Seward, Is Resurrection Bay and Fox Island worth it?

[Eagle288]

Hi. I am headed to Alaska on 8/11/05 on the NCL Dream 11-day cruise. Due to engine trouble our port time in Seward has been changed to 2:00-midnight.:( I went to the kenaifjords tours website and saw that they had a 5:30-9:30 Resurrection Bay and Fox Island tour, which included a grilled salmon dinner for $63.00pp. I was wondering if anyone had done this tour and wanted to know what they thought of it. There is also the six-hour dinner cruise, which covers more than these two places that leaves at 3:00, but I think that is to close in time for our scheduled arrival as I have heard that the Dream has not been totally on time with its ports because of this engine problem. Please share your thoughts, and if you have any other good ideas for this port please share. Thank you!

[SourDoughSteve]

I have done this tour many times and enjoyed it each time. Remember that you're not just going to 2 places...you're traveling thoughout the bay. The six hour dinner tour is wonderful but it's all dependent on the Dream and it's problems. The staff on board the vessel should be able to help you as they will be advised by the captain as to exact time of arrival.

[calee]

I answered this very question elsewhere but in case you missed it.....

My feeling is that the 6 hour tour is superior to the Resurrection Bay tour, you'll travel partially into the Park on the 6 hour. NCL uses Kenai Fjords Tours for their shore excursion vendor and I have to believe that they will be offering that very 6 hour tour on your sailing and if you arrive a little late the tour people will wait(money talks). If I were you I'd book through NCL and protect yourself.

I've toured with both Kenai Fjords and Major Marine, preferring Major Marine but their schedules don't support NCL's abbreviated schedule.

[CSloan]

We did the Northwestern tour a couple of weeks ago, after spending the night at Fox Island. Saw lots of wildlife - including puffins! The staff was great. The captain of the boat made every effort to make sure we saw as much as possible.

 

During the last hour of the tour, they came around with just-baked cookies.

 

I don't have anything to compare it to, but I would not hesitate to book with this vendor again.

[SourDoughSteve]

CSloan - I wish you'd embellish on you're experience. I don't think people realize what a comfort it is to stay somewhere where there is minimal services etc. Except for excellent food and service...no phone, no tv etc...

 

Please share...

[CSloan]

CSloan - I wish you'd embellish on you're experience. I don't think people realize what a comfort it is to stay somewhere where there is minimal services etc. Except for excellent food and service...no phone, no tv etc...

 

Please share...

 

I'd be glad to!

 

I'm working on photos and a review of the whole trip, but here are some of my observations about our stay at Fox Island.

 

We arrived in Seward from Anchorage, via railroad. Kenai Fjords Tours (KFT) picked us up at the train depot and took us to their place. They stored 2 pieces of our luggage, and tagged the third for Fox Island.

 

We boarded the boat with folks who were doing the Resurrection Bay tour, which includes lunch at Fox Island. It was a short trip to Fox Island, but we saw a lot along the way.

 

Once there, we had a buffet lunch. I'm not a seafood eater. They also offer chicken and vege lasagna, if you're not into salmon. It was a great lunch spot. There were even a couple of river otters putting on a show for everyone.

 

After lunch, all of the Resurrection Tour folks took off in the boat. Seems to be there were about 12-15 of us spending the night. Some were spending 2 nights. (I hope to have photos posted by this weekend!!). We were escorted to our cabins. Our suitcase was waiting for us.

 

We were in the Humpback Cabin. These are really VERY NICE accomodations. It's true, there is no electricity, but they do have battery operated lights and very hot water. Anyway, we were in bed before the sun went down! It is a one-room cabin, kind of like a log cabin duplex with a neighbor next door. The bed and pillows were very comfortable. Our cabin had a queen bed and a twin bed, as well as a nice table for two. It also had a separate bathroom, with shower. The cabin had a couple of good sized windows that we kept open all the time. We were suprised there were no keys. You can lock the cabin when you're inside, but not when you leave. No probelms though.

 

We had a very nice afternoon. Several people did the kayaking (they have 2 kayak guides on the island). I should mention, there are staff members everywhere, ready to serve and help. They even have a naturalist. We decided to climb the trail behind the cabins.. to the top of the mountain... so we could see the other side. It was a challenging trail (for us anyway) but the view from the top, and scenery along the way was worth it!

 

The afternoon just flew by. I don't even remember what we did until dinner time. When it was time for dinner, we met in the "overnight" lodge, which is set up like a dining room on one side, and a living room on the other. We had our own chef! He prepared Pork Loin stuffed with apples, applesauce, red potatoes, vegetables, and bread he baked earlier that day. For dessert, he made chocolate cream pies! There was plenty of food - even for the strict vegetarians in the group. The chef was extremely accomodating. After dinner, he announced he would make French Toast for breakfast. But, if you didn't want French Toast, he would make something else. There was always water, tea and coffee available.

 

A bit later we had a campfire with the Naturalist. She answered any questions we had. We stayed at the campfire until about 10pm. I wanted to see the sun go down behind the mountain- and got my wish. It's interesting having a campfire when it's still light outside.

