How much did you spend on excursions in Alaska?

[ArmyWife7]

We are going in July and have booked everything directly with each company.

Skagway - Helicopter/Dogsled Tour with M&M Tours - $489 per person plus 5% tax
Juneau - Harv & Marv whale watching private tour with others on the same cruise - $133.89 per person
Ketchikan - Bering Sea Crab Fishermen's Tour (Deadliest Catch Tour) - $169 per adult; $109 for child

 

[The Grays]

The three of us are doing the musher helicopter so that is about $500 each. DD is doing the horse ride for about $180 then DD and DW are doing the zip line for about $125 each. So that is about $1930. I booked all direct.

 

[lisareniff]

We went on HAL a few years ago and spent as much on the excursions as the room! (but it was HAL prices with cheap 3&4th occupant) We did it up...

Juneau - kayak on the Mendenhall glacial lake (Above and Beyond) & Helicopter Dog Sled - both private and excellent experiences, we were able to do 2 excursions due to the long port time with HAL
Sitka - Private charter whale watch & Speed boat (for 2) & walk to Totem Park - Loved Sitka, best memory of a whale from the small private boat (three things!)
Ketchikan - Deadliest Catch /Sea Crab Fishermen's Tour (for 3) - Short port time in Ketchikan

One thing I noticed when comparing cruises for Alaska when we went. Some cruises had the same ports but much different port times. We were able to do two excursions in two of the ports on our cruise.

 

[jetskigrl]

Thanks for the info! Who did you book your whale watching tour with? Would you recommend them?

We booked with Alaska Galore because at the time my DS was too young for Harv and Marv (to bring kids under 13 you had to book a private tour and it would have cost us a lot more). They worked it out that we would be combined with one other family on a 6 or 8 person boat (we only had 3 people). That way we wouldn't have to pay the minimum of 4 people. But when we got there, we were actually placed on a Harv and Marv boat by ourselves (I only know that because it was written on the side of the boat). So those two companies must work together or else they bought one of their boats, LOL.
Either way it worked out really well for us to have a private tour and we had great communication with the people from Alaska Galore. The guide was awesome and he stayed in communication with the other tour operators so that we all knew where the whales were. It was the most amazing experience and at one point we were right in the middle of about 10-12 whales, all around the boat. I would definitely use them again.

http://alaskagaloretours.com/

 

[CalDisneyMomof2]

I will be booking everything directly through Disney to save money. I want to surprise my family and do the helicopter/ dog mushing as our special excursion. The others will be a lumberjack show and panning for gold. Out of pocket through Disney will be about $500 after gift card churning. Sure, booking through the vendors themselves would be a lot less work but I wouldn't save as much money.

 

[steves100]

The most expensive one we have booked for this May is the Disney Exclusive Dog Musher for a Day. It is going to be $4500 for our family of 6. Booking directly didn't save us any money and since it was DE we wouldn't have gotten all the same activites (we don't think). I think any of the helicopter to a glacier/dog sledding excursions are the most expensive options but we have saved and planned and are going for the once in a lifetime adventure!! We have 7, 14 and 16 year old girls and an 18 year old boy-it is his high school graduation trip.

We did it also.... $2000 for family of 4.

If I was going to go to Alaska again, I would book directly through Temsco

 

[shoes99]

We spent $1000 for a couple. I priced out my excursion using DCL, then I called DCL and added a $1000 onboard credit to myself. I put the $1000 on the Disney Visa, and it was eligible for the 6 months no interest. That way I spread the cost out instead of having to pay local vendors all at once. Worked for us.

 

[Lisa Lisa]

We are going in July and have booked everything directly with each company.

Skagway - Helicopter/Dogsled Tour with M&M Tours - $489 per person plus 5% tax
Juneau - Harv & Marv whale watching private tour with others on the same cruise - $133.89 per person
Ketchikan - Bering Sea Crab Fishermen's Tour (Deadliest Catch Tour) - $169 per adult; $109 for child

This sounds like a great plan! It sounds like we'd need to budget about $500/person for the dog sledding experience we're looking for.

 

[Lisa Lisa]

The three of us are doing the musher helicopter so that is about $500 each. DD is doing the horse ride for about $180 then DD and DW are doing the zip line for about $125 each. So that is about $1930. I booked all direct.

Where is your DD riding? My DD rides and would love to do this!

 

[Lisa Lisa]

We went on HAL a few years ago and spent as much on the excursions as the room! (but it was HAL prices with cheap 3&4th occupant) We did it up...

Juneau - kayak on the Mendenhall glacial lake (Above and Beyond) & Helicopter Dog Sled - both private and excellent experiences, we were able to do 2 excursions due to the long port time with HAL
Sitka - Private charter whale watch & Speed boat (for 2) & walk to Totem Park - Loved Sitka, best memory of a whale from the small private boat (three things!)
Ketchikan - Deadliest Catch /Sea Crab Fishermen's Tour (for 3) - Short port time in Ketchikan

One thing I noticed when comparing cruises for Alaska when we went. Some cruises had the same ports but much different port times. We were able to do two excursions in two of the ports on our cruise.

You raise a good point. We're keeping our options open at this point and will have to compare the amount of time spent in each port. Thanks for sharing what you did!

