Yukon

We very, very seldom ever book ship tours but when even the Martinique Tourism office in Quebec couldn't find me an independent operator for our November visit on the Noordam, we booked HAL's "Land & Sea" tour. It turned out to be one of the best tours we've ever been on, anywhere, for only $80pp. I posted a bunch of photos and commentary on my blog the next day, at http://explorenorth.com/wordpress/?p=563

The information about Dock 4 that's been given is misleading. I'm sitting at Dock 4 right now, and the sign at the gangplank says it's 1700 feet to downtown ("downtown" meaning in front of Docks 1 and 2 where all the ships used to berth) - it took about 10 minutes on a wide sidealk.

...and for the replier that wants too '' bomb '' down the road, i hope i am not on the road that day :eek:

He says that he's a road biker, though. For experienced solo riders this may well be fun - they can go as fast as the vehicles so nobody is passing them. It's the overweight cruisers who haven't been on a bike since they were 10 that are the worry. On those tours, nobody is "bombing" but lots are wobbling.

I've taken this tour before and I have to say that it is a great ride. The guides do a good job at keeping you safe, and the road is not very heavily traveled. If you have concerns about the tour I would just contact the company.

The guides have no control over the things that are some day going to kill some poor cyclist on that road. Neither the company nor the State care a lot about your safety or bike tours wouldn't be allowed there. If the photo I posted doesn't worry you, have at 'er.

The best zipline is at Icy Strait Point, the shortest is at Skagway. Juneau and Ketchikan get about equal reviews.

Hoonah is noted for excellent fishing.

True, BUT most reports I've heard from people who took the ship's fishing tours have been dismal - the captains seem to not to want to use any more fuel than absolutely necessary so stick close to ISP instead of going where the fish are.

"The Big White", starring Robin Williams, was filmed largely in the White Pass at Skagway. Another bloody awful film :(

I'm looking for the tour that takes the white pass scenic railway up and bike down.

http://www.cyclealaska.com/trainbike.html

Where does one book this excursion at? Princess doesn't offer it.

All cruise lines offer it - the Princess page is at

http://www.princess.com/learn/shorex/shorexdetail.jsp?shorexId=SGY-450

I certainly do agree with Yukon and CowPrincess. The cruise lines don't sell the tour....have to wonder about liability issues.

The cruise lines do sell the tour.

Although this wasn't the question, I'm still going to say that I wouldn't bike down that road if THEY paid ME. There's no bike lane, just a shoulder a few inches wide, it's very steep and it gets a lot of commercial traffic. Nobody's been killed yet, BUT.... http://www.explorenorth.com/library/roads/images/s_klondike-bikes-1344.html

For most cruises, I question the value of a balcony. For Alaska, it is worth every cent it costs. In one harbor, we sat on the balcony and watched otters swimming around the ship for at least 30 minutes. Try doing that in your obstructed view cabin.

You got lucky - that doesn't happen very often (and from a balcony you're still seeing them from a long way away in any case - 8-11 stories). I'd love a balcony but need to save my pennies to get out on a boat where the odds of getting a real close look are very high (at least at Sitka they are).

Now I'm confused! Everything else I've read said just the opposite, so we booked a Port side cabin from our Southbound Whittier to Vancouver cruise. Did we make a mistake with that?

No, the poster you quoted is wrong. A quick look at a map will verify that.

We are taking the ferry to Haines since our ship does not stop there. There is a river float through the bald eagle sanctuary that sounds interesting.

A caution - don't expect to see a lot of eagles there. The huge gathering happens in the winter, and you'll see just as many in downtown Ketchikan.

Well, from what I understand that [good wildlife viewing] is the exception rather than the rule. When we took the TWT, almost all of our sightings were of the "What's that dot on the hillside?" variety.

Having been on dozens of these Denali trips, I have to say that the reason I keep doing it is that I get exceptional wildlife viewing. I've had perhaps 10% that were snoozers, and have had some world-class experiences with grizzlies and wolves.

Are good binoculars provided on the shuttles and/or the Tours?

nope

Theses tours start at Colorado, which is outside both the state and national parks, and just skirts a mile or so into the national park on a grandfathered mining road.

From what Dave's told me the train ride from Fraser to Carcross is pretty boring...thats why we're getting off in Fraser.

Dave is probably the only person in the world who thinks that way - Lake Bennett has been getting rave reviews for its spectacular beauty for well over 100 years. Here's the Bennett-Carcross section of the line: http://www.railsnorth.com/bennett-carcross.html

Thanks for the info. Is that the cost for one-way or round trip on the train?

A one-way to meet a bus is $81 - you can see all the train options and prices at http://wpyr.com/schedule.html Note that you can take the train company's bus back to Skagway for only an additional $26.

I have seen people get off a TWT bus at the turn-around point and continue on a shuttle bus, though.

All of the buses (NPS shuttles, Tundra Wilderness Tours, Kantishna lodges, etc) make the same stops. The TWT and Kantishna buses are more comfortable but not significantly so. The TWT has recently rebuilt all of their buses with nicer cloth seats and a very cool video system with drop-down monitors ( http://www.explorenorth.com/articles/images/tour_bus-videos-5246.html ). Some people who haven't been on them think it's a gimmick or just silly but they actually work very well for finding distant wildlife and for getting close-ups of their behavior.

The Kantishna tour has been the worst value of any of the many, many trips I've made into the park. Even beyond the fact that the driver was terrible (new in town and knew virtually nothing about Alaska/Denali), it was a heck of a price to pay for a lunch (albeit an excellent lunch) and a guided walk through the forest with so many people that I couldn't hear the guide most of the time.

Although some folks here at CC have reported that their shuttle drivers haven't said much, mine have always been excellent, equal to the Tundra Wilderness Tours I've been on. Lots of stops are made, but the only time you can get off the bus is at rest stops - for photos you just slide the windows open.

If you use the Search you'll find lots of responses to this same question.

For both Cathy and I, Sitka is the number 1 community in Alaska, not just as a cruise port. It's charming and tourism hasn't ruined it as it has Skagway and Ketchikan in particular. For the variety of wildlife that can be seen, the Sitka area is remarkable. But you may have different interests than us - if you have railfans in your group or want dozens of shops, Skagway is the place.

Murray

>>Hey, Murray, maybe I'll get to actually see you this year. <<

I hope so :) - my schedule hasn't been set for the summer yet (other than cruising on the Vision, Radiance and then Alaska State ferries from May 19 - June 9), but pop me a note with your dates.

Murray