Alaska Land portion reviews ?

[jinpasco]

For those that have done the recent land portion, how are things going? I see another line has cancelled some land portions due to staffing issues I believe. I imagine it's different from years ago and they are trying their best. Are lodges able to accommodate everyone with few issues? Restaurants open ? Tours keeping up? Any information and views would be appreciated as we are on the Royal in Sept.  Thank you

[Cali Viajera]

We did the Off the Beaten path land tour. It was so nice to have all accommodations and transport between lodges taken care of. Fairbanks, Denali, Mt.McKinley and Kenai. The lodges and staff were welcoming and helpful. 

[GottaLuvCruising]

July 16-20 we did Princess EAX tour.  Had I known then what I know now, I would have made a different choice.  But we had a GREAT time.  

Princess was amazing in organizing everything, presenting itineraries, providing transport and luggage services.  LOVED the simple painless hassle-free check in at each resort.  Transfers were by comfortable motor coaches.  This was our first time with a land tour and overall we were very pleased.  

Sat 7/16 we took a very long coach ride from Whittier to Denali.  Driver stopped so we could pick up some supplies at a Fred Meyer (?)  It was really convenient to have that option.  Then we stopped Princess McKinley lodge where were provided complimentary box lunches.  That was a pleasant surprised and enabled a lot of people to have lunch in a short amount of time.  It did, however, render our stay there a few days later rather anticlimatic as we had seen the resort.  Finally we arrived and checked in at Princess Denali.  

Each room (Denali, McKinley and Captain Cook) each couple was assigned a room with a king bed.  At Captain Cook my sister was assigned a suite!  We were delighted to have king beds.  Rooms were lovely.  LOVED Denali resort.  McKinley resort is VERY remote; we would NOT choose to stay there again.  We arrived in Anchorage late in the day, it was cold and rainy; we did the trolley tour (very good) and went to bed hungry, after struggling in vain to find basic sustenance nearby and room service not calling back.  3am wake up, 4am shuttle and we got home 4am the next morning.  Exhausted, broke, but we get memories.  Three of the four of us also came home with covid.  (All better now.)

EACH resort indicated no housekeeping during stay unless requested.  At least the told us.  Pre-cruise hotel in Seattle did not inform us up front.  Not really significant IMHO, but this was the service challenge due to staffing shortages.  Everything else seemed to go just fine.  

Our Denali to Talkeetna / McKinley transfer was by rail.  My mistake.  That's the shorter train option.  I'd recommend selecting an itinerary with a longer train / shorter motorcoach.  The domed train was one of the highlights of our two week trip.  We loved it.  

We considered a land package dining plan, but decided against it.  Resort menu pricing seemed in line with what was offered in that environment.  Lots of dining options at Denali.  Not as good at McKinley.  

I'm happy to answer questions if I might be of any assistance.  We love cruising, but not so sure well do another land tour.  The packing and unpacking was chaotic.  

[jinpasco]

1 hour ago, Cali Viajera said:

We did the Off the Beaten path land tour. It was so nice to have all accommodations and transport between lodges taken care of. Fairbanks, Denali, Mt.McKinley and Kenai. The lodges and staff were welcoming and helpful. 

That's the one we are to do in Sept. We chose it as it goes inland more. Many years ago we did Fairbanks to Whittier 3 land days only. Nice but wanted a different perspective. 

[jinpasco]

51 minutes ago, GottaLuvCruising said:

July 16-20 we did Princess EAX tour.  Had I known then what I know now, I would have made a different choice.  But we had a GREAT time.  

Princess was amazing in organizing everything, presenting itineraries, providing transport and luggage services.  LOVED the simple painless hassle-free check in at each resort.  Transfers were by comfortable motor coaches.  This was our first time with a land tour and overall we were very pleased.  

Sat 7/16 we took a very long coach ride from Whittier to Denali.  Driver stopped so we could pick up some supplies at a Fred Meyer (?)  It was really convenient to have that option.  Then we stopped Princess McKinley lodge where were provided complimentary box lunches.  That was a pleasant surprised and enabled a lot of people to have lunch in a short amount of time.  It did, however, render our stay there a few days later rather anticlimatic as we had seen the resort.  Finally we arrived and checked in at Princess Denali.  

