First Alaska cruise--several questions--Advice appreciated!

[mcfaddensfarm]

On June 7, 2008 we are taking the Serenade RT from Vancouver. Here is our itinerary:

 

June 7-leave Vancouver 5 pm

June 8-Cruising inside passage

June 9-Icy Strait Point 10am-6pm

June 10-Cruising Hubbard Glacier 9am-1pm

June 11-Skagway 7am-8:30pm

June 12-Juneau 7am-3pm

June 13-Cruising

June 14-Arrive Vancouver 7am

 

I will be cruising with my teenage son who will be almost 16 at the time. We're both pretty adventurous, (did canopy tour in Jamaica, snorkeled with stingrays in Cayman, shipwreck snorkeled in St Maarten) but I don't necessarily have a LOT of money to spend on excursions. (Although I'm hoping I can save up for us to do one of the helicopter/dogsled excursions, because I've always wanted to do that!) What are some suggestions for either things we can do on our own or excursions that don't cost an arm & a leg? Are there certain "must see" things to do in these ports?

 

Next question: We are currently booked in a hump cabin on port side. Since this is a RT itinerary, I think we'll manage to have a good view both coming & going. But would we have a better view from the aft? I'm not talking about whether an aft cabin is better than a hump cabin. I'm talking specifically about the views on this cruise. Is sticking with our port side hump a good idea or would an aft give us a better overall view?

 

Also, even though it's too early to look at airfare, I've peeked at more recent flights to get an idea of the costs to fly up there. (A few weeks before our cruise it's around $450 from Boise to Vancouver RT.) We're leaving from Vancouver, BC and I'm wondering what people normally do. Do you fly directly into Vancouver or do you fly into Seattle and take some kind of train or bus up to Vancouver?

 

Any help with these questions is appreciated!

[Budget Queen]

You need to involve your son in shore tour decisions. And you need to do your homework, look over a shore excursion list and narrow down your interests. There are hundreds of excellent tours, otherwise, there are way too many recommendations I can make that may be of no use to you. Dpn't be in a rush for firm decisions. You are likely to get plenty of information and bound to be changing your mind. You really don't have to even consider any bookings until next year, in my opinion.

 

I most always go into Seattle, since I spend a couple days touring there and most often flights are significantly cheaper. I mostly drive, but will be on Amtrak again next week.

[mcfaddensfarm]

Oh yeah, I always involve him in the decisions for the shore excursions. Nothing worse than lugging around a sullen teenager.;) I just thought I'd look for some suggestions and then run those by him. I'm really used to going to the Caribbean & doing snorkeling & things like that so I'm not even sure where to start in Alaska.

 

One thing I mentioned I'd like to do is the dog sledding. (The one where they fly you to the snow & then do it.) Is that one that's best done through the cruise line (RCI) or is it possible (and recommended) to do it through an independent company?

[all3]

We just returned from Royal's 6/23/07 cruise. My son is 16 as well. We did not go to Icy Strait, so can't help you much there. In Skagway we did the Rock Climbing (my son's idea) and in Juneau the Floatplane to Taku Lodge and really enjoyed both excursions. In planning our excursions we kept involved so that we made sure the excursions were as much for him as us, otherwise I would have never picked rock climbing.

 

Hope this helps.

[mcfaddensfarm]

We just returned from Royal's 6/23/07 cruise. My son is 16 as well. We did not go to Icy Strait, so can't help you much there. In Skagway we did the Rock Climbing (my son's idea) and in Juneau the Floatplane to Taku Lodge and really enjoyed both excursions. In planning our excursions we kept involved so that we made sure the excursions were as much for him as us, otherwise I would have never picked rock climbing.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Thanks all3--good to hear the perspective of someone who has a teenager too. My son was the one who picked the canopy tour in Jamaica but after I went on it I really enjoyed it! How much was the floatplane to taku lodge? Who is it done through?

[kristi391]

Hi,

 

I took my younger brother on the Serenade last year for his college graduation gift on the Serenade and he loved it. He was a bit older than your son, but still loved all the excursions we did. We went white water rafting (his favorite), zip lining (my favorite), dog sledding (fun), and rainforest exploration (although I think that may have been in Ketchikan so not useful to you). I didn't have a lot of $$$ to spend but we wanted to do as much as possible. We looked at the list of excursions and then each picked ones we thought looked good and then we looked to see which ones matched each others and went from there. It was such a great vacation...on the ship we each kind of did our own things during the day (he played in dodge ball tournaments, hoop shoots, pool contests, rock climbing competitions, etc. I relaxed, read, went to trivia games) then we would meet for dinner and shows after (go to the quest...it is hysterical!) then I would be tired and go back to the cabin and he would go meet up with friends he had made during the day. It was a great time!

