Many Alaska cruise guests look forward to sampling Alaska's famed local seafood on their cruise vacation. Freshly caught wild Alaska salmon is often the seafood of choice. There are five species of Pacific salmon: King Salmon; Sockeye Salmon; Coho Salmon; Chum Salmon and Pink Salmon. Alaska's cruise ports feature plenty of local restaurants where you can savor Alaska salmon on your vacation, but there are even more options for getting your fill of wild Alaska salmon on your cruise as well.

Here are five great places to get delicious freshly-caught salmon on your next Alaska cruise:

1. Grab A Bite At Alaska’s Best Salmon Restaurants. Juneau has a number of fantastic seafood restaurants and several of them serve outstanding wild salmon. Some of my favorites are Twisted Fish Company, Deckhand Dave’s and Hangar on the Wharf. The Salmon Spot is another good choice in Juneau, particularly for their salmon cakes. Tracy's King Crab Shack in Juneau is well known for their Alaskan King Crabs, Dungeness Crabs and Snow Crabs, but they also serve other fresh Alaska seafood like salmon and halibut as well.

Known as the "Salmon Capital of the World," Ketchikan is another great place for cruise guests to sample Alaska salmon. Vacationers should head straight for the Alaska Fish House restaurant, located at the end of Main Street on aptly-named Salmon Landing – just a short stroll away from the cruise ship docks. Here you can try smoked salmon chowder, salmon burgers, salmon fish & chips, salmon tacos, salmon salad and smoked salmon corn bread, all made with freshly caught wild Alaska salmon bought directly from local fishermen in town.

Skagway has several choice restaurants for salmon lovers as well. Some of these include Skagway Fish Company, Olivia’s, and Wild Alaska Catch. The salmon fish & chips are particularly good.

2. Try a Tasty Salmon Bake. There’s something special about wild Alaska salmon grilled over an alderwood fire. Sampling such a meal is a true Alaska experience. So while you’re on your Alaska cruise, head to a local salmon bake and try it out. The Gold Creek Salmon Bake is a popular Juneau attraction and it’s often combined with gold panning, whale watching and trips to Mendenhall Glacier. Guests can wander along the rain forest creek and take pictures at the Salmon Creek waterfall before sitting down to their all-you-can-eat buffet meal of wild Alaska Salmon, chicken, baked beans, au gratin potatoes, and a variety of other sides and salads. Don’t miss roasting marshmallows over the campfire and the blueberry cake for dessert. Other popular Alaska Salmon Bakes include the Liarsville Gold Rush Trail Camp & Salmon Bake in Skagway and the Chinook Shores Lodge Salmon Bake in Ketchikan.

3. Get Some Air – And Salmon, Too. Take a flightseeing tour from downtown Juneau and sample some of the best salmon Alaska has to offer. Guests on this excursion take a 35-minute Wings Airways flightseeing trip on their way to serene Taku Glacier Lodge, located across from five mile-wide Taku Glacier in a remote area of the Tongass National Forest. On the way, passengers fly over five massive glaciers flowing out from the Juneau Icefield. After landing on the water in front of Taku Glacier Lodge, there’s plenty of time to explore the lodge’s beautiful grounds or do a little shopping before sitting down to partake of an outstanding salmon feast complete with all the fixings. Taku Glacier Lodge expertly grills their wild Alaska salmon over an alderwood fire and the tantalizing smell often attracts wild black bears. After lunch and the opportunity for a lovely nature walk, a scenic 15-minute return floatplane trip brings guests back to Juneau.

4. Go Salmon Fishing. If catching salmon is more to your liking, arrange to go sport fishing on one of Alaska’s many Coast Guard licensed charter fishing boats. Some CVB’s in Alaska ports maintain a list of sport fishing tour operators on their websites. Full and half-day excursions are available and an Alaska state fishing license is required. Some fishing trip operators, such as Baranof Fishing Excursions in Ketchikan, will serve up your salmon catch for lunch in a wilderness dining setting or at the Alaska Fish House restaurant. They will let you take it back to your ship if you’re sailing on certain cruise lines so it can be cooked for dinner. Almost all guided fishing tour operators can arrange for your salmon catch to be shipped home if you’d prefer.

5. Take An Alaska Food Tour. Sampling fresh Alaskan flavors with local guides is a great way to try mouth-watering wild Alaska salmon. In Juneau, cruise guests can explore the city's food scene with Juneau Food Tours. On their excursion, they'll learn about the city’s history and culture while walking to selected restaurants and sampling local foods like fresh wild Alaska salmon, King crab bisque, crab cakes, hog wings, halibut nachos, craft beer and much more. Cruise guests visiting the port of Haines can get their foodie fix on the Taste of Haines tour, where they’ll have the opportunity to taste delicacies such as cold-smoked salmon, Lookout Stout smoked sockeye salmon, lemon-peppered halibut and local craft beers from the Haines Brewing Company, one of the smallest commercial breweries in the United States.