Skagway railroad tour

[Kineticoh20]

My ships tour was sold out, does anyone know how far a walk it is to the location to board train in town?

[donaldsc]

The railroad station is on Google maps.  You have to know what ship you are on and where you are going to dock to answer your question.

 

DON

[kitkat343]

We did this as an independent excursion.  Don't sit in the first or last train car - its a diesel engine and the fumes made me really sick (I was pregnant and this was the only time I got sick in alaska, oddly the helicopter to dogsled excursion was totally fine but the fumes off this train made me sick.)  They switch the diesel engine around to take the train back, so the last car becomes the first one on the way back so just avoid both cars.  

[Northern Aurora]

While there there are different several docks in Skagway, unless someone in your party has really serious mobility issues, walking to the White Pass and Yukon Railroad headquarters will not be in issue.  Skagway is very flat and about  four blocks in width.  Lovely community, but very compact.

 

 

[sfaaa]

Cheaper to book online directly with WPYR than through ship excursion department.

[david,Mississauga]

7 hours ago, kitkat343 said:

We did this as an independent excursion.  Don't sit in the first or last train car - its a diesel engine and the fumes made me really sick (I was pregnant and this was the only time I got sick in alaska, oddly the helicopter to dogsled excursion was totally fine but the fumes off this train made me sick.)  They switch the diesel engine around to take the train back, so the last car becomes the first one on the way back so just avoid both cars.  

 

There is now a long turning loop at Summit. According to a friend who rode the last car on the train in 2019 that was the year it opened.   So it is no longer necessary for the engines to be run around the train to tow it back to Skagway.  

 

The last coach is great for viewing from the open platform. (We did that in 2015, although as indicated that became the first one behind the locos on the return.) Some of the trains which depart from the docks have a luxury parlour car on the end. The fare is about $345. This can be booked only through the cruise line.

 

As others have said it is not a long walk to the station from any of the three docks. The furthest distance is from RFA (Railroad Dock Aft), but because of the danger of a rockslide passengers must take a shuttle bus to and from the town end of the dock. This cuts the walk to the station by  half.  There is another shuttle, for a small fee, that goes into town.

[SuzieQ521]

We booked independently a few years ago. It really isn't a long walk and it was a nice stroll.

 

If you have any mobility issues, then it may be difficult but for most people, I would say it is fine.

[Kineticoh20]

Thank you for replies

[kitkat343]

5 hours ago, david,Mississauga said:

 

There is now a long turning loop at Summit. According to a friend who rode the last car on the train in 2019 that was the year it opened.   So it is no longer necessary for the engines to be run around the train to tow it back to Skagway.  

 

The last coach is great for viewing from the open platform. (We did that in 2015, although as indicated that became the first one behind the locos on the return.) Some of the trains which depart from the docks have a luxury parlour car on the end. The fare is about $345. This can be booked only through the cruise line.

 

As others have said it is not a long walk to the station from any of the three docks. The furthest distance is from RFA (Railroad Dock Aft), but because of the danger of a rockslide passengers must take a shuttle bus to and from the town end of the dock. This cuts the walk to the station by  half.  There is another shuttle, for a small fee, that goes into town.

Thanks for the update - that baby is turning 13, so my information is very much out of date!  So glad another car is usable. 

[Crew News]

35 minutes ago, Kineticoh20 said:

Thank you for replies

About 15 leisurely stroll from the train station to the pier entrance.

[sfaaa]

With lot of shops and attractions to look at along the way.

[fatpig]

Once you board the train, are you free to walk around from car to car?

[wolfie11]

32 minutes ago, fatpig said:

Once you board the train, are you free to walk around from car to car?

No.  You are assigned to a car. You can go out on the platform but you can’t cross to the next car.

[Crew News]

32 minutes ago, fatpig said:

Once you board the train, are you free to walk around from car to car?

No.  Cars are allocated by cruise lines, category of ticket, and local purchasers.  You can stand on the platforms between the cars to take photos if you wish.

[fatpig]

54 minutes ago, wolfie11 said:

No.  You are assigned to a car. You can go out on the platform but you can’t cross to the next car.

 

53 minutes ago, Crew News said:

No.  Cars are allocated by cruise lines, category of ticket, and local purchasers.  You can stand on the platforms between the cars to take photos if you wish.

Can we request which car to sit in? I want to be in the last or second last car going up

[Crew News]

27 minutes ago, fatpig said:

 

Can we request which car to sit in? I want to be in the last or second last car going up

If you buy your ticket at the station, you might have a car choice that is not committed to the cruise lines, at the time of purchase

[ruready]

I’m in Skagway today and some folks purchased tickets at the station vs ahead independently or via cruise line.  Walk is very short, with some seating along the way.  You cannot miss the depot.  It’s one of the first things you see when you walk to the town from the cruise dock.  

[Debbie42467]

Do I understand this correctly?

If I purchase with my cruiseline (NCL $40 more) I board at the pier and if I purchase directly with NPYR I board at their station location?

Is it your experience that those who purchase with their cruiseline fill up all the good seats and leaves the leftover seating for those who purchased directly with NPYR? 

 

TIA

Debbie 🙂 

 

Edited April 30, 2023 by Debbie42467

[ruready]

15 minutes ago, Debbie42467 said:

Do I understand this correctly?

If I purchase with my cruiseline (NCL $40 more) I board at the pier and if I purchase directly with NPYR I board at their station location?

Is it your experience that those who purchase with their cruiseline fill up all the good seats and leaves the leftover seating for those who purchased directly with NPYR? 

