Another Alaska question

[Frankie Sue]

For all of you Alaska experienced cruisers, which would you prefer: a helicopter/glacier walk in Juneau or a heli/hike excursion in Skagway where you finish with the scenic train ride. Because of budget, we cannot do both and both sound fabulous. Look forward to your comments.

[june1]

The dog sled ride and driving the sled on the glacier with Coastal Helicpters out of Juneau was the highlight of the AK cruise. The train ride is nice if it's your first of that kind but otherwise I'd skip it.

[mamaofami]

That 4 glaciers helicopter excursion that landed on the glacier and then we did dog sledding was the very best excursion I have ever taken. Took the train from Skagway too but it didn't compare.

[Frankie Sue]

Thanks for your comments. But has anyone tried the Heli-Trek and Train excursion? The trekking along the river sounds very interesting too.

[CamaroKid67]

I have to agree with the prior postings... The Helicopter and dog sledding was one of my very best excursions ever! Have a back up plan too. If it is windy, the helicopters will be grounded.

[Assateague Island Princes]

Frankie Sue - try asking this question on the Ports of Call - Alaska boards. Yukon (aka: Murray) lives north of Skagway and used to be a tour guide so he has a great deal of experience and advice to offer regarding these train/trek excursions in Skagway. I believe he even commented on it once, saying that the trekking part of the tour, while very beautiful, traversed some rough ground and difficult terrain, and that he recommend you be physically fit and active. Lots of great info on the Alaska boards anyway, always fun to peruse and learn from other's experiences.

 

You're gonna LOVE Alaska - it is magnificent! Been three times and am about to embark on HAL's 14 day itinerary again this coming Aug 5th. Woo-hoo!:D

[Frankie Sue]

Thanks for the advice, I will research the ports of calls.

[zookiebird]

We did a combination helicopter flight/dog sledding excursion in Skagway a couple of years ago. It was without a doubt the greatest excursion we have ever done. It is pricey but since we didn't know if we'd ever get back to AK again our thought was "if not now, when?". It is truly an unforgettable experience and we still talk about it.

[Frankie Sue]

I checked the helicopter ride/dog sledding excursions and was told that these are not offered in late September due to snow deterioration . Unfortunately, we will travel to Alaska in late September and are left with the helicopter ride/glacier walk or the helicopter ride/wilderness trek/steam train ride ............. Anyone has any suggestions or comments on these two excursions or any other suggestions? Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

[GMoney]

I've done both those tours. They're both very good. If I had to pick I'd go with the Juneau one, because I think the helicopter ride offers superior views of glaciers and tromping around on the glacier is a fun and unique thing.

 

The Skagway tour is still very good. The hike is interesting, not very long though, nor challenging. Just an out-and-back affair along a small river.

 

I was lucky to have great weather both days, which I think influences memories of Alaska.

[Frankie Sue]

Thanks GMoney,

I think that you have just confirmed for us the one that we felt might be the best. Did you do the 1 hour walk on the glacier or did you take the longer one?

[GMoney]

Thanks GMoney,

I think that you have just confirmed for us the one that we felt might be the best. Did you do the 1 hour walk on the glacier or did you take the longer one?

 

I did the tour with the longest amount of time on the glacier. I think that was 90 min? The general rule of thumb is "longer is better," but looking back, I think an hour would have been just fine.

[JJPacer]

You didn't include this option, but it might be a good alternative for you.

 

In Skagway, we rented a car and drove all the way to Emerald Lake (past Car Cross) Emerald Lake is the most beautiful lake we've ever seen. The rental car was less expensive than any of the ships excursions. You can stop along the way and hike as much as you like. You can purchase Murray's guide on line for $5 -$10.00 and print it from your home computer. It tells you interesting facts about the drive, where to stop for certain views, and what you are seeing. For example, there's a bridge along the way that is connected on one side to land, and not connected on the other end to protect it from earthquakes. There is also a suspension bridge. There is food and restrooms at the suspension bridge. It was worth the few $$ we spent for it. The road paralells the train tracks in many areas, but not all. We saw quite a bit of wildlife and stunning scenerary. You have to take your passports with you, because you cross into Canada. We saw bears. If you hike, read up about hiking and bears, so you can be safe. It was a great day.

[Frankie Sue]

Wow... The car rental option is not something we had considered but now we may look into it. Either way i know we'll have a good time. Thanks to all for your suggestions and input.

[slabeaume]

We did the car option last time, too. It's a great way to go, especially with Murray's guide. I had done the bus tour into the yukon before, but liked the freedom of stopping when and where we wanted to with the car. The Yukon is gorgeous! If you do the car rental, be sure and show up for your car within the hour grace period for pick up or they won't hold it for you. We were within that time and they still tried to tell us there was no car for us. We had to talk them into renting us a car with a bad tire warning light knowing we had a spare tire with us. I had booked the Avis reservation back in Jan. for our Aug. cruise and it was a mad house at their tiny office.