abaci

We've stayed in South Beach and a Holiday Inn near the Bayshore area. Both were good depending on the amount of time you have pre-cruise

 

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Thanks. Just based on the little bit of research I've done so far I was guessing that was the answer. Thanks

 

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We are looking to book a cruise for October 2019 in the next few days. I'm curious if Disney tends to run sales for holidays/special days like Labor Day or Black Friday. Ive never sailed with DCL, but have sailed the other three mainstream lines (NCL, RCCL & CCL) which do sales near constantly. I guess I could probably cancel and re-book if a sale*comes a long, but with Labor Day right around the*corner I figured I'd ask to see if I should wait. Thanks

 

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Eagle Beach is hardly worth worrying about the tides. Do your stop when your time allows. I'm surprised you were able to get a 9 passenger van. All the basic regular rentals are 8 passengers, that I know of??

 

You really need to consider just turning in your rental when you get back downtown, Parking is very limited.

 

As for floatplanes, are you just going to park yourself and wait around? Can be long waits. You will have endless numerous, views, right from your cruise ship in port in Ketchikan.

 

I happen to like Douglas Island excellent hiking trails. Rainforrest Trail as example is pretty easy with adults, but likely not with your age group.

 

Juneau Rental cars has a very limited number of 11 passenger vans. I think only 1 or 2, but I booked it 1/3/18 so I don't remember specifics. Either way they have them so it works great for our group. I think we will do downtown after the rental is turned in. Also we have decided to not look specifically for float planes and will just watch for them from the ship. We have also decided to explore downtown after returning the rental for the day. We are also planning on still doing lunch on the ship and thanks to your replies have searched the parking situation. Thanks again for your replies.

We have van rental for our group of 6 adults and 3 kids (ages 1.5 to 4.5) and will be there June 19th from 7:00 am to 9:30 pm (cruise ship). Our plan is to visit Mendenhall Glacier, DIPAC, downtown (e.g. State Capital, St Nicholas, etc.), Shrine of St. Therese and Eagle Beach.

 

Our planned itinerary at the moment is to head to Mendenhall Glacier first thing and then head to Eagle Beach with stops at Lena Beach & Shrine of St Therese (either on the way to or from Eagle Beach) and then DIPAC. We will then get lunch on the ship before heading back to explore the downtown area. Does this look like a good plan/itinerary for the morning & early afternoon?

 

Is there anything missing from the above mentioned areas we should not miss? Also when is the best time to visit Eagle Beach? It looks like around noon to 12:30 pm is the lowest tide (if I'm understanding my Google results correctly), but is low tide the best time to visit?

 

Additional questions include, what is a good place to stop and view float planes taking off and landing? We are thinking of visiting Savikko Park (Sandy Beach), is this worth a quick stop and is there anything else on Douglas Island we would want to visit? Is Suicide Falls easily accessible and/or worth visiting? Is AJ Mine Gasteneau Mill Tour worth a visit and does anyone know the cost (could find the cost on their site)?

 

We have plenty of time in Juneau and are any of the mentioned spots worth a visit at different times throughout the day, say mid-day and then in the evening again? I appreciate any and all responses. Thanks

Glad you found this as I was just about to post a link as I came across the same thing the other day when searching for rain footwear alternatives. I am thinking of getting a pair. My one ankle is fused so I can't wear just any shoe or boot. Price is good so worth taking a chance. In the meantime, read that cyclists often wear something similar so going to check out a local cycling shop first.

 

Sandy :)

 

I think we are going to be ordering a couple pairs in the near future, but would love to hear about your experience at the bike shop and if you learn anything. I think for the price they are going into our travel bags

 

 

We were in Tokyo last October and it poured our last couple of days and I wish we would have had these. I've never heard of them but in planning a trip to Hong Kong & Shanghai this October heard (podcast) about someone seeing them all over one of those cities (Shanghai i'm almost positive) when it poured.

