rwa

6 hours ago, mlmalone3 said:

If you have time in Denali...we loved the whitewater rafting! Special Dry suits to protect from the Glacier waters....really fun. We've done this twice while visiting Denali.  Enjoy your trip...it sounds like a good one!

That sounds like so much fun! I don't think we'll have time but will check in to it just in case we have extra time once we get there. We're doing land tour for 9 days prior to cruise and have full days planned for most of that time! Just so much to see and do. There's some type of rafting tour in Skagway that we may do if we don't have time in Denali. That's our only port that we haven't decided for sure on an excursion. 

Thank you for the suggestion! We're 'almost' neighbors! :)  We're from Amarillo.

11 hours ago, cltcruzer said:

Which Prince William Sound Tour are you doing?

We're also taking the 26-Glacier Cruise. We decided that we're going to take the Glacier Discovery train that leaves from Anchorage, passing through Whittier and goes to Grandview and then returns back through Whittier to Anchorage. We're going to stay on the train for the ride to Grandview and then get off in Whittier on it's return trip back to Anchorage. The train is schedule to be in Whittier to drop us off at 6:05 pm.  We will have had 8 busy days on our land tour by this time on our trip and think we'll enjoy having the evening for dinner and a time to rest up a bit!

1 hour ago, Northern Aurora said:

And remember the there is no food sold in the park

Yes thank you. We fly into Anchorage late in the evening so we've decided to make a quick stop at the grocery store the following morning on our way to Girdwood & Seward to pick up some fruit & snacks and water to have for the week. The B&B where we're staying in Healy does offer sack lunches to take so we may decide to do that since the park tour will be a long day. 

We called the DNP today and they also suggested buying tickets ahead of time so we plan to do that tomorrow. We'll have a nice breakfast at the B&B and probably reserve the 9am shuttle. 

At this point, I think all of our flights, land transportation, lodging and tour reservations/tickets (except the above park tour) are complete! We have several months now to fine tune or make last minute changes. Yay!  We're so excited!  This forum has been such a great help! 🙂

6 minutes ago, martincath said:

Taxi rates haven't really changed - since it's on the meter it does of course vary, but I'd be quite shocked if a trip FROM the pier was more than $10 (going TO the pier the bottleneck getting inside is horrible on busy cruise days, can easily add an extra $2-3 on the meter just sitting waiting to be allowed inside!) and if the cabbie is driving for more than 7 or 8 minutes even in heavy traffic you're probably being given the runaround!

 

To the airport depends on time of day/traffic - weekends, or mornings with commuters going opposite way, should be $30-35  but if you get caught in outbound commuter traffic could be more like $45. For a noon flight I'd suggest a 9:30am pickup - this should have you there close to the 2 hour preflight mark - unless there are multiple ships in port on the day you go to the airport! Then, especially if it's 3 or 4 ships, you want to beat the cruisers so leave at least an hour earlier. YVR recommends 3 hours pre-flight for Int'l and US-bound flights, but this is really only needed when it's a busy day.

 

I find that Taxi Fare Finder works very well across Canada, where taxi rates are pretty much all set by local municipal/regional bylaws - ditto in other places with similarly-locked-down rates. You may also find it a useful bookmark for future travel research.

Thank you. This is very helpful to give us a general idea of what to expect!  Very much appreciated!

53 minutes ago, Cruise_More_Often said:

I think you've made a good decision. It's not that close, and some of the trip is uphill.

Good to know! Thank you so much for your help!

28 minutes ago, Cruise_More_Often said:

Neither my husband nor I remember what we paid, but I bet if you asked on the West Coast or Canada (Alaska/Pacific Coastal) boards, someone from Vancouver will be able to help you. They will also be able to help with your airport timing question.

Thanks. I'll ask there. I'll emailed the hotel but haven't gotten a response yet. We had even considered bypassing the taxi line and walking the several blocks to the hotel. We don't mind the walk even with pulling our Iuggage BUT that's not a good idea if it's raining or crossing through a lot of traffic! I think we've scratched that option since we're not familiar with the area. 🙂 

4 hours ago, Northern Aurora said:

rwa:  Again, opinions about scenery are very subjective, but there are two train trips in Alaska considered to be scenic by most.  One is the Alaska Railroad from Seward to Anchorage.  The other is the historic White Pass and Yukon Railway out of Skagway.  Most folks are happy with one or both.

