Alaska Cruisetour Do-It-Yourself and save a bundle

[Want2CWhales]

Hi everyone, there's often been debate on here about whether a cruise tour is a waste, or if it's beneficial. I think it depends on what you want and what you need. Speaking only for myself, I want to make my own decisions about where to go and what to see, even if it means some logistical headaches ahead of time. I love to travel and visit new places, but I'm not doing it for luxury; I'm fairly budget-conscious. I just want to share, with whomever finds it helpful, how I made our Alaska land portion affordable.

 

My group of 6 (for the land portion) had certain limitations I had to factor in before making these decisions, such as time availability, health, and distance to airport (5 hours!). But to keep things short, here's what I did:

 

Instead of Princess' cruise tour A or B (3 nights), costing around $1200+, or $2400+ per couple:

1. Denali Star from Anchorage to Denali, with Toursaver, $146 (2 for 1)

2. Denali Princess Lodge, 2 nights, with Toursaver, $320

3. Park Conx Bus return to Anchorage, $90pp ($180/couple)

So my costs are $646 for both of us, or $323pp. The other 4 will save even more since they're sharing the Lodge room ($243pp).

 

Our inside cabins on the cruise cost $599, bringing the DIY cruise tour per person cost to $922 ($842 for the others), which is way better than $1200+! Note: I did not include the cost of a tour/shuttle inside Denali. I'll be taking one (Wonder Lake Shuttle $56pp), but a few in our group will not; two have had recent surgery, and get plum tuckered out easily.

 

It's not apples to apples of course, since we won't be staying at McKinley Lodge at all, but I have a feeling that's a good thing. Many have mentioned that despite beautiful views, there's little to do at McKinley, and you feel like you're constantly traveling. I can't wait to spend time in Denail!

 

By flying in earlier in the week (i.e. not the day before or day of cruise departure), we also saved a ton. Our flights were half what they would have been by flying in the middle of the week.

 

We leave in 10 days, and I'll let you know how it all works out.:)

[blakey]

I think your ideas are great! Let us know how it goes.

Have you considered renting a car/van? My problem with the train/bus transportation is having to lug all that luggage around (we still haven't learned to pack light...lol).

And, yes, airfares Mon thru Thurs are the best.

[Want2CWhales]

Thanks, Blakey!

I did consider driving, but I heard from so many that the railroad is a spectacular experience. Also, I knew that whoever was driving (probably me) would have fewer opportunities to take in the scenery. I very much enjoy having someone else at the wheel (plane, bus, train, subway, etc). Driving would be cheaper, but not much; anything that seats 6 adults is minimum $600, plus gas and whatever misc charges. Having to lug around our luggage is something I'm just not thinking about too much (avoidance)! I'm not sure there's really a way around it, though. It seems that's taken care of for you on a Prince Cruisetour, but many on this site have complained that luggage wasn't where it was supposed to be, when it was supposed to be, and that they had to relinquish way before it was convenient. I'm just going to pack light and hope for the best. :rolleyes:

 

I think your ideas are great! Let us know how it goes.

Have you considered renting a car/van? My problem with the train/bus transportation is having to lug all that luggage around (we still haven't learned to pack light...lol).

And, yes, airfares Mon thru Thurs are the best.

[Gloria Mundi]

I'm never sure if we save anything, but I much prefer booking things independently for the reasons you mention, plus the ability to redeem points and miles where possible. We booked our actual cruise through a TA, but I booked everything else- hotels and B&B for land days, flights, the ferry from Wrangell to Ketchikan, etc. I know what airlines I do and don't want to take, what minimum layovers I want in various airports, for example. IT was a great tripa nd more than once I patted myself on the back!

[pdmlynek]

Just to chime in: earlier this month we did the Vancouver to Seward cruise, and then spend another week in Alaska. We rented cars in Anchorage, hit a grociery store on the way out of the city, and camped around different parts of Alaska. We did other things than simply going on a few-hour tour of Denali like many cruisers seem to take.

The pain was the expensive car rental, but the cost for other stuff was fairly trivial. And we did have to bring tents and sleeping bags and other camping gear with us, so we did have to check luggages, adding additional costs.

[pmjnh]

We are still in Alaska after our cruise and post cruise DIY tour. We arrived in Whittier and took the Princess shuttle to Anchorage ..Egan Center. We had booked a car with Enterprise last August and got a phenomenol rate (350 for a full size SUV). Enterprise picked us up at the Egan Center in the SUV that was assigned to us and drove us back to the Enterprise office. there, the wonderful agent suggested that since we had so much luggage we may be more comfortable in a minivan, for the same price, with the added bonus of better gas mileage! We took it and off we went to Talkeetna, For 1 night, then Healy for 3 nights. We are now in Seward and have 5 more days between here and Girdwood before flying home. I will do a more complete trip report when we return home.

