Renting a car in Skagway?

[riteonglor]

We will be in Skagway in August with two other friends..on our first cruise ever on the Sapphire. We are trying to decide on our tours and for sure are thinking the White Pass Scenic Railway. Have read where some people prefer to rent a car and drive almost the same route. Has anyone out there done that and if so, where do you rent the car at and what are the rates? Are there a lot of cars available to rent? All help on this one will be appreciative.

[Flintstone]

We are just home from the Sapphire today and we rented a car in Skagway from Avis. The only problem we had was that I thought the rental agency was located right at the docks by the train station....but that is not the case. It is now in town across from the Westmark Hotel. We got off the ship at 7:30 to get the car by 8:00. There were no shuttles to be seen and we were given directions to walk the mile or so. (Found out later that the shuttles started at 8 am).

 

The drive to Emerald Lake was awesome!! We especially like doing the trip at our own pace...but I'm sure we lost a little without the "guided" narration along the way. Go here and print out the driving guide to take with you if you decide to rent. It helped let us know where we were and what we were seeing.

http://www.explorenorth.com/library/roads/sklondike-photos1.html

Avis appeared to have quite a few cars available...but I would book ASAP. There's no deposit if you book thru their website and you can cancel if you change you mind. Try using the AWD Code W046000. I don't know if its still good...but it saved us about $20.

 

Deb

[Budget Queen]

From the farthest ship back on the railroad dock the walk is 1/2 mile to the Avis office, located on 3rd. The shuttles pick up at the end of the nearest ship. It is easily walkable without mobility limitations.

 

There are 4 rental companies, but the other 3 are independent.

 

For clarification- it is NOT the same route, only about 4 miles have common sightings. The train is superior for history, engineering and scenery. The drive goes to the Yukon IF that is a priority. Print out Murray's road guide for the South Klondike Highway http://www.explorenorth.com

[sunnyv]

We reserved and picked up a car thru Avis and drove up to Emerald Lake. The drive was beautiful! The train doesn't go near as far as you can drive and doesn't stop when you want to stop to take pictures or just enjoy the view. The train is great too, but I prefer renting a car and making the drive.

 

Don't forget your passports/or birth certificates if you make the drive into the Yukon, you'll need them to get back into Alaska.

[Sunviking]

We did this several years ago and also rented a car in Skagway. We drove all the way up to Whitehorse and had lunch. We cruised in the first week of September and I will always remember that it was one of the most glorious drives we've ever taken. The leaves were turning and it was a sunny day. The landscape was a magnificent combination of carolina blue sky, golden leaves on the willows and dark green on the pines. The Emerald Lake and the little desert along the way are worth seeing. My DH and I remember it as one of the nicest cruise stops we've ever made.

[riteonglor]

Thank you all so much for your quick reply's. I do believe we will rent a car..I like the idea of being able to stop and get out and look at things if we see something we want to spend some time at.

[MichTraveler]

Just remember to take your IDs as you will be going into Canada.

[riteonglor]

Thank you, also, for your input. Would not have even thought of that. Will keep our passports and driver's license on us at all times.

[garycarla]

You can learn WAY MORE about Alaska by going to the Alaska board under PORT OF CALL.

 

 

Enjoy - I am sure you will.

[Joy2Day]

I just returned from a 14-day cruisetour. We were in Skagway in 6/23 and drove up to Emerald Lake. I definitely recommend you reserve the car in advance. Avis had several cars, but I'm sure they were all rented since there were 4 ships in port that day. We had planned to head into town around 7:30 am, but breakfast in the dining room took longer than expected. (Lesson learned -- Let the waiters know if you prefer to eat your cereal or fruit with your meal. They were waiting for us to finish before bringing the omelets.) We were at the Avis office around 8 am. There were 2 people in line in front of us. It took about 20 minutes to get the car (because the first guy in line had a LOT of questions). While we waited, some of us headed over to the grocery store to get soda and feed our M&M habit, ... (Note: The mining company sells 12-packs for around $6; The grocery store sells 6-packs for $4.50.) We carried the soda back on the ship without any problems.

