Juneau, Alaska Strikes Deal with Cruise Lines on Passenger Limits

Juneau and the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) have agreed on daily limits for cruise ship passengers entering the city. The guidelines are effective starting in 2026.

Calculated based on lower berths, or the number of passenger beds on a vessel, Juneau and the cruise lines that call on the city set a maximum of 16,000 lower berths per day with a lower threshold of 12,000 on Saturdays.

Part of the signed memorandum of agreement (MOA) mentions an annual meeting to continuously optimize cruise ship schedules, evaluate passenger numbers, and discuss community goals. 

The agreement is an effort to address residents’ concerns regarding congestion and the city’s quality of life. Historically, the Juneau, Alaska registered up to 32,000 passengers daily, representing two-thirds of the local population.

Last year, Juneau received 1.6 million visitors, up from 1.2 million. Meanwhile, the City and Borough of Juneau (CBJ) report that there were 1.7 million passengers from April to October 2023, a 74% increase of around 700,000 visitors compared to the previous decade.

Renée Limoge Reeve, CLIA’s vice president of government and community relations, referred to the agreement as a “win-win partnership.”

Reeve said in a press release, “This latest agreement reflects the industry’s ongoing commitment to work with CBJ and the residents of Juneau to deliver win-win partnerships. We’ve heard the community’s concerns and will continue to partner with CBJ to improve the experience of residents and visitors alike.”

Agreement already Under Fire

Despite city and industry officials’ optimism, the MOA has already faced intense scrutiny. According to Karla Hart, who petitioned for a Saturday ban on large cruise ships, the new measures will still allow the cruise passenger population to grow to unprecedented numbers. 

Some residents are also concerned that only lower berths are counted towards the limit, meaning additional occupants won’t be tallied. 

“I think that the residents of Juneau, a significant number of us, are speaking pretty strongly that the cruise industry is having significant adverse impacts on our life,” Hart wrote in an email. “And the city tourism director and whoever else is making decisions with the city do not seem to be understanding that they have a real issue that cruise tourism is making a lot of people in Juneau, unhappy in many different ways,” she concluded.

In 2023, Juneau and CLIA settled on a cap of five large cruise ships per day.