Good luck with your plan. You will save a bundle and you will be happy with your freedom of independant travel! By the way, Gas prices this week in the Talkeetna, Denali region averaged about 3.80 I was really surprised at this.

 

I should note, that we traveled on our cruise with 2 other couples who did the Princess land tours . 2 different ones. They did not have any problems with their luggage arrival.

Edited July 21, 2012 by pmjnh

[Budget Queen]

Thanks, Blakey!

I did consider driving, but I heard from so many that the railroad is a spectacular experience. Also, I knew that whoever was driving (probably me) would have fewer opportunities to take in the scenery. I very much enjoy having someone else at the wheel (plane, bus, train, subway, etc). Driving would be cheaper, but not much; anything that seats 6 adults is minimum $600, plus gas and whatever misc charges. Having to lug around our luggage is something I'm just not thinking about too much (avoidance)! I'm not sure there's really a way around it, though. It seems that's taken care of for you on a Prince Cruisetour, but many on this site have complained that luggage wasn't where it was supposed to be, when it was supposed to be, and that they had to relinquish way before it was convenient. I'm just going to pack light and hope for the best. :rolleyes:

 

For clairfication- the "spectacular" train "experience" you are referring to, you aren't taking. It is the Anchorage/Seward run. This is NOT the case with the Anchorage/Fairbanks section, which just about parallels the Parks Highway, has a lot of trees, no ability to stop and takes longer.

 

It is of no issue with the driver enjoying scenic drives. This is not multi lane high speed freeways. It is mostly one lane each direction roads. All the scenery, just laying out in front of you. Alaska has plentiful easy pull offs for extended views, or rest stops. It's not what you think it is.

[Want2CWhales]

For clairfication- the "spectacular" train "experience" you are referring to, you aren't taking. It is the Anchorage/Seward run. This is NOT the case with the Anchorage/Fairbanks section, which just about parallels the Parks Highway, has a lot of trees, no ability to stop and takes longer.

 

It is of no issue with the driver enjoying scenic drives. This is not multi lane high speed freeways. It is mostly one lane each direction roads. All the scenery, just laying out in front of you. Alaska has plentiful easy pull offs for extended views, or rest stops. It's not what you think it is.

 

Bummer! Well...I just won't share this with the rest of my group and hopefully we'll enjoy it anyway. We'll get both experiences regardless--train one way, coach the other.

 

pdmlynek, I WISH we could camp. But lugging all that equipment on airplanes? Not for me. Someday, hopefully, a really long road trip, with a different group of people. :D

[Want2CWhales]

In case anyone's interested...

Hubby and I flew to Anchorage from the northeast, my parents and grandparents from central US. I booked everything independently--flights, hotels, ground transportation. We took the railroad from Anchorage to Denali and really enjoyed the experience. I especially appreciated them stopping the train so we could watch the moose. We enjoyed listening to our waitress's crazy stories about hunting and camping in Alaska.

Princess Lodge picked us up from the train (we didn't have any packages--I'm not sure if we were supposed to get a ride or not, but no one complained). Our luggage was magically waiting for us in our rooms (I love that). It's very helpful when traveling with my elderly grandparents. I was impressed with the accommodations. I'd read some pretty negative reviews, but I found nothing to complain about.

We ate at the casual dining restaurant (can't remember the name) next to King Salmon--my family are NOT fancy eaters, and some of them resent spending more than $10 on food. I thought it was good, and quite reasonable. Mom and I split a fish and chips basket--perfect size for two. We poked around the shops--I was surprised to find items reasonably priced, in my opinion.

The next day, hubby and I took the first shuttle to Denali at 7:00am. I had booked the 7:15 Wonder Lake tour. When I booked it, I didn't know that the first Princess shuttle was at 7. I was pretty anxious, but it worked out. We were the last ones on the bus, but we made it. The weather was quite cold (even snowed at one point) so we weren't in the mood to hike. It was a wonderful trip, though. After being quite clear on his role as bus driver, NOT a tour guide, Ned gave a lovely commentary throughout most of the trip. We saw lots of bears, lots of caribou, several dall sheep, and one moose. The bears were the highlight for me, as we saw a mama and cubs very close to the bus. The scenery was spectacular. I'm so glad I booked that super long bus trip; it gave us those opportunities to spot wildlife. We returned to the Wilderness Access Center around 6:40PM, just enough time to select some souvenirs from the gift shop and catch the final 7:00 shuttle back to the Lodge. I didn't plan it to be so close, but thank heaven it worked out!

