Denali 2 days land - what to expect

[JimmyZ-1987]

Hello,

I'm on Nieuw Amsterdam tour# D6C.  This shows 1.5 days in Denali and 2 days in Anchorage.  But that's it-- very little detail.  I wonder if someone can please describe to me what these four days entail.  HA has not been helpful on the phone.  I'm wondering when we leave the ship, when we get to Denali, when we leave Denali etc.  Are any activities included or are we on our own?    This is our first time in Denali or Anchorage so any suggested activities are appreciated.  Thanks in advance.

[Sea Hag]

42 minutes ago, JimmyZ-1987 said:

Hello,

I'm on Nieuw Amsterdam tour# D6C.  This shows 1.5 days in Denali and 2 days in Anchorage.  But that's it-- very little detail.  I wonder if someone can please describe to me what these four days entail.  HA has not been helpful on the phone.  I'm wondering when we leave the ship, when we get to Denali, when we leave Denali etc.  Are any activities included or are we on our own?    This is our first time in Denali or Anchorage so any suggested activities are appreciated.  Thanks in advance.

I looked at that cruisetour on HAL's website, and I see what you mean. Hard to get any info there. It does look to me like you'll have a full day at Denali, so you'll want to get as far into the park as possible.

 

We're not Denali experts, but we've gone there on two separate trips. We took the park shuttle, rather than an organized tour. It's not plush, think "old school bus" and the amount of narration you get is entirely dependent on the driver. One driver was wonderful. He was an older guy, who had a wealth of information to share. And he shared. He also would stop anytime somebody called out to him to do so. Another driver wasn't good at all. No narration at all (we didn't mind that) and he just wouldn't stop for long anywhere. I would still do this shuttle rather than one of the tours, since it's cheap enough to book the full trip but still have the flexibility to bail out at one of the rest stops and catch a different shuttle back if you feel like it. Bus Fares And Destinations In Denali National Park (denali101.com)

Edited March 24 by Sea Hag

[Mary229]

Check your invoice for your tour designation and you will find much of the information here.  My TA was sure to provide me with these links and some details.   Most Denali tours include the NPS tour. In Anchorage you are on your own usually but “shore excursions “ are offered - check your “Manage your cruise” page on the website 

 

https://www.hollandamerica.com/en/us/cruise-destinations/alaska-cruises/alaska-land-sea-journey-cruise-tours?xid=EXTHPS20230106M5HJB39D31&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwnv-vBhBdEiwABCYQA4TXjkNYujhdrKNRGKo8YxnXNA9U9MRpRPppAuPtGP-irk_cgl6IoBoCcjoQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

 

 

[maggiev]

My travel agent gave us a detailed itinerary when we paid our deposit.

You could ask for one from whomever you booked with.  
My itinerary shows it takes 2.5 hours on the train from Whittier to Anchorage, and 8 hours from Anchorage to Denali on the McKinley Explorer. Our tour is one night in Anchorage, then the next day to Denali.  

[Petronillus]

On our most recent cruise one of my fellow pax said that if he had it to do over he would have booked one of the cruisetours including 3 days in Denali. I didn't press him for details but he said that 2 days just wasn't a long enough time. It made enough of an impression on me that I resolved to choose an itinerary giving us 3 days (when the time came).

[maggiev]

53 minutes ago, Petronillus said:

On our most recent cruise one of my fellow pax said that if he had it to do over he would have booked one of the cruisetours including 3 days in Denali. I didn't press him for details but he said that 2 days just wasn't a long enough time. It made enough of an impression on me that I resolved to choose an itinerary giving us 3 days (when the time came).

Looking at things now, I wish we had booked a tour with 3 nights.  We arrive at 5pm, after an 8 hour train trip.  I’m not sure we’ll want to do too much touring that evening. The next day is the 6 hour Tundra Wilderness Tour until 2’ish I’m guessing, then the remainder of the day free.  We depart at 10am on the 3rd day.  Not a lot of time to explore on our own, only time seems to be after the bus tour. 
 

 

[Petronillus]

I suspect that what you've just detailed explains why my fellow passenger regretted not having booked 3 nights.