We'll have a car for the majority of our land tour. We love the flexibility that it'll allow for us to make stops along the way whenever we want! We decided that we'll take the Glacier Discovery train from Anchorage to Grandview and then back to Whittier.  We haven't made a final decision for Skagway yet but White Pass & Yukon Railway is an option that we've considered also.

4 hours ago, Northern Aurora said:

But there is another option -- the DNP shuttle bus system.  The DNP shuttle buses, which stop along the way to drop off and pick up hikers, go into Eielson Visitor's Center (mile 66) for one fee or even further (for an additional fee) to Wonder Lake.

Yes, this is the shuttle that I was referring to and that we're planning to take!  Would you recommend that we get tickets ahead of time or is this something that we can easily get when we arrive at the park?

22 minutes ago, Cruise_More_Often said:

Yes to both.

About how much is a taxi each way?

Also, how much time did you allow from your pick up time at the hotel to get to the airport? Our departure time is at 12:00 pm. 

On 9/24/2017 at 2:45 PM, Cruise_More_Often said:

As much as we like the Blue Horizon, we went ahead and booked a room at the Listel Hotel, which is right across the street. It's also a favorite of ours. We've stayed there twice.

We have reservations post cruise in July. Did you take a taxi from cruise terminal to the hotel?  And from the hotel to the airport? 

15 minutes ago, Northern Aurora said:

 Am I correct when you refer to "Mt. McKinley" and "Denali" in this post you are referring to the Princess lodges?

Yes! Our original plan was to take one of the Princess Cruisetours. Both Denali Princess Lodge & McKinley Princess Lodge stops were on the same tour. As we've researched and gotten other people's suggestions, we've changed our plans and decided to rent a car and plan our own itinerary. We're excited and really looking forward to doing this! 

33 minutes ago, Northern Aurora said:

Is there some particular reason for the train trip from Anchorage to Talkeetna?

We were wanting to ride the train at some point during our time. Since our new DIY itinerary consisted of driving the entire way, we thought we might end our trip in Anchorage, return the rental car and make our final day a day trip on the train to Talkeetna, stay a couple of hours and then ride the bus back - BUT we've changed those plans yet again! Train to Talkeetna is out. We've shuffled our plans many times but they're finally starting to fall into place. We've decided now that we'll take the train from Anchorage to Whittier. We'll take the Prince William Sound tour there and begin our Princess cruise. 

50 minutes ago, Northern Aurora said:

And consider taking the NPS shuttle (they are narrated) into Denali National Park as far as Eielson Visitor's Center.  I really feel that folks who do not go into the park as far as Eielson short-change themselves.

Several others have suggested this also and we're definitely leaning this way. This it the park tour that you are talking about, right. The one that is the same as the more expensive Tundra Wilderness tour? It's interesting to know that it's also narrated - we were thinking that we might miss the narration if it wasn't included. 

23 minutes ago, kennicott said:

The best for dinner for years has been the "Double Musky". But since you apparently will just be passing through I wouldn't recommend it unless you spend the night. The next best is a very popular little place called the "Bake Shop" very popular with the skiers in the winter. Next is "Chair 5".  Been a while since we have eaten down there so maybe was some locals can chime in with the latest.

Awesome! Thank you. Checking them out now and adding them to our list! We'll make final decisions closer to travel time or when we get there!

On 1/24/2019 at 12:52 PM, sadoan said:

we drove up to Talkeetna and the views were beautiful.  It was a long drive and I don't know what all the hype is about therefore, this would be the one thing we did I would not do again. 

We're staying a night at a B&B in Palmer and going to Denali from there. We've decided that we're going to make a quick stop in Talkeetna on our way to Denali. Maybe spend an hour or two and be on our way. 

Where did you eat in Girdwood?  Would you recommend it? We'll be going there also. 

What time did you get to the cruise terminal  by taking the train? Was there a line? Easy check in?

