Skagway and Juneau Alaska shore excursions help

[bigcat46]

Going on an Alaska cruise next June and looking for shore excursions we must do to make our trip. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[sweetcruiser106]

The Alaska board has some great suggestions and recommendations. Here's the link.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=55

 

Anne:)

[slyster]

You will get tons of feedback in the Alaska forum...but for us, walking on a glacier was AWESOME...we took a helicopter ride to the glacier. I have heard others say that dog sled riding is a lot of fun too. You won't be able to do those two things except in Alaska :-)

[wvufan]

Our recommendations are:

 

Juneau-whale watching with Captain Larry (Orca enterprises on web) and have them drop you at the glacier where you can take the shuttle bus back. The first time we were there, we did Captain Larry and also Coastal Helicopters trip which landed on glacier. We booked both through Orca.

 

Skagway. You will find most people will either recommend the White Pass railroad or renting a car and driving to Emerald Lake. We did the latter and it was fantastic. Great guide available through Murray.

 

Happy Sails to You

 

OOOEEE :D:D Bob and Phyl

[theorbo]

I second the suggestion to check the Alaska forum but I wanted to share what we did. We rental a truck in Skagway and spent the day on a roadtrip to Whitehorse, YT and back. We stopped at several interesting places on the way and found a written guide online that provided narration as we drove. We were really pleased with our decision and it was quite affordable compared to what the 4 of us would have paid on a local excursion in Skagway.

 

Edit: The guide I refer to is the same as referred to in WVUFAN's post - it was great!

[Familygoboston]

You can't miss the White Pass Railway. It leaves right from the pier and only takes a couple of hours, so you can also schedule something else in Skagway. We did a hike up the chilkoot trail about 2-3 miles; then rafted back. ( it's rough, real hiking; but my active 60 yo mom and 8 yo made it no prob)

That was also a great excursion; we were able to do both and get to the National Park Office for the kids to get their Jr Ranger patches.

 

Do check out the AK boards and also do a search for excursions you are interested in; others may have reviewed them.

[norcalal]

Our recommendations are:

 

Juneau-whale watching with Captain Larry (Orca enterprises on web) and have them drop you at the glacier where you can take the shuttle bus back. The first time we were there, we did Captain Larry and also Coastal Helicopters trip which landed on glacier. We booked both through Orca.

 

I could not agree more. We booked our whole family last June. These folks could not be more professional. Well kept boat and bus. Will do it again in a heartbeat. By the way we did see Orcas and Humpbacks, simply a great trip.

[Backstage Traveler]

In Skagway, the Whitepass Railroad offers great views and a memorable train trip (review and pics here). In Juneau, we have gone to the Mendenhall Glacier, which I would recommend if you have never been there before. Our last trip we took the Gold Panning and Salmon Bake tour through our ship, and the gold panning was pretty fun, especially for the kids (pics and review here).

[beheis]

to theorbo:

Can you post the link to written the guide online that provided narration from Skagway to Whitehorse? Tried goggling it & nothing came up - much appreciated!

[ready2travel54]

We had a great time with Harv and Marv whale tours in Juneau. Also loved eating king crab at Tracy's - on the dock near the ships. also for research try tripadvisor I got a lot of tips from this site and tripadvisor.

[theorbo]

to theorbo:

Can you post the link to written the guide online that provided narration from Skagway to Whitehorse? Tried goggling it & nothing came up - much appreciated!

 

search for "murrays guide klondike highway" on your favorite search engine and it's probably the first link. i can never remember which links are ok to post on here and which ones are not ...

 

It's well worth the small fee to download.

[Budget Queen]

Look over a shore excursion list, available online. Please narrow down your interests and determine your budget. Then repost. There are hundreds of tours to select from and "my" favorites are not likely to be yours.

[Goingplaces2011]

Cruised 8/1/11 on NCL Pearl with our two teens. In Juneau we canoed to the Mendenhall Glacier and past icebergs. Awesome! And our guide Tom aka Fozzie was the best! Skagway we took a Safari Trip to another glacier. Everyone was so professional! you just know these people LOVE what they do. In Ketchican we took Neets Bay Black Bear Adventure with Captain Mike and his Brother in Law Kurt. We saw almost a dozen Black Bears in their own environment. This escursion was top notch! Dress warmly! They even provided binoculars! Higly recommended. In Victoria, we saw the largest pod of Orca killer whales known. Right next to us! Crew very professional. FYI...eat a very late lunch before you leave for this trip.