 

Hope that helps a bit.

 

Kristi

[mcfaddensfarm]

Hi,

 

I took my younger brother on the Serenade last year for his college graduation gift on the Serenade and he loved it. He was a bit older than your son, but still loved all the excursions we did. We went white water rafting (his favorite), zip lining (my favorite), dog sledding (fun), and rainforest exploration (although I think that may have been in Ketchikan so not useful to you). I didn't have a lot of $$$ to spend but we wanted to do as much as possible. We looked at the list of excursions and then each picked ones we thought looked good and then we looked to see which ones matched each others and went from there. It was such a great vacation...on the ship we each kind of did our own things during the day (he played in dodge ball tournaments, hoop shoots, pool contests, rock climbing competitions, etc. I relaxed, read, went to trivia games) then we would meet for dinner and shows after (go to the quest...it is hysterical!) then I would be tired and go back to the cabin and he would go meet up with friends he had made during the day. It was a great time!

 

Hope that helps a bit.

 

Kristi

 

Thanks Kristi--Did you do all of your excursions through the cruise line or did you book any on your own? Which dogsledding excursion did you do? (And in which port?) The one with wheels or the one where they fly you to the snow?

 

I've seen ziplining mentioned before--is it a regular zipline excursion like the one in Jamaica where there are many lines that you traverse through the trees? Or is it just a one line thing like in Labadee?

[SoccerMom#3]

My 16 son did the zip line in Icy Strait when we were on the Serenade a few weeks ago. He absolutely loved it. It is one very long zip line.

[kristi391]

Hi,

 

We booked all our excursions through RCI. The ziplining we did was a bunch of different ones through the trees. The dog sledding was the one on wheels. The one on the glacier was around $415 so if we had done that I don't think I would have been able to go on any other excursions. The land one was fine and the area around the dog camp was beautiful (although most places in Alaska are beautiful). We went on the sled on wheels and then listened to a man who had done the Iditarod a bunch of times. He had retired dogs with him and they were so friendly! The puppies were really cute too! We did the dog sledding in Skagway and I am not sure where we were when we did the ziplining.

 

Overall, it is a great trip and you will have a fantastic time!

 

Kristi

[Budget Queen]

I've taken my kids to Alaska several times, including in a couple weeks.

 

Consider Coastal Helicopters for a glacier dog sledding out of Juneau, most likely the cheapest company. I have flown with them 3 times, always great trips. TEMSCO is also excellent, and only operator out of Skagway, look to see where your time fits best and availablity

 

I suggest you look over a shore excursion list, just about every cruiseline has them on line. Narrow down your interests and determine your budget. My opinion only, this isn't the place to skimp. :)

[mcfaddensfarm]

Thanks BudgetQueen. I agree that this seems like the one cruise that I should NOT skimp on! I've been to the Caribbean several times, but will probably only make it to Alaska once. Gotta make it special.;)

[AKPeaches2]

On June 7, 2008 we are taking the Serenade RT from Vancouver. Here is our itinerary:

 

June 7-leave Vancouver 5 pm

June 8-Cruising inside passage

June 9-Icy Strait Point 10am-6pm

June 10-Cruising Hubbard Glacier 9am-1pm

June 11-Skagway 7am-8:30pm

June 12-Juneau 7am-3pm

June 13-Cruising

June 14-Arrive Vancouver 7am

 

I will be cruising with my teenage son who will be almost 16 at the time. We're both pretty adventurous, (did canopy tour in Jamaica, snorkeled with stingrays in Cayman, shipwreck snorkeled in St Maarten) but I don't necessarily have a LOT of money to spend on excursions. (Although I'm hoping I can save up for us to do one of the helicopter/dogsled excursions, because I've always wanted to do that!) What are some suggestions for either things we can do on our own or excursions that don't cost an arm & a leg? Are there certain "must see" things to do in these ports?

