Trying to decide between two excursions (Juneau and Skagway)

[rba12345]

My family of four (me, wife, and two daughters -12 & 15) will be cruising on Explorer of the Seas in July. We are still trying to decide on two of the three excursions in Juneau and Skagway.

 

We could:

 

- Helicopter ride to dog sledding in Juneau

- White pass railroad in Skagway

- Skip whale watching

 

OR

 

- Whale watching in Juneau

- Helicopter ride to dog sledding in Skagway

- Skip white pass railroad

 

Any advice would really be appreciated.

 

Thanks.

[Coral]

My family of four (me, wife, and two daughters -12 & 15) will be cruising on Explorer of the Seas in July. We are still trying to decide on two of the three excursions in Juneau and Skagway.

 

We could:

 

- Helicopter ride to dog sledding in Juneau

- White pass railroad in Skagway

- Skip whale watching

 

OR

 

- Whale watching in Juneau

- Helicopter ride to dog sledding in Skagway

- Skip white pass railroad

 

Any advice would really be appreciated.

 

Thanks.

 

I would do Plan B though you can't go wrong with either choice.

[xlxo]

My family of four (me, wife, and two daughters -12 & 15) will be cruising on Explorer of the Seas in July. We are still trying to decide on two of the three excursions in Juneau and Skagway.

 

- Whale watching in Juneau

- Helicopter ride to dog sledding in Skagway

- Skip white pass railroad

A variation?

• Whale watch in Juneau....
  
• White Pass rail with a dog cart in Caribou crossing. On my trip.... this was the Yukon White Pass combo.
  

 

[YOUTUBE]rvbqT7ox7UM[/YOUTUBE]

Edited February 22, 2016 by xlxo

[Budget Queen]

My family of four (me, wife, and two daughters -12 & 15) will be cruising on Explorer of the Seas in July. We are still trying to decide on two of the three excursions in Juneau and Skagway.

 

We could:

 

- Helicopter ride to dog sledding in Juneau

- White pass railroad in Skagway

- Skip whale watching

 

OR

 

- Whale watching in Juneau

- Helicopter ride to dog sledding in Skagway

- Skip white pass railroad

 

Any advice would really be appreciated.

 

Thanks.

 

 

You don't have time to do all 3? Many times the whale watch and glacier helicopter landing can be cobooked. You DO need to have back up plans for this particular helicopter tour, it the most canceled in Alaska.

 

You can also do a round trip White Pass RR and helicopter tour in Skagway- a lot of port times have enough time.

 

Take a vote?? It does NOT matter one bit, what anyone else would select. :) Both are great options.

[Coral]

A variation?

• Whale watch in Juneau....
  
• White Pass rail with a dog cart in Caribou crossing. On my trip.... this was the Yukon White Pass combo.
  

 

[YOUTUBE]rvbqT7ox7UM[/YOUTUBE]

 

I don't think a cart is a good substitution for landing on a glacier and doing the real thing.

[sherryf]

I would advise that you ask your daughters what appeals to them. No point in spending tons of money on something they won't enjoy and having bored teenagers. ;)

 

My teens loved whale watching. I don't think I could convince any of them to get on a helicopter. Still haven't done that myself. I love the train, but think my teens might be bored. I think renting a car and driving to the Yukon would be better with teens. Of course, your kids might be different than mine... actually, yours are probably quite different than my crew of crazies. :p

[auntjoy036]

I have been whale watching twice, once in my thirties and once in my fifties. I have also taken the WP&Y railroad to the summit twice at those same ages. The train is good, lots of great scenery. For me seeing the whales bordered on life changing. Your mileage may vary.

 

Vicki

[PoohUnderstands]

I don't think a cart is a good substitution for landing on a glacier and doing the real thing.

 

If you are going in September, they don't offer glacier dog sledding. Also the expense between the two might be a consideration. If you want a taste of dog sledding and love dogs, this summer tour is quite a lot of fun too in its own way.

 

Pooh

[chipmaster]

Juneau is the place for whale watching. I didn't think my kids would enjoy it, they had a blast on the smaller private tour boats. The tour included a stop with 30-40' of free time to hike at Mendenhall on the way back, wonderful.

 

We did the helicopter/dog in Skagway, that too was highlight. Pricey, if weather is willing one of the most unique, beautiful and pricey excursion one can do.

 

The rail.. done it my last time in Alaska decades ago, boring compared to the above two options.

[Coral]

If you are going in September, they don't offer glacier dog sledding. Also the expense between the two might be a consideration. If you want a taste of dog sledding and love dogs, this summer tour is quite a lot of fun too in its own way.

 

Pooh

 

The OP is going in July. This is why I responded the way I did.

[MotorBoatinGal]

We're going in July as well and the reviews I read for the train were great .... For adults but children may get bored. I would definitely make sure you do the whale watch. See what your kids might like for 2nd choice but think helicopter/dog sledding will be more fun for them than train.

[K.T.B.]

My family of four (me, wife, and two daughters -12 & 15) will be cruising on Explorer of the Seas in July. We are still trying to decide on two of the three excursions in Juneau and Skagway.

 

We could:

 

- Helicopter ride to dog sledding in Juneau

- White pass railroad in Skagway

- Skip whale watching

 

OR

 

- Whale watching in Juneau

- Helicopter ride to dog sledding in Skagway

- Skip white pass railroad

 

Any advice would really be appreciated.

 

Thanks.

 

You can do it all with the first one, including the whale watching.

 

I just checked RCI's website and they offer an even whale quest in Juneau. The helicopter tour is only about 2 and half hours. If you do that as soon as you can once arriving in Juneau, you can do both I would think because you're there from noon until 9:00PM. :)

[RaiderCruiser]

It's not what you asked but we were able to do all three last year. Whales with Marv & Harv in the a.m., then helicopter to glacier dog sledding. Made for one heck of a day. In Skagway, we took the train up then met Dyea Dave and the rest of the small tour to continue on up into the Yukon and back down. Another wonderful day.

If I had to pick, I would leave out the train, but I'm not going to do that, I'm going to do them all.