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Best Alaskan Excursion


yags
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We will be going to Alaska (out of San Francisco) in June of 2018 on the Grand. I realize not everyone has gone on all the excursions but, that being said, in your experience (not taking into consideration cost just enjoyment and excitement) what was your favorite Alaskan excursion. Right now I am leaning toward dog sledding and anything having to do with trains. It will be awesome hearing what you enjoyed most!!

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We did the dog sledding in Juneau, it was great, meeting the dogs and the mushers was special and the if there are puppies you get to meeting them and handles them. Watch out they can loose control of body functions and you can get wet!

In Skagway we did the Best of Skagway, you get on a bus and go to Frasier BC and then board the White Pass & Yukon River RR back to Shagway. Beautiful sights, make sure you have a camera. Then we went to LIarsville and had a salmon bake, with a show and then panned for gold. everyone gets a few flakes. And after that it was off to the Red Onion Saloon/Bordello. The girls play it up, it was pretty fun.

 

Hope this helps you

Val & Sue

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We love Chilkoot Tours in Skagway for the Yukon Train and Bus tour - we take the van up/Train down tour that takes you to Caribou Crossing for lunch (meh), petting zoo/summer musher camp with potential for puppy-snuggling; We also enjoyed the Snorkel tour in Ketchikan which gives you such a different marine experience than Caribbean (it's not only the water temp, it's the bright starfish etc that was great), as well as the Deadliest Catch excursion.

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Lots of people say Harv/Marc is good but I will give a big thumbs up to whale watching on the MV Scania.An amazing guide and super comfortable boat max of 9 people. Also liked the zodiac boat tour in Ketchikan, small groups, 4 to a boat and everyone can drive. Very up close nature experience. TAku Lodge flight was very good too.

 

 

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We've done this sailing several times and so have done a number of the less expensive excursions. If one and done, these are the ones that I recommend in each port:

 

Juneau: Mendenhall Glacier including the Visitor's Center coupled with the Salmon Hatchery; after the tour, head to the Alaskan Brewing Company for a tour and tasting if you have time and if not, make a visit to the Red Dog Saloon.

 

Ketchikan: Hike up the Married Man's Trail, stop in for a tour of Dolly's either before or after. If the hike it not to your liking, there is a tram to take you up to a hotel where there is a totem pole park at the front entrance (behind where the tram drops you off. Afterwards, go to the Lumberjack show in town.

 

Skagway: Meet the sled dog puppies and tour the area where they mined for gold (history lesson). If you have a little more to spend, take the train up to summit. Before heading back to the ship, go to the Red Onion or go to the Soapy Smith show in town.

Icy Strait Point: Whale watching at it's best if this is one of your ports of call. It is on the pricey side but you will see whales ... guaranteed. This is also a great port to go on a wildlife tour to see bears in the wild. This is also a nice place for a hike through the wooded area right near where the ship is docked.

 

Victoria: Walk along the waterfront to Mile Zero, turn left and walk up the street to Beacon Hill Park (no admission fees). Exit through the back end of the park and walk towards town to the Empress Hotel and the Government buildings. Continue back towards the water (on Oswego) back to the ship. If this is too much walking, you can do the same tour in a horse drawn carriage.

 

While there are many many things to do, these are my favorites within budgetary constraints. There are also many higher priced options but this is a good overview of the touristy things to do in Alaska. Enjoy your trip.

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skagway: i love to walk here, poking around the shops. the streetcar tour was fun with its visit to the lookout and to the cemetery

juneau: harv and marv whale watching with a stop at mendenhall. i broke the budget taking this tour but it was my favourite in juneau

ketchikan: as hokey as it is, i loved the lumberjack show

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We went on the same trip (Grand out of SF) this past July/August. We enjoyed all the things we did, but if forced to pick a favorite it'd be the helicopter ride to Mendenhall glacier with dog sledding. Largely because it's the most out-of-the-ordinary, plus we're big dog people.

