What did you do in Skagway, Juneau or Ketchikan on your own?

[Gypsea]

Dangerous Days of 98..is that the theater play I read about somewhere?

 

The classic car sounds good, expensive? I do like the local guides and have found this a good way to see what the other side wants us to see

 

No Wal-Mart in Walpole, not that they haven't tried!

 

Nancy, I hear you. Last think I want to do is end up being miserable because I booked something for a rotten day.

 

Duck tours, will that leave us time for other things? Are these booked ashore?

 

So, what ports are we unlikely to find people offering tours on shore? Is everyone renting these cars ahead of time?

 

How much is a wreck?

 

I saw tha salmon bake and I am intrigued. Since everyone says you must do the glacier this sounds like a winner all around.

 

But I am wondering why is Mendenhall so great. Won't we be seeing lots of glaciers? Tell me what is special here?

 

Kayaking, hmm, Ive never done that. Capt Larry sure is well loved. Emerald Lake, only if you rent a car? The tram and walking tours sound more affordable. Remember, we catch the ship after spending 5 nights on land (Fairbanks, Denali, Anchorage). I am afraid I will feel a bit tapped out by the time we get to these ports. Still, if I take your (everyone) advice I should enjoy a fairly well rounded week.

 

Thanks for the two web addresses. I plan to check those.

 

What about the float plane. Sounds like it would be fun. Book onshore? Web address, price?

 

Same with the railway, at $89 each is this really great? I mean, what would I see that I haven't seen by then? I would expect to be wowwed for that. Trains are fun for about a half hour then I can get bored. What is so special?

 

Thanks for responding. I want to support the local population and see the sights while doing it. With so much of Alaska owned by Princess and HAL I think that it is important. I don't mind spending but I want to benefit the right people when doing it...

[roylenes]

Joy2Day mentioned a web site that tells which ships are in port at specific times. Does anyone know what that site is? Also, how did you find the best way to find the best rate to rent a vehicle at each port?

 

Thanks for the help.

 

roylenes

[Joy2Day]

Today, I tried some different search criteria and found the port schedule website. Actually, I found 2 sites.

 

http://alaska.nwcruiseship.org/port...es.cfm?menuId=9

 

http://www.claalaska.com/schedules.html

[Gypsea]

Don't quit now. We need answers people!!

[GramaFran]

Gypsea:

Below is a website for visit Juneau and the Rent a Wreck. We got a van for about $90 a day it fit 8 or more. there is only 50 miles or so of road in Juneau so in a long day you can see most of it. We made lots of stops along the way and still saw it all in about 5 hrs.

 

http://classifieds.juneauempire.com/classifieds-bin/classifieds?tp=JUNEAU+AK&temp_type=ALT_DETAIL&classification=CLASSIFIEDS&property=juneau+ak&tl=4&ad_type=display

 

As for Mendenhall - It is fantastic as you can get up close to a glacier with out the cost of flying on to one. Plus it is a beautiful site with the lake, waterfall and glacier.

 

There are a lot of web sites for Juneau and Ketchikan with tours not done by cruise co. So Google the city and look them up.

[orhodes]

Ketchikan:

 

Did the "Duck." This bus/boat is strange looking but very interesting. It was inexpensive and fun. Where else can you get a brief tour of the town, hear local lore from the native guide and then glide into the bay area and see the various ships/boats close up? We boated across the bay and saw several eagles in their nesting areas. The crew met us near the ship (Island Princess, 9/2004) and were very nice people. They have a web page with photos and videos.

 

A good time.:)

 

Island Princess--Alaska north bound cruisetour, 9/05/04

Disney Wonder--land and sea, 5/26/05

Coral Princess--Panama canal--10/05/05

[Gypsea]

Does anyone know who is on the Dawn as CD? Was he/she great fun? Also, my favorite entertainment is the stand-up comedians, anyone have any comments on the ones who might be currnetly on-board? That would be fun to know.

Does Princess do the theme nights, sock hops, etc.?

 

This is going to be a great reference while planning each day. Problem is I won't be able to do it all. Isn't that always the problem, trying to decide what and what not to do?

[carma7007]

How far was the walk to the Glacier? We want to do this but are not sure if we will have enough time, should we book in advance or do the city bus?

