Advice needed for Mariner Alaska cruise - new to Regent.

We've just booked onto the Mariner Alaska cruise in July and am really excited about it. It will be our first with Regent and I have high expectations so hope I won't be disappointed!

We booked on the spur of the moment and didn't at the time realise that Seward was so far from Anchorage. I'm now trying to work out our flights and transfers (they're not included in the last minute fare we paid). I'm currently considering either the train or a bus. Can anyone advise which is the most scenic?

Also, are there any excursions which are particularly recommended? We're only really interested in the free ones as the cruise is working out at quite a bit more than we'd usually pay for a week. We like getting some exercise, trekking, wildlife viewing and anything to do with water - whale watching, rafting, kayaking, boat trips. We'd love to see a bear!.....though not in a 'zoo'.

And are there any other useful tips? We'll be in one of the base level cabins - an F, I think?

Many thanks for your help

Train to Seward from Anchorage is the best. Scenic and relaxing, there is a train which gets into Seward at about 11-30am just right for embarking.

Look at the Alaskan Railroad website. You will be able to find the times and book tickets online. The train is very scenic and leaves very early in the morning from Anchorage.

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Highly recommend the train to Seward. It leaves early - maybe 6:30am? But it was a really lovely ride with great views. We saw a lot of eagles! You can easily walk from the train "station" to the pier (or walk into town and then walk to the pier).

In terms of excursions, we are a very active family and also looked for active excursions. We did kayaking in Sitka, which I would NOT recommend. It was kayaking "light" and quite frankly, we could barely tell we were in Alaska - we could have been on our local lake for all we knew! In Sitka we went to the national park and learned a lot about the history of Russia Alaska which we really enjoyed and to the church which was very interesting. We also did our own "hike" and saw tons of eagles targeting salmon in the sea and got to see salmon spawning up a stream which was fascinating! It was the only place while we were in Alaska (early August) where the salmon were spawning.

In Juneau we did the long hike, which was great! There are few different hikes, we unfortunately ended up not getting very close to Mendenhall Glacier and had a far away view but we did get very close to a pair of teenage bears. There are 2 Mendenhall Kayak trips - one does not go near the glacier so we were not interested but the other I believe did - unfortunately we were waitlisted for that one and never got off the waitlist.

In Skagway, we did a hike and raft ride. The hike was good but there were a number of people who had a hard time with the not very technical terrain which made the hike slow. the raft was not very exciting but the scenery was beautiful.

In Ketchikan we did not do anything active in that port so I do not have experience with active tours there. Ketchikan is overly touristy, so it would actually be good to 'get away' and do some hiking. When I was last there 20 years ago it was a small fishing town but now it is a fabricated tourist town.

Enjoy the trip! Alaska is beautiful.

you really can't go wrong on picking any of the hiking tours if you are active and able bodied. We also did the hiking/float trip in Skagway and loved it. The guide said we were the fastest hikers he had had all summer, and so we were able to go a lot further and see more.

We've just booked onto the Mariner Alaska cruise in July and am really excited about it. It will be our first with Regent and I have high expectations so hope I won't be disappointed!

 

We booked on the spur of the moment and didn't at the time realise that Seward was so far from Anchorage. I'm now trying to work out our flights and transfers (they're not included in the last minute fare we paid). I'm currently considering either the train or a bus. Can anyone advise which is the most scenic?

 

Also, are there any excursions which are particularly recommended? We're only really interested in the free ones as the cruise is working out at quite a bit more than we'd usually pay for a week. We like getting some exercise, trekking, wildlife viewing and anything to do with water - whale watching, rafting, kayaking, boat trips. We'd love to see a bear!.....though not in a 'zoo'.

 

And are there any other useful tips? We'll be in one of the base level cabins - an F, I think?

 

Many thanks for your help

We love both Regent and Alaska. Here's an option to consider: 1) go into ANK a day or so early. There is (or was) a nice Holiday Inn near the airport which is right at one of the world's biggest floatplane sites. 2) rent a car to be dropped off in Seward (a couple of years ago, there wasn't a separate drop-off fee). 3) drive (easy) to Seward, stopping off at Alyeska ( a great mountain resort) to sight see and have lunch in the little town at a terrific bakery. 4) Stop along the way at the wildlife reserve; it's not a "Zoo" but the many rescued wild animals are fenced (thank goodness). Stop outside of Seward at Exit Glacier - very somber to see what climate change is doing. 5) if you hve time, drive through the "new" tunnel towards Whittier and visit the terrific museum built in response to the Valdez disaster. 6) drop off the car right near the ship in Seward.

I would recommend the native canoe trip. I think it's out of Juneau. It's in a 12-person canoe, on a lake at the foot of a glacier, and goes to a glacial waterfall. Lovely scenery and a fun trip.

