Alaska questions for Celebrat

[JohannaM]

Hi Celebrat (and hey, anyone else who wants to pipe in). One month today until we leave on our Alaskan Cruise - yay! Previously you mentioned you had some good recommendations for things to do with kids in Alaska. In Sitka I'm certain we're just going to walk up to the Raptor Centre. But We don't have anything planned in Ketchikan or Juneau. Do you have any recommendations? DS will be 20 months old.

 

Thanks in advance.

[trnmba]

When we were in Sitka, we went to the Sitka National Historical Park, it was a nice walk from where the ships dock. There is some great trails and it is really beautiful. There are reproduction Totem Poles throughout the trails. Behind the ranger station, you can also see how they are made. One the way to the National Park. We stopped along the way at the Sheldon Jackson Aquarium. It did not have a lot to look at but our kids liked it as everything was hands on. They have a HUGE crab there which the kids really liked.

 

The Raptor Centre was great! But it is quite a walk. We took a cab for about $6.00.

 

We also saw the dancers which the kids really enjoyed.

 

Have a great trip!

[CeleBrat]

WOW! I'm honored that you consider me an expert! ;)

 

We took our Alaskan cruise when DS was 4 and DD was almost 2--almost the same age as your DS.

 

In Juneau, we took the cable car ride up to the lookout point. We paid for an all-day pass so went up once when we docked, then once again later in the afternoon. At the top of the lookout, there are lots of neat paths and really nice wildflowers. We also saw a few animals that looked like prairie dogs--yeah right, I know we were in Alaska. Also at the top of the lookout was an Eagle rehab center. Very interesting.

 

In Ketchikan, we walked along the waterfront and looked at the neat boats, then walked through the town area along the wooden boardwalk. We saw wild blackberries and lots of fish in the water below. There are also quite a few totem poles to see--and again more wildflowers. My DS who was 4 at the time, was OBSESSED with flowers and had a ball!

 

At both of those ports we did NOT book an excursion because our kids were just too young.

 

Are you going the Skagway? That was our favorite port. We rented a car and drove 60-ish miles inland and saw some amazing sites along the way using Murray's Guide.

 

I'll post some pics later...(sitting in front of the TV using the laptop and just too lazy to walk into the office to the "regular" computer where the pics are stored.)

 

Hope that helps. If I think of anything else, I'll post it.

 

CeleBrat

[JohannaM]

Thanks! I too am sitting on the couch in front of the tv, so I'm with you there :) I think on the whole we're going to wander around. I considered the horse drawn carriage ride in Ketchikan b/c I thought my DS would like the horses, but then I think he'd probably also want "out!". The trick with him is to keep moving and he's happy. We are not going to Skagway - although it was my favourite port on our last trip to Alaska (pre-DS) so I can imagine you enjoyed it. I think those animals you saw were either pine martins or marmots - like prarie dogs.

 

Trnmba - thank you too. Thanks for the tip that it's a long walk to the Raptor Centre as on the Alaska board people make it sound like a leisurely stroll. We'll keep that in mind.

 

ONE MONTH! ONE MONTH! ONE MONTH!

 

Yeah, I'm looking forward to it :)

[VPIcruiser]

Hi. We cruised with our 35 month old DS and 15 month old DD in May. Here is a link to my review in case it is helpful to you. http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=42903

 

We like to exercise and walk so we walked to the National Park and took one of the trials that looped around to a trail to the Raptor Center. Someone at the visitor's center gave me a map and told me where to go. My parents walked with us but my in-laws took the bus to the Raptor Center.

 

In Juneau, we took the bus to Mendenhal Glacier which we all found very impressive. We ate lunch at a pizza place in downtown Juneau. We ate at the same place five years ago and the pizza was just as good as we remembered.

 

In Ketchikan, we walked around and then we went to the Lumberjack Show. Our kids loved this, but our younger one was a little restless in between each event because there is a lot of talking. I wouldn't recommend this if your child is afraid of loud noises. Our children found the chainsaw to be very exciting as they did the other events.

 

In Victoria, we walked to downtown and took a carriage ride. Both of our kids loved this. In Ketchikan, my older one kept asking to go on the horse drawn carriage ride. I think we skipped it because it was the same price for the kids as the adults. I might be wrong about that though.

 

Hope this helps.