Alaska Excursions--post your reviews here!

[smeecanada]

Mileage may vary...

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2666085

Thanks, exactly the thread I was looking for. Not sure, why it didn't come up when I searched for it.

 

[staffieri]

Do you think all avaliability for the tours are given on the Disney site or do they hold some spaces back? I am trying to get the whale tour at 10 and it is only showing the other times.

 

[cyclenut]

I know that some of these are repeats but I'm going to share with you our epxeriences. First, there were 7 in our party so for each day, we were doing three different excursions. Those I went on personally I can share better detail, but I have a pretty good idea of each of them from the other members of our family.

Skagway.
1) Experience Yukon by Bike
This was a most excellent adventure. The operator had plenty of bikes to choose from and even outfitted mine with the pedals I requested to match my bike shoes. The bikes were loaded up and we headed out and across the border into Canada. It was raining, more of a drizzle actually, but very wet. We were given a safety speech and the bikes were explained to everyone. Then we headed out for 38 miles along a single road into Carcross. The scenery was spectacular. We did encounter a coulple of black bears along the road but we were given the rundown on how to approach (or better yet, not approach) the situation. The weather cleared up about 10 miles into our ride and by the halfway point all but my feet were dry. There are a few hills to deal with but it was all good. There were a total of 6 people on this ride, only myself from our party. We all finished in Carcross ahead of the 4 hour time alottment and we stopped several times to get pictures and take in a quick snack. This excursion included a small lunch and they provided granola bars for during the ride. This is not a ride for someone who wants to sit back and enjoy the scenery. You will get a workout. My legs were tired by the time I was done. But it was totally worth it. We took a rather long ride in the van back where we all visited and learned a bit more about Alaska and the Yukon territory from our guides. Interestingly we passed the Yukon Suspension Bridge.

The small town of Carcross. Very neat general store there. If you go, make sure to stop by.

2) Yukon Suspension Bridge, City and Whitepass Railway:
Three in our party did this excursion and they talked about it all trip. It wasn't the favorite but it was close. The rail provided some spectacular views and the guide was helpful and provided some humor. This excursion took you to Frasier where you boarded a bus to the Yukon Suspension Bridge. This was spectacular. It was a very solid bridge that provided some awesome views. There were bugs here but it was cool so most people didn't have too much exposed skin for it to be a problem. The bus took everyone back. So you get a train one way and the bus back, plus the suspension bridge. The length was about right leaving plenty of time to shop in Skagway.

3) Mammoth Waterfalls and Ultra Zipline Adventure:
Three in our party did this zipline adventure and they all thought this was the best of all the excursions they took. Incredible. A total of 9 different ziplines during the time there. Great countryside. You could be as loud as you wanted. A couple of the ziplines were shorter and one was pretty long. The operators were very nice and very helpful. This is apparently their first year in operation, although this particular tour operator (Alaska Excursions) has been doing these types of things for some time. You had to take a bus to the base of area and then a special vehicle made for hill climbing took everyone to the zipline area. There is a weight limit for this excursion and guests were reminded of this often.

Juneau.
1) Sled dog discovery and musher's camp.
Myself and my DS20 did this one. He is a huge fan of Alaska sled dogs, Huskies to be specific. We took a bus to a place near the ski lodge and then boarded vans where we were taken into the camp. We were greated by many very excited barking sled dogs all strapped up and ready to go. We were seated in a wheeled cart for six and taken around the camp for a few minutes. Then we were let out to pet the dogs and we learned a little bit about these dogs, the lead dogs and other things. Then we transitioned to another area where we were greated by an Alaskan Husky. We walked out on a small suspension bridge that was apparently new and took in some great forest area over a creek. Impressive views. We then sat down for what amounted to quite a bit of "show and tell". This is a working mushers camp for the sled dogs. Here you learn all about the dogs and their gear. What steps are taken to keep them healthy and happy on the trail and some of the "tricks of the trade". We then transitioned to another area where we learned all about the Iditarod, the route, the mushers gear and equipment, the sleds, etc. Finally it was puppy time. The puppies were taken out of the pens and we got to hold them and pet them. Cute and adorable as most all puppies are. Very special. In all, too much lecture time for us. Would have preferred more time with the dogs and on the sled. But it was very informative and we did enjoy it. Basically, it was as advertised. It is a working musher's camp and we learned about sled dogs, mushers and the races they run.

