Skagway

[Monica887]

We will be in Skagway from 7am-3pm. With 2 kids (11 and 8). Any recommendations? 

 

We are already doing a helicopter to a glacier and a wildlife watching boat tour elsewhere. 

[JT1962]

The White Pass & Yukon Route Railway Summit round-trip is a good option.

 

You could also rent a car and drive into the Yukon. You would need passports for that and to watch your time since you are in Port a relatively short time for most Skagway stops.

[Monica887]

Thanks. Renting a car could work. The railway doesn't sound interesting to me. But it would be nice to find a way to venture away from the port!

[karatemom2]

I would second the car rental suggestion. You can do the beautiful drive on the Yukon Highway. Head to Caribou Crossing and enjoy playing with the puppies!

[WxNerd]

Our last time in Skagway (2019) we rented from DIY Jeep Tours and plan to do the same next summer with our boys who will be 12 and 10 and daughter who will be 15 months. The boys were really looking forward to doing this when we originally planned to take them (2020). You get an iPad with the Jeep that gives you all sorts of information about the things you will see along the way and the best part is you can stop and explore for as long as you like, as long as you make it back to the ship on time. You can also take bus tours but they stop, everyone piles off the bus for a selfie and off you go again. 
 

You would have to be careful on time because of your departure time. We hiked quite a bit and stopped a lot, had lunch in Caribou Crossing played with puppies at a sled camp for at least an hour and still made it back to Skagway about 4pm. 
 

The pictures don’t do it justice, its just so beautiful. 

[SightCRR]

Check youtube videos for ideas. Look for ones that are new and not ads. Here is a sample. Just about every tour will have videos. Be ready to change to Skagway if the helo gets canceled unless after. 

I TOOK MY MOM DOG SLEDDING IN SKAGWAY ALASKA! | PLAYING WITH HUSKY PUPPIES - YouTube

sightcrr

[Monica887]

Thanks! I'm sort of sold on the car rental idea (I found the Murray Guide) but am concerned with the timing. I wish it was a full day! 

 

In another thread it seems we can reserve in advance and the car would be waiting for us? Maybe that's the way to go. Emerald Lake seems to be a little over an hour and a half, so if we make that the destination and don't stop toooo much it could work.

[Northern Aurora]

Just a quick “heads up” for those traveling with kiddos.  We have been in Skagway twice the last two weeks and both times the NPS had several buildings closed.  One of the closed buildings was the old saloon which housed the junior ranger program.  As far as I could tell there was no junior ranger program.  Unfortunate as it was very popular and a nice free option for the kids.

[Monica887]

6 minutes ago, Northern Aurora said:

Just a quick “heads up” for those traveling with kiddos.  We have been in Skagway twice the last two weeks and both times the NPS had several buildings closed.  One of the closed buildings was the old saloon which housed the junior ranger program.  As far as I could tell there was no junior ranger program.  Unfortunate as it was very popular and a nice free option for the kids.

Thanks for the heads up! I think since we have limited time, we wouldn't be making longs stops anyway. 

[WxNerd]

11 minutes ago, Monica887 said:

Thanks! I'm sort of sold on the car rental idea (I found the Murray Guide) but am concerned with the timing. I wish it was a full day! 

 

In another thread it seems we can reserve in advance and the car would be waiting for us? Maybe that's the way to go. Emerald Lake seems to be a little over an hour and a half, so if we make that the destination and don't stop toooo much it could work.

You could always make the drive all the way to Emerald Lake and make note of the places you would like to stop on the way back and prioritize before you leave Caribou Crossing (each person pick one or two stops and set a time limit for each stop?) 

 

I just saw the other posts about the Jeeps 😕 sad they were bought out but I did email that other company to ask what size cars they have. It would be so convenient for the car to be waiting at the dock, but with two tall boys and a little one in a car seat a small-mid size sedan wont work for us.  

Edited for typos. The gremlins in my phone are misbehaving again. 

