Need Some Advice On Shore Excursions

[franzi56]

My husband, adult daughter and myself are sailing on the Island Princess in June. We could use some advice regarding shore excursions. We have decided to book through the ship and are looking at three different excursions relating to dog sleds. Two of them involve helicopter rides and landing on a glacier for a dog sled ride. One is out of Juneau and the other is out of Skagway. There is a third trip out of Skagway that goes to the dog camp and does not include a helicopter ride. If anyone has done these trips, I would appreciate their comments.

 

Would we be better going to the dog camp and then taking a separate excursion for the helicopter ride? Do the ones involving the helicopter rides get cancelled frequently due to bad weather ? Juneau more than Skagway?

 

My husband and daughter are also looking at horseback riding excursions. Any feedback would be appreciated.

 

Thanks, Fran

[CaribbeanBound]

We did not go dog sledding (that would be a really cool thing to do) due to the really high cost. However, we did Alaska on a budget and saw more in Juneau and Skagway than most anyone else on the ship.

 

Here is a very detailed review of our Princess Star to Alaska cruise which departed out of Seattle. http://www.lavasurfer.com/info/alaska.html

[Budget Queen]

Yes the glacier dog sledding tours do get canceled, but of course no guarantees on weather- so just book and have back up plans. These always sell out. I would not consider the cart ride at $100/pp I did this when it was $30 several years ago- kids loved it. The horseback riding with Southeast tours (Joni's) gets consistant RAVES, and is the most recommended on these boards. BUT you have to be willing to book independent- just superior to any ship tour.

[paulanm]

franzi56

Thanks so much for asking your question about dog sledding/helicopter rides out of Juneau and Skagway. I have exactly the same question. Which, if either, port is better to book out of? If you book for Juneau and have bad weather can you get a last minute booking for Skagway the next day? Does one of the ports have better scenery than the other? Are independent operators any better than the ship's tours (Sapphire Princess)? Can you run into problems if you book independently and have trouble getting off of the ship in time for the tour? Any help would really be appreciated. Thanks!

[jezzdogg]

We booked all our excursions independtly and a lot of the companies were the same, however our price was less because we didn't go thru the cruiseline. We used Coastal in Juneau.....great company, these are not fly boys that come up for the summer tourist season, but a company that flys all year long in all kinds of weather. Yes the dog sledding gets cancelled a lot of the time because of the attitude that the base camps are at. Most times if they can still fly they will substitue ( and refund the difference) a glacier hike.

We also did in Juneau Captain Larry for whale watching, got to see a whole pod "bubble feeding" he has been at this for years and just knows where they are, many of the boats where following us.

[Budget Queen]

franzi56

Thanks so much for asking your question about dog sledding/helicopter rides out of Juneau and Skagway. I have exactly the same question. Which, if either, port is better to book out of? If you book for Juneau and have bad weather can you get a last minute booking for Skagway the next day? Does one of the ports have better scenery than the other? Are independent operators any better than the ship's tours (Sapphire Princess)? Can you run into problems if you book independently and have trouble getting off of the ship in time for the tour? Any help would really be appreciated. Thanks!

 

 

Myself I never book ship tours and have booked independent for at least the last 7++ years in Alaska. It's your own fault with poor planning if you miss the ship. You need to fully disclose to ANY vender your port times and go with their recommendation. Check out and verify the docking schedule- then you will know if your ship docks or tenders then make your decision based on that. But with any tender- I am always in the tender line an hour before posted and have never failed to get out on the first tenders. It is VERY unlikely you will have any late booking flight availablity- these always sell out and especially now with ships offloading 10,000 passengers per day.

[paulanm]

Thanks so much, Budget Queen! Is the tour any different out of Juneau or Skagway? Any recommendations on the company to use?

[Budget Queen]

Thanks so much, Budget Queen! Is the tour any different out of Juneau or Skagway? Any recommendations on the company to use?

 

 

Probably not- book who fits your time best.