2) Mendenhall Glacier Explorer and Mount Roberts Tramway:
Two in our party did this one and they thought it was excellent. No walking on the glacier itself but plenty of opportunity to explore around it. They took a hike back to a wonderful waterfall. Apparently there were several options to choose from depending on the ability of your party and how far they wanted to walk. Most people seemed to shy away from the waterfall hike but my DW and DD18 loved it. The tramway was amazing. You can't miss it and this is definately one you don't need to book through the ship. There was plenty of time in Juneau to pick this up either before or after an excursion. It is a 6 minute ride to the top where there spectacular views of the entire area. This was a great combination.

3) Alaska Whales and Rainforest Trails:
I heard conflicting information on this one. Some really liked the whale watching and one said it was boring and kept falling asleep (could have been the dramamine ... she insisted that the non-drowsy formula didn't work for her). Definately saw some humpbacks. The rainforest was excellent. There were people doing a zipline overhead which was a little distracting. Interestingly those people were told to be quiet during their zipline so as not to disturb those who were viewing the rainforest from below. This was a contrast to the zipline exerience in Skagway. The rainforest tour was basically a nature walk through private land that is basically a natural rainforest due to the several feet of rain (yes feet) that they get each year. In all a good experience but it was not considered one of the favorites.

A word about Juneau. We had spectacular weather. The Wonder was docked a little further away from the town so they had a shuttle. You could walk it, but it was about 20 minutes or more and it wasn't even nice scenary. They had several tour brokers out on the street. Tours were available through them at half the price of what DCL charges and they claimed there was room on virtually every kind of tour you might want. I am a little leary of choosing that option personally, but it is available.

Ketchikan.
1) Back Country Jeep and Canoe Adventure:
We were picked up by bus and taken to the tour operator. We filled out paperwork and provided insurance information. We were reminded several times that a person over the age of 25 was required to drive the jeep. The jeeps seat four. We had three in our party and we did get our own jeep. There was a party of 5 and one of that party road with the guide. They used CB Radios to keep in contact with each other. We got in our jeeps and headed out to the lake where we got into a canoe. The entire group was put into one canoe, but that also meant that we were seated three wide. The person in the middle had a paddle, but didn't get to use it. There were a couple of people disappointed with that, but you do have a chance to go out and then back. We switched it up. The echo off the lake was amazing and the sceneray around the lack was awesome. When we reached the dock on the other side, we did a short and informative nature walk. A very easy walk along a bark-covered trail. When we returned from the walk we were served clam chowder and smoked salmon. They also had hot chocolate, bread and crackers. The chowder was very good as was the smoked salmon. Better than any I had on board the ship. We then paddled back across the lake. This is where I snapped a paddle. We kept the handle as a souvenier. I was putting a lot into the rowing as there were many in the canoe that ... well ... were just too young to understand how to do it and on one of the strokes, SNAP. When we got to the dock we got back in the jeeps and headed out on some logging roads. It was quite fun. I was surprised at how rough the roads were and very narrow too. It really felt like an off-road adventure. Through mud puddles and over rocks (nothing large). Up hills and again, spectacular scenery. After a couple of different roads and a few opportunities to switch up the seating we headed back to be bussed back to the dock. This was a whole lot of fun! The guide, Matt, was very friendly and informative and encouraged CB chatter, which the younger kids on the trip really loved. Matt commented on how he felt like the DCL groups were full of more energy and fun than most of the other tour groups. He really liked that.

2) Bear Country and Wildlife Expedition:
If you like to see bears, this is the one for you. DW and DD18 went on this one and watched bears catch and eat salmon. Perfect timing. They both commented on how much they were able to see. Apparently there are more black bears on the island than there are people. They also saw a few other animals but all they really talked about was how amazing it was to watch the bears.

