Approx price for Princess Wilderness Lodge?

[4_Leaf_Clover]

We are hoping to take a "land only" trip to Alaska in the next couple of years (We did the Southbound cruise this year.)

 

Can someone please give me an approximate price of what the Princess Wilderness Lodge would cost per night for 2 people in July?

 

I think we would plan on taking the train from Anchorage to Denali and then staying about 3 nights at the lodge and then catching the train back to Anchorage.

 

**I guess I better make sure it is even possible to stay at the Princess Wilderness Lodge even if you dont have a cruise booked???

[AKman2495]

Yes, you can stay at the lodge without booking a cruise. As for the basic info, you might try going to their website. Here is their rates page:

 

 

http://www.princesslodges.com/denali-lodge-pricing.htm

 

It is for 2012, which is about the best you can do.

 

Good luck.

[mytime53]

Yes, you can stay there...here's their website so you can check prices. http://www.princesslodges.com/denali-lodge.cfm?gclid=CMbI_-Dl7rACFcsZQgodfFRDvA

 

It's too early to book for next season, but you can check the website over the winter for any specials.

 

There are many other places to stay, also.

[cruisealex]

You may also want to look out for coupon books such as Northern lights and Toursavers. They include some 2 for 1 deals which could include Princess lodges. You would need to check the vouchers included for your expected travel date ( i think they come out the autumn before)

 

However, if you opted to hire a car instead of take the train you would be able to choose from lots of accommodation just north of the park in Healy too.

[Budget Queen]

Think the entire itinerary through. The train is VERY limiting at Denali Park. You would have far more options with a rental car. There is little difference in scenery as the Parks Highway, just about parallels the railroad.

 

I don't find anything "special" about the Denali Princess, very busy. :)

[frugaltravel]

Think the entire itinerary through. The train is VERY limiting at Denali Park. You would have far more options with a rental car. There is little difference in scenery as the Parks Highway, just about parallels the railroad.

 

I don't find anything "special" about the Denali Princess, very busy. :)

 

Exactly my thoughts on both counts. Why does someone want to put themselves in the middle of a lot of busyness? Not only the lodge itself, but also the entire "Glitter Gulch" area. The past two trips to Denali I stayed south of the park entrance and never even touched Glitter Gulch :). I find that a huge plus to my experience!

[4_Leaf_Clover]

Any suggestions on places to stay, transportation etc would be GREATLY GREATLY appreciated!!

 

We are in the VERY EARLY stages of planning, as we just got back from our Southbound Alaska cruise this month and decided WHILE STILL IN Alaska that we HAD to come back in the near future (you know how that goes :rolleyes: ) hehe

 

A few important details to consider: There will be 6 adults. Although I would love to camp, a couple of others in the group wont be having that....but we arent needing luxurious accomodations either.

 

The train ride from Anchorage to Denali seemed like the easiest and cheapest way to go with 6 adult...suggestions on an affordable way to rent a car to fit 6 people for a few days? (this may be a very dumb question, but Im asking because my first time renting a car was in Alaska in Skagway FOR THE DAY...and for 4 of us in a Nissan Altima, it was over $200!)

 

How far into Denali can you travel via your own car? Are our wildlife viewing possiblities just as good with our own car vs a tour like the Tunda Wilderness Tour?

 

Suggestions are greatly appreciated!!!

 

 

 

There will be 6 of us

[Northern Aurora]

Private vehicle access into the park is very restricted. Private vehicles can only drive approximately fifteen or so miles into the park.

 

Have you considered renting an RV? Whille I don't have any names to recommend there are several companies who rent fully equipped RVs -- all you need to bring with you are your clothes and toiletries.

[4_Leaf_Clover]

Private vehicle access into the park is very restricted. Private vehicles can only drive approximately fifteen or so miles into the park.

 

Have you considered renting an RV? Whille I don't have any names to recommend there are several companies who rent fully equipped RVs -- all you need to bring with you are your clothes and toiletries.

 

I am open to any and all suggestions! :D Keep 'em coming!

[AKman2495]

Private vehicle access into the park is very restricted. Private vehicles can only drive approximately fifteen or so miles into the park.