Do you mean something like these? http://www.tingleyrubber.com/c/footwear_over-the-shoe

I bought some several years ago at a "farm and fleet" store. They fit over my New Balance shoes and I plan on taking them along.

 

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I'm thinking more like these

 

https://www.amazon.com/Waterproof-Motorcycle-Covers-Reusable-Overshoes/dp/B0719L55Y2/ref=sr_1_10?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1523216855&sr=1-10&keywords=waterproof+shoe+covers

 

They cover the entire shoe and come in clear or black.

Has anyone used or seen people use in Alaska those waterproof boot/shoe covers with rubber soles? We are thinking about buying those as we currently don't have waterproof boots/shoes. They range in price from $10-20 per pair and we could use them on other trips/vacation that we don't want to take hiking boots but hey will still easily fit in our luggage. I actually discovered these planning a trip to Shanghai later this year and read about someone being there in the rain and seeing everyone wearing them and wishing they had them. Thoughts on these types of covers. We are going to be with 3 kids ages 1-4 so no major hiking.

We are going on our first RCCL cruise this June to Alaska. We are a group of 9 (6 adults and 3 kids) only two of us have cruised in the past. I've been reading the MDR dress code and the "suggested" dress code. What I'm trying to figure out is if they are more strict on the dress code based on the location and cooler weather compared to Caribbean cruises. Thanks for your insight without flaming :).

You have underestimated time. This is not a good plan. I recommend you consider a change. Your flight before midnight, requires you to be AT the airport with a 2 hour window, especially on cruise ship days. Check in and security dictate this, and I don't see this changing. Alaska RR is frequently late as well, I've have the run where it wasn't unloading until close to 11p. The luggage claim also isn't a fast process. Add, 20 minutes for the transit to the airport, with hundreds of people in the cab lines.

 

You have a good chance of missing your flight

 

 

Thanks for this. I just checked (which I did not do before posting last time as I was at work) and our flight leaves at 12:55 am so just before 1:00am and not midnight. I purchased the airfare quite a while ago and was not remembering correctly. Your comment made me have to go verify what I had purchased.

 

I think we are figuring out what to do in Seward so thanks for the insight and answers. Thanks

Being it seems , there is nothing of interest in Seward for you, then I agree with Wolfie, why not just take the cruise contracted train that leaves in the morning/ At least Anchorage, is a large city with a lot to see and do. Your, "walking to town" thinking, is over a mile and not sure what you expect? It's simply a street with a few vendors, not much there. Pretty much the same think walkable from the train depot. No the loop walk to the Exit, glacier viewing point is not much paved. Stairs can be involved, also a small up hill path.

We aren't doing the cruise transfer as my father loves trains and we are taking the train mostly for him. It's the only train in AK we are doing. The earlier train seemed like it might be rushed especially with children. We already have the train and airfare that evening (fly out of Anchorage just before midnight) purchased. Before the planning I was thinking there would be more to do in Seward. Also my brother (with 2 of the kids) is being a little more price sensitive then I thought he would be. Thanks for the suggestions and help. I'll look into the boat. I'm sure we'll find something I just need to keep digging.

 

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We will be arriving by cruise ship in Seward approximately 5:00 am and we are taking the train to anchorage leaving at 6:00 pm. We are a group of six adults with 3 young kids (ages 1, 3 & 4). After walking from the port to the train station to check in and drop our luggage, I'm really not sure what I we are going to do. I know we don't want to visit the SeaLife and we will probably visit Waterfront Park Playground to let the kids burn some energy before the train. Is visiting Exit Glacier with kids possible? It sounds like the the paths (at lest some) are paved. How much are paved? Are the 1 mile viewing loop and/or the 2 mile walk to the glaciers edge at least paved? This was not info I was finding.

Honestly I don't know if its all the planning of for all the other stops or what, but I can't seem to find anything to do other than what is mentioned above. I'm not looking forward to this stop like I thought I would when we booked the cruise. I know we can walk the town, but is there anything we should try and see/do? Any help/ideas would be appreciated. Thanks

You can "drive" the entire way on Google Maps using their Street View to get feel for the road. I did this the other night for large portions of the road to get an idea of the scenery we will see in June with our rental.

