Post Cruise Land Tour - book w/ RCI or go it alone?

Hi Folks,

15 of us are currently booked on the Radiance next July from Vancouver to Seward. My dad would like to extend and do Denali for 11 of us after the cruise. According to him. the agent he is working with at AAA (don't get me going on him wanting to use a travel agent but it is what it is at this poitn) told him that the "only and best way to see Alaska afterward is to book direct with the cruiseline". I'm not liking the idea of jumping around to 4 hotels in 4 days when we have 4 kids.

Anyone have any feedback on the guided land part vs. DIY? And is there a good place to start for planning a DYI piece?

Thanks.

There are MANY cruisetour writeups in the Trip Reports posted in STICKYs near the top of the page. There are also some DIY land trips as well, but the best resource for land travel is the Alaska forum of tripadvisor. They will give you great ideas for sights, activities, lodging, dining, etc

Here are 2 DIY reports:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=50614349&posted=1#post50614349

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2376460

Cruisetours are a great option for some people, but I can't imagine 4 kids enjoying a cruisetour .... early mornings with luggage in the hallway by 6am, no flexibility with schedules. The shorter cruisetours are long on transit times so be careful of the details ; make sure you have enough time at your destination for planned activities. This is particularly true at Denali; you need 2 nights in Denali in order to do a bus trip into the park.

My trips have all been DIY .... rental RVs or cars w/tent camping, and the occasional hotel. It's very easy to get around by road; the hwys are primarily 2 lanes and there aren't many of them so it's impossible to get lost. And its great to have the flexibility to stop for scenic vistas or wildlife sightings or other points of interest. Also, car gives you access to more lodging choices .... cabins, inns, B&bs. With kids it's nice to have a kitchenette for snacks drinks etc.

Or if you don't want to rent cars, you can travel by Alaska Railroad or Park Connection Bus.

Totally ignoring your itinerary, I can't imagine anything worse than doing a land tour with 11 of my family members and our family gets along quite well. You are only asking for trouble. If do you do want to do a DIY land tour, do it with your own family and not with the extended group. Don't even invite them to come with you on your DIY trip.

If you do insist on doing the family togetherness land trip, I would suggest a cruisetour - not because they are any good (they aren't) but because there will be no family arguments on what you are going to do, where you are going to eat, and why Uncle Jake held up the rest of the group because he was not ready in time. The cruise line makes all the arrangements and you all follow along like docile or maybe not docile sheep.

We do a one week family get together every summer in a rental house. We make no effort to coordinate our daytime activities. Anyone else in the family is welcome to join my wife and I on whatever activity we are doing during the day and sometimes we join someone else in what they have planned. However, there is no pressure to do so. We do try to have dinner together but sometimes not even that if some of us want to go out to a restaurant by ourselves.

DON

It suddenly dawned on me that you said " 4 hotels in 4 days". Whether you go cruisetour or DIY, you will probably need 4 different hotels. I don't think you realize the distance you are travelling.

Seward to Anchorage is 130 miles

Anchorage to Denali 240 miles

And the hwys aren't your usual 4-8 lane freeways like in the lower 48; they're 2 lanes with slowdowns due to road construction and gawking tourists. And train travel is especially slow.

With only 4 nights it could look like this if you drive:

Day 1 disembark. Pick up 3 rental cars from HERTZ (the only vendor in Seward). Stop at Exit Glacier on your way out of town. Explore along the Turnagain Arm (visit wildlife conservation center). Overnight in Wasilla, about 1 hr north of Anchorage. (OR take a bus to Anchorage and pick up cars there. RT rentals are usually cheaper but is the cost of 11 transfers more than the steep drop off fee ?)

Day 2 complete drive to Denali, about 4 hrs. If you leave by 8am you could arrive in Denali in time for the free sled dog demo at 2pm. Check into hotel/cabins.

Day 3 shuttle into the park. Overnight again.

day 4 10am sled dog demo, hike, rafting or some kind of activity in the morning, then drive back to Anc to overnight and fly home the next morning. (OR drive 2 hrs denali to Fairbanks for a flight home)

Here's an RCI cruisetour that had 4 nites. Does it sound appealing for the kids?

Day 1 bus to Alyeska. Overnight

Day 2 bus to Talkeetna with stopover in Anc. Overnight

Day 3 bus to Denali 3 hrs. (bus tour into park declined) Overnight

Day 4 morning at Denali. Train to Anchorage. Overnight. fly home next day

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2240436

Fixed scheduled point to point travel in Alaska is a disadvantage. It is nothing I ever recommend for families. They likely will be the only kids. It is also the most costly option.

