DIY Land + Southbound Cruise

[Studio472]

I have a group of 11-13. Cruise, Hotels, Rental Car, Train etc have been booked. We think we have built a pretty nice vacation and are now looking at what to do. For the most part I think we have the land portion covered, the cruise is still wide open regarding excursions.

 

Advice and suggestions welcome!

 

8/10 - Fly to Anchorage, Rent vans & Drive 4-hours to Denali. We booked a house just outside Denali.

8/11 - Tour Denali (Shuttle bus?)

8/12 - Tour Denali

8/13 - Drive to Anchorage, Stop in Talkeetna for half-day before hotel in Anchorage

8/14 - Board Coastal Classic to Seward. Hopefully have enough time to tour "Exit Glacier" before cruise embarkation. Embark on RCL Radiance of the Seas

8/15 - Cruising Day

8/16 - Juneau, AK

8/17 - Skagway, AK

8/18 - Icy Straight Point, AK

8/19 - Ketchikan, AK

8/20 - Cruise Day

8/21 - Disembark in Vancouver, spend day/night in vancouver

8/22 - Fly Home

[mapleleaves]

There's not much to comment on ... it's a pretty straightforward drive. You'll be lucky to make it there in 4 hours tho, due to summer road repairs. Check this site for current hwy construction info.

http://511.alaska.gov/alaska511/mappingcomponent/index

 

No interest in any stops on the way to Denali?

 

I would definitely recommend a shuttle over a tour in Denali. Are there kids in the group? if so the shuttle is free for 15 yrs and younger. There are also free Jr Ranger kits available.

I hope you're prepared to split up so that people can do their own thing. On day 2 some folks might want to do another shuttle into the park. For the others, there are plenty of other activities in and around the park. The sled dog demo is interesting and entertaining. There's a free bus to the kennel or take the trail. Afterwards, take the courtesy bus to Milepost 15, the Savage River and hike along the river. There are ranger talks, ranger hikes, exhibits. Lots of ideas in the Park Newsletter :

http://www.nps.gov/dena/learn/news/upload/Alpenglow2014_int.pdf

 

For outside the park, check the Denali Chamber of Commerce web site.

[AKStafford]

A second vote for the shuttles at Denali: http://www.nps.gov/dena/planyourvisit/shuttles.htm

On the way up, be sure and stop at the South Denali overlook at about mile 135 on the Parks Highway. The Veteran's Memorial at mile 147 is nice too.

If you are interested in dog mushing, you might also look at the Iditarod Headquarters in Wasilla.

[Budget Queen]

I also never recommend the bus tours in Denali for independent travelers, always the shuttles to at least Eielson.

 

I can also agree with Maple, allow a couple more hours with your Anchorage/Denali drive. You can also expect some construction at some point that can be a stop, and the need for a grocery stop is recommended.

 

You don't mention what you are doing the second day at Denali??

 

I would have moved that day to Seward, so there is an overnight there. I'm surprised none of the 11/13 people are interested in the jackpot wildlife and glacier viewing opportunity out of Seward?

 

Not sure why you would wonder about the time in Seward? You have plenty of time to get to Exit glacier.

 

If you haven't already- have the adults all look over a shore excursion list and narrow down the interests. Split up, it is very unlikely there is only one tour this group wants to take.

[Studio472]

Majority of the group is 23-35 with a couple in their 50's. We are getting a 15-passenger van as well as a car in case we want to break up into groups.

 

I assumed flying from the East Coast to Anchorage and then driving 4-5 hours wasn't going to leave much time for site seeing. The grocery stop is in the plans :)

 

As far as our Denali plans we are certainly doing The Shuttles. We discussed doing the full loop on Our 1st full day, then go into the park via shuttles again for some hiking on Day 2. Day 2 I'm not sure about but if the mushing is a reasonable drive that might be what we end up doing.

 

At this stage leaving Denali early to spend a night in Seward isn't a possibility. Too many reservations to change and it wasn't easy to get that house in Denali. As far as Seward I hope we will have enough time after the train ride before we need to get on the ship for Exit Glacier.

 

 

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[Budget Queen]

As far as Seward I hope we will have enough time after the train ride before we need to get on the ship for Exit Glacier.

 

 

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I'm still not sure, why you would think there wouldn't be any time for Exit Glacier. Your ship doesn't leave until later evening- probably 8p or later?

 

The train gets in 11:30a- you did book this on your own, direct with Alaska RR didn't you? There is so much to see and do in Seward, if some in the group want a Kenai Fjords boat tour, that certainly can also be done. I would suggest you offer this information to them, in case there is interest.

 

I am never on a cruise ship leaving Seward before 6.

[Studio472]

I knew the ship left later I just didn't know timing. This is my first cruise where we don't board around noon.

 

I definitely want to do Exit or Kenai and I'm sure the group will be interested as well.