 

[Lisa Lisa]

We booked with Alaska Galore because at the time my DS was too young for Harv and Marv (to bring kids under 13 you had to book a private tour and it would have cost us a lot more). They worked it out that we would be combined with one other family on a 6 or 8 person boat (we only had 3 people). That way we wouldn't have to pay the minimum of 4 people. But when we got there, we were actually placed on a Harv and Marv boat by ourselves (I only know that because it was written on the side of the boat). So those two companies must work together or else they bought one of their boats, LOL.
Either way it worked out really well for us to have a private tour and we had great communication with the people from Alaska Galore. The guide was awesome and he stayed in communication with the other tour operators so that we all knew where the whales were. It was the most amazing experience and at one point we were right in the middle of about 10-12 whales, all around the boat. I would definitely use them again.

http://alaskagaloretours.com/

So amazing that you ended up with a private whale watching experience! I'll make sure to look into Alaska Galore as well as Harv and Marv.

 

[Lisa Lisa]

I will be booking everything directly through Disney to save money. I want to surprise my family and do the helicopter/ dog mushing as our special excursion. The others will be a lumberjack show and panning for gold. Out of pocket through Disney will be about $500 after gift card churning. Sure, booking through the vendors themselves would be a lot less work but I wouldn't save as much money.

Sounds like you have a good plan. I haven't gone the gift card route yet, but I'm always looking for ways to save $$ with DCL!

 

[anricat]

So amazing that you ended up with a private whale watching experience! I'll make sure to look into Alaska Galore as well as Harv and Marv.

We are going with Rum Runners so I'll report back when we get back.

 

[Lisa Lisa]

We did it also.... $2000 for family of 4.

If I was going to go to Alaska again, I would book directly through Temsco

This sounds so amazing, but I think we'd like to max out at $2000-2500 for all our excursions.

 

[Lisa Lisa]

We spent $1000 for a couple. I priced out my excursion using DCL, then I called DCL and added a $1000 onboard credit to myself. I put the $1000 on the Disney Visa, and it was eligible for the 6 months no interest. That way I spread the cost out instead of having to pay local vendors all at once. Worked for us.

Good plan. LOVE the Disney Visa!

 

[sharksfinatic17]

There was a question regarding tipping. We did train up/bus back with Chilkoot, private whale watching with Harv and Marv, and float plane in Ketchikan with Island Wings. We tipped $10 per person for each of the excursions. We were a group of 10. If you want any prices, let me know. I don't remember them, but I could look them up.

 

[katellynne]

We spent $1000 for a couple. I priced out my excursion using DCL, then I called DCL and added a $1000 onboard credit to myself. I put the $1000 on the Disney Visa, and it was eligible for the 6 months no interest. That way I spread the cost out instead of having to pay local vendors all at once. Worked for us.

Great idea! I just budgeted ahead but this way you also get the rewards dollars that you can turn around and use ON your cruise instead of after. Even though we are a month out I may just do this right now. 6 months no interest plus the gift card on 2% of total!!

 

[katellynne]

We are going in July and have booked everything directly with each company.

Skagway - Helicopter/Dogsled Tour with M&M Tours - $489 per person plus 5% tax
Juneau - Harv & Marv whale watching private tour with others on the same cruise - $133.89 per person
Ketchikan - Bering Sea Crab Fishermen's Tour (Deadliest Catch Tour) - $169 per adult; $109 for child

I am 50/50 on which is better-booking direct or with DCL. The cost isn't always less direct, but it depends on who is in your party. For me it was a price difference for the kids and how much was charged depending on age. The other concern I do have with direct booking is in the case of weather/cancellations. While on a western caribbean I had booked direct for an excursion on Grand Cayman. The island authority had cancelled all offshore excursions due to weather. The people who booked through DCL were notified ahead of time and offered options instead of the cancelled tours. Since we were direct we didn't find out until onshore and were not offered any alternative. We ended up booking something there but it was a bit stressful for me since I was alone with my 2 kids. While I would still book direct if I couldn't find the excursion I wanted or liked better, I definitely see the benefits of booking through DCL. And since the excursions we chose were same whether we booked direct or onboard I went with onboard DCL this time...especially as I hear weather can be mercurial in Alaska!

 

[COASTIEandMATE]

I am 50/50 on which is better-booking direct or with DCL. The cost isn't always less direct, but it depends on who is in your party. For me it was a price difference for the kids and how much was charged depending on age. The other concern I do have with direct booking is in the case of weather/cancellations. While on a western caribbean I had booked direct for an excursion on Grand Cayman. The island authority had cancelled all offshore excursions due to weather. The people who booked through DCL were notified ahead of time and offered options instead of the cancelled tours. Since we were direct we didn't find out until onshore and were not offered any alternative. We ended up booking something there but it was a bit stressful for me since I was alone with my 2 kids. While I would still book direct if I couldn't find the excursion I wanted or liked better, I definitely see the benefits of booking through DCL. And since the excursions we chose were same whether we booked direct or onboard I went with onboard DCL this time...especially as I hear weather can be mercurial in Alaska!

Yes, I agree with Katellynne! We also are mindfull that if the tour gets back late the ship will wait for you if you are on a DCL excursion!!

 

[Snowwhyt]

We are going in July and have booked everything directly with each company.

Skagway - Helicopter/Dogsled Tour with M&M Tours - $489 per person plus 5% tax
Juneau - Harv & Marv whale watching private tour with others on the same cruise - $133.89 per person
Ketchikan - Bering Sea Crab Fishermen's Tour (Deadliest Catch Tour) - $169 per adult; $109 for child

Which week are you sailing? 4th?