Do your homework and find out about mainland areas, so you can rank your interests. Too many cruisetours have wasted days at places, some at the expense of the really good ones. Case in point- Princess does not (usually) allow any time for Whittier, it is a gem for Prince William Sound. The other lines, usually don't allow any time for Seward- and some that may- are lacking in time and inclusions of just bay tours. Find out the details, then you know exactly what you are looking at with comparing itineraries.

Of course a travel agent is going to make that claim, big easy commissions. They don't want to be bothered with arranging car rentals, lodging for you. Just buy a package. I'd first question- how many times they have been to Alaska? Your going to find too many haven't been or are one hit wonders.

Take a look on trip advisor, a huge resource on mainland touring planning with superb experts to help planning.

Totally ignoring your itinerary, I can't imagine anything worse than doing a land tour with 11 of my family members and our family gets along quite well. You are only asking for trouble. If do you do want to do a DIY land tour, do it with your own family and not with the extended group. Don't even invite them to come with you on your DIY trip.

 

DON

LOL, well when the entire trip is being paid for by your father, the siblings (myself and brothers) tend to zip it and go with the flow. We vacation together quite often, with even more extended family, and we have never had an issue. Departing the group would be a slap in the face to the man with the cash :)

It suddenly dawned on me that you said " 4 hotels in 4 days". Whether you go cruisetour or DIY, you will probably need 4 different hotels. I don't think you realize the distance you are travelling.

Seward to Anchorage is 130 miles

Anchorage to Denali 240 miles

And the hwys aren't your usual 4-8 lane freeways like in the lower 48; they're 2 lanes with slowdowns due to road construction and gawking tourists. And train travel is especially slow.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2240436

I do understand the distance. But I have no interest in getting up at 6am to meet a tour guide. I want the luxury of being able to sleep in a bit if that is what we want, or staying put if one of the kids is under the weather.

The thought is something as follows:

Land Day 1 - Seward

Late afternoon - head to Anchorage for overnight (those not continuing on will catch a flight home the next day)

Land Day 2 - Train to Denali

Land Day 3 - Denali

Land Day 4 - Depart for Fairbanks

Day 2-4 will be spent at one hotel, outside the park.

I do understand the distance. But I have no interest in getting up at 6am to meet a tour guide. I want the luxury of being able to sleep in a bit if that is what we want, or staying put if one of the kids is under the weather.

 

The thought is something as follows:

 

Land Day 1 - Seward

Late afternoon - head to Anchorage for overnight (those not continuing on will catch a flight home the next day)

 

Land Day 2 - Train to Denali

 

Land Day 3 - Denali

 

Land Day 4 - Depart for Fairbanks

 

Day 2-4 will be spent at one hotel, outside the park.[/quote)

 

The train has only ONE departure per day, so you won't have any flexibility for sleeping in or whatever.

 

Unless you rent cars, the timing of your departure from Seward is determined by the schedule of the train, bus, or transfer company. The train leaves around 6pm. Also, in Denali you will need lodging that provides a ride to/from the depot and to/from the Denali entrance.

 

Another option to consider is a pkg trip with Alaska Rairoad. Details on their website.

 

Good luck with your plans!

I do understand the distance. But I have no interest in getting up at 6am to meet a tour guide. I want the luxury of being able to sleep in a bit if that is what we want, or staying put if one of the kids is under the weather.

 

The thought is something as follows:

 

Land Day 1 - Seward

Late afternoon - head to Anchorage for overnight (those not continuing on will catch a flight home the next day)

 

Land Day 2 - Train to Denali

 

Land Day 3 - Denali

 

Land Day 4 - Depart for Fairbanks

 

Day 2-4 will be spent at one hotel, outside the park.

If you really want to go to Fairbanks, then one-way car rentals would be prohibitively expensive. You could also consider returning from Denali to Anchorage. It is about 3 hours longer by road (rental car or bus) than Fairbanks.

Seward to Anchorage is late afternoon/evening could be by train, by rental cars or perhaps by bus.

If you did end up driving, you might be able to get by with 2 7-passenger minivans or maybe a couple of 9 or 12 passenger vans. You could compare prices of picking up in Seward vs. picking up in Anchorage and returning to Anchorage (if you end up in Fairbanks, the car rental will be expensive in any case and probably hardly worth it).