 

 

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[jamminlion]

Slightly off topic - have you given consideration to where you will put 11 or 13 people's luggage? 15 passenger vans do not generally have much space in the back for anything, let alone luggage.

 

Might I suggest TWO 15 pax vans? You can still split up, but you won't be tying luggage to the roof.

[Studio472]

We will have 9 people for the majority of the land part, then the final 2 will join in Anchorage before the train ride.

 

Presently we have a single 15-passenger van plus a mid-size car. I've driven these size vans before and am confident we will have plenty of cargo space, even if the 2 late comers join us for the land portion.

[Budget Queen]

We will have 9 people for the majority of the land part, then the final 2 will join in Anchorage before the train ride.

 

Presently we have a single 15-passenger van plus a mid-size car. I've driven these size vans before and am confident we will have plenty of cargo space, even if the 2 late comers join us for the land portion.

 

Sounds like it should work out. :) Everyone- "knows" there would be baggage limits. :)

[donaldsc]

I knew the ship left later I just didn't know timing. This is my first cruise where we don't board around noon.

 

I definitely want to do Exit or Kenai and I'm sure the group will be interested as well.

 

 

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I am sure that your cruise ship documentation or their WEB site must tell you what time you board. Also, re Talkeetna, I was there and I did not feel that it was worth 1/2 day. In fact, to me, it was not worth the time it took to drive from the highway to Talkeetna. Just my opinion as some people seem to like it.

 

DON

[Studio472]

• 
  

Hey all,

 

Here is an update to our Do It Yourself Land + Radiance Southbound to Vancouver. The land part will be as a group, the cruise are just the excursions I'm doing (wifey may be doing others)

 

8/10 - Fly to Anchorage, Drive to Denali. Check-in to house

8/11 - Tour Denali - Late start, Sled Dog Presentation, Courtesy bus to Savage River for Hiking, River Rafting around 6p?

8/12 - Tour Denali - Shuttle Bus to Eielson Visitor Center or Wonder Lake pending good weather

8/13 - Drive to Anchorage, Stop in Talkeetna / Wasilla

8/14 - Coastal Classic to Seward - Kenai Fjords Wildlife Cruise - Board Radiance

8/15 - Cruising Day

8/16 - Juneau, AK - Helicopter to Glacier, adhoc Shuttle to Mendenhall, Nugget Falls Trail on my own

8/17 - Skagway, AK - White Pass Railroad + Cycle Back

8/18 - Icy Straight Point, AK - Hike?

8/19 - Ketchikan, AK - Hike Local Trails

8/20 - Cruise Day - RCCL All Access Tour (Is this worth the $?)

8/21 - Disembark in Vancouver - Hop On/Off Bus? Rent Bike?

8/22 - Fly Home

 

I would like to hike in Skagway but am having a hard time finding maps/resources. We will have folks experienced with bears, so please no comments about wandering off.

 

Ketchikan has easier to find trails, think I'm OK there.

 

Vancouver is really the big question mark

Edited July 1, 2015 by Studio472

[AKStafford]

If it was me, I'd be doing a whale watching cruise at Icy Strait Point.

http://visithoonah.com/tours_charters.html

[Budget Queen]

• 
  

Hey all,

 

Here is an update to our Do It Yourself Land + Radiance Southbound to Vancouver. The land part will be as a group, the cruise are just the excursions I'm doing (wifey may be doing others)

 

8/10 - Fly to Anchorage, Drive to Denali. Check-in to house

8/11 - Tour Denali - Late start, Sled Dog Presentation, Courtesy bus to Savage River for Hiking, River Rafting around 6p?

8/12 - Tour Denali - Shuttle Bus to Eielson Visitor Center or Wonder Lake pending good weather

8/13 - Drive to Anchorage, Stop in Talkeetna / Wasilla

8/14 - Coastal Classic to Seward - Kenai Fjords Wildlife Cruise - Board Radiance

8/15 - Cruising Day

8/16 - Juneau, AK - Helicopter to Glacier, adhoc Shuttle to Mendenhall, Nugget Falls Trail on my own

8/17 - Skagway, AK - White Pass Railroad + Cycle Back

8/18 - Icy Straight Point, AK - Hike?

8/19 - Ketchikan, AK - Hike Local Trails

8/20 - Cruise Day - RCCL All Access Tour (Is this worth the $?)

8/21 - Disembark in Vancouver - Hop On/Off Bus? Rent Bike?

8/22 - Fly Home

 

I would like to hike in Skagway but am having a hard time finding maps/resources. We will have folks experienced with bears, so please no comments about wandering off.

 

Ketchikan has easier to find trails, think I'm OK there.

 

Vancouver is really the big question mark

 

What time is your arrival in Anchorage? Heading there the same day- could be a very long day. Alternative could be to stay in Talkeetna/Wasilla, with the ability to still have time for some of your list.

