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Shuttle to Mendenhall


Anita Latte
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Looking at the idea of going on our own to Mendenhall...I'm seeing that there are two shuttle services. Both are $45 pp roundtrip, but this includes the $5 entry fee for the visitor center at Mendenhall. M&M Tours (one of the shuttles) currently has an end of the season sale going on and tickets are $35.

 

Reading online, all the reviews over the years have different shuttle rates. And many people are just purchasing them at the kiosks that are apparently right there at the cruise port.

 

Can anyone confirm that this online pricing is the same as the IRL kiosk pricing? I'd hate to buy something in advance only to realize that it was less if I had just waited.

 

Thanks!

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Can’t answer your question as we always rent a car in Juneau. In the past Juneau Car Rental has had cars for about $70, less than two Mendenhall shuttle bus tickets. Also opens the door wide to do other things outside of the downtown area. We actually got one for $18 last May from Alamo although we had to pick it up at the airport.

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With 5 people in our party, I was wondering about car rental. How did you get to and from the airport? I see there are a couple car rentals closer to the cruise ship dock, but the Avis is very pricy. The local one doesn't have prices online.

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We had an excursion that dropped us at the airport. Cab or possibly city bus to the airport although more convenient to rent from Juneau Car Rental or Avis, about 1 mile from the tram area downtown. You could send one person for the car and come back to pick up the rest of the group. It's an easy walk.

 

As I remember Budget Queen had a suggestion regarding this in a previous post. She may jump in here to clarify.

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With 5 people in our party, I was wondering about car rental. How did you get to and from the airport? I see there are a couple car rentals closer to the cruise ship dock, but the Avis is very pricy. The local one doesn't have prices online.

 

 

There is a city bus that runs to the airport. You need a full port day, this eats up a lot of time since it only runs once/hour. It is a different bus, mentioned above that goes near Mendenhall. You do have to pay the admission fee separate when you get to Mendenhall.

 

The 2 car rental companies at the dock area, are by the AJ dock. IF there is a ship docked there, there is a shuttle, BUT it's a mile+ walk otherwise, with hills.

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Just thought that I would add this little tidbit that I learned today while talking to a tour guide in Juneau. Apparently, the governing body of the Mendenhall recreation area, which includes the visitor center has upped the fees for the shuttle services to have access into the rec area. Those upped licensing fees for shuttle/tour operators are what have driven up the cost of the shuttles in recent years.

 

It's ridiculous but I guess there's just been a lot of traffic with all the cruise ships coming into port. Our ship will there on a Tuesday...and I guess Tuesday is going to be the busiest day in Juneau all next year, with 6 ships in port every Tuesday...so that's quite a lot of people that descend on the relatively small town.

 

Interesting to note as well that most of the workers that help the various tour companies are temporary employees that come up only for the tourist season. Which is something that makes total sense when you learn it...

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  • 2 weeks later...

One time, we took the City Bus at yes $2.00 per person and the other time we took I believe it is called the Big Blue Bus (that was pricier $ 18 per person return). Both times, we got to spend lots of time at the Glacier and took some great pictures. As soon as you walk off the ships, there are loads of kiosks there and buses as well. It has been a few years so my prices may now be inaccurate but the gist of the message is that you do not need to purchase a pricey ship tour to see the Glacier.

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Yes, I remember the "Blue Bus" to Mendenhall several years ago. Big business has come to Juneau and now the round trip shuttle at $45 seems to be the best deal. Does anyone know how much a taxi to Mendenhall is? Going again next summer with my sister.

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OP here...

 

I looked into the taxi idea. This is what I learned...quoting from the Evergreen Taxi site:

 

"Cab rates are set by the City of Juneau. All companies have the following rates:

 

Meter Drop = $3.40

Each Mile = $2.20

Each additional person =$.075

Each additional bag = $.075

Deliveries cost an additional $3.00 over the meter."

 

Mendenhall visitor center is 13 miles from downtown Juneau. For my party of 5, I calculate:

 

$3.40 drop

$2.20*13 miles = $28.60

$0.075*4 additional people = $0.30

 

Total Fare = $32.30

 

Now I've read that the taxis have to charge you the entry fee of $5.00 pp, but I'm not clear on this because I thought you could visit the trails for free but only pay to have to go to the visitor center...and then I've read that there is a $2 pp entry fee, just to the grounds of the Mendenhall Recreation Area...and then $5.00 on top of that, when you use transportation other than a shuttle service which has paid a licensing fee to access the recreation area, so those additional fees are included in the $45 pp rate.

