Calling on Budget Queen(Independent Land Tour Help)

[Mailgirl]

My cruise is not until August, 2008 Two years ago I did the Land tour through the cruise ship (first time cruiser). I wasn’t disappointed if fact everything was perfectly organized it was great the only problem I had was that some of the excursions on the tour I wasn’t interested in and you didn’t have enough time to see everything. I didn’t know about Denali until I started reading these boards but by that time everything was already paid for. Don’t get me wrong I still had a great time we did see a Caribou , Snow Shoe hare and a Silver Fox walked right up to us when we were crossing the street in Denali.

 

 

Since this is my 2nd trip back and I now know what to expect I would like to get more for my time and money.

 

 

With work I can’t afford to be away for more than 2 weeks so I only have 4 days and 3 nights. Would I be able to the things that I have listed in that time, can I add anything else. The cruise ship leaves out of Whittier at 9:00 pm.

 

 

Anchorage - Portage Glacier and if possible the Native Heritage Museum.

Denali - Tundra Wilderness Tour the one that is 54 Miles and maybe the Denali Jeep Backcountry Safari Tour .

Seward - Kenai Fjords National Park & Alaska Sea life Center.

Whittier - Prince William Sound Glacier Cruise.

 

 

I would appreciate any help. If anyone else has any help it will be greatly appreciated.

 

08/20/08 - Alaska Carnival Spirit

10/2006 - New England/Canada

08/2005 - Alaska Carnival Spirit

[fti]

My cruise is not until August, 2008 Two years ago I did the Land tour through the cruise ship (first time cruiser). I wasn’t disappointed if fact everything was perfectly organized it was great the only problem I had was that some of the excursions on the tour I wasn’t interested in and you didn’t have enough time to see everything. I didn’t know about Denali until I started reading these boards but by that time everything was already paid for. Don’t get me wrong I still had a great time we did see a Caribou , Snow Shoe hare and a Silver Fox walked right up to us when we were crossing the street in Denali.

 

 

Since this is my 2nd trip back and I now know what to expect I would like to get more for my time and money.

 

 

With work I can’t afford to be away for more than 2 weeks so I only have 4 days and 3 nights. Would I be able to the things that I have listed in that time, can I add anything else. The cruise ship leaves out of Whittier at 9:00 pm.

 

 

Anchorage - Portage Glacier and if possible the Native Heritage Museum.

Denali - Tundra Wilderness Tour the one that is 54 Miles and maybe the Denali Jeep Backcountry Safari Tour .

Seward - Kenai Fjords National Park & Alaska Sea life Center.

Whittier - Prince William Sound Glacier Cruise.

 

 

I would appreciate any help. If anyone else has any help it will be greatly appreciated.

 

08/20/08 - Alaska Carnival Spirit

10/2006 - New England/Canada

08/2005 - Alaska Carnival Spirit

 

With just three nights you would not do justice to your itinerary if you tried to do all the above. You need two nights at Denali to make it worth it. You would have to choose between Seward or Denali in my opinion.

 

Does the three nights include the night you arrive from the lower 48? If so, you really only have two nights. In that case, just go to Seward not Denali. You really need two nights at Denali and if you arrive on day 1, spend the night in Anchorage (your first night), and two nights at Denali, those are your three nights so you would need to get from Denali to Whittier on the fourth day, leaving little time for any sightseeing en route (maybe the Portage Glacier visitor center and their boat ride which I understand is only so-so).

 

If you had three nights and went to Seward, night one in Anchorage when you arrive, see Native museum next morning, then drive to Seward. See Exit Glacier (better than Portage Glacier in my opinion). Night two in Seward. Next day do the 6 hour Kenai Fjords tour and you could even fit in the Alaska Sealife Center that day, night three in Seward. Day four drive to Whittier, take the afternoon cruise and board the ship about 6pm.

 

Doing what I suggested requires a one-way rental with Avis since they are the only car rental option in Whittier. It is not cheap, but it makes the most of your time. Plus, depending on how many of you there are, the cost is reasonable since you would otherwise have to pay for transfers to Whittier anyway. If you had one more night, you could comfortably go to Denali rather than Seward.

 

John

[stired]

Why only 4 days and 3 nights if you have 2 weeks vacation? Most one-way cruises are 7 days?

