Best land excursions Alaska?many other questions/Long

[jocelysue]

Sorry if this has been asked and answered but I haven't been able to find the requisite info. We are sailing north to Alaska on the Island Princess on Aug. 21.

We have not planned a land cruise in Alaska so all our excursions will be those we take in ports of call. We do wish to take an airplane or a helicopter ride to see the glaciers. Which is the best place to see and from whom should we book? Princess sent us the Caribbean brochure insted of the the Alsaka one. I asked for the proper brochure but have not yet received it after a 2 weeks'.wait.Therefore I would much appreciate your input. Is it better to book directly with Princess or bokk on our own with various suppliers over the internet?

 

We are actually sailing back to Vancouver on Aug 29 on Holland America's Veendama fter a one night's layover in Anchorage. In other words, Alska northbound, Aug21-28, Alska southbound Aug 29- Sep 5 2004. Someone told me that the Anchorage Museum was a definite must-see but that pan-handling for gold was simply a tourist trap. Both my husband and want to see what is the most interesting. I realize that tastes are quite subjective. However, we come from Quebec where we are accustomed to wide open spaces. We don't do rafting, nor horseback riding.We love history . aAso we don't like being herded to go visit something.

 

Could a kndly person please inform me how to see if there is a roll call for each of these trips? FYI, we have booked a minisuite on the Island Princess and an outside cabin on the Veendam as we were unable to find a balcony suite at a price we could afford. We decided to do it this way to compare both lines.

 

For our 40th wedding anniversary, we intend to renew our marriage vows on Aug 22. We have requested the regular ceremony, not the one with all the bells and whistles. Should we up our request ? Is it worth the extra $200?

 

Also I would like to know if excursions should be booked ahead of time or should we wait until we see the weather? Should my husband decide to book an outing which does not appeal to, are there interesting things to do on ship while in port?

 

Sorry for this long winded letter. This inquisitive mind wants to know.

[Genessa]

I can't answer all of your questions, as I haven't done all the excursions you mentioned, but I can tell you where you can find detailed answers - over in the Port of Call - Alaska section.

 

To find roll call, scroll down to the roll call section.

If you don't see your cruises, post a new note.

 

Basically, thugh, Juneau is one of the better ports for the Helicopter/Glacier landing, and, I think, it's Ketchikan for float plane. We did a float plane in Juneau, though, because our helicopter/dog sled/glacier excursion was cancelled due to bad weather.

 

It is cheaper to book most of the excursions on your own, but we prefer to book them through Princess for convenience, free cancellation prior to 24 hours prior usually, not having to worry abut connections, etc.

 

Whichever way to go, book prior to avoid disappointment.

[DougH]

Personally I'd spend the night in Seward and avoid the long ride to Anchorage. Your time would be better spent doing the all day Kenai Fjords tour or heading over to Exit Glacier than going to Anchorage for a short visit in my opinion. The cost of the transfers to Anchorage and back alone plus the time involved seems a bad idea to me. I think the Seward area is much nicer than Anchorage, you would sure have a short visit there.

 

Doug

[patinmn]

I can't help you with the best excursions(as I leave on my cruise friday :) ) However, I can help you with the brochure... it may be downloaded from princess at http://www.princess.com/planner/shorex/pdf/Alaska_Shorex_04.pdf , it is 6 MB so please be patient. you need to have an adobe acrobat reader to view but most people already have that. I hope that helps.

[Suzanne123]

Here are the one we took (no helicopters, thank you):

 

Juneau - Mendenhall Lake Canoe Adventure

Ketchikan - All Day Guided Wilderness Fishing

Skagway - Glacier Point Wilderness Safari (A.M.) and To the Summit (P.M.)

 

Enjoy!

[jocelysue]

Personally I'd spend the night in Seward and avoid the long ride to Anchorage. Your time would be better spent doing the all day Kenai Fjords tour or heading over to Exit Glacier than going to Anchorage for a short visit in my opinion. The cost of the transfers to Anchorage and back alone plus the time involved seems a bad idea to me. I think the Seward area is much nicer than Anchorage, you would sure have a short visit there.