When I went they had us all in rubber suits. I don't know if that was because it was raining, or if it's standard. I had the sense it was the latter. But the funny suits didn't take away from the fun of the experience.

Thank you all so much - really helpful! We've booked our excursions now - with a focus on hiking and boats! Does anyone have any experience of the Ocean rafting trip in Sitka? We have spotted we can actually do that in the afternoon as well as a morning trip. Or would that be too much?

I'd almost decided on the train option for the transfer but then read the one-way car rental suggestion. I quite like the flexibility associated with that but haven't been able to find companies that do it. Does anyone know any companies we can try? I've looked at our usual ones and only found Hertz but they're quoting over $350 for one day!! So if that's the case, it's definitely the train!

I would recommend the native canoe trip. I think it's out of Juneau. It's in a 12-person canoe' date=' on a lake at the foot of a glacier, and goes to a glacial waterfall. Lovely scenery and a fun trip.

 

When I went they had us all in rubber suits. I don't know if that was because it was raining, or if it's standard. I had the sense it was the latter. But the funny suits didn't take away from the fun of the experience.[/quote']

 

We really fancied this and it was our first choice in Juneau but unfortunately it's saying it's fully booked. I don't know if that sometimes changes? Or if we just need to ask about cancellations when we're on board?

Thank you all so much - really helpful! We've booked our excursions now - with a focus on hiking and boats! Does anyone have any experience of the Ocean rafting trip in Sitka? We have spotted we can actually do that in the afternoon as well as a morning trip. Or would that be too much?

 

 

 

I'd almost decided on the train option for the transfer but then read the one-way car rental suggestion. I quite like the flexibility associated with that but haven't been able to find companies that do it. Does anyone know any companies we can try? I've looked at our usual ones and only found Hertz but they're quoting over $350 for one day!! So if that's the case, it's definitely the train!

The Ocean Rafting trip is quite fun. It is like the description. The raft travels quite fast and yes it is bumpy! The volcanic island is home to many sea birds. I often think back on how much I enjoyed that excursion. Karen

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Thank you all so much - really helpful! We've booked our excursions now - with a focus on hiking and boats! Does anyone have any experience of the Ocean rafting trip in Sitka? We have spotted we can actually do that in the afternoon as well as a morning trip. Or would that be too much?

 

I'd almost decided on the train option for the transfer but then read the one-way car rental suggestion. I quite like the flexibility associated with that but haven't been able to find companies that do it. Does anyone know any companies we can try? I've looked at our usual ones and only found Hertz but they're quoting over $350 for one day!! So if that's the case, it's definitely the train!

We did the car rental, and I will tell you that even though it is very expensive to do a one-way car rental from Anchorage to Seward (they know they have a captive audience), we really enjoyed driving ourselves. Our cost was not $350, probably more like $250, but it was several years ago. And it was Hertz.

Thank you all so much - really helpful! We've booked our excursions now - with a focus on hiking and boats! Does anyone have any experience of the Ocean rafting trip in Sitka? We have spotted we can actually do that in the afternoon as well as a morning trip. Or would that be too much?

 

 

 

I'd almost decided on the train option for the transfer but then read the one-way car rental suggestion. I quite like the flexibility associated with that but haven't been able to find companies that do it. Does anyone know any companies we can try? I've looked at our usual ones and only found Hertz but they're quoting over $350 for one day!! So if that's the case, it's definitely the train!

My wife and I booked GoldStar service ANK to Seward. The cost was $414 for the two of us. Not all that much different than the rental car. Depending on how you value flexibility the car could be a bargain.

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We really fancied this and it was our first choice in Juneau but unfortunately it's saying it's fully booked. I don't know if that sometimes changes? Or if we just need to ask about cancellations when we're on board?

When you get on board, ask to be wait listed. People frequently cancel, or if there's enough demand, they may add more canoes or a new time slot.

My wife and I booked GoldStar service ANK to Seward. The cost was $414 for the two of us. Not all that much different than the rental car. Depending on how you value flexibility the car could be a bargain.

 

 

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I was just getting ready to post something similar. When we did it, it was less expensive to rent the car, but we had our 2 boys with us, so train for all 4 would have been way expensive.

Thanks again. The train works out at $210 for both of us as we didn't think the Goldstar service would be worth it. The bus would be $130 and goes from the airport so may work out better as we'll be arriving late at night so an airport hotel may be more convenient. But am really tempted by the train as it sounds fun. Now investigating downtown hotels near the station!

Well, if you haven't booked Sitka yet, we loved the Sea Otter and WIldlife Quest, or whatever they may call it now. It was really wonderful.

Getting close to the Mendenhall is probably another must. We did a hiking trip up to the glacier lake, but as I remember, it had an extra cost.