Mendenhall Glacier and Whale Quest

[Rambler5678]

For anyone that's been on a tour with them in Juneau. Did you enjoy it? What time did you leave the ship and what time did they drop you off after the tour? Who and how much did you tip?

Thanks,

 

[anricat]

I know this isn't what you're asking so this is completely unsolicited, but we wanted to do both Mendenhall and whale watching and I exhaustively researched all the options (including the one you are asking about). So, I will tell you that Mendenhall can get busy, especially with tour groups. We ended up doing both on our own. For Mendenhall visit we rented a car at the dock from Juneau Car Rental Company for $60 and drove to Mendenhall first thing. We arrived at 8:30 AM and pretty much had the whole place to ourselves and it was GLORIOUS. There are no other people in our photos, we had all the views without waiting. It was quiet and beautiful.

Then in the afternoon we returned the car and did private whale watching.

So keep this in mind as an option depending on what you find out about this particular tour. I hope this helps you weigh the options!

 

[TestingH2O]

I know this isn't what you're asking so this is completely unsolicited, but we wanted to do both Mendenhall and whale watching and I exhaustively researched all the options (including the one you are asking about). So, I will tell you that Mendenhall can get busy, especially with tour groups. We ended up doing both on our own. For Mendenhall visit we rented a car at the dock from Juneau Car Rental Company for $60 and drove to Mendenhall first thing. We arrived at 8:30 AM and pretty much had the whole place to ourselves and it was GLORIOUS. There are no other people in our photos, we had all the views without waiting. It was quiet and beautiful.

Then in the afternoon we returned the car and did private whale watching.

So keep this in mind as an option depending on what you find out about this particular tour. I hope this helps you weigh the options!

What company did you use for whale watching? You're not the first person I've seen suggesting a car rental to do the glacier early.

 

[phinz]

The car rental/private whale route is what I'll do next time. Mendenhall was packed when we were there. It was miserable.

 

[Tiffybuggie]

We did the DCL excursion with both whale watching and mendenhall glacier.
We left around 7-8 am
The boat was packed (lots of unattended kids) and so was the glacier (multiple groups)
I believe there were 2-3 buses from DCL alone that boarded our boat and then headed to the glacier.

We said if we go again we would like to do a smaller boat.

We did the whale watching first and After the glacier they dropped us off in town to shop/explore, we then took the shuttle back to the dock.

 

[anricat]

What company did you use for whale watching? You're not the first person I've seen suggesting a car rental to do the glacier early.

We used Rum Runners and were very happy. We split it with another family that we met here on the DIS. @IBelieveInTheMagic was looking for another family of three to split the trip with (Rum Runners takes up to 6 people). It worked out so well! We got super duper lucky - basically they said it was one of the best trips they'd ever seen in terms of whale activity. It was just breathtaking. Overall the guys doing the tour were great. They were friendly, on time, safety conscious (both of our families and the whales) and just all around great guys. Definitely recommended.

 

[IBelieveInTheMagic]

We used Rum Runners and were very happy. We split it with another family that we met here on the DIS. @IBelieveInTheMagic was looking for another family of three to split the trip with (Rum Runners takes up to 6 people). It worked out so well! We got super duper lucky - basically they said it was one of the best trips they'd ever seen in terms of whale activity. It was just breathtaking. Overall the guys doing the tour were great. They were friendly, on time, safety conscious (both of our families and the whales) and just all around great guys. Definitely recommended.

Ditto to everything @anricat already said!

Heather

 

[Pens Fan]

I will offer this advice, just in case you prefer to stick with a Disney excursion. We did the Alaska Whales and Science Adventure several years ago and really, really enjoyed it. You will be with a very small group - maybe 15 or so if I remember correctly. The boat was small and everyone had plenty of room to maneuver and view / photograph the whales. We saw those larger ships crammed to the gills with people and were so thankful we were not on one. At Mendenhall this tour skipped the visitor center all together (at least when we did it). While that area was a zoo of busses and people, we hiked on a very short, scenic trail maybe a half mile or so long and ended up at a small beach with an amazing view of the glacier. There were other people there, but not a lot. It was mostly just our group.

This summer we are cruising Alaska again and using Rum Runners after reading all the great reviews on here. We are skipping Mendenhall all together and spending the day on the water fishing and whale watching. Whatever you decide, I hope you have a great time!

 

[ludari]

Several years ago on my Alaskan cruise I did a combined bicycle, brewery and Mendenhall Glacier tour plus the tram ride up to Mt Roberts. I started off with the bicycle tour (the mountain bikes where in bad condition but it was the end of the season and according to the company the replace the bikes every year) and we rode through the university and made towards way towards the glacier. We had several breaks along the way and when we arrived at the Glacier we where the only group there. We had a great time taking pictures of the glacier and the numerous bears in the area. Afterwards we took a shuttle to the brewery where we took a tour of the small plant and sampled various beers. When we arrived back at the port I was rushing to catch the last frame ride up to Mt Roberts. When I got to the top I had to rush through everything but still enjoyed it. I have to mentioned that I had time prior to the bicycle tour to walk around the port area, visits several shops and make purchases. For all the other ports on my Alaskan cruise I did two tours and the only place I felt rushed was in Juneau and that was because the bicycle tour started later. Since I'm a solo cruiser I typically tip at least $5 to the driver our guide but sometimes I do tip more depending on the service.

 

[lnllarson]

We also used Rum Runners and highly recommend them. We booked the first tour of the morning (I think it was around 7:30am) and he picked us up. When we finished he had transportation arranged for us to Mendenhall and then we just called a cab when we finished at Mendenhall that dropped us off near the shops so we could walk around. The whole experience was amazing and we'd do it again!