 

We had not been able to reserve a minivan in advance (all were booked), so we had 2 cars reserved. We were able to change to a minivan ($119) when we picked up the car. With several copies of Yukon's guide in hand, we set off. All the bus tours stopped at the scenic spots on the way up (most are off to the right side going up). Rather than contend with the busses, we decided to hit all those spots on the way back. We were already playing with the puppies by the time the busses started to arrive at Caribou Crossing. (Caribou Crossing was expecting 600 people for lunch.)

 

After a dog cart ride and more puppy time, it was getting crowded, so we headed up the road toward Emerald Lake, stopping at Spirit Lake Resort for lunch. As we headed back toward Skagway, we saw very little traffic. We were back in Skagway around 3 pm, did a little shopping, and returned to the ship around 5:15 pm.

 

All in all, the minivan cost was around $150 divided among 6 people. Very reasonable and among the most beautiful scenery we saw.

[CroozBlooz]

If you rent a car, don't forget to stop at Exit Glacier on the way out of Skagway. It is one of the few land accessible glaciers.

[Coral]

If you rent a car, don't forget to stop at Exit Glacier on the way out of Skagway. It is one of the few land accessible glaciers.

 

Exit glacier is near Seward, not near Skagway.

[CroozBlooz]

Duh.....that's what I meant. Seward. If you take the Inside Passage and end up in Seward, it's a great drive to Anchorage, and you can stop at Exit Glacier. Thanks for the correction Coral.

[vivian02]

The wife and I did the rental car at Skagway on our first cruise and it was a great idea. The time was late May 2002, I remember getting a Midsize vehicle which ran $64 divided by four people...not bad. Now here is were it gets intersting. Since this Cruise I have rented cars at the following dates and locations, guess which one was the most exspensive? It wasn' Skagway....

 

Hawaii 11/2003 Ford Tauras $34 a day

Germany 06/2005 Mercedes $53 a day

Anchorage 07/2005 Kia Rio $74 a day (Presently reserved)

 

Look at these figures closely...I think I might head back to Hawaii. Tim

[Love Cruis'n]

... We were already playing with the puppies by the time the busses started to arrive at Caribou Crossing. (Caribou Crossing was expecting 600 people for lunch.)

 

After a dog cart ride and more puppy time, ....

 

One of the couples in our group is into dogs, ands would have probably booked a "sled dog excursion" had they not been blown away some of the costs (not to mention their daughter's grad school tuition bill - surprise - it's a lot more than under grad :eek: ).

Anyway, they might really enjoy "playng with puppies" - can you please elaborate. We're thinking of doing the Emerald Lake drive (maybe in combo with the short train ride - not quite certain yet.) Is the dog thing an excursion package? a freebee? where is it? etc.

Thanks,

Terry

[Budget Queen]

One of the couples in our group is into dogs' date=' ands would have probably booked a "sled dog excursion" had they not been blown away some of the costs (not to mention their daughter's grad school tuition bill - surprise - it's a lot more than under grad :eek: ).

Anyway, they might really enjoy "playng with puppies" - can you please elaborate. We're thinking of doing the Emerald Lake drive (maybe in combo with the short train ride - not quite certain yet.) Is the dog thing an excursion package? a freebee? where is it? etc.

Thanks,

Terry[/quote']

 

 

 

The kennel visit is only a couple dollars. This is in Carcross. http://www.cariboucrossing.ca/

[Flintstone]

If you plan on going to Caribou Crossing, head straight there when you get into Carcross and try to beat the busses! There was only 1 bus parked there when we arrived, but we decided to go have some lunch first...and unfortunately it was packed with busses when we went back. So we passed it by.

[Joy2Day]

I agree with Flintstone. We passed by all the scenic overlooks and went directly to Caribou Crossing. We had walked through the museum and had been playing with the dogs before the first busses began to arrive.

 

However, don't forget the busses are on a schedule. About 30 minutes after they arrived, everyone was heading over to get their lunch. We headed on down to Spirit Lodge for lunch, then drove to Emerald Lake. By the time we drove back by Caribou Crossing, the busses were all gone.