 

Have you considered renting an RV? Whille I don't have any names to recommend there are several companies who rent fully equipped RVs -- all you need to bring with you are your clothes and toiletries.

 

The OP says there will be 6 adults. 6 adults in an RV is not a pretty picture.

 

It would be better for them to rent a van and stay at hotels. There are several good hotels around Denali. Of course, during tourist season, they will all be busy.....

[Northern Aurora]

The OP says there will be 6 adults. 6 adults in an RV is not a pretty picture.

 

It would be better for them to rent a van and stay at hotels. There are several good hotels around Denali. Of course, during tourist season, they will all be busy.....

 

Just because they are traveling in group doesn't mean they have to rent one RV, or do the identical itinerary.

[4_Leaf_Clover]

Lets say we go the rental car and hotel route...

 

Would we rent a car from Anchorage, drive up to the Denali area, park and stay at a nearby hotel, drive the rental car into Denali and then hop on one of their tours? Then after our stay drive the rental car back to Anchorage?

 

Trying to get the most out of our vacation, but also make it as affordable as possible. Renting 2 or 3 RV's to fit us 6 doesnt sound like it'd be a very "cost efficient" way to go, but what do I know?

 

HOTEL SUGGESTIONS?? The ones I have found online are:

 

Denali Bluffs

Denali Crow's Nest cabins

Denali Grizzly Bear Hotel and Cabins

Denali River Cabins

Denali Mountain Morning Hostel

Denali Princess Lodge

[frugaltravel]

When are you going? What is important to you with your lodging? For example, the hostel has some nice cabins but they all involve shared bathrooms (not community bathrooms, they are individual private rooms, but they are used by others). Do you want a fridge or microwave? Wifi? One room/cabin/apartment for everyone or can it be 2-3 rooms/cabins? Something else?

 

If you book your car early enough in advance you can get a very good deal on it. Generally I pay $125/week for a small car or $250/week for a small SUV. Others pay $100/day for a small car when booking close to departure.

 

You can drive the first 15 miles of the park road, which is great in the evening for example. I almost always see moose. Caribou, lynx, coyote, even bears, are also possible along this stretch.

[mapleleaves]

Renting a car would give you the ability to stop for scenery, wildlife or points of interest on your way to Denali, and/or take some interesting side trips..... an ice trek at Matanuska Glacier ?? or a jet boat tour at Knik Glacier??

When you reserve a car a year in advance, you can find great deals. Enterprise for instance has run a special for several years in July or August to rent for the following summer, $99 a week for an economy car.

It would be fun to travel around with a couple of cars, changing drivers and passengers from time to time. Much cheaper than the train which is about $150 pp each way.

There are lots of lovely cabins in the Healy and Carlo Creek area, where you could have kitchen facilities, maybe a barbeque to spend time together in the evenings, to enjoy your privacy as a group. Or choose a small B&B where you could rent most of the rooms. A listing from the Denali Chamber: http://www.alaskaone.com/_dcc/accommodations/

You can drive a private vehicle to the Savage River checkpoint at Mile 15. Many people like to drive this stretch in the evenings to look for wildlife. There's also a trailhead here. The Denali web site provides lots of information:

http://www.nps.gov/dena/siteindex.htm

You might want to jump over to the Alaska forum of www.tripadvisor.com and read trip reports from prior years. They will provide great suggestions for itineraries, lodging, sights, activities, etc. A link to each years reports are under the Top Questions section.

[klmorg]

If you aren't going to drive it, I would suggest you....

Buy a Toursaver coupon book & save about $700 by booking the Lodge on your own (buy one, get one free), and then book that AMAZING glass-domed train from Anchorage to Denali using that coupon (same thing, BOGO). I think the coupon is for GreyLine, but those cars & service & views are fantastic.

[donaldsc]

Suggestion 1 - look them up on the internet.

 

Suggestion 2 - call them.

 

DON

[4_Leaf_Clover]

Suggestion 1 - look them up on the internet.

 

Suggestion 2 - call them.

 

DON

 

You dont have to be a smart elic. People get on these boards for friendly help from others...not to be talked down by people who think they know it all already.