3) Mountain Point Snorkeling Adventure:
The wetsuits worked as advertised. Nobody was cold and they had an excellent time. Unfortunately the current was particularly strong so they had to stay closer in than they wanted but the guides brought large starfish and other animals and plants closer to the surface for better viewing when need be. Both who went talked about how awesome it was but really couldn't point out much in the way of details.

That's about it.

Generally speaking the Wonder was one of at least three ships in every port. We even followed the Carnival into Tracey Arm (although they turned around MUCH earlier). In Ketchikan, there were 5 ships docked, two from Celebrity. The Carnival ship had to tender guests ashore using their life boats. Basically, the ports were crowded.

 

[cyclenut]

Has anyone done the Alaska wildlife expedition in Skagway? DH is looking at doing this to take wildlife photographs.

Wildlife photography is his hobby & he wants me to ask this question: of the three ports in Alaska, is there one port or excursion in particular that is best for photography. Yeah, I know it's Alaska & the photo opportunities are probably beyond amazing. He's just wanting to see if one is better than the others.

TIA for any responses!

Really hard to say but I know that Bear Country and Wildlife Expedition in Ketchikan didn't disappoint my DW and DD18 for wildlife viewing. But I've also read reviews where people didn't see one bear. It is wildlife and as such, sometimes you see it and sometimes you don't. The nice thing about that Ketchikan excursion is that you are on a walking tour which means there is plenty of time to set up and get pictures. There are other tours where you can see wildlife, but you are in a van or a train or otherwise moving, which makes it hard to get a good shot. In short, if you choose a walk or hike you are much more likely to find and get good shots at the wildlife.

We were told that in both Ketchikan and Juneau there are basically bears and mountain goats. Caribou don't really wonder around those areas. I didn't see any in Skagway but it may be that you'll need to look more closely at what is available in and around Skagway and the Yukon area outside of Skagway if you want variety.

 

[cyclenut]

Word of advice about minor children. If you don't plan to stay together as a family unit for shore excursions, be preared to fill out some additional paperwork.

We had one case where my DD16 and DD22 were going off the ship together. Since DD16 is a minor, we needed to fill out a special authorization form for Disney to let her off the ship without a parent. Good policy but if you don't know about it and fill out the form early, it can delay your disembarkation for a shore excursion. It didn't happen to us, but we did see it happen to someone.

If your excursion takes you into Canada there must be at least one parent with the minor child. However, if it is ONLY one of the two parents, the parent who is NOT going with the child must sign a form and provide it to the parent who IS going with the child. My DW had the form for the Yukon suspension bridge tour and there wasn't any problem. Someone else on the bus didn't have said form and received the third degree. The agent did eventually let them go but was very close to pulling them off the bus.

If you are all staying together, no special forms should be needed. It wasn't a problem for us, because we had the forms. They are readily available at the port adventures desk.

 

[RedSox68]

Sounds like the glacier hikes may be too much for my old legs, but the excursion information is invaluable. Thanks to all who are taking the time to post so much information!

 

[poohj80]

Word of advice about minor children. If you don't plan to stay together as a family unit for shore excursions, be preared to fill out some additional paperwork.

We had one case where my DD16 and DD22 were going off the ship together. Since DD16 is a minor, we needed to fill out a special authorization form for Disney to let her off the ship without a parent. Good policy but if you don't know about it and fill out the form early, it can delay your disembarkation for a shore excursion. It didn't happen to us, but we did see it happen to someone.

If your excursion takes you into Canada there must be at least one parent with the minor child. However, if it is ONLY one of the two parents, the parent who is NOT going with the child must sign a form and provide it to the parent who IS going with the child. My DW had the form for the Yukon suspension bridge tour and there wasn't any problem. Someone else on the bus didn't have said form and received the third degree. The agent did eventually let them go but was very close to pulling them off the bus.

If you are all staying together, no special forms should be needed. It wasn't a problem for us, because we had the forms. They are readily available at the port adventures desk.

