RC brilliance of seas (Juneau - mendelhall glacier) helicopter excursion through cruise or outside company?

[neelv]

our first time and hear this is a must do ....any recs or tips would be helpful

 

any other must dos on this sailing... sitka, haines, skagway, tracy fjords, juneau

 

thanks

 

[Badatz2]

I few years ago I took the helicopter  tour in Skagway .  There was only one company, and the ship of course used them

  There was only a $10 difference between them and the payment terms were better from the ship so I used them

[njkruzer]

15 years ago did a helicopter tour to Mendenhall.  Used a private company.  Did it in the afternoon.  Ship's morning tours got cancelled due to fog.  It was great.

[lakelorain]

We did the ship's tour and loved it.  It was very windy and slippery on the glacier.  Tour guide made sure everyone was comfortable. 

[EdandMary]

we have done the ship tour. Be aware that the ship will wait for any of their tours before departing while they will not wait if you have a private booked tour.

[welshrich]

We did the helicopter dog sledding in Juneau last year, booked through Coastal Helicopters and they were fantastic, and a lot cheaper than the cruiseline, you can book online, we booked in person as we were on a b2b and booked the first time we stopped there for the following week.

 

The ship was in port all day long so did not have any worries about being back on time.

 

Skagway we did the Yukon train which was really scenic, 

[neelv]

thanks...looks like cruise price for glacier hiking is $20 more than coastal helicopters.. i think the dog sledding gets a bit beyond our budget for a family of four...