 

Doug

How I wish that I had asked questions before! As it is our hotel in Anchorage is already booked as are our two train trips. My TA could not inform me if there was a way of getting from Seward to Whittier without going through Anchorage. So I booked a hotel and the 2 train trips. However, it may not be too late to cancel and to do what you suggest. Where do I find out about how to get from Seward to Whittier?

Alaska cruises are not that popular here. I talked to 3 Ta's in our town, could not get answers to my questions so booked every thing over the internet myself. Naturally ,I've made mistakes. To avoid too many ,however, I am asking for info about land excursions on this forum. Since we'll be cruising both northbound and southbound we are trying to pace ourselves and choose the excursions that are the most interesting.

 

Any and all advice is much appreciated.

[Druke I]

We thought the float-plane out of Ketchikan to a glacial lake was outstanding.

 

After landing on the lake, we could see loons in some sort of courting/mating ritual on the far side of the lake. Upon take-off, bears were spotted by the pilot, and he circled around so all the passengers could see them.

 

The back country up there is very pretty, and terribly rugged.

 

Haven't done helicopters in Alaska, but have heard very good things about them.

 

Michael

[Pam in CA]

You can always check the Shore Excursions and detailed descriptions on the Princess website. One thing to know about Princess (and I don't know if this is true with Holland) but if you reserve your shore excursion through Princess, you are not paying for it then -- it's strictly a reservation. So, you can reserve your excursions and you have until 10AM the morning before the tour to cancel.

 

If you do book excursions on your own, make sure there's a refund policy. Also, be aware that should the ship tender to the port, the Princess tours get precedence on the tenders.

 

Ketchikan is one of the rainiest spots in the U.S. (their brag) so if you book a helicopter or other weather-affected tour here, know that it could be cancelled. If you've booked it on your own, make sure you can get your money back.

[DougH]

Actually my idea won't work as I forgot that Princess had switched to Whittier this year. I think your TA is probably right in that there is no way to get directly to Whittier from Seward. My last two Alaska trips were both back to backs and turnaround day was a full day in Seward to sightsee. Most people just pass thru on the way to/from the ship. From what I have heard the train ride is better than the bus so enjoy.

 

FYI my opinion on shore excursions would be:

 

Ketchican Not my favorite stop as I usually just wander around. If you can afford it Misty Fjords flightseeing is nice. A friend recently did the "Duck" tour and liked it. The lumberjack show looks like fun also.

 

Juneau Good place for flightseeing either by helicopter or plane. Haven't done the copter yet but liked both the Taku Lodge and regular flightseeing trips.To get to the Mendenhall just take the $5 shuttle and spend as much time as you want. I like the Mt Roberts tram if the weather is good, don't buy trickets aboard ship in case the weather is bad and you're stuck with the tickets. Capt Larry is great for whale watching and located right across from the pier area.

 

Skagway I really enjoy the all day bus trip into the Yukon. If you have a couple of people rent a car and do it yourself and save some $$. If you must take the Yukon and White Pass I'd look into the train/bus combo.

 

Sitka Not sure if you stop here but I would just wander around town. The totem park and Raptor center and not a long walk. Nice little town not spoiled as much as the others by tourists yet.

 

Enjoy Alaska, I sure do. It looks like my streak of cruising North is going to end this year after cruising to Alaska for the last 7 years in a row :(

 

Doug

[unvrknow]

We just came back 2 weeks ago from S.B. Alaska on the Coral Princess. Our excursions included:

Skagway- Temsco helicoptors to dog mushing on a glacier, it was great fun and the scenery to the glacier was fabulous.This excursion is not strenuous at all.

Juneau: Capt. Larry whale watching- we saw Orcas, humpback and killer whales along with sea lions and tons of bald eagles.

Ketchikan: Float plane ride with island Wings. Michelle is great. We landed on a glacier lake and got our for about 15 minutes. She is real informative.

After each excursion we just walked around town,

Alaska is wonderful, I still can't stop talking about it to anyone who will listen to me.

Have a great time.

