Alaska Excursions for kids ages 5-11

We will be heading to Alaska this summer with 6 kids between the ages of 5-11 (and 4 adults). We have 4 nights on Kenai Lake before a one way cruise from Whittier to Vancouver on the Golden Princess.

In Juneau, Harv and Marvs only does private boats with kids - we are considering this. Do you think several hours on a small whale watching boat would be appropriate for kids these ages? They are all very well behaved so that isn't my issue - it is more about if you think this is a good use of time and appropriate?

And same question for the train in Skagway. I was thinking a van ride up and the train on the way down.

Thanks!

We are cruising in August with our 3 kids, ages 10, 10 and 6. We are doing whale watching in ISP on a private charter that holds 6 people max, plus captain. We booked directly with Glacier Wind Charters. Can't recommend it yet, as we haven't done it, but their customer service has been exemplary! For us the small boat and duration of the trip (and the customer service from the company) make it an easy choice. In Juneau we are renting a car to do what we want.

Search either here or using google for photos of the train in Skagway. Wooden bench seats, not much room to move about for kids that are busy and/or get bored. No "snack car" or options to go get food on the train if you need a break or boredom buster. For us, we didn't want to feel "trapped" on a train/bus combo ride with no option to let our kids roam/explore. We also didn't want to spend the excursion $$$ and then stick our kids in front of a tablet/kindle/ipad to keep them quiet and content. We are doing a private tour in Skagway too and going to Emerald Lake and a dog mushers camp, and since we booked a private tour we can stop when and where we want. Our kids will appreciate the freedom to get out from time to time, and Nana, my husband and me will appreciate having happy kids. ;-)

What company are you using for your private tour in Skagway ?

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What company are you using for your private tour in Skagway ?

 

 

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Booked through Alaska Shore Tours and it's listed as "Private Emerald Lake & Dogsled Tour with a total of 6 guests."

We have a similar aged group for our August cruise and we’re looking for Ketchikan ideas. We booked the Tracy Arm catamaran for Juneau and private tour in Skagway.

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My first cruise to Alaska was when my kids were 2, 5, and 8. The 2 year old now remembers nothing of the trip, and you have none that young, so I will tell you my experience with the 5 and 8 year olds.

We went whale watching on a cruise-line excursion on a big boat. The 8 year old was obsessed with whales and the time, so he enjoyed the trip immensely and was engaged the entire trip. The 5 year old, on the other hand, didn't care at all about whales. He was happy to be on a boat. Luckily, it was a big enough boat to allow him space to roam. He was active but relatively well behaved. I don't know if he'd have done as well on a smaller boat with little room to move around.

I also did the round-trip train trip with the 2 and 5 year olds. (Oldest went kayaking with dad.) Also on this trip were my in-laws, including a 6.5 year old and two younger children. The children were briefly excited about being on a train, but were uninterested in any of the narration or scenery. They played quietly together and did not misbehave, but they were overall bored with the tour. Also, the seats are padded, not hard wood as one person posted.

With your large group, do not assume that everyone must all do the same things. There may be times when an excursion is appropriate for the oldest children, but not for the youngest. I'm glad my oldest child was able to go kayaking with his dad. He had a wonderful time and probably would have been as bored on the train as the other children.

I wanted to do whale watching with our 9 and 10 year old on our upcoming Alaska cruise, but we decided not to because last year when we did a 2 hour bay cruise in San Francisco, they were bored out of their minds and wanted it to be over. Also, the last time we took an Alaska cruise we saw humpbacks and orcas from the ship, at no additional cost. :)

I think kids would get bored on the train pretty quickly. I would do either a private tour or rent a car & do it on your own. That way you can stop whenever you want. I’ve not done a whale tour in Alaska yet so not sure about that one. The tram at Mt Roberts is neat. There are trails at the top & a few other sites. In my opinion the Lumberjack show in Ketchikan would be great fun for the kids.

Booked through Alaska Shore Tours and it's listed as "Private Emerald Lake & Dogsled Tour with a total of 6 guests."

Thank you

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We went to Skagway a few weeks ago with my two ages 11 and 13. We did a private van tour with Beyond Skagway on the way up and the train ride down. The kids loved the dog mushers camp at Tagish Lake, the adults did too. The kids were pretty pooped and bored for the train ride home but the adults loved it! If you need to save some $, and you are somewhat adventurous and prepared, you could rent a car and drive to Carcross and back, stopping along the way as needed. You have to bring your map and plans in advance though because there is no cell service. It's not hard though - pretty much one road the whole way.

Search either here or using google for photos of the train in Skagway. Wooden bench seats, not much room to move about for kids that are busy and/or get bored. No "snack car" or options to go get food on the train if you need a break or boredom buster. For us, we didn't want to feel "trapped" on a train/bus combo ride with no option to let our kids roam/explore. We also didn't want to spend the excursion $$$ and then stick our kids in front of a tablet/kindle/ipad to keep them quiet and content. We are doing a private tour in Skagway too and going to Emerald Lake and a dog mushers camp, and since we booked a private tour we can stop when and where we want. Our kids will appreciate the freedom to get out from time to time, and Nana, my husband and me will appreciate having happy kids. ;-)

I went on the train/van combo when I was 9, my cousin was 10, my brother was 7, and little cousin was 6. We had a great time! I remember this as a highlight of our trip. Sure, we didn't have freedom, but the train was awesome and perfect for that age. But a dog mushers camp would be amazing as well!