My parents took the free shuttle (15 miles in) and managed to see one of everything hubby and I saw: moose, bear, sheep, caribou. I couldn't believe it--we saw nothing in the first 15 miles! My family's gift to my grandparents was a flightseeing trip. They were booked for the shortest trip (30 minutes?) and were upgraded to an hour since neither trip was full. They weren't overly enthused about it. Maybe they thought they'd see Denali, not sure. They preferred to eat at the casual place again. The parents and I ate at King Salmon, spent a bundle, and really weren't impressed. The ladies had the salmon and the men chose prime rib. One was especially chewy.

The next morning we grabbed cinnamon roles and departed on the 7:15AM Park Connection bus. Our driver was a fantastic narrator. She asked if we wanted silence or some learning, and proceeded to give us geology and history lessons on the area, recite some Alaska-inspired poetry, and share some of her wilder experiences driving tourists across her state. It was fantastic.

My parents had purchased Princess transfers for everyone, so we had a complicated transfer plan. The Connections bus took us to the airport, then we met our Princess transfer there. I know it would have been easier/cheaper to just take the Connections bus all the way to Whittier, but...I wasn't in charge of ALL aspects of this trip. No worries, though, again we were very pleased with our driver--he was a retired schoolteacher and very entertaining and informative. Also, it was a beautiful ride from Anchorage to Whittier.

 

I also loved the cruise, and all of this vacation. I've never been anywhere I can honestly say that I can't wait to return. I like to see new things, visit new places. I feel that I could visit Alaska 10 times and always see new things and never tire of it.

 

But this posting is just for the pre-cruise land portion, so I'll end things here.

[mapleleaves]

Thanks for coming back with a follow up report! Glad to hear that everything came together so well. It's pretty amazing what a little research can do .. you made great use of the Toursaver coupons.

I'm so amazed at your grandparents wildlife sightings during the first 15 miles. I've only seen moose along that stretch and only in mid August. Good for them!

Are you going to add the cruise portion onto this thread or start a new one ?

p.s. I'm pretty sure I read on the Princess web site that they pick up all guests from the train depot.

Edited August 16, 2012 by mapleleaves
Princess

[Want2CWhales]

The next morning we grabbed cinnamon roles and departed on the 7:15AM Park Connection bus.

 

Hahahaha. *Rolls. The rolls really were good--and one will feed two people, easily.

 

Mapleleaves, I'm planning to post it somewhere else. I'll post the link when I do, hopefully this weekend (after I WRITE it!). ;) I enjoyed my trip so much, I'll share it with anyone who will listen. I'm also grateful to the helpful people here on CC who provided guidance when I was planning this trip. Maybe some of my experiences can help future travelers as well.

[Want2CWhales]

As I mentioned before, I independently booked the Wonder Lake shuttle bus through Denali's concession, Aramark. I think it was $56pp. You'll need to bring your own food/drink. We went to Subway in the morning (it's 24 hours!) and got a footlong and some cookies, and filled our Nalgenes with water. We also had some granola to munch on. I can't recommend this trip enough. I'm not Consumer Reports, so I haven't compared it to everything else, of course, but I was just soooo pleased with our experience. I wanted to see wildlife and scenery, and that's exactly what we got. I was hoping to see Mt. McKinley, but I knew odds weren't in my favor. I didn't get to see the mountain, but seriously, the bears made up for it!

 

A couple of notes for anyone considering what I did: the Wonder Lake shuttle is one of several different trips offered, and it lists the length at 12 hours, which is admittedly a long time to be on a bus, and the road is VERY bumpy, especially at the beginning. The Eielson Visitor's Center shuttle is listed at 9 hours and goes, of course, to Eielson. I've heard many say you should go at least that far. I didn't find the Visitor's Center THAT spectacular (although I am a fan of flush toilets). I would still recommend going at least that far if you have a Passport to National Parks you want to stamp, and just for more opportunities to see wildlife. Many people on our bus left at Eielson and returned, skipping their last segment. I think the kids were fidgety and cold. Since we saw all the awesome caribou after that point, I think they missed out.

The driver told us that the Visitor's Center is well worth checking out (the one that's just a mile or two into the park) but we, sadly, didn't have time.

If you do this trip, make sure you have good binoculars, preferably for everyone in your group. If I could go on this trip again, there's little I would change. Except, I'd love more time--I think 3 days would have been ideal. And better binoculars and a better camera. :D

Edited August 17, 2012 by Want2CWhales
Photo attachments

[Want2CWhales]

Hmm....guess I'll have to work on figuring out how to correctly post pictures, cuz that didn't work.

