helicopter weight surcharge

[kittercat85]

Hi everyone,

My fiance and I will be taking an Alaskan cruise for our honeymoon next summer. The week we are there will also be his birthday and we will be in port at Juneau.

 

I've been browsing a bunch of the different shore excursions available. I saw a lot of the helicopter ones said that there is an additional charge for any passenger weighing more than 250. My fiance would be over that 250lb mark.

 

Does anyone know what the extra charge amount would be approximately? Is it a flat rate more, or does it vary even more by weight? If I can manage it, I am thinking this might be a great birthday experience for him!!

 

Thanks in advance!

[rachelfran]

Hi everyone,

My fiance and I will be taking an Alaskan cruise for our honeymoon next summer. The week we are there will also be his birthday and we will be in port at Juneau.

 

I've been browsing a bunch of the different shore excursions available. I saw a lot of the helicopter ones said that there is an additional charge for any passenger weighing more than 250. My fiance would be over that 250lb mark.

 

Does anyone know what the extra charge amount would be approximately? Is it a flat rate more, or does it vary even more by weight? If I can manage it, I am thinking this might be a great birthday experience for him!!

 

Thanks in advance!

 

it's likely that different companies handle it differently -- checking one company

 

https://my.getinsellout.com/providers/era-flightseeing-juneau/skus/juneau-glacier-adventure-starting-at-290/buy?inst=201679

 

I see they charge an extra $100 on their Juneau Glacier Adventure for over 250lbs and the same with the dog sled tour ...

 

Rachel

[donaldsc]

Hi everyone,

My fiance and I will be taking an Alaskan cruise for our honeymoon next summer. The week we are there will also be his birthday and we will be in port at Juneau.

 

I've been browsing a bunch of the different shore excursions available. I saw a lot of the helicopter ones said that there is an additional charge for any passenger weighing more than 250. My fiance would be over that 250lb mark.

 

Does anyone know what the extra charge amount would be approximately? Is it a flat rate more, or does it vary even more by weight? If I can manage it, I am thinking this might be a great birthday experience for him!!

 

Thanks in advance!

 

I would call the companies involved and ask them. Have you done that?

 

DON

[kittercat85]

Thanks for finding that, Rachel.

 

Don - no, I haven't called anyone. I've only looked at the shore excursion listings from the cruise line, I don't know if it's them or some other company doing it. No prices are listed yet for anything, just descriptions.

[sonnyjane]

For one of the HAL ones I believe it said $140 extra. That info was on the HAL website. My husband is 249 lol. I wasn't sure if they would include his jacket weight, etc. I ended up not booking because I found it too expensive in general and chose something else, but I did look into it as it would have potentially affected us. We are also going kayaking and they had a 250 limit but I contacted that company directly and they said it should be fine... Saved that email just in case.

 

 

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[kittercat85]

For one of the HAL ones I believe it said $140 extra. That info was on the HAL website. My husband is 249 lol. I wasn't sure if they would include his jacket weight, etc. I ended up not booking because I found it too expensive in general and chose something else, but I did look into it as it would have potentially affected us. We are also going kayaking and they had a 250 limit but I contacted that company directly and they said it should be fine... Saved that email just in case.

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

 

Thank you so much sonnyjane! I am going to be on HAL as well so this was super helpful. Have fun on your cruise!

[Budget Queen]

There are only 3 companies in Juneau who do the general helicopter glacier landing trips, and one company that does trekking tours. One of those companies, operates the tours in Skagway. It isn't a big list for you to check, direct.

 

Going through HAL, a booking agent only, would not be the route I would suggest for this information.

[peety3]

I did a helicopter tour in Skagway in 2010. Temsco was the operator I believe. As I got to the end of the dock, the gal collected my ticket and asked "how much do you weigh, and add 5-10 pounds for clothes"? I was toting a camera bag (knowing I'd stash it at the helicopter base), and said "well if you're asking I'll say 249.9". Her eyes got big and she said I'd need to be weighed at the base and if I was over, I'd need to pay the surcharge. I told her very clearly that I'd be happy to pay if I was over.

 

At the base, I assembled the two camera/lens combos I'd chosen (I made bad choices by the way), then headed over to the counter. 249.6 - ha! She smiled and made note of it on her form. :)

 

I think for most cruises you should simply book an extra ticket, then once aboard visit the shorex desk and have it adjusted down to the weight surcharge. That way they can budget for the right number of seats on the helicopters (which were a massively choreographed work of art from a logistics perspective - they knew exactly how many to refuel on each return to base, how many to send out, and how many to leave on the ice).

