Alaska Cruise Tours

[Chips401]

Just wondering if I can get some feedback on Alaska Cruise Tours.  There doesn't seem to be a lot of discussion on the topic.  We are thinking about taking one next spring, leading through the Yukon from Skagway and spending three nights at Denali. Anyone with feedback?  Suggestions?  Comments on Whitehorse and Dawson City?

 

I am also wondering where I can see a price for the meal plan offered on the land portion of the trip?  Feedback?  Is it worth it?

[Mary229]

One of our regulars @Alphen did a great live report last year, it helped me prepare for the tour

 

I did like the food and portions everywhere were large but the plan would require 3 full meals a day to be beneficial 

 

[Alphen]

28 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

One of our regulars @Alphen did a great live report last year, it helped me prepare for the tour

 

I did like the food and portions everywhere were large but the plan would require 3 full meals a day to be beneficial 

 

Glad to hear it helped others, that was my intention of this report in the first place 🙂

[Papatt]

Just got back from a cruise tour with 2 nights in Denali.  We started and ended in Seattle.  We did not take the train in skagway.  From Whittier, we took a motorcoach to Denali.  This included a lunch stop for luncheon sandwiches (deli ham, turkey, roast beef) with chips and salads and beverage-coke products, coffee, tea or lemonade.  Travel time is most of the day, about 7 hours.  Shuttle busses run at the chalet to take you to your assigned building area or anywhere on property the shuttle stops.  All 2&3 night Denali stays include the tundra bus tour.  Currently 5.5 hours long due to a rock slide that they are repairing on the road at mile 46, so only go to mile 43 and go back.  Otherwise it is a 8 hour tour going to mile 62, but repairs are not expected to be done until 2026.  When you get on the bus you get a box.  In ours we got a turkey meat stick, cheese puffs, brownie brittle , trail mix and a kind energy bar.  After the restroom stop, about 90 minutes, when returning to the bus, there was a bottle of water for us.  Tour driver had a zoom video camera connected to drop down video monitors so we could see dall sheep up high on the mountain, also could see the movement and face of a grizzly, very nice.  We then went to Anchorage for a night aboard the McKinney explorer domed railcar.  Again all day, 7-8 hours.  See pictures for items available on car.  They will send you a price for land dining based on your length of stay.  I don't remember what it was other than seeming expensive.  The breakfast buffet at karstens at Denali square was $23 each.  

[Chips401]

48 minutes ago, Alphen said:

Glad to hear it helped others, that was my intention of this report in the first place 🙂

Hi Alphen,

 

Thanks for the review posted.  What were the buses like?  Comfy?  Washroom onboard?  Scenic windows?  The trip we are looking at has more bus transportation than air.

[Alphen]

1 minute ago, Chips401 said:

Hi Alphen,

 

Thanks for the review posted.  What were the buses like?  Comfy?  Washroom onboard?  Scenic windows?  The trip we are looking at has more bus transportation than air.

The longer bus ride we had was comfy, intermediate long restroom break along the way, Fairbanks to Denali. Buses used on tours ranged from comfy to schoolbus (Denali National Park), no washrooms on board. All standard windows, scenic windows are on the explorer train between Denali and Anchorage and Anchorage to Whittier.

[Papatt]

Tundra busses are old school bus type with engine in front.  No facilities on them.  They stop about every 90 minutes, or currently twice on the 5 1/2 hour tour.  Also required to wear seatbelts in the park.  Nice window could slide open when wanted.  The other busses we were on both had facilities in back.

[Alphen]

5 minutes ago, Alphen said:

The longer bus ride we had was comfy, intermediate long restroom break along the way, Fairbanks to Denali. Buses used on tours ranged from comfy to schoolbus (Denali National Park), no washrooms on board. All standard windows, scenic windows are on the explorer train between Denali and Anchorage and Anchorage to Whittier.

There are many different cruise tours by HAL, our experience is only on the Y1L specific! All transfers or tours on busses had sufficient amount of bathroom stops.

Edited September 9, 2023 by Alphen

[oaktreerb]

1 hour ago, Chips401 said:

Just wondering if I can get some feedback on Alaska Cruise Tours.  There doesn't seem to be a lot of discussion on the topic.  We are thinking about taking one next spring, leading through the Yukon from Skagway and spending three nights at Denali. Anyone with feedback?  Suggestions?  Comments on Whitehorse and Dawson City?

