Who has done the Rope and Zipline Challenge in Ketchikan?

Now that a few ships have been up and back... who has done the Rope and Zipline Challenge? How was it?

Hello,

I got back today from my trip on NCL Sun.

The excursion was very cool. The first day the whole thing was open was on the day we went (Tuesday the 24th), so we lucked out.

Basically, you start off learning how to work the harness and metal clips that hold you on the metal zips. You then climb through moving ropes, over a swinging log, over moving stairs, climb over a huge tree branch, and do 4 separate long zips over a gorge of cut-down trees.

The long zips over the gorge were fun, and very safe (they had 4-5 staff helping the 16 of us who were on the course). They obviously have put out a lot of effort into this.

Would I recommend this to a seasoned rock climber who thinks Mount McKinley is a joke? No. But for me, a decent athlete and certainly no chicken, it took me out of my "comfort zone", and I had a blast.

Was it a bit expensive? Yes. But no more so than Alaskan excursions in general.

Also did this excursion. Advertised on our ship as 8 zip lines and 4,500 feet of rope challenge. Actually was only 2 tip lines and about 500 feet of rope challange. ( I do know they are adding new stuff as we speak) But don't think it was worth the $125.00 I am sure there must be something else worth the money.

Actually was only 2 tip lines and about 500 feet of rope challange. ( I do know they are adding new stuff as we speak)

As I wrote before, they added the 3rd and 4th lines the day I was there (May 24th), and, according to them, they have since finished a bit more.

I agree that it was a bit pricey for what you got, but I didn't take a tour all week that wasn't!

Anybody know the name of the tour company??

Anybody know the name of the tour company??

I'm not sure, but I think this is it..

http://www.southeastexposure.com/rainforest-ropes-and-zip-challenge.html .

Those who have gone can confirm it...

Thanks Cathy,

I have been looking for that for a couple of months and it is just what I needed. :)

Misty

Hi all,

As promised, I am reporting in regarding the Rainforest Ropes and Zip Line in Ketchikan.

I do believe you have the correct website. (We just returned home yesterday, so once I get unpacked and find their card, I'll be able to confirm for sure.)

Overall, the staff at the course was EXCELLENT, the course was neat and a good time was had by all. That being said.... I agree with dcd34. This excursion is geared more for people who aren't as athletic as they used to be or for people who aren't exactly extreme thrill seekers. Our excursion was on Monday, May 16th. At that time, there were only two zip lines. Also, no repelling, as stated in Princess' description. The zip lines weren't as fast, long or high as I thought they would be, BUT, the staff was knowledgeable, friendly and safety oriented. I felt safe every step of the way. The staff was also very willing to video and photograph particpants. (With the participants cameras.)

Unfortunately, our excursion had some down sides due to poor planning on the part of Princess. We were the first tender to shore because our excursion was supposed to start at 7am. Once reaching shore, we were told to come back at 9:30am. Then we got postponed again until 10:15am with no explanation. Once we got to the course, we found the staff there had been ready for us by 6am. Our time was cut in half by Princess and then we had to wait another 45 minutes for our bus back to the dock area. Princess explanation was the transportation company (Princess!) didn't have our bus on their schedule so they postponed the first time. Then we had a bus by 9:30 but Princess neglected to realize the company running the course would have a group from another cruise there already, so that was the reason for our second delay. We are still unsure why our time was cut in half. That put a huge restriction on what we could see in Ketchikan, since we needed to stick around the dock area for status reports on our excursion. Princess finally agreed to give those of us that filled out a "comment" form a 50% discount for this excurion. If you didn't complain or fill out the form, you didn't get a discount for your inconveniences.

All of the negatives aside, had the excursion happened in a timely manner and had we been allowed the time designated, the excursion would have been great fun and there still would have been time to really see Ketchikan.

Barring any delays, I would recommend this excursion because the staff working the course was great and made it fun for everyone! :-)

Please let me know if you have any questions, I would be most happy to answer any that you have :-)

I have been looking for zipline info and ran across this older post. I thought others might find it helpful too. I'm waiting for a response from the company but may have to wait until April to reach them. Has anyone had experience booking the excursion independent of the cruise line?

I did not book independent of the cruise line for this tour, but I want to believe that if I had, it would have been even better!! The people running this company couldn't do enough for us while we were there and they really encouraged their customers to have a great time. They even took videos and photographs of us while we were swinging from tree to tree... LOL Given the chance to go again, I wouldn't hesitate to book with them directly, if there was an option to do so.