 

I suspect it's easier if you know someone will be over the threshold - just go into the whole process with a weight surcharge on your tab, and they'll know to expect it. They'll still ask weight because weight/balance is INCREDIBLY critical in a helicopter, but there won't be the potential for awkwardness along the lines of my experience (never found it to be awkward, but YMMV).

 

Our next cruise is planned for one week after we do a 200-mile two-day bike ride, so I'm expecting to be in better condition and lower weight next time. ;) I do wish the shorex desk had a scale handy aboard to get a game-day weight though.

[DrivesLikeMario]

How private is the weigh-in? I really don't want DH watching that scale while I'm on it (or anyone else for that matter!). :o

[Budget Queen]

How private is the weigh-in? I really don't want DH watching that scale while I'm on it (or anyone else for that matter!). :o

 

It's not private. The scale is in front of the counter, you step on, the staff record it. The weight is not mentioned.

[DrivesLikeMario]

It's not private. The scale is in front of the counter, you step on, the staff record it. The weight is not mentioned.

 

Argh...so everyone can see it? Can I put my hands around the numbers blocking out everyone's view? Thanks for the help.

[pusywillow]

Personally, I would not take the chance of embarassing him. If someone surprised me with this, I would be very unhappy. I'm sure there is something else special you could do for him.

[peety3]

How private is the weigh-in? I really don't want DH watching that scale while I'm on it (or anyone else for that matter!). :o

 

At Temsco in Skagway, it was obvious that I went over to the scale, but it was 30' away from the crowd with an LCD readout that would not have been visible to the crowd. To me, it's only a factor if the passenger is "on the fence".

 

Any of the flying excursions (planes too, because they're so small) are going to ask weight at checkin. And honestly, I think the fact that I had two "good" cameras meant they put me at a window (it was an AS350 with pilot+2 in front, and 4 in back; I had a back window). So even though I was right at the single-seat weight limit, they didn't put me in a middle seat (a middle seat would have better balance characteristics since it's closer to centerline).

[Budget Queen]

Argh...so everyone can see it? Can I put my hands around the numbers blocking out everyone's view? Thanks for the help.

 

Nobody can see it except the staff looking. You step on a scale that's it. On for a few seconds until you both and read the number is recorded. Nobody is mentioning any weights.

[DrivesLikeMario]

At Temsco in Skagway, it was obvious that I went over to the scale, but it was 30' away from the crowd with an LCD readout that would not have been visible to the crowd. To me, it's only a factor if the passenger is "on the fence".

 

Any of the flying excursions (planes too, because they're so small) are going to ask weight at checkin. And honestly, I think the fact that I had two "good" cameras meant they put me at a window (it was an AS350 with pilot+2 in front, and 4 in back; I had a back window). So even though I was right at the single-seat weight limit, they didn't put me in a middle seat (a middle seat would have better balance characteristics since it's closer to centerline).

 

Okay, that's perfect. I just didn't want to be right next to everyone when they weighed me in. DH thinks I'm a lot lighter than I am and I wouldn't want to burst that bubble. :D

 

Nobody can see it except the staff looking. You step on a scale that's it. On for a few seconds until you both and read the number is recorded. Nobody is mentioning any weights.

 

Whew! That's a relief! Thanks both of you for putting my mind at ease! ;)

[stacyrk99]

When they ask you how much you weigh, at what weight do they actually have you step on the scale? If you say you're 225 or so will they weigh you then?

[Budget Queen]

When they ask you how much you weigh, at what weight do they actually have you step on the scale? If you say you're 225 or so will they weigh you then?

 

Most of the time, I have gone, they weigh everybody. It isn't just about heavy people. the weights are critical for seating and the flight for EVERYONE.

[geekypenguin]

We did an excursion in Juneau this year and I was about 5 pounds over the surcharge limit. I answered the girl honestly on the dock, but we didn't get charged for some reason - hooray! We booked through the ship and nobody on our excursion was weighed, although there was a scale visible. They seated us on the helicopter based on weight, but nobody was rude or disrespectful about it at all.

[Love2travel4]

Back in 2005...through NCL the surcharge was 1.5 as much! The $300 helicopter, glacier, dog sledding excursion cost me $450! But....I wasn't about to lie about my weight, I wanted to be safe on the helicopter....and they would weigh me anyway! To date, this was the best excursion anywhere in the world I have been. I would pay the surcharge in minute again....but now I don't have too....taken off almost 100lbs this year!!

[mytime53]

Back in 2005...through NCL the surcharge was 1.5 as much! The $300 helicopter, glacier, dog sledding excursion cost me $450! But....I wasn't about to lie about my weight, I wanted to be safe on the helicopter....and they would weigh me anyway! To date, this was the best excursion anywhere in the world I have been. I would pay the surcharge in minute again....but now I don't have too....taken off almost 100lbs this year!!

 

Congratulations!!!!