Thank you SO much for mentioning this. I have been reading trip reports all summer and this is the first I have heard of this. In Skagway, we plan to leave DD with grandma while we do a Helicopter Glacier tour so we will get the form filled out early to avoid any delays.

 

[debc1212]

Really hard to say but I know that Bear Country and Wildlife Expedition in Ketchikan didn't disappoint my DW and DD18 for wildlife viewing. But I've also read reviews where people didn't see one bear. It is wildlife and as such, sometimes you see it and sometimes you don't. The nice thing about that Ketchikan excursion is that you are on a walking tour which means there is plenty of time to set up and get pictures. There are other tours where you can see wildlife, but you are in a van or a train or otherwise moving, which makes it hard to get a good shot. In short, if you choose a walk or hike you are much more likely to find and get good shots at the wildlife.

We were told that in both Ketchikan and Juneau there are basically bears and mountain goats. Caribou don't really wonder around those areas. I didn't see any in Skagway but it may be that you'll need to look more closely at what is available in and around Skagway and the Yukon area outside of Skagway if you want variety.

Thanks so much for the response. I think DH may look into other excursions other than Disney. My only concern is the chance of the tour goes long and he gets left behind. Might put a damper on the trip!

Thanks also for your detailed reviews. There are a couple there that i had not seen reviewed before.

 

[Bookworm Belle]

Has anyone done the Alaska wildlife expedition in Skagway? DH is looking at doing this to take wildlife photographs.

Wildlife photography is his hobby & he wants me to ask this question: of the three ports in Alaska, is there one port or excursion in particular that is best for photography. Yeah, I know it's Alaska & the photo opportunities are probably beyond amazing. He's just wanting to see if one is better than the others.

TIA for any responses!

YES! We did this and we LOVED it! It was, in fact, our favorite excursion. We saw bald eagles and SEVEN brown bears (mom with two cubs and then another mom with three cubs). Highly recommended!

 

[HiMagicFan]

YES! We did this and we LOVED it! It was, in fact, our favorite excursion. We saw bald eagles and SEVEN brown bears (mom with two cubs and then another mom with three cubs). Highly recommended!

Ohhh! you went! was there lots of hiking? if so, can you do it with tennis/running shoes? what did you wear? layers? hiked a lot or rode a lot? I am so at lost on how to prepare for this one. Thank you

 

[Bookworm Belle]

Ohhh! you went! was there lots of hiking? if so, can you do it with tennis/running shoes? what did you wear? layers? hiked a lot or rode a lot? I am so at lost on how to prepare for this one. Thank you

No, not a lot of hiking. There is about a half-mile nature walk through the woods. I wore some good walking shoes (New Balance) and I was fine, but they were leather. Canvas shoes would have gotten wet. Dave wore a pair of mid-height Merrell hikers and was fine. It was drizzly, so we both wore layers. I had on a silk base layer, lightweight fleece top and stretchy activewear pants and then a rain shell and rain pants over that and I was perfectly comfortable. You take a high speed ferry to Haines, then a bus up the Chilkat River (where we saw the bears) to Chilkat Lake. At the lake, you get out and do the nature walk. Then back to Haines and you have a nice lunch (chicken caesar wrap, chips, grapes, cookie and bottled water) and then head back on the ferry. Very low impact (Dave walks with a cane and he did it with ease). It's wonderful!! I hope you enjoy it!

 

[Inkmahm]

Has anyone done the Alaska wildlife expedition in Skagway? DH is looking at doing this to take wildlife photographs.

Wildlife photography is his hobby & he wants me to ask this question: of the three ports in Alaska, is there one port or excursion in particular that is best for photography. Yeah, I know it's Alaska & the photo opportunities are probably beyond amazing. He's just wanting to see if one is better than the others.

TIA for any responses!

We just did this excursion yesterday in Skagway- was called the Evening Wildlife Expedition (Seasonal). It was wonderful! I have been to Alaska 3 times and I saw the most bears on this excursion as any I have ever taken. There were two brown bears with their cubs, a total of 7 brown bear feeding on salmon at the river at the same time. They got very close to us. The excursion operator told us they were named BMJ and Speedy (the moms).

