B2B Things To Do in Whittier / Anchorage in June

[Orange Yuzu]

Hi fellow cruisers,

 

We are heading to Alaska for B2B on Sapphire Princess May 31 - June 14.  Currently the only avail cruise excursion from Princess on turnaround day is the 26 Glacier Cruise.

 

We are hoping with 2 days of scenic cruising before and 2 days of scenic cruising right after Whittier, we can go out and stretch our legs a bit.

 

Any recommendation for other tours / things to do in Whittier / Anchorage without a rental car? Would be great if we can do a Glacier Hike but I believe Matanuska is too far.  We are also interested in other hikes / wildlife conservation centre.

All the tour companies I've seen offer one way transfers with tours.

 

The cruise gets to Whittier around 12:30 AM and leaves at 8:30 PM.

 

Thanks in advance!

Edited May 9, 2023 by Orange Yuzu

[Kathscof]

Not much help, but last year we went out of Seward and did the Kenai Fjords tour to the glacier and we got closer and had longer than the excursion from the boat did when we went to Hubbard.  I know its looking at the same stuff, but you could possibly save your money from the ship excursions and do the 26 Glacier tour and get possibly a better experience.  I know that there are places to visit and places to stop and take pictures on the various roads in and out of the area, have you considered renting a car and going to the places that the one way tours stop?  

[Coral]

I actually liked 26 Glacier cruise and would recommend it. You still have time to walk around Whittier (it doesn't take long).

[Orange Yuzu]

2 hours ago, Kathscof said:

Not much help, but last year we went out of Seward and did the Kenai Fjords tour to the glacier and we got closer and had longer than the excursion from the boat did when we went to Hubbard.  I know its looking at the same stuff, but you could possibly save your money from the ship excursions and do the 26 Glacier tour and get possibly a better experience.  I know that there are places to visit and places to stop and take pictures on the various roads in and out of the area, have you considered renting a car and going to the places that the one way tours stop?  

 

1 hour ago, Coral said:

I actually liked 26 Glacier cruise and would recommend it. You still have time to walk around Whittier (it doesn't take long).

 

Thanks!!!  I'll keep 26 glacier cruise on my list then.

Quick search shows no car rental avail on that day (7th). I'll look harder. Driving on unfamiliar roads and accounting for the one way tunnel is semi stressful 🫠

[Glaciers]

 

A couple other options….There is a nice hike in Whittier called the Portage Pass Trail. It’s a fairly short hike to the top which gives you amazing views of Portage Glacier on one side and Passage Canal and the town of Whittier on the other. You can also hike down to Portage Glacier if you have the time but the treat is just getting to the top for the view. Another option is the Spencer Whistle Stop which requires a short train ride on the Alaska Railroad. There are guiding services that will paddle you around the bergs that have calved from the glacier before heading down the Placer River to catch the train that had dropped you off a few hours earlier. This is one of our favorite south central excursions. Lunch at the Swiftwater Seafood Cafe!

 

https://www.alaska.org/detail/portage-pass-trail

 

https://alaskanrafting.com/product/spencer-iceberg-placer-river-float/

[Orange Yuzu]

Thank you @Glaciers!

 

We are eyeing the Spencer iceberg float. That seems very fun.  The hike is definitely an option. Do you recommend one over the other?  We are in port for so long I think we may have time to do all!!!

[Glaciers]

The float is a better experience but a longer day. The hike is good, and free. 

[disneyochem]

We’ve done a few things on a B2B in Whittier—the Spencer Iceberg Placer River Float, the Glacier Quest cruise, eating at a local restaurant and hiking to the Portage Glacier overlook.  We enjoy getting off the ship and doing something!

 

We really enjoyed the Spencer Iceberg trip even though it was just a float.  Absolutely beautiful scenery on the river and the train.  On the excursion, they will take you right up to an iceberg so you can touch it and get your picture taken.   
 

We like the Glacier Quest cruise rather than the 26 Glacier cruise—it’s shorter (get back around 5 pm) and goes to an area that the ship does not go.  The lunch served on board is yummy (veggie chili), there is a US Forest Ranger on board and you see wildlife.  It’s a nice way to spend an afternoon.  We loved the 26 Glacier cruise but we just found ourselves getting antsy to get back on board.  You get back in plenty of time (6:30 ish?).  My suggestion is to book directly with Phillips—much cheaper than through Princess (but it looks like it might be a Princess only cruise since it leaves so early in the am).

 

We personally haven’t done it but our kids have gone jet skiing and kayaking in Whittier. Lazy Otter is a great company that will work with you to customize your experience in Whittier.  My daughter and husband were very happy with the tour they provided.