 

I've never need a credit card for rental when booked directly through the companies website. I'm not sure websites like Expedia, but the companies websites don't need a credit card to hold it. I've never had an issue of them not honoring the reservation and the car has always been there.

Thank you. I looked at Dyea Daves which had not popped up in my research. The train is out as we are doing the train from Seward to Anchorage after the cruise. Also my brother (with the 4 & 1 year old) is being a little more price sensitive then was anticipating. But it's working out. I want to rent the car and am leaning toward that route. I just have to verify that my brother is OK with renting a care and taking it into Canada. I will sort that out by this weekend. Also the two way radio is a good idea and I had been trying to figure out how we would communicate and thought of that earlier today. I'm assuming they still make those and can remember when everyone had a pair before cell phones.

 

Thanks for the input

We have a cruise stop in Skagway and trying to figure out the best way to do tour of the to the Yukon. We are a group of 9 (6 adults & kids ages 4, 3 & 1). We could rent cars from Avis (looks to basically be the only game in town), but would need to rent two 5 passenger cars (7 passenger is the largest they have). Each car would be $158.92 after tax.

The other option is to do it through tour company which I'm assuming is large coach bus. Any recommendations for companies? I've found Skagway-tours.com & frontierexcursions.com which are both look to be the same tour and basically the same price ($99/ adult, $79/kid & infant is free). Looking for any recommendations that I may be missing. Thanks

We were in Australia I'm October and didn't declare anything on the form, but when asked I did tell the guy I had kangaroo & emu jerky from a shop. He made us go through the screening. During the search for the jerky one of the girls pulled out the zip lock bags of sand. She asked a couple of people including one that seemed to be the supervisor/one in charge "do we care about sand?" Before putting the sand back in the suit case. We couldn't here the responses to her question, but the didn't seem to have an issue. The jerky was fine too and I'm assuming it's because it was processed and in a retail packaging

 

I didn't declare the sand as on the form the same paragraph that asks about "soil" also asks if you've been on a farm, ranch or pasture. I assume sand is not in their definition of "soil" as it appears, my interpretation, is that they are try to catch organisms that could hurt our agriculture industry. After that experience I won't declare sand.

 

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I wish Lago made them.

COBI a European competitor of sorts makes Lego like builds of the large ferries (more like small cruise ships). I saw them on a few different ferry lines' date=' but the. Models seemed generic for the ferry line with stickers for the ships name.

 

http://cobi.eu/customised/cruise-lines

 

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We are going to Mendenhall Glacier on a Princess Tour. Cost $44 per person. May cost a little more but sure eliminates all of the hassle described above. Will be at the glacier for 2.5 hours.

What hassle? Walking or taking a taxi max 1.5 miles, depending on which dock, then having a car for 10+ plus hours to see Juneau and not just a glacier for a few hours. With 3 couples (9 people) we can drive to the end of the road North and South for the cost of 3 people to see only the glacier. For me that's really not a hassle and I can spend a few minutes or hours getting it all figured out, including what stops to make with the rental. To each their own though

 

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They are super affordable and the people we talked to were super nice (a gentleman answered the phone on Jan 1st and then after answering all my questions said they were closed for the holiday). We are planning on also going to Eagle Beach and DIPAC Salmon Hatchery for sure.

 

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We rented a van with Juneau Car Rental. It was $135 including all taxes. Very affordable as split between the 3 families it's only $35. And of course we can see more than mendenhall

 

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Thanks for the quick replies. I was unaware of Juneau Car Rental Company and will call tomorrow (or Tuesday if closed for New Years) to ask about a van. This would be the best bet and hopefully they are a great price as I stopped looking when Avis was over $225 (incl tax) for just a car. I will look into the other trail at Mendenhall too. Thanks again for the quick replies as I try to figure this out for such a large group (normally it's just my family of three).