On 1/24/2019 at 1:22 AM, AKStafford said:

The Alaska Railroad would be pretty simple. A one way rental car from Avis would work too but it'll have a drop off fee that might shock you.

Yes, $150 rental car drop off fee in Whittier is a bit steep! We'll return our car in Anchorage, take the railroad and enjoy the scenery along the way.

6 hours ago, GARDENone said:

We have done precruise on our own as well and found it most convenient.  We stayed a week visiting from Denali south to the Kenai peninsula.   It’s really hard to get lost because most destinations only have one highway to get there once you’re out of town. On one trip, we used a private shuttle such as bearvalleyroadrunnerdotcom that provide Whittier service to/from anchorage on any day, not just cruise days. On another trip, we did the train. It’s hard to beat the train for the scenic ride.  

Thank you. We'll check this shuttle, too. Our concern was that the transfers by train or shuttle would get us to Whittier too late to catch the Prince William Sound tour without rushing to get there. I called Phillips Cruises (one of the companies that does the Sound tour) and they said that by leaving Anchorage around 9:00 would allow plenty of time to arrive Whittier in time for the tour. The train and shuttles are a bit pricey but not as much as a one way rental car drop off in Whittier!  We consider going to Homer for one of our days but 8 days on land is just not enough time to do everything we'd like to do!

Thank you so much! I'll check each of these tomorrow! 

Thank you to everyone for your input and suggestions! After continuing our research and hearing everyone's suggestions, we've decided for sure to do the land portion on our own! We're still searching, planning and confirming reservations but excited to do this!  We decided to stay a day in Anchorage, 1 12/ days in Seward, a overnight at a B&B in Palmer, 2 nights in Denali, and then back to Anchorage so that we can drop off our rental car. We'll take a dome rail day tour from Anchorage to Talkeetna the following day, overnight again in Anchorage and then transport to Whittier that afternoon.

At this point, we're thinking ahead on what will be the easiest and least expensive mode of transportation to get from Anchorage to Whittier. We need to arrive in Whittier a day early because we want to take the Princess William Sound tour on the day before our cruise. It looks like we can take the train for $89 pp but haven't found a cost for uber or taxi. We can take Princess transfer but they won't get us there the day early. We realize that there's not much else to do in Whittier but we'll enjoy the leisure time after the tour and before our cruise. Has anyone done this? What's the easiest way to get from Anchorage to Whittier in July if its not a day to board your ship?

Thank you to everyone for your input and suggestions! After doing some research and hearing everyone's suggestions, we've decided to rent a car and do the land portion on our own! We're still searching, planning and confirming reservations but excited to do this!  At this point, we're thinking ahead to how we will end our land portion in Anchorage and easiest and least expensive transportation to get to Whittier. We'd like to arrive in Whittier a day early so that we can take the Princess William Sound tour. It looks like we can take the train for $89 pp but haven't found a cost for uber or taxi. We can take Princess transfer but they won't get us there the day early. We realize that there's not more else to do in Whittier but we'll enjoy the leisure time after the tour and before our cruise. Has anyone done this? What's the easiest way to get from Anchorage to Whittier in July if its not a day to board your ship?

Thank you all for your replies. This will be our first visit to Alaska and we really are trying to do our research ahead of time but we've learned along the way that's there's A LOT to learn and a lot to do! We've read many, many reviews from both Cruise Critic and Trip Advisor and ask lots of questions from friends who have been. Of course, there are so many options and opinions based on personal preference! We're trying to take what we learn from everyone's experiences and suggestions to help us decide how to choose the best plan for us and get the most out of the short time we are there!

Let me clarify and a few things and then we'll try again! Ha!  We are cruising on Coral Princess, boarding in Whittier. We'll arrive in Anchorage on Monday around 10pm and board the ship the following week on Wednesday - so we have 8 full days for a land tour. Our rental car has already been reserved for the full time.