 

I am also wondering where I can see a price for the meal plan offered on the land portion of the trip?  Feedback?  Is it worth it?

The food plan is not worth it unless you eat a lot.  You have to use the vouchers at the HAL hotels.  You will find better places to eat in Whitehorse (Klondike Rib) and Dawson City.   

 

We’ve done a few of the Yukon itineraries through the years…and HAL has  changed mostly the transportation modes….more flights these days.  It’s all good.  The bus is very nice and they stop along the way for “comfort “ stops.  The TWT bus in Denali is rustic but nicer than the camper bus.  

 

If you have one night in Whitehorse you don’t have much time to be a tourist, Dawson City is the best stop and Parks Canada has some wonderful tourist offerings.  

 

We have done the land tour first.  We also have done the Y1 which was the longest Yukon tour.  

 

There are lots of options.  You’ll have a journey host traveling with you and will get to know your fellow travelers.  You’ll have a great time.

[Alphen]

3 minutes ago, oaktreerb said:

The food plan is not worth it unless you eat a lot.  You have to use the vouchers at the HAL hotels.  You will find better places to eat in Whitehorse (Klondike Rib) and Dawson City.   

 

We’ve done a few of the Yukon itineraries through the years…and HAL has  changed mostly the transportation modes….more flights these days.  It’s all good.  The bus is very nice and they stop along the way for “comfort “ stops.  The TWT bus in Denali is rustic but nicer than the camper bus.  

 

If you have one night in Whitehorse you don’t have much time to be a tourist, Dawson City is the best stop and Parks Canada has some wonderful tourist offerings.  

 

We have done the land tour first.  We also have done the Y1 which was the longest Yukon tour.  

 

There are lots of options.  You’ll have a journey host traveling with you and will get to know your fellow travelers.  You’ll have a great time.

Agree with almost everything, however we chose to buy the breakfast plan, just to make sure that it would secure us of a good start every (long) day during the tour and we were glad with our choice. As far as other meals; plenty of affordable choices in every stop, as well as some included lunch and dining in extra added tours. Given our experience with the breakfast, we would do this again.

[oaktreerb]

Breakfast at Karstens in Denali is buffet in the early morning so everybody can get out on their tours.  You have a choice of full buffet (eggs & meat) or the continental including fruit and oatmeal which is plenty of food and is cheaper.

 

Breakfast at Belinda’s at the Westmark hotel in Dawson City is very nice.  

 

Usually you will be having breakfast at the hotels because you are short on time to meet the bus or an excursion.

 

We did not have an option to purchase breakfast only vouchers.  

Edited September 9, 2023 by oaktreerb

[renee00]

Here were my experiences a few months ago doing the Y4L cruisetour. We loved it overall!

 

 

[YourWorldWithBill]

Just a note to say that we found the food at Karstens (we ate there for dinner and breakfast, and maybe lunch but I don't remember) better than we expected.

[Mary229]

4 hours ago, Papatt said:

Tundra busses are old school bus type with engine in front.  No facilities on them.  They stop about every 90 minutes, or currently twice on the 5 1/2 hour tour.  Also required to wear seatbelts in the park.  Nice window could slide open when wanted.  The other busses we were on both had facilities in back.

Please not these busses are NPS concessionaires.  It is the only available option.  

[Chips401]

2 hours ago, renee00 said:

Here were my experiences a few months ago doing the Y4L cruisetour. We loved it overall!

 

 

Am I correct in reading the bus ride between Whitehorse and Dawson was 8 hours?  

[renee00]

6 minutes ago, Chips401 said:

Am I correct in reading the bus ride between Whitehorse and Dawson was 8 hours?  

 

Yes, but that was with regular stops, so not 8 hours of driving time. This was also a year with major road problems (it was completely impassable right before our trip), so I don't know if it takes less time when the road is in better shape.

[Chips401]

2 hours ago, renee00 said:

 

Yes, but that was with regular stops, so not 8 hours of driving time. This was also a year with major road problems (it was completely impassable right before our trip), so I don't know if it takes less time when the road is in better shape.

