Planning pretty much done, how did I do?

After lots of reading and planning, I think I have pretty much finalized plans for our first Alaska cruise next summer. Booking the cruise was the easy part, we picked southbound Coral Princess on July 25th and we’ll be doing a DIY land tour before we cruise. I just wanted to get some feedback to make sure I’m not overdoing it or missing anything that we really should try to see...I think I’ve got most of the highlights. Any feedback will be greatly appreciated. Not sure how long it will be before we are able to go back to Alaska so we want to make sure we make the most of this trip.

July 19 – Fly into Anchorage from St. Louis (no flight booked yet, too far out, so I don’t know what time we will be getting in). Looking at Captain Cook and Comfort Inn as possible hotels.

July 20 – Pick up minivan rental and drive to Talkeetna for Talkeetna Air Mountain Voyager tour, then continuing to Denali (plan on staying in a cabin near Healy since there will be 5 in our group and 2 hotel rooms are pricey). Maybe it would be better to do the flight on our way back to Anchorage?

July 21 – Shuttle to Wonder Lake (getting off at Eielson if weather doesn’t cooperate)

July 22 – Denali Rafting Adventure Healy Express in the morning, then driving back to Anchorage and returning rental car

July 23 – Taking Coastal Classic Goldstar to Seward. Plan on walking to/staying at Seward Resort.

July 24 – Northwestern Fjord Tour (haven’t decided between Major Marine or Kenai Fjords, any suggestions?)

July 25 – Seward Bus to get to Whittier for embarkation. I’m a little nervous about this part, I haven’t seen too much information out there about this company but it’s one of the few ways I’ve seen to get to Whittier from Seward without having to go through Anchorage. Trying to avoid wasting time and money backtracking. I also have read about PJ’s Taxi but many people have said that it is quite expensive. Please let me know if you have any info on what else we could do.

Provided we arrive in Whittier with enough time I plan on renting kayaks from Lazy Otter. Does anyone know if it is necessary to do an actual tour or would we be fine just going out on our own in Prince Williams Sound? Only 2 of us would be doing this and its $90 for a double kayak for the day or $325 for the tour and there is a minimum of 4 people needed. Just want to cruise around and see the sights.

July 26 – Hubbard Glacier

July 27 – Glacier Bay

July 28 – Skagway: Renting a minivan and driving to Emerald Lake. Later in the day taking Temsco Glacier Discovery helicopter tour.

July 29 – Juneau: Haven’t fully decided here, either Harv and Marv and then taking a taxi to Mendenhall Glacier or taking the Glaciers and Ice Caves tour with Above and Beyond Alaska. Hate to miss out on Harv and Marv but gambling on the fact that we will probably see whales on the Kenai Fjords tour (I know it won’t be quite the same as an actual whale watching tour). How likely is it we will actually be able to go into the caves at the end of July?

July 30 – Ketchikan: Misty Fjords with Island Wings then just walking around the town/shopping.

July 31 – Sea Day

August 1 – Vancouver: Not sure if we will have time for an extra night here (depends on flight times/prices and whether we will fly out here or Seattle)

Thank you to everyone on here for all the information that helped me in planning this trip!

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You've done a good job researching. I just wanted to chime in on the hotel choices in Anchorage. We usually look for Comfort Inns when we rode trip. They have everything we need.

Having said that, the Capt. Cook is right in the center of downtown where everything is. The Comfort Inn is down by the Ulu Factory. It's a long walk uphill to downtown. Not a deal breaker but not as convenient either. They we also doing major work on the bridge next door to the CI and it was very loud. That would be temporary though.

We stayed in the Capt. Cook and would stay there again. Nice hotel.

Have a great trip!

I highly recommend the Misty Fjords trip. After 11 cruises to Alaska, that is still one of my favorite excursions. Harv and Marv run a close second. Have a wonderful time.

Good job!

No glaring errors, just a couple of things to think about.....

1. Anchorage. Since you mentioned budget a few times, you might want to price lodging in Wasilla over Anchorage which can be pretty high. Your flight will probably arrive late afternoon and Wasilla is only an hr north. Pioneer Ridge has rooms for 5. There are probably others. But for the night before the train to Seward, the Comfort Inn Ship Creek is very convenient.

2 If your flightseeing is weathered out on the way north definitely check on the return trip. if you wake up to a glorious morning, call Talkeetna and ask about conditions for the day and availability. Would you be willing to forego the rafting ?

3 Seward. - if you mean the Military Resort, it's about 1 1/2 miles from the pier. Less than $10 for a cab. You'll have several hours after check in, so walk back to the harbor and catch the shuttle to Exit Glacier, or follow the waterfront path to the downtown area for dinner,

- MM or KF. Is reserved seating important? meal? Park Ranger

- I've only seen 1 review of Seward Busline and it was positive. But why not call PJs and ask about the fare. The bus will be $300 for 5. Traveling on your schedule might be worth a few bucks ....

- if kayaking is a priority you might want to look at a kayak trip in Seward to aialik glacier. It used to cover the same route as the 6 hr day cruise but then you're dropped off to kayak. Liquid Adventures is one of the companies.

Have a great trip!

You've done a good job researching. I just wanted to chime in on the hotel choices in Anchorage. We usually look for Comfort Inns when we rode trip. They have everything we need.

 

Having said that, the Capt. Cook is right in the center of downtown where everything is. The Comfort Inn is down by the Ulu Factory. It's a long walk uphill to downtown. Not a deal breaker but not as convenient either. They we also doing major work on the bridge next door to the CI and it was very loud. That would be temporary though.