 

Most better than expected would be the White Pass & Yukon railway in Skagway. Our sailing actually stopped in Haines, requiring a ferry to get to Skagway, and I think that was a benefit because our car of the train wasn't completely full. The best part, for us, was standing between the cars where you get a better view and pictures without reflections, and because the car wasn't full we got to do that without having to share as much.

 

We also did a floatplane tour to Misty Fjords from Ketchikan (Carlin Air), and a tour of Butchart Gardens near Victoria (personal friend's car), and thoroughly enjoyed those, too. As you can tell, we fully loaded our days, on the assumption that something would get rained out, but we got extremely lucky and had good weather our whole trip.

 

And it's not an excursion, but our day in Glacier Bay was definitely a highlight of the trip. But take my advice and put on sunscreen; you'll be out on deck a lot that day.

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Just returned from our 4th visit to AK today! Our favourite excursion in Juneau has always been whale watching. We always book through the ship (it just saves me time from having to research a bunch of different companies) and they use Allan Marine. We have gone whale watching with them on all 4 visits and have always had an amazing experience. Their on-board naturalists are always very informative and passionate about making sure the guests have an incredible time, and their vessels are clean and comfortable with lots of indoor and outdoor viewing space.

 

This time we also did a dog sled puppy camp in the morning in Juneau. We enjoyed it - you go on a mile or so cart ride pulled by the dogs, learn more about their lives and dog sledding, then we got to spend about 20-30 minutes playing with 9 week old puppies. It was fun but honestly, we did the same thing when we were up in the Yukon when we did the White Pass train ride a few years ago and we preferred that experience. We felt we learned more and quite frankly, there were way more puppies to play with, lol.

 

In Ketchikan we usually do the zodiak adventure trip offered through Ketchikan Outdoors (you can book them on your own or just book the ship's excursion). We've done it twice and only passed on it this time because we'd already spent a fair amount on other excursions. We have been lucky to have our own boat both times but they can put up to 4 people in a raft if need be. The tour is about 2-3 hours long and it's so fun! You spend the time zipping about on the water (you drive yourself) with stops so the group guide can point out sites and/or explain things about the area. In hindsight we rather regret not booking it this time as we had a lovely, warm day in Ketchikan last week!

 

The last time we were in Skagway we did the train followed by a bus trip through the Yukon. Our train ride was fogged out half way up the mountain but things cleared once we entered the Yukon and that was the highlight of that trip. Anyone doing the trip on our stop last week was blessed with a beautiful, clear day and would have seen far more than we did on the train ride! This time we booked the ocean raft adventure excursion offered through the ship. We were suited up in warm gear and went out on a large raft with about 20 other people (we were driven this time) and set out on the Lynn Canal to see the sights. There might have been some splashy donuts made on the water, too ;) It was a fun afternoon and we really enjoyed the sights (we had a bald eagle flying alongside us at one point - that was pretty awesome!)

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We've also done Marv and Harv whale watching (twice) and had a great time both trips. Last time in Ketchikan we chartered a boat for just me and me and my son-in-law and went salmon fishing for the day. Limited on salmon. They had it cleaned, filleted (either whole 1/2 fish or 1lb pieces) and frozen. Then they make sure not to ship it until you arrive home. It was a great day. We've also enjoyed the Yukon and White Pass railroad with Chilkoot Charters.

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Icy strait point/hoonah: glacier wind charters (six people on the boat) whale watching

Juneau: mendenhall glacier

Ketchikan: deadliest catch tour (book independently for less $$— its the exact same boat!)

Skagway: Yukon and white pass railroad

 

 

 

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All of the above are excellent and it's hard to go wrong! Our favorites were the whale watching in Juneau with Harv and Marvs, and we rented a car in Skagway and drove up into the Yukon Territory. The Yukon is absolutely amazing. It's an awesome trip. You will love it no matter which you choose.

 

 

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Harv and marv whale watching. We were within feet of whales. Like 3 feet

Train I can't remember what that was called. It was boring. Wouldn't waste money on it

 

 

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Another vote for Harv and Marv's in Juneau. One of our all time best excursions.

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