Skagway - Rent a car or Train excursion??

Hello, First time Alaskan cruise for us. Is it better to rent a car and travel to whitehorse or Emerald Lake on our own or take the train / bus tour?? Thank you!

Hello, First time Alaskan cruise for us. Is it better to rent a car and travel to whitehorse or Emerald Lake on our own or take the train / bus tour?? Thank you!

I would take the train/bus tour instead of driving. You won't have to worry where to stop to see the sights. The bus driver/tour guide will give you all the info on what you will see . The view from the road and train very different .

Hello, First time Alaskan cruise for us. Is it better to rent a car and travel to whitehorse or Emerald Lake on our own or take the train / bus tour?? Thank you!

It is entirely up to you, but from a personal perspective I always find the Y&WPR a fascinating experience. It is a railway that is steeped in history.

And I will take the other side and tell you to rent a car and drive.

I guess it all depends on what type of person you are. Ourselves, we like to go at our own pace, stopping when we like, spending an extra few minutes, or longer, at places WE find worthwhile. We like to stop and chat with locals and not worry about getting back to the train or bus. I love to take pictures and will wait a few extra minutes, maybe for the sun to come out to make a good pix, great. But, as I said, if you are one that likes to go at your own pace, rent the car. if you want others to do the driving, or just sit back and watch the world roll by, take the train.

I know too many people are always rushing from one place to another and never 'step to smell the roses' as they say. We always do, so don't want some one to tell us to move on, when we don't really want to.

PLUS, the drive to Emerald Lake is a very easy one. It's not like you are single lane, climbing some mountain. Even as the driver, you can relax and see the wonderful scenery, stopping when you like and moving on when the mood suits.

Cheers

Len

The first time I was there, my friend and I rented a car and drove, stopping anywhere and everywhere that we wanted. We had a fantastic day!!! The next time I was there, I was with my husband and son and we took a highly recommended combo trip, bus up, train back. It was very frustrating for me on the bus because we just drove past many of the beautiful spots that my friend and I had stopped and enjoyed. I was taking pictures out of the bus window because we only stopped at a few of the highlight areas, not all the little ones that were just as picturesque. I realize that the bus is on a schedule and can't make all the stops that my friend and I did, but if I were to go again, there is no way I'd go on the bus and be forced to stick to a schedule! ( I did enjoy the train, but once is enough for me on that ) I know MANY people love the tours and highly recommend them, I'm just not one of them. That's why there are choices.....

My wife and I are taking the Crown Princess to Alaska this May and are asking ourselves the same question. Right now we are leaning towards the Green Jeep rental. We have lots of other excursions booked and felt like it would be nice to have one day just to ourselves, doing our own thing, at our own pace.

Hello, First time Alaskan cruise for us. Is it better to rent a car and travel to whitehorse or Emerald Lake on our own or take the train / bus tour?? Thank you!

But it requires at least one person in your party who doesn't want to ride the train and is willing to drive the car up to Fraser.

The driver has plenty of time to stop and take photos along the way because the car gets up to Fraser long before the train does.

The previous posts here have already described the advantages of renting your own car over booking a commercial tour.

If you download Murray's Guide, highly recommended, it tells you everything to see and do along the way, like having your own private guide right there in the car with you.

Just google Murray's Guide.

At Skagway we like to do the rental car + train ride combination.

 

We rent a car for the day. Those in our party who wish to ride the train buy a one-way train ticket from the Skagway train station up to Fraser.

The driver drives the car (very slowly) up to the Fraser train station and waits there for the train to arrive.

 

Then everyone continues on in the car together for the trip from Fraser up to Emerald Lake and back down to Skagway, stopping to enjoy the sights along the way.

OP In years past there has be discussions that lead to concluding that Canadian citizens could not rent US plated cars to drive to Canada because of some fine print in the laws. You may want to check that out. Hopefully that has changed but if not and if that is true you may be able to share a car with someone on your roll call.

Sightcrr

And I will take the other side and tell you to rent a car and drive.

 

I guess it all depends on what type of person you are. Ourselves, we like to go at our own pace, stopping when we like, spending an extra few minutes, or longer, at places WE find worthwhile. We like to stop and chat with locals and not worry about getting back to the train or bus. I love to take pictures and will wait a few extra minutes, maybe for the sun to come out to make a good pix, great. But, as I said, if you are one that likes to go at your own pace, rent the car. if you want others to do the driving, or just sit back and watch the world roll by, take the train.

I know too many people are always rushing from one place to another and never 'step to smell the roses' as they say. We always do, so don't want some one to tell us to move on, when we don't really want to.

 

PLUS, the drive to Emerald Lake is a very easy one. It's not like you are single lane, climbing some mountain. Even as the driver, you can relax and see the wonderful scenery, stopping when you like and moving on when the mood suits.