 

You are short on Seward, where there is plenty to see and do.

 

A popular hike out of Seward is the Dewey Lakes. Trailhead, between 3rd/4th east of the railroad tracks (Spring St side) take a look at a map.

[cruisin0218]

One thing you might consider is doing Mantanuska glacier on your return trip from Denali to Anchorage. When we were there last summer exit glacier had receeded so much that it was more difficult to access than Mantanuska. We had a group of 12 last year and one of the highlights for many of them was walking on Mantanuska. Another highlight for them was doing the dogs led excursion with the Seaveys near Seward And as has been said before there is plenary of time for either that tour or one of the boat tours out of Seward. We weren't impressed with Talkeetna. I think many people go there to do the flight seeing so if you don't plan to flight see I'd replace Talkeetna with Mantanuska. We rented 1 15 passenger van with a luggage trailer from abc rentals in Anchorage and that worked well for us.

[cruisin0218]

Also I meant to say that I too think your schedule to fly into Anc. And drive all the way to Denali that night is really pushing it to the point of maybe not being realistic. I dont know of many flights that arrive before about 1 pm. By the time you collect your luggage and get the van you would be closer to about 2pm and probably needing to eat so 3 pm. Then a grocery store stop no later than Wasilla puts you at 4-4:30 pm before you get out of Wasilla. Add time for the time zones you have crossed and in our case from the east coast if Alaska time is 4:30 our bodies are at 8:30 pm and tired from traveling all day. Add to that that prime scenery viewing is going from Wasilla to toward Anc. I know it might not work but if you could possibly delete the first night at Denali, spend 1 night in Anc or Wasilla then get groceries that night then get an early start the next day then your trip would probably go much better.If your flight comes in later than 1 pm your problem is magnified. Whatever you decide I hope you have a wonderful trip.

[cruisin0218]

As for Vancouver I would recommend the Ho Ho. Especially since you have a group.

[Studio472]

What time is your arrival in Anchorage? Heading there the same day- could be a very long day. Alternative could be to stay in Talkeetna/Wasilla, with the ability to still have time for some of your list.

 

You are short on Seward, where there is plenty to see and do.

 

A popular hike out of Seward is the Dewey Lakes. Trailhead, between 3rd/4th east of the railroad tracks (Spring St side) take a look at a map.

 

Our travel day will not be enjoyable. We leave the east coast at 5:15 AM, layover in Chicago and arrive in ANC at 1pm local time. Pick up the rental cars, start the trek up to Denali, stop for groceries and check into the house we rented. We don't plan on actually doing anything on Day 2 until around noon.

 

Our hotels, trains and other reservations won't permit us to change to add a day in Seward. I agree it would be nice to spend more time there, I'll just have to note that for next time.

[Studio472]

Also I meant to say that I too think your schedule to fly into Anc. And drive all the way to Denali that night is really pushing it to the point of maybe not being realistic. I dont know of many flights that arrive before about 1 pm. By the time you collect your luggage and get the van you would be closer to about 2pm and probably needing to eat so 3 pm. Then a grocery store stop no later than Wasilla puts you at 4-4:30 pm before you get out of Wasilla. Add time for the time zones you have crossed and in our case from the east coast if Alaska time is 4:30 our bodies are at 8:30 pm and tired from traveling all day. Add to that that prime scenery viewing is going from Wasilla to toward Anc. I know it might not work but if you could possibly delete the first night at Denali, spend 1 night in Anc or Wasilla then get groceries that night then get an early start the next day then your trip would probably go much better.If your flight comes in later than 1 pm your problem is magnified. Whatever you decide I hope you have a wonderful trip.

 

We've already dubbed this the "travel day from hell." Our flight lands at 1:30pm so your timeline is correct. We expect to get to Denali between 10-11pm (local time). Other than being a loooong day, I don't see why it can't work. I'm not disagreeing with you that it's not going to be fun. But I think it's possible.

 

The night in Wasilla sounds pretty good. We'd still be getting into Denali around the same time we plan on actually doing stuff there (noon-ish) on day 2. I have to look into it further, but I think we're too close to the trip to drop a day from our reservation.

Edited July 3, 2015 by Studio472

[Studio472]

One thing you might consider is doing Mantanuska glacier on your return trip from Denali to Anchorage. When we were there last summer exit glacier had receeded so much that it was more difficult to access than Mantanuska. We had a group of 12 last year and one of the highlights for many of them was walking on Mantanuska. Another highlight for them was doing the dogs led excursion with the Seaveys near Seward And as has been said before there is plenary of time for either that tour or one of the boat tours out of Seward. We weren't impressed with Talkeetna. I think many people go there to do the flight seeing so if you don't plan to flight see I'd replace Talkeetna with Mantanuska. We rented 1 15 passenger van with a luggage trailer from abc rentals in Anchorage and that worked well for us.