Here's a link, if you're interested: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wagnavera/sets/72157631111550928/

[Phamer55]

This is a great thread about doing independent travel in Alaska, I love it! I was actually contemplating doing a trip someday where I do the one-way cruise from Vancouver to Seward/Whittier/Anchorage, spend time in Denali, etc. for 4-7 days, then do a one-way cruise, likely a different cruise line than the first to get a different experience, back to Vancouver. It would make a great 3 week vacation! I would want to do the land portion on my own as you all have been describing here.

[geoherb]

Thanks for following up. The little Cruise Critic photos worked for me. The boards don't allow for larger photos in the attachments.

Edited August 17, 2012 by geoherb

[zqvol]

Bummer! Well...I just won't share this with the rest of my group and hopefully we'll enjoy it anyway. We'll get both experiences regardless--train one way, coach the other.

 

pdmlynek, I WISH we could camp. But lugging all that equipment on airplanes? Not for me. Someday, hopefully, a really long road trip, with a different group of people. :D

 

 

Sorry but don't let the quoted poster spoil your plans. We have done both the highway and the train and the train is much more scenic and more relaxing than driving. You made the right choice to begin with!

[Want2CWhales]

Well, it's "started."

I seem to be long-winded. :rolleyes:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=34980585#post34980585

 

Thanks for coming back with a follow up report! Glad to hear that everything came together so well. It's pretty amazing what a little research can do .. you made great use of the Toursaver coupons.

I'm so amazed at your grandparents wildlife sightings during the first 15 miles. I've only seen moose along that stretch and only in mid August. Good for them!

Are you going to add the cruise portion onto this thread or start a new one ?

p.s. I'm pretty sure I read on the Princess web site that they pick up all guests from the train depot.

[Grand & Nana]

Hi everyone, there's often been debate on here about whether a cruise tour is a waste, or if it's beneficial. I think it depends on what you want and what you need. Speaking only for myself, I want to make my own decisions about where to go and what to see, even if it means some logistical headaches ahead of time. I love to travel and visit new places, but I'm not doing it for luxury; I'm fairly budget-conscious. I just want to share, with whomever finds it helpful, how I made our Alaska land portion affordable.

 

My group of 6 (for the land portion) had certain limitations I had to factor in before making these decisions, such as time availability, health, and distance to airport (5 hours!). But to keep things short, here's what I did:

 

Instead of Princess' cruise tour A or B (3 nights), costing around $1200+, or $2400+ per couple:

1. Denali Star from Anchorage to Denali, with Toursaver, $146 (2 for 1)

2. Denali Princess Lodge, 2 nights, with Toursaver, $320

3. Park Conx Bus return to Anchorage, $90pp ($180/couple)

So my costs are $646 for both of us, or $323pp. The other 4 will save even more since they're sharing the Lodge room ($243pp).

 

Our inside cabins on the cruise cost $599, bringing the DIY cruise tour per person cost to $922 ($842 for the others), which is way better than $1200+! Note: I did not include the cost of a tour/shuttle inside Denali. I'll be taking one (Wonder Lake Shuttle $56pp), but a few in our group will not; two have had recent surgery, and get plum tuckered out easily.

 

It's not apples to apples of course, since we won't be staying at McKinley Lodge at all, but I have a feeling that's a good thing. Many have mentioned that despite beautiful views, there's little to do at McKinley, and you feel like you're constantly traveling. I can't wait to spend time in Denail!

 

By flying in earlier in the week (i.e. not the day before or day of cruise departure), we also saved a ton. Our flights were half what they would have been by flying in the middle of the week.

 

We leave in 10 days, and I'll let you know how it all works out.:)

 

Finally, informative information to get me started on our DIY travel after we disembark in Seward in 12 months... Thanks!

 

Nancy

[cruisin0218]

I know that a lot of people prefer the scenery going from Anchorage to Seward and it is gorgeous but I think my favorite scenery is between Anchorage and Denali if you are going northbound on the Parks highway. I'm not sure if it is quicker for us by car because we stop so often to gaze at the scenery and take pictures. I would not want to miss the scenery in either place. I could however do without seeing the sights between Denali and Fairbanks and the scenery going southbound on the Richardson Highway. The only thing I enjoyed there was seeing the pipeline. Someone posted earlier that they would love to camp but did not want to bring all the gear. We loved renting an RV. It came fully stocked. I don't know how much of a cost saver it was but I do know that we at least broke even with the quoted cost of the cruiseline cost when we added in the cost for rental, gas and campground fees plus we ate breafast and one other meal per day in the camper. That cost included gas to drive up the Parks highway to Fairbanks via Denali, down the Richardson Highway, across the Glenellen Highway and down to Seward.