 

TIA

Debbie 🙂 

 

Those that purchased their tickets from the cruise line were first on board (more related to logistics of their tours - probably aboard 10 minutes prior to general boarding).  However it appeared that each excursion were in a distinct car upon the train.  IMO, none of the cars are better than the others as all cars have the same views, going and coming back.  This is how it worked today.  On the way back, you could exit at train depot or closer to where we are docked but both exits are super close to where we are docked.  We purchased train tickets independently and thus we were in a car with those who had done the same, although I believe we all happen to be from the same ship.  Given how early in the season we are and we took the am ride, the train was not full at all.  Everyone could have a 2-seater to themselves. 

[GTJ]

2 hours ago, ruready said:

IMO, none of the cars are better than the others as all cars have the same views, going and coming back.

While it is true that the views of the landscape are identical from all cars--they all travel along the same railroad tracks--there are distinctions among the various cars themselves. (Would anyone select what automobile to purchase based on the scenery viewed from that auto?!) Perhaps most important to railfans is the issue of riding in historic or modern cars. Most of the White Pass Route cars are modern, having been constructed within the past 25 years. This is true of all the cars numbered in the 300-series. The newest cars, numbered in the 500-series, were built in 2019 and 2020. There's also a pair of modern club cars, nos. 401 and 402, built in 2014. I imagine, however, that most railfans would prefer riding in the historic cars rather than the modern ones. Most of the cars in the 200-series are these old cars. In particular, cars 218 and 220 are the oldest cars on the roster, each dating from June 1881 (nearly 142 years old each!), having originally been built for the Stony Clove and Catskill Mountain Railroad in the Catskill Mountains of New York. Many other these 200-series cars also date from the nineteenth century, though several are from the early twentieth century (as late as 1936). There are a few exceptions: cars 200 through 209, 230, and 290 are all modern cars. There is a paucity of train consists posted online, so I am not certain the extent to which the various cars are used on each of the railroad's daily trains. But my suggestion is to travel with a roster in hand so that the "best" car can be selected . . . based on those car criteria one believes are most important. Otherwise, you will likely just get herded into a car at random.

[wolfie11]

GTJ, unfortunately you are assigned a car, so you don't get a choice.  Still, it's good to know the history of the car you're riding in. I always look for the Lake Emerald and the Lake Tutshi, which are the two oldest cars when a train goes by.

[Aquahound]

The last couple times I rode the train, we boarded at the foot of the pier.  We were able to board any car we wanted.  We just couldn't change once seated, and they did not want passengers walking between cars.  

[GTJ]

4 hours ago, wolfie11 said:

GTJ, unfortunately you are assigned a car, so you don't get a choice. Still, it's good to know the history of the car you're riding in. I always look for the Lake Emerald and the Lake Tutshi, which are the two oldest cars when a train goes by.

That can be a problem with Amtrak, too. Sometimes the train crew will assign particular cars, and even specific seats, in advance of boarding, but other times not. More often assignments are given on western trains, while in the northeast passengers are free to choose any car without crew interference (at least within a specific class of service). I really don't like assigned seating, one of the reasons being the ability to choose a particular car or car type.

 

Many years ago, when residing near San Francisco, I would travel on the Southern Pacific railroad, between San Francisco and San Jose, and the consists of some trains would include the more modern gallery cars (built 1955-57 and 1968) and the older suburban cars (built 1924-27). Given the choice, I would invariably choose the older suburban cars. (Several of the suburban cars were later sold to the Grand Canyon Railway, where they continue to operate, while others have gone to museums; some of the 1968 gallery cars were rebuilt as Ultra Dome cars for Tour Alaska and continue to operate for Princess Cruises and Holland America Line passengers.) Similarly, Amtrak for a while operated both its Superliner cars and the former Santa Fe Hi-Level (El Capitan) cars, and when I had a choice I would always opt for the Hi-Level cars.

 

Are Lake Emerald (car 244) and Lake Tutshi (car 260) the two oldest? My understanding is that the first was built in 1884, for the South Pacific Coast Railroad, and later used by the Northwestern Pacific Railroad, and the second was built in 1893, for the Pacific Coast Railway, all in California. I have thought the oldest are Lake Atlin (car 218) and Lake Dewey (car 220) both having been built in 1881 for the Stony Clove and Catskill Mountain Railroad in New York. Such is reported in the Wikipedia article, disputing the contention that cars 218 and 220 were from the Los Angeles and Redondo Railway (as cited in my copy of the Canadian Trackside Guide 2004). The "railfan" section of the White Pass Route website has not been updated for so long (it does not even mention the railroad's newest cars, and the employee timetable posted is out of date), and it just seems to be a bit careless, possibly because owner Carnival likely treats the railroad as an amusement more so than anything truly historic, but in any case would not appear to be a particularly reliable source of information. Is there any definitive evidence of the oldest White Pass Route cars? In any case, however, my preference prioritizes any of the historic cars over the modern cars.

[wolfie11]

2 hours ago, Aquahound said:

The last couple times I rode the train, we boarded at the foot of the pier.  We were able to board any car we wanted.  We just couldn't change once seated, and they did not want passengers walking between cars.  

You're right.  If you are doing the summit tour, you get your choice of cars.  If you are transferring to a bus, you're assigned a car with your other bus mates.  I had forgotten that.  

[wolfie11]

GTJ, the railroad has always said that Lake Emerald is the oldest, but according to Wikipedia, you're right.  I will print out the roster and take it with me this summer and see what I can find.