Alaska Review: 10-Day DIY on Land & Radiance Southbound, 6/12/18-6/30/18 (VERY LONG)

I absolutely made it through the whole thing! I am impressed that you were able to do the whole 10 days without renting a car.

That was by design. I don't really like driving long distances in general, especially when I don't know where I'm going (told ya I'm not adventurous), so it's definitely not something I wanted to do on a vacation of a lifetime type trip. I've actually never rented a car in my life. My wife knew this and structured our trip that way (with the aid of our travel consultant).

We didn't know it beforehand, of course, but I'm sure you could tell from my review that we became huge fans of the Alaskan RR. It may not have been the most efficient use of time or money but we were happy to be taken everywhere we wanted to go by someone else. It also didn't keep us from doing anything my wife wanted to. The only part it really affected was causing us to make that overnight stop in Anchorage. If we were driving, we would have just skipped it altogether and gone straight to Girdwood but the train schedule didn't allow for that.

That was by design. I don't really like driving long distances in general, especially when I don't know where I'm going (told ya I'm not adventurous), so it's definitely not something I wanted to do on a vacation of a lifetime type trip. I've actually never rented a car in my life. My wife knew this and structured our trip that way (with the aid of our travel consultant).

 

We didn't know it beforehand, of course, but I'm sure you could tell from my review that we became huge fans of the Alaskan RR. It may not have been the most efficient use of time or money but we were happy to be taken everywhere we wanted to go by someone else. It also didn't keep us from doing anything my wife wanted to. The only part it really affected was causing us to make that overnight stop in Anchorage. If we were driving, we would have just skipped it altogether and gone straight to Girdwood but the train schedule didn't allow for that.

Yes, I remember you saying you didn't like to drive long distances. We are the opposite, we enjoy driving and stopping wherever we want. We did 2 days in Anchorage prior to our cruise tour and actually spent one of the days driving from Anchorage to Alyeska on the Turnagin Arm. We stopped at many places along the way, including Potters Marsh, Beluga Point, McHugh Creek and Bird Point. We had lunch at a little bakery by Alyeska Resort but skipped the tram as it was raining/snowing and overcast.

We did the train from Fairbanks to Denali as part of our cruise tour. Would definitely consider more rail legs when we return, with some rental car days mixed in.

Definitely bookmarking this review so I can reference it in a few years when we return to Alaska.

I thoroughly enjoyed your review and read it all in one afternoon. We were in Alaska last year for our second Princess cruisetour, (different itineraries) but next time will be DIY for the land part.

Thanks for sharing!

Three wonderful hours reading your review. Thank you for posting.

Thank you for taking the time to share your Alaska vacation! I was so interested to read about your DIY land. We cruised at the same time but on Celebrity and northbound. Our DIY land was post cruise. We didn't have as much time for landing touring as you did so we didn't attempt a Denali trip this time. That's our priority for our next Alaska trip though so I really appreciated getting to read about yours. And all the details of your stay at the lodge in the park.

One thing I wanted to bring up...I totally agree with having an excursion for Icy Strait Point. Completely understand about needing to draw the line somewhere though. ISP is a private port but it wasn't built by RCI nor is it owned by RCI. It was built and owned by a First Nations corporation and is largely run by the locals that live in near by Hoonah.

One thing I wanted to bring up...I totally agree with having an excursion for Icy Strait Point. Completely understand about needing to draw the line somewhere though. ISP is a private port but it wasn't built by RCI nor is it owned by RCI. It was built and owned by a First Nations corporation and is largely run by the locals that live in near by Hoonah.

You're right of course, my bad. Thanks for the clarification.

I would definitely put Denali at the top of your list for next time and if you can swing the Backcountry Lodge or the Adventure, well, you already know how much we enjoyed it.

Thanks to all who have read so far and left comments!

I, also, thoroughly enjoyed your trip reports. It did take me two days to read through them, but you write so well! My husband and I took two trips to Alaska, our first with a cruise tour and the next with a DIY tour which we enjoyed tremendously. My husband loved to drive and had an innate sense of direction, even in Alaska! We have rented cars all over the country! Thank you for your time to let us all know the wonders of Alaska.

Mike,

I've enjoyed your pictures and plan to read the review in more detail.

Could I get the name of your land travel company? I think several of us requested it in a previous thread.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2640289

Thanks so much!

Patti

Mike,

 

I've enjoyed your pictures and plan to read the review in more detail.

 

Could I get the name of your land travel company? I think several of us requested it in a previous thread.

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2640289

 

Thanks so much!

 

Patti

E-mail sent. Sorry for missing you the first time around.

E-mail sent. Sorry for missing you the first time around.

Got it! Thanks, Mike!

Awesome review! I feel like a stowaway on your journey. Thank you for taking the time to do this detailed review of your experiences. On my list of must do's! Great job and what beautiful pictures!

Would like the details of your travel agent - deb dot e at telstra dot com

I enjoyed your review and the photos you took. Thank you for posting, I never find the time to write a review but do post pictures instead of FB. Denali is definitely a must do, and if in Hoonah definitely an excursion. We did a bear and whale watch.

I agree with you Cuddy was funny especially on 70s night on our cruise, but I think he likes to be spanked a little to much.. LOL

Mike,

 

 

 

I've enjoyed your pictures and plan to read the review in more detail.

 

 

 

Could I get the name of your land travel company? I think several of us requested it in a previous thread.

 

 

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2640289

 

 

 

Thanks so much!