We also saw bald eagles and seals. But the bears were the highlight for me and the reason I took this tour. Also, it started with a caesar chicken wrap picnic lunch in Haines. I don't remember lunch being listed when I booked this but there was a lunch at about 2:30 when we got to Haines.

I would give this tour a 10 out of 10.

 

[Inkmahm]

YES! We did this and we LOVED it! It was, in fact, our favorite excursion. We saw bald eagles and SEVEN brown bears (mom with two cubs and then another mom with three cubs). Highly recommended!

Yup, the one with 3 cubs is BMJ and the one with two cubs is Speedy. They are well known in Haines and seen quite often. This is my favorite excursion so far, too.

 

[Inkmahm]

This excursion out of Skagway was pretty much exactly as I expected. Previous reviews have been accurate. Yesterday, we were able to hold puppies that were 20 days old! SO cute. There were also puppies that had been born the day before but you could see them but not hold them as they were WAY too small. The 20 day old puppies seemed pretty small to me to have them held so much, too. But I guess they want hardy dogs for the teams so being held a lot is a test for them if anything.

I give this excursion an 8 out of 10. To get a 10, it would have needed a longer ride with the dogs and MORE PUPPY TIME.

 

[Inkmahm]

This tour was run by Dolphin Jet boats. It was exactly that, a jet boat that fit about 35 passengers. It was raining pretty heavy this morning and I heard some whale watching tours were canceled. This one was not canceled. It was difficult to see out of the windows due to the rain and the fogging of the windows. That didn't matter much since there were just a couple whales to see anyway. I saw one fluke.

Mendenhall Glacier stop was fine, pretty much what I expected.

I give this excursion a 5 out of 10. The weather didn't cooperate so that may have affected how many whales we saw (or didn't see). It was not a great excursion compared to the last time I did whale watching in Juneau with Harv and Marv. With them, we saw Bald eagles feeding on the shoreline, seals sitting as a group, and many whales. They were constantly talking to other boats to know where the whales were. Maybe the captain today was doing the same thing and there just weren't whales out there to see. But we really only saw one other tour boat out there so the other boats were somewhere and maybe that somewhere was where the whales were.

I'd give our 2008 whale excursion with Harv and Marv a 10 out of 10. Rather than book with Disney, I'd suggest a private booking with them. I didn't do that for this trip only because there were just two of us this time and I wanted to see what Disney would do for the excursion. Now I've seen it and in the future, I will book with Harv and Marv.

 

[lbgraves]

Do you think all avaliability for the tours are given on the Disney site or do they hold some spaces back? I am trying to get the whale tour at 10 and it is only showing the other times.

All excursion spots are released at 120 days. Sometimes there are cancellations so times will open up later on.

We did the White Pass Summit train in Skagway on our own due to the kids being 10 & 12 and DCL wanting to charge twice as much. You end up on the SAME train as the DCL excursion. The people who book on their own and board at the station sit in the front 3-4 cars, then back up across the street where the cars are seperated to hook up to the cars filled with the DCL excursion. The station is that close to the pier. One advantage for us was that there were only 12-14 people in our car, so we could move from side to side as we were going and did not have to worry about switching seats for the trip back down. Also, the platforms outside the cars were not crowded. The car in front of ours was filled with a group of 42 people. Not only was the car full, but there were many people on the platform trying to get pictures. I was very thankful we didn't have to deal with that. At the end of the trip, ALL of the train cars go to the dock right by the Wonder.

We went to Mendenhall Glacier on one of the $16 shuttles. After reading the reviews about the hike offered, I am glad that we did this on our own. We hiked to the base of Nugget Falls, which takes you VERY close to the glacier. We took what looked like the shorter trail, but found out that it required you to walk across narrow streams on loose, wet rocks. We also had to go through brush on a VERY narrow path...barely enough room to walk through and you would not have been able to pass someone while in the brush. The trail to the right at the fork in the road where the signs say that both trails lead to Nugget Falls was good enough for a stroller. That's the one we took to get back to the shuttle stop.