We will be in Juneau in mid-June from 7:00 am to 9:30 pm. We are group of six adults and 3 children (ages 4,3 &1) Our plan is head over to Mendenhall Glacier and at a minimum walk to Nugget Falls. I have a question regarding getting their without taking one of the blue or white shuttle/tour buses. It appears we could take the Capital Transit bus route 3/4 for $2 per adult. However, looking at Google maps it looks like the closest bus stop is the Mendenhall Loop Road (Dredge Lake) stop which is about a half hour walk to the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center (making the ride and walk about 1.5 hours). Is this the closest stop? I'm also looking at taking a taxi as it it appears that will take about a half hour and drop us off right at the visitor center. I've read that 7 passenger taxis are available and I'd assume would work with our group as we can just have a couple kids on laps. What is the estimated cost for taking a taxi from cruise port to the glacier? I found a taxi estimator and it says just under $45, but is this accurate as I couldn't enter the number of passengers?

 

Once at the glacier the plan is to take the short Photo Point Trail and then walk to Nugget Falls. Is the trail for Nugget Falls the East Glacier Trail? I'm assuming so looking at Google maps. IT appears like this is a fairly easy hike and will be more then doable with the kids and a couple of strollers. From what I can tell West Glacier Trail for getting right up to the glacier would be too difficult with kids and strollers, correct? Once at the visitor center or Nugget Falls area is there anything else we should do add to the list for the glacier?

 

Additionally, I'm thinking on the way back we can stop at the DIPAC Macaulay Hatcher before walking or catching a ride back to port area. Is the closes bus stop to DIPAC the one neare the corner of Hospital Drive & Salmon Creek Lane? Is it possible to walk from DIPAC to the cruise port (does not appear on Google maps)? I know it's about 4 miles but if we have the time (assuming everyone in our group want to walk it) it could be a decent walk along the water.

 

Finally, I'm curious if there is anything affordable and good for the kids we should look at in Juneau? I appreciate any and all help with the above questions. I'm most interested in taxi estimate cost and carrying 9 of us. Sorry for the long post, but I've done a fair amount of research and hitting a few walls and didn't want to do multiple posts.

Your best option for bears will be Icy Strait Point. There is a combo whale watching and bear search offered for $ 249 per adult., if you want to do both. You can check IcyStraitPoint.com for details.

 

If you are in Juneau from at least 8:00 am to 6:00 pm, I highly recommend a Tracy Arm excursion with Adventure Bound. It is not a specific whale watching trip, but we did see whales and a bear in addition to seeing the North and South Sawyer Glaciers and Tracy Arm Fjord.

 

 

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If the combo bear and whale in ISP that I saw it had a minimum age of 8 years old. Not sure why, but I saw one with the age and believe it was that site

 

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We will be in Icy Strait Point (ISP) on June 18 and Juneau the 19th of next year. We are looking at booking a whale watching tour in ISP and Juneau is TBD. However, we could try and book a bear viewing/seeing excursion in ISP and then do the whale watching in Juneau. For those with more info I'd like you opinions. We don't have to do bear viewing, but if we waited for Juneau is there any that doesn't require a flight (I wasn't seeing any)? Also from what I was seeing we are going to miss the salmon run and if that's the case are the bear viewing excursions out of ISP not really worth it. Thanks

I booked an Alaskan cruise in September (2017) for June 2018 and the same day created my online account with RCCL. I haven't touched or looked into this vacation due to finishing up planning and just returning from a trip to Tokyo and Sydney.

 

Anyways, I logged in tonight and my account said I owed $926 more then the email confirmation. This amount was the BOGO savings. I did call RCCL and they took care of it and fixed it. The representative said they have an issue with the system where it sometimes drops the BOGO discount after making changes. I never made changes so I'm not sure what the issue was in my case. Has anyone had this issue and is it wide spread. I'm now thinking I'll have to check regular until it's paid to make sure I don't have anymore issues. This is my first cruise with RCCL and on top of this their website is seems to be much less user friendly then NCL's site.