 

So the taxi fare of $32.30 will not include a possible $25.00 to $35.00 in entry fees...

So taxt TO the glacier could be $57.30? or $67.30? And then return fare...so it could total up to $99.60 in fares, which is still quite a bit cheaper than $225.00 in shuttle fees.

 

My understanding is also that you have to call the taxi to get them back...and there could be a wait for that taxi ride, so plan accordingly.

 

Maybe someone who has actually taken a taxi out there could verify all the information about the entry fees, etc.

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We booked a car rental for $67 through Juneau Car Rental for next summer. For 4 people, it's a great deal and we are on our own schedule and can visit other places too! We plan on Mendenhall Glacier, Eagle Beach, etc.

 

Yes, it's a very good deal, even if there were only 2 people. Juneau Car Rental prices have stayed fairly consistent for years while the shuttle bus has increased significantly. It used to be $16 RT. It's very overpriced at $45 considering everything else you can do with a rental.

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The shuttle fees have just responded to increased licensing fees because funding toward Mendenhall has decreased. It is what it is.

 

Renting a car is one option, remember that you will be paying $2 pp to enter the recreation area and $5 pp to access the visitor center, which you will want to do if you need to use a restroom. I found confirmation of these fees in this post:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2527446

 

Not a deterrent for car rental, just info to be aware of.

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Shuttle fees are responding to demand. Prices didn’t just increase to $45 from $16 because of a $7 fee.

 

We’ve not had to pay any $2 fee for entering the area with a rental and haven’t paid the $5 as we only use the trails that are free. I haven’t seen anything regarding the $2 fee although maybe it’s just charged to commercial vehicles or something new?

 

Here’s a confirmation on fees:

https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/tongass/about-forest/offices/?cid=fseprd502109

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Yes...the $2 pp fee that taxis charge is a passing along of the special use permit fees that commercial vehicles have to pay in order to access Mendenhall Recreation Area. That $2 isn't mentioned in services like the shuttle or other guided tours that access the Forest land, but that, and the collection of the $5 fee are part of the increase in the fares.

 

The other part of the increase in the fares are the Cost Recovery Fees that are charged to all the businesses that are licensed to either access the Mendenhall Rec Area or access AND guide at the Mendenhall Rec Area. That is a fee that is figured out in total by the Forest Service and then charged out to the licensed commercial service providers according to the number of service days. THAT is the fee that I was referring to that has increased so much. Because of the great increase in the visitation to the Mendenhall Rec Area, the Cost Recovery Fees have increased dramatically and THAT is what is driving up the cost of the shuttles, because they have to pay those fees, not based on how many passengers they have, but based on how many days of operation they have...and so they have to make the passengers they do have compensate for the days when they have fewer passengers.

 

I'm not discounting supply and demand...I'm just trying to clarify what I was referring to when I said that the licensing fees have increased and that cost is being passed along to the consumer.

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  • 4 months later...

My family and I will be on a Princess Cruise to Alaska in July 2018 and will be visiting the Mendenhall Glacier on our own (don't want to pay the high price of the cruise ship excursion). For those of you who have taken the shuttles, do the white and blue busses pick up at the same place by the docks or are they in different locations? The Juneau Tours (white bus) says that it boards in front of the Mt. Roberts Tram, but I couldn't find anything on the M&M Tours site that indicates where it boards.

 

Also, since their costs are comparable, is one shuttle service better/more reliable than the other?

 

Finally, do I need to buy our tickets in advance online, or can I just purchase 3 tickets when I walk off the ship?

 

Thanks in advance for your feedback!

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There is a groupon right now for a whale watch and Mendenhall Glacier tour.

 

If you have a National Park pass you don’t have to pay any fees to enter, correct?

 

Does anyone know which cab companies have the coveted permit to enter Mendenhall Glacier? We’ll call a cab to go from the small boat harbor to mendenhall after whale watching, then call again to go back to the ship.

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