Alaska Excursion- Dog Sledding & Glacier Flightseeing

We are on the Ruby Princess in August 2018 going on the Dog Sledding and Glacier Flightseeing excursion.

This cost over $1100.00 for the both of us and I wonder what the tipping on this excursion might be. I can not imagine a 20 % tip. Has anybody been? What is an appropriate tip?

Thanks

how long is the excursion - time wise

how many passengers are involved

It is 2 hours and appears to have 12 seats.

who all and how many people do you anticipate tipping??

only 2 hours??? - $1100 - wow

I can't answer your question but dog sledding on glaciers often shuts down mid to late August due to sledding conditions. If you are going during this time, you may want to have a back up shore excursion planned.

Coral is right. There’s no guarantee that you’ll be able to do a dog sled. I was supposed to do one a couple of weeks ago but it had rained hard for a couple of days before my tour and it was too muddy for the dog cart (and not enough snow for the sled.)

We did this in early July and it was worth every penny! It's one of those experiences you will remember. I think we tipped the helicopter pilot $10 and the dog musher guy $10 . I don't know if that tip was enough but that's what we did. The ice and snow was starting to recede in July so it might be good to have a back up plan. They do cancel for weather related issues for safety reasons.

In Skagway, we did an afternoon dog sled excursion in mid-Sept. and the weather was warm and the ride was SO fun! It was worth whatever we paid (can't remember now). In the morning we rode the White Pass and Yukon train....again, really fun. I usually tip $10 for an all day tour and $5-7 for a half day, but I've never done a flying tour so not sure if that should be tipped more.

The excursion was cancelled on our May 12th Ruby Cruise..due to weather, the ladies who had booked it, told me they were notified the day before and they changed to a whale watch. It did rain on us in Juneau. May 14.

So since you missed yours Pam, a few weeks ago it is possible they still are not running.

Disappointing for sure for those that were looking forward to it.

Tipping is personal do what u feel comfortable with, I agree, I think 20% would be a little excessive;p

In Skagway, we did an afternoon dog sled excursion in mid-Sept. and the weather was warm and the ride was SO fun! It was worth whatever we paid (can't remember now). In the morning we rode the White Pass and Yukon train....again, really fun. I usually tip $10 for an all day tour and $5-7 for a half day, but I've never done a flying tour so not sure if that should be tipped more.

Did you fly and land on a glacier or was this on land (dirt)?

Thanks all.

2 years ago we made our first trip to Alaska and had a dog sledding trip booked for the Mendanhall Glacier at Juneau. The first helicopter went to the glacier and the people who did it said it was fantastic. We were booked on the second helicopter, however the weather had deteriorated and our trip was cancelled. We were devastated. This year we went back to Alaska and we booked 2 dog sledding trips, the first one from Skagway to the Denver glacier and the second one in Juneau to the Mendanhall. This meant that if we got on the first trip we could cancel the second one..... We had glorious weather in all 3 ports. In Skagway we went to the glacier and the whole experience was so fantastic that we decided to do the one in Juneau too! We selected the early morning trip for both trips. We tipped the mushers $10. Hope this helps! :cool::cool:

Temsco was the subcontractor for this excursion, and we saved a lot booking directly with them. When I called their offices, they recommended booking in Skagway, not Juneau since the weather tends to be a bit more stable there. Also, they recommend booking earlier in the day since they’ll try to add you later if the weather clears and they have room. But safety is the most important priority, and this may get cancelled. It’s amazing if you can go. We were able to easily walk to the temsco office from where we docked on the coral princess.

Another excursion we thought was interesting was the Bering sea tour, which teaches you all about crab fishing.

Temsco was the subcontractor for this excursion, and we saved a lot booking directly with them. When I called their offices, they recommended booking in Skagway, not Juneau since the weather tends to be a bit more stable there. Also, they recommend booking earlier in the day since they’ll try to add you later if the weather clears and they have room. But safety is the most important priority, and this may get cancelled. It’s amazing if you can go. We were able to easily walk to the temsco office from where we docked on the coral princess.

 

Another excursion we thought was interesting was the Bering sea tour, which teaches you all about crab fishing.

Juneau tours were cancelled due to weather on the 5/12/18 Ruby Princess cruise but the weather was unbelievably glorious from Skagway and this excursion was the highlight of our cruise. We spent 26 plus years showing Chows in AKC shows and are truly dog people to the core. It was worth every penny and I only wish we could have stayed longer to help with kennel chores. We booked directly with Temso and saved a little but would gladly do it again.