 

 

We stayed in the Capt. Cook and would stay there again. Nice hotel.

 

Have a great trip!

Thanks! I was a bit worried that I was trying to squeeze too much in with too little time. As for the hotel in Anchorage, it does look like the Captain Cook location is a little more convenient but it will probably just come down to price in the end. If they are about the same I think we will go with Captain Cook.

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I highly recommend the Misty Fjords trip. After 11 cruises to Alaska, that is still one of my favorite excursions. Harv and Marv run a close second. Have a wonderful time.

I think the Misty Fjords flight was the first thing I decided we would definitely have to do. I thought Harv and Marv was set for sure too until recently when I read about the glacier cave tour...now in torn between the two [emoji53]

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Seward: here's another transportation option to look at: https://www.bearvalleyroadrunner.com/

What if you kept the rental car for the drive to Seward and back to Anchorage. And then the morning of your cruise took the train to Whittier? That would mean another night of hotel though, so maybe not...

Seward: here's another transportation option to look at: https://www.bearvalleyroadrunner.com/

What if you kept the rental car for the drive to Seward and back to Anchorage. And then the morning of your cruise took the train to Whittier? That would mean another night of hotel though, so maybe not...

Thanks for the info, I'll add that link to my list of options. I think with the extra hotel night and extra rental days, keeping the van through Seward might come out a bit more expensive than the other options but I will also keep that in mind.

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:cool:We've booked 4 rooms at the Captain Cook for our June 2018 cruise. Its sister hotel, The Voyager Inn, is across the street and is cheaper because it doesn't have all the "bells & whistles" ... restaurants and shops ... but it does have free buffet breakfast and free use of the gym/pool at the Captain Cook. Hope this helps.:ship:

:cool:We've booked 4 rooms at the Captain Cook for our June 2018 cruise. Its sister hotel, The Voyager Inn, is across the street and is cheaper because it doesn't have all the "bells & whistles" ... restaurants and shops ... but it does have free buffet breakfast and free use of the gym/pool at the Captain Cook. Hope this helps.:ship:

That might not be a bad option, especially since we won't be spending much time there other than just sleeping. Thanks!

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You have a well thought out plan. I'd suggest you just speak directly with Lazy Otter. Your current plan eliminates needless backtracking, which is significant sine you don't have a lot of time.

I'll ask- what is it about H&M that has you conflicted? IF it is because of the "vendor", sadly the original are long gone, selling the business with the name years ago. It is not the same, A family member who continued after the buy out, left and started their own company. So, the "name" shouldn't be a reason a book.

Taking a whale watch should be with the priority to see whales. Is this a priority for you? Actually it's a same with flight vendors in Ketchikan, several top masters who are all in the same league.

Your trip is also a year away. So be open to changes and further fine tuning. It is common for people to read new things and determine- Wow- a better idea. :) No need to be "done".

Have a great trip~~~

We stayed at the Voyager a few nights ago. The rooms are good sized & have kitchenettes. Very comfortable.

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You have a well thought out plan. I'd suggest you just speak directly with Lazy Otter. Your current plan eliminates needless backtracking, which is significant sine you don't have a lot of time.

 

I'll ask- what is it about H&M that has you conflicted? IF it is because of the "vendor", sadly the original are long gone, selling the business with the name years ago. It is not the same, A family member who continued after the buy out, left and started their own company. So, the "name" shouldn't be a reason a book.

 

Taking a whale watch should be with the priority to see whales. Is this a priority for you? Actually it's a same with flight vendors in Ketchikan, several top masters who are all in the same league.

 

Your trip is also a year away. So be open to changes and further fine tuning. It is common for people to read new things and determine- Wow- a better idea. :) No need to be "done".

 

 

Have a great trip~~~

Great info, thank you! We could probably make more time if necessary, more my wifes schedule than mine...and getting back home to the kids, just trying to keep it reasonable. The only reason I am conflicted about the whale watching is that I am trying to decide between that and the glacier kayak trip with Above and Beyond Alaska. I think that both would be amazing but our time in port will only allow one or the other. If the odds of actually making it into the ice caves were good I think I may lean more towards that. So far the only thing that is booked is the van rental out of Anchorage so I will continue to do homework up until we leave. All great information so far, thank you everyone!

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I have some small suggestions which could save you some grief and money. Reserve your rental car early as they disappear fast. Also don't rent at the airport but at an offsite location. And when renting deal with the local rental site direct and not their corp.# or a site such as Orbitz,etc. Sounds like you have a great trip planned and I am sure you will enjoy it. Just got back after 6 weeks up there.

Hi. We're from St Louis also and leave for our land/cruise trip this coming Friday. We have a very similar itinerary as you. We are actually flying into Seattle in the evening and then flying out to Anchorage early on Saturday. That should give us the rest of day to pick up groceries and get to Denali. We're there 2 full days--shuttle trip, hiking, rafting, sled dogs. Then we make our way to Palmer. Based on weather we have several options that day. Then drive to Seward for 2 days/nights. Last night we spend in Anchorage. Return car and take train to Whittier to board ship. I should have thought to do what you are doing and return car earlier and figure out how to transfer from Seward to Whittier.

It's fun to plan these trips.

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We did the land tour/cruise two years ago. Loved Captain Cook hotel. Had a great time in Anchorage. Great city. We did the Segway tour which I highly recommend. WE also did the Harv and Marv Whale Watching. That was amazing. We are going back to Alaska but round trip from Seattle this time on the Ruby. We are going to do Harv & Marv again.