Alaskan cruise helicopter excursion differences?

[FiremedicMike151]

Hello, we're sailing to Alaska onboard the Solstice for the first time this year.  I'm planning on splurging for one of the helicopter/glacier tour excursions and noticed there are three choices, two in Juneau and one in Skagway, ranging from $450/pp to $600/pp.

 

Has anyone compared the 3?  The 600 pp is listed as 4 hours where the other ones are 2, beyond that is it better scenery, a better experience, etc?
 

Thanks!

 

[Whinenowine]

I've only ever done the Juneau one to the Mendenhall--tried to do the dog sled one but was cancelled due to bad weather.  Stunning scenery, and landing on the glacier is pretty cool. Definitely a bucket list excursion, but I cannot compare the other two.

[jwlane]

3 hours ago, FiremedicMike151 said:

is it better scenery, a better experience?

Typically the longer excursion will include a landing and walkabout on a glacier.

[downsmead]

A tip we were given was to look how far it was from the take off point to the glacier in order to get the longest helicopter ride. 

[Northern Aurora]

I am curious if the higher priced four hour experience includes a dog mushing experience?  

 

Temsco, an Alaskan helicopter firm, offers excursions out of both Skagway and Juneau.  Our OP may want to check their website.

[BourbonNBluesLuvr]

I can’t compare the tours, but I too highly recommend taking the one from Juneau, and one that includes landing and a walkabout on the glacier. It was an excursion of a lifetime for us, and an experience I will never forget. The scenery, the ride and the glacier were spectacular !

 

BBL

[FiremedicMike151]

1 hour ago, jwlane said:

Typically the longer excursion will include a landing and walkabout on a glacier.

All three of them list a landing and glacier walk in the description

[Cruising Divers]

I’ve done 2 of them and they both were fantastic and worth the money. One was better than the other but only because of personal preference. Island wings float plane was the same way; amazing crew and time had by all. 

[jwlane]

4 hours ago, FiremedicMike151 said:

All...list a landing and glacier walk

Excellent!  Those in Juneau are also "longer" because of the transit time from the pier to the airport.  The helipads in Skagway are much closer.

[Northern Aurora]

After posting earlier today I realized I had just mentioned Temsco.  But Coastal Helicopters our of Juneau also does tour, including a 3.5 hour tour which includes a sled dog experience (if my memory is correct).  

 

These helicopter tours can be booked directly with the vendors.  The websites for both companies have good descriptions of their respective tours.