 

We did an independent land tour this June with a 7-day SB cruise out of Whittier. We took 15 days altogether instead of 14, but we were able to do all that you listed below. You could easily trim back a day or two if you skipped the night at Alyeska. And you can fly into Anchorage on a Saturday instead of Sunday, to have an extra day. Take a look at our itinerary at: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=575817&highlight=stired

[JohnQ]

Without knowing the answers to FTI's questions, it is hard to recomm. We have gone to denali and came back to Anc on the day of our second shuttle in denali. It was not a lot of fun to drive all the way back in rain, but we had to be back to catch bus to Seward the next day.

 

But at least one night in denali and then getting down to Seward the next morning in time for the 11:30 KFT 6hr tour. Then driving back to Anc in order to turn in your car and catch your bus or train to Whittier the next morning is just a tough way to do. Don't think you could do the PWS tour. But you could skip Seward and go down to Whittier a day early and do the PWS tour.

[Mailgirl]

Why only 4 days and 3 nights if you have 2 weeks vacation? Most one-way cruises are 7 days?

 

We did an independent land tour this June with a 7-day SB cruise out of Whittier. We took 15 days altogether instead of 14, but we were able to do all that you listed below. You could easily trim back a day or two if you skipped the night at Alyeska. And you can fly into Anchorage on a Saturday instead of Sunday, to have an extra day. Take a look at our itinerary at: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=575817&highlight=stired

 

 

We are taking the Southbound cruise which leaves on Wednesday it goes from Whittier to Vancouver. We would leave on Saturday 08/16/08 that would give us Saturday night, Sun - Wed Afternoon early evening before we board the boat on 08/20/08.

[NancyIL]

We are taking the Southbound cruise which leaves on Wednesday it goes from Whittier to Vancouver. We would leave on Saturday 08/16/08 that would give us Saturday night, Sun - Wed Afternoon early evening before we board the boat on 08/20/08.

 

That's what I don't like about Wednesday departures - it's harder to plan pre and post-cruise land trips! Could you leave home one week before the cruise begins, on August 13? If you really have only 4 nights - then you would have time for Denali, Anchorage, and the PWS glacier cruise before boarding your ship. Forget about Seward.

 

Sat. Fly to Anchorage

Sun. drive to Denali (2 nights)

Mon. SHUTTLE bus to Fish Creek or Wonder Lake (rather than Tundra Wilderness Tour)

Tues. drive back to Anchorage - see Native Heritage Center

Wed. train to Whittier, PWS cruise, ship departs

[fti]

That's what I don't like about Wednesday departures - it's harder to plan pre and post-cruise land trips! Could you leave home one week before the cruise begins, on August 13? If you really have only 4 nights - then you would have time for Denali, Anchorage, and the PWS glacier cruise before boarding your ship. Forget about Seward.

 

Sat. Fly to Anchorage

Sun. drive to Denali (2 nights)

Mon. SHUTTLE bus to Fish Creek or Wonder Lake (rather than Tundra Wilderness Tour)

Tues. drive back to Anchorage - see Native Heritage Center

Wed. train to Whittier, PWS cruise, ship departs

 

That sounds ideal but that is 5 days/4 nights, thus my question to clarify what the OP really meant by 4 days/3 nights. Since they posted their exact dates, and if Denali is of interest, I would do this (personally I love Denali). Also, taking the shuttle to Wonder Lake in August won't be a problem with mosquitos, not to mention the greater opportunity for wildlife sightings past Fish Creek.

[Mailgirl]

That's what I don't like about Wednesday departures - it's harder to plan pre and post-cruise land trips! Could you leave home one week before the cruise begins, on August 13? If you really have only 4 nights - then you would have time for Denali, Anchorage, and the PWS glacier cruise before boarding your ship. Forget about Seward.

 

Sat. Fly to Anchorage

Sun. drive to Denali (2 nights)

Mon. SHUTTLE bus to Fish Creek or Wonder Lake (rather than Tundra Wilderness Tour)

Tues. drive back to Anchorage - see Native Heritage Center

Wed. train to Whittier, PWS cruise, ship departs

 

That sounds like it will work, thank you NancyIL and everyone else for your input. I feel like I have a plan in the right direction now I will need to start putting it together.:)

[232271]

My cruise is not until August, 2008 Two years ago I did the Land tour through the cruise ship (first time cruiser). I wasn’t disappointed if fact everything was perfectly organized it was great the only problem I had was that some of the excursions on the tour I wasn’t interested in and you didn’t have enough time to see everything. I didn’t know about Denali until I started reading these boards but by that time everything was already paid for. Don’t get me wrong I still had a great time we did see a Caribou , Snow Shoe hare and a Silver Fox walked right up to us when we were crossing the street in Denali.