 

[Jiminy407]

Beautiful day, blue sky (we lucked out), fantastic views from the helo, fun time with the dogs and sleds...BEST EXCURSION EVER!!!

We had one limited mobility member of our group and she had no problem with the snow on the glacier (guides were there to help get her from helo to sled). She could walk on her own short distances but had trouble with stairs/uneven ground.

 

[staffieri]

We just did this excursion yesterday in Skagway- was called the Evening Wildlife Expedition (Seasonal). It was wonderful! I have been to Alaska 3 times and I saw the most bears on this excursion as any I have ever taken. There were two brown bears with their cubs, a total of 7 brown bear feeding on salmon at the river at the same time. They got very close to us. The excursion operator told us they were named BMJ and Speedy (the moms).

We also saw bald eagles and seals. But the bears were the highlight for me and the reason I took this tour. Also, it started with a caesar chicken wrap picnic lunch in Haines. I don't remember lunch being listed when I booked this but there was a lunch at about 2:30 when we got to Haines.

I would give this tour a 10 out of 10.

Great review!!! I think this is all booked up now. Did you do this the week of August 8th?

This tour was run by Dolphin Jet boats. It was exactly that, a jet boat that fit about 35 passengers. It was raining pretty heavy this morning and I heard some whale watching tours were canceled. This one was not canceled. It was difficult to see out of the windows due to the rain and the fogging of the windows. That didn't matter much since there were just a couple whales to see anyway. I saw one fluke.

Do you think the Whale season is coming to an end. Most of the whales are moving on? Did you take Harv and Marv and a different time of year? When did you take this trip.? Thinking of not doing the whale trip next week. Loved you thoughts on your time. And Harv and Marv are BOOKED.

Mendenhall Glacier stop was fine, pretty much what I expected.



Love all the reviews. Keep then coming. We are on the last cruise. Is the weather getting colder?

 

[Inkmahm]

Great review!!! I think this is all booked up now. Did you do this the week of August 8th?

This tour was run by Dolphin Jet boats. It was exactly that, a jet boat that fit about 35 passengers. It was raining pretty heavy this morning and I heard some whale watching tours were canceled. This one was not canceled. It was difficult to see out of the windows due to the rain and the fogging of the windows. That didn't matter much since there were just a couple whales to see anyway. I saw one fluke.

Do you think the Whale season is coming to an end. Most of the whales are moving on? Did you take Harv and Marv and a different time of year? When did you take this trip.? Thinking of not doing the whale trip next week. Loved you thoughts on your time. And Harv and Marv are BOOKED.

Mendenhall Glacier stop was fine, pretty much what I expected.



Love all the reviews. Keep then coming. We are on the last cruise. Is the weather getting colder?

We are on the 8/16 cruise. We are pulling into Ketchikan as I type this.

Skagway wildlife excursion was two days ago. Whale watching was yesterday morning. they said the whales leave mid-Sept to go back to Hawaii. We did Harv and Marv at the very same time of year in August 2008. Saw LOTS of whales on that trip but the weather was much better that day. If you've never been whale watching before, I'd probably still do the tour. I just wouldn't get my hopes up for the chance to see a lot of whales.

 

[staffieri]

Great review!!! I think this is all booked up now. Did you do this the week of August 8th?



We are on the 8/16 cruise. We are pulling into Ketchikan as I type this.

Skagway wildlife excursion was two days ago. Whale watching was yesterday morning. they said the whales leave mid-Sept to go back to Hawaii. We did Harv and Marv at the very same time of year in August 2008. Saw LOTS of whales on that trip but the weather was much better that day. If you've never been whale watching before, I'd probably still do the tour. I just wouldn't get my hopes up for the chance to see a lot of whales.

Thanks Inkman!!! I can't believe your on the cruise now. How much is the Wi Fi on the cruise? Can you use it from your cabin?