 

Next question: We are currently booked in a hump cabin on port side. Since this is a RT itinerary, I think we'll manage to have a good view both coming & going. But would we have a better view from the aft? I'm not talking about whether an aft cabin is better than a hump cabin. I'm talking specifically about the views on this cruise. Is sticking with our port side hump a good idea or would an aft give us a better overall view?

 

Also, even though it's too early to look at airfare, I've peeked at more recent flights to get an idea of the costs to fly up there. (A few weeks before our cruise it's around $450 from Boise to Vancouver RT.) We're leaving from Vancouver, BC and I'm wondering what people normally do. Do you fly directly into Vancouver or do you fly into Seattle and take some kind of train or bus up to Vancouver?

 

Any help with these questions is appreciated!

 

Yukon (Murray) has a great source of information at http://www.explorenorth.com/communities.html .

 

:) Hope it will also help you.

[all3]

We booked all our excursions through Royal. This was our first cruise and and we played it safe by booking through the cruise line. This was one of the more expensive ones we did - $268/each. It included the plane ride to the Taku Lodge plus a salmon lunch and plane ride back. The bus then took us back to the ship. It was fun and we were really glad we went. Even saw some bears up there.

 

The rock climbing in Sitka was fun as well. It was booked through the ship as well, $91/each.

 

Good Luck and have fun!

[tapia]

I agree that Alaska is the one trip not to skimp on.

 

If you want something like ziplining--the largest in the world was just built in Icy Strait Point. It's a 90 second ride down (1 hour or so ride up the mountain). (just 1 zipline) I don't know if that's your thing & it's quite a bit of money for 90 seconds. It looked really cool as I saw other people doing it from a boat I was in. (I went whale watching.)

 

Look through all the reviews--you're bound to find something you'll like.

[tee_harbor]

We booked all our excursions through Royal. This was our first cruise and and we played it safe by booking through the cruise line. This was one of the more expensive ones we did - $268/each. It included the plane ride to the Taku Lodge plus a salmon lunch and plane ride back. The bus then took us back to the ship. It was fun and we were really glad we went. Even saw some bears up there.

 

This tour, like many, can be booked separately from the ships. http://wingsairways.com/ It's the exact same plane; exact same tour.

 

The ship's offerings are a great place to start, to see what things are available in different ports. But from there, it's possible to say, will it cheaper to see the same things if I use shuttle buses, or rent a car? Is there a local company that will give me a more intimate, personal experience? You have plenty of time and you can save some money for the investment of studying this site and others.

[pacthepuppies]

I agree that Alaska is the one trip not to skimp on.

 

If you want something like ziplining--the largest in the world was just built in Icy Strait Point. It's a 90 second ride down (1 hour or so ride up the mountain). (just 1 zipline) I don't know if that's your thing & it's quite a bit of money for 90 seconds. It looked really cool as I saw other people doing it from a boat I was in. (I went whale watching.)

 

Look through all the reviews--you're bound to find something you'll like.

 

My DH and DS did that one- actually 3 people go at the same time, and they did the canapy tour in Juneau- they loved both for different reasons- first was a thrill ride, plus a tour on the way up- but you can just walk to the booth at the base and get yr ticket- you dont have to book thru the ship- but get there early- it is very very popular! Second as it was a real learning/adventure experience. The canapy in Ju was thru the ship and an excellent trip for them- we also did the dog sled on land in Ju and that was great fun w/o all the $$$ of going to a glacier... Salmon bake in Ju was also an excellent place- but you can just pay and catch a shuttle from the tramway dock- we docked all the way out in AJ- so didnt know that... Skagway was the rock climbing- well worth the $$ as the guides are super duper!!! and lots of fun and NO SHAME if you can or cannot do what others do- LOTS of rope options for ALL different levels- I am the type to book thru ship for safety /peace of mind- also had my 71 yo Mom and did not want her stressing... we did the cultural tour in ISP- the long one... it was ok but dont know if i would have done it w/o my mom wanting to... i wish that we had just explored ISP on our own after shopping, etc... there are also shuttels in to Hunnah- but the Office Bar is the only real draw- fairly poor village rebuilt after the fire of 44? 48? so most real hx is gone... people say train in skagway is for people who like to just sit- would NOT recc for teen- ps our DS is 13, raised 2 others- been there, done that!!

pl ask any other ?!!

lisa