Best Affordable Alaska Excursions

Just looking for some advice on excursions you enjoyed while on your Alaskan cruise that don't break the bank. Not looking for all free stuff but just some things we don't want to miss. We are leaving soon and can't wait for our first cruise.

Looking for ideas for

Ketchikan

Skagway

Icy Strait Port

Juneau

Thanks

If I was on an excursion budget and could only do 1 I would hands down do the flight seeing over Glacier Bay in Skagway with Mountain Flying Service, 3 different tour selections all flying over Glacier Bay seeing dozens of Glaciers starting at $199 pp

I recommend looking at the "Best of.... " at each port as a baseline.

We are leaving in two weeks and there are 7 of us: me, DH, our 3 kids and my parents. After investigating Alaskan excursions and realizing how much we could potentially spend, we chose to splurge in Ketchikan for Island Wings flight seeing over the Misty Fjords. For Juneau and Skagway we are renting a minivan for the day. It will seat us all, and costs $80 in Juneau and $200 in Skagway. In Juneau, we plan to drive to Mendenhall and hike to Nugget Falls, then drive out to Eagle Beach and the Shrine of St Therese. In Skagway we plan to drive the Klondike Hwy to Emerald Lake and back, stopping along the way. For our evening Victoria stop, we will likely just walk around.

Hope that helps!

We found nothing inexpensive about the excursions in Alaska & we do mostly private trips or with another couple. Check your roll call for trips of interest.

However in Skagway we used Dyea Dave for a nice excursion. They meet you at the pier in a mini-bus max 20 passengers to give you a 5-6 hr tour of the area. You will need your passport, as they go into the Yukon to Carcross. Emerald Lake & many other stops along the way. If you like taking photos they stop for many opportunities along this route in both directions. We took the early mourning tour & we were back in Skagway by 3pm. Plenty of time to explore the town & walk back to the ship for dinner. Cost last year was $79 pp. We chose this over the train for better picture taking & received lots of history from our driver Rene.

We enjoyed the best whale-watching boat tour in Icy Strait Point, however they are expensive. With a new dock ready for this season, they may have more visitors than 1 ship at a time. This town is very small, so plan your time accordingly as to things you might be interested in. We enjoyed a great lunch at the Misty Bay Lodge Restaurant in town. If you like seafood... They offer other options.

Ketchikan you can walk lots of places & explore the town. If your interested in totem poles, there is public transportation available to enjoy these sites. Lots of information about all these ports on the Alaska forum (ports of call)

Happy Travels, John

"Affordable" and "best" are pretty subjective terms. :) Can you tell us something about your group, and general interests? Then the recommendations will (hopefully) be about things that interest you.

4 adventurous and active adults in their mid 40s. Love th outdoors and nature

There are hikes of various difficulties in Skagway. More info here:

https://www.nps.gov/klgo/planyourvisit/shorterdayhikes.htm

The one thing I splurge on, every trip to Alaska, is a whale watch. Bpth ISP and Juneau offers them. IIRC for just a whale watch (no other stops/attractions/activities added on) it is around $170/person.

I would budget for 1 special activity that will be your memory of this Alaska trip.

Beyond that, there are numerous budget friendly activities at every port. Just look at the town web site for ideas. Look thru trip reports in STICKYs above. There's no need to spend a fortune .... a little research will provide you with many options that are free or under $ 30 pp.

ie in Ketchikan the visitor center booths have free maps for a self guided tour of the town ... Married Mans Trail, Creek St, fish ladder and nearby totems.

http://www.experienceketchikan.com/creek-street-ketchikan.html

Hi guys, will be goin in mid June, have already reserved Dyea Dave tour in Skagway, an can't wait to go. Have already decided to take the walkin tour in Ketchikan, an wander along the dock, got all the time in the world there, with no tours booked, at the moment no tours booked in Juneau, either. Any suggestions about dock walkin in Ketchikan?:eek:

Virginia

I'll agree with onespot.