[MightyQuinn]

... In Victoria, we saw the largest pod of Orca killer whales known. Right next to us!

You must have timed it just right for Superpod when 3 pods of resident orcas (J,K,L) get together for a big party. At last count, there's close to 100 whales comprising these pods and they come together several times a season. It's unforgettable to see so many of these gorgeous creatures all about you, but it's real magic if you're on a zodiac at water level in the midst of them.

[HRPro]

Juneau - whalewatching and Mendenhall glacier

 

Skagway - take the train or do a combination trip of train and van/bus to the Yukon

 

Both were highlights of our Alaska trip.

[cherylroslyn]

You must have timed it just right for Superpod when 3 pods of resident orcas (J,K,L) get together for a big party. At last count, there's close to 100 whales comprising these pods and they come together several times a season. It's unforgettable to see so many of these gorgeous creatures all about you, but it's real magic if you're on a zodiac at water level in the midst of them.

That sounds like real terror to me!!!!!!!

[beheis]

Thanks "theorbo" for the Murray tip - I just ordered it - PERFECT for our self-guided tour - fingers crossed that Sourdough goes well....Emmanuel seemed very nice when I spoke to him....and got a minivan so that will be nice for the entire family!!!

[Wayfairers]

You will get tons of feedback in the Alaska forum...but for us, walking on a glacier was AWESOME...we took a helicopter ride to the glacier. I have heard others say that dog sled riding is a lot of fun too. You won't be able to do those two things except in Alaska :-)

 

FYI: You can ride dog sleds in other places too. We did in MI, but there are several places in MN and Canada and probably other places I don't know about.

 

Also we walked on the Athabascan Glacier (granted we rode on an ice explorer, didn't take a helicopter) in the Canadian Rockies and you can probably walk on glaciers in other places.

[Wayfairers]

Going on an Alaska cruise next June and looking for shore excursions we must do to make our trip. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

My 2 favorite excursions in Alaska were

 

1. Extended Helicopter Glacier in Juneau where we took a helicopter to the glacier, hiked (w/crampons) across the glacier then climbed a glacial wall using climbing gear. Expensive, but worth every penny.

 

2. Riding in a plane over and around Mt McKinley in Talkeetna (we loved it so much we did the flight w/o oxygen one day and then booked the one with oxygen for the next day). You can see climbers, climbing camps and the amazing mountain. Took this as part of our cruisetour. I HIGHLY recommend a cruisetour, not just the cruise.

 

 

In Skagway we did the Yukon Expedition and White Pass Rail - I agree with others, this is a great tour.

 

In Ketchikan our Misty Fjords Seaplane Exploration was cancelled due to weather but I have heard others say it is a great excursion.

[theorbo]

Thanks "theorbo" for the Murray tip - I just ordered it - PERFECT for our self-guided tour - fingers crossed that Sourdough goes well....Emmanuel seemed very nice when I spoke to him....and got a minivan so that will be nice for the entire family!!!

 

Great! And for the record we rented from Sourdough as well and it was fine. When we were there (2009) it was a rather modest operation and quite informal - so much so that we ended up with the owner's vehicle for the day because they had rented out too many or something like that. I'd recommend getting to their office as soon as you are able to, or just send one of your family members - whoever is picking up it up and then they can come back to the ship and get the rest of your party! Good luck and have a great trip!

[travelbuds]

[quote name=wvufan...... either recommend the White Pass railroad or renting a car and driving to Emerald Lake. We did the latter and it was fantastic. Great guide available through Murray.

 

Happy Sails to You

 

OOOEEE :D:D Bob and Phyl[/quote]

 

Hi,

Curious if the drive was just driving from photo op to photo op, or if there are stops along the way to do some hiking. Looking at doing this or the WP&YP train/Laughton Glacier hike. Have done the train to the Summit on our first cruise to AK.

Thanks.