 

 

Since this is my 2nd trip back and I now know what to expect I would like to get more for my time and money.

 

 

With work I can’t afford to be away for more than 2 weeks so I only have 4 days and 3 nights. Would I be able to the things that I have listed in that time, can I add anything else. The cruise ship leaves out of Whittier at 9:00 pm.

 

 

Anchorage - Portage Glacier and if possible the Native Heritage Museum.

Denali - Tundra Wilderness Tour the one that is 54 Miles and maybe the Denali Jeep Backcountry Safari Tour .

Seward - Kenai Fjords National Park & Alaska Sea life Center.

Whittier - Prince William Sound Glacier Cruise.

 

 

I would appreciate any help. If anyone else has any help it will be greatly appreciated.

 

08/20/08 - Alaska Carnival Spirit

10/2006 - New England/Canada

08/2005 - Alaska Carnival Spirit

 

 

Regarding your Denali comments, are you saying you read that is wasnt fun or is something that could be skipped? Is there something better to do?

We are planning a land tour July 2008, following a cruise as well. I thought Denali was a place not to miss, but it sounds a little boring for my taste? any insight? thanks:)

[fti]

Regarding your Denali comments, are you saying you read that is wasnt fun or is something that could be skipped? Is there something better to do?

We are planning a land tour July 2008, following a cruise as well. I thought Denali was a place not to miss, but it sounds a little boring for my taste? any insight? thanks:)

 

I think mailgirl was trying to say that on her first cruisetour of Denali she didn't see much wildlife - my guess is that she was on the Natural History Tour.

 

Personally, I feel that Denali is a place not to be missed. I usually spend more time there than most people - three nights minimum. Traveling to Wonder Lake greatly increases your chances of seeing both wildlife and Mt. McKinley. Staying in Kantishna (Skyline Lodge is excellent) has added benefits of being able to see Mt. McKinley later in the evening or earlier in the morning when the shuttle buses are not running yet (I saw Mt. McKinley from 2-5am two weeks ago from Wonder Lake), plus, you get to ride fairly empty camper buses from Kantishna/Wonder Lake toward the park entrance when others are traveling in full buses the other way and vice versa for the return trip later in the day to return to Kantishna. However, I would not stay in Kantishna if it were not at Skyline Lodge.

 

Also, if you stay at Skyline Lodge, you pay less for the camper bus than you do for a shuttle bus ticket, and the camper bus ticket is valid for unlimited rides on shuttle or camper buses for the entire length of your stay.

 

John

[stired]

Denali Park was one of the highlights of our land tour and I would not have missed it for the world! But to make it worthwhile, you really need to take the bus a ways into the park - to at least Fish Creek.

[Mailgirl]

Regarding your Denali comments, are you saying you read that is wasnt fun or is something that could be skipped? Is there something better to do?

We are planning a land tour July 2008, following a cruise as well. I thought Denali was a place not to miss, but it sounds a little boring for my taste? any insight? thanks:)

 

 

Just the opposite, the problem with the tour through the cruise ship you only go 17 miles into Denali. You get off the train in the afternoon and go straight to the tour. The best part about the cruise ship tour is you never had to worry about your luggage it followed you where ever you went and was always in your hotel room when you got there. I thought I would see much more wild life in Denali. I didn’t realize when I booked the land tour with the cruise line that I wouldn’t be going that far into Denali. If it wasn’t for these boards I probably wouldn’t have even have known that I was missing anything. The land tour just didn’t give you enough time. We did the Natural History tour as soon as we arrived in Denali and the next day the train was leaving at 12:00 pm. In Anchorage we had most of the day before they took us to the train. They took us to the Anchorage Heritage Museum we were there for 3 hours and was rushed to see everything, I forget where we stopped but it was to watch the Salmon and then they took us to the Merrill Field General Aviation Airport home of Alaska’s first Airport. It was interesting but if I was more educated about Alaska at that time I would have chose to do something different.

Don’t get me wrong I had a great time, It’s just that we spent a lot of our time traveling on the train, (McKinley Explorer) great views and some wild life.

 

The cruise line put us up in some nice hotels, we didn’t have to even worry about checking in. You got off the train headed for the bus they gave you your paperwork with your hotel room on it and you went straight to your room. For my first time cruise and not knowing what I wanted to do in Alaska it was great worry free they even handled my luggage at the airport.