 

https://www.lazyottercharters.com/
 

https://glacierjetskiadventures.com/

 

Edited:  we get the veggie chili but you also could chose the seafood chowder on a Phillips glacier cruise.

Edited May 9, 2023 by disneyochem
Addition

[Cruising Cindy Lou]

4 hours ago, Glaciers said:

 

A couple other options….There is a nice hike in Whittier called the Portage Pass Trail. It’s a fairly short hike to the top which gives you amazing views of Portage Glacier on one side and Passage Canal and the town of Whittier on the other. You can also hike down to Portage Glacier if you have the time but the treat is just getting to the top for the view. Another option is the Spencer Whistle Stop which requires a short train ride on the Alaska Railroad. There are guiding services that will paddle you around the bergs that have calved from the glacier before heading down the Placer River to catch the train that had dropped you off a few hours earlier. This is one of our favorite south central excursions. Lunch at the Swiftwater Seafood Cafe!

 

 

https://www.alaska.org/detail/portage-pass-trail

 

https://alaskanrafting.com/product/spencer-iceberg-placer-river-float/

 

 

 

Can you tell me how to get to the Portage Pass Trail?  Is it within walking distance of port or what is recommendation on how to best get to the trail?

[Glaciers]

37 minutes ago, Cruising Cindy Lou said:

Can you tell me how to get to the Portage Pass Trail?  Is it within walking distance of port or what is recommendation on how to best get to the trail?

 

Just over a mile from the port along a flat walking path.

https://goo.gl/maps/ZgEYUmgTTEoK57vb9

 

[AKStafford]

Here's our pictures from:

26 Glacier Cruise~ http://akstafford.blogspot.com/2021/08/glaciers-7-31-2021.html

Spencer Glacier on the Alaska Railroad~ http://akstafford.blogspot.com/2017/08/spencer-glacier-via-alaska-railroad.html

Grandview Turnaround on the Alaska Railroad~ http://akstafford.blogspot.com/2019/07/grandview-on-alaska-railroad.html

 

Avis is the only rental car option from Whittier. I'd call them directly: https://www.avisalaska.com/locations/whittier/  (907) 440-2847

[Orange Yuzu]

12 hours ago, disneyochem said:

We’ve done a few things on a B2B in Whittier—the Spencer Iceberg Placer River Float, the Glacier Quest cruise, eating at a local restaurant and hiking to the Portage Glacier overlook.  We enjoy getting off the ship and doing something!

 

We really enjoyed the Spencer Iceberg trip even though it was just a float.  Absolutely beautiful scenery on the river and the train.  On the excursion, they will take you right up to an iceberg so you can touch it and get your picture taken.   
 

We like the Glacier Quest cruise rather than the 26 Glacier cruise—it’s shorter (get back around 5 pm) and goes to an area that the ship does not go.  The lunch served on board is yummy (veggie chili), there is a US Forest Ranger on board and you see wildlife.  It’s a nice way to spend an afternoon.  We loved the 26 Glacier cruise but we just found ourselves getting antsy to get back on board.  You get back in plenty of time (6:30 ish?).  My suggestion is to book directly with Phillips—much cheaper than through Princess (but it looks like it might be a Princess only cruise since it leaves so early in the am).

 

We personally haven’t done it but our kids have gone jet skiing and kayaking in Whittier. Lazy Otter is a great company that will work with you to customize your experience in Whittier.  My daughter and husband were very happy with the tour they provided.

 

https://www.lazyottercharters.com/
 

https://glacierjetskiadventures.com/

 

Edited:  we get the veggie chili but you also could chose the seafood chowder on a Phillips glacier cruise.

Seems like there are just more and more things we should do! Thanks for all the recommendation I heard the seafood chowder on Philips glacier is pretty delicious as well.

 

Thank you for sharing your experience!

[Orange Yuzu]

6 hours ago, AKStafford said:

Here's our pictures from:

26 Glacier Cruise~ http://akstafford.blogspot.com/2021/08/glaciers-7-31-2021.html

Spencer Glacier on the Alaska Railroad~ http://akstafford.blogspot.com/2017/08/spencer-glacier-via-alaska-railroad.html

Grandview Turnaround on the Alaska Railroad~ http://akstafford.blogspot.com/2019/07/grandview-on-alaska-railroad.html

 

Avis is the only rental car option from Whittier. I'd call them directly: https://www.avisalaska.com/locations/whittier/  (907) 440-2847

Thank for for sharing the beautiful photos @AKStafford! I told the DH about Spencer Glacier and float and he said he only wants to take one train this trip and we already met the quota with the skagway train to lake bennett!

 

I'm a train person and would love to be on all trains. Maybe I can try to sneak another train in.

 

I heard the drive from whittier to anchorage is one of the most scenic drives in the world!