We originally thought that we'd overnight in Anchorage the first night since our flight will get in late and we'll probably want to get something to eat and get a good night's rest. Our plan was to then drive to Seward the next morning (Tues) and take the 6 hr Kenai Fjords Tour which leaves at 11:30. Maybe that's not the best plan after all. We were just going by Google maps to estimate driving time to get there since we aren't familiar with the area. That might be pushing our time to close. New plan may be to look around  Anchorage on Tuesday and then enjoy a leisurely drive to Seward Tuesday evening, overnight there and do the 9 hr Kenai Fjords tour on Wednesday, instead.  After the tour, we will head out and drive a while and overnight somewhere along the way to Denali. Possibly at Palmer B&B??  Is there anything to do around Palmer for the evening??

New plan is to skip Mt McKinley (Talkeetna). Thank you for input on that area. We still want to ride the train at some point, maybe day trip one day or consider excursion from ship. We've ridden on a smaller narrow gauge train before and would really prefer the larger train if we can work in the time.  We love the SCENERY and WILDLIFE but we're not really interested in hiking or water activities such as kayaking, etc.

On Thursday we will be driving (to Denali?). We'll stay overnight for 2 nights and plan to take the Tundra Wilderness Tour on Friday (considering the park shuttle for this vs. the tour although we enjoy the narration). 

Our next definite plan is to be in Whittier by Monday evening. We're taking the Prince William Sound Tour on Tues and would like to have some leisure time Tuesday evening before boarding the ship on Wednesday.

** This leaves us 2 open days between Denali and Whittier. INPUT / SUGGESTIONS WELCOME!  Even adding a stop in the middle of the schedule is fine as long as we are back to Whittier by Monday evening. 

Thank you for taking time to give your thoughts and ideas!

Our original plans were to do a Princess Cruisetour but after considering the land tour itinerary, we're thinking that we can probably do the land portion on our own without much difficultly and with more flexibility. Here's our tentative schedule that includes the things that we'd like to do in the time that we have while there.

Our biggest question/concern is which is the best travel arrangements to & from Anchorage, Mt. McKinley, & Denali. We'll have the rental car and can drive the entire way if that's the best way to go. Or maybe take the bus from Anchorage to Mt McKinley & Denali and ride the train back?  We definitely to want take the train at some point during our time in Alaska, possibly on our day to Seward if the Denali/Mt McKinley tour doesn't work.  Any suggestions will be much appreciated!!

Tentative Plan:

Day 1/2: Arrive in Anchorage, rent a car and spend the next full day in Anchorage.

Day 3: Drive to Seward for the day (Kenai Fjords Tour) and back to Anchorage

Day 4/5: Drive/Rail/Bus(?) Anchorage to Mt Kinley (Stay for 2 nights)

Day 6/7: Drive/Rail/Bus(?) to Denali (Stay 2 nights - Tundra Wilderness Tour 2nd day)

Day 8/9: Drive/Rail/Bus(?) to Whittier (Prince William Sound Tour 2nd day)

jr8934  Joyce, did you post a review for your Alaska tour/cruise last July? We're still trying to decide between the NB7 or LB6 tours through Princess. We would love you hear what you chose for your excursions and which were your favorites!  We're booked for the end of June this year!

Thank you Kennicott & Mimmy. It's so helpful getting everyone's suggestions and ideas! And Mimmy, we'll check out your review and pictures!

So many helpful suggestions & ideas! Thank you all! We'll begin digging in and doing our research over the next few months. I'm sure we'll have more questions along the way!

Okay, we are looking outside Princess for the land tour to check out some other options. It seems to be the general consensus of most everyone that replied that neither of our original options are the best we can do! Thank you. That's why we put this out here!! We emailed Alaska Tour & Travel a couple of days ago but still haven't heard back from them. We'll call them Monday if we still haven't heard back. And we'll also contact Sharilyn at Alaska Collection.

It might be easier if I rephrase the question to give us a starting point. If YOU have 6 DAYS for your land tour, what would YOU choose as your priorities? Keep in mind that our cruise leaves from Whittier so we'll need to end our tour at that location. We'd like to take the train for a short part of the trip somewhere but not spend the entire day on the train!

We are set to do your option 2 in July. It promises to be great. I'd say go for option 2!

jr8934 Be sure to post when you get back! Excited to see what you think about it!

John, do you know if either of these 2 rivers where they offer the rafting tours? (Toklat River and Polychrome Pas)? That's on our list of things to do.