My husband and I went 20 years later, but we didn't do the full train ride all the way into Canada. We took it to a stop a bit out of town, then exited the train to go hiking. We tried to make it all the way out to the glacier but about halfway in we realized that wasn't going to happen if we were going to catch the train heading back, so we hiked back to the stop. Even though we didn't manage to hike to the glacier, it was still an amazing day. (We did this on our own instead of the ship's shoe excursion -- although the shore-ex group was maybe 100 yards behind us the entire time on the trail, LOL.)

We just got back from a NB Alaskan Cruise. When we were in Ketchikan we arranged a private tour for our group of 10 with Wild Wolf Tours. Our group ranged in age from 13-78, so older than your group, but still a wide range of age/ability. I thought they did a great job of recommending things that matched the ages and interests of our group and I bet they could recommend something for you too.

(In their online reviews, it sounds like they often do hikes in Tongass National Forest that people rave about and they have a variety to match different ability levels. That might be a great option for your group. We didn't do a hike because our older members weren't up for it. I told the owner that we were interested in totem poles, wild life and natural beauty -- and that our older members were relatively healthy/active, but weren't up for long walks... and she suggested the itinerary for us. We all really enjoyed the tour. )

My grandkids liked the gold panning and the duck boat tour. This trip we will do the lumberjack show and underground mine tour.

Skagway has a nice trail near the ship dock. If kids are active you can never go wrong with trails. We drove to Emerald Lake and stopped several places to get out. But we are 62 and 59. I have 5 grandkids in your age group and I am not sure they would appreciate the scenery like we did. When we got back to Skagway we started the Dewey Lake trail but did not have time to go very far. There were kids that seemed like they were having fun with the freedom of exploring the paths. I can only comment on train from Seward to Anchorage but it’s long and scenery driven. Kids on that train were sleeping or into there technology. But there again , it’s your vacation too. Balancing all age groups needs is sometimes tricky. Kim-mo Suggestion to have a tour catered to your group if you have the funds sounds like a nice idea. Good luck deciding. There is so much to do in Alaska.

I would suggest Beyond Skagway tours for your group. I didn’t travel with kids, but I did use this company recently. They are all about catering to the specific needs and likes of your group. They have a scavenger hunt you can do and would know the best places to let kids get out and roam while being safe. They are great at communicating beforehand and answering any and all of your questions. I had them help me out with a couple of surprises I wanted to add in for my mom. It was s terrific day for us. I know they also have dog mushing camp and gold panning activities you can add as well. The guides are people who really know the area well, so it’s a big bonus in my book.

I'm still in the planning stages of my trip (as it is August 2019) so I'm not sure if this will help at all. My kids will be 6 and 8 on the trip and instead of doing whale watching on the cruise, we are planning on doing the 5 hr Kenai Fjords tour with Major Marine in Seward before our cruise. My kids are obsessed with junior ranger badges, so working on the booklet to earn their Kenai Fjords National Park badge will help break up the time.

The Klondike National Park is divided into two units with the southern one in Seattle and the northern in Skagway.

In Skagway the NPS has opened a number of the NPS owned buildings as museums, and many of the exhibits are interesting to kids. But the NPS also operates a Junior Ranger program in what was originally a saloon (Skagway had a number of saloons during the Klondike gold rush). Look at the Klondike National Park website for details.

In Ketchikan I think they would enjoy the Deadliest Catch tour. Lots of interaction with the different items caught I think they would like. The Lumberjack show is a bit hokey but fun

My 10 year old loved whale watching. It was her favorite excursion that we did. We went with Gastineau Guiding on a boat with about 18 people. I thought that was a great size boat... not quite as small as Harv and Marv's private tour, so you could move around a lot, but not as big as the 50-75 person boats where I think it would be hard to get from one side of the boat to the other when whales are spotted.

We did not do the train because I worried the kids (10, 14, 16) would get bored. In Skagway we did glass blowing at Jewel Gardens and the helicopter flight with glacier walk. My kids really enjoyed both of those.

I'm still in the planning stages of my trip (as it is August 2019) so I'm not sure if this will help at all. My kids will be 6 and 8 on the trip and instead of doing whale watching on the cruise, we are planning on doing the 5 hr Kenai Fjords tour with Major Marine in Seward before our cruise. My kids are obsessed with junior ranger badges, so working on the booklet to earn their Kenai Fjords National Park badge will help break up the time.

If Skagway is on your itinerary make sure you check out the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park website: https://www.nps.gov/klgo/index.htm. It includes an entire section on activities for kids including junior ranger badges: https://www.nps.gov/klgo/learn/kidsyouth/index.htm.