Each room (Denali, McKinley and Captain Cook) each couple was assigned a room with a king bed.  At Captain Cook my sister was assigned a suite!  We were delighted to have king beds.  Rooms were lovely.  LOVED Denali resort.  McKinley resort is VERY remote; we would NOT choose to stay there again.  We arrived in Anchorage late in the day, it was cold and rainy; we did the trolley tour (very good) and went to bed hungry, after struggling in vain to find basic sustenance nearby and room service not calling back.  3am wake up, 4am shuttle and we got home 4am the next morning.  Exhausted, broke, but we get memories.  Three of the four of us also came home with covid.  (All better now.)

EACH resort indicated no housekeeping during stay unless requested.  At least the told us.  Pre-cruise hotel in Seattle did not inform us up front.  Not really significant IMHO, but this was the service challenge due to staffing shortages.  Everything else seemed to go just fine.  

Our Denali to Talkeetna / McKinley transfer was by rail.  My mistake.  That's the shorter train option.  I'd recommend selecting an itinerary with a longer train / shorter motorcoach.  The domed train was one of the highlights of our two week trip.  We loved it.  

We considered a land package dining plan, but decided against it.  Resort menu pricing seemed in line with what was offered in that environment.  Lots of dining options at Denali.  Not as good at McKinley.  

I'm happy to answer questions if I might be of any assistance.  We love cruising, but not so sure well do another land tour.  The packing and unpacking was chaotic.  

This will be our second land portion. We did the 10 hr train ride on the first one . Beautiful scenery. I am kind of dreading the 7 hr bus ride this time but  chose it hoping to get a different perspective on Alaska scenery.  Maybe I will be bored ??? 

We are doing the land first for just that reason of it being in and out of suitcases for a few days , setting alarms ,hopping busses, finding places to eat etc. Then it's the beautiful ship and ( most) worries are over. A drink in the hand and beauty all around.

I am a bit concerned with the covid numbers growing on these cruisetours. We have been vaxed and twice boosted but it doesn't seem to matter. I really don't want to be quarantined in Anchorage and will not sleep night before they test is prior to embarkation. Only other choice is wait another year and time is getting short older we get.

I appreciate any and all information, thank you

[GottaLuvCruising]

36 minutes ago, jinpasco said:

This will be our second land portion. We did the 10 hr train ride on the first one . Beautiful scenery. I am kind of dreading the 7 hr bus ride this time but  chose it hoping to get a different perspective on Alaska scenery.  Maybe I will be bored ??? 

We are doing the land first for just that reason of it being in and out of suitcases for a few days , setting alarms ,hopping busses, finding places to eat etc. Then it's the beautiful ship and ( most) worries are over. A drink in the hand and beauty all around.

I am a bit concerned with the covid numbers growing on these cruisetours. We have been vaxed and twice boosted but it doesn't seem to matter. I really don't want to be quarantined in Anchorage and will not sleep night before they test is prior to embarkation. Only other choice is wait another year and time is getting short older we get.

I appreciate any and all information, thank you

We strongly preferred the land tour first and can't remember exactly why we "settled" for the reverse.  BUT passengers are picking up covid on the land portion.  So doing it our way allowed us to fully enjoy and leave Alaska without having to be tested.  If we had tested positive, we could not have boarded the ship.  

It worked out.  

[jinpasco]

18 minutes ago, GottaLuvCruising said:

We strongly preferred the land tour first and can't remember exactly why we "settled" for the reverse.  BUT passengers are picking up covid on the land portion.  So doing it our way allowed us to fully enjoy and leave Alaska without having to be tested.  If we had tested positive, we could not have boarded the ship.  

It worked out.  

I understand that ! Believe me it's weighing heavy on my brain . This cruise was booked a couple years ago after being cancelled because we were SURE covid would be over with by now. And that's why I don't gamble ! now

We already plan on NOT taking the Denali Bus tour on that rickety school bus. Been there , saw that. So missing is not a deal breaker. I am hoping the transfers from resort to resort have better air circulation. If you have any better ideas , feel free. What is your opinion on why so many are contracting covid on land.

