Cruise ship season is ending in Skagway this week, with a record breaking number of visitors. The succesful season was a relief after the slow pandemic years.
Skagway’s busiest tourism season is coming to an end. For the first time in years, visitor numbers were not constrained. The pandemic is under control, and the municipality acted to ensure ships could dock safely at the railroad dock after last year’s rock slides. Skagway was ready for the crowds.
And the crowds came. KHNS asked Rocky Outcalt, the owner of The Klondike Doughboy, for a comment.
Outcalt: “Call me back, I’ve got about 20, 30 people in line in my store, and I’m pulling dough. That’s how good the season is.”
Jaime Bricker is Skagway’s tourism director. She has the numbers.
Bricker: “The latest statistics that I got for the end of September show us tracking towards that 1.2 that we were expecting.”
That is 1.2 million cruise ship passengers, a record for Skagway. Some store owners say the high number of visitors doesn’t necessarily translate to more sales.
Kristine Harder owns Buckshot and Bobby Pins, a store on Broadway.
Harder: “Although the town was certainly busy, my average sales were lower than 2019, people were spending less money, or not buying as many high ticket items.That kind of stood out for my store anyway.”
Bricker says she has heard this from store owners.
Bricker: “I’v heard a little bit of mixed sentiments from store owners, a little bit up, a little bit down, but what can we attribute sales being down to, is it the individual store, is it the culture of the traveler these days that are less interested in buying material things and more interested in spending money on experiences? There is just so many factors.”
Bricker says a high point of her season was working with the new Skagway waterfront ambassadors – a team of five residents, wearing high visibility vests, ready to assist visitors.
Bricker: “They were present on the waterfront, for the sole purpose of answering questions, and helping people find their way into town, or public transportation, or find their shore excursion. And I feel like that was really beneficial to the visitor experience.”
Bricker says Skagway is likely experiencing the same growth problems as other communities in Southeast Alaska.
Bricker: “The pedestrian and vehicle traffic on broadway is getting to point that we need to look at solutions for that.”
Bricker says the municipality might have to consider closing broadway to bus traffic, at least one way.
Bricker: “This would be in an effort to create more space for pedestrians, because right now they sort of spill off the sidewalk and into the street, and we become concerned that it’s a safety issue.”
Bricker says many tour companies have been sold out, and some visitors find themselves in town without a plan.
Bricker: “When people don’t prebook, they’ll get to Skagway expecting that they’ll have an opportunity to buy something,a nd it’s just too late. I think that’s part of the reason we saw an increase in traffic on our trails as well.”
This was the first years Skagway experimented with issuing busking permits for entertainers who could come perform for crowds in the park. Bricker says few people seized on the opportunity. This summer, only four applied.
Bricker: “Some of that has to do with the fact that everyone is so busy working elsewhere that it’s hard to find that free time to busk as a local. Some of the other problems that I heard from the buskers was that the location wasn’t good enough. It’ was my idea that busking would pull people away from crowded areas, in an attempt to alleviate some congestion, but that becomes not as lucrative for the busker.”
Bricker says cruise lines have already set their docking schedules for next year. Looking at it, she expects a similar number of visitors will come to town.
