bhsolo Posted January 9, 2019 #1 Share Posted January 9, 2019 I'll be on Royal Ovation of the Seas at the end of June and am trying to decide on my Skagway excursion. Trying to decide if any of these are an absolute, good/decent or a don't bother. In Juneau I'll be doing whale watching/mendenhall glacier and in Victoria a tour of the gardens. Anyone care to share their opinions on the below? Skagway Glacier Wilderness Safari Kroschel Wildlife Refuge Glassblowing in Jewell Gardens Chilkoot Trail Hiking and Rafting Thank you!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wolfie11 Posted January 9, 2019 #2 Share Posted January 9, 2019 I've done all four. Favorites were Glacier Wilderness Safari, Chilkoot Trail, Kroschel, and glassblowing. My absolute fav in Skagway is Bennett Lake train trip. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhsolo Posted January 9, 2019 Author #3 Share Posted January 9, 2019 Thanks! I really appreciate you also putting them in preference order. Sadly I don't see a Bennett Lake train trip. If I do Glacier Wilderness Safari do you think doing Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau is a bit too much as I've heard 50/50 about Mendenhall? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LHARTWICK Posted January 9, 2019 #4 Share Posted January 9, 2019 We are doing our fifth AK cruise in May, and I am looking at some of the above excursions as well. Joining the thread - thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bouelle11 Posted January 10, 2019 #5 Share Posted January 10, 2019 I’ll be there in July and would love to hear more about these recommendations!! Following!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oaktreerb Posted January 10, 2019 #6 Share Posted January 10, 2019 We enjoyed the Chilkoot Trail hike and rafting. Kroeschel is fun if you are docked in Haines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masterdrago Posted January 10, 2019 #7 Share Posted January 10, 2019 (edited) I've not been on one, so cannot recommend but we'll be in Skagway Memorial Day. Had looked at all day excursions to get up into the Yukon. We had looked at an all day jeep rental https://www.diyjeeptours.com/ Not available on Monday, the long train ride gets good reviews https://wpyr.com/excursions/product/bennett-scenic-journey/ Edited January 10, 2019 by masterdrago Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitetrike Posted January 10, 2019 #8 Share Posted January 10, 2019 Here is another excursion for you to look over....https://wpyr.com/ White Pass scenic railway is a narrow gauge rail trip that follows some of the "gold rush" era trails up an impressive mountain. My wife and I will be doing this outing in late May, I sure hope the weather cooperates as I expect some world class scenery!! Whitetrike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Crew News Posted January 11, 2019 #9 Share Posted January 11, 2019 Max jewell, www.elementsofalaska.com, is a Skagway resident with a 15 passenger van that will pick you up at the port entrance and drive all the way to Emerald Lake and back for around $850 if you can get some friends to go along. That is a lot cheaper than a rental car. Max makes lots of photo stops for any wildlife, natural wonders, and scenic views that a bus wil not do as well as bathroom stops upon request. If you opt for the train ride, make sure you are on the left side of the car going up and the right side coming back. If not, you will be staring at a rock wall. If you stand on the ramp between the train cars, you can avoid the window glare and get some amazing photos: http://www.rogerjett-photography.com/place/alaska-2/skagway-2/white-pass-yukon-railroad 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LHARTWICK Posted January 11, 2019 #10 Share Posted January 11, 2019 We've done an all day Yukon tour - it's really good! I think we used Frontier Excursions, but there are several companies who offer this tour. The train is my first recommendation for AK newbies in Skagway. I seem to recall the passengers having to switch sides on the return route, but maybe I'm thinking of another train ride. At any rate, it's a great excursion! Some tour companies offer a tour that includes the train and the Yukon tour. I think that's what we did, so you get the best of both. And if you only do the train ride, you'll have plenty of time to walk around Skagway when you return. Just a beautiful place, as is all of AK! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masterdrago Posted January 11, 2019 #11 Share Posted January 11, 2019 The all day jeep rental is ~$250 at https://www.diyjeeptours.com/ Similar to what Crew News mentioned, Dyea Dave Tours does van tours. Check out the reviews https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g60877-d1555401-Reviews-Dyea_Dave_Tours-Skagway_Alaska.html We have it booked on Memorial Day since the WPYR does not run the full trip on Monday. They will tour us up to Emerald Lake, then drop us on the way back at Fraser (6-7 hours, 75 miles, $89) where we pick up the WPYR back to Skagway - 28 miles and ~1.7 hours. http://*****/ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhsolo Posted January 11, 2019 Author #12 Share Posted January 11, 2019 (edited) Thanks for all of your thoughts and please keep them coming. As of right now, obviously this can change, I'm not interested in spending all of my time on a train. But will take a look at maybe a combo Yukon Tour along with these excursions still. Edited January 11, 2019 by bhsolo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubbs33 Posted January 11, 2019 #13 Share Posted January 11, 2019 Our first trip to Alaska too. We booked a SUV rental for four in Skagway and will do the drive to emerald lake. Hope to do stops and photos along the way. We are in port 12hrs so can be a bit loose with our DIY trip planning re time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LHARTWICK Posted January 11, 2019 #14 Share Posted January 11, 2019 29 minutes ago, bhsolo said: Thanks for all of your thoughts and please keep them coming. As of right now, obviously this can change, I'm not interested in spending all of my time on a train. But will take a look at maybe a combo Yukon Tour along with these excursions still. You wouldn't be on the train all day, and it really does offer some great scenery. Enjoy your visit no matter what you decide! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masterdrago Posted January 11, 2019 #15 Share Posted January 11, 2019 Not sure why that link got ****ed out. it would be wpyr dot com forward slash excursions slash product slash fraser-one-way-service computers!! Silly. https://wpyr.com/excursions/product/fraser-one-way-service/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masterdrago Posted January 11, 2019 #16 Share Posted January 11, 2019 This link might have been chopped dyeadavetours dot com http://www.*****/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelli0927 Posted January 11, 2019 #17 Share Posted January 11, 2019 We booked a jeep all in with taxes for $300, which we will be splitting with my in laws. I like that we are on our own time and get to stop whenever we want. Looking forward to emerald lake and the Yukon. My 10 yo son also wants to pan for gold, so we can also do that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masterdrago Posted January 11, 2019 #18 Share Posted January 11, 2019 I'm having a heck of a time finding Emerald lake on the maps. Google Earth wants to send me way out west of where I'm expecting it to be - NE of Carcross. It looks like GE is calling it Crag Lake if I use the reference in the little map attached from http://roadtripalaska.com/destinations/emerald-lake/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom.Kitten Posted January 11, 2019 #19 Share Posted January 11, 2019 19 hours ago, Whitetrike said: Here is another excursion for you to look over....https://wpyr.com/ White Pass scenic railway is a narrow gauge rail trip that follows some of the "gold rush" era trails up an impressive mountain. My wife and I will be doing this outing in late May, I sure hope the weather cooperates as I expect some world class scenery!! Whitetrike I've been on a bunch of cruises, and done a bunch of excursions, and by far the most wonderful excursion of all was the White Pass scenic railway. Indescribably awesome views. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masterdrago Posted January 11, 2019 #20 Share Posted January 11, 2019 I see Emerald Lake now. It's really small and about 7 miles north of Carcross. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBQluver Posted January 13, 2019 #21 Share Posted January 13, 2019 We enjoyed renting a car in Skagway and driving to Emerald Lake. Nice photo spots along the way. Another positive is that you can reserve the rental with Avis with no deposit and if you need to change plans there is no cancelation charge. We loved being able to stop wherever and whenever we wanted to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunny AZ Girl Posted January 14, 2019 #22 Share Posted January 14, 2019 (edited) On 1/11/2019 at 8:53 AM, masterdrago said: The all day jeep rental is ~$250 at https://www.diyjeeptours.com/ Similar to what Crew News mentioned, Dyea Dave Tours does van tours. Check out the reviews https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g60877-d1555401-Reviews-Dyea_Dave_Tours-Skagway_Alaska.html We have it booked on Memorial Day since the WPYR does not run the full trip on Monday. They will tour us up to Emerald Lake, then drop us on the way back at Fraser (6-7 hours, 75 miles, $89) where we pick up the WPYR back to Skagway - 28 miles and ~1.7 hours. http://*****/ We have this same tour booked with Dyea Dave in May. We are really looking forward to it! Is there a better side to sit in the van ride up, or doesn't it matter? I can't remember from my previous experience. We did a similar tour with Chlkoot several years ago and loved it so much that we decided to do it again. However, the prices for Chilkoot were the same as the ship this time, so decided to give Dave a try since I remembered how highly he was recommended even from my research back then. Edited January 14, 2019 by Sunny AZ Girl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masterdrago Posted January 14, 2019 #23 Share Posted January 14, 2019 We have it booked so I do not know about if there is a preferable side in the van. I'm sure others might jump in. If I were to guess, I would say it might not matter since it is an "up and back" tour. Also, from reading the reviews, they make many stops for looks and photos. 75 miles each way and all day. For us, it will be shorter because we are getting dropped at Fraser on the way back which is about 43 miles from Carcross. Just poking around on Google Earth, the best looking lake views are on the east side of the road (right side going "up", left side coming "down"). 5000-6000 foot mountains are on both east and west side. So unless someone pops in with a definitive answer based on experience, I would guess it does not matter. I'll take any side with a big window view up and down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunny AZ Girl Posted January 14, 2019 #24 Share Posted January 14, 2019 We are taking the van up and the train back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masterdrago Posted January 15, 2019 #25 Share Posted January 15, 2019 I just got an email from the WPYR and they said that only the car is assigned not the seat. From posts and reviews I have read, the best side to sit on would be the west. That would be on the right (starboard) on the way back to Skagway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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