sure enough, the sun was waiting for me. Obviously I cannot guarantee the weather will cooperate for you, but it certainly helped make the place even more beautiful.

The shrine is about 23 miles north of downtown Juneau, so it is easiest to visit with a car. Give yourself time to walk across the causeway, step inside the chapel and wander beyond the most obvious viewpoint. Even if you're not visiting for religious reasons, the setting alone makes it worth the drive.

5. Stop at Forbidden Peak Brewery for a cold one

Forbidden Peak Brewery was a one-minute walk from my studio in Auke Bay, which made it dangerously convenient and very easy to visit twice.

On my first night, I ordered a cranberry raspberry lager and Pad Thai with tofu from Red Spruce, the restaurant inside the brewery, then sat outside overlooking Auke Bay. The entire day had been mildly chaotic, including rental-car trouble and the aforementioned suitcase incident, so dinner and a beer beside the harbor felt like a full reset.

I returned the next evening after whale watching, six miles of hiking and successfully avoiding death by imaginary bear. The waterfront view was just as good the second time.

You do not need to be staying in Auke Bay to stop here. It pairs especially well with a whale-watching tour, the Shrine of St. Thérèse or Auke Nu Trail, and the outdoor seating makes the harbor part of the experience. Check the current food and beer menus before you go, since both can change.

6. Shop, eat and visit Tahku in downtown Juneau

Downtown Juneau is compact and easy to explore on foot, with restaurants, breweries, coffee shops and plenty of places to pick up locally made art and souvenirs.

My strongest downtown recommendation is to arrive before the cruise ships unload if you can. I wandered through the area while it was quiet and uncrowded, then watched it transform once cruise passengers arrived. If you are staying overnight in Juneau, use that flexibility to your advantage.

For lunch, I stopped at the Vintage Food Truck Park for a halibut taco from Deckhand Dave's, followed by a strawberry cheesecake crepe from Alaskan Crepe Escape. Both were excellent. I also liked Devil's Club Brewing Company, where I had a smoked-salmon rice bowl and a citrusy nonalcoholic drink that was refreshing without being overly sweet.

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While you are downtown, walk along the waterfront to see Tahku, the huge bronze humpback whale sculpture in Mayor Bill Overstreet Park. After seeing real humpbacks in Auke Bay, ending my Juneau visit with one more whale felt appropriate.

And if Rainy Retreat Books is open, you can also try your luck at spotting Mabel, the bookstore dog. She had a well-deserved day off when I visited, which was personally devastating but probably good for her work-life balance.

7. Check out Juneau's local arts scene at the JACC

This is the one place on the list I did not manage to visit, despite walking past it multiple times.

The Juneau Arts & Humanities Council operates the Juneau Arts & Culture Center, locally known as the JACC. The organization hosts rotating gallery exhibits, performances and community events, and its Lobby Shop features work from artists and vendors around Alaska.

It would be an easy cultural addition to a day downtown and a good way to see something created in Juneau rather than simply shopping the souvenir circuit. Because gallery access, events and operating hours can vary, check the JAHC calendar before building your plans around a visit.

I cannot give you a firsthand review yet, but it is exactly the kind of place I wish I had managed to squeeze into this trip. Next time.

How long do you need in Juneau?

I had parts of three days in Juneau while also working, and it was enough time to do everything on this list except visit the JACC and finish the full Auke Nu Trail. With three full days and a rental car, you could comfortably combine these stops without recreating my slightly frantic pace.

A practical way to group them would be:

• Day 1: Mendenhall Glacier, Nugget Falls and downtown Juneau

• Day 2: Whale watching in Auke Bay, Forbidden Peak Brewery and the Shrine of St. Thérèse

• Day 3: Auke Nu Trail, with time downtown for Tahku, shopping and the JACC

A car is not essential for every part of Juneau, but it makes Mendenhall Glacier, Auke Bay, Auke Nu Trail, and the shrine considerably easier to combine. Downtown itself is very walkable.

The best of Juneau

Juneau gave me exactly what I wanted from an Alaska trip, even when I was fitting it around work meetings: mountains, water, wildlife and trails so green they barely looked real.

Whale watching was the clear number one. Nothing else was going to beat watching humpbacks in Auke Bay. But what made Juneau memorable was how much variety fit into such a short visit. In one day, I could be on the water with whales, hiking through the forest, and standing beside a tiny stone chapel in the sun.

I left with several things still on my list, but I did not feel disappointed by what I missed. Mostly, I left thinking about how much I loved what I found.

For the full story, including all the transportation mishaps, imaginary bears and the Anchorage half of the trip, read my Wander Log: 6 Days in Alaska | Juneau & Anchorage.