 

I can't describe how serene and beautiful it is there, especially when you're there for the night. The accomodations were as good as any top-notch hotel (as far as I'm concerned) and the food was excellent. I never missed TV or the phone!

 

The next day, after breakfast, KFT picked us up in a bpat and we were off on the NW Fjords tour.

 

The whole experience was wonderful! I'll let you know when the pictures are posted.

[CSloan]

I got some of my pictures done.

 

Fox Island:

http://www.websitebycathy.com/Alaska2005/FoxIsland/index.html

 

Northwestern Kenai Fjords Tour:

http://www.websitebycathy.com/Alaska2005/NorthwesternFjordsTour/index.html

[SourDoughSteve]

EXCELLENT! I'm so glad you had a wonderful experience. I love Fox Island and wish I could go and stay a week at least just to relish in mother nature's serenity.

[SourDoughSteve]

The pics are marvelous!

[Budget Queen]

My opinion only, no the bay cruise is not worth it. Actually you will be sailing the same area coming into Seward. Fox Island is nice, if you can kayak, which won't be available to you on a bay tour. Meal is OK. I would book the 3pm tour, with a 2pm arrival you should have plenty of time to make it. Call Kenai fjords direct and inquire, they can send their bus over to pick you up if you arrange it ahead of time and call them once there. I would ask them what they recommend and if the longer and grossly superior tour is doable. Then go from there.

[CSloan]

I have to respectfully disagree with BudgetQueen about Fox Island.

Fox Island is nice, even if you can't kayak. We enjoyed the hike, the scenery, and the peace and quiet of it all. The (overnight) dinner we had was wonderful!! Maybe she's referring to the lunch buffet as "ok" - although I really liked the vegetarian lasagne.

[d2man]

Just did the fox island/dinner tour last week, and would strongly recommend it. (however, I've not done the longer tours to compare). The dinner is quite good considering it's out on the island. We saw all of the hoped for wildlife, and the boat gets *very* close to the rocks, etc... for nice viewing (I expect the cruise shipd does not)

 

Anyway, I expect that any of the tours are great; so I would recommend doing any of them; just don't sit on land!

[dbh62ark]

I cannot believe that NCL hasn't sold the Dream. There were nightmares all over the boards the last couple of years about reduced port time and missed ports in Europe too. My sympathies to you because NCL should be doing much better, so shame on them.

 

We used the Kenai Fjords Tours too for a longer boat tour in Seward, and I agree with the advice above that you should try to book the longest excursion possible in that area. The scenery is spectacular. I don't know what your other options are, but that sounds like a good one to me.

 

Have a great trip,

Donna

[SourDoughSteve]

Just did the fox island/dinner tour last week, and would strongly recommend it. (however, I've not done the longer tours to compare). The dinner is quite good considering it's out on the island. We saw all of the hoped for wildlife, and the boat gets *very* close to the rocks, etc... for nice viewing (I expect the cruise shipd does not)

 

Anyway, I expect that any of the tours are great; so I would recommend doing any of them; just don't sit on land!

 

AMEN!

[Eagle288]

Thank you everyone for your input. I'm gonna play it by ear and wait till I begin my cruise before deciding which boat tour to take in Seward. I agree that the longer dinner cruise would probably be my choice, but with the way NCL has been handling their port times we will see if that is even an option. Also, has anyone visited the Alaskan Sea Life Museum? If I had spare time to visit it I was thinking of checking it out. If you would like please share your thoughts on this place. Thank you very much again for all the advice. I'll take what I can get!:D

[tetleytea]

Sea Life Museum is all right. Not a life-changing experience, but any wildlife you might have missed out in the wild, you can see here. And you can learn a bit about Alaskan ecology and the threat of man and global warming to it.

 

I did the 6-hour cruisetour and liked it a lot. I thought it was worth it, by Alaskan standards. However, in my experience the water around Fox Island was very rough for kayaking. That's not necessarily a bad thing--it's an adventure. :p

[dbh62ark]

We had some time to walk around Seward and to go to the sea life center too. We had been to the Vancouver Aquarium on that trip, and I really loved the Vancouver Aquarium, so it's probably not even a fair comparison. I would also rate the sea life center as pretty good, but if you have time to go on a boat trip, my personal opinion is that your time would be better spent there. Also, the streets of Seward are not as charming as the streets of Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway, and Haines in my opinion.

 

Have a great trip,

Donna

[Budget Queen]

The Sealife Center is indeed worth it, if you have extra time. Especially nice is the sea bird exhibit. But clearly the best here are the boat trips. I would inquire in advance however, how much space is left?? And do that with all the companies so as to not waste time.

[jimcat]

I got some of my pictures done.

 

Fox Island:

http://www.websitebycathy.com/Alaska2005/FoxIsland/index.html

 

Northwestern Kenai Fjords Tour:

http://www.websitebycathy.com/Alaska2005/NorthwesternFjordsTour/index.html

 

Hi there.. were you using digital? or 35mm slr? what zoom lens if any did you have with you.

Thanks

Jim