In need of Juneau excursion and company recommendations

[Dizney73]

Our family of 4 is booked on the Disney Wonder Alaska cruise this summer. My husband and I have been to Juneau twice previously. The first trip, with my parents, we did a jet-boat ride which was only OK. On our second trip we had a wonderful helicopter/glacier hike. All these years later, we now have two kids ages 14 and 11 and I just can't figure out what to do in Juneau with them! We want to do much more than just walk around the town or the Mt. Roberts tramway. We were looking at everything from renting a car and driving to Mendenhall glacier to do some hiking , taking a float plane to Taku Lodge, or a helicopter/air-boat tour... but we are so undecided and the cost of some of these awesome tours gets expensive for a family of 4! Does anyone have any recommendations of tours and/or companies that your family truly loved and enjoyed? I have no problem spending the money on a tour but the most expensive tours aren't always the best experiences!

We have a jeep rented to explore in Skagway and a private salmon fishing excursion booked for Ketchikan.

 

[dad of 3 addicted to DCL]

We're a family of 5, so I hear your pain re: how quickly the costs add up. In Juneau we rented a car from Juneau Car rentals for $98 + gas (pickup was 200 yards from the gangway of Wonder) and headed out of town. We beat the rush to Mendenhall glacier (highly recommended), went to Eagle Bay State Park (great) and the Shrine of St. Therese (very calm and beautiful). Our 3 were 13/11/11 for the trip and they all loved Juneau

 

[TestingH2O]

We did a private whale watching trip with Rum Runner charter. It was amazing and we saw so many whales!

 

[ladyofthetramp]

We have two older kids- 19+18. We rented a car. Hiking at Mendenhall and then out to Eagle Beach. We loved that day. We could stop and explore whereever we wanted and for how long we wanted. We ran into some naturalists filming bear activity and got to chat with them which was amazing. My older kids even loved stopping at the local grocery store to pick up some waters to bring back to the ship. And you are right, it is not always the most expensive tours that are the best.

 

[China Expat]

The whale watching in Auke Bay in Juneau is extraordinary! Do not miss!

 

[China Expat]

The whale watching in Auke Bay in Juneau is extraordinary! Do not miss!

 

[Dizney73]

The on our own car rental sounds great! I wasn't sure there was much to do where we could drive besides Mendenhall but going to St. Therese and Eagle Beach sounds nice... I read that they have picnic tables so perhaps we could stop and get a picnic lunch if the weather allows.
Thanks for all of the great ideas!

 

[gotomu212]

I cannot say enough about Taku Glacier Lodge. It was the highlight of our amazing Alaska cruise. The floatplane and glacier fly over were cool, the food was excellent, we did a small guided hike there, and there were bears! Half of the people on our time slot booked directly with the company. The only difference was they had to get their own transportation to the floatplane place (a very short cab ride) while the rest of got an arranged bus ride. They said booking themselves saved 50% and literally we were all together except the 5 minute car/bus ride so there was no chance they would get left.

 

[Pens Fan]

We also used Rum Runner Charters in Juneau. We booked the whale watching and fishing tour and it was a wonderful day. We saw so many whales and caught so much salmon. The scenery was just spectacular, as well. They only offer private tours, so it will be just your family on the boat. It's not a budget option, but we found it completely worth the money. I highly recommend them.

 

[seanfaulk]

Our helicopter/glacier tour got cancelled in Juneau because of the weather (which is like 50% of the time so be mindful anyone reading this) so we did the other dog sled excursion that was at a base camp.

I have huskies so I wanted to see them. They actually don’t use huskies very much anymore so it was more just dogs that have been mixed bred for speed. The overall tour was cool but it wasn’t something I would ever do again. I would choose something else.

 

[Jessicabr]

Definitely whale watching! truly magical, you will love it!

 

[AgentMama]

If your family is adventurous, you could zip line. We were able to add this on when one of our excursion times shifted and our boys had a great time. I wouldn't miss out on seeing some of the other things mentioned above though to just do this though.

 

[bobbiwoz]

Whale watching!

 

[Dizney73]

I cannot say enough about Taku Glacier Lodge. It was the highlight of our amazing Alaska cruise. The floatplane and glacier fly over were cool, the food was excellent, we did a small guided hike there, and there were bears! Half of the people on our time slot booked directly with the company. The only difference was they had to get their own transportation to the floatplane place (a very short cab ride) while the rest of got an arranged bus ride. They said booking themselves saved 50% and literally we were all together except the 5 minute car/bus ride so there was no chance they would get left.

I really needed to hear this! I already contacted them about this excursion! Besides saving the money booking directly... My son is 11 and is charged as an adult through Disney...but a child with the company directly! That saves a lot.
Were you bored at the lodge? That was my concern.

 

[Dizney73]

Definitely whale watching! truly magical, you will love it!

Whale watching definitely intrigues me but we have gone in Cape Cod two years ago and it was simply wonderful! Would it be so different?
Also, in Ketchikan we will be on a boat all day fishing.

 

[Dizney73]

Whale watching!

View attachment 460196View attachment 460197

What company did you use?

 

[WDWLODGE]

We did a private whale watching trip with Rum Runner charter. It was amazing and we saw so many whales!

We also used Rum Runner Charters in Juneau. We booked the whale watching and fishing tour and it was a wonderful day. We saw so many whales and caught so much salmon. The scenery was just spectacular, as well. They only offer private tours, so it will be just your family on the boat. It's not a budget option, but we found it completely worth the money. I highly recommend them.

We also used Rum Runners this past May and can't recommend them enough. It was a private charter for our family of 4. We had Capt. Chris, Brandy his Golden Lab was the 1st Mate and we also had a naturalist who was great although I can't remember her name. We saw so many whales, seals, Dall's porpoise & Bald Eagles. The cost for the 4 of us was in the $600 range for 2 1/2 hours.

 

[Dizney73]

Thanks everyone for the RumRunner recommendations! After hearing the company name so many times here I reached out to them! I hope that they have the day available for us! I am very excited about the possibility of a great tour with them!

 

[Pens Fan]

Thanks everyone for the RumRunner recommendations! After hearing the company name so many times here I reached out to them! I hope that they have the day available for us! I am very excited about the possibility of a great tour with them!

If you end up booking with them, give Brandi (the lab) a big hug for me!

 

[anjuan]

If the other whale watching Company doesn’t work out I highly recommend Jayleen’s Alaska. My daughter and myself were on a tour with one other family of 4 that was so amazing! They were really easy to work with and so friendly!