Since I live faraway, the must-do's outweigh the costs. It depends on where you live and what you want from Alaska.

The expense just to fly, for me, made me make the decisions I did as well as the excursions I took. Telling myself I would never be able to afford to go to Alaska again, it was important to cross off all things Alaska on my 'bucket list'.

Well, after fulfilling the bucket list, I have found there is much more to do and see in Alaska. For that reason, I've decided that doing it right the first time, requires me to do it even better the second time.

My flight to the top of Denali, dogsledding on a glacier via helicopter, humpbacks on my photo safari, flight over Misty Fjords etc. cost a lot of money. It took me 3 years to save for it and was worth every penny.

Decide how important it is to you to enjoy all you can with the budget you have without denying yourself the things you 'wish you had done'.

You will be surprised at how little time you have to experience all you want to do...once you're there.

We have two excursions booked currently

Skagway - Train ride to the summit and then ride bikes down

Juneau - See the glacier and raft ride down the river.

The seaplane flight in Ketchikan is starting to look more like we may make it happen.

Misty Fjords floatplane from Ketchikan was one of our absolute favorites of all Alaska excursions.

We have two excursions booked currently

 

Skagway - Train ride to the summit and then ride bikes down

 

Juneau - See the glacier and raft ride down the river.

 

The seaplane flight in Ketchikan is starting to look more like we may make it happen.

Unbelievably, these are all exactly the same excursions as I picked. What are the chances of that??? We might better play the lottery!

To Nhsalyshaker

Thank you for the kind support.

Just to clarify a few things for us about our trip in September 2015. We looked at the DIY vs cruisetour & frankly could not justify the extra expenses for the cruise tour. Yes we had to give somethings up like Denali Park, however an 8-12 hr bus ride for a couple of days in the park was just not appealing to us. Fairbanks too far, so we settled on DIY beginning at the Matanuska Glacier in Mat-Su Valley. Here is what we did.

Glacier trek 3 hrs with Mica Guides great walk & learned a lot about glaciers.

Drove on from here to Talkeetna for 2 nights lodging at Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge, great views of Mt. Denali from the back of the main lodge & dinning room

Activities included Talkeekna Air Taxi Grand Denali flight with glacier landing

picture perfect morning with 7 inches of fresh snow over-night 2hrs. The mountain was totally clear & stunning. Playing in the snow priceless.

Mahay's Jet Boat Adventures 3 Rivers Tours 3 1/2 hrs

Enjoyed the town for meals, some shopping, & a nice hike with included a Brewery Tour. We had no trouble finding things to do

Then back to Anchorage & headed for Girdwood. What a beautiful drive from Anchorage with many stops before Girdwood. Stayed at the Hotel Alyeska incredible ski resort. Talked to locals about the Bore Tides. That evening at low tide spotted over 45 Beluga Whales in under an hour parked just of the hwy. Sure happy we packed binoculars.

Next morning an easy drive to Seward. We stopped at the Alaska Wildlife Refuge Center for 3 hrs & then down to the Portage Glacier. Arrived in Seward about 6pm.

We took a quick look at the Exit Glacier & checked in at the Seward Windsong Lodge until we had to board the ship.

Next day was nice & we did the Seavey's Ididaride Sled Dog Tour

then went into town & visited the harbor & the end of the road. There is a state park there for more exploring. The next day was our Kenai Peninsula Fjords Boat tour for 6 hrs, we enjoyed clear weather & calm seas. We ate in town & back to the room. (we were tired)

Next it was raining very hard, so we drove to Soldotna & checked out the Kenai River along the way.

Our last morning in Seward after the Sealife Center, we decided to drive on the other-side of the harbor past where the Celebrity ship was waiting for us. So glad we did... We found a small creek & later a river that flowed into the bay. Both were loaded with Salmon ready to spawn. Some really good photos. Finally dropped the wife & our luggage at the pier to board the ship. I then returned the car to Hertz office. They were kind enough to take to me to the ship (just a few minutes away) for no charge.