 

Edited July 2, 2022 by WxNerd

[Monica887]

1 hour ago, WxNerd said:

You could always make the drive all the way to Emerald Lake and make note of the places you would like to stop on the way back and prioritize before you leave Caribou Crossing (each person pick one or two stops and set a time limit for each stop?) 

 

I just saw the other posts about the Jeeps 😕 sad they were bought out but I did email that other company to ask what size cars they have. It would be so convenient for the car to be waiting at the dock, but with two tall boys and a little one in a car seat a small-mid size sedan wont work for us.  

Edited for typos. The gremlins in my phone are misbehaving again. 

 

Yes! That's exactly what I was thinking. Drive straight to Emerald and then gauge timing for stops on the way back. We have 3 adults and 2 kids so we could make a sedan work, but it would be a squeeze. 

[Monica887]

10 hours ago, karatemom2 said:

I would second the car rental suggestion. You can do the beautiful drive on the Yukon Highway. Head to Caribou Crossing and enjoy playing with the puppies!

I booked the car! Caribou was if interest when I was looking over Murray's Guide. How long did you spend there? We'll be tight on time. Can we meet the puppies in under 30 minutes or so? 

[karatemom2]

5 hours ago, Monica887 said:

I booked the car! Caribou was if interest when I was looking over Murray's Guide. How long did you spend there? We'll be tight on time. Can we meet the puppies in under 30 minutes or so? 

Yes. We spent about a little over hour but that included time in the small museums and gift shop. If you focus your time on the puppy and animal area that amount of time should be fine. 

[JT1962]

6 hours ago, Monica887 said:

I booked the car! Caribou was if interest when I was looking over Murray's Guide. How long did you spend there? We'll be tight on time. Can we meet the puppies in under 30 minutes or so? 

If you are doing well on time, you might consider also having lunch there. It’s good and served quickly through a buffet type line. If there is no large line due to a tour bus just unloading, it will be faster than ordering at another restaurant. Plus I don’t recall a lot of other restaurant options, although I believe Carcross has a few.

[Monica887]

Thanks - you guys are amazing! We are ordering lunch through the car rental I think, but I feel good about this day's plan!

[JT1962]

2 hours ago, Monica887 said:

Thanks - you guys are amazing! We are ordering lunch through the car rental I think, but I feel good about this day's plan!

The pre-order lunch will save you some time. If you need a break / snack, stop in Carcross on your way back. There is a coffee shop with snacks, a few shops, visitor center with restrooms, etc.

[SightCRR]

As another heads up if you are on RCCL you may be tendering in Skagway due to the rock slide which may take a little bit of time off of your total port time. 

sightcrr

[tetleytea]

The only times I have really had a stellar time in Skagway are when I took a tour that went up toward the Yukon and White Pass, or when I ferried to Haines and did the Eagle Preserve Float Trip.  The rental car counts.

[Jeremiah On a Cruise]

Probably a silly question, but can we still drive into the Yukon?  I'm not sure what testing requirements, or closures, or the like are in place due to Covid.

 

As context, we are southbound from Anchorage to Vancouver, and will complete the ArriveCan for our trip the day before we board.  Fully vaccinated, and will test 48 hours before boarding (closer to 4 days before Skagway).

[JT1962]

2 hours ago, Jeremiah On a Cruise said:

Probably a silly question, but can we still drive into the Yukon?  I'm not sure what testing requirements, or closures, or the like are in place due to Covid.

 

As context, we are southbound from Anchorage to Vancouver, and will complete the ArriveCan for our trip the day before we board.  Fully vaccinated, and will test 48 hours before boarding (closer to 4 days before Skagway).

As long as you have a passport, you can drive into the Yukon. You would probably need to complete a new ArriveCAN for the border crossing at Fraser, although they may not actually look at it.

[shuyak]

On 7/4/2022 at 2:02 PM, SightCRR said:

As another heads up if you are on RCCL you may be tendering in Skagway due to the rock slide which may take a little bit of time off of your total port time. 

sightcrr

 

We were at Skagway on 6/29/22, saw Royal Princess being tendered.  Fyi