Denali tours

[stan wood]

We will be in Alaska in July and want to take a tour all the way through Denali. If I understand everything I have read, a private company offers the tour for $129. while the park service charges $35.50. Is the private tour worth an extra $90+? We are middle-aged and would be doing very little hiking.

 

Please share your thoughts if you have taken either tour. It sounds like there's a greater chance of seeing wildlife and McKinley if we take the extended tour all the way through. Thanks

[Budget Queen]

I am going to make some clairfications.

 

There are different options into Denali park. The TOUR buses run by the park are the Natural History tour mile 16 and Tundra Wilderness tour mile 53, neither of which I ever recommend to independent travelers.

 

You are referring to a Kantishna tour bus mile 90, run by a private lodge. These are GREAT for overnight trips, but since you are looking at a day trip, essentially all you are paying for is a way overpriced lunch. These tours have very little free time at the lodges and not enough to enjoy most of their activities.

 

Then there is the park SHUTTLE buses- (I am being very specific on my post, since these options seem to get mixed up all the time. :) )

 

The SHUTTLE bus to Wonder Lake mile 85, 5 miles short of Kantishna is the bargain compared to your mentioned tour bus to Kantishna. But this area can have significant bug problems until early August or later. The wildlife drops off significantly after Fish Creek mile 63- on average, but this is the distance you want to go if McKinley is out, which is very rare for full views. :)

 

 

All buses are the same- park service Aramark or private Kantishna- heavy duty suspension school bus types.

 

So to answer your wildlife question- no you are not likely to see any more going on the whole way to Kantishna.

[stan wood]

Thanks for your time and efforts in aiding us, Budget Queen. It is so valuable for travelers to have someone like you help out. I think we will go to Wonder Lake.

 

We will be arriving in the Soldotna area where we will spend about four days. We will be taking the all day water tour of Kenai National Park. We plan on using the last three days of our trip going to Denali. Do you have any other suggestions while we are in Alaska?

[Budget Queen]

If you are taking the "all day" (Northwestern Fjords) boat tour of Kenai Fjords, you need to be in Seward since these tours leave by 9am. Soldotna is about 100 miles from Seward, I wouldn't be staying in Soldotna. With that much time, I also would spend at least one of those nights in Homer.

[stan wood]

Thanks again for the info. We took a cruise to the Caribbean a couple years ago and I became aware of this site. Since we are not on a cruise this time, I did not think to look for information here until the other night.

 

We are staying in Soldotna because I have a cousin there and he has invited up for at least ten years. We booked our all day cruise of the Kenai Fjords a couple months ago with Major Marine Tours. I hope this was not a mistake-but it's a bit late to worry about that now. As long as my wife sees a whale, she will be happy.

 

I am now going to research Homer and try to find why you recommend visiting there. Also, I'm planning on looking through your 473,000 posts you've made. I'm sure I will find answers to most of my remaining questions without having to bother you again. Thanks once again, Budget Queen.

[greatam]

I am now going to research Homer and try to find why you recommend visiting there. Also, I'm planning on looking through your 473,000 posts you've made. I'm sure I will find answers to most of my remaining questions without having to bother you again. Thanks once again, Budget Queen.

 

We go to Homer every year. In fact, we like the place so much, we bought a summer home last year. Lots to do in Homer. Charter fishing (halibut), fishing at the spit, drinking at the Salty Dawg, fish and chips place on the boardwalk, a couple of art galleries, lots of shops with some unusual stuff. Drive out East End Drive to the little hippie grocery store close to Fritz Creek. Take the water taxi to Seldovia or Otter Cove. Otter Cove has dinner cruises, lunch cruises and a really good restaurant-The Rookery. Sit on Katchemak Bay and watch the otters feed early in morning. Sit at the little park on the Spit and watch the fishing fleet come in at night. Watch the fish processors cut up the fish. So much to do in Homer. Enjoy!!!

[Budget Queen]

Thanks again for the info. We took a cruise to the Caribbean a couple years ago and I became aware of this site. Since we are not on a cruise this time, I did not think to look for information here until the other night.

 

We are staying in Soldotna because I have a cousin there and he has invited up for at least ten years. We booked our all day cruise of the Kenai Fjords a couple months ago with Major Marine Tours. I hope this was not a mistake-but it's a bit late to worry about that now. As long as my wife sees a whale, she will be happy.

 

I am now going to research Homer and try to find why you recommend visiting there. Also, I'm planning on looking through your 473,000 posts you've made. I'm sure I will find answers to most of my remaining questions without having to bother you again. Thanks once again, Budget Queen.

 

 

Major Marine is an excellent company for Kenai Fjords. But I think your mistake may be staying in Soldotna the night before and after. You are looking at about 4 hours on the road, plus the time of the tour. Also be aware, these boat trips are NOT whale watches. My averages have only run about 50% of my trips for seeing whales. But plenty of varied wildlife.