[jinpasco]

3 hours ago, Cali Viajera said:

We did the Off the Beaten path land tour. It was so nice to have all accommodations and transport between lodges taken care of. Fairbanks, Denali, Mt.McKinley and Kenai. The lodges and staff were welcoming and helpful. 

GottaLuvCruising mentioned covid......how do you feel that was addressed on your land portion since its the exact tour we will be on.   You did the 7 hr bus ride between lodges ?   I value your opinion on what to watch out for and how you avoided issues. I am taking zinc, vit c to build immunity been vaxed and boosted. .Maybe a daily dose of alcohol ???  Seems the people who try the hardest to keep it at bay get sick.

[Thrak]

The Copper River Wilderness Lodge is not open this season. They cited inability to get sufficient staff.

[Joelocal]

I did  a topic 

Live on the Majestic  July 16.

I figured I would reply here since this is on topic.

My wife and I  both tested positive  since we got home.  We wore our masks  pretty much the entire time and always on the bus. 

We did take our masks off when we were eating. The CDC says that is allowed, so I  am assuming  that you can't catch covid while you are eating according to them.

I don't even believe that. 

We had a wonderful time  on both the cruise  and the land portions.  Only about half the people wore masks. 

If I  had a choice to do it over again, would I  go?

HELL NO!!!!!!

I don't like being sick.

[GottaLuvCruising]

2 hours ago, jinpasco said:

I understand that ! Believe me it's weighing heavy on my brain . This cruise was booked a couple years ago after being cancelled because we were SURE covid would be over with by now. And that's why I don't gamble ! now

We already plan on NOT taking the Denali Bus tour on that rickety school bus. Been there , saw that. So missing is not a deal breaker. I am hoping the transfers from resort to resort have better air circulation. If you have any better ideas , feel free. What is your opinion on why so many are contracting covid on land.

We were told that only 62% of Alaskans are vaccinated so the virus is spreading and morphing.  But who knows?  We carefully masked until we were toward the end.  Mistake we now know, but symptoms were mild and everyone is well now.  

Like you, I'm just over it.  We had a great time despite disappointing weather and covid frustrations.  It was a crapload of money on which I wish we could have cruised covid-free.  

I hear you on the Denali tour bus.  OMG.  It was HORRID.  We paid $512 for the four of us.  Hubby is 6'4" and BIL is 6'6".  Bus was cram packed full.  We were told we had to wear seatbelts...no way!  We could barely move in the cramped seats.  It's a frigging school bus with dirty little windows and vertically challenged folks like myself had a hard time seeing anyway.  Tour guide / driver was very kind and tried so hard, but honestly he pulled to the side of the road a half dozen times to show us "ground squirrels."  We did see two caribou and a grey wolf.  It was a long, uncomfortable day with some great views, but NEVER again.  I still need to write a review of THAT experience which is universally considered the worst of our trip.  

[Cali Viajera]

Fairbanks to Denali was on the domed train. Breakfast aboard and beautiful scenery. Motor coach to Mt.McKinley and 1/2 hour bus to Talkeetna. Longest motor coach ride was from Mt. McKinley to Kenai. Short ride from Kenai to Whittier. My husband and I wore Kn95 masks, most people did not wear masks at lodges and on train/motor coaches. Our adult daughter wore a cloth one. We brought tests and she tested positive with that one, however, when tested by the health tech, she was negative. Yes, it is hectic packing and repacking, but then it is so relaxing to get on the ship and only unpack once for the cruise🛳 

[Thrak]

We have done two Alaska Connoisseur Cruise Tours and absolutely loved both of them. On the Tundra Wilderness Tour we saw a grizzly guarding a kill that had almost certainly been made by wolves. There was a wolf trying to get in on the food but the grizzly wouldn't let it have any. The wolf came back toward the road and ran along beside it. Our bus driver just let the bus slowly roll backward so everybody had a good opportunity to watch the wolf up close. Then the wolf hopped up onto the road and we continued to gently roll backwards (we were on an incline) and we all had a good look at the wolf some more. Wolves are pretty rare to see as there are not a huge number of them in the park and the park itself is huge.