[4_Leaf_Clover]

When are you going? What is important to you with your lodging? For example, the hostel has some nice cabins but they all involve shared bathrooms (not community bathrooms, they are individual private rooms, but they are used by others). Do you want a fridge or microwave? Wifi? One room/cabin/apartment for everyone or can it be 2-3 rooms/cabins? Something else?

 

If you book your car early enough in advance you can get a very good deal on it. Generally I pay $125/week for a small car or $250/week for a small SUV. Others pay $100/day for a small car when booking close to departure.

 

You can drive the first 15 miles of the park road, which is great in the evening for example. I almost always see moose. Caribou, lynx, coyote, even bears, are also possible along this stretch.

 

Thank you for your help. We are planning WAY in advance... looking into July of 2014 that way we have plenty of time to research, plan, and book things as soon as schedules open up.

 

Having our own rooms with own bathrooms is pretty important to us I think.. the microwave and fridge isnt really a big deal. Wifi isnt a big deal.

 

Before, when I was planning on taking the train, I was looking for nearby hotels that offered shuttles to/from Denali but now that the rental car idea is becoming more appealing, we could stay anywhere really.

 

Thank you to everybody that helped :) ...as for the smart elic, well, must suck to be unhappy :(

[Larry22554]

You dont have to be a smart elic. People get on these boards for friendly help from others...not to be talked down by people who think they know it all already.

 

Amen!

[paddingtonbear]

Thank you for your help. We are planning WAY in advance... looking into July of 2014 that way we have plenty of time to research, plan, and book things as soon as schedules open up.

 

Having our own rooms with own bathrooms is pretty important to us I think.. the microwave and fridge isnt really a big deal. Wifi isnt a big deal.

 

Before, when I was planning on taking the train, I was looking for nearby hotels that offered shuttles to/from Denali but now that the rental car idea is becoming more appealing, we could stay anywhere really.

 

I understand your problem, we are travelling with others and require our own bathrooms too, so we're not lining up in the morning.

 

We wanted to be close to the park entrance to maximise our time there rather than trekking to Healy everyday (no cheaper we found and you have to add cost of petrol and time).

 

We haven't been to Alaska yet but after researching I have found Grande Denali Lodge is $109 incl tax pp with the northern lights book. (hopefully this will continue) You have to stay 2 nights. It is a few minutes drive from the main "glitter gulch area" so a car is necessary so you don't have to rely on shuttles and also so you can choose where you want to go to dinner rather than be restricted to the $$$ hotel restaurant. Have breakfast and pick up lunch in Glitter Gulch.

 

Please let me know if you find anything better.

 

You can hire an SUV which seats 7. Don't panic about the prices you see on the rental places for this year as they drop out of season, the advice above, to book early, (you don't have to pay early) is important if you don't want to pay $$$.

 

There are deals on the railway but the timetables are restricted and with 6 you should be able to share the driving and stop off where you want.

[paddingtonbear]

More research:

The best (cheapest) way to "see" Denali is on the park's shuttle buses which provide a commentary and stop for wildlife photos.

 

To Eielson Visitor Centre 8 hr return trip = $34 pp

To wonderlake 11 hr return trip = $46 pp.

This doesn't include tax but when you click through it isn't required on the website so not sure.

There is a $10 entry fee to the park per person which covers 7 days.

 

I have read that the best views of Mt Mckinley are from Wonderlake but if it is cloudy it may not be worth going all that way. But the longer you are on the bus the more likely you are to see wildlife. There are more mosquitoes at Wonderlake.

 

You are advised to prebook (have to prepay) these tickets online to ensure you get space. They leave every half hour. You have to take your own food and drink.

 

http://www.reservedenali.com/

[cruisealex]

4 leaf clover - with 2014 in your sights there is plenty of time to read these forums and reviews - and also the ones at tripadvisor - which may be more inclined to independent travel. Find a good guide book in the library and look at everything there is to do. Planning it all is great fun - and easy to do with all the help on both forums.

 

FWIW we are a week away (Yoo-hoo!) from coming to Alaska on a northound cruise with an extra 9 days by ourselves with a hire car.

We (DH and I) will be spending 3 nights in Healy -(Earthsong lodge cabin for 2) and using the shuttle buses into the park, visiting sled dog demos, doing a little gentle hiking and a lot of wildlife viewing we hope.