After reading your review, the land trip sounds very regimented.  We may rethink our plans.  We were planning on the tour Y3c. Not crazy about the early mornings and long bus rides

 

 

[oakridger]

2 hours ago, Chips401 said:

After reading your review, the land trip sounds very regimented.  We may rethink our plans.  We were planning on the tour Y3c. Not crazy about the early mornings and long bus rides

 

 

 

That is my issue with the cruise tour packages.  I've decided to tour Alaska on my own by car when I'm ready.  I prefer the flexibility. I will take another cruise after the land trip.

 

Clearly, many people feel the opposite and like not having to take care of the logistics!  Good thing there are choices!

 

~Nancy

[renee00]

2 hours ago, Chips401 said:

After reading your review, the land trip sounds very regimented.  We may rethink our plans.  We were planning on the tour Y3c. Not crazy about the early mornings and long bus rides

 

 

 

Yeah, I would say that was the biggest negative for us. We loved the fact that HAL dealt with all the logistics but we didn't care for how controlled everything was.

[0bsessed]

We travelled on the Y1L (18 day land and sea) in June/July of this year doing land first.  We used Alphen's review from last year as initial guidance and then did quite a bit of of our own research beforehand in order to make the best use of the time in each location.  Based on discussions with others we met when we got on the cruise, we made the right decision to do the longer tour.  The shorter tours apparently spent a lot of time of buses and the scenery apparently became repetitive. 

 

We hesitated with respect to taking the meal plan options and ended up not taking any of them.  It was the right decision for us.  There was no shortage of affordable places to eat at any of the locations and at any time of day, even breakfast.  There were days we ate breakfast at the restaurant on the HAL property but more often than not we found cheaper options elsewhere where we had more options than a breakfast buffet.  We had used google maps ahead of time to identify where the restaurant options were so we didn't have to worry about it once we arrived if the cell service wasn't good.  More than once we asked a young local "where they would go to eat if they were on a date".  We got great recommendations. 

 

We enjoyed both Whitehorse and Dawson City.  Your time in Whitehorse is somewhat limited but there is a walking trail the covers both sides of the river and it was quite enjoyable. We did the Tombstone Park Tour in Dawson and it was very good.  It was a small group tour and we had a fantastic guide so we learned lots of information about the people in the area.

[Miss Vickie]

On 9/9/2023 at 12:36 PM, Chips401 said:

Just wondering if I can get some feedback on Alaska Cruise Tours.  There doesn't seem to be a lot of discussion on the topic.  We are thinking about taking one next spring, leading through the Yukon from Skagway and spending three nights at Denali. Anyone with feedback?  Suggestions?  Comments on Whitehorse and Dawson City?

 

I am also wondering where I can see a price for the meal plan offered on the land portion of the trip?  Feedback?  Is it worth it?

We loved this itinerary, although ours had only 2nights in Denali. It’s a really unique itinerary - no other line offers anything similar. We enjoyed all the stops and found interesting things everywhere. We did not get the meal plan, preferring to find our own places to eat. 

[oaktreerb]

17 hours ago, Chips401 said:

After reading your review, the land trip sounds very regimented.  We may rethink our plans.  We were planning on the tour Y3c. Not crazy about the early mornings and long bus rides

 

 

The shorter the tour the more rushed you will be.  You will never have to check in to your hotel, your keys will be given to you on the bus.  Early mornings are necessary since the itineraries cover a lot of territory.

 

 Our first Yukon trip at least 15 years ago was entirely by bus and train and the Yukon Queen up the Yukon river from Eagle to Dawson City.  Now HAL flies people from Vancouver, Fairbanks, Dawson City, and Whitehorse on some of the tours but you miss the special out of the way places like Tok, Eagle, Chicken, Bennett Lake, the Top of the World highway.  So glad we went when we did but those were long days on the bus (interesting stops and people along the way).   

 

If you can drive the route yourself, it would be an amazing but lengthly trip!

Edited September 10, 2023 by oaktreerb

[oaktreerb]

@oakridger  see above. If you can travel the Yukon on your own, it will be a fantastic trip!

[oakridger]

6 hours ago, oaktreerb said:

@oakridger  see above. If you can travel the Yukon on your own, it will be a fantastic trip!

 

Thank you for the added information.  Fortunately, I love driving and long road trips!  I've learned to pace myself so I can really see what I want and not wear myself out driving.  For me, cruising is the really relaxing time!

 

~Nancy