 

On our second TWT we saw really close views of grizzlies and, on the way back, our driver suddenly yelled, "LYNX!!!" and hit the brakes. A lynx ran across the road right in front of the bus (and because we were sitting in the front "passenger side" seats, we had a great view of it crossing. Then it "hid" in the weeds on the other side of the road where we could plainly see it from pretty close up. The driver opened the door and used his camera to focus on the lynx so that all of the monitors throughout the bus had a great close up view. The driver was really excited because, as he said, a wolf may be rare to spot but a lynx is an amazingly luck thing to see. He stopped later on along the road to tell another driver going the other way about the sighting and was really super stoked.

 

The connoisseur tour costs  more but it was so very well handled and coordinated it was well worth the cost to us. Obviously we liked the first one so well we booked another. The first was a 13 day (including the 7 day cruise) with one night at the Fairbanks Lodge, and two nights each at the Denali and McKinley lodges. At the McKinley lodge the clouds went away and we had fantastic views of Denali. There were folks in our group who were there for the fifth time and this was the first time they had ever seen the whole mountain like that. The second was 15 days (including the 7 day cruise) and included one night at the Fairbanks lodge and then two nights each at the Denali, Copper River, and Kenai lodges. It was a great trip.

 

Denali as seen from the Mt. McKinley lodge:

 

[jinpasco]

2 hours ago, Thrak said:

We have done two Alaska Connoisseur Cruise Tours and absolutely loved both of them. On the Tundra Wilderness Tour we saw a grizzly guarding a kill that had almost certainly been made by wolves. There was a wolf trying to get in on the food but the grizzly wouldn't let it have any. The wolf came back toward the road and ran along beside it. Our bus driver just let the bus slowly roll backward so everybody had a good opportunity to watch the wolf up close. Then the wolf hopped up onto the road and we continued to gently roll backwards (we were on an incline) and we all had a good look at the wolf some more. Wolves are pretty rare to see as there are not a huge number of them in the park and the park itself is huge.

 

On our second TWT we saw really close views of grizzlies and, on the way back, our driver suddenly yelled, "LYNX!!!" and hit the brakes. A lynx ran across the road right in front of the bus (and because we were sitting in the front "passenger side" seats, we had a great view of it crossing. Then it "hid" in the weeds on the other side of the road where we could plainly see it from pretty close up. The driver opened the door and used his camera to focus on the lynx so that all of the monitors throughout the bus had a great close up view. The driver was really excited because, as he said, a wolf may be rare to spot but a lynx is an amazingly luck thing to see. He stopped later on along the road to tell another driver going the other way about the sighting and was really super stoked.

 

The connoisseur tour costs  more but it was so very well handled and coordinated it was well worth the cost to us. Obviously we liked the first one so well we booked another. The first was a 13 day (including the 7 day cruise) with one night at the Fairbanks Lodge, and two nights each at the Denali and McKinley lodges. At the McKinley lodge the clouds went away and we had fantastic views of Denali. There were folks in our group who were there for the fifth time and this was the first time they had ever seen the whole mountain like that. The second was 15 days (including the 7 day cruise) and included one night at the Fairbanks lodge and then two nights each at the Denali, Copper River, and Kenai lodges. It was a great trip.

 

Denali as seen from the Mt. McKinley lodge:

 

That's a post card pic.....beautiful !

[Thrak]

6 minutes ago, jinpasco said:

That's a post card pic.....beautiful !

 

Sadly the camera was packed so I only had my phone and it wasn't real snazzy. We were told you can request the front desk to call you - no matter what the time - if the mountain comes out. We didn't realize you had to make the request every day so, when we got up on the last day and packed stuff we packed the camera. (I hate carrying a camera around...) When we got outside we discovered that all of the clouds had disappeared and there was the mountain. It's actually far more impressive than the picture makes it seem.

[Visaman666]

5 hours ago, GottaLuvCruising said:

We were told that only 62% of Alaskans are vaccinated so the virus is spreading and morphing.  But who knows?  We carefully masked

Like you, I'm just over it.  We had a great time des

I hear you on the Denali tour bus.  OMG.  It was HORRID.  We paid $512 for the four of us.  Hubby is 6'4" and BIL is 6'6".  Bus was cram packed full.  We were told we had to wear seatbelts...no way!  We could barely move in the cramped seats.  It's a frigging school bus with dirty little windows and vertically challenged folks like myself had a hard time seeing anyway.  Tour guide / driver was very kind and tried so hard, but honestly he pulled to the side of the road a half dozen times to show us "ground squirrels."  We did see two caribou and a grey wolf.  It was a long, uncomfortable day with some great views, but NEVER again.  