 

 

 

Patti

May I have it as well? My email is gbits@optomline.net. Thank you!

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Mike,

 

 

 

I've enjoyed your pictures and plan to read the review in more detail.

 

 

 

Could I get the name of your land travel company? I think several of us requested it in a previous thread.

 

 

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2640289

 

 

 

Thanks so much!

 

 

 

Patti

May I have it as well? My email is gbits@optonline.net. Thanks!

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Mike, thank you for the thorough and inspiring trip report. I’m especially grateful for your discussion of Gold Star versus Adventurer on the Alaska Railway. Looking forward to reading the rest!

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Really appreciated all the info and pix. We're doing the Mountain Marvels 13 day next year. I enjoyed the details you provided concerning eateries and pix of lodges. also the pointers in Vancouver. I was amazed you did it without the rent car.

Hi Mike,

Having now read through (and enjoyed!) your full report, I have a follow-up question for you ... or anyone else who chimes in.

If I'm reading correctly, you rode the Alaska Rail from Fairbanks to Denali to Girdwood and eventually to Seward. You mention a few times that the Denali-Anchorage leg is the least scenic in your opinion. Can you say more about that? I'm trying to decide whether we take the Alaska rail Anchorage-Denali-Anchorage-Seward, or follow your path and go Fairbanks-Denali-Anchorage-Seward. In my original plan (rt from Anchorage), we would spend double the time on what you say is the least interesting part of the trip. What do you recommend? And, more specifically, what makes the Denali-Anchorage leg the least appealing?

With thanks in advance for any and all perspectives on this,

First, thanks for reading. Glad you enjoyed it. You are correct, we took the RR all the way from Fairbanks to Seward with stops in Denali, Anchorage, and Girdwood.

On the Denali-Anchorage leg, my wife and I just felt that there was a lot more time spent with views of trees and marshy areas as opposed to mountains, rivers, etc. on that leg than the others. Don't get me wrong, there are still very scenic areas. It's much longer than any other leg so by no means am I suggesting that there's nothing to see for 7.5 hours.

Maybe we were influenced by that being the train ride that involved finding out about our luggage issue. Hopefully others will chime in.

Great review , have suggestions for a great place to view the Glacier? We ha e OV room TIA

Great review , have suggestions for a great place to view the Glacier? We ha e OV room TIA

The helipad was popular for a reason, seemed like an obvious spot but got crowded.

The couple my wife spoke with in Seward right before we left for the ship that had just gotten off the northbound itinerary told her one of the lower decks was actually a good spot. I forget where exactly though.

Since we didn’t really get close to it and had such up close and personal experiences with glaciers on land, we didn’t really put much effort into it to be honest. Sorry.

Hey Mike

Great review - sounds like you had just as amazing trip as we did! Hope we can catch up again on the same cruise sometime soon. We hit Diamond on this one, so maybe we can meet up in DL. [emoji41]. My wife and I both abuse the cappuccino machine in CL. We don’t drink, but probably have 4-5 lattes or cappuccinos a day...lol

Also, I was sharing some of your pics, and now my wife wants to do longer land portion next time! I keep reminder her - yes, but they are younger and more active than us. Plus they were dragging a 8 y/o with them [emoji6]. Seriously, no WiFi to my son is worse than the rustic outhouse toilets [emoji6]

PS: I am totally with you on the rental car thing. If I could, I would never drive anywhere for any reason. Lived in Germany for three years, did not have a car, and loved it. So, I was totally stoked to see how you managed to see so much without renting a car!

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Thanks for the feedback RS, enjoyed some of the back and forth here on CC. Glad you liked the review. Sorry about causing you any issues regarding your wife and a longer land portion, lol. That said, you know how much we felt it added to the trip so hopefully you find some sort of compromise in the future.

For the record, my wife is active. I’m a total couch potato. So much of this trip was out of my comfort zone but once we were there I just embraced it. That said, while we were constantly on the move & waking up early, most of our activities weren’t actually strenuous in a physical activity sense.

I’m finding all the car rental comments fascinating. As I mentioned, I don’t like driving long distances nor do I like not knowing where I’m going. So setting this trip up how we did (by which I mean having our travel consultant set it up), relying solely on the railroad & shuttles, was really to accommodate those aspects of my personality. I had no idea it would be viewed as some sort of accomplishment. Other than the one luggage snafu (which I’m convinced was an isolated, unfortunate incident), getting around how we did could not have been easier.

Congrats on Diamond. Hope you enjoy it on your Xmas cruise. I’m jealous. We’ll have to wait until next summer. My father in law is looking to take us on a family cruise for his 70th bday & take our young nieces to the new cococay water park in June while my wife wants to do the Western Caribbean itinerary that includes Roatan. So if the prices out of Canaveral cooperate (they’re really high right now), we might do what we did last summer & jump off & on with a short break in between.

Anyway, if you wanna meet up in a DL, we’ll likely be in Harmony’s in the near future. In the meantime, have a cappuccino or 6 for me on Serenade.

Our Christmas cruise is not till next year - 2019, so plenty of time for you and your wife to change your minds [emoji6]

You will love Harmony. We sailed on her in 2016 over Thanksgiving. Was great.

I was in Miami on Monday and saw Mariner. I may try to swing a quick, short cruise on her if I can find the right dates.

But, for now it was great sharing a cruise with you - catch you around!

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Our Christmas cruise is not till next year - 2019, so plenty of time for you and your wife to change your minds [emoji6]

Apparently I haven't fully recovered from Alaska to the point that I can't read dates yet.