[julieclair]

In Ketchikan, we attended the supremely touristy Lumberjack Show and had a blast! Would never have gone, except some friends had recommended it, and we're so glad they did. Lots of fun, especially if you have kids with you.

 

In Skagway, we loved the White Pass and Yukon Railroad trip. Can't remember if we booked it directly, or through the ship. I do remember looking at their website beforehand.

 

Mendenhall Glacier was great. We purchased a round-trip bus ticket from the kiosk in town (or it may have been near the ship's dock -- I can't remember -- but it was easy to find). We lucked out and got a talkative bus driver who pointed out lots of interesting things along the way.

[Gypsea]

That sounds like fun. Did you book that after you were off the ship?

 

The Rail trip may not be in the cards but I was thinking of the salmon bbq w/ Mendenhall.

Thanks

[SF]

What is the trolley that someone mentioned they took in Juneau? Anyone have more info on this?

 

Do we need to pre-purchase the tickets to the Lumberjack Show or can we just buy them there?

 

How much is a taxi to the Mendenhall Glacier?

[Joy2Day]

Trolley website -- http://www.juneautrolley.com

[geoherb]

How far was the walk to the Glacier? We want to do this but are not sure if we will have enough time, should we book in advance or do the city bus?

There are shuttle buses near the ships that will cost you $5 per person each way. My understanding is that the city bus costs less but doesn't take you all the way to the visitors center like the shuttle buses do.

 

Here is a map of the visitors center and the trails. We had planned to walk the East Glacier Loop Trail, but the drizzly weather kept us from doing the hike. It's a 3.5 mile hike to get closer to the glacier. We ended up walking to the Photo Point and a little bit along the Trail of Time before deciding not to continue on the East Glacier Loop Trail.

 

Admission to the visitors center is $3. We enjoyed looking at the exhibits. Some of the folks ahead of us were griping about the cost.

[SF]

Thanks for the websites. I'll check them out.

[GramaFran]

that means if you are a senior or disabled you can get a National Park Pass that lets you in for less or free. I used mine for my whole family - 6 of us and we all got in free.

Just one more bit of info.

Francine

[julieclair]

The tickets for the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show in Ketchikan can be purcased in advance, or at the show itself. It's within easy walking distance of the ship. Our ship docked early, so we were able to attend the first show of the morning. No long lines or huge crowds. The website for the show is www.lumberjackshows.com.

[Bsan1221]

In Juneau I did the X-Trek 4 hour Hike on the Mendenhall Glacier.. It was incredible....

 

 

In Skagway we did the dog sledding and helicopter ride, which was lots of fun.

 

In Juneau we went kayaking in Orcas cove... It was ok...

 

We booked all the excursions on our own...

[carma7007]

We will go ahead and look for the shuttle buses. Our ship seems to be a bit tardy coming into Juneau each time so I want to be flexable.

 

Carm

[garycarla]

If you really want to learn lots about Alaska, you should go to the specific ports of call board for ALASKA. These types of questions are asked and answered in depth daily.

 

 

Alaska, it is great!

[bonk]

Please give me more info on the ship's floatplane tour How many people on a plane? Does everyone get a window seat? Is there a taped narration or does the pilot do it?

We'll be on Island Princess next week.

[Guest enjoycruises]

Hello. My family and I just returned last nite from Alaska. Let me tell u, we had an "awesome" time! I want to go back again. Next time we will go to other ports of call.

 

In Skagway: We rented a car and drove up the mountains to Emerald Lake. Parts of the ride were quite foggy and it reminded us of the snow blizzards we get in Chicago. Once we were high above the clouds, WOW! The weather was warm and we saw such beautiful scenery. There were lakes, waterfalls and beautiful trees. At a suggestion that I read in the threads, we stopped off at the Cinnamon eatery that was along the highway. Yum! We also did a bit of driving through the town.

 

In Juneau: We went whale watching with Captain Larry. He is great at spotting the whales. We were fortunate to have a "naturalist" aboard that told us about whales. We saw whales, sea lions and bald eagles. His tour company dropped us off after the sailing at the Mendenhall Glacier and we walked around there. We then hopped on the $5 bus that took us back to the dock. We also did some walking through the shops.

 

In Ketchikan: We walked the town. The town is loaded with jewelry shops. We watched the boats docking there and watched the float planes taking off and landing nearby.

 

This trip was AWSOME!