We had a balcony cabin so enjoyed the Hubbard Glacier mostly from the room. The captain got close, as the ice flow was not heavy. Enjoyed lots of calving of the glacier.

Juneau Taku Lodge & Salmon Bake

Skagway Dyea Dave tour to the Yukon & lunch in Carcross

Icy Strait Point Whale-watching with Misty Bay Lodge SUPER !!!

Ketchikan Ketchikan Taxi 3hrs tour with Dave Then town DIY

Vancouver Spent the weekend at Whistler Mt. it was hot in the mid 80's

Conclusion: We avoided crowds, able to spend as much as wanted at every

location. Difficult to get lost as few roads. Milepost Book an

absolute must. Able to use local knowledge from very friendly

Alaskans. Loved it so much, see no need of a cruise ship when

or if we return to the " Last Frontier"

We are in our mid 60's, most difficult decision. What not to do?

We so many options, I can see why people keep returning to

this beautiful place.

Happy Travels, John

Hi John, you will enjoy Taku Lodge. Have been there twice, oh maybe Scarface will show up.:eek: He's the resident bear, waitin for his turn at the bbq!! Not jokin, really!! Also, hole in the wall glacier is right there. Its a beautiful place.

We have two excursions booked currently

 

 

 

Juneau - See the glacier and raft ride down the river.

 

With the "affordable" comment- in my opinion, having gone on this tour (not certain if any other "recommendations" have", but money is far better spent elsewhere. :) This is a so so tour at best, most of the ride is trees and backyards. Not sure if you are "seeing" the glacier separately? or are linking this comment with this excursion? IF not separately, you are only going to get a distant brief view on this raft trip, the glacier will be behind you and you are on the other side of the lake. In my opinion, a far superior raft trip is on the Taiya out of Skagway, a LOT more scenic, have done both. Or doing a kayak on Mendenhall Lake which does get you up to the glacier (have done that too).

Unbelievably, these are all exactly the same excursions as I picked. What are the chances of that??? We might better play the lottery!

That is kind of crazy

We just booked a Ketchikan Float Plane

Some of the least expensive things we have done include:

Ketchikan-municipal transit to Totem Bight & Saxman Village. Port shuttle or walk to Creek St. and Totem Heritage Center.

Skagway-take shuttle around town, walk to Gold Rush Cemetery and Museum, take in NPS presentations, get off Broadway and walk around, check local creek for salmon run.

Juneau-the old state museum was terrific, they are re-doing it and it is set to re-open this spring, however I don't see a date on their website.

Just returned home. Here's what we did.

Ketchikan - Rented a mini Van, $80 with tax. Toured the area including Settler's Cove, Totem Bight, lunch at Rose's Caboose, then drove the southern highway as well.

Juneau - Rented a mini van, again $80 total. Drove to Mendenhall Glacier and hiked out to Nugget Falls. My parent toured the Visitor's Center and enjoyed that. Also drove out to St. Therese Shrine, gorgeous area.

Skagway - Booked a tour with Sherry Corrington with Skagway Private Tours for 6 hours. Really lovely, private tour with tons of local information.

Unbelievably, these are all exactly the same excursions as I picked. What are the chances of that??? We might better play the lottery!

Who did you book the rafting with?

Pat

I booked the rafting through the ship

The Lumberjack Show and the Duck Tour are probably 2 of the least expensive options in Ketchikan.

If you want something a little less commercial try Wild Wolf Tours they go for walk in the rainforest which is away from crowds and has beautiful scenery. They also visit Totem Bight and tell interesting stories behind the totem poles.

Who did you book the rafting with?

 

Pat

Alaska Travel Adventures - I have an ATS bogo.

We have two excursions booked currently

 

Skagway - Train ride to the summit and then ride bikes down

 

Juneau - See the glacier and raft ride down the river.

 

The seaplane flight in Ketchikan is starting to look more like we may make it happen.

When are you going? We are considering the same excursion in Skagway, the train and bike. Can you let me know what you thought of it.

We are leaving in September.