Alaska Cruise -- Which Dog Sled Excursion?

[labdogs42]

Which one did you choose? What's the difference between the ones in Juneau vs Skagway? I'm a little nervous about the helicopter ones, but DH and DS want that part, too. So, tell me all about your dog sled adventures and which one you'd recommend! I have until May to decide!

 

[Jestocost]

We did the helicopter/dog sled adventure in Skagway and it was fantastic. I think to get to one of the glacier adventures in either place you're going to have to do a helicopter. The dog sled adventures that don't take you to the glacier have you mushing over dirt, not snow and ice, if I recall correctly, and I don't think that would be very nice. I think there's just the one option in Skagway but that in Juneau one allows you to stay and sled longer. All of them are pricey but, IMO, it was worth it.

 

[poison ivy]

We also did the helicopter/dog sled adventure thru Disney in Skagway. I second Jestocost, it was fantastic. I answered questions and posted pictures about it on a previous thread in these two links. Hope it helps

Part I: http://www.disboards.com/threads/anyone-back-from-alaska-yet.3414870/page-3#post-53820112
Part II: http://www.disboards.com/threads/anyone-back-from-alaska-yet.3414870/page-5#post-53829461

 

[sager1969]

We did the Tesco helicopter sled adventure in Skagway. We chose to do this in the first port in case the weather prevented us from going. This way we could try again in Juneau if necessary. The helicopter port was in walking distance to the boat port. It was a quick helicopter ride to the dog camp on on the glacier. They provided boots. The actual sledding was not a really long time but lots of fun. The kids working there were great!! We had too many layers on and were really hot, but it was a sunny day. This was my son's one request and we all had a great time. The views were amazing. We did not really get to hold a puppy. He was a rather young dog...... But we were there early in the season. I would highly recommend them. I am terrrified of helicopters, but it was worth it for me.

 

[labdogs42]

We did the Tesco helicopter sled adventure in Skagway. We chose to do this in the first port in case the weather prevented us from going. This way we could try again in Juneau if necessary. The helicopter port was in walking distance to the boat port. It was a quick helicopter ride to the dog camp on on the glacier. They provided boots. The actual sledding was not a really long time but lots of fun. The kids working there were great!! We had too many layers on and were really hot, but it was a sunny day. This was my son's one request and we all had a great time. The views were amazing. We did not really get to hold a puppy. He was a rather young dog...... But we were there early in the season. I would highly recommend them. I am terrrified of helicopters, but it was worth it for me.

Oh, that's great info. I'm kind of scared of the helicopter thing, too, but I'll do it to go dog sledding! And I like your logic on the first port/second port thing. So, that was glacier sledding in Skagway, too, right? I don't want to do the dirt road one.

 

[MagicMe]

We did the summer dog sled in Juneau. I wanted to do the railroad in Skagway and that coupled with the lunch, etc took most of that day. Plus for me the helicopter excursions were way too expensive (although I heard you can get them cheaper by booking directly). We had a great time with the summer one in Juneau. They took us to the camp where we were pulled by a team of dogs while we were on a golf type cart. They can really go fast and it was fun going up, down and around the bends. After that we got to meet our dogs. We then had an informative session where someone talked about the care of the dogs and then someone else talked about the dog sled competitions and what is involved. The last thing we got to do was hold the puppies. So much fun. This took our morning and the bus dropped us in Juneau so we could walk around and eat (the kids ate at the crab shack and my mom and I ate at a crepe place. Food was awesome. After that we took a shuttle back to the ship. We cruised Alaska in mid-August.

 

[Jestocost]

Oh, that's great info. I'm kind of scared of the helicopter thing, too, but I'll do it to go dog sledding! And I like your logic on the first port/second port thing. So, that was glacier sledding in Skagway, too, right? I don't want to do the dirt road one.