 

Cheers

 

Len

I couldn't have said it any better! This June will be our first trip to Alaska and this describes us exactly. I'd much rather hop in a car and go out on our own and at our own pace, stopping when WE want to instead of being locked into someone else's schedule. Plus, it'll be nice to escape the hordes for a bit! I figure, if I could drive the Going to the Sun road and the Beartooth Highway last year, the drive to Emerald Lake oughta be a piece of cake!

When we booked this cruise, the first thing we did is reserve a car from Avis. Just gotta remember to bring the passports with us... :D

I can see the positive in both sides but for me I prefer to have someone else do the driving. I drive enough during my normal life, so for me to sit back and let someone else keep their eyes on the road, I am all for it!

It is really a very easy, relaxing drive, nothing at all like driving in a city or driving the Pacific Coast Highway. :D

The driver does not miss out on the scenery because it is one road, so you can't get lost, and for most of it you can go as slowly as you like.

We laugh when they ask if we want a GPS because if there is anyplace where you don't need one, that is it.

There are only a few places along the drive that really require the driver's full concentration .

Besides, if you go with someone else, you can trade off the driving.

Maybe share the price of the rental car and the driving with someone on your roll call.

In some areas of that road I have glided along for miles at no more than 10 - 15 mph without seeing another car, easily able to look all around and take in the sights very safely.

I was impressed by what a level, well-maintained road it is, much smoother than the pothole ridden USA roads I am accustomed to driving on.

Also, there are lots of turnouts all along the road where you can pull over to take photos, or you can just use the turnouts to let another car pass you if one comes up behind you, and then continue on at your own pace.

This is another vote for driving yourself. It is an easy, interesting, and beautiful drive.

We've both driven the highway and taken the train, and actually, both are very enjoyable. You will be happy with either option.

Another vote for renting a car! We're doing it for the third time this summer; wouldn't have it any other way.

It's a gorgeous (and easy) drive, you can stop whenever/wherever you'd like, and who knows...maybe you'll even have the opportunity to get up close and personal to some pretty fantastic wildlife!

Quick practical question re car hire. Where do you pick up car from in Skagway?

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Quick practical question re car hire. Where do you pick up car from in Skagway?

 

 

 

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The Avis office is downtown. A few times it has moved locations but it is always walkable from the ship.

Thanks for speedy reply Coral.

Do you know if any of the other car hire companies have locations downtown as well?

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Thanks for speedy reply Coral.

 

Do you know if any of the other car hire companies have locations downtown as well?

 

 

 

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Green Jeeps in Skagway (on-line reservations) will pick you up close to the pier!:cool: Easy peasy!! Looking forward to our drive to Emerald Lake this July!!:p

The only problem I have with driving is that as the driver I miss stuff that the passengers are seeing.

The only problem I have with driving is that as the driver I miss stuff that the passengers are seeing.

The way to solve this is one person drives there and another drives back.

We plan on driving and using Green Jeep. I like to take a lot of pictures and want to be able to stop where I want and spend as much time as I want. Defintely want to linger at Emerald Lake and get some good pictures.

Is green jeep better? And why?

Avis is $119 when we go. Green Jeep is $160.

What's the diff. Other than they meet you at the ship?

We drove out to Carcross/Emerald Lake a few years ago and it was an incredible drive (I was the driver). While Emerald Lake is the final destination, there are many other lakes en route that are at least equal. This year I hope to do the train, mostly because I really like to travel by train.

Is green jeep better? And why?

 

Avis is $119 when we go. Green Jeep is $160.

 

What's the diff. Other than they meet you at the ship?

We haven't used them yet, but have a reservation for our cruise in May. You might check out their website at: http://www.alaskagreenjeeptours.com/

There are also many reviews here on Cruise Critic if you do a search.

Also Tripadvisor has some info:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g60877-d4211402-r184232514-Alaska_Green_Jeep_Tour_Rentals-Skagway_Alaska.html

BTW, they don't meet you at the pier, you have to go to their office and they give you a map of where to go. At least they provided one to me when I made the reservation.

We chose Green Jeeps over a car because we want to drive to Dyea and were told that wasn't possible with a rental car. They give you a CD with tour info, maps, and snacks. They were super nice on the phone and easy to work with. And my hubby really wanted the Jeep and $40 isn't that big of a deal to us.

This will be our first Alaska trip as well & we too are doing the Green Jeep Rental. There are 5 of us, 2 over 6" tall, so we splurged on the 5 passenger Jeep. We are looking forward to having the time to ourselves, we did buy tickets for the Carcross buffet, museum & husky camp but other than that, our time will be ours.