We will stop in Trapper Creek (B&B) - roughly half way between Denali and Anchorage for one night to break up the journey to the Kenai and another night's stop in Soldotna before an overnight trip for bear viewing in Lake Clark. Finally we have two nights in Seward (B&B again) to do a Kenai Fjords boat trip and some general exploration of Exit Glacier, Sealife centre etc. Finally we return to Anchorage for a night before our flight home.

Much of the driving between places has scenic stops or things to do (musk ox farm, nice (short) hikes etc) to break up the day. Some of these things are booked with 2 for one vouchers from Northern lights.

I started thinking about this a long time ago - but the real planning began about a year ago with the major items (car and accommodation) booked six-nine months ago - so you have plenty of time.

[paddingtonbear]

Alex,

 

Sounds like a great trip. I hope you find time to review the land part of your tour as well as the cruise part. We have a year until we go and I would be very interested in a review as we are doing similar things to you.

[oldmama]

Last July I rented a SUV from Enterprise for $350 for 8 days, reserved 11 months in advance. Would have been $1500 if I had waited until arrival. Having a car while in Denali gives you so many more options, such as early shuttle bus times. If you stay in Glitter Gulch & rely on the hotel shuttles, you will be restricted on which shuttles into the park & how far you can travel since many of the hotel shuttles stop running after 7PM. Sunset in the summer is around 11PM. If the weather is nice, the further you go & the more time in the park = a better chance at seeing wildlife & the beautiful mountain. The shuttle buses into Denali are on the same road(the only road) as the tour buses, but go further into the park, & cost about a third of the price of a tour. Most drivers will give a good commentary as well. Independent travel is so easy. Read trip reports on Tripadvisor. It is full of ideas with people ready to answer your questions.

[reney313]

Some may not understand or like the larger "resorts" like Denali Princess. I for one love that type of vacation. I'm 39 and stayed last year at 38. I don't consider myself an old 39 either. The one thing I like on vacation though is "easy". In my previous life (with my late husband), he preferred we drove everywhere and did everything on our own--entirely. I loved it too...but there is also something to be said about letting others do the driving.

 

Sure, it's nice to be on your own schedule and drive and be able to pull over wherever you want. I did that in Yellowstone, in Yosemite, in Grand Canyon, etc. To get to Denali from Anchorage (or Fairbanks) though there is a wonderful domed train. Why not try something different? I really enjoyed it. And I could have a couple yummy drinks along the way while seeing beautiful scenery...oh and I got to talk and meet with other people as well :)

 

I liked the Denali Princess. It is busy at times. I booked through their website and did the train/lodge combo. Even though I also was taking a Princess cruise southbound, I didn't package it all together because I did want some bit of planning on my own. They delivered my luggage to the room from the train. They picked it up the morning we were leaving and stored it for me until it was time to go back to Anchorage. (For a 15 day vacation we had A LOT of HEAVY luggage). We were able to use all the same shuttles to the park (for free), went to the Nature Center (I can't remember what it was called, but it is not the actual visitor center). We bought tickets on the NPS bus to Wonder Lake. We LOVED our trip through the park.

 

After arriving back at the lodge we loved walking through the shops at Glitter Gulch and preferred eating at Prospectors Pizza instead of at the lodge. We had some drinks at Salmon Bake. We shopped for souvenirs. Before the ride into Denali we got sub sandwiches from Subway for a snack later. Much better than what the "tour" offers when you book through the cruise itself. I don't think I would have enjoyed NOT having Glitter Gulch nearby.

 

But it really is all what your style is...what do you like. What do you normally do? Sometimes it is nice to do something a little different. If we were going for a land only trip next time, I might do something different and stay at a more remote location and drive myself. I don't really know.

 

I'm very happy you are asking now to get all different perspectives. You can discuss with your group and decide what works best for all of you...or some of you might do one thing and the others another thing and still meet up. That could be an option. 4 people drive in a rental car and 2 take the train but stay in the same place. Then if you decide on a different hotel in the area, those in the car could pick up those who took the train at the station.

 

The best thing is there are many options and with research you'll find the one that works best for you!