 

I did that tour this morning, it's on 3 and a half hours, including the 18 minute film, and the meet and greet with the nature interpreter. The ride back to the lodge was leisurely, but being on the bus wasn't that bad.

[GottaLuvCruising]

6 hours ago, Visaman666 said:

 

I did that tour this morning, it's on 3 and a half hours, including the 18 minute film, and the meet and greet with the nature interpreter. The ride back to the lodge was leisurely, but being on the bus wasn't that bad.

Our tour was longer, did not include a meet & greet or film.  We did LOTS of tours on this 14 day trip and NONE of the others were in a miserable school bus.  We did tours at Yellowstone and Grand Teton last year; tour buses were comfortable with big windows.  Denali's problem IMHO is contracting with Aramark...low quality everything.  

[jinpasco]

Ok , New question. Some poster on FB was saying there is no heat  or ac at the lodges....any input from.people here who have been ? You have to wonder if some of those posts are people just trying to "stir the pot ". No one here has mentioned this issue. We are starting Sept 5 and it could be a bit chilly !  Denali, McKinley and Kenai are our lodges. 

 

[georgiacat]

We took the cruisetour in June with the land part first.  We paid for our meals.  If you want more information about what, where and how much the food was, I will be glad to answer.  There are a lot of comments though.

 

We enjoyed the Natural History Denali Park tour.  It was a type of school bus, but not as bad as what some people are saying.  They stopped frequently for bathroom and other breaks.  (Yes, a couple were hole in the ground toilets.  When you got to go, you go.)  No seat belts.  We saw a young male moose in the parking lot of the visitor's center to start with.  Lots of other animals along the way.  Did not see Denali; can't control the weather.  The weather was good in June.

 

The lodges/cabins do not have AC.  They do have heaters.  We did not need the AC in June.  The hottest place was Fairbanks where Princess Riverfront Lodge did have AC and food.

 

We did not get sick on the land part.  Both of us came home with a "cold".  We did not test for covid; it was mild, whatever it was.

 

Send me questions, if I can help any.

[jinpasco]

23 minutes ago, georgiacat said:

We took the cruisetour in June with the land part first.  We paid for our meals.  If you want more information about what, where and how much the food was, I will be glad to answer.  There are a lot of comments though.

 

We enjoyed the Natural History Denali Park tour.  It was a type of school bus, but not as bad as what some people are saying.  They stopped frequently for bathroom and other breaks.  (Yes, a couple were hole in the ground toilets.  When you got to go, you go.)  No seat belts.  We saw a young male moose in the parking lot of the visitor's center to start with.  Lots of other animals along the way.  Did not see Denali; can't control the weather.  The weather was good in June.

 

The lodges/cabins do not have AC.  They do have heaters.  We did not need the AC in June.  The hottest place was Fairbanks where Princess Riverfront Lodge did have AC and food.

 

We did not get sick on the land part.  Both of us came home with a "cold".  We did not test for covid; it was mild, whatever it was.

 

Send me questions, if I can help any.

We have been checking out food prices and know it will be a big part of the land $$. We are bringing protein bars for the in between times . I am calling it the "diet" part of the trip. Hope Prospectors Pizza will still be open in Denali. We enjoyed it years ago but who knows what it's like now or if it will be open in Sept.

Years ago we did the Denali tour on the school bus. It wasn't uncomfortable but the Windows kept fogging due to snow and freezing rain...in August ! Then 3 days later we had on our shorts and 70 weather. Gotta love Alaska.

Being from Fla I doubt we will need ac but to us anything lower than 60 and we are shivering. Glad to know you had heat.  I thought it was strange but then thought lodges may be different than hotels in ammenities. It's a challenge for all this year.

You managed to stay healthy. I dread that test between land and ship. Even a false positive and vacation is over. 

Thank you