Alaska Excursions--post your reviews here!

[OregonMom]

We are also just back from the July 2-9 cruise. We are DW, DH, DD 11. About the mosquitos, I brought the OFF! Deep Woods Towelettes with DEET and kept them with me. Less muss and fuss than sprays. Most of the guides only offer the non-DEET versions, and they just don’t work as well. So if you have no philosophical problems with it, I advise just keeping a few DEET towelettes on you at all times when you’re off the boat, so you’re prepared.

Skagway-My DD and I did the Alaska Nature and Wildlife Expedition. Likes: great guides Don and Judy, Don is a retired ranger, and Judy is a biologist who has published guides on plant life in Alaska. Knowledgeable, nice, and very informed! They worked hard with the spotting scopes to help everyone see the wildlife, including mountain goats on the faraway ridges, and baby eagles in their nests. Hike was very easy, just a few roots that might make it hard for those with mobility issues to navigate. We were mainly on the bus. Got to see a lot of great habitat and animals, lake, estuary, river, temperate forest, etc. Nice history lessons on the area as well, including the fort to keep the Canadians from invading the new territory of Alaska as they crept across the line trying to force the border further north and gain territory. Dislikes: the description said we would go upriver in catamarans, so I imagined small open boats where we would be close to the water. Instead, they were just small ferry boats, like buses, indoors with bench seating. This one is probably just my misunderstanding. Another dislike, though, is that they say you will "Watch a fish technician count and sample the run", but the guides just slowed down and pointed them out to us as they bus drove on by. Not exactly what I would call "watching". And the relaxing lunch while we talked to the guides became a grab your lunch and eat it on the ferry, although to be fair, it was so our party could watch the bears feeding in the estuary area for as long as possible. Overall, though, we really enjoyed it. Some people combined this with helicopter flights or other excursions in the afternoon, but we just enjoyed this one and went back to the boat.

Juneau- Enchanted Taku Lodge by Float Plane
PrincesseInTow, we were on the same 9:45 Taku Lodge trip, and I agree with everything you had to say. Flying over the glaciers and eating right below one was AMAZING! My DD 11 was also not happy with the many hanging pelts and animal heads. I loved her hearing the story of the intrepid Mary who put the lodge on the map and made the 1,000 mile trip by dog sled to Fairbanks. We bought the cookbook to find out how to make that wonderful biscuit, it was delicious. Our favorite excursion by far! 3 big thumbs up.

Ketchikan - Knutson Cove Salmon Fishing DH and DD11 went on this one while I had a massage (Ahhhh!) It was raining like crazy, but they had a fantastic time. They paired them up with a couple of kids her age fishing with their young uncle, and they all talked and chatted the whole time. Guide was great with them all, and very easy going and knowledgeable. They landed one salmon (the other party, DD’s jumped off the hook). DH said he recommends them, and he has done a lot of salmon fishing here at home.

Victoria - We just stayed on the boat here and relaxed, so no report for Victoria.

We really enjoyed it all! It was wonderful.

[steves100]

Skagway- Rented a Jeep from Green Jeep. Excellent service, they picked up at the dock. Drove to the Yukon and back, much better than riding the train in my opinion.

Juneau- Helicopter and Dog sledding on Glacier. THE BEST PART OF THE WHOLE TRIP!!!! Yes it is expensive but well worth it. My wife said she would do it again in a heart beat and she is cheap.

KetichikanGot lucky and sea plane was cancelled. After doing the helicopter wanted to cancel excursion but was told we could not. Weather cancelled it for us!!

Victoria- Butcharts Gardens and Butterflys. The gardens are a must see. The butterflys not so much.



Steve

[busybethie]

HI. Anyone here done zipline on the Alaska cruise? If yes, which port has the best zipline adventure for the money? What did you like and no like about any of these?

Thanks.

Beth

[AquaDame]

Originally Posted by OregonMom

Juneau- Enchanted Taku Lodge by Float Plane
My DD 11 was also not happy with the many hanging pelts and animal heads.

Welp, definitely won't be doing that one!

[AquaDame]

Originally Posted by RedSox68

We originally had July booked and moved it back to May this year. As noted above, we saw tons of wildlife (including grizzly and black bear and orcas) and enjoyed the cooler temps and no mosquitoes. I am a winter girl at heart, so I absolutely loved the ice and snow.