 

You've peaked my interest with 2 things. Mantanuska glacier and ABC Rentals.

 

Car Rentals

We HAD a reservation with Enterprise for a 15-passenger van + car but they no longer maintain a fleet of 15-pass vans. Now we have 2 mini vans with Enterprise. Cost is not ideal. I have to wait until ABC opens, but they look like a better deal AND we could get a big van again. How was your experience with them? Do they charge mileage?

 

Matanuska Glacier

Definitely going to check this out. I'm getting mixed feedback on Talkeetna & the Iditarod HQ in Wasilla probably won't take much time. Checking drive times etc but this looks awesome. The pictures I saw of Exit Glacier from some of the posts here left me wondering if it was worth trying to get to.

[Budget Queen]

You've peaked my interest with 2 things. Mantanuska glacier and ABC Rentals.

 

Car Rentals

We HAD a reservation with Enterprise for a 15-passenger van + car but they no longer maintain a fleet of 15-pass vans. Now we have 2 mini vans with Enterprise. Cost is not ideal. I have to wait until ABC opens, but they look like a better deal AND we could get a big van again. How was your experience with them? Do they charge mileage?

 

Matanuska Glacier

Definitely going to check this out. I'm getting mixed feedback on Talkeetna & the Iditarod HQ in Wasilla probably won't take much time. Checking drive times etc but this looks awesome. The pictures I saw of Exit Glacier from some of the posts here left me wondering if it was worth trying to get to.

 

 

Your itinerary is fixed, as you say. with grueling transit times, you also have not accounted for any construction delays. They can be significant.

 

As for Matanuska- it is 2 hours from Anchorage, you need a guided trekk there, needing at least 4 hours, plus "extra" wait times. (you can't plan to arrive 15 minutes before your tour, needs to be at least 30 minutes)

[Studio472]

BQ - We have NO tours on the day we depart Denali for Anchorage. We loosely wanted to stop in Talkeetna or Wasilla. I'm not sure why you are saying we don't have time for the glacier. I'm pretty sure "all day" is enough time.

[cruisin0218]

We were very pleased with the service we received from abc. They did not charge mileage. It was a daily fee. They ask that you call them after picking up your luggage. Then they come to the airport and transport your group to their office. Their office is not far from the airport so you could just send 1 or 2 people to the office then they could come back for the rest of you and you would just load the luggage once. Our situation was a little different because we rented 3 RVs from them and took a week touring Denali, then on to Fairbanks, Northpole, Then Richardson Highway down to Glenellen and then Glenellen Highway to Matanuska spent that night just north of Anc. Drove back to ABU traded RVs for 1 15 passenger van with luggage trailer and drove down toward Seward. We stayed 2 nights at Red Fish Lodge in Sterling (did laundry and Salmon fishing with the great folks there then left there for Seward. Stopped at Seaveys, rode through Seward just to see the area, then boarded the ship around lunchtime. Had plenty of time so that if anyone wanted to they could easily have done some hiking or a boat tour or gone to the sea life aquarium. We paid quite a hearty fee for SVC to let us drop off the van and trailer in Seward but it was worth it to us and still less than all of us paying train fare. Plus we got to stop where and when we wanted. Once you are in Seward there are free shuttles and most of the tours will provide transport if no shuttle goes to their location.

[cruisin0218]

I do think a guided trek with a reservation is best at Matanuska if you really want to do any significant walking on the glacier. Some of your folks would probably really like that. Our group was made up of people in their 50s and 60s. You have to pay a small per person fee to drive up to the glacier but you can park right beside the glacier. There are picnic tables there. Some of our group went no farther and just enjoyed the scenery. Others walked just barely onto the glacier always in sight of where the gritty area at the end of the glacier starts. They at least got to experience a glacier up close and personally. It would be dangerous to go any further without appropriate equipment and a guide. I don't think you would have time for Wasilla, Talkeetna or anything else that day since you would need to turn in your van unless you decide to keep the van and drive to Seward rather than take the train. As I said, though, we were very happy just to experience what we did at Matanuska. You can call the people that run the trecking at Matanuska and they could probably offer suggestions regarding timing. I found that with our large group size people would often arrange a tour just for us and accommodate our needs, although, we did not ask for that there.

[Budget Queen]

BQ - We have NO tours on the day we depart Denali for Anchorage. We loosely wanted to stop in Talkeetna or Wasilla. I'm not sure why you are saying we don't have time for the glacier. I'm pretty sure "all day" is enough time.

 

If you are going to Matansuka- you need to allow 4 hours for a trekk. (otherwise, not really worth even going there). Walk up could involve waits, as these tours are very popular and go with small groups. There are 2 vendors. IF you reserve- then you will need to be there at a certain time. WHERE am I "saying you don't have enough time"?