See link below for a picture of the family on the glacier above Skagway. We did get to see and hold puppies!

https://goo.gl/photos/VGFx3URkw8A5oRAR7

 

[labdogs42]

See link below for a picture of the family on the glacier above Skagway. We did get to see and hold puppies!

https://goo.gl/photos/VGFx3URkw8A5oRAR7

So COOL!!! So, how hard are these excursions to book through Disney? Are they like cabanas on Castaway Cay or what? Should I book it or have my TA do it for me?

 

[sager1969]

Oh, that's great info. I'm kind of scared of the helicopter thing, too, but I'll do it to go dog sledding! And I like your logic on the first port/second port thing. So, that was glacier sledding in Skagway, too, right? I don't want to do the dirt road one.

Yes, I wanted to see a glacier!

 

[steves100]

We did the Disney package in Juneau. Next time I would book direct with Tesco and save alot!

 

[labdogs42]

We did the Disney package in Juneau. Next time I would book direct with Tesco and save alot!

I was just on their website, but I couldn't find the prices. I wonder what the price is right from them? I guess I'll have to call or email since I can't find it.

 

[mose2000]

I was just on their website, but I couldn't find the prices. I wonder what the price is right from them? I guess I'll have to call or email since I can't find it.

I just booked the helicopter/dog sledding for July 2016 in Skagway through Temsco. It's $509 per person, regardless of age.

 

[poison ivy]

I believe it was 535 thru Disney last year which included transportation. the reason we chose not to book direct was that all fees were charged in full upfront by Temsco. Since this excursion has an extremely high percentage of cancellations, we felt it was worth it to pay a little more to have Disney manage it. This way, we wouldn't be charged unless we actually went on the trip. It avoided having to deal with a refund situation for a substantial amount of money being paid months in advance for 3 of us.

 

[steves100]

I just booked the helicopter/dog sledding for July 2016 in Skagway through Temsco. It's $509 per person, regardless of age.

Thats was the price for Disney when we went....

 

[poison ivy]

Come to think of it, that 509 price sounds familiar. I'm going to have to double check what we paid DCL.

 

[mose2000]

According to the current pricing on the DCL website, it would be $569 for adults (10 and up) and $509 for kids (2-9). Since my daughter will be 11 when we go, that's an automatic $60 savings for her by booking direct (since she would be charged the adult price through DCL), and an additional $60 savings for each of the 3 adults on the excursion. So, by booking direct with Temsco, I saved $240 for my party of 5. Plus, this is the one excursion EVERYBODY in my group wanted to do, so I have the peace of mind knowing it's booked. (I was worried this might sell out before our booking window opens.) However, as a pp mentioned, I did have to pay it all up front!

 

[labdogs42]

According to the current pricing on the DCL website, it would be $569 for adults (10 and up) and $509 for kids (2-9). Since my daughter will be 11 when we go, that's an automatic $60 savings for her by booking direct (since she would be charged the adult price through DCL), and an additional $60 savings for each of the 3 adults on the excursion. So, by booking direct with Temsco, I saved $240 for my party of 5. Plus, this is the one excursion EVERYBODY in my group wanted to do, so I have the peace of mind knowing it's booked. (I was worried this might sell out before our booking window opens.) However, as a pp mentioned, I did have to pay it all up front!

I like the idea of knowing I got it. What happens if the weather is bad and TEMSCO cancels?

 

[mose2000]

I like the idea of knowing I got it. What happens if the weather is bad and TEMSCO cancels?

If the weather is bad and they have to cancel, they'll try to reschedule me for later that same day, or for the same excursion in Juneau later in the cruise (the do the same thing there, just a different glacier). If neither of those work out, they'll refund 100% to my card.

 

[Rapunzel22]

We did the dog sled summer camp in Juneau in June 2015 because we have two little ones. It's basically a wheeled cart pulled by the dogs. You tour the site, pet older puppies and do one short loop down the road and back. My girls enjoyed it but it was less than thrilling, especially for the price. I probably would not recommend it