My husband is Canadian, so he is a winter boy at heart too! Was there a particular excursion you had to go on to see the bears/orcas? I am comforted knowing you saw them in May that it is really just going to be up to chance! I have seen a lot of black bears/seals/bald eagles in my time (I live in Oregon) so its a grizzly and wild Orca I'm after!

[lucky1]

Originally Posted by AquaDame

Welp, definitely won't be doing that one!

Ahh.. don't let that detract you from the Enchanted Taku Lodge. It was only inside the lodge, we spent majority of our time outside. It was so wonderful.

Originally Posted by AquaDame

My husband is Canadian, so he is a winter boy at heart too! Was there a particular excursion you had to go on to see the bears/orcas? I am comforted knowing you saw them in May that it is really just going to be up to chance! I have seen a lot of black bears/seals/bald eagles in my time (I live in Oregon) so its a grizzly and wild Orca I'm after!

DH and DD saw whales and dolphins off the Ship. I also heard from those who were on the Whale watching excursions that they saw lots of Whales During our July 2 cruise.

[LynneyPooh]

Originally Posted by busybethie

HI. Anyone here done zipline on the Alaska cruise? If yes, which port has the best zipline adventure for the money? What did you like and no like about any of these?

Thanks.

Beth

we did the zip line excursion in scagway. I think it's grizzly falls- it had 11 lines and was absolutely WONDERFUL! the zip guides were great, and professional. safety was of up most importance. you could tell, without them beating the rules over and over, very subtle. the # of people was kept low, then broke down into smaller groups. in our immediate group had 7 guests and 2 guides. two families - ours with 3, and another with 4 people.

they handle the kids great ( our DD10) was almost to light , and didn't make it to the end of the longest zip. not a problem, they made it an adventure pulling her in- she thought it was awesome!

in addition, the scenery was indescribable- on private property. Zipping over the waterfalls was great. the zip lines were all different lengths. if I'm remembering correctly they've only been in business 2 years-this being their 2nd year. the ride up the mountain was fun too. we booked through Disney due to the fact there were nothing but late times left directly through them.

in addition, another guide we had earlier in the day for our train/bus ride told us he had done both zip lines in scagway, and this one was the better of the two. He wasn't soliciting business- as we were finishing the bus ride it was general conversation, as in what are you doing the rest of the day, where can I drop you off? when we stated we wanted lunch then had to meet our zip line tour, he asked if I remembered the name and when I told him he said good that was the better of the 2.

I thought this was a pricey excursion for us. there were no "frills". or perks like medals, certificates or pictures included. A snack was provided @ the end of bottle water and granola bars. Our guide did take a family photo of us on one of the suspension bridges with our camera, and this was offered to everyone.
I do think I need to disclose that this excursion it is the only one we booked thru Disney and we had to pay adult prices for DD 10.

We were in scagway on June 21. the only negative was a few Mosquitos. By now I'd make sure I had bug repellent with me. DH said he did encounter a couple of the black flies...


After saying all this: we'd do it again and again, even with the price we paid. We all agree this was one of our favorite things we did!!!!!

[parkinfamily]

Just back from the Wonder July 2-9. What an awe-inspiring set of destinations! Here is a quick recap of our adventures.

Skagway: Liarsville Gold Rush Trail Camp and Salmon Bake. Like previous people, we thought it was a bit corny, but it was fun for DD9 and because it was a Disney excursion, Chip&Dale and Donald joined us for gold panning, which made it even more fun. The food was delicious and the glaze they had for the salmon was amazing! Definitely beautiful surroundings and recommended for people with young kids.

Skagway: Mushers Camp and Sled Dog Experience. This was a great adventure. We could not afford the dog sledding on the glacier, and our daughter is fascinated with Sled Dogging. This was the perfect excursion. We took a bus to the camp, then rode a unimog up to where the dogs were. They were barking, yipping, and ready to go as we arrived. We got into wheeled sleds and off we went! So amazing to feel the power of those dogs. Then unimog back to camp for a talk about equipment, supplies, etc. Many of the dogs and mushers at this camp are actual Iditarod racers so my daughter got to ask many questions, which were answered patiently and completely. Hot cocoa and coffee was available. The highlight: holding the puppies! Amazing. Lifetime memories for sure!

Juneau: Juneau City & Mendenhall Glacier Tour. Absolutely my favorite excursion. This is one of the few excursions that allows you a full 90 minutes at the glacier. Be absolutely certain to take the Nugget Falls trail (says its 45 min trail, but more like 30-round trip-for able-bodied people) plan for 10-15 minutes at the falls to take in the beauty of your surroundings and process exactly what you ate experiencing. Visitors center is good for kids and adults. Gift shop in the visitor center. Be sure to walk down to the edge of the lake...you might get lucky and have an iceberg close enough to touch, or in our case, close enough to wade out to...brrrrrrr! Great narration on the bus through Juneau and fabulous eagle sightings. This excursion included a tour of Macaulay Salmon Hatchery. A neat stop and good info. Kids like it bc of touch tanks and live animals. We liked it because it gave us our best bald eagle sighting opportunities. Still had plenty of time for shopping afterwards. DH bought me a "piece of the glacier" as a souvenir of our trip--a blue topaz solitaire pendant. <3

Ketchikan: Expect rain. They get 160" of rain per year! Accept it as part of the experience...don't let it scare you. BRING RAIN PONCHOS. We did City Highlights, Totems, and Creek Street by Trolley. Probably another one of my faves, but I like to learn about the people and history of the areas I visit. Fabulous Ketchikan native for narrator. Lots of great tidbits! Saxman Village Totem Pole Park was amazing! Lots of history and we even got to watch a master carver actually carving in the carving shed! Such an honor. Trolley took us back to Creek Street and we could either ride back to the ship or stay at Creek Street and walk.back. We walked back because we wanted to sightsee some more. 5 block walk through town back to the ship. Easy. Make sure you visit Creek Street, even if its just for a photo stop.

Victoria: Free Shuttle to downtown. Just wandered and took photos. Locals told us that Buschardt Gardens was a 5 hour trip to do it well, and we just didn't have the time. We may do it someday. Didn't feel like we missed out.

Such an amazing trip! Lifetime memories for DH, DD9, and certainly for me! Lots of bucket list items checked off on this trip!

Hope this helps. Let me know if you have other questions.

[diznefan76]

We have this excursion booked for our Aug 6th cruise & I am curious if anyone has done this and what your thoughts were.

[disnanny]

we did this excursion last year on our cruise and really enjoyed it. The staff were very friendly and helpful, the crab was great. Enjoy your cruise

[mgmcpa]

After reading all 52 pages, I still have a coupld questions about Juneau options:

In Juneau I see lots of talk about the city bus shuttle that takes you out to the glacier for $16 round trip. Does anyone know if you can buy this ticket just one way, $8?


Reason I ask is that we are interested in taking the normal, slower, city bus back to port so that we can get off at the Hospital stop, which is the location of the Salmon Hatchery.

Has anyone done this? Anything we should be aware of?

We really only want to see the glacier and the hatchery, and I just can't fork over big bucks to book a tour when the city bus runs by here for $1.50 one way.

[diznefan76]

Originally Posted by disnanny

we did this excursion last year on our cruise and really enjoyed it. The staff were very friendly and helpful, the crab was great. Enjoy your cruise

Thanks Disnanny! Good to know that it was enjoyable and that the crab was good! I'm so looking forward to this excursion!!!

[RedSox68]

Those that went in end of June and early July -- did you notice any mosquito problems?

[lucky1]

Originally Posted by RedSox68

Those that went in end of June and early July -- did you notice any mosquito problems?

We went early July... (first week).. the only place we noticed Mosquito's was at the Taku Lodge (Juneau). The mosquito's were big and thick. The lodge provide some 30% deet spray and that seem to work.

Ketichan it was raining and skagway we never saw any, but that might be because we were on a moving train or in the middle of town. I don't remember seeing them at Liarsville, which is heavely wooded area.

[staxia]

We sailed June 25- July 2. The only place we ran into any mosquitoes was on the train in Skagway. Not while we were moving, but when we went up to the top and stopped, the mosquitoes swarmed. Because you could go inside and out, the doors were open and the mosquitoes came in the train cars.