[Nancyquilts]

At Ketchikan there is a large building on the pier with all sorts of tours available. That way you can see what the weather is before you go.

In Anchorage the museum is definitely worth a visit. Right now there is also an extra exhibit of paintings by Fred Machetanz (probably wrong spelling) which is delightful to see.

On your way from Whittier to Anchorage, sit on the left of the bus or train for the best view of Turnagin inlet.

Have a great time whatever you do. Nancy

[mscloyd]

There is a shuttle between Whittier and Seward. They can be reached via e-mail: polarexpressak@gci.net. The cost is $30 per person. It leaves from Whittier at 9:45 a.m. We had reservations with them until Avis opened a car rental in Whittier and decided to rent a car instead for the drive to Seward and then on to Anchorage. I would definitely consider this transfer to Seward and then you would have a whole day in Seward before your next cruise. Otherwise, you will be spending a lot of time in transit and miss all the great things to do in Seward. Plus, this would be a substantial savings over taking 2 cruiseline transfers.

 

Here are some links to places to stay in Seward: sewardhotel.com, hoteledgewater.com, sewardwindsong.com. Doug H has good suggestions how to spend your time in Seward. You can find information about the Kenai Fjords boat tours at: alaskatravel.com/kenai-fjords-tours.html. We are taking the 6-hour tour at 3:00 p.m. so we won't be rushed getting to Seward.

 

I would book the major excursions ahead of time. In fact, I would probably book helicopter and floatplane on both cruises. Possibly book the first one independently and the second one through the ship. That way, if the first one gets cancelled, you will have plan B. If it doesn't get cancelled, you can cancel the second one. Make sense?

 

Good luck with your planning.

[Budget Queen]

I too would spend your time in Seward, but I'll assume you are on the regular run of the Alaska RR leaving around 7am? This will give you the option for a Kenai Fjords boat trip on the 11:30 departure. They will store your bags. Frankly - I would also skip Anchorage- you just do not have enough time for much of anything and you would be far better off with a rental car if you continue with this plan. As for port excursions- BOOK ahead. Consider Coastal Helicopters out of Juneau and Misty Fjords Floatplanes out of Ketchikan, I have gone with Southeast Aviation, Carlin Air and Island Wings. Look over any shore excursion list online- and narrow down your interests.

[travelgirl87]

Having just returned from Anchorage earlier this evening (after 20 hours of travel time and many airline horror stories), let me warn you that there are two big museums in Anchorage. The Anchorage Museum of History & Art is located around 1st and A Street (downtown) and has a gallery with historical information upstairs along with art galleries downstairs. Free tours of the historical gallery are scheduled a few times a day but the group sometimes gets so large as to be unwieldy. I'd plan between 30 minutes and 2 hours for your visit, depending on your interests/patience.

 

In my opinion, the better museum to see in Anchorage is the Alaska Native Heritage Center -- actually located a little bit north of town but accessible via a free shuttle from downtown that runs a couple of times a day. We spent about 3 1/2 hours there but would have stayed longer had it not been closing time. There are many exhibits, re-created buildings and village areas, and artifacts in separate areas within the complex for each of Alaska's major native groups staffed mainly by members of that particular native group. There are also dance performances, demonstrations, and guided tours (all free) offered regularly throughout the day.

 

I'm planning to post more about my cruise and touring adventures around Vancouver (pre-cruise) and Alaska (post-cruise) on the Alaska Port of Call board as soon as I get caught up on my sleep and laundry so check there for more information.

 

Best regards.

[juliejoe]

Our #1 most favorite ever shore excursion was with Princess. It was the Bear Watching Adventure in Ketchikan. We took a float plane to Neets Creek (a real adventure all by itself). At the salmon hatchery in Neets Creek we watched the salmon spawning up the creek - unbelievably thick. The bear stood in the creek tearing into the fish and eating the caviar only - they'd had their fill of fish. This was nature at it's best.

 

The really good shore excursions and tours in Alaska are expensive - but worth every penny. You will love Alaska - it is awe inspiring! God did some of his best work there!

 

Happy Anniversary!

Julie