Two nights in Denali is key. You can spend the full day in the park. How old are the kids? Be sure they are engaged in the Junior Ranger program. It will really help during their time in the park.

Not sure why having a large family together on a tour is a problem. I would love to have my family with me on such a tour.

I suggest doing some homework on your own.

First, check out what the cruise line land tour would cost for all. then what would a company like Alaska Tours and Travel cost.

Then determine the cost of renting a vehicle or two from Anchorage. Only Hertz has one way rental from Seward and their prices are ridiculous. There are many hotel choices in Denali, but using TripAdvisor and Kayak, you can find out which is best. Be sure to add the cost of the Tundra Wilderness Tour in Denali for your group.

Not sure why having a large family together on a tour is a problem. I would love to have my family with me on such a tour.

 

I suggest doing some homework on your own.

 

First, check out what the cruise line land tour would cost for all. then what would a company like Alaska Tours and Travel cost.

 

Then determine the cost of renting a vehicle or two from Anchorage. Only Hertz has one way rental from Seward and their prices are ridiculous. There are many hotel choices in Denali, but using TripAdvisor and Kayak, you can find out which is best. Be sure to add the cost of the Tundra Wilderness Tour in Denali for your group.

We have already priced it out with RCI. They are actually holding the reservations as the cruise and land for 11 of us. What is holding us back from it is that we don't want to have set meeting times that are early and we don't want 4 different hotels in 4 days. Three is doable, 4 is not (that may seem strange but we travel constantly and I can say 3 vs 4 hotels does make a difference LOL).

I've started researching and think I have a "plan" and by plan I mean a basic itinerary of what areas we want to go, how we can get there and a list of things to chose from once there.

Glad I'm not alone in liking family together :) We have done it so many times that I find that many people to be no big deal.

We have already priced it out with RCI. They are actually holding the reservations as the cruise and land for 11 of us. What is holding us back from it is that we don't want to have set meeting times that are early and we don't want 4 different hotels in 4 days. Three is doable, 4 is not (that may seem strange but we travel constantly and I can say 3 vs 4 hotels does make a difference LOL).

 

I've started researching and think I have a "plan" and by plan I mean a basic itinerary of what areas we want to go, how we can get there and a list of things to chose from once there.

 

Glad I'm not alone in liking family together :) We have done it so many times that I find that many people to be no big deal.

We did Denali (the TWT) spending two nights there at the same hotel. Then another night in Anchorage prior to flying home.

We had a direct bus from Seward after disembarking that took us to Anchorage, where we had time for lunch and a free visit to the very nice museum there. Then another bus took us to Denali.

The TWT starts early, but I think we had a 8AM bus to pick us up at our hotel for that tour.

I don't see why you would not go all the way to Denali on the first day off the ship.

We are doing a similar cruise with Celebrity in July group of 8. We are taking bus from Seward to Anchorage Airport (the bus operator has a 25% off promo code now) http://www.akcruiseshuttle.com/seward/?gclid=CjwKEAjwv7HABRCSxfrjkJPnrWgSJAA45qA2A16qRN0tqAGGD8tC9ZEFLiytL9BVFUlVjOZtUntRdhoCmtzw_wcB

then picking up (2) rental cars from Avis. The Hertz car rental in Seward is CRAZY. wasnt to hot on transfer but between the (2) cars saved over $1,500

We have traveled before and no issues. I plan it all and they can do what i choose or do something different. we rarely have issues. But I am a bargain shopper as price is an issue when we are paying for 4 of the 8.

Good Luck!!

 

If you do insist on doing the family togetherness land trip, I would suggest a cruisetour - not because they are any good (they aren't) but because there will be no family arguments on what you are going to do, where you are going to eat, and why Uncle Jake held up the rest of the group because he was not ready in time. The cruise line makes all the arrangements and you all follow along like docile or maybe not docile sheep.

 

Great points.

For me RCCL is not an option for AK because their itineraries do not hold up to the ones on offer by Princess or HAL & that is just on the cruise ships where you can get away from everyone else - your own kids included - mine enjoys the Clubs on the ship where they do age appropriate activities. (With that said, if my father was paying, we'd do what he chose.)

I haven't seen anything about RCCL's cruise tour accommodations - which for me is a concern. The Princess & HAL ones make me want to do the land portion DIY - but that would be for our immediate family, not a group of 11...

& what if the tour that you want to do in Denali is already sold out on the one day that your tour is in the park... (or the weather isn't cooperating.)