Tundra Wilderness Tour

[ShibaInuMom]

Are the passengers really transported in old school buses? Are they the hard plastic benches or are they at least comfortable? What if a person has a bad back? Any info you can add will be appreciated. :o

[HokiePoq]

Are the passengers really transported in old school buses? Are they the hard plastic benches or are they at least comfortable? What if a person has a bad back? Any info you can add will be appreciated. :o

 

Are you referring to the bus trip into Denali or somewhere else?

[Shmoo here]

Are the passengers really transported in old school buses? Are they the hard plastic benches or are they at least comfortable? What if a person has a bad back? Any info you can add will be appreciated. :o

 

These are the busses that were being used on the day we took the TWT:

 

And the inside of the bus we were on:

[geoherb]

They are old buses, and the drivers aim for every pothole along the way. But I was too entranced by the scenery to think about the lack of padding. I wouldn't recommend this trip for someone with a really bad back.

[serendipity1499]

Are the passengers really transported in old school buses? Are they the hard plastic benches or are they at least comfortable? What if a person has a bad back? Any info you can add will be appreciated. :o

 

I had a bad back/hip & took the tour in 2008..The buses are not comfortable & I believe they were old plastic seats, but we saw so much wildlife that it made up for the uncomfortable seats..The box lunches they give you are horrible! We took the evening tour which was fantastic, as the wildlife showed their faces!

Will try to post a pic of 2 Mama Bears grazing with their cubs..One was off white color & one brown Mama bear with her cubs stood up on her hind legs & stared at our bus..Only got the pic of them all grazing..We all were transfixed..:):):) let's see if it works...

Even saw a red fox on the roadway..He walked right up to our bus & stared at all of us for almost 10 minutes..

Even the weather cooperated as were able to see the peak of Denali, which does not often happen.. Usually it's shrouded in clouds..

If your back is bad, suggest you take a pillow from the hotel to sit on..It might help..I've since had my hip operation but still have the bad back..

Enjoy your tour & cruise..

Cheers...:)Betty

[Taz]

We had the padded/upholstered seats on the yellow bus when I did the trip into Denali two years ago. The seats themselves weren't all that bad, but the pitch is worse than a really cheap discount airline. I'm just shy of 5'4" and my knees were painfully pinched into the seat back in front of me. Fortunately the beautiful scenery more than made up for that.

[ShibaInuMom]

Thank you all so much for the comments and photo! I really want to go however my husband does have a bad back - he is at the chiropractor as I am typing this message. I am now wondering about just going to Fairbanks and then the train down to catch the ship in Seward. Do any of you think we would see any wildlife around Fairbanks? :)

[oaktreerb]

The busses for the Tundra Wilderness Tour are much nicer than the school busses that you get when you take the cheaper tours. They look like the pictures above and the ride is much smoother than the school busses provided by the park.

 

You may see wildlife if you drive into the Yukon from Skagway. You may also see wildlife around Seward. You probably won't see much wildlife in Fairbanks but in Alaska moose and bears can turn up when you least expect it. Just keep your eyes open and if you see a car stopped by the side of the road or some people who seem to be watching something very carefully go take a look, it may be wildlife!

[Irish Eyes Are Sailing]

I have a bad back and did not have any issue on the TW Tour. Is it a luxurious motorcoach? No. But it seemed fine for the day to see all the beauty of Denali and the wildlife. I agree, the box lunches were awful. But it didn't matter, because